Mary Damiano Photo by David Vance

 Mary Damiano’s Arts Scene

Stuart Meltzer, Ellen Wedner and John Felix at Lavender Footlights on Wednesday, April 11, where Meltzer’s play was read Photo: Henry Perez

Lavender Footlights Fun
Lavender Footlights, the annual festival that features staged readings of gay and lesbian themed plays, is currently in full swing at the DotFiftyOne Gallery in the Miami Design District.  I was among those in the audience on Wednesday, April 11, who was treated to Better Than Damn Good by local director, actor and writer Stuart Meltzer.  This rollicking ride of a play chronicled the divorce day of 40-something Leigh, and how her gay best friend Aaron makes it memorable.  The cast included some of the best in South Florida theatre, including Amy London, Michael McKeever, John Felix, Oscar Cheda, Matt Glass, Katie Middleton, Ceci Fernandez, Barry Tarallo, Cynthia Caquelin and Margaret Ledford.  Meltzer was there for a talk-back afterwards.  Lavender Footlights continues through the weekend, and they’ve added a bonus night on Monday.  Don’t miss this fest, which is one of the hippest and hottest events of the year.  For more photos of Lavender Footlights, check out the photo galleries in the April 27 issue of MiamiARTzine.com.  caemia.org.

Me and Michael McKeever, having a Golden Globes moment at the Carbonell Awards party Photo: Henry Perez

Carbonell Awards
Promethean Theatre co-founder and actress Beth McIntosh calls the annual Carbonell Awards theatre prom, a night when South Florida ‘s theatre community gets dressed up and celebrates excellence in their profession.  There were several wonderful moments from this year’s Carbonell Awards, which were held Monday, April 9 at Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale.  The first came with the first award of the evening, which went to Matt Corey for Best Sound Design.  Matt’s father, actor Dave Corey was in the audience, and it was heartwarming to watch him beam with pride as Matt accepted the award.  Another fun moment was Antonio Amadeo’s win for Best Actor in a Play for The Pillowman.  Amadeo bypassed the steps and instead leapt onto the stage in exuberance.  And it’s always exciting to see someone get an award when they didn’t even know they were under consideration.  That was the case for actress Kameshia Duncan, who was honored with the first ever Fred Diekmann Emerging Artist Award.  Named in honor of my friend, the late Fred Diekmann a man who loved theatre more than anyone I’ve ever met.  Kameshia was truly stunned when her name was announced as the winner of the award, which came with a $1,000 check to help her in her career.  As for the other awards, the Maltz Jupiter Theatre broke the Actor’s Playhouse’s strangle-hold on the musical categories, winning both the best musical production and best director of a musical and best musical director awards for their sumptuous production of Tin Pan Alley Rag.  Lisa Morgan made it two in a row with her win for Best Actress in a Play for playing Martha in Whose Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at Palm Beach Dramaworks; Morgan won last year for her role in Frozen at GableStage.  The GableStage in Coral Gables continued their domination in play categories, winning this year for The Pillowman and director Joseph Adler.  Palm Beach County dominated the awards, with their theatres winning 11 awards; Miami-Dade theatres Actor’s Playhouse and GableStage took home 4 awards a piece, while Broward County’s sole win was Ron Hutchins for Best Choreography for Broward Stage Door’s Five Guys Named Moe.  Bruce Adler, a Broadway star with South Florida roots, hosted the ceremony, which included performances by Avery Sommer, Alton Fitzgerald White, Gary Marachek and TV star Gary Sandy.  The Jean Ryan Dancers closed the show with a salute to British rock group Queen, which left most in attendance scratching their heads about what exactly that had to do with South Florida theatre.  After the ceremony, everyone went across the street to the Museum of Discovery and Science for the reception, which was lots of fun.  For photos of the Carbonell ceremony and party, check out the photo galleries in this issue.

Cast members of The Clean House, which opens April 13 at the Caldwell Theatre in Boca Raton Photo: Henry Perez

On the Boards
The Caldwell Theatre in Boca Raton opens their new comedy, The Clean House tonight.  Fresh from its premiere at New York’s Lincoln Center, The Clean House, by young playwright Sarah Ruhl, concerns married doctors who hire a Portuguese-speaking maid who hates to clean, and it runs through May 20.  caldwelltheatre.com.  Carbonell winner Lisa Morgan is the star of Golda’s Balcony at the GableStage theatre, in which the Welsh-born actress will play Isreali prime minister Golda Meir.  Golda’s Balcony runs April 21 through May 20.  gablestage.org.  Now that the Mosaic Theatre was forced to cut My Name is Rachel Corrie from their schedule amid protests, they will open Heather Raffo’s 9 Parts of Desire April 18.  Both plays are one-woman shows detailing the crisis in the Middle East by focusing on the women involved in it and affected by it.  9 Parts of Desire, which runs through May 13, tells the stories of Iraqi women and was culled from 11 years of interviews conducted by the playwright.  mosaictheatre.com.  The Florida Stage Theatre in Manalapan will present the 7^th Annual Young Playwright’s Festival Monday, April 23, 7 p.m., with a reception at 6:30 p.m. in the theatre’s lobby.  Professional actors will present a staged reading of 10 winning plays, which were selected from more than 230 entries. The talented Palm Beach County student authors honored range in age from 2nd to 12th grade. In addition to having their work published in the Young Playwrights Festival Anthology, the students will receive $500 savings bonds, gift certificates to Barnes and Noble, T-shirts and pens. The event is free.  floridastage.org.

Multiple Carbonell Award winner Lisa Morgan in Golda’s Balcony, which opens April 21 at the GableStage Theatre Photo: George Schiavone

Music for Earth Day
Earth Day is April 22, and there are several ways to pay tribute this big blue planet we live on.  Check out EarthFesti-Water Fest Gone Green at the North Beach Entrance of Crandon Park at the Crandon Park Visitor's and Biscayne Nature Center, 6767 Crandon Blvd., Key Biscayne, noon to sundown. Described as an action-packed day for everyone to celebrate our environment, this festival can wander an eco-village where environmentally friendly products from local green businesses will be for sale. Many local green non-profit organizations will also be present sharing information of what can be done locally to conserve water and make Miami a greener community.   Musical guests include Miami’s own DJ LeSpam and the All-Stars, Agape, Ana Kampa, Deblois, Marc Berner, and the Earthman Band. There will also be spoken word performances by Drew Dellinger along with film screenings, water-related games and activities designed to focus everyone on conservation. The festival will also give visitors a way to recycle and reuse, inviting people to bring their old computers and any electronics (except TVs) to be recycled.  There will also be a Swap Shack, a sort of garage sale where everything is free.  Visitors are invited to leave clothing, toys, home accessories, that are no longer of use to them and take what they like.  Kids will be able to get in on the fun with their own music, pumped out by DJ Cool, a giant slide, earth painting collages, Fantasy Theater performers, Sponge Bob, Mermaid Face Painting, snow cones and crunchy pop corn. Admission to the festival is free, and there is a $5 parking fee. A free shuttle from Vizcaya Metrorail Station is provided.  For more info, call 305 361-6767 x 111 or visit greenermiami.com/earthfest/.   For another Earth Day celebration, check out the South Beach Chamber Ensemble’s Earth Day concerts, Thursday, April 19, 8 p.m., at the Miami Beach Community Church, 1620 Drexel Avenue, Miami Beach, and Sunday, April 22, 2 p.m. at the Alper JCC, 11155 SW 112 Avenue, Miami.  The ensemble will play selections from Gershwin, Arriaga and Dvorak.  sobechamberensemble.org

Idalina, presented by the Miami Light Project Photo: David Whitman

Miami Light Project Presents World Premiere
The Miami Light Project will present Idalina April 19-22 at the Carnival Center for the Performing Arts Studio Theatre.  The choreography of Giovanni Luquini takes center stage in the world premiere of  Idalina, which features a score by Grammy nominee Jose Elias.  Eight dancers and four musicians transform the stage into a soliloquy of movement and prose, evoking the soul, rhythm and heat of the Brazilian countryside.  Tickets are $35.  To purchase tickets, call 305-949-6742.  miamilightproject.com.

MiMo image

Become a MiMo Expert
The North Beach Development Corporation is giving you MiMo-loving folks out there a chance to become an expert in our unique brand of architecture.  The organization has announced the inaugural MiMo Academy/Tour School for prospective tour guides and persons interested in deepening their knowledge of Miami Modern architecture. The curriculum, based on the Art Deco Tour School developed by Jeff Donnelly Ph.D., focuses on Miami Modern architecture and the history of North Beach and surrounding communities including Biscayne Boulevard and the Neighborhoods of North East Miami. Special lecturers include architect Les Beilinson, interior designer Teri D’Amico, historian and published author Carolyn Klepser and William Cary, Director of Design, Preservation and Neighborhood Planning Division of the City of Miami Beach.  The MiMo Academy will consist of two consecutive Saturday educational sessions – taking place April 21 and 28. School is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day.  Graduating from tour school requires completion of one additional session on Saturday, May 5, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.  The cost for the MiMo Academy and Tour School is $30 and includes walking tours, lunch, a specially prepared briefing book, the MiMo Architectural Guide Map of North Beach, information about MiMo architecture and information on the history of North Beach and surrounding communities.  Registration forms are available from North Beach Development Corporation at 1181 71st Street, Miami Beach, via the web at www.gonorthbeach.com, or by calling 305-865-4147.  For more info, call 305-865-4147 or e-mail nbdc@gonorthbeach.com.  gonorthbeach.com.

South Beach Faces and Facades, the subject of the first event in the Miami Beach Authors Series

Local Authors, Local Book
The Miami Beach Historical Association and Books & Books will present a series of lectures and book signing events with Miami Beach authors.  First up is Iris Chase and Gabrielle Schuetz, Wednesday, April 18, 6:30 – 8:30, at the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce Visitor’s Center, 1920 Meridian Ave.  Chase and Schuetz will discuss their book, South Beach Faces and Facades, which was published by in January.  Wines will be provided by Schnebly Redland’s Winery.  The event is free, but please RSVP by April 15 to 305-673-7000 x 6592.