“More than 450 people were enthusiastic as we recognized the talents and efforts of the 2008 Arts Awards Winners,” reported Amy Crane, Deputy Director of the Jacksonville Cultural Council, which held the 32nd Annual Arts Awards luncheon this April.
The Council honored Darryl Hall of Stage Aurora, the Mayo Clinic, Carol McQueen from the LaVilla School, Harrington Design Associates and WJCT. It’s a way to acknowledge some of the magnificently talented people and businesses that help create a productive atmosphere for arts and culture in Jacksonville. The ceremony also serves to steer Jacksonville’s efforts at improving our community through arts and culture.
Julie Muraco knows the challenges of funding the arts and served as keynote speaker at the event. As Senior Managing Director of NASDAQ Stock Market Capital Markets Group and a board member for Americans for the Arts in Washington, which is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts, Muraco brought her wealth of experience and undeniable dedication to the event. Muraco addressed the group about the importance of creativity and innovation in the contemporary business landscape.
The Cultural Council was formed in 1973 with the vision to provide quality arts education programs to area students and to promote and support Jacksonville artists.
Amy Crane notes, “These are challenging times. We, as a community, are faced with the possibility of dramatic reductions in services and programs which affect our quality of life. It is our hope that the Mayor’s Office and the City Council will continue to work closely with the Cultural Council and organizations which we fund to find ways to continue to support the programs in education, tourism, downtown development and entertainment which make Jacksonville a great place to live.”
With the severe cutbacks in funding from the state, arts programs in Jacksonville as well as all the nonprofit groups are in a squeeze. The powers at City Hall recognize that challenge and have heard the voice of the voters of Duval County who didn’t go along with the governor’s property tax cuts.
In spite of these challenges, the spark of inspiration is still lighting and enlightening the minds of Jacksonville. The award recipients deserve all the thanks they can get as a source of that inspiration. As a token of their accomplishments each Arts Awards winner received an original piece of art by Atlantic Beach artist Linda Broadfoot that will surely be a treasured memento.
We’ve known Darryl Hall and the works of Stage Aurora and have covered many of their performances over the years. SA’s presentation of Crowns was an especially delightful play focused on African-American women and their hats. Their exuberance filled the Ezekiel Bryant Auditorium at FCCJ’s North Campus, where Stage Aurora found a home. That’s only natural because Darryl is a native son of the Northside and where he founded his theatrical company in 1999.
Growing up on the Northside didn’t provide Hall with much in the way of acting opportunities or even an organized theatrical group of any kind. States Hall, “The Arts are truly a definite medium for self-expression, creativity, and a means by which people of any socioeconomic background may share precious moments together. In the early 80s, the desire to provide a theatrical format for artists of color to develop self-expression and creativity stirred deeply in my soul. Thus, as time would allow, the desire grew and Stage Aurora was born.”
Upon receiving this accolade from the Cultural Council, Darryl responds, “Having won the Individual Arts Award is a symbol that Jacksonville appreciates my efforts in bringing professional theater showcasing the African-American experience to the City of Jacksonville. It is not about black or white, but rather quality entertainment and a sharing of the human experience. I’m working even harder (if that’s possible) to continue on this journey of enlightenment through theatre.”
Hall is a highly credited veteran of television, screen and the stage who has performed on Broadway in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess at the Lincoln Center which was broadcast live on PBS, Cinderella starring Eartha Kitt, and in Street Corner Symphony. Darryl is also an accomplished playwright with his inaugural production, Frat House, which premiered at the Florida Theatre last July.
Darryl and his crew pour the efforts of their every fiber into the productions and consistently expand the budding talents of their cast to bring performances to the stage that delight and entertain.
“It is the place where bands of light, different minds come together to share in one moment, in the emotions of joy, hope, tears, laughter, and sorrow; where color is colorless and life is celebrated. It is the theatre,” says Darryl.
Watch for Stage Aurora’s upcoming production of DreamGirls, May 10 and 11 at the Florida Theatre.
There are not enough good things to say about the dedication and sacrifice that teachers put out day after day for a meager paycheck to educate our children. They should be paid more that the President of the United States for all they do. The arts educators at Douglas Anderson and the LaVilla School of the Arts (as well as in many other schools) nurture our children’s talent and strive to open new horizons. Carol McQueen, band director at LaVilla exemplifies excellence in her field and was named the 2008 Arts Educator. LaVilla’s ensembles have been nationally recognized, traveling to Europe four different times to perform at the Montreaux and North Seas jazz festivals. McQueen’s unique and distinctive style of teaching has been chronicled in the film Chops, which is scheduled for theatrical release later this year. That’s right, a Jacksonville teacher right up there 30 feet tall on the big screen. Carol, if you won’t blow your own horn, we will do it for you. You deserve the recognition and thanks from our community and the hundreds of student’s you have influenced.
The Corporate Award was presented to the Mayo Clinic for their Humanities in Medicine Program which brings concerts to the hospital’s auditorium as well as music and art in patient rooms and cultural exhibits throughout their facility. The exceptionally health conscious Sports Medicine doctors at Mayo provide onsite care at area running events and provide readiness workshops for athletes. Music and arts in the hospital provide a pleasant atmosphere in a place where hope is most cherished.
The 2008 Small Business Award went to Harrington Design Associates who are the creative force behind the very successful branding and creative design work for the Riverside Fine Arts Series. Jeff Harrington, Flagler College alum, has formed the Harrington Arts Alliance to help local nonprofit organizations coordinate and properly utilize the aspects and benefits of design in presenting their programs.
Finally, a Special Recognition Award was presented to WJCT Public Broadcasting in celebration of its 50th Anniversary of providing high quality cultural and community programming to residents of the First Coast. You’ve got to take your hats off to their programming bringing youngsters the joys of learning with the Sesame Street gang, their variety of concerts and award winning historical programming like Ken Burns’ War and the upcoming series, Carrier. “We are proud to be the recipient of this special recognition award from the Cultural Council,” says Michael Boylan, president and CEO of WJCT Public Broadcasting. He adds, “It is a special honor being that we are celebrating 50 years of providing programming and services to the First Coast community. In celebration of our 50th anniversary we are planning a variety of community events including an open house at WJCT on August 23rd and a gala on the evening of September 12th. Stay tuned for more information about our celebration via our broadcast channels and WJCT.org.”
Article Published in the May 2008 Issue of EU Jacksonville
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