Phantasmagoria XIII: Poe Through the Tales Darkly

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Tonight is the final performance of Phantasmagoria XIII: Poe Through the Tales Darkly at the Alexis and Jim Pugh Theater in the Dr. Phillips Center of the Performing Arts. Tickets are about $35. The cast performs the haunted stirrings of The Raven to the sheer terror of The Tell Tale Heart. . . and from the grim tolling of The Bells to the bittersweet grieving of Anabelle Lee along with a selection of other whimsical, macabre, and terrifying stories and poems, you are invited to celebrate an evening of Poe’s works. The perfect way to usher in the Halloween season!

I knew going into this sketch that I would not have time to finish, so the paint was added back at the studio. This is a rather panicked, making of sketch that was done in a carriage house as the cast of Phantasmagoria posed for a photo for the promotional materials for Phantasmagoria XIII: Poe Through the Tales Darkly. It was a hot day and the carriage house was set up to look like a long abandoned attic. Items in the set are often reminders of past performances. Everything on hand had a taste of the macabre.  Thin fabric veils and spider webs dangled from hard mannequins and the rafters. Two dolls occupied an ancient wheel chair. Madness permeated the very wall boards and electrical conduits that ran along the rafters.

You could cower in the darkness or delight in it’s pure dark insanity.

The Future of Arts and Culture in Orange County: Mayoral Candidate Forum

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I went to a Mayoral Candidate Forum at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (445 South Magnolia Avenue Orlando, FL).

The Citizens for Cultural Vitality hosted the evening with the candidates for Orange County Mayor.

Arts leaders and those who care about the future of Central Florida’s arts and culture were invited to attend.

Conversation with the Candidates took  place in the Alexis and Jim Pugh Theater.

The Citizens for Cultural Vitality are an informal group of arts leaders and organizations who are committed to cultivating a thriving arts community in Orange County, the State of Florida, and beyond.

This forum was well organized because members of the arts community seated in the audience each had questions that had been carefully thought out before hand ready to ask each candidate. The candidates were Pete Clarke, Jerry Demings and Rob Panapinto.

I sketched candidate Jerry Demings who went on to become the Orange County Mayor. Since Jerry is our mayor I will print his responses to each question posed hoping that he stays true to his word.

Question: Will you support the creation of a public sector, ongoing dedicated funding stream for the arts that generates at minimum, an additional $5 million per year in funding for arts and culture beyond existing sources?

Demings:  In committing to a dedicated funding source for the arts, I would assemble arts and cultural groups along with the business community to discuss the best return on investment strategy for taxpayers. It is important to note that this is not my sole decision and there would need to be broader conversation with the Orange County Board of Commissioners. However, I support the continuance of the current rate of 3% of the first 4 cents (2% of the total) revenues from Tourist Development Taxes (TDT) currently collected and I would commit to increasing funding for the arts by $5 million from other revenue sources within my discretion as mayor. 

Question: In past years,the county dedicated $1 per capita from the General Fund for arts and culture in Orange County. That has dwindled to nearly .50 per capita in the past decade. Would you support the reinstatement of the $1 per capita in 2019 from the General Fund for arts support?

Demings: Yes, I would commit to funding a total of $1 per capita from any combination of County revenue sources.

Question: Orange County has invested excess TDT funding to recruit and support sporting events. The fund was seeded with $5 million and will be funded annually with an additional $2 million. Would you support an equivalent fund for arts and culture events?

Demings: As you are aware, the Mayor and Board of County Commissioners appointed a Review Committee that will meet this summer during the Budget Work Sessions to make recommendations on a spending plan for excess fees collected through TDT. Monies will be eligible for capital projects. If collections continue to outpace budgeted projections, I would support equivalency funds for the Arts with the Sports Commission.

Demings said that if arts groups can raise money on
their own, then he feels they should get tourism dollars to go with it.
Demings wants to give the arts and cultural affairs $2 million more
tourism tax dollars on top of the $5.6 million it already gets. Demings
said $500,000 of it would go to a facility rental and event fund. In May of 2019 he earmarking $42 million for arts and cultural projects.

UCF Woodwind Ensembles

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UCF Celebrates the Arts presented UCF Woodwind Ensembles in the Alexis and Jim Pugh Theater inside the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (445 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL 32801). The stage is referred to as the Pegasus Stage. The evening began with an Oboe Trio. As they performed I was busy sketching the audience around me.

The UCF Flute Knights performed Pegasus Gallop and March of the Trolls which I rather enjoyed. The UCF Clarinet Choir performed The Tournament which had four movements, The Entry of the Knights, The joust, Lament for the Wounded and Triumph of the Victors. I always like compositions that follow linear story lines.

The Centaurus Woodwind Quintet was followed by UCF Saxophone Ensemble. 17 saxophone players crowded the stage with every shape and size of saxophone. They performed Colonial Song and Molly on the Shore both composed by Percy Granger.The final performance was excerpts from Carmen by Georges Bizet. The stage was filled with every form of woodwind. One instrument I had never seen before it looked like a six foot tall paperclip. It was a contra bass flute and gave off a deep resonant sound.

UCF Brass Ensembles Concert

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The UCF Brass Ensembles Concert as held in the Alexis and Jim Pugh Theater in the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (445 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL 32801) as part of UCF Celebrates the Arts. Getting through security with art supplies was it’s usual adventure. I also brought along opera glasses but since we were seated so close I really didn’t use them.

The evening consisted of 6 different Ensembles which meant I  had to work  fast since all the music stands and any chairs would move for each ensemble. The first ensemble was for the UCF Trombone Choir directed by Dr. Luis Fred. I managed to sketch two trombone players before they were done playing.

The UCF Tuba and Euphonium Ensemble was next and I dashed off one tuba player before they left the stage. There was a world premier of a composition called Avalanche by Thomas Harrison.  I tried to envision how the music evoked an avalanche but the music left me cold. Another horn ensemble was then followed by the Colbourn Brass Quintet. Their performance was the highlight of the evening for me. They performed Wachet auf, Ruft uns die Stimme by Johann Sebastian Bach. Translated the title is Awake the Voice is Calling Us. The performance was dedicated to a present day performer of Bach’s works who had recently died.

A final fanfare was followed by the stage filling with all the performers from that evening as they performed a combined ensemble. Though i didn’t count the stage was filled with horn players shoulder to shoulder. The strength in numbers filled the hall. I grew up playing coronet which is like a small  trumpet. It was my earliest passion in the arts, so I love the sound of horns.

Hansel and Gretel Dress Rehearsal

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Orlando Opera presents Hansel and Gretel at the Alexis and Jim Pugh Theater in the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (445 South Magnolia Avenue Orlando FL). Engelbert Humperdinck’s operatic retelling of the ever-popular Grimm
fairy tale features a lush score and charming characters that, on
Christmas Day in 1931, became the first complete Metropolitan Opera
radio-broadcast performance.

The cast includes mezzo-soprano Sarah Purser as Hansel, soprano Jillian Marini as Gretel, soprano Samantha Barnes Daniel as the mother, baritone Ben Ludwig as the father, and tenor Jess Muñoz as the witch. Opera Orlando’s music and education director Robin Jensen conducts, and creative director Grant Preisser directs. Come and get lost in the woods this holiday season.

Hansel and Gretel shirked their chores and played together with childish abandon. Then their mother arrived and discovered that Hansel had gotten no work done. Gretel had managed to keep sweeping even as she played but they were scolded anyways.

All the trees on stage were on wheels, so the stage shape shifted throughout the production. A banner above the stage was used to project the lyrics which weren’t much needed since the production was in English. However the witch at this rehearsal was difficult to hear, which was probably a technical issue that will be worked out. A large gingerbread man doubled as the oven towards the end of the evening.

Wood nymphs and plenty of stage mist created some mystery as the children got lost and fell asleep in the woods. An enthusiastic cast of children helped sell the horror of the fate of Hansel and Gretel. The children were dressed up like gingerbread Gumbys with large flat mittens and featureless faces.

The witch and a wood nymph wandered into the audience several times, breaking the fourth wall and adding some intimacy to the production. Perhaps because this is a familiar story line, the ending seemed anti-climactic. Clearly staged for children, this could be a fun family outing.

Tonight’s final performance on Sunday December 9, 2018 at 2pm is unavailable which I assume means sold out. Tickets