Art drives traffic. Let’s say you’re a small municipality huddled at the tip of Miami Beach, just below Bal Harbour Village. You have an adorable little downtown with an impeccable custom Italian tailor (really, there is no story on the Internets about Verdiles? Tsk, tsk), a terrific little Italian restaurant, and a friendly government. How […]

Gwendolyn Lai (left) and Kim Ehly mix it up in “The Hour of the Tiger” Why do I love Miami? Because this weekend I stayed home on Friday night, and still managed to dance to live rara and zouk music at the Haiti Mizik Relief benefit on Saturday afternoon; flip out to contemporary Finnish spectral […]

“This is not an art palace,” Howard Herring announced, his shoes gray with construction dust, his eyes intense under his hard hat. Herring took his job as president and CEO of the New World Symphony largely so he could oversee the building of “America’s orchestral academy’s” new Frank Gehry-designed campus. Some eight years later, here […]

“With such a, such a, such a pretty face,” a woman’s voice taunted in the dance theater piece “Cabaret Unkempt.” The implications were clear: a woman with a pretty face should also be thin. Jennylin Duany flouted convention. As a choreographer and outsize dancer, she was beautiful in her body and in her soul. A […]

“Is it possible? Is there ganna be knaval this year?” a woman named Rose asked last night on the Haiti Kanaval blog. “i dont [think] we should celebrate…with all those people dying.” Rose’s message was only the second on bèlkanaval.com since the earthquake struck Port-au-Prince on Tuesday evening. The other was from a woman looking […]

Twice last Friday evening, the announcer at the Arsht Center gave the news that Jeanette Delgado would not be appearing in a scheduled number in Miami City Ballet’s program II. Twice the audience let out a collective “aaahhh.” Where was the favorite ballerina, who all by herself appeared as one of the “ten best cultural […]

In theater as in politics, timing is everything. To keep a cozy relationship with the press, how much confidential info should be shared with a favorite reporter and when? When should an ambitious campaign flak abandon a flagging candidate and sign on with a winner? And exactly when is it a good idea to bed […]

“You can’t roll,” Rodney Bell taunted his fellow dancers last night during a performance of David Dorfman’s piece, “Light Shelter.” Fellow dancers from the mixed-ability AXIS Dance Company responded to Bell’s challenge by somersaulting across the bare stage at the Colony Theatre. “But you can’t roll like this,” Bell retorted as he zipped past them, […]

Special Holiday Guest Blog written by Mia Leonin. Thank you, Mia! In addition to the long lines of testy shoppers and mall parking lot homicides, something wintery is finally happening in South Florida. On Sunday, the Florida Dance Association’s WinterFest kicked off with “Florida Dances/Miami Dances” – six Florida-based choreographers dabbling in all things dance […]

New Year’s Eve: so much hype, so much opportunity for disappointment. For an Auld Lang Syne you’ll want to remember, ring in the new year with Gablestage. This year Joe Adler’s company serves up a champagne supper at the Biltmore along with the southeastern premiere of Beau Willimon’s political thriller Farragut North. The playwright draws […]

Duet for mature dancers with Rahel VonMoos (left) and Wally Cardona. Photo: Christian Glaus Miami arts enthusiasts are creatures of habit. We know that November is for books; December, visual arts; February, film; March means music; and summer means theater and dance, right? Last year, though, the Florida Dance Association shook up the local arts […]