culture

A Q&A with new Sarasota-area arts leaders about culture, community and the future

By Debra A. Gilbert 10 hours ago
Patrons explore an exhibition at Art Center Sarasota.

Patrons explore an exhibition at Art Center Sarasota.

Part of what makes the Sarasota area so vibrant are the many exciting arts and culture opportunities it offers, and the organizations that present them try to maintain that excitement through bold creativity and by looking toward the future. We spoke to a number of arts leaders who are still relatively new in their jobs about what’s in store for the coming months.

Participating are Benny Sato Ambush, artistic director for Venice Theatre; Jeffery Kin, who served 15 years as artistic director of Players Centre for Performing Arts and is now general director of the forthcoming Sarasota Arts Festival; Kinsey Robb, executive director for Art Center Sarasota; Anne-Marie Russell, executive director for Architecture Sarasota; Virginia Shearer, executive director for Sarasota Art Museum; and Bramwell Tovey, music director designate for Sarasota Orchestra

Benny Sato Ambush, who has a long history as a director and artistic leader at some of the nation’s most prominent professional theaters, has been named artistic director of Venice Theatre.

Benny

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ARTS AND CULTURE: The Drifters set for Paramount tonight – The Tribune

By Debra A. Gilbert 4 days ago

ASHLAND, Ky. — The Drifters, one of Rock & Roll’s founding vocal groups, is once again touring the U.S., with a stop at the Paramount Arts Center in Ashland set for tonight.
From their inception in the early 1950s and up until recently, The Drifters has a symbiotic relationship with Rock & Roll legend George Treadwell, who discovered and managed such famous artists as Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughn and Nina Simone.

The Treadwell Family was there when the original Drifters formed and was responsible for guiding their career through 20 years of uninterrupted hits that has made them the second most successful recording artist of all time, according to Billboard Magazine.

Through an historical journey, which included no less than five legendary lead singers, including Rock & Roll Hall of Famers Clyde McPhatter and Ben E. King, the group’s ongoing story has covered the entire spectrum of Rock & Roll.

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Federal grants help Hawaii arts and culture groups survive pandemic

By Debra A. Gilbert 4 weeks ago

Mahalo for supporting Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Enjoy this free story!

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Arts and Culture News | Pasatiempo

By Debra A. Gilbert 4 weeks ago

Mountain Mover Media wins two Rocky Mountain Emmys

In early November, Santa Fe-based video production company Mountain Mover Media was awarded with Rocky Mountain Emmys for Becoming: ORLANDO DUGI in the Arts Programming (Short Form) category and for Yo Prometo for best Musical Arrangement/Composition. Becoming: ORLANDO DUGI is an eight-minute biopic on Navajo fashion designer and former Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) Artist-in-Residence Orlando Dugi. It was directed, shot, and edited by Mountain Mover Media’s Kaela Waldstein and produced by IAIA Assistant Professor Amber-Dawn Bear Robe (Blackfoot/Siksika) for the Southwest Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA).

This is Bear Robe’s and Waldstein’s second Emmy for a collaborative project. The first was their 2018 video Walk with Pride: Santa Fe Indian Market’s Haute Couture Fashion Show. The Dugi short follows the creation and reveal of the artist’s 2020 Capsule Collection and explores the inspirations for his work. It was featured at

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