Community Calendar

Squeaky Wheel Fringe Teaser Show: Welcome to Fringe 101! You'll get a several minute preview of the shows performing in this year's Fringe Festival.

Fringe is coming to the Sarasota/Manatee area June 8th-11th, 2023 at the Cook Theatre located in the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.

Squeaky Wheel Theatre Group is providing an inclusive & accepting artistic environment that is unafraid to be loud, push boundaries, and to challenge artists & audiences alike. Their first event will be Squeaky Wheel Fringe; a four-day, 20+ performance event featuring both local, national, and international artists.

What is Fringe Theatre? A performance arts smorgasbord: original, uncensored, accessible to artists & audiences alike, and all of the works are artist driven and produced.

Fringe matches well with Squeaky Wheel’s goals, as well as the area’s eclectic talent base & adventuresome audience.

Squeaky Wheel Fringe’s nine scheduled acts feature a diverse group of local & out-of-town artists & creators producing a wide range of content from musical theatre, to dance, to spoken-word pieces, and more.

The Fringe umbrella spans many genres & styles, so some shows will have an age-limit, and content warnings will be clearly posted as needed.

Fringe is coming to the Sarasota/Manatee area June 8th-11th, 2023 at the Cook Theatre located in the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.

Squeaky Wheel Theatre Group is providing an inclusive & accepting artistic environment that is unafraid to be loud, push boundaries, and to challenge artists & audiences alike. Their first event will be Squeaky Wheel Fringe; a four-day, 20+ performance event featuring both local, national, and international artists.

What is Fringe Theatre? A performance arts smorgasbord: original, uncensored, accessible to artists & audiences alike, and all of the works are artist driven and produced.

Fringe matches well with Squeaky Wheel’s goals, as well as the area’s eclectic talent base & adventuresome audience.

Squeaky Wheel Fringe’s nine scheduled acts feature a diverse group of local & out-of-town artists & creators producing a wide range of content from musical theatre, to dance, to spoken-word pieces, and more.

The Fringe umbrella spans many genres & styles, so some shows will have an age-limit, and content warnings will be clearly posted as needed.

Rick Ceaser draws and paints a make believe city he calls Cesarville. Growing up in Detroit and loving the magnificent buildings there, Rick studied architecture. Though he never fulfilled that dream, his talents allowed him to be a planner and designer of restaurants and commercial kitchens. These pen and watercolor paintings are Rick’s way of showing his love of cities, buildings and architecture of all eras and styles. “These are never real cities or buildings,” says Rick. “They are always creations of my imagination. I make up each scene and each building.”

Rick was diagnosed with Lung Cancer in 2020, just as the Covid pandemic was beginning. This led him to work on his cityscapes while being quarantined and undergoing cancer treatments. Now at the age of 86, Rick is cancer free and is finally putting his art in front of the public.

You can “Explore Cesarville” with its fascinating structures, streets and people during the month of June, and at the opening reception during St. Pete’s Second Saturday Art Walk. The reception features the music of Berkeley Grimbal, as well as food, drink and the art of over 30 artists.

Fringe is coming to the Sarasota/Manatee area June 8th-11th, 2023 at the Cook Theatre located in the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.

Squeaky Wheel Theatre Group is providing an inclusive & accepting artistic environment that is unafraid to be loud, push boundaries, and to challenge artists & audiences alike. Their first event will be Squeaky Wheel Fringe; a four-day, 20+ performance event featuring both local, national, and international artists.

What is Fringe Theatre? A performance arts smorgasbord: original, uncensored, accessible to artists & audiences alike, and all of the works are artist driven and produced.

Fringe matches well with Squeaky Wheel’s goals, as well as the area’s eclectic talent base & adventuresome audience.

Squeaky Wheel Fringe’s nine scheduled acts feature a diverse group of local & out-of-town artists & creators producing a wide range of content from musical theatre, to dance, to spoken-word pieces, and more.

The Fringe umbrella spans many genres & styles, so some shows will have an age-limit, and content warnings will be clearly posted as needed.

Fringe is coming to the Sarasota/Manatee area June 8th-11th, 2023 at the Cook Theatre located in the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.

Squeaky Wheel Theatre Group is providing an inclusive & accepting artistic environment that is unafraid to be loud, push boundaries, and to challenge artists & audiences alike. Their first event will be Squeaky Wheel Fringe; a four-day, 20+ performance event featuring both local, national, and international artists.

What is Fringe Theatre? A performance arts smorgasbord: original, uncensored, accessible to artists & audiences alike, and all of the works are artist driven and produced.

Fringe matches well with Squeaky Wheel’s goals, as well as the area’s eclectic talent base & adventuresome audience.

Squeaky Wheel Fringe’s nine scheduled acts feature a diverse group of local & out-of-town artists & creators producing a wide range of content from musical theatre, to dance, to spoken-word pieces, and more.

The Fringe umbrella spans many genres & styles, so some shows will have an age-limit, and content warnings will be clearly posted as needed.

“The Radiant Tarot: Pathway to Creativity” with Hermitage Fellow Tony Barnstone, Friday, June 16, 6:30pm: The Hermitage is about creating new works. When in conversation with Hermitage Fellow and creator Tony Barnstone’s The Radiant Tarot: Pathway to Creativity an entirely new – yet ancient – approach is revealed. Inspired by the words of Rilke and William Blake amongst many other artists and practitioners, the artwork and guidebook of this tarot deck are aimed at awakening creativity and personal growth. In this program, Barnstone, author of the guidebook, will illuminate some of the impulses behind its creation, its potential interpretations, and the creative projects it has already inspired. Hear from this multidisciplinary author of more than 20 books and begin to uncover the connections in the cards. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org ($5/person registration fee). Bookstore1, 117 S. Pineapple Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34236

Behind the Curtain: Exploring the Van Wezel from the Art to the Stage
Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34236

2023: June 20, July 17, August 21, September 18, October 16, November 13, December 11
2024: January 22, February 12, March 11, April 15, May 20
1:30-3:00 p.m.

The paintings and sculptures within the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall were created by noted Florida artists and are on loan from Arts Advocates. In this two-part tour, a docent will guide you through the paintings and sculptures including those by Robert Chase, William Hartman, Eugene White, Ben Stahl, Julio de Diego, Thornton Utz, Frank Colson, Dean Mitchell, and more. Then you will step onto the stage where a Van Wezel guide will give you a peek behind the curtain to learn about the many hands that create the Van Wezel's shows. You will see the ropes and pulleys that "fly" the scenery on and off the stage, the movable orchestra pit, dressing room, and loading dock where traveling shows back up their 18-wheelers to move their shows onto the stage. All the while you'll be dazzled by stories and anecdotes about the colorful world of show business!

Tours cost $15 per person and begin in the main lobby and. Tickets can be purchased in person at the Van Wezel box office Monday–Friday 10 a.m.–4 p.m. or by calling (941) 263-6799. Private group tours can be arranged by calling (941) 955-7676. Proceeds benefit Arts Advocates and the Van Wezel's education/outreach programs.

Art Talk: Kinsey Robb - Supporting the Visual Art Market in Sarasota
June 23, 4-6 pm
Arts Advocates Gallery, The Crossings at Siesta Key mall, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34239
$20 for Arts Advocates members, $25 for non-members – register at ArtsAdvocates.org.

Kinsey Robb is the executive director of Art Center Sarasota. As one of Sarasota’s oldest cultural organizations - established in 1926 - Art Center Sarasota has a rich history and connection with both artists and the public. Kinsey comes to the art center with over 15 years of experience working with emerging, mid-career, and established artists. She has worked with studios, blue chip galleries in NYC, museums, and academics within the visual and performing arts industry. Her goals for Art Center Sarasota are boosting their visibility while maintaining current members and attracting others through the kind of community engagement that has long been a mainstay of Art Center Sarasota – the juried show. With her knowledge of the industry, we look forward to learning about Sarasota’s art market and how we can all support the visual arts that are essential to the art ecosystem.

“Songs from the Sand: A Hermitage Cabaret” Featuring the work of Hermitage Fellows performed by some of Sarasota’s Greatest Talents, Friday, June 23, 7:00pm: From Adam Gwon to Jeanine Tesori, Michael R. Jackson to Kit Yan, Rona Siddiqui to Zoe Sarnak, the Hermitage has provided space and time to some of the most exciting musical theater writers working in the industry today. Hear selections from creators such as these performed by some of Sarasota’s finest performers at one of the area's most beautiful environments, Waterside at Lakewood Ranch. In addition to the works themselves, hear little known stories about the creation of some of New York theater’s recent success stories all as the sun sets over the water. Presented in partnership with Waterside at Lakewood Ranch. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org ($5/person registration fee). Waterside Pavilion at Lakewood Ranch, 1561 Lakefront Drive, Sarasota, FL 34240