Weekend Top 6 Picks for September 15 and 16, 2018

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Saturday September 15, 2018

8am to 1pm Free. Parramore Farmers Market. The east side of the Orlando City Stadium, across from City View. Purchase quality, fresh and healthy food grown in your own
neighborhood by local farmers, including Fleet Farming, Growing Orlando,
and other community growers.

1pm to 3pm Free. Vet Voices: 1st Highlights Presentation.  TheatreWorks Florida 8 W Palmetto St, Davenport, Florida 33837. TheatreWorks Florida and the veterans of “Vet Voices” proudly invite you
to a FREE public presentation of inspirational theatrical work created
entirely by the vets themselves during their first 10-week session of
workshops. Come share stories of the men and women who protect our
country every day in an impromptu studio setting. Support… Connect…
Engage.

Please support the incredible veterans of Vet Voices as they share their
military experiences in an eye-opening theatrical forum. This event is
open to the Public and we encourage families to attend.

Questions to Mark Graham: vetvoices@theatreworksfl.org or 203.952.8760.

We hope to see you at the theatre!

Mark Graham – Associate Director, Vet Voices Scott A. Cook – TWF Artistic Producer

7:30pm to 9:30pm General Admission- $20 Students/Seniors (65+)- $15 The Shift. John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center, Mandell Theater (812 E Rollins St, Orlando, FL 32803). The Shift is an annual production that showcases work from professional
companies and up and coming choreographers in the Central Florida area.
The goal of The Shift is to showcase new works to the Central Florida
Community in the spirit of collaboration and exploration of dance as an
art form.
Doors open at 7 and show is at 7:30pm.Tickets available at the door.

 

Sunday September 16, 2018 

Noon to 2pm Free. Orlando Flea by the Daily City. Celine Orlando 22 S. Magnolia Ave, Orlando, Florida 32801.

The Orlando Flea is Sunday September 16th 12pm-4pm at the event space
Celine Orlando at 22 S. Magnolia Ave. It will feature a tightly curated
collection of local and regional artisans, designers and makers along
with live music, a full bar and local bites.

The Orlando Flea
wants to create a community around supporting and celebrating our
region’s creative small business owners. There’s an inspiration and
energy that comes from talking with and just being around creative
people doing what they love. The Orlando Flea wants to be a hub for that
energy and experience.

The Orlando Flea is the latest project of
The Daily City, creators of The Daily City’s Food Truck Bazaar, The
Daily City Cardboard Art Festival, and Big Box of Orlando (Orlando’s
first pop up shop!). The Daily City began in 2007 and is Orlando’s
longest running hyper local indie news site.

Since The Daily City publicly announced The Orlando Flea on March 1st 2018 it amassed over 500 fans at www.instagram.com/theorlandoflea and 130+ members in the Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/331443710710233/).

Vendors: Go to the facebook group to apply. Thanks!

5pm to 7pm Tickets: $250, $200, $150. 30th Anniversary Season Gala. John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center 812 E Rollins St, Orlando, FL 32803.  You’re invited to attend an evening of exceptional food, live
entertainment, and memorable conversation as we celebrate Orlando
Shakespeare Theater’s 30th Anniversary Season.

Book your tickets today and you will be among the select few to see a
one-night-only cabaret created by In the Heights performers. The Season
Gala also features an extensive variety of auction items and experiences
that you won’t want to miss. Our thrilling live auction will feature an
incredible vacation experience at the Walt Disney World Resort, a
dinner party for 100 from Arthur’s Catering, and a luxurious staycation
at the Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort.

7pm to 9pm Free but get a beer. Stephan Mikes at the Imperial. The Imperial at Washburn Imports 1800 N Orange Ave, Orlando, Florida 32804. Contemporary Sitarist and composer Stephan Mikes plays internationally influenced tunes with Tablaji Riad Abdulsalam, Swara means truth!

Social Media Think Tank.

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Mark Baratelli of The Daily City, organized a social media think tank at IZEA in Winter Park Village in which participants would outline one thing that worked for them to promote their business, and then they would ask a question of the other participants to learn Some thing new. New social media platforms are popping up every week, so it is impossible to stay on top of all social media platforms. Some people spread themselves to thin, not getting the most out of any one platform.

Melissa Marie who owns The Falcon Bar and Gallery, now has her bartenders using snap chat which raises awareness about what events are going on in the bar. My question had to do with the ways to promote events to media like newspapers and magazines in town. A week after the meet, I got an email from one of the attendees that had a list of all the media contacts in town. I am slowly getting those contacts entered as a list in g-mail so the I can sent out press releases to everyone.

Mark was proud that he had used Twitter to stay in contact with every media that shared his mission of enlightening and entertaining. It became clear that there is much I need to learn about social media but there are only so many hours in the day.

The Cardboard Art Festival is bigger than ever.

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The Daily City 3rd Annual Cardboard Art Festival moves from the Mills/50 Orange Studio to a retail storefront South of Downtown Orlando (SODO). It is in the Sodo Shopping Center, at 45 W. Crystal Lake Street, store #117, Orlando, FL on the same side as TJ Maxx, across from Gator’s Dockside which just opened this past Wednesday. I went to sketch the media preview event and immediately decided to sit below Doug Rhodehamel‘s huge cardboard submarine. A blue wave animated bulb illuminated the $4,000 sub which was accompanied by a small school of $40 to $60 deep sea fish. One of the fish sold immediately and Doug asked me to help him get an orange (sold) sticker on the fish label. We both stretched diligently on tip toe to get the job done. Doug is about to start a series of cardboard sculptures of Star Wars space craft. He explained that the walker would be about 5 to 6 feet high so that it would be eye level. When I asked how big the cardboard Death Star would be, he said he would consider a collaboration with Planet Hollywood to re-make their globe.

Cardboard twin towers brought back memories of the horrific events of 9/11.  On the back wall, a huge cardboard mural by German Lemus showed a human heart surrounded by howling wolves, clenched fists, a ram and police in riot gear. I was sitting in front of paintings on cardboard of western landscapes by Timothy Thomas. He was born in Connecticut and raised in Maine where he studied film at
Rockport College. He now lives in Orlando, FL with his wife Tina. Since I was painting, I kept being asked if I was the artist. First they would point at Timothy’s work and when I said, “nope” they would assume I was Doug since I was sitting near his submarine. All of the cardboard props from this year’s Fringe hit show, Robyn Da Hood: a Rap Musical were on display. You can pose in the golden carriage or on horse back. Artist Brendan O’Connor  who runs The Bungalower, struggled to lift the hammer of Thor.

I spoke with Banjo Bob who is best known for his hardboard T-Rex skulls.  He had some skulls on display, but even more impressive was a fully automated cardboard telescope he had created. He wrote a program for a cell phone that would allow a user to move the telescopes position. An image from the telescope was then visible on the phone. The program even allowed the telescope to automatically track a star. Since the earth is rotating the telescope would keep adjusting motors to keep the star in sight. He fabricated the cardboard parts at FACTURE  (520 Virginia Drive Orlando FL) a non-profit maker space here in Orlando. The collaborative space is part workshop, wood shop, metal working, crafts, and fabrication laboratory. I have to get over there to sketch. It sounds amazing.

Today, Sunday July 26 the daytime Cardboard Festival Gallery hours, with a suggested $5 donation, are from Noon-5pm. From 1-3pm Kids Fringe will host a Cardboard Matinee ($1 per kid). Kids aren’t the only ones who get to play. There is an interactive cardboard creation corner where anyone can create a cardboard masterpiece.

Artegon then and now.

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Artegon is an artist market set up in the former Festival Bay Mall. Festival Bay had only a few merchants who were long term, one was the Bass Pro Shops, Ron Jon Surf Shop. Unfortunately the rest of the mall was usually half empty. Artegon came in with an exciting concept to convert the mall into an artist market. I liked the idea, having been to a number of exiting markets around the world like the bazaar in Turkey. Rent for artist vendors started at a cheap rate of $6 a day, so I went to several of the early pitch meetings to consider the idea of setting up a shop for myself.

After the pitch we all got a chance to tour the new facility. All of the inner courtyards had been given alleyways of cages for vendors to set up shop. Each cage was about 10 feet square. The effect as we walked through the dark space was much like an insane asylum or Thunder dome from Mad Max. One artist had invested in a huge retail gallery space for his own vanity gallery. When I re-visited Artegon several months later, he had moved out. Unfortunately the cages are never more than half occupied.

A metal zip line elevated aerial adventure  had been constructed in the largest courtyard. Within one month of the opening, a tourist fell to his death from the attraction. There is no safety net, but I imagine tourists must sign a waver before they climb up to the heights. The Daily City, another Orlando News site set up shop for the opening of Artegon, but that store also closed. Walking around recently I didn’t recognize and local artists as vendors, although local B-Side artists collaborated to create some decent murals.

Driving from the airport to Orlando on the Bee line and on I-4 I noticed billboards for Artegon. They hope to bring in tourists to the market and travel destination. Despite the marketing efforts the place still has a lonely vacant feel. Gods and Monsters, a comic superstore just opened, and at the opening day the market was finally bustling with costumed superheros. Perhaps it will take a superhero to save this artist market ideal. Right now the place seems to have an identity crisis.

Bikini Ad Space turned heads at Fringe.

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Katie Thayer, an attractive local actress and comedian, came up with the idea of Bikini Ad Space at the Orlando International Fringe Festival several years ago. The idea is pure genius and simple. She wears a sexy bikini and you can body paint your message on any of her prime body parts. Her lower shins, and her upper or lower arms, front and back go for $5 each. $10 gets prime exposure on her upper calves, front and back, and her belly. You can “get cheeky” by purchasing ad space on both butt cheeks for $15. Of course the most expensive ad space is the $20 chest ad which can nestle in her cleavage.

We bumped into Katie on the first day of the Fringe Sketch Tour and arranged to sketch her the next day. She works inside the Shakespeare Theater lobby which is always crowded with people buying tickets and waiting for shows. She had her leg propped up on a table covered with show flyer’s. The layer of flyer’s was an inch thick which meant you often had to dig down to find a flyer for the show you were interested in. Usually clients had the opportunity to paint their ad on Katy’s flesh. In this rare instance Katy was painting her own ad to get people to vote for Bikini Ad Space as the best “Bring Your Own Venue” in The Daily City Audience Choice Awards. I don’t know if she won that honor.

Cootie Catcher in the red venue had purchased the prime cleavage ad space while Valence had invested in belly ad space. I saw valance, an introspective dance performance that inspected touch in human interactions, but I never saw Cootie Catcher. My sketch protege sketched me sketching Katy and I’m sure photos were shot which made it a very “Meta” performance. The day before, Katy had left her kit of brushed behind and it vanished. Luckily she found a loose brush in the bottom of her bag, but it was a rather blunt brush which meant she couldn’t add any refined touches. I offered her one of my brushes but she was too proud to take it. I hope that the ads she sold will help pay for a new set of brushes because quality brushes are expensive. Her palette was a clear plastic plate. Friends stopped to ask her advice on the best shows to see. Katy had seen tons of shows, so she was a great resource.

Artegon Grand Opening opened my eyes to the creative potential of this new market.

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I went to the grand opening of Artegon at the north end of International Drive across from the Outlet Stores. Retail spaces are being made available to artists and artisans to sell their wares for as little as $6 a day. As an artist, this prospect of getting my work to be viewed by tourists is an exciting option. All the market spaces are surrounded by wire fencing. When I toured the empty space, with little light it reminded me of an asylum. The grand opening however changed my perspective.

165 artist booths and stores offer an amazing variety of art and crafts. I was surprised to see The Daily City had rented a prime space near the cinema. I talked to Mark Baratelli who is using the space as his office and a permanent Pop Up Shop.  He had art by local artist Boy Kong and he pointed out some metal elephants that he had an artist make. The woman next to me remarked that they would make nice stocking holders for Christmas. Mark loved the idea. The elephant’s trunk made a nice hook and the sculptures were heavy enough to support a stocking stuffed with gifts.

What has kept me from renting a space is the fact that I don’t want to commit so much time to staying in a retail space. I might be called to do a sketch at any time of the day and since I work on location, I’d have to leave shop. I told Mark about my idea of buying a used vending machine to dispense post card sketches. The problem with the vending machine is that I would still have to open shop in the morning and close shop at night. We also spoke about the possibility of my setting up a card display in the Daily City Shop. This might be a good way for me to at least dip my toe in.

I was enthralled by the place. A large rope, sky maze was set up in the central hub of the market. Occasionally people could be heard screaming as they zip lined across the divide. Better still an enterprising vendor was renting out motorized plush puppies which an adult or child could ride around the market. Two puppies pretended to crash into each other at their very tame speed, and the two riders spilled off in slow motion to the floor. A stilt walker walked over and inquired if they were OK. They laughed and got back on. A balloon artist had life sized balloon sculptures scattered among several vendors. A soap shop had a balloon woman taking a balloon bubble bath. Stilt walkers stood behind me and watched the sketch evolve. I found it funny that they were trying to see from that great height.

Houck Talent had brought in the stilt walkers and African Acrobats for the grand opening. I sketched the acrobats as they did their routine. They  created a human pyramid with a flourish and then one acrobat stacked chairs until he could almost touch the ceiling with his toes when he did a handstand. A sizable crowd clapped and whooped. It is almost impossible to see every artists booth. I got lost finding myself distracted by unexpected wares and bright colors at every turn. Not every booth was occupied, so it seems that there are still opportunities for local artists to make this space their own. I decided not to look at every artist booth. I decided I wanted to share this shopping experience with my wife. If the Artegon Market maintains this level of excitement moving forward it will certainly prove to be a required shopping destination this holiday season.

Media Panel Discussion

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I went to a panel discussion about media in the age of the Internet. Mark Baratelli, who founded The Daily City blog was part of the discussion, so I wanted to support him and learn a thing or two. The other panelists were Lora Daiz, a journalist from Local 6 News and Catherine Brown from Clear Channel Communications. Social Media is offering opportunities to reach an ever increasing audience if you have a message to share. New platforms keep appearing and media need to keep on top of the curve to keep track of what is trending. Yesterday I tarted using instagram for the first time and I was shocked at the response when I posted my first blurry photo of a sketch in progress. Now I need to set aside time each day to fire off some instagram image. The problem is of course that involves devoting more time to marketing rather than creating art. My iPhone always spins for a few minutes thinking about what it wants to do. I am beginning to think I am spending too much of my life waiting for software to click on. When the technology works it is magic. I need to find the right balance so that I’m not overwhelmed by the demands of having a virtual social life. When I’m sketching everything comes into focus and I feel that my life is being fully lived. Social media is my way to find sketching opportunities that get me fully involved in the world around me.

16th hole at the Bay Hill Invitational

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On March 22nd Jesse Newton invited me to a Green Party at the 16th hole of the Bay Hill Invitational. My North Bay neighborhood is right near the Bay Hill Country Club, so we were issued neighborhood access passes for the car to guarantee we would not be turned away since parking for the golf event is a logistical nightmare. My sister Pat Boehme was in town to go to my gallery opening. Mark Baratelli of The Daily City was up for an adventure as well, so the four of us drove towards South Bay and thanks to the neighborhood car passes we were able to drive through check points and avoid traffic tie ups.

The South Bay home was absolutely gorgeous. It was a casual but very fashionable affair. A bar was set up behind the home next to the pool. Many of the people at the party were restaurant and bar owners and it was a crowd of beautiful people. Right behind the pool deck, a small grassy hill sloped down toward a small pond. Just beyond the pond was the 16th hole. I ordered a soda and turned my back to the golf because I needed to sketch the beautiful people. One woman had a white paddle with “Quiet” written on it. Whenever an important putt was about to happen she would raise the paddle and hush the revelers. Once the ball was in the hole the party conversations would fire back up with plenty of laughter and joking. The “Quiet” sign holder posed provocatively for me several times but I knew she wouldn’t be able to hold the poses long. I sketched her when she least expected it. Several times during the party the “Quiet” paddle was used like a fraternity butt spanker.

A short path to the left lead to a spot right next to a TV camera tower where the putting action could be viewed from up close. It was possible to get closer to the action than any of the spectators on the greens behind their ropes. I glanced over my shoulder periodically when I heard the crowd on the green murmur or applaud. But honestly, the gorgeous people on the hill captured most of my attention. Mark and I joked about how this must be what it feels like to be part of the “in” socialite crowd.

A women introduced herself and watched me work for a while. She analyzed my composition and decided that the woman in the black tights and shapely hips was the primary focus of the sketch, the rest was just supporting detail. I laughed. “Guilty as charged” I had to admit.With the sketch done, Terry, Pat and I retired to a shady spot in the pool area. I had to sit in the direct sunlight to get the sketch, so my neck got sunburned. I have no idea who won the golf tournament. The last balls plopped into the holes and the golf greens slowly cleared as the sun set. With so much to see and sketch the tournament scores were the least of my concerns.

Tree of Light

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On June 14th, the Virginia Drive Live Street Party was held all along Virginia Drive in Ivanhoe Village. Scottie Campbell, the Ivanhoe Village-Manager war running from street side tent to tent. I saw him when I first got out of my car and then several more times as I walked down Virginia Drive. Vendors and artists were busy setting up.

    Virginia Drive, between Alden Road. and Haven Drive, in Ivanhoe Village came alive with late night shopping, food trucks, street vendors and artists, entertainment, and more! A wine stroll guided people you from merchant to merchant. I stopped at the beer garden, Sponsored by TheDailyCity.com, in the lot next to The Venue. Mark Baratelli of TheDailyCity.com stopped to say hello. There had been some drama among the food truck vendors he invited to the event and he had to straighten it all out.

As the sun set, the Tree of Light illuminated the area where DJ Chris Mendez was spinning tunes. Parents relaxed, sipping beers while their children played in the grass. The Tree of light has a welded aluminum structure inside with wood boards from shipping palettes screwed to the outside. I saw the structure as it was first being built in Cole Nesmith‘s yard. An exotic computer program used to make the lights flicker in a sequence when they were turned on with pull chords. Small diode light strips in the mason’s jars looked like fire flies. The heavy Florida rains had some of the jars collecting water. The draw strings were no longer an option. All the lights were always on. The tree was going to be set up in downtown Orlando but after working all night to gel it set up, someone leaned a ladder against a branch and the branch crashed to the ground. No one was hurt, but now the sculpture was seen as a dangerous liability. Cole and his team of artists and engineers went back to the drawing board reinforcing all the inner supports.

Children couldn’t resist trying to climb the tree. A group of three or four toddlers gathered at the base and used the roots as a boost to try and get up the trunk. Thankfully, parents moved in and pulled the children off. Had the kids gotten up to the branches, the results could have been devastating. Worst would be if an adult who has had too many beers decided to climb the tree on a dare. As a teenager, I once drank so much that I decided I had to climb to the top of a telephone pole. I was alone, so I wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I did it cause I was drunk and therefor indestructible. Sometimes I’m an idiot.

Jett Backpack and the Battle at the End of the Universe

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I went to the Jett Backpack tech rehearsal to see the cast in costume. I was impressed by the backpack itself which was built with cardboard tubes and the ends of liter soda bottles along with tubing snaking from component to component, all of this was anchored to a roll along suitcase and worn, the backpack looked like it might work.

Dancers rehearsed the opening scene in which they held planets that zoomed down the isles and onto the stage narrowly missing Jennifer Guhl as she flew a pretend shuttle through space. Dorothy Massey was busey cutting a foam tail for a reptilian villain named Dr. Saurian played by Stephen Lima. When the tail was secured with a belt she and the cast had a good laugh. Later the reptile was fighting Jett Backpack, played by John Bateman, and the tail struck Jett in the balls immobilizing him. In a second rehearsal of the same fight, Jett’s knees came together when he was struck and the tail snapped off remaining between his clenched knees. It was a hilarious mistake.

This Fringe show was campy and fun offering rolls where local actors could cut loose and be silly. Sadly the show’s run is over and yesterday I saw the cast relaxing over beers in the beer tent. The earth itself was saved from certain doom so it was time to down some ale and admit the battle was now part on Intergalactic history.

This show won TheDailyCity.com’s Audience Choice Award for the best show in the yellow venue.