A small but mighty coterie of Straz staffers gathers the selections that make each year’s season announcement a much-anticipated event. At the start of every year, as sure as the Florida gardenias blossom, The Straz announces a new season. Every year that season blends old and new, funny and serious, musical and non-musical, spectacular and... Continue Reading →
One-hit wonders are fascinating. Some are once-in-a-generation synchronizations of material and cultural climate — the music-industry equivalent of being in the right place at the right time. Others are just, you know, funny. Despite their various origins, styles and critical receptions, though, they’re all related via that one weird similarity: They are all songs attributed... Continue Reading →
Tampa has a long history tied to Latin cultures, dating back to 1539 and the arrival of Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto to the Tampa Bay region. That historical tie continues more than 470 years later when the Straz Center for the Performing Arts participates in National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sept. 15... Continue Reading →
As the hemlines rose, so did the footwear, the miniskirt exposing more thigh as its fashion first mate the go-go boot rose to conceal the calf. The effect was anything but modest, though. The miniskirt and go-go boot create visual shorthand for a particular time and a particular sort of person – young, female, single,... Continue Reading →
It’s not unusual to see favorite songs from Broadway productions on the pop charts. Beloved compositions have made the transition from the stage to mainstream culture’s consciousness since The Great White Way’s ‘40s and ‘50s heyday. Those looking for distinctive or quirky reinterpretations of musical-theater classics sometimes have to look a little deeper, though —... Continue Reading →
Elvis Presley performed in Tampa near the beginning of his career and near the end. On May 8, 1955, you could have seen a vibrant, 21-year-old Elvis at the Homer W. Hesterly Armory, singing “That’s All Right.” General admission was $1. https://www.instagram.com/p/CDUn9APBp4L/ Twenty-one years later you could have seen a pudgy, sweating-to-get-through-the-show, 42-year-old Elvis at... Continue Reading →
When you least expect it, great moments happen. This is one of those tales made that much greater because “the moment” involves Aretha Franklin. The year is 1998, the 40th Grammy® Awards at New York City’s majestic Radio City Music Hall. The evening was chockful of great performances, unexpected wins and unforeseen surprises, such as:... Continue Reading →
We’re going to take a not-so-wild guess that what you know about accordions likely falls somewhere between Lawrence Welk and “Weird Al” Yankovic. And if you don’t know who either of those two men are, we’re happy to accommodate – June is National Accordion Awareness Month. Mothers and Fathers get only a day, but the... Continue Reading →
It will come to no surprise that Broadway and opera are represented on the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry, which preserves recordings that are “culturally, historically or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States.” The original cast albums of Oklahoma!, Guys and Dolls, West Side Story, Sweeney Todd, The Wiz... Continue Reading →
Guest Blogger Deborah Kobritz, assistant to the VP of marketing and programming, dives into an emotional battlefield of love songs, revealing a vulnerable sweet center before emerging a Valentine's warrior. Anti-Valentine’s Day - sad love songs. That was the assignment. The opposite of love. The anti-love. I like music. I grew up in a home... Continue Reading →
Dear “The Star-Spangled Banner,” why are you so hard to sing? WHY. Back in July of 2019, Caught in the Act posted a slightly different version of this in-depth story delving into the technical aspects of performing our national anthem. In the wake of last week’s presidential inauguration – which included a dynamite version of... Continue Reading →
One of the greatest partnerships in musical theater was gravely wounded by a fight about carpet. What a shaggy predicament. Sir William Schwenck Gilbert and Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan. The duo of librettist W.S. Gilbert and composer Sir Arthur Sullivan was a collaboration that lasted a quarter century, creating a body of work, according to... Continue Reading →
The Recording Industry Association of America has certified 21 of her single and album releases as Gold or Platinum. She has had 25 songs reach number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. She has 42 career Top 10 country albums and 110 career-charted singles. Sales of her music have topped 100 million records around the world. She’s been... Continue Reading →
The Dog has Bitten. The Bee has Stung. As 2020 finally comes to a close, Caught in the Act offers up Holiday gift ideas inspired by the Broadway showtune and unconventional Christmas classic Here’s a query: Why is the song “My Favorite Things” -- from the Broadway show The Sound of Music and its subsequent movie adaptation – so closely associated with Christmas? ... Continue Reading →
Patsy Cline’s biggest hits were about heartbreak, lost love and loneliness. You can feel the pain coming through that magnificent contralto voice on songs like “Crazy,” “I Fall to Pieces,” “Sweet Dreams” and “She’s Got You.” Once she was asked to explain the emotion in her songs and she replied, “I just sing like I... Continue Reading →
For the past five months, theaters across the globe have gone dark due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Find out how you can help “Save Our Stages” here.) Many artists and arts workers have had their livelihoods thrown into chaos as they try to navigate the unknown - and while our stages are silent, the need... Continue Reading →
We love celebrating national days here at The Straz, especially when they have to do with the arts. July 31 is Uncommon Instrument Awareness Day, and we want to bring your attention to these unique and fascinating music-makers. Music is all around us, and these instruments prove you can use just about anything to create... Continue Reading →
In a recent post we discussed recording artists, such as Bruce Springsteen and David Byrne, making their mark on Broadway, but many more have weaved musical magic from behind the scenes. And a few have even popped in to play roles or have brief cameos in shows they’ve composed. Whether it is Sting, Cyndi Lauper... Continue Reading →
All the press of late about recording stars on Broadway has been about Bruce Springsteen and David Byrne -- and for good reason. Those two shows energized audiences and possibly brought to the Great White Way an audience who might never have thought to touch foot in a Broadway theater. But Springsteen and Byrne were... Continue Reading →
With performing art centers, such as The Straz, temporarily shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, cable networks and streaming services are tapping into a large bank of available documentaries centered on the performing arts so we can satisfy our appetite for theater, dance, opera and more. And though documentaries generally don’t bring in Marvel box... Continue Reading →