Vivian Kouvant Whether she was charming celebrities at her husband’s famous Manhattan restaurant or wholeheartedly supporting local nonprofits, Vivian Kouvant has done it with verve, warmth and style. Growing up in Copenhagen, Vivian gained a love for performing arts through her brother who worked for the Danish Royal Opera House and the Royal Ballet; an appreciation that extends to her beloved Sarasota Ballet. She honed her talents at art school and painted porcelain for Royal Danish Copenhagen. At the urging of a friend, Vivian emigrated to the U.S. where she worked at the 1965 New York World’s Fair, and shortly thereafter met her future husband, Murray, a charismatic restaurateur who owned Christo’s Steak House. The restaurant was a local haunt for celebrities, and many of them became friends, including Maria Callas, Louis Armstrong, and Burt Bacharach. The famed Italian tenor Franco Corelli lived beneath them, and they enjoyed hearing his powerful voice fill their apartment. Vivian even received child-rearing advice from Grace Kelly via Ava Gardner who had recently visited Grace. In 1980, Murray sold Christo’s after 45 years to move the family to Sarasota. Composer Stephen Sondheim, who wrote “A Little Night Music” at the restaurant, lamented their leaving to Time magazine. The couple raised their son and daughter here, and after Murray passed away in 1993, Vivian was called upon to help many organizations, which she has done with her trademark enthusiasm. She served 14 years on the Sarasota Orchestra Board, worked with the Hermitage and Jewish Family and Children’s Services, and now devotes herself to the Sarasota Ballet. She is intensely proud of the dancers’ accomplishments with Ian Webb’s direction and the beauty, kindness and creativity displayed throughout the organization.
Women on the Scene 2012
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