Arts In

The vibrant actor Becca McCoy shares her passion for Shakespeare and the sublime storytelling of musical theatre, in a jolly conversation with Barbara St. Clair. Audiences experienced Becca’s four-and-a-half-octave vocal range in her acclaimed performance last year as the Lady of the Lake in Spamalot, and in the intimate cabaret setting of the Palladium Side Door. In recent months she’s tackled Te...

Rose Marie Prins shares her thoughts on the beauty of abstract art, and the artist’s need to adapt to changing situations and available materials. Her work connects to nature and to healing, both visibly and viscerally, and below the surface. She explores subjects such as habitat destruction and Florida’s water. Viewers often experience an emotional reaction to her paintings and imaginative instal...

Maureen McDole is a passionate reader and passionate writer. And passionate about creating opportunities for everybody in St Pete to read and write. As the founder and director of Keep St Pete Lit, Maureen has made her literary nonprofit a vital part of the local arts scene. And she’s woven literary arts into visual and performing arts, with the Fantastic Ekphrastic, the Museum of Fine Arts Book C...

“We’re surrounded by materials. So there’s no reason to not make things.” If you’ve been in downtown St. Pete you have seen James Oleson’s work. The sculptor and muralist shares his infectious enthusiasm for creating public art that’s crafted as a gift to everyone who sees it. James talks about the sense of discovery in his work, and his collaborative projects with St. Petersburg’s Bloom Art Cente...

Everybody knows Paul Wilborn. From jazz at The Palladium, newspaper pages, the emcee of countless arts events, the voice of “Noel Berlin, Cabaret Detective” and half of a beloved creative couple with actor and torch singer Eugenie Bondurant. But Paul is even more than all of that. In this conversation, he shares his experiences as a war correspondent and award-winning journalist, and as one of the...

There’s a ship docked in downtown St. Pete with aerialists flying from the rigging. It’s a ship filled with actors and dancers and theatre crew, creating a visually spectacular story about climate change. Adriana Kelder started the Caravan Stage Company with Paul Kirby in the 1970s. They’ve been bringing original productions to small towns and cities around North America - and Europe - for more th...

Internationally-known artists Robert Stackhouse and Carol Mickett share details of the evolving designs included in their Gateway Plaza commission in Richmond, Virginia. The building was constructed as their artwork was embedded in the structure. They talk about working with German mosaic specialists and how to install art in 8-degree weather while elevators are being installed around you. Find ou...

Internationally-known architect Yann Weymouth shares the practical ideas behind the Dalí Museum’s striking design, and why the glass pyramid he helped build at the Louvre was a beautifully simple answer to their needs. He shares the stories behind the new James Museum of Western + Wildlife Art that will grace downtown St. Pete this year, and how he let natural light into Miami’s Frost Museum using...

Journalist Dr. Lillian Dunlap and actor/director Jaye Sheldon are co-Artistic Directors of Your Real Stories. Based in St. Petersburg, Your Real Stories practices “theatrical journalism.” After in-depth interviews with local residents, they distill each person’s story into a script that an actor shares onstage. Your Real Stories brings real experiences to life, to spark conversations across differ...

Ya La’ford Painter, muralist, installation artist, community activist and teacher, Ya La’ford, shares her passion for creating art, and for nurturing the next generation of artists. Ya spoke with Barbara St. Clair after recent work in Thailand and China, and before a project where she’ll be working with children in Cuba. While her artwork is internationally known, Ya’s murals grace buildings throu...

Rebecca Penneys Internationally-acclaimed concert pianist Rebecca Penneys commutes between St. Pete and New York every other week, to teach at the Eastman School of Music. Her infectious sense of humor and the joy she finds in sharing music run throughout this vibrant conversation. Penneys talks about how training as a dancer - and almost giving up piano to pursue a professional ballet career - no...

Internationally-known artists Robert Stackhouse and Carol Mickett share their method of collaboration and give listeners a look behind the scenes of large-scale public art commissions - wrangling contracts. sourcing materials, coordinating with engineers, and managing budgets and schedules on art installations where you have to wear a hard hat. Robert and Carol explain their passion for both 2-dim...

Lynn Whitelaw looks at how much the world of visual art has changed in Tampa Bay in the last 40 years. We enjoy a wealth of museums, galleries and arts events now, and take for granted the many working artists and arts organizations in our area. It’s hard to believe how different the arts scene was when Whitelaw arrived in 1975. Lynn Whitelaw recently retired as the founding Director and Curator o...

Tom Sivak Tom Sivak is an adventurous composer and lyricist who talks about turning Beatles songs into Bach fugues, a musical version of “The Brain That Wouldn’t Die - in 3D!!!” and an Andrews Sisters spoof on Shakespeare that featured Jose Ferrer at Lincoln Center. Tom spoke to us shortly after revealing his new comic opera, “Dr. Dilligaff’s Baboon,” at The Palladium. You can find out more about...

Lisa Powers Tricomi In a conversation rich with laughter and with her own probing questions, Lisa Powers Tricomi shares her thoughts on acting and directing. Lisa talks about her work with veterans in The Telling Project, and the ideas behind drama therapy. She explains the different energies of acting and directing, the power of theater to transform audiences, and how she grapples with questions...