Fort Myers Fringe

Returns

   

     Theatre Conspiracy will launch its 34th consecutive season with Fort Myers Fringe, May 28-31. Produced in partnership with Off-Broadway Palm and Florida Repertory Theatre, the curated festival of cutting-edge theater, music, comedy, and storytelling features artists from across the country and Australia. 

     Fort Myers Fringe will include a kids’ fringe featuring ‘Why Zee Won’t Quack,’ a playful children’s theatre story that celebrates individuality and finding your own voice. Performed by members of the Panther Theatre Co. of Cypress Lake High School’s Center for the Arts.

     In addition to Kids’ Fringe, Theatre Conspiracy has added Teen Fringe, also featuring students in the Panther Theatre Co. of Cypress Lake High School performing an adaptation of Elektra, which revisits the ancient Greek tragedy.

Fort Myers Fringe features:

     Teaser: High-energy introduction to this year’s festival; each performance group has three minutes to sell you on their show

     Beers About Songs: Heartfelt and hilarious musical storytelling show about life, love, and the strange ways music finds its way into our most memorable moments. 

     Anatomica: A Comedy About Meat, Bones, & The Skin You’re In: An educational and absurd look inside the human body that blends science, storytelling, and comedy. 

     Fire in the Meth Lab: A funny, but shocking true story from acclaimed Australian storyteller Jon Bennett.

     A Young Man Dressed as a Gorilla Dressed as an Old Man Sits Rocking in a Rocking Chair for 56 Minutes and Then Leaves: A surreal piece of performance art that has become a cult favorite at Fringe festivals around the world. Show is free.

     Josephine: A Burlesque Cabaret Dream Play: The festival concludes with a theatrical cabaret celebrating the life and legend of Josephine Baker through music, dance, and storytelling. Performed in Florida Rep’s Historic Arcade Theatre.

     All performances are at Off-Broadway Palm Theatre, except the final show, Josephine, performed in Florida Repertory Theatre’s Historic Arcade Theatre.

SCHEDULE

Thursday, MAY 28 

6:30pm: Teaser! 

7:15pm: Fire In the Meth Lab

Friday, MAY 29

7pm: Anatomica: A comedy about

     Meat, Bones, & The Skin You’re In

8:30pm: Beers About Songs 

Saturday, MAY 30:

10 & 11:30am: Kids’ Fringe:

     Why Zee Won’t Quack 

1 & 2:30pm: Teen Fringe: Elektra

6pm: Fire in the Meth Lab 

7:30pm: Beers About Songs 

9pm: Anatomica, acomedy about

     meat, bones & the skin you’re in

10:15pm: A Young Man Dressed

     as a Gorilla Dressed as

     An Old Man Sits Rocking

     In a Rocking Chair For

     56 Minutes And Then Leaves (Free)

Sunday, MAY 31

2pm: Beers About Songs 

3:30pm: Fire in the Meth Lab 

5pm: Anatomica, a comedy about

     meat, bones & the skin you’re in

6:30pm: Josephine, a burlesque

     cabaret dream play.

     (Historic Arcade Theatre)

     Off-Broadway Palm Theatre is located at 1380 Colonial Blvd. and the Historic Arcade Theatre is located at 2268 Bay St. in downtown Fort Myers’ Historic River District. For information, call 208-1003

 

New Book

Explores

Rauschenberg's

Fascination

with Flight 

   

     Robert Rauschenberg, who had a home and working studio on Captiva, may be most famous for his groundbreaking ‘Combines,’ painting and sculpture hybrids created in a variety of mediums, including collage, performance, photography, and printmaking. What connected many of these works was his fascination with flight. The new book, The Ascent of Rauschenberg: Reinventing the Art of Flight (Smithsonian), by Carolyn Russo, explores the flight motif across his work, spanning birds, insects, aviation, spaceflight, sensory experiences, and metaphors for his own life.

     The book includes more than 150 images revealing the vibrant scope of his work, from lithographs inspired by the Apollo 11 launch that NASA invited him to witness and document, to a Combine featuring a taxidermied eagle that evokes Roman mythology. Nine accompanying essays reflect on his many flight themes and subtleties that might otherwise be overlooked. The book also includes archival photographs and personal papers from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation.

     Considered a forerunner of several artistic movements, most notably pop art, Rauschenberg was one of the most influential artists of his time. This handsome book examines his work through a distinctive lens, revealing an artist deeply mesmerized by the innovation of flight within nature, technology, and art to reveal the depth of his genius and unparalleled career.

​​

New Book

Celebrates the

Artful History

of Naples

   

     A​ new book, An Artful History of Naples and Collier County, by Paul Arsenault, Eileen Arsenault, and Donna Murphy, is a 240-page fine art book featuring the paintings of acclaimed artist (and Naples resident) Paul Arsenault, paired with vintage postcards, historic photographs (some from the Smithsonian Institution, many from private collections, some seen by the public for the first time), and lively narratives. 

     The book celebrates the dreamers, visionaries, personalities, and pioneers who shaped the region; the iconic landmarks and glimpses of Old Florida that anchor its identity; and the history, anecdotes, and folklore that capture its spirit.

     An Artful History of Naples and Collier County (Banyan Arts), is a richly illustrated coffee-table book that journeys through the lives of Hunters and Harvesters, Traders and Trailblazers, Neapolitans and Cosmopolitans, and Spirits and Stewards. 

     From the ingenuity of the Calusa and the resilience of the Seminole to the bold visions that built the Tamiami Trail, the book captures major milestones and colorful surprises: Naples’ beloved swamp buggy races, the eccentric ‘15-Minute Mayor,’ daring drug runs in the Ten Thousand Islands, the Cape Romano dome houses, and the nation’s smallest post office (in Ochopee). It also honors the region’s fragile natural wonders—from the elusive ghost orchid to Marco Island’s burrowing owls, and the beautiful but endangered Florida panther.

     For more than 50 years, Arsenault ‘s paintings have chronicled the community he has called home. As a plein air painter, Paul explains, “It was one thing to come home with a painting, but to come home with a painting and a story meant it was really a successful day.”

     In addition to Arsenault’s art, An Artful History of Naples and Collier County also features works by other local artists, including paintings by Richard Segalman, George Catlin, and Rob Storter, as well as photographs by Clyde Butcher and Michelle Tricca.

     For information, call Banyan Arts at 263-1214.

 

Sarasota Opera

Celebrates

100 Years

   

     During Sarasota Opera’s 2026 Winter Festival, the company celebrates 100 years of the Sarasota Opera House, described by Musical America as ‘one of the finest venues for opera in America.’ The historic occasion will be marked with two days of celebratory events.

     On Saturday, April 11 at 1:30pm, Sarasota Opera will host a Centennial Concert at the Opera House that will pay tribute to the theater’s 100 year history and feature the Sarasota Orchestra, West Coast Black Theatre Troupe, the Circus Arts Conservatory, and the Sarasota Ballet as well as performances by soloists of Sarasota Opera including soprano Virginia Mims, mezzo-soprano Lisa Chavez, tenor Rafael Dávila, and baritone Jake Stamatis. 

     This special concert will be followed by cocktails and a gala dinner at Michael’s on the Bay at Selby Gardens at 4:30pm. 

     Sarasota Opera will host a Community Open House on Sunday, April 12 that is free and open to the public—registration is required. Visitors will learn about the history of the building through talks and exhibits. The event is 10am-12:30pm and will end with a screening of a new documentary about the Sarasota Opera at 12:30pm. 

     The film chronicles the landmark’s remarkable evolution, from its origins as a 1920’s vaudeville and movie palace to its status today as one of Florida’s cultural treasures. 

     “The Sarasota Opera House is far more than the home of Sarasota Opera; it is a cultural anchor for our entire community,” says Sarasota Opera General Director Richard Russell. “As we celebrate its 100th anniversary, we are not only honoring its storied past but also reaffirming our commitment to preserving and advancing this remarkable space for the next century of creativity and community.”

     Sarasota Opera House is located at 61 N. Pineapple Ave. in downtown Sarasota. For information, call 941-366-8450. Michael’s on the Bay is located at Selby Gardens, 811 S. Palm Ave. in Sarasota.