Established in Palm Coast in 1986 by Eugene (Jeep) and Muriel McCoy, the North East Florida Jazz Association (NEFJA) has been celebrating and promoting Jazz for more than 35 years. It’s marking Jazz Appreciation Month with an April 1 concert featuring trumpetist Longineu Parsons II.
Culture
Staffing Pressures Reduce Flagler Public Library Hours from 57 to 52 a Week
The Flagler County Public Library on Palm Coast Parkway will be open for five fewer hours starting April 3, as weekly total hours will fall from 57 to 52, with a more simplified schedule.
Scapino Walks This Way Into City Repertory Theatre’s Farce, Ameliorating Molière
In “Scapino!,” the servant Scapino schemes to manipulate his authoritarian master Geronte and a rival patriarch away from disrupting the romances of their offspring. It’s a “a free-for-all farce,” in the words of City Repertory Theatre Director John Sbordone.
Ky Ekinci, Champion of Small Businesses and Office Divvy Co-Owner, Dies at 53
Kayhan Ekinci, the co-owner of Office Divvy and former co-owner of the Humidor, who was known to most as Ky, died on Sunday afternoon after he collapsed while jogging near Water Tower Road in the Cypress Edge area of Palm Coast. He was 53.
Would-Be Book-Banner Appeals Nowhere Girls Decision Even Before 14-0 Vote to Keep It
A 14-member district committee voted unanimously this evening to recommend keeping Amy Reed’s “The Nowhere Girls,” a book deconstructing high school rape culture, on the shelves at Flagler Palm Coast High School and Matanzas High School. The woman challenging the book filed an appeal to the school board even before the superintendent has weighed on.
Citing ‘Reason Above Prejudice,’ Superintendent Upholds Recommendation to Keep Sold on School Shelves
Citing “principle above personal opinion and reason above prejudice,” Flagler School Superintendent Cathy Mittlestadt upheld the recommendation of a district appeals committee to keep Patricia McCormick’s “Sold,” on human trafficking, on library shelves at high and middle schools.
Michael Rickman Performs Beethoven’s 2nd Piano Concerto in Daytona Solisti’s Final Concert
The Daytona Solisti Chamber Orchestra’s annual Beethovenfest concert on March 26 will celebrate Ludwig van Beethoven with the first full-length orchestral piece the composer ever wrote: Piano Concerto No. 2, featuring pianist Dr. Michael Rickman, an internationally acclaimed pianist.
Challenged in Flagler Schools: Amy Reed’s The Nowhere Girls, a Review and Recommendation
Amy Reed’s “The Nowhere Girls,” a 2017 novel on high school rape culture and three girls’ attempt to counter it, is a #MeToo manifesto for young adults. It’s up for banning from Flagler schools. This review is a guide.
Yet Another Book Survives Ban as 2 Flagler High School Panels Vote to Keep Novel of McCarthy Era
A joint high school committee’s decision today to retain Malida Lo’s “Last Night at the Telegraph Club” was the sixth book in a row in about as many weeks that survived a challenge either on MHS or joint MHS-FPC school-level committees, or at the district-level appeals committee.
Drag Show Curbs Likely Violate First Amendment
Republican lawmakers in numerous states, including Florida, seek to restrict or eliminate events like drag shows and drag story hours. These efforts have been accompanied by inflammatory rhetoric not grounded in fact about the need to protect children from “grooming” and sexually explicit performances.