The First Event of this Multi-Part Series is “The Latest from Terry Guest”
A Play Reading and Conversation with Theater-Maker Terry Guest
Friday, August 19 at Selby Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota Campus
Presented in Partnership with Urbanite Theatre
Fresh from the recent, extended run of his play at Urbanite Theatre, the ascendant playwright returns to Sarasota and offers audiences a first look into his latest work.
(July 12, 2022) The Hermitage Artist Retreat’s popular series, “Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens,” continues into its third year with a multi-program series as part of the 2022-2023 season. The outdoor series – a collaboration between the Hermitage and Selby Gardens – features performances and explorations of works-in-progress by Hermitage artists-in-residence and alumni. All “Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens” events are currently scheduled to take place at Selby Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota campus. The first of these events is “The Latest from Terry Guest,” where playwright and Hermitage Fellow Terry Guest will share selections from and discuss one of his exciting new projects on Friday, August 19 at 6:30 p.m., behind Payne Mansion at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota campus, 1534 Mound St., Sarasota. Admission is free, but registration is required ($5/person) at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. Capacity will be limited to accommodate safe social distancing, so early reservations are recommended. All events in last year’s “Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens” series reached capacity. Face masks are encouraged at check-in and audience members are asked to be mindful of the comfort levels of those around you.
Confirmed event dates for this third season of “Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens” include:
- Friday, Aug 19; 6:30 p.m. “The Latest from Terry Guest”
- Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023; 5:00 p.m.
- Thursday, March 16, 2023; 6:30 p.m.
- Thursday, May 18, 2023; 6:30 p.m.
- Additional dates may be added.
Each program will feature a celebrated Hermitage artist (or artists) to be announced. Last year’s “Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens” featured the works of Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Michael R. Jackson, Kleban Prize winner César Alvarez, world-renowned violinist and member of Beyonce’s band Lady Jess, interdisciplinary performance artist Ni’Ja Whitson, opera singer Thea Lobo, as well as celebrated mime and storyteller Bill Bowers. The 2021-2022 season also saw Selby Gardens host the launch of the Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series with celebrated harpist Ashley Jackson. “Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens” began in the 2020-2021 season and featured MacArthur ‘Genius’ and Avery Fisher Prize winner Claire Chase, composer and santur player Amir El-Saffar, musical theater composer Rona Siddiqui, and distinguished cellist Dorothy Lawson of ETHEL.
“As we continue to expand our Hermitage programming throughout the region and find safe ways to gather in person, we are thrilled to once again welcome audiences to share a unique and magical evening with Hermitage artists against the beauitul backdrop of Selby Gardens,” says Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. “We look forward to our continuing partnership with Selby Gardens on this popular series, and welcoming new audiences to experience a ‘sneak peek’ into these extraordinary artists’ creative process.” Sandberg also notes that safety and comfort remain a top priority, so as with the Hermitage beach programs on Manasota Key, seating will be outdoors and socially distanced.
“We are so excited to continue our successful collaboration with the Hermitage Artist Retreat again this year,” says Selby Gardens President & CEO Jennifer Rominiecki. “We look forward to welcoming these renowned Hermitage artists along with familiar and new patrons to our bayfront sanctuary for another wonderful season of outdoor performances.”
These outdoor events are one part of many “Hermitage North” programs and collaborations planned throughout the season, spanning Sarasota County and the surrounding region. The programs feature industry-leading playwrights, visual artists, musicians, poets, choreographers, and more — all free to the members of our community with a $5/person registration fee.
The Hermitage is the only major arts organization in the Gulf Coast region exclusively committed to supporting the development and creation of new work across all artistic disciplines. Since the start of the pandemic, the Hermitage has offered more than 100 live outdoor artist programs, free and accessible to the members of our community. Venues have expanded beyond the Hermitage’s beautiful beachfront campus to include outdoor locations throughout Sarasota County and beyond, including Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Bay Park Sarasota, Booker High School, Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, The Ringling Museum, Sarasota Art Museum, Boca Grande, and more. New and ongoing collaborations have included Asolo Repertory Theatre, ASALH, Embracing Our Differences, EnsembleNew SRQ, Florida Studio Theatre, New College of Florida, Art Center Sarasota, Sarasota Opera, Urbanite Theater, Venice Theatre, Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, and more.
New programs introduced during the past two seasons have included dozens of partnerships with leading arts, cultural, and educational institutions throughout our region.
In addition, the Hermitage’s fall fundraiser, the 2022 “Artful Lobster: An Outdoor Celebration!” will be held outdoors at the Hermitage campus on Saturday, November 12, starting at 11:30 a.m.
To register for an upcoming Hermitage program or to learn more about the organization, visit HermitageArtistRetreat.org.
Artist Bios
Hermitage Fellow Terry Guest is a Chicago-based playwright, actor, and teaching artist whose works include A Ghost in Satin (Williamstown Theatre Festival), The Magnolia Ballet (2022-2023 rolling world premieres), Marie Antionette and the Magical Negros, The Madness of Mary Todd (currently in development with Goodman Theatre), Andy Warhol Presents: The Cocaine Play, Ghost Town (Chicago Children’s Theatre), and At the Wake of a Dead Drag Queen (The Story Theatre), which recently played a successful, extended run at Sarasota’s UrbaniteTheatre. Follow along on Instagram @terryexplainsitall or at TerryCGuest.com
New Program Description:
- “The Latest from Terry Guest” Friday August 19 @ 6:30pm: Hermitage Fellow Terry Guest, playwright of Urbanite Theatre’s recent acclaimed production of At The Wake of a Dead Drag Queen, returns to Sarasota to share his latest work. This funny, vital, and raucous new work is a “Pageant on White American Memory” and explores several of our country’s most consequential families through a wickedly contemporary lense. Join the Hermitage for a sneak peek at a new play by the playwright whose work has been described as “breathtaking” with “indelible scenes” (Chicago Reader). Note: The content of this play not be suitable for children. Presented in partnership with Marie Selby Botanical Gardens and Urbanite Theatre. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org.($5/person registration fee). Marie Selby Botanical Garden, 1534 Mound Street, Sarasota, FL 34236.
Previously Announced Hermitage Programs:
- “2022 Hermitage STARs,” Friday July 15 @ 2pm: Five of Florida’s leading arts educators are coming to the Hermitage Artist Retreat to zoom in on their own creative practice. Hailing from across the state, their artistic disciplines range as widely as their geographic homes with three focused on different fields of visual art including ceramics, collage, and painting, a musician and band leader, and for the first-time-ever, a dance instructor. These five artists will collaborate to present a hands-on ‘art’s buffet’ with a sampling from each of their artistic practices on offer for the Sarasota community. Presented in partnership with FAAE and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org.($5/person registration fee). Hermitage Great Lawn (entrance at 6660 Manasota Key Road, Englewood, FL 34223).
- “Citizen Arts: Music, Theater, and Dance” Friday, July 22 at 6:30pm: Art exists not only in the purpose-built spaces of theaters, museums, and concert halls, but also throughout our lives. In this interdisciplinary program, we hear from three accomplished artists in three different mediums sharing insight and discussing how their work interacts with the public. Brazilian-born composer Marcos Balter’s compositions have been described by The New York Times as “utterly lovely” in addition to having a focus on the hyper-dramatization of the performed work; theater-maker Sam Max’s work center’s the queer experience in poetic spaces; and dancer-choreographer Amanda Cantrell Roche combines her skill in dance education with a history in journalism and a passion for social justice. Presented in partnership with Sarasota Art Museum. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org ($5/person registration fee). Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, Florida 34236.
About the Hermitage Artist Retreat:
The Hermitage is a non-profit artist retreat located in Manasota Key, Florida, inviting accomplished artists across multiple disciplines for residencies on its beachfront campus, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Hermitage artists are invited to interact with the local community, reaching thousands of Gulf Coast residents and visitors each year with unique and inspiring programs. Hermitage Fellows have included 14 Pulitzer Prize winners, Poets Laureate, MacArthur ‘Genius’ Fellows, and multiple Tony, Emmy, Grammy, Oscar winners and nominees. Works created at this beachside retreat by a diverse group of Hermitage alumni have gone on to renowned theaters, concert halls, and galleries throughout the world. Each year, the Hermitage awards the $30,000 Hermitage Greenfield Prize for a new work of art, the newly announced $35,000 Hermitage Major Theater Award for an original theater commission, and the Aspen Music Festival’s Hermitage Prize in Composition.
For more information, visit HermitageArtistRetreat.org.
About Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens provides 45 acres of bayfront sanctuaries connecting people with air plants of the world, native nature, and our regional history. Established by forward thinking women of their time, Selby Gardens is composed of the 15-acre Downtown Sarasota campus and the 30-acre Historic Spanish Point campus in the Osprey area of Sarasota County, Florida. The Downtown Campus on Sarasota Bay is the only botanical garden in the world dedicated to the display and study of epiphytic orchids, bromeliads, gesneriads and ferns, and other tropical plants. There is a significant focus on botany, horticulture, education, historical preservation, and the environment. The Historic Spanish Point (HSP) Campus is located less than 10 miles south along Little Sarasota Bay. The HSP Campus, one of the largest preserves showcasing native Florida plants that is interpreted for and open to the public, celebrates an archaeological record that encompasses approximately 5,000 years of Florida history.
The Hermitage is supported by:
Hermitage programs are supported, in part, by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts; by Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax Revenues; and by The State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture (Section 286.25 Florida Statutes), as well as the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation, and the Community Foundation of Sarasota County.