Arts + Entertainment 5.16.24

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ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

THE MAGIC OF MARVIN

Sheldon Rhoden electrifies audiences in Westcoast Black Theatre’s ‘Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul.’

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

In a world filled with selfies and social media, it’s easy to assume everyone wants to be a star. But that’s the last thing Sheldon Rhoden wanted to be. Rhoden, who is starring in Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe’s “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul,” was more focused on business than show business when he was first brought to the attention of WBTT founder and Artistic Director Nate Jacobs.

Jacobs was impressed when he first saw Rhoden singing at a funeral, but when he approached the young man about performing in a WBTT show in 2008, Rhoden rebuffed him more than once.

At the time, Rhoden was working for Verizon and wanted to focus on his job. “I went to Booker High, but I wasn’t interested in VPA,” Rhoden says, referring to the high school’s highly regarded Visual and Performing Arts program.

IF YOU GO

‘Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul’

When: Through June 2

Where: Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave.

Tickets: $20-$50.

Info: Visit WestcoastBlackTheatre.org.

Despite Rhoden’s reluctance to take the stage, when Jacobs was rehearsing for a musical revue of ’70s duets not long after meeting Rhoden, he told his cast that he felt like someone was missing. That was someone was Sheldon Rhoden. One of the singers, Kanessa “Neyce” Pierre, told Jacobs that she had gone to school with Rhoden and that he was a talented singer. She encouraged Jacobs to call Rhoden right then during the rehearsal. Jacobs called Rhoden on his cellphone and told him that a part singing Marvin Gaye in duets was waiting for him if he wanted it. “He said, ‘Where y’all at?’ and came right over,” Jacobs recalled in a recent interview in his offices at WBTT, where he was joined by Rhoden. Today, Rhoden owns an automotive repair business authorized by the State of Florida to help cars that have been “totaled” get back on the road. But to Sarasota audiences, he’s

SEE GAYE, PAGE 2

Image courtesy of Sorcha Augustine

Sheldon Rhoden is starring in Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe’s “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul” for the fourth time.

Image courtesy of Evan Sigmund

Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe founder and Artistic Director Nate Jacobs created, adapted and is directing “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul.”

a living, breathing incarnation of Marvin Gaye, the R&B singer tragically killed by his father in 1984.

GAYE, EMBODIED

Back in the day, Hollywood promoted biopics with taglines like “Faye Dunaway IS Joan Crawford” for “Mommie Dearest” or “Lou Diamond Phillips IS Ritchie Valens” for “La Bamba.” If WBTT’s “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul” were an old school movie, the poster would read “Sheldon Rhoden IS Marvin Gaye.”

For its 2023-24 season, WBTT brought back Rhoden in “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul” for the fourth time. It was scheduled to run from April 17 through May 26 and it sold out almost immediately.

The show has been extended through June 2. There’s even talk of taking it to Broadway, Jacobs confides. “I might have a big story for you pretty soon,” he says.

Whether “Prince of Soul” makes it to the Great White Way, Rhoden is a bona fide sensation on Florida’s Gulf Coast. However, as would befit a reluctant star, he’s still unassuming when he’s off stage.

Jacobs remembers the first time Rhoden took on the Marvin Gaye persona for “Duets of the ’70s.”

“Sheldon wasn’t familiar with the theater, and he didn’t understand that audiences don’t always go crazy,” he recalls. “He didn’t realize the effect he was having on women.”

Over the years, Jacobs has worked to develop “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul” and its star. In the initial production, during the 2010-11 season, there was very little acting required of Rhoden.

“There was no libretto,” Jacobs says, referring to the spoken part of a musical production. “I didn’t want to scare him off, so the story was told by others in the show.”

In the latest version of “Prince of Soul,” Rhoden ages from his teens to his 40s. Gaye was 44 when he was killed by his father, but that horrific scene isn’t shown on the WBTT stage. The production uses video as

well as sets and costumes to convey points in time and places like Washington, D.C., Detroit, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Now in his early 40s himself, Rhoden has grown up with the show. He is believable in a wig as a youthful Gaye, but he’s at his best playing the singer in his older, more political phase, singing such ballads as “What’s Going On.”

Originally a response to the Vietnam War, the song got a second life in a 2019 YouTube video directed by Savannah Leaf with protest scenes amid the crisis that left the mostly African American populace of Flint, Michigan, without clean drinking water.

It almost goes without saying that Rhoden’s rendition of Gaye’s 1982 hit, “Sexual Healing,” from his 17th and final album, “Midnight Love,” sends WBTT audience into a swoon.

While Rhoden soars as Gaye, the cast of “Prince of Soul” provides the wings that lift him to theatrical heights. Michael Kinsey is so con-

vincing as Marvin Gaye’s abusive father that he is booed by audiences when he takes his bows after the show.

Other standouts are Ariel Blue as the fiercely devoted Mama Gay (the family name didn’t originally have an “e” on the end) and Raleigh Mosely II as the older Frankie Gaye, Marvin’s brother, who acts as the narrator of the musical.

Props to Terry Spann, who plays the driven but selfish Motown Records founder Berry Gordy, and to LaKesha Lorene, who portrays his demanding sister, Anna Gordy, whom Marvin Gaye married after a relationship that was kept secret because of their age difference.

Spoiler alert: Jai Shanae is so believable as Tammi Terrell, Marvin’s musical partner, that when she collapsed on stage, I thought it was actress who had fallen ill, not the character.

Jacobs is the director of “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul,” but the show would not be possible without the

superb work of music director Matthew McKinnon and choreographer Donald Frison.  Kudos to wig designer Dominique Freeman and costume designer Darci Collins for capturing the changing hairdos and fashions of three decades — the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s — in the time-traveling musical.

Despite Gaye’s struggles with wives and lovers, the IRS and drugs and the way his life was cut short, one leaves the WBTT theater after seeing “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul” with a feeling of hope and renewal. We are reminded of how Gaye’s courage in speaking out against war and supporting civil rights made this flawed superstar a hero. His charisma cannot be erased. No doubt “Sexual Healing” is on many bedside playlists more than four decades after it topped the charts. Gaye’s sexy persona endures, with help from the talents of Jacobs, Rhoden and the rest of the WBTT team.

Jai Shanae and Sheldon Rhoden as the Motown duo of Tammi Terrell and Marvin Gaye in Westcoast Black Theatre

Troupe’s “Marvin Gaye: Prince of Soul.”

Image courtesy of Sorcha Augustine

EATING WITH EMMA

Nacho Average Day: Mexican Meals from breakfast to dessert

Three spots for tasty Mexican brunch, dinner and dessert in Sarasota.

EMMA BURKE JOLLY

CONTRIBUTOR

Life is too short to not do the things (or eat and drink the things) that bring you joy.

So why not munch on Mexican for all three meals? Our community is becoming a mecca for food from south of the border. Tapering the list from what feels like thousands of trendy spots required serious research. I don’t think it’s out of the question to extend Cinco de Mayo to the entire month, so don’t worry if you make your culinary trip on May 17. Here are three memorable Mexican joints to enjoy momentous meals.

KOLUCAN MEXICAN BAR & GRILL

6644 Gateway Ave., Sarasota; 941-921-3133; Kolucan.com

Mex-cellant Brunch: I’m a sucker for chiles rellenos ($24), and this new-to-Gulf-Gate spot really delivers on presentation and flavor. Try two poblano peppers stuffed with potatoes, mushrooms, onions, confit tomatoes and roasted carrots in vegetable mole topped with cashew sour cream, served with Mexican rice and black beans. Between the bold aromatics on the plate and the ambiance of the restaurant, I couldn’t help ponder, “Am I still in Sarasota?”

On Your Marg, Get Set, Brunch: Let’s play “Two truths and a lie” — you guess the lie. First, I was a vegetarian for six years until my college boyfriend forgot to tell his parents, who were grilling T-bone steaks for our first meeting.

Second, when someone asks me, “What is one drink you can never drink again?” I without hesitation say jalapeño margaritas because my husband and I went a little hard in Epcot after we got engaged. Third, I once cut up hundreds of hot dogs for girls to wrestle in for an episode of Jerry Springer and smelled like hot dogs for two weeks after that.

The lie: While my husband and I might have spent a pretty penny at Epcot, I will never turn down a jalapeño margarita — especially at Kolucan.

CASA MASA 2773 Bee Ridge Road, Sarasota; 941922-8226; CasaMasa-SRQ.com

Let’s Taco Bout It: Two years ago, my husband and I embarked on the most exciting part of relationship. Nope, it wasn’t marriage; it was the quest for the best tacos in town. We happened upon owner

Summer term registration now open at OLLIatRinglingCollege.org! More than 50 classes and programs offered including:

Explore Sounds and Rhythms with Drums with Scott Blum Tuesday, May 21

1-2:30 pm • Fee: $20

Advanced Style The Documentary Screening and Discussion with Andrea Dasha Reich Wednesday, May 22 1-3 pm • Fee: $15

What Wall Street Doesn’t Want YOU to Know with Don Hagan and Regan Teague Friday, May 31 11 am-12 pm Fee: $15

Conjuring and Conversation with Star Newman

Thursday, June 6

11 am-12 pm Fee: $15

Rob Disilvio’s culinary brain child, Casa Masa, and our taste buds have been tantalized at least twice a month ever since. Casa Masa is currently nestled off Bee Ridge, but it’s transferring its taco talents down to The Landings later this year. The mouthwatering flavors from Disilvio’s menu are far superior to what’s on offer at most taco joints in our area. When you’re looking for a true taste of Mexico, look no further than Casa Masa — especially since Disilvio gets ingredients flown in from Oaxaca. (How many places can really say that?) Try the pork al pastor ($4.50) with marinated pork and pineapple, the Birria ($6) with braised lamb, queso and consome included, or the camarones ($6.50) with grilled shrimp, roasted corn and black garlic crema.

Have a Pizza My Heart: Did you know that there are authentic Mexican pizzas made right here in Sarasota? Head to Casa Masa and try

What’s it Worth? with Andrew Ford Thursday, June 6 1-3:30 pm • Fee: $20

Golden Intimacy… Better Than I Expected! with Dr. Peggy Albano Friday, June 14 1-2:30 pm

Technology & Tyranny: How Online Insecurity and Surveillance Technology are Changing the World with Thomas P. Vartanian Monday, July 1 2:30-4 pm • Fee: $15

Unless noted, all classes take place at the Ringling College Museum Campus at Sarasota Art Museum

1001 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota 941-309-5111 OLLIatRinglingCollege.org

their tlayuditas ($14) featured in the “not tacos” section of the menu. These bad boys are made with fresh imported Oaxacan quesillo, napa cabbage, black bean paste, black garlic crema, salsa macha (contains peanuts), red onion and micro cilantro. Choose from a plethora of succulent proteins or make it a breakfast version ($19.50) with chorizo, potato and sunny-side up quail eggs.

Be sure to wash this all down with an ice cold beer on tap or some sangria, of course.

AGAVE BANDIDO

1550 Lakefront Drive, Sarasota; 941260-8866; AgaveBandido.com

Churr All I Need: For those of you who have not had the pleasure of meeting my mom, she is a real life superhero and could kick Batman and Spider-Man’s butts blindfolded. A year before she lost her mom to Alzheimer’s, she had to undergo massive brain surgery. Per the Kennedy —I mean Burke — curse, her surgery did not go according to plan. She was in the ICU for quite some time. With her unearthly

determination and supernatural strength, when she regained consciousness, she immediately turned to my dad and said, “Can the girls please go get me churros with caramel dipping sauce?” In seconds, my sister and I were out the door and heading to her favorite New York City Mexican restaurant to get her the dessert that always, without fail, cures all. That’s why this year, after everything that we have been through, I knew I had one responsibility — to find the best churros in town for mom. I found them at Agave Bandido. Churros ($7) come with chocolate and caramel sauce, which made Mom one happy camper. (They also offer churro breakfast shots!)

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margarita: You’ve been eating great food all day on this flavortown fiesta, so why not finish the night with a Patron margarita tower ($48)? Choose four margaritas to toast good times, great company and no hangovers! Pick from all four classic or flavored ($60), which come in guava, mango, strawberry, passion fruit, coconut or spicy.

Looking for a reason to hit the road? Join OLLI for a summer tour.

St. Petersburg Tour: Imagine Museum and Duncan McClellan Gallery Tuesday, June 4 8:45 am-4:30 pm Fee: $105

Courtesy images

Authentic Mexican pizzas, called tlayuditas ($14), made with fresh imported Oaxacan quesillo from Casa Masa.

Brunch time at Kolucan Mexican Bar & Grill.

THIS WEEK

THURSDAY

ARTS ADVOCATES ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP LUNCHEON

11 a.m. at Sarasota Yacht Club, 1100 John Ringling Blvd. $45-$50 Visit ArtsAdvocates.org.

Student scholarship winners will be introduced at the Arts Advocates luncheon and some will perform. The guest speaker will be Sara Curtis Robinson, vice president for advancement of Ringling College, who oversees its arts and culture programs in the community including Sarasota Art Museum, Town Hall Lecture Series, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and Englewood Art Center.

‘TROUBADOUR’

8 p.m. at FST’s Gompertz Theatre, 1265 First St. $39-$56 Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

Featuring music by Sugarland’s Kristian Bush, “Troubadour” tells the story of a country music legend’s son in the 1950s who is trying to carry on his father’s legacy. When he joins forces with unlikely allies, the world of country music is changed forever. Runs through May 19.

MIKE PARAMORE

7 p.m. at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, 1923 Ringling Blvd. $26 Visit McCurdysComedy.com.

Mike Paramore is a featured comedian on Fox’s show “Laughs” and has performed at the Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal, Cleveland Comedy Festival and won the Laughing Devil Festival in New York City.

‘BANK JOB’

7:30 p.m. at Venice Theatre’s Pinkerton Theatre, 140 Tampa Ave. W., Venice

$15-$32

Visit VeniceTheatre.org.

After two brothers execute a bank heist, their perfect crime gets thwarted in a comic romp with a dash of romance thrown in. Runs through May 19.

‘THE FLIP SIDE’

7:30 p.m. at FST’s Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.

$37-$42

Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.

With songs like “The Ballad of Sigmund Freud” and “Killed by a Coconut,” the latest cabaret creation of Richard and Rebecca Hopkins tips its musical hat to comic songwriters. The show features arrangements by Jim Prosser. Runs through June 16.

‘TWELVE ANGRY MEN: A NEW MUSICAL’

7:30 p.m. at FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail $35-$95

Visit AsoloRep.org.

Asolo Repertory Theatre Producing Artistic Director Peter Rothstein directs an innovative musical adaptation of the classic courtroom drama by playwright David Simpatico and Michael Holland. Rothstein first directed “Twelve Angry Men: A New Musical” at Theatre Latté Da in Minneapolis, where it made its world premiere in 2022. Runs through June 9.

FRIDAY

SIGHTS + SOUNDS AT WATER-

SIDE PLACE: SARASOTA CONTEMPORARY DANCE

6 p.m. at Waterside Place, 7500 Island Cove Terrace, Lakewood Ranch Free Visit LakewoodRanch.com.

Sarasota Contemporary Dance Ensemble will present works choreographed by Associate Directors Xiao-Xuan Dancigers and Melissa Rummel, along with company member Monessa Salley and Rising Choreographer Nicole Connaughton.

‘AMERICAN SPIRIT’

7 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 2050 Oak St. $35 Visit MusicaSacra.org.

Musica Sacra closes the season with “American Spirit,” a tribute to Yankee creativity. Featured pianist Glenn Priest will give a rousing centennial performance of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” and guest artist Maicy Powell of West Coast Black Theater Troupe will join for a triptych of spirituals.

ALEX CUBA

7 p.m. Fogartyville, 525 Kumquat Court $18-$32 Visit WSLR.org.

Cuban-Canadian musician Alex Cuba, who sings in Spanish and English, won the Grammy for Best Latin Pop album in 2022.

MONDAY

BEHIND THE CURTAIN: EXPLORING THE VAN WEZEL FROM THE ART TO THE STAGE

1:30 p.m. at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail $15 Visit ArtsAdvocates.org.

Find out what happens behind the scenes at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and learn about the paintings and sculptures on display by noted Florida artists such as Robert Chase, Thorn Utz, Eugene White and Ben Stahl, to name just a few.

MONDAY NIGHT JAZZ: MICHAEL ROSS AND COMPANY

7:30 p.m. at John C. Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.

$34-$39 Visit JazzClubSarasota.org.

Jazz Club of Sarasota presents Michael Ross and Company featuring Fred Johnson with Daniel Jordan, Anthony Aldissi and Walt Hubbard. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for dinner and drinks.

TUESDAY

ARTLAB SECOND ANNIVERSARY

CELEBRATION

7 p.m. at Rose and Ivy, 1296 First St. $15 Visit GraeProductions.net.

Celebrate local art and performers during an electrifying evening featuring DJ Shambala, DJ Michael Stavros, Limelite SRQ Lighting, digital art by Bichael Burphy, bites by Rose and Ivy and more.

GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH

GALLERY

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Tibbals Learning Center, The Ringling Museum, 5401 Bay Shore Road $25 for adults; $5 for children ages 6-17; free for children under age 6 Visit Ringling.org.

Closed for two years, the second floor of the Tibbals Learning Center at The Ringling Museum has reopened with new, interactive exhibits that cover 50 years of Feld Entertainment’s ownership of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey

OUR PICK

‘IMPACT: CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS AT THE HERMITAGE ARTIST RETREAT’

The first collaboration between the Sarasota Art Museum and the Hermitage Artist Retreat, “Impact: Contemporary Artists at the Hermitage Artist Retreat,” includes 10 Hermitage Fellows representing a broad range of media — painting, sculpture, installation, photography, video, music, performance, conceptual art, ceramics, weaving and printmaking. Runs through July 7.

IF YOU GO

When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday Where: Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail

Tickets: $15

Info: Visit SarasotaArtMuseum. org.

Circus. The Greatest Show on Earth Gallery includes a video directory of circus performers powered by motion sensors and an eight-minute immersive experience called “The Show” that combines video, lighting and original circus wardrobe.

DON’T MISS

WBTT YOUNG ARTIST SHOWCASE: CHARLIE ‘CJ’ MELTON

Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe

vocalist Charlie “CJ” Melton stars in “I Sing Because I’m Happy; I Sing Because I’m Free.” The self-produced show will feature selections such as “So Amazing” by Luther Vandross and “I’m Blessed” by Charlie Wilson.

IF YOU GO When: May 19-20

Where: Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave.

Tickets: $27

Info: Visit WestcoastBlackTheatreTroupe.org.

Image courtesy of John Jones

Image courtesy of Sorcha Augustine

Image courtesy of Michael Underwood

Move over, Spoleto

Jeffery Kin says it’s time for Sarasota to have an interdisciplinary arts fest.

MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER

ARTS +

If you’re new to Sarasota, you can be forgiven for assuming Jeffery Kin is running for political office. Kin seems to attend every premiere, community event and fundraiser, not just in Sarasota, but up and down Florida’s Gulf Coast.

The erstwhile actor is indefatigable. What’s more, he’s relentlessly cheerful.

After someone recently tried to rain on his parade, Kin announced on Facebook that one of his favorite songs is “Don’t Steal My Sunshine,” and linked to a video of the 1990s ditty by the Canadian indie rock band Len.

No one could ever take away the bright light emanating from Kin, though a recent bout of food poisoning knocked him off his game for about a day.

That may not sound like a very long time. But in the world of Jeffery Kin, a day is jam-packed full of business meetings and social engagements from morning until night.

What is Kin up to anyway? It’s no secret Kin is executive director and

CEO of Sarasota Rising, an “arts initiative” he founded in 2021 after resigning as artistic director of The Players Centre for Performing Arts, the community theater now known as The Sarasota Players.

Armed with funding from private donors, Visit Sarasota and the Sarasota Downtown Improvement District, as well as the participation of area cultural organizations, Kin is committed to launching an arts festival this November, a time described as “shoulder season” on Sarasota Rising’s website. That’s when season is getting started but is not yet in full swing.

What has been dubbed the Living Arts Festival is scheduled for Nov. 10-17 in a number of locations, not just in Sarasota, but in places like Venice and even as far as Englewood.

“I’m taking a broad view of our brand, the Cultural Coast,” Kin says.

In its first year, the Living Arts Festival is being marketed to locals and residents of other parts of Florida, who, it is hoped, will come to Sarasota to enjoy the arts fest.

Sarasota has a good track record with festivals, including the Sarasota Music Festival and the Sarasota

Film Festival. It also has an impressive roster of formidable cultural institutions, including the Sarasota Orchestra, the Sarasota Ballet, the Sarasota Opera and The Ringling Museum.

What it doesn’t have is an interdisciplinary arts festival along the lines of the successful Spoleto Festival USA, held each year in Charleston, South Carolina.

When it’s pointed out that Sarasota’s arts groups tend to be “siloed,” management jargon for when departments within the same organization don’t communicate with each other and pursue their own agendas, Kin replies, “Silos? I love that term. I’m a farm boy from Ohio.”

Kin doesn’t disagree that historically there hasn’t been a lot of coordination among Sarasota’s arts groups, but he says COVID changed that.

Working with the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County, then under the leadership of Jim Shirley, Sarasota’s arts groups began conferring with each other to adopt a uniform standard to protecting performers, audience members and others from contracting the disease.

“Every week, we’d have a Zoom call among arts groups leaders to talk about what was happening,” says Kin, who was on those calls as artistic director of The Players.

“There really was a silver lining to

the pandemic because it opened up channels of communication that still exist today.”

There are lots of silver linings in Kin’s playbook. When he learned that Selby Five Points Park was booked on the days the festival was eyeing it for an event, Kin switched to the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium lawn. This way, if it rains, the festival event can be moved inside. It’s also easier to park next to the auditorium than it is around Five Points.

Kin is still enlisting partners for the Living Arts Festival. Some of those who have committed aren’t the usual suspects. For instance, the Venice Symphony is on board. “We asked them and they said yes,” Kin says by way of explanation. Because many of Sarasota’s arts organizations each have their own ticketing system, they will sell their tickets or wristbands to the events they stage as part of the Living Arts Festival and keep that ticket revenue, Kin says.

Kin is finding potential festival partners in unexpected places. At a

IF YOU GO

LIVING ARTS FESTIVAL

When: Nov. 10-17 in and around Sarasota.

Visit: SarasotaRising.org.

recent breakfast meeting at Project Coffee in the Rosemary District, Kin met Elizabeth Doud, the CurrieKohlmann Curator of Performance at The Ringling.

As fate would have it, Doud is kicking off her 2024-25 season, most of which takes place within the Historic Asolo Theater, with an outdoor Eco Fest. Some of those dates coincide with Kin’s Living Arts Festival.

Over coffee, Doud and Kin kicked around the idea of cross-pollination, especially since The Ringing’s Eco Fest will be free, to bring in younger and underserved audiences to what is being billed as a fun yet educational event.

“We’re doing it as a test to see who we can attract with a free event,” Doud says.

After a brief chat, Kin and Doud exchanged business cards and agreed to explore the possibility of having their respective festivals collaborate. Another meeting, another opportunity to put the Living Arts Festival on the map.

Moments earlier, Kin had run into Summer Dawn Wallace, artistic director of Urbanite Theatre, the edgy black-box venue located downtown. Kin wished Wallace luck in her training for two marathons later this year and they agreed to talk about Urbanite’s participation in the Living Arts Festival.

Just the previous day — or was it the day before that? — Kin had met with Kinsey Robb, executive director of Art Center Sarasota, which holds juried art shows and gives artists an opportunity to display and sell their works in its galleries. Kin wants the Living Arts Festival to include visual as well as performing arts.

Toward that end, he’s working to recycle some of the art shown in the Embracing Our Differences exhibition in Bayfront Park earlier this year.

Founded in 2004, Embracing Our Differences received more than 16,000 entries from 125 countries and 44 states in response to its 2024 call for artwork and quotations celebrating inclusion, kindness and respect.

If all goes according to Kin’s plan, some of the winning billboard-sized artwork from Embracing Our Differences will get an encore viewing in the Living Arts Festival.

It’s not a criticism to say Kin’s baby is a work in progress. But there are bound to be plenty of silver linings along the way as Kin and his team of mainly volunteers put the schedule together for the inaugural Living Arts Festival.

Some of those volunteers were with him at The Players and showed up for a meeting at Sarasota Rising’s Main Street offices last month bearing homemade chicken salad and baked goods. There’s no denying Kin inspires loyalty among his followers, who are willing to go the distance for him. So whatever you do, don’t try to steal his sunshine.

Jeffery Kin’s Living Arts Festival will debut in and around Sarasota in November.

EnsembleNewSRQ delivers a sensory feast

The first program of ‘Parisian Refraction’ took the audience to often unexplored musical realms.

We all have reason to celebrate The Ringling’s Art of Performance “Parisian Refraction” mini festival featuring ensembleNewSRQ, the contemporary classical music group, at the Historic Asolo Theater. The first of four concerts on May 9 was a full-on sensory experience giving the audience plenty to enjoy and ponder.  Composers represented throughout the series all have some connection to Paris, the City of Light. Unsuk Chin and Kaija Saariaho both received commissions from IRCAM, the renowned Parisian institute dedicated to scientific research around sound and musical creation. They, and all avant-garde composers, are adventurers exploring the frontiers of sound.

The one prerequisite of a pleasure-seeking audience member is to be open minded to all types of new sound and combinations, to be curious and to allow the experience of these works take you to new places in your imagination.   I find these experiences exhilarating and was not disappointed with Chin’s “AkrostichonWortspiel” (Acrostic Wordplay). Soprano Lucy Fitz Gibbon kept me riveted with her precise delivery and tonal control. In each of seven movements she delighted us in seven varied tales and emotional states.

An ensemble of 19 musicians, conducted by Dallas Symphony Orchestra Assistant Conduc-

tor Maurice Cohn, brought exceptional colors in support and contrast to the voice. There were plenty of sharp edges to the sonority brought by alternative tuning of some instruments, creating microtonal harmonies foreign to our Western ears. There was a lot to absorb, but it was fascinating.

Saariaho’s “Graal théâtre” (Grail Theatre) featured violinist Samantha Bennett, co-artistic director of ensembleNewSRQ. It stands apart from most of Saariaho’s work for there were no electronic elements. Instead, Saariaho, the Finnish composer who died in 2023, explored the expanded capabilities of the solo violin.

At times graceful and delicate and others rather Bach-ish with arpeggiated passages, Bennett was unfazed by the unexpected shifts and turns of mood and sound. The accompanying ensemble kept pace with Bennett’s flair, introducing flourishes of their own.

In this composition, I found myself out of my comfort zone more frequently than in the others. Remember, that’s not a bad

The Ringling might well consider keeping ensembleNewSRQ as a partner for an annual festival of this kind. It is downright exhilarating.

NewSRQ.

thing, just an observation. We experience music on different levels. Most prominently, we have a strong sensory experience hearing the sounds being produced – loud, soft, comfortably tonal or bristling atonality.

After the senses, we are drawn to either the emotional experience or the intellectual. Saariaho’s score left me puzzled by the structure and only slightly touched emotionally.

Nonetheless, the sounds and the fearlessness of the soloist left me amazed.   Chin’s Double Concerto closed the program with a tour de force

display of percussive artistry. George Nickson, ensembleNewSRQ co-artistic director and principal percussionist of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, commanded a vast percussion array with vibraphone, xylophone and marimba, five types of bells, gong, tom tom and timpani.

Pianist Conor Hanick played only one piano, and it was prepared with items inserted to alter the sound of the struck strings. Add the ensemble, and we had a sensory feast.   There was so much to take in that it was hard to catch all the sound elements, but it was both

fascinating and pleasurable. There was a groove of sorts to sink into and always an intriguing element to savor.

I was left amazed by the soloists, particularly Nickson, as we could clearly see the acrobatics required for his part. I was amazed as well by the ensemble with each musician using extended techniques and adding their unique colors to the whole throughout the program.

The Ringling might well consider keeping ensembleNewSRQ as a partner for an annual festival of this kind. It is downright exhilarating.

Image courtesy of Matthew Holler

George Nickson and Samantha Bennett are co-artistic directors of contemporary classical music group ensemble-

THURSDAY, MAY 16, 2024

DICK VITALE GALA

May 3 at The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota Benefiting the V Foundation

Athletes, celebrities, honorees and guests from all corners donned their best attire to dazzle Sarasota for the Dick Vitale Gala on May 3. Founded by ESPN and basketball coach Jim Valvano, the V Foundation — and everyone who supports it — has a singular mission: to achieve victory over cancer. Dick Vitale devotes the event to his “AllCourageous Team” of cancer survivors who sit directly in front of him for dinner. With the ballroom at The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota at capacity, the event boasted more than 900 guests, and those on the wait list will have to wait until next year for an opportunity to attend this annual, starstudded event.

This year’s honorees included Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon and Tennessee Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Barnes. The John Saunders Courage Award went posthumously to Nikki McCay, who’s in the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. The Dick Vitale Spirit Award went to Pro Football Hall of Famer Jim Kelly. Kelly, who led the Buffalo Bills to four Super Bowls, has kicked cancer to the curb as a four-time survivor. His good nature and spirit were evident as he enthusiastically posed for photos and signed autographs with an unwavering smile on his face. With a plan to raise $12 million at the gala, Vitale met his goal and Mark Pentecost, CEO of It Works!, made a pledge to match what was raised. Together with Pentecost’s generous match, the event raised $24.8 million — $13 million more than the 2023 event. To date, the V Foundation has raised $93.1 million.

— JANET COMBS

Photos by Janet Combs

Dr. Jeff Blackburn, Linda Miles, Pro Football Hall of Famer and oral cancer survivor Jim Kelly, and Robin Morrison.

With a professional baseball career lasting 20 years, Hall of Fame shortstop Derek Jeter is a special guest at the Dick Vitale Gala.

Hostess and host for the annual gala are Lorraine and Dick Vitale, who have smiles that never wavered throughout an event that boasted more than 900 guests.

Margaret McCaffery, Rutgers head coach of women’s basketball Coquese Washington, husband and Rutgers law professor Raynell Brown, and University of Iowa coach Fran McCaffery

Lynn and Hall of Fame

basketball player Rick Barry

Grant and Jill Goeglein with Sarah and Joe Nichols

University of Tennessee Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Barnes

MODERN FARMHOUSE

Elevate Your Space

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Developed by John Cannon Homes in the idyllic setting of Wild Blue at Waterside Villages in Lakewood Ranch, Sarasota, FL.