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ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT NOVEMBER 7, 2024
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“The arts help people heal from adversity.” Jeffery Kin, Living Arts Festival founder and executive director
Sarasota Rising founder Jeffery Kin poses on a parking lot downtown with the postMilton skyline of Sarasota in the background.
RISE SHINE
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MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
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hen Jeffery Kin chose a name for his arts organization in October 2021, he had no idea how prescient “Sarasota Rising” would sound three years later. “I picked Sarasota Rising because a rising tide lifts all boats,” says Kin, former producing artistic director of The Sarasota Players. “I knew that the organization would be the producer of the Living Arts Festival, but I needed a name that would work for other events as well.” Back in 2021, Sarasota was rising pretty nicely on its own. The pandemic and the opportunity to work from home drew more people to the area, with its easy access to free public beaches. Meanwhile, the city’s reputation as Florida’s “Cultural Coast” continued to attract more artists and arts patrons to this circus town. Now, after three hurricanes (two of them extremely destructive) not to mention a torrential rain storm in June that generated national media coverage, some are beginning to question their commitment to Sarasota. Told about people posting on Facebook that it’s time to pack up
their tent and leave Sarasota, Kin is philosophical: “Maybe it’s their time to go.” For his part, the arts champion is here to stay, come rain or shine. Still, there’s no denying “paradise lost.” (Thank you, English poet John Milton.) The 100-year-old belief that good luck or Seminole magic was protecting Sarasota from a direct hurricane hit was blown away. Cue Kin and the city’s first Rising Arts Festival, which will run in different venues around Sarasota from Nov. 10-17 and will even take a road trip south to Venice on Nov. 14. NOT JUST A SPOLETO WANNABE
For the last three years, folks have been asking Kin why Sarasota needs a Living Arts Festival when the town’s arts organizations rebounded from COVID just fine on their own. Before recent weather events, Kin would point to Sarasota’s lack of a performing arts festival like Spoleto, held annually in Charleston, South Carolina. While he was in the process of formulating his fest, he visited some of his future rivals for inspiration. Now Kin’s focus seems to be less on raising Sarasota’s already formidable presence on the national arts stage than lifting spirits in a battered community. Whatever the motiva-
Monica Roman Gagnier
Sarasota Rising’s first Living Arts Festival aims to raise spirits in the community.
IF YOU GO
SARASOTA RISING’S LIVING ARTS FESTIVAL When: Nov. 10-17 Where: Various locations around Sarasota and Venice Tickets: Free and up Info: Visit SarasotaRising.org.
tion, tourists are welcome, even if they come from Englewood. When people ask Kin why we need the Living Arts Festival, he reminds them: “The arts help people heal from adversity.” On a recent ride around town with Kin, all one could see were mounds of tree branches and mountains of ruined furniture. Maybe it’s time to take a break from the cleanup and worry about the financial impact of the hurricanes. Let’s see what this Living Arts Festival is all about. Kin is especially excited about the closing event, “A Celebration of Youth,” at the Sailor Circus Arena on Sunday, Nov. 17. At this affordable event, the audience will see the next generation of Sarasota’s performers — singers, dancers, musicians and circus artists. The students hail from organizations such as the Circus Arts conservatory, Westcoast Black Theatre
Courtesy images
Troupe, Cuban Ballet School, the Sarasota Ballet Studio Company, the Venice and Riverview High School choirs and others. Think “Glee” meets “Fame” meets “The Greatest Show on Earth.” As Tim Robbins says over and over in “The Hudsucker Proxy” when he tries to sell his boss on the HulaHoop, “You know — for kids!” Children may not understand the financial impact of hurricanes, SEE LIVING ARTS PAGE 2
Top: The Circus Arts Conservatory will be one of the many arts organizations showcased in “A Celebration of Youth,” the closing performance of Sarasota Rising’s first Living Arts Festival on Sunday, Nov. 17. Above: Clyde and Niki Butcher’s Venice Gallery is one of the many stops on the “All Roads Lead to Venice” tour on Thursday, Nov. 14.