Culture Vulture

 

Business as usual

 

By C.S. GILBERT

 

Life seems to be settling down after the whirlwind of the winter holidays. Students have resumed their classes and Keys art galleries have resumed their chock-a-block openings, sometimes mounting a show a week. What this means, primarily, is that if art shows is your cup of tea, as it is mine, you can stop in at Lucky Street, say, or Gingerbread Square every week and be relatively confident that new wonders await.

On the other hand, the breathless pace of seasonal openings sometimes simply takes the breath away. On the third hand (and the fourth and on and on), this is surely not a bad thing. It merely takes paying attention and setting priorities. It’s probably not possible to attend every opening, see every show—be it fine or performance art—without suffering from nervous exhaustion. A couple of recommended guidebooks are published regularly by the previously praised Florida Keys Council of the Arts ([email protected]) and, covering fewer events more colorfully, the very personal weekly blogs of Lynda Frechette ([email protected]).

Hang on; the merry-go-round is about to start.

A good example: Gingerbread Square Gallery is pleased to welcome again the work of Key West artist Michael A. Palmer in an exhibit of his latest collection of acrylic and ink paintings on canvas, announced the gallery’s Jeff Birn. The show opened officially on Monday and runs through Jan. 19. “Palmer has lived and worked in Key West for the last 33 years, spending summers in Maine. He has exhibited professionally for 51 years and his work is well collected both here and abroad. For a number of years he has continued his focus on life in the African-Americancommunity of Key West. His work has recently concentrated more and more on an investigation of the architectural/geometric mazes of favelas such as those above Rio de Janeiro. Defined as slums or ghettos, favelas are tightly thrown together communities of the poor with any type of structure, from large buildings to lean-tos jammed into areas surrounding major cities. Geographically they go by many names, but they are all

places where a large segment of a population scrapes together livings in the shadow of more affluent metropolises. This is wonderfully depicted in several new works.” Very interesting!

Another highlight of the past week was Bobby Nesbitt’s ninth, I think he said, solo appearance in the cabaret at Tennessee Williams Theater, this on the theme of Fred Astaire. Nesbitt isn’t just a superb piano man/singer; he’s a music historian. Each of his shows, including his sell-out series with Carmen Rodriguez at the Little White House, is an education in the era and work of a specific composer or performer or of a period of popular music (as WW II). What an entertaining way to learn. Ably backed up by Joe Dallas, Jr. on stand up bass and Skipper Kripitz on drums, Nesbitt remains the consumate showman. “He’s just a little too good for Key West,” observed my sophisticated professor friend after the show, “but I’m glad we’ve got him.” Indeed.

Possibly the strongest theater season ever has been launched; The Price closed Jan. 11 and Noises Off on Jan. 10—both won raves—but you can still see “The Last Night of Ballyhoo” till Jan. 17 at the Red Barn. It too received raves from our Diane Johnson. The Vulture intends to catch both if possible. Stay posted for new openings.

Coming up next: Jan. 6 and 7 provided extraordinary back-to-back musicales—first the symphony’s Starry Night with a Schubert string quintet, then the Bones ‘Bones, Harry Schroeder and Joe Dallas, Jr.’s homegrown-and-special-guests, mostly trombone jazz ensemble. Wow. Auditory heaven.

That’s all for now. Gotta fly!

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