We’re discovering a wealth of culture here in Southwest Florida! The Sarasota-Bradenton area has a seemingly infinite array of music and theater opportunities. In just the past two months we’ve taken advantage of several. One Sunday November afternoon, we attended a string quartet chamber concert featuring members of the Sarasota Symphony. It turns out that this symphony, previously with the bland name of Florida West Coast Symphony, has been around for more than 65 years and is the oldest in the state! On the anniversary of Pearl Harbor Day, we heard the full orchestra with a guest conductor and pianist in a symphony of American music including a work by Samuel Barber along with Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. A patriotic, but not overdone afternoon. Before the holidays, we were delighted with the Asolo Repertory Theatre’s production of that classic, South Pacific. With the heightened awareness of black-white tensions in several US cities, this performance was timely for sure. It is part of the theater’s 5-year American Character project, now in its second season.
This week, we discovered the world of the Sarasota Institute of Lifelong Learning (SILL). As someone whose job on the other coast was all about lifelong learning, it’s fun to be able to take advantage of someone else’s programs. SILL has been in existence for 44 years and we are signed up for Music Mondays. Twelve weeks of conversation and performance related to many aspects of music! Week one featured the composer Theodore Morrison whose latest work, Oscar, an opera about Oscar Wilde’s trial, will be performed in Philadelphia in February. He was joined by the countertenor understudy for the role of Oscar who sang several aria excerpts for the audience. The host of this program, June LeBell, is dynamic, knows her stuff, and kept up a lively pace.
Before the week is over, we’ll be at another SO concert—this one conducted by the new and exciting Anu Tali. Can’t wait to see this female conductor in action!
