“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” Snow and gloom shouldn’t be issues but rain and heat? Hoo boy. Pictured: a typical summer day in the great state of Florida. The Patel Conservatory staff members (“these couriers”) responsible for couriering summer... Continue Reading →
Trainer Makes Stars of Rescue Dogs
Bill Berloni estimates he has trained and shined a spotlight on nearly 400 dogs over the last 45 years. Your purebreds and your designer breeds are all well and good, but if you want the job done right – and if that job is acting – get yourself a mutt. That’s the advice of Bill... Continue Reading →
Celebrating International Wig Day with Opera Tampa Hair & Makeup Designer
Wigs used to give Dawn Rivard fits. Working as a window display artist, Rivard said she “loved everything about my it except the wigs, so I went on a hunt for someone to show me how to make the wigs look better because nobody in that fashion end had much knowledge.” What she found was... Continue Reading →
Guess What? We Made Our Own Custom Fabric Design for Nutcracker
A first for The Straz, the new fabric designs represent a wild collaboration between dance costuming and graphic design. When people think of the graphic design department in a performing arts non-profit, they may imagine program layouts, banners, signage, logos and the like. They may not consider a couture collaboration to produce custom costumes specifically... Continue Reading →
Tools of the Trade: Music
We’ve realized Straz fans love knowing what goes on outside of the spotlights, so we’re running a short series called Tools of the Trade, listing some cool and maybe-unheard-of tools for life in the performing arts. This week’s spotlight is on music. Gouging Machine Not just for medieval torture anymore, the gouging machine serves professional... Continue Reading →
Tools of the Trade: Theater
We’ve realized Straz fans love knowing what goes on outside of the spotlights, so we’re running a short series called Tools of the Trade, listing some cool and maybe-unheard-of tools for life in the performing arts. This week’s spotlight is on theater. Orange Stick Nope, not for fingernails—for eyelashes. False ones, that is. False eyelashes... Continue Reading →
Tools of the Trade: Dance
We’ve realized Straz fans love knowing what goes on outside of the spotlights, so we’re running a short series called Tools of the Trade, listing some cool and maybe-unheard-of tools for life in the performing arts. This week’s spotlight is on dance. Rosin Box Slippery dance shoes? Slick flooring? No problem, thanks to this useful... Continue Reading →