Thursday, February 7, 5:30 p.m. Gentlemen of Verona interpretation; Improv performance at 6:30 p.m.
In collaboration with The St. Petersburg Celebration of the Arts, Florida CraftArt will present a lecture and improv performance featuring William Shakespeare’s Gentlemen of Verona. Set among the jewelry exhibition “Offbeat Bijou” the troupe Improvaholics will involve the audience in a humorous and poignant interpretation of the bard’s play. Refreshments will be offered on February 7 at 5:30 p.m. with a play interpretation at 5:45 p.m. and Improv at 6:30 p.m.
The Improvaholics are a Tampa Bay based musical-improv troupe formed in 2014 and currently part of THE BOX THEATRE in Tampa, Florida. Its mission is to make people laugh and to share the endless possibilities which can come from the imagination just by eliminating self-limiting doubts. The actors have full-time jobs and perform improv in their spare time for the love of the craft. All of the troupe’s performances are completely improvised based on audience suggestions and participation.
Shakespeare’s play has a line in it which relates to jewelry:
“She is mine own,
And I as rich in having such a jewel
As twenty seas, if all their sand were pearl,
The water nectar, and the rocks pure gold.”
The exhibition “Offbeat Bijou: Alternative materials, processes and ideas in jewelry” features innovative, artist-created pieces, such as Emiko Oye’s necklaces and broaches made from Legos and 3-D printed jewelry. The exhibition, curated by Kelsey Nagy and Melissa Yungbluth, runs through March 2.
Additional programming includes docent tours every Wednesday at 1:15 p.m. and a jewelry-making demonstration by ArtLofts artist Julie Dye on February 13 at 1p.m.
Florida CraftArt is located at 501 Central Avenue in St. Petersburg. For more information, visit www.FloridaCraftArt.org or call (727) 821-7391. Admission is free. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Florida CraftArt is a nonprofit organization founded in 1951 and headquartered in St. Petersburg. Its mission is to grow the statewide creative economy by engaging the community and advancing Florida’s fine craft artists and their work. Fine craft art is presented in its 2,500-square-foot retail gallery and curated exhibitions are featured in its adjacent exhibition gallery. Florida CraftArt is the only statewide organization offering artists a platform to show and sell their work.
For more information about The St. Petersburg Celebration of the Arts, visitwww.artsofstpete.org.
CUTLINES (More images of work available on request. Photo and video opportunities available.)
Improvaholics.jpg: Improvaholics actors are (bottom row, from left), Bill Cummings, Susan Guidi, Sandra Lake, Anne Jones; (top row), Kevin Kravitz and Steven Sanchez.
Florida CraftArt
501 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33701
727-821-7391 FloridaCraftArt.org
Contact: Katie Deits, Executive Director