Arts + Entertainment 4.20.23

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ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

The lights get brighter in the Limelight District

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Not far from where cranes loom over ascending towers of multimillion-dollar condos downtown, a scrappier, grassroots development is taking shape.

A pedestrianfriendly arts neighborhood is gaining momentum in the Limelight District, located along Lime Avenue between Fruitville Road and 12th Street.

Right now, the district’s fourth boundary juts in and out along Waterloo Avenue to accommodate residential buildings. But this border is in flux as the Limelight District, officially recognized by the city in 2020, works to extend its western boundary to encompass galleries around Princeton Street.

The Limelight District recently raised its arts profile with the March 30 opening of the Palmer Modern gallery at 925 N. Lime Ave. The arrival of the new gallery with artist spaces follows the February addition of a second space by arts collective Creative Liberties at 927 N. Lime Ave. Its flagship is nearby, at 901B Apricot Ave.

Twenty-one artists call Creative Liberties home, including cofounders Barbara Gerdeman, who specializes in photography, acrylic painting and mixed media, and Elizabeth Goodwill, who creates book art, fiber art and mixed media. Their new building houses 10 studio artists, gallery space and the Creative Academy classroom.

“Thanks to a huge amount of support from the community — the public, artists, arts advocates and the media — we have been able to grow Creative Liberties in a short time period,” says Gerdeman.

Commercial businesses are taking

notice of the artistic ripening of an area formerly known for auto repair shops. Recent months have seen the arrival of Sunflower Market on Lime Avenue, a WaWa convenience store on Lime Circle and Sun King Brewing on Mango Avenue.

The arrival of Sun King has prompted Kim Livengood to add Friday night hours for her dogfriendly Hamlet’s Eatery. The food truck-brewpub is located in Livengood’s Bazaar at Apricot and Lime along with roughly 40 other tenants. Opened in 2018, the Bazaar is considered the anchor of the Limelight District.

But wait, this is a story about art, not business. Actually, it’s a story about the intersection of art and commerce and what urban planners call “placemaking,” a community development endeavor that’s easier said than done.

In the case of the Limelight District, a cabal of sorts has come together. Its members include Livengood, real estate developer and arts patron Howard Davis, Creative Lib-

An area along Lime Avenue is raising its profile as a home for artists, artisans and small business.

Kim Livengood, owner of the Bazaar on Apricot and Lime, takes a breather on the emporium’s signature truck.

Liberties co-founders Elizabeth Goodwill and Barbara Gerdeman take an artistic approach to moustaches during one of their open studios events.

Limelight

erties proprietors Gerdeman and Goodwill, Palmer Modern owner and artist Craig Palmer and his wife, Jen Palmer, president of the Sarasota Studio Artists Association.

There are other movers and shakers in the mix, and you can be sure that those with a stake in the future of the Limelight District will make their voices heard. Anyone with land or a business in the district can join its association for a newly instituted membership fee of $100.

Davis has been approached by investors who want to be part of 925 Lime Ave. and other properties that Davis and his wife, Sherry, may acquire in the Limelight District in the future. But they prefer to go it alone, turning down investors and even shunning bank financing with one exception, Howard Davis says.

“When you’re investing your own money, it keeps you very focused,” he says. “And there is no such thing as a silent partner.”

A high-profile real estate developer who spent most of his career in Boston, Davis cut his teeth in Sarasota with the transformation of an abandoned furniture store he bought in 2016 in what is now known as the Rosemary District. In 2021, he sold the lovingly refurbished Mid-century modern building, The Boulevard of the Arts Center at 1570 Boulevard of the Arts, for $4.35 million.

In some instances, the impetus behind placemaking comes from local government. But the Limelight District’s birth can be attributed to Kim Livengood’s mother, Judy Alexander.

Alexander has spent most of her life as an indefatigable community volunteer. But to hear her daughter tell it, Judy Alexander’s dream was to own a warehouse.

“One day my parents were driving down Lime Avenue. My mom saw the building and said to my dad, ‘Let’s buy it.’ My dad never said no to my mom.”

Livengood’s father, Barry Alexander died in 2019, but he lived to see

that warehouse become a vibrant venue for artists and artisans to sell their wares. Fronted by an old-school pickup painted lime and apricot and decorated with a mural painted by artist Karen Chandler on a neighbor’s building, the arts-and-crafts mall is hard to miss.

Thanks to the efforts of its tenants as well as tourist development and artists groups, The Limelight District is becoming a destination for locals and tourists alike, particularly on the Second Saturdays organized by the Sarasota Studio Artists Association, which now has more than 50 members.

Spearheaded by Jen Palmer, the group has created a map of art galleries not just in and around the Limelight District but all over the city.

Right now, the Limelight District has the shopper’s lure of plentiful, free parking. Who could ask for more?

Actually, there are some things that Livengood & Co. have on their wish list.

Every arts neighborhood needs colorful banners hanging from city streetlights, and Livengood wants some. “But you wouldn’t believe what it costs —$100 each and liability insurance in case one of them falls down and hurts someone,” she says.

The banners, when they are hung, will carry a new Limelight District

logo, which is in the works along with an upgrade of the website. Fortunately, there is no shortage of branding, design and marketing expertise among members of the Limelight District’s braintrust.

Livengood and both Palmers have marketing experience while Creative Liberties co-owners Gerdeman and Goodwill worked alongside each other at the Art Center Sarasota.

As the Limelight District grows up, its backers want knotty zoning issues to be hashed out by the City Council. Current code permits heavy industrial businesses that might not fit in with the arts district, some of them auto-related.

However, some gallery and shop owners like the idea of having some auto repair shops in the area because people getting their cars fixed must leave them for a few hours, creating the opportunity to explore the budding artsy neighborhood.

Also on the zoning front, Davis and Palmer see the need to accommodate live/work spaces for artists. Davis is offering entrepreneurial artists such as Palmer, Gerdeman and Goodwill the opportunity to lease space at below market value. They, in turn, are subdividing the space and renting it out to other artists.

Davis and others envision a future for the Limelight District where artists burning the midnight oil can

sleep on a sofa without running into trouble with the law.

Well acquainted with working with local governments from his career in real estate, Davis says the Limelight District is also asking the city for help on issues such as sidewalk improvements, better street-

lights and sewage system upgrades.

Some Sarasotans, especially second-homeowners and new transplants, may not realize that there are still some houses near downtown using septic tanks. Such outmoded waste disposal has the potential to foul the air and streets, not a good look (or smell) for the Limelight District.

Unlike other arts destinations across the country that have sprung up in warehouse districts — New York City’s Soho is an iconic example — the Limelight District is not plagued by crime.

Maybe the auto repair shops in the neighborhood do a good job of outfitting cars with anti-theft devices. But for whatever reason, safety isn’t a concern right now, Davis says.

When you ask members of the Limelight coterie about their vision for the district, the answers overlap and involve common goals.

Inclusion ranks high on the list for Jen Palmer as well as the Creative Liberties co-founders Gerdeman and Goodwill — “art for all, not just rich people,” says Palmer.

Craig Palmer says the Limelight District’s artist studios can help creators build relationships with potential buyers, a factor that he sees as increasingly important in a hightech, post-COVID world.

“Some of the most interesting conversations are when visitors observe my work and explain to me what they see,” Palmer says.

Palmer Modern features an art gallery and includes a studio for Craig Palmer as well as affordable studios for five additional artists. The artists have access to a kitchen, lounge area, space to publicly display their work, and private, secure studios. For Davis’s part, the placemaking happening along Lime Avenue is about the “three C’s — creativity, community and collaboration.”

Perhaps pioneer Kim Livengood sums up the goal the best: “We’re looking to create a neighborhood where you can park your car, walk around, watch art being made, buy some stuff and get something to eat or drink,” she says.

Oh, and don’t forget your dog.

Craig Palmer and Jen Palmer are partners in life and in promoting the arts scene in Sarasota.

Courtesy photos

The dog-friendly Hamlet’s Eatery in The Bazaar at Apricot and Lime.

A theatrical last call

‘Love’s Labour’s Lost,’ ‘Paralyzed,’ ‘Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help’ and ‘Backwards Forwards Back’ will all close by the end of the month.

MARTY FUGATE CONTRIBUTOR

As the season winds down in Sarasota, there are four plays worth seeing that are closing in April. Sunshine, sailing and other social opportunities may beckon, but don’t miss some of the best that local theater has to offer.

To help you find the right seat, check out these mini reviews.

SHAKESPEARE GETS

INTO THE GROOVE

“Love’s Labour’s Lost,” the Asolo Conservatory’s latest show, isn’t officially a musical, but it’s stuffed with songs. The plot? Simply put, this is Shakespeare.

King Ferdinand (Rueben Wakefield), the ruler of Navarre, strives to be a philosopher king. His entourage of three lords are academic aristocrats as well. To sharpen their mental focus, they make an idiotically idealistic vow: For the next three years, they’ll forgo contact with women.

With perfect timing, the Princess of France (Brielle Rivera Headrington) shows up with her entourage of three highly desirable ladies.

The King and his men are filled with amorous thoughts — and second thoughts about that vow. There’s far more to it than that — but the complications aren’t the main attraction.

This early comedy is Marxist Shakespeare. “Marxist” as in Groucho, Chico, Harpo and sometimes Zeppo. “Love’s Labour’s Lost” isn’t about keeping your vows any more than “The Cocoanuts” is a study of South Florida real estate scams. The plot is a glorious excuse for Shakespearean silliness.

Director Jonathan Epstein adapted The Bard’s play and collaborated with Daniel Levy in farc-

ing it up with songs. I assume Levy and Epstein worked closely together. Epstein is sensitive to Shakespeare’s word music; the real music never gets in the way. The resulting tour de farce is a hilarious romp.

WHEN LEE MET LEIGH, WORLDS COLLIDED

Covid delayed Etan Frankel’s “Paralyzed” but didn’t kill it. This season, it finally hit the stage at the Florida Studio Theatre. Here’s the basic story. Or stories ...

Leigh (Rachel Moulton) is a bit of a control freak with OCD tendencies. She’s got a high IQ and two doctoral degrees. Leigh loves math because it’s eternal, predictable and unchanging. She hides from real life because it doesn’t always add up.

Lee (Alexander Stuart) is a goodnatured good ol’ boy. In the brains department, he’s average. In the brawn department, Lee is a hardcharging, rising football star. Off the field, he doesn’t score many TDs.

Leigh and Lee share snippets of their hard-luck stories. Their disjointed soliloquies slowly converge. The force pulling them together?

An apparent suicide note that Leigh found behind a hotel toilet.

That’s the bare bones of Frankel’s fable. These dry bones seemed dead in 2020 — now they’re dancing around at FST. Their skeletal gavotte is witty, funny, satiric, frightening, metaphorical, philosophical and existential.

Despite the black comedy, it isn’t a happy-happy joyride. It gets harrowing at times. But never boring.

ASOLO REP PLAY

KEEPS THE FAITH

In “Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help,” the action unfolds in a blue-collar Catholic commu-

nity in the 1970s. While officially a “memory play,” it’s an unreliable narrator’s remembrance of things past.

That narrator is Linda O’Shea (Erin O’Connor), an adult telling the story of her 19-year-old self. Back in 1973, something turned teenage Linda’s life upside down — and the rest of the O’Shea family’s lives along with it.

So what happened exactly? Linda’s younger sister, Becky (Willa Carpenter) was 13 years old. Her mother Josephine “Jo” (Lise Bruneau) should share the facts of life with her youngest daughter — but it makes her cry just thinking about it. So she passes the job off to her oldest daughter. Linda does a good job but uses blunt words. Becky captures those words on a hidden tape recorder. Father Lovett (Jay Russell), the family’s parish priest, gets his hands on the cassette. In his unforgiving hands, it’s explosive ammunition.

Katie Forgette’s play has a great concept. It’s also high-concept —and self-conscious of its own artificial artistry. Director Céline Rosenthal gets the audience howling, while Linda makes up her mind about what her story really was.

IF YOU GO

‘LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST’

When: Through April 23.

Where: The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art’s Bayfront Gardens, 5401 Bay Shore Road.

Tickets: $32.

A

SECOND CHANCE

Jacqueline Goldfinger’s “Backwards, Forwards Back” at the Urbanite Theatre is a one-man play. The protagonist is unnamed. He’s simply “The Soldier” (L. James). He’s a combat veteran who’s come back from Iraq, but not intact.

The Soldier’s mind has been shattered by PTSD. Combat’s random slaughter has rewired his nervous system. Certain triggers can instantly turn him into a killing machine. After his sister issues an ultimatum, The Soldier goes to the VA center and asks for help. The treatment they give him is virtual reality immersion therapy. (It’s a real thing.)

The Soldier’s VR goggles play wartime scenes. Most of the time, nothing’s happening. Then — without warning — a jump-cut to ultraviolence. The terror comes in small doses at first, then increases. The Soldier slowly builds a tolerance. You can tell he’s getting it together.

It’s powerful stuff, but Goldfinger’s not trying to push your buttons. “Backwards Forwards Back” isn’t a manipulative emotional roller coaster. It’s a glimpse into one veteran’s psychic reality.

Info: Visit AsoloRep.org/ conservatory.

‘PARALYZED’

When: Through April 21.

Where: FST Bowne’s Lab Theatre, 1265 First St.

Tickets: $25-$39.

Info: Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

‘INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP’

When: Through April 22.

Where: FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota.

Tickets: $29-$95.

Info: Visit AsoloRep.org.

‘BACKWARDS FORWARDS BACK’

When: Through April 30.

Where: Urbanite Theatre, 1487 Second St.

Tickets: $25-$39.

Info: Visit UrbaniteTheatre.com.

Director Brendan Ragan takes an egoless approach. He gets out of the story’s way and lets the actor do his job. With a script this good and an actor this talented, that’s wise.

Photo by Gina Martin

A SOLDIER GETS

Courtesy photo

Rueben Wakefield, Jackson Purdy, Trezure Coles and Brooke Turner star in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of Shakespeare’s “Love’s Labour’s Lost” in the Ringling gardens.

THIS WEEK

THURSDAY

‘INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP’

1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail

$33 and up

Visit AsoloRep.org.

Travel back to 1973 with the Asolo Repertory Theatre to see how the O’Shea family does damage control when their prized respectability is threatened. Runs through April 22.

‘PARALYZED’

7:30 p.m. at Florida Studio Theatre’s Bowne’s Lab Theatre, 1265 First St.

$18-$39

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

In this world premiere, the lives of two strangers — Leigh and Lee — with little in common besides their names come together after the discovery of a mysterious suicide note. Runs through April 21.

JIJI GUITAR

5:30 p.m. at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St.

$40

Visit ArtistSeriesConcerts.org.

The first guitarist to win the Concert Artist Guild competition first prize in 30 years, JIJI has performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Kennedy Center and has been featured on PBS and NPR.

RYAN BELLEVILLE

7 p.m. at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, 1923 Ringling Blvd.

$28 Visit McCurdysComedy.com.

Currently starring on the hit Netflix show “Workin’ Moms,” Ryan Belleville was called “one of the best comics around” by GQ magazine. His credits include numerous appearances at the Just for Laughs festival, TV appearances include CBC’s Halifax Comedy Festival, CBS’s “The Late Late Show” and MTV’s “Busted.” Continues Friday and Saturday.

SAILOR CIRCUS:

‘AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS’

7 p.m. at Sailor Circus Arena, 2075 Bahia Vista St.

$20-$40 Visit CircusArts.org.

In “Around the World in 80 Days,” young athletes fly and soar to new heights in a show that tells the story of a smart, determined woman on a wild globe-trotting ride, seasoned by music and costumes reflecting the flavors of international locales.

Continues Friday, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sunday.

‘BIG SEXY: THE FATS WALLER REVUE’

7:30 p.m. at Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave.

$20-$50

Visit WestcoastBlackTheatre.org.

Nate Jacobs’ original tribute features Fats Waller’s signature songs, including “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “Honeysuckle Rose,” “Your Feet’s Too Big,” “The Joint is Jumpin’” and many more. Runs through May 28.

BILL AND THE BELLES

7:30 p.m. at Fogartyville, 525 Kumquat Court $18 for members; $20 for nonmembers; $10 for students.

Visit WSLR.org/Fogartyville.

Led by guitarist and vocalist Kris Truelsen, this band embodies classic American roots music through the use of driving fiddle and banjo tunes accented by the group’s signature harmonies. Their latest album explores topics of love, loss and mourning with a jaunty attitude.

‘ALL THE SEX I’VE EVER HAD’

7:30 p.m. at Historic Asolo Theater, 5401 Bayshore Road

$10-$35

Visit Ringling.org.

A group of six older adults from the Sarasota/Manatee community discuss the evolution of love and sexuality from the perspective of life’s later years. Continues Friday, Saturday and 5:30 p.m. Sunday. For mature audiences only.

‘LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST’

8 p.m. at The Ringling Museum of Art’s Bayfront Gardens $35 Visit AsoloRep.org/conservatory.

FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training presents the early Shakespeare comedy about four young men, one of them a king, who try to swear off women. Runs through April 23.

‘BACKWARDS FORWARDS BACK’

7:30 p.m. at Urbanite Theatre, 1487 Second St. $25-$39

Visit UrbaniteTheatre.com.

In this world premiere by Jacqueline Goldfinger directed by Urbanite CoArtistic Director Brendan Ragan, a soldier returning from war fights his PTSD with virtual reality technology. The play was due to close April 23 but has been extended to April 30.

‘VISIT JOE WHITEFEATHER (AND BRING THE FAMILY!)’

8 p.m. at Florida Studio Theatre’s Gompertz Theatre, 1265 First St. $25-$39

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org

Faced with a decline in tourism during the 1970s, a small Pennsylvania town decides to rename itself in honor of a dead Native American war hero who never even visited Beaver Gap while he was alive. Runs through May 21.

FRIDAY

JAZZ AT TWO: JAMES SUGGS AND FRIENDS

2 p.m. at Unitarian Universalist Church of Sarasota, 3975 Fruitville Road

$15-$20 Visit JazzClubOfSarasota.org.

At the age of 9, Suggs took up the trumpet and began professionally at age 16 in northeast Ohio. He has toured with the Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey orchestras. In the Sarasota area, he has performed with Houston Person, Ken Peplowski, John Lamb, La Lucha and others.

‘POPS: BROADWAY BOUND’

7:30 p.m. at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N Tamiami Trail $40-$90 Visit SarasotaOrchestra.org.

The Sarasota Orchestra celebrates Broadway with conductor William Waldrop and vocalists Carmen Ruby Floyd, Eryn LeCroy and Josh Young, Tony-nominated from “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Continues 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday.

SATURDAY

FORKS & CORKS FOOD AND WINE FESTIVAL

10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Ringling Courtyard, 5401 Bay Shore Road

Prices vary and some events have a waitlist. Visit EatLikeALocal.com/ ForksAndCorks/The-Festival

The 16th Annual Forks & Corks Food and Wine Festival features a multiday menu of events, ranging from University Master Classes on Saturday and Wine Dinners. Runs through Sunday.

‘CUBAN CHOREOGRAPHY SHOWCASE’

2 and 7:30 p.m. at Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave. $35 and up Visit SRQCubanBallet.org.

The Sarasota Cuban Ballet School presents classical and contemporary works celebrating Cuban choreographers, featuring

DON’T MISS

‘AMERICAN ROOTS’: CROSBY STILLS & NASH FOLK ROCK WITH THE LUBBEN BROTHERS

When: 7:30 p.m. on Thursday

Where: Oak Street Stage, 2050 Oak St.

Tickets: $20 suggested donation to First Presbyterian Church Info: TheLubbenBrothers.com

It’s CSNX3 as the triplets known as the Lubben Brothers explore the music of Crosby Stills & Nash. Michael, Tom and Joshua team up with Key Chorale at 4 p.m. Saturday at Church of Palms, 3224 Bee Ridge Road, and 5 p.m. Sunday at St. Boniface Church, 5615 Midnight Pass Road.

Courtesy photos

The Sailor Circus performs “Around the World in 80 Days” through Sunday.

OUR PICK

POSTMODERN JUKEBOX: ‘LIFE IN THE PAST LANE’ TOUR

Postmodern JukeBox’s “Life in the Past Lane” Tour celebrates the greatest 20th century musical genres, along with the hits of our own modern era, for a toe-tapping synthesis of vintage and contemporary.

the Gulfcoast Studio Company of the Sarasota Cuban Ballet School with guest artists.

DIVERSITY: THE VOICES OF SARASOTA — 25TH

ANNIVERSARY CONCERT

3-5 p.m. at Holley Hall, 709 N. Tamiami Trail

$20

Visit DiversitySarasota.org

Through songs of hope and inclusion, the LGBTQ chorus inspires our community to embrace equality.

LAURA SNOWDEN, CLASSICAL GUITARIST

7:30 p.m. at Riverview Performing Arts Center, 1 Ram Way

$37, $39, $41

Visit GuitarSarasota.org.

British-French guitarist Laura Snowden was invited by Julian Bream to premiere his latest commissions at Wigmore Hall. Her international appearances have since built rapidly, with festival debuts across Europe, China and the U.S.

SUNDAY

‘SPRING INTO SUMMER’

Suncoast Jazz Ambassadors

3 p.m. at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 3131 61st St. $5 Visit SuncoastConcertBand.org.

This is the last concert of the season for the Suncoast Jazz Ambassadors. Call 941-907-4123 for ticket availability.

IF YOU GO

When: 7 p.m. on Sunday

Where: Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N Tamiami Trail Tickets: $47-$67 Info: Visit VanWezel.org.

CHAMBER SOIRÉES:

SCHUMANN AND BRAHMS

4 p.m. at Holley Hall, 709 N. Tamiami Trail $40-$50

Visit SarasotaOrchestra.org.

The Sarasota Orchestra chamber season concludes with Schumann’s Fairy Tales for clarinet, viola and piano. Schumann’s wife, Clara, inspired Brahms to begin his piano quartet in C minor, which took him 20 years to finish.

MONDAY ‘STRETCH’ BRUYN PRESENTS ‘OVERJOYED’ STEVIE WONDER

TRIBUTE

7:30 p.m. at Florida Studio Theatre’s John C. Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.

$34-$39

Visit JazzClubSarasota.org.

Richard “Stretch” Bruyn and his quintet perform a tribute to pop music icon Stevie Wonder.

WEDNESDAY ‘MON ONCLE’ SCREENING

2:30 p.m. at Sarasota High School Alumni Auditorium

Free for Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and Sarasota Art Museum members; $20 for others Visit OlliRinglingCollege.org

The screening of the classic French film starring Jacques Tati will be hosted by Emmy-Award winning OLLI instructor Jeff Ryder. Registration required.

The Humane Society of Sarasota County brought some Hollywood flair to its latest Paws fundraiser on April 14. The latest “Paws on the Red Carpet” fundraiser drew hundreds to the Art Ovation Hotel for a lively morning of fundraising and fun for the nonprofit’s animal care services.

True to the name, guests arrived decked out in old Hollywood glamour and posed for photos on a red carpet stretching out to the Art Ovation hotel space. Volunteers with Humane Society pets were on hand to mingle with the crowd while this year’s Paw-Parazzi models snapped photos.

There was even a Joan Crawford impersonator who served as a host with Jason Alpert, who took to the stage following a program-opening number by Dynasty Dance Clubs. Guests also heard from Co-chairwomen Donna Koffman and Tammy Karp as well as Executive Director Anna Gonce before the program’s close.

— HARRY SAYER

Paws on the Red Carpet

Friday, April 14, at the Art Ovation Hotel | Benefiting Humane Society of Sarasota County

Photos by Harry Sayer

Daria Fairchild, Hope McCampbell and Sarah Karp

Nikki Goslin and Ann Edwards with Sandy

Jared Wurtzler, David Heedy and Justin Senior

Carly Norris, Amanda Conner and Jenny Dwyer

Linda Axelrod as Joan Rivers with Executive Director Anna Gonce

The event was held at the Art Ovation Hotel.

Pam Revels, Cornbread and Axel Traught

Co-chairwomen Donna Koffman and Tammy Karp

Wednesday, April 12, at Sarasota Art Museum | Benefiting Sarasota Art Museum

Ambassadors Dinner

Sarasota Art Museum supporters met for the annual Ambassadors Dinner on April 12. Some of the museum’s closest donors and figures mingled inside the building and heard from guest artist Janet Echelman. The afternoon continued with dinner and words from SAM leadership figures.

— HARRY SAYER

Ellen Berman, Lois Stuhlberg, Katherine Martucci and guest artist Janet Echelman

Rangsook Yoon, Charlotte Suhler and Flora Major

Photos by Harry Sayer

Teri Hansen and Robert Cordaro

Shine On! Gala

Saturday, April 15, at Michael’s On East | Benefiting Visible Men Academy

The Visible Men Academy celebrated 10 years of education with its Shine On! gala April 15 at Michael’s On East.

The annual gala marked 10 years of the school with an elegant evening that started with mixing and mingling before it was time for the program to start.

The night honored VMA cofounder Louis Parker as well as Naiema Frieson, board chair, for their years of service. The pair were on hand welcoming guests and enjoying the event.

Co-chairwomen Janet Taylor and Christina Bonilla welcomed the audience before guests heard from VMA parent Jennifer Hendricks and Janjay Gehndyu, principal.

The program concluded with remarks from Frieson and dancing.

— HARRY SAYER

Principal Janjay Gehndyu and speaker Jennifer Hendricks

Photos by Harry Sayer

Naiema Frieson and co-founder Louis Parker

Co-chairwomen Christina Bonilla and Janet Taylor

Tennis Ball

Friday, April 14, at Michael’s On East | Benefiting Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties hosted the latest Tennis Ball fundraiser April 14 at Michael’s On East.

The fundraiser, presented by the Elizabeth Moore Sarasota Open and coming off the Joey Gratton Tennis Championship in early April, brought guests to the Michael’s event space for a program that started with mingling and bidding on silent auction items before it was time to head indoors.

Les McCurdy emceed the event, which raised funds for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County’s various programs as well as the USTA Foundation.

— HARRY SAYER

Photos by Harry Sayer

Jennifer and Lane Smith

Tim Harney, Sunny Moss, Marion and Joe Lieb

Allison and Cliff Menezes

Yolanda Mancha and President and CEO Bill Sadlo

Carl Troiano and Scott Allen

Co-chairwomen Amy Lyons, Barbara Lancer and Christina Bonilla

The event was held at Michael’s On East.

The 16th Annual Culinary Celebration

APRIL 20-24, 2023

WINE DINNERS - APRIL 20-24

Four days of wine and food festivity, thoughtfully presented by our Member Restaurants. Many winemakers or winery principals will be in attendance. for availability from Venice to Anna Maria Island!

FORKS & CORKS UNIVERSITY MASTER CLASSES - APRIL 22

Beginning Sunday, December 19 th , 2021 through Sunday, April 24th , 2022

Led by panels of world-renowned industry experts, these engaging wine seminars are designed for those who want an educational experience accompanied by guided tastings. This year’s classes will present a rare opportunity to learn about wine with those instrumental in crafting them. Only a few seats remain!

WINE SHOP TASTINGSAPRIL 20 & 22

From a Wine & Cheese pairing at Vino Loco in Englewood, to Open Houses and Tastings at The Butcher’s Block, Michael’s Wine Cellar and Hive Bar in Sarasota, guests may swirl, sip and shop while mingling with visiting wineries. Reserve your spot today!

ONLINE FOOD & WINE AUCTION

Our virtual auction promises a swank collection of lots featuring rare and exquisite wines, winery tours and tastings, and special dining experiences made possible by generous donations from wineries and friends of Sarasota-Manatee Originals. Bid now thru Sunday, April 23 at 3PM.

PRESENTING SPONSORS

PRESENTED BY AUDI SARASOTA AND SUNCOAST PORSCHE