Every staff member who was forced to work part-time during the pandemic has resumed their full-time positions, the theater's artistic director Stephanie Lynge said. In addition, across all theater programming areas — mainstage, education, cinema and events — there has been a steady increase in ticket sales.
The Gainesville Community Playhouse will debut its rendition of Green Day’s “American Idiot” May 20.
The art collective Artithesis’ second exhibition, “The Inner Child,” will premiere in August.
Taking inspiration from "Humans of New Yoek," “Hipp Humans: a Collection of Stories from the Humans of Gainesville” presents a snapshot of the Gainesville community, focusing on forces large and small.
Bo Diddley Plaza teemed with festival-goers of all ages, from the elderly lounging in lawn chairs to children dancing in hula hoops in front of the stage. Above, colorful lights casted patterns of violet, red, blue and green onto a brick backdrop and performers below. A musician stepped up to the microphone. His strong voice boomed out a call-and-response scat melody, beckoning to the audience. More than 100 people eagerly participated in the dancing crowd, echoing back the improvised syllables.
On St. Patrick’s Day, a swath of culture was on display as people from all ages rolled out their picnic blankets and lawn chairs to witness history. “Dia Days” played on for two hours at Bo Diddley Plaza on March 17. Dion Dia, a Gainesville-based record label, hosted the event featuring live performances by Florida artists and an eclectic fashion show; as well as a culmination of art and expression.
Images of once-tall buildings and busy streets Iryna Kanishcheva used to walk in Lviv, Ukraine, are now billows of smoke and ashes on her television screen. “I understand that all this can be destroyed with just one missile,” Kanishcheva said. “It’s really terrifying.”
The Alachua County Public Schools Art Exhibit, which is on display from Feb. 16 to Feb. 27, features over 100 pieces of artwork from the district’s K-12 students. Located at the Historic Thomas Center, the art exhibit aims to showcase the artistic talent of local youth.
Last year’s New Works Festival took place over Zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year marked the festival’s return from the digital stage.
UF's Shakespeare in the Park Fall Selected Scenes showcase was a celebration of Shakespeare in popular culture. The performance on Dec. 4 and 5 featured notable scenes from adaptations of Shakespeare works alongside corresponding scenes from the original plays.
The Gainesville Community Playhouse opened its curtains to its first large-scale musical since the onset of the pandemic. After two years of delays, “Oliver!” is set to open Nov. 19.
Gainesville High School Drama and Tech Club were ‘all in this together’ for their production of “High School Musical in the school's auditorium. The performance was directed and sponsored by theater and drama teacher, Frank Considine.
Local arts project Figure on Diversity launched Figure Drawing in the Parks. The series started outside Bo Diddley Plaza at the Downtown Festival & Art Show Nov. 7 with a two-hour figure drawing session featuring two models.
The Phillips Center for the Performing Arts presented its spring preview in front of a live audience Oct. 5. The presentation included a slideshow of 25 performances available in the spring.
After a year of online performances, “Murder For Two” is opening for a live, socially distanced and masked audience at the Hippodrome Theatre this weekend. The premiere will be split between Friday and Saturday to allow for smaller audiences.
Solutions by The State News
