Shinichi Suzuki noticed something so obvious he’d never noticed it before: All Japanese children spoke Japanese. This revelation led to a revolution in music education. At the Patel Conservatory, Suzuki violin has been the entry point to learning music for a great number of students, many of whom continue their progress in Patel programs. It’s... Continue Reading →
National Dance Day is celebrated on the third Saturday of September, as is Batman Day. What’s the connection? The Batusi, obviously: https://youtu.be/LFHY0NBsoNU?si=vVwyRSpyWFvT_S0M And doesn’t this wrap those two up with a little Bat-bow on top? But since we’ve already written about Batman Day, let’s focus on the feet. National Dance Day was established in 2010... Continue Reading →
The first Batman Day was celebrated July 24, 2014, a little more than a year after the first Superman Day, because you know how those boys get. Now it’s celebrated on the third Saturday of September. This year that’s Sept. 21, which means Batman Day celebrants will have an answer when Earth, Wind & Fire... Continue Reading →
We’re in the middle of a contentious presidential race, exacerbating the already deep divisions in our electorate. Jobsite’s production of POTUS, then, will remind audiences that there’s at least one thing the left and right can agree on: government and politics are still comedy gold mines. Subtitled Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying... Continue Reading →
Several factors influenced Matthew Wolf’s decision to join the Straz as its new chief operating officer. COO Matthew Wolf. Photo by Jeremy Daniel. There’s the Straz’s reputation as both an entertainment and an educational facility, and the potential to grow both of those operations. There’s the city of Tampa itself, expanding economically and culturally, creating... Continue Reading →
Well before the play’s first murder, Lady Macbeth establishes her place among Shakespeare’s most treacherous characters with this invocation: Come, you spiritsThat tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,And fill me from the crown to the toe top-fullOf direst cruelty. Make thick my blood.Stop up th’ access and passage to remorse,That no compunctious visitings of... Continue Reading →
National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Jackson recently visited The Straz, learning about Straz Salutes, The Straz’s multifaceted military outreach program. As one of 11 charter Creative Forces® community network organizations, the Straz Salutes program has served Tampa Bay’s military community since 2017. Funding for the program initially was supported by grants from the... Continue Reading →
Competition was baked into hip-hop from the start. Rap battles tested an MC’s rhymes and flow. DJs and writers (graffiti artists) duked it out using turntables and spray paint, respectively. Breaking, hip-hop’s fourth element, went global in the ‘90s, spawning competitions on five continents. The finest from those battles will be among the b-boys and... Continue Reading →
Judging from the flow of school-age dancers, musicians and thespians who keep our Patel Conservatory lively, one might surmise that it exclusively serves younger aspiring performers. Patel also has plenty of classes, workshops and lessons for adults in dance, theater and music. “We believe it’s important to offer classes for all ages and all skills... Continue Reading →
This was a union conceived on broadcast television, nurtured in the overheated, micro-obsessional womb of the internet and born, finally, on a London stage Wednesday, 10 July, this year of twenty and twenty-four: Cypress Hill with the London Symphony Orchestra. Because the internet continues to be overheated and micro-obsessional, fans of Cypress Hill, the LSO... Continue Reading →
A group of young Patel Conservatory performers is ready to transform TECO Theater into one of the most famous swamps on screen or stage. Middle school-aged actors will take the stage as Fiona, Donkey, Farquaad and our favorite ogre to present Shrek the Musical Jr. Based on the Broadway musical (and the film on which... Continue Reading →
Starring in Jobsite’s production of The Rocky Horror Show has extra significance for Clay Christopher. He’ll be stepping into a role originated by one of his favorite actors, Tim Curry. “I am a huge, huge Tim Curry fan,” Clay said, “his artistry, his films, his work, just him.” Clay became a fan of Curry’s for... Continue Reading →
It’s not true that Chief Operating Officer Lorrin Shepard has been at The Straz so long the center was built around him. Just part of it. Lorrin may not have been here for The Straz’s 1987 opening but he’s been here since 1990. If he hasn’t seen it all, he’s seen more than anyone else.... Continue Reading →
The songs and stories heard in MJ the Musical, coming to The Straz Feb. 25 - March 2, are from throughout most of Michael Jackson’s life and career. It’s set two days before the beginning of his 1992-’93 Dangerous world tour and that would not seem to be a random choice. https://youtu.be/Hxgo-Qu-ZZE By the end... Continue Reading →
For some actors, the first time’s the charm. Maleah Joi Moon won Best Actress in a Musical at the 77th Tony Awards®, joining 100 other actors who took home a Tony® for their first Broadway role. https://youtu.be/aqjVWzANA8A Maleah, who starred in Hell’s Kitchen, is in excellent company as a debut winner. Others who won Tonys®... Continue Reading →
Summertime and the living is easy.Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high. DuBose Heyward’s lyrics to “Summertime,” from Porgy and Bess, conjure an idealized summer, warm but never too hot, when outdoors is the place to be. https://youtu.be/NghjBMn6ZJM Tampa summers are not idealized. They’re demonized. Summertime and the low’s in the 90sFeels-like temp is... Continue Reading →
Disney’s animated feature The Lion King had its premiere in 1994. That year, roughly 2 percent of Americans had access to the Internet. The 30th anniversary of that film’s release was celebrated in May with a pair of Hollywood Bowl concerts featuring songs from the soundtrack. In the three decades since its release, The Lion... Continue Reading →
BY CAMERON MACKINTOSH If I was to say what had happened to Les Misérables is the dream I dreamed, it would not be true – Les Mis has been a success beyond my wildest dreams. The show in 1985 that few people had booked in advance to see was coolly, if not hostilely, reviewed by... Continue Reading →
Maybe it’s all those years of playing a wizard but Daniel Radcliffe has pulled off something close to magical. He became the cinematic face of one of literature’s most beloved characters and came out the other side with his career and sanity intact. Radcliffe, 34, currently stars on Broadway in the revival of Stephen Sondheim’s... Continue Reading →
Dancers most commonly leave the profession around the age of 35. Dancer Kim Hale is 56. Do the math? There’s no math to do. Kim Hale is too old for a career as a dancer, as she’s likely been told before. Only she didn’t listen. In fact, she didn’t listen so well that she wound... Continue Reading →