Mary Damiano Photo by David Vance

Mary Damiano’s Arts Scene

Are you ready for the December madness known collectively as Art Basel? The invasion of the art fairs is upon us, and from now until December 7 that means art, art, and more art. Between the ginormous Art Basel in Miami Beach to the satellite art fairs in Midtown Miami, there will be enough art events in five days to last the whole year. If you want to find out more about the art fairs, read the features about Art Basel and Art Miami, as well as a round-up of the rest of the arts fairs, in this issue of MiamiARTzine.com. Also, check out our new arts blog, Arts du Jour, for news from the arts fairs.

And speaking of Arts du Jour, thanks so much for making it a huge success. Within the first five days of its inception, MiamiARTzine.com readers made Arts du Jour the second most visited spot on the entire site. It’s gratifying to know that so many readers consider MiamiARTzine.com a valuable resource for finding out what’s going on in the arts in South Florida.

The Family Car by Alfred Phillips, one of the artists participating in the Ribbons for the Children exhibition

"Ribbons for the Children" Art Exhibition
Not every art event is going on in Miami this weekend. The Children’s Diagnostic & Treatment Center will host the “Ribbons for the Children” art exhibition opening reception and auction on December 6, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale. “Ribbons for the Children” is an ArtsUnited benefit for the Center’s programs serving children and families with HIV/AIDS. Twenty-five ArtsUnited artists created original art pieces using the AIDS Ribbon as their subject, and then donated the artwork to the Children’s Diagnostic & Treatment Center. The 25 unique art works will be on display for the first time in this exhibition at the museum. Each will be auctioned during the reception. With the help of Dennis Dean Images, each art piece has been digitally photographed, and the images have been reproduced on note cards and prints. Sets of the 25 distinct cards will also be available for purchase during the reception. All the proceeds from the event will go to support the Comprehensive Family AIDS Program of the Center. The Children’s Diagnostic & Treatment Center is a nationally recognized “Center of Excellence” offering family-centered, culturally sensitive medical care and social services in Broward County, Florida. The museum is located at One Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale. Suggested donation for the Ribbons event is $25. For more information or to RSVP, please call 954-728-1088.

The Arts Ballet Theatre of Florida will perform The Nutcracker in Miami and Fort Lauderdale

Visions of Sugar Plum Fairies
The Arts Ballet Theatre of Florida will present the holiday favorite The Nutcracker under the Artistic Direction of Ballet Master, Vladimir Issaev, in both Miami and Fort Lauderdale. The Nutcracker is a tradition for Arts Ballet of Florida. The score is by Tchaikovsky but the choreography for this version is by the company’s ballet master Issaev. His choreography preserves the Russian tradition and is an alternative for those who already have seen Balanchine’s version. The production features principal dancer Yoshie Oshima as the Sugarplum Fairy and Andrey Konkin as her Cavalier. The Nutcracker will be performed at the North Miami Beach Performing Arts Theater, December 13-14 and later at the Parker Playhouse in Fort Lauderdale, December 20-21. For tickets and information, visit www.artsballettheatre.org.

The Four Freshman will perform their holiday show at Parker Playhouse

60 Years in Show Business
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the jazz vocal group, The Four Freshmen, and they will perform in Fort Lauderdale on December 10 for the Gold Coast Jazz Society at Parker Playhouse in The Four Freshmen Holiday Show. The group began in 1948 as The Toppers, but soon changed their name to The Four Freshman. Jazz legend Stan Kenton heard the Freshmen in March 1950 at the Esquire Lounge in Dayton, Ohio. He gave them their first big break by introducing the group to Capitol Records, which was the label on which Kenton recorded. The Freshmen’s signature tune “It's a Blue World Without You,” was released in 1952 and they went on to enjoy numerous TV, radio and touring appearances. Although no original members are still with the group—in fact, the current members probably weren’t born when the original group began—The Four Freshmen are still remain popular today with a large international fan club and following. A pre-concert Jazz Riff jazz talk will be given by radio personality Stu Grant (WLVE FM) at 7 p.m. in the theater before the show. The concert is scheduled to begin at 7:45 p.m. For tickets and more information, visit www.parkerplayhouse.com or www.goldcoastjazz.org.

José Feliciano, who will perform holiday favorites in Fort Lauderdale and Miami

Music for the Holidays
What would the holiday be without hearing the festive classic “Feliz Navidad” by José Feliciano? You can see him sing that song, as well as other holiday favorites when the Concert Association of Florida presents José Feliciano – Holiday At The Pops, featuring the Miami Pops Orchestra under the direction of José Antonio Molina on Tuesday, December 9 at Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale, and Wednesday, December 10, at the Arsht Center in Miami. By the time he was 23, José Feliciano had earned five Grammy nominations and won two Grammy Awards for his album Feliciano!, and he had performed over much of the world, and had recorded songs in four languages. In 1996, Feliciano was selected to receive Billboard Magazine's Lifetime Achievement Award and New York City honored him by re-naming Public School 155 in East Harlem, The José Feliciano Performing Arts School. He has received a total of six Grammy Awards thus far in his career; two in English and four in Spanish. He has won 16 nominations over the years, an accomplishment that he treasures dearly, for the Grammy, awarded through NARAS, The National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences, is the music industry's own recognized standard for greatness among its participants. For tickets and more information, visit www.browardcenter.org, www.arshtcenter.org, or www.concertfla.org.

Wayne LeGette and Francisco “Pancho” Padura in Gutenberg! The Musical! at Actor’s Playhouse

Theatre Openings
Gutenberg! The Musical! opens this week at Actors’ Playhouse in Coral Gables. It’s a spoof about two playwrights pitching their musical about printing press inventor Johann Gutenberg to producers. It sounds a lot like The Big Bang, which was hysterical. Gutenberg! The Musical! runs through January 4. www.actorsplayhouse.org. The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, Paul Rudnick’s gay redux on what went on in the Garden of Eden, is on tap at Rising Action in Oakland Park from December 10 through January 18 www.risingactiontheatre.com The Sol Theatre in Fort Lauderdale is getting into the holiday spirit with The Eight: Reindeer Monologues, with a performance every night from December 12 to December 21. I saw Sol do this a few years ago and it was hilarious, with the Merry Solsters putting their unique spin on an already twisted tale. www.soltheatre.com. And up in Palm Beach, Florida Stage has Mezzulah, 1946, by Michele Lowe, about a free-spirited young woman who doesn’t want to give up her factory job to a man returning home from the war. It runs December 10 through January 19. www.floridastage.org.


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