Director John Sbordone’s first workshop production this weekend at the Repertory Theatre’s stage, at Hollingsworth Gallery, dares grope where no Shakespeare has versed before. It’s high-energy hilarity.
Leisure & Tourism
Palm Coast’s Fireworks, Canceled on July 4, Are Now Leveraged Over 3 Fall Dates
The $15,000 subsidy to Palm Coast will be split over fireworks shows on Labor Day and the two evenings of the city’s seafood festival in early November.
Sbordone’s Next Act: Ex-Playhouse Director Opens New Theater With Poetry Clash
Palm Coast’s theater scene is about to get much richer as John Sbordone launches his City Repertory Theatre with a “poetry clash” at Hollingsworth Gallery, where the theater will have its home for the coming season.
Citing Deception, Council Rejects Reinke’s $10,000 Request for Palm Coast Half-Marathon
Adding to the Reinke Sports Group’s troubled history, it is the third time in two years that the Flagler Tourist Development Council rejects a request for subsidies for the Palm half-marathon. The Flagler Auditorium had an easier time with its $10,000 request.
A Quartet’s Steely Encore at Hollingsworth, a Summer Sale at the Flagler County Art League
Joe Thompson’s balancing acts of whimsy and rule-breaking anchor Hollingsworth Gallery’s encore with Jean Banas, Betty Parker and Karin Stover, while the Flagler County Art League holds a two-month art sale of 120 works at very reasonable prices.
Flagler Beach Bids Last Shuttle a Wistful Farewell as It Soars Invisibly Beyond Clouds
Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off on schedule, but no one could see it on Flagler’s beaches or at the pier, though imagination was enough to sense the end of a 30-year journey.
Space Shuttle Launch Schedule: Atlantis’s Last Voyage
Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to lift off from Cape Canaveral’s Kennedy Space Center at 11:26 Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, July 8. Weather may delay it. Watch video of the countdown.
“Colors of the Sea,” A New Cannizzaro Show, Opening at Ocean Publishing July 14
Rick Cannizzaro, Ocean Publishing’s commissioned artist, exhibits paintings of loggerhead turtles while the publishing house showcases a new book on the Southeast National Marine Sanctuaries and Jean-Michel Cousteau.
Fireworks Blaze Over Flagler Beach In a Thundering Display of Color and Pomp
Anticipation gave way to an explosive display of colors and sounds as Flagler Beach’s July 4th celebration culminated with its traditional fireworks show.
Parades of Radiance From Heroes Park To Flagler Beach on America’s 235th
Solemnity and celebration at Heroes Park was followed by Flagler Beach’s July 4th parade at the start of a day and evening of revelry. A full image gallery of the celebrations.
They’re On: County Repeals Ban On Flagler Beach Fireworks in 4-1 Vote
Eleven days after cancelling the county’s Independence Day fireworks shows, the Flagler County Commission this afternoon voted to allow the Flagler Beach show to go on.
First Fridays in Flagler Beach: The Halifax Country Band
This month’s edition of Flagler Beach’s First Fridays also features tie-dye t-shirt making, corn hole game face painting and balloon sculptures.
County Likely to Reverse Fireworks Ban in Flagler Beach In Special Meeting Friday
A majority of county commissioners are now in favor of overturning the ban on Flagler Beach’s Independence Day fireworks. They’ll decide at a special meeting 4 p.m. Friday.
Hospital Donation Helps Campers Find Adventure at Palm Coast Summer Camp
Palm Coast summer camp for elementary and middle school children runs through August 12, at $75 a week. Scholarships are available. Children may attend as many (or as few) weeks as they choose.
Miss Junior 2011 Flagler County Contestants, Ages 12-15
A complete, click-through chart and photo galleries of the Miss Flagler County Junior 2010 Contestants, Ages 12-15.
Miss Flagler County Pageant 2011 Contestants, Ages 16-23
A complete, click-through chart and photo gallery of the 2011 Miss Flagler County Scholarship Pageant contestants, Ages 16-23.
Little Miss Flagler County 2011 Contestants, Ages 5-7
A complete, click-through chart and photo gallery of the 15 Little Miss Flagler County 2011 Contestants, Ages 5-7.
Little Miss Flagler County 2011 Contestants, Ages 8-11
A complete, click-through chart and photo gallery of the 19 Little Miss Flagler County 2011 Contestants, Ages 8-11.
54 Girls (and Women), 4 Trophies, One Miss Flagler County Title in Sunday’s Pageant
It must be summer: it’s time for the Flagler County Scholarship Pageants. Meet them all, the 54 contestants in each category, as they vie for the crowns in Sunday’s pageants at the Flagler Auditorium.
A Dissent on Canceling July 4 Fireworks: When Palm Coast Dictates to Flagler Beach
Canceling the fireworks in Town Center was justified, canceling them in Flagler Beach was not, argues Jeremy Mahoney, who sees the decision as another way of making Flagler Beach subservient to Palm Coast.
Risk-Avoidance: July 4 Fireworks Canceled in Flagler Beach and Palm Coast’s Town Center
The Flagler County Commission canceled both fireworks shows, saying it would be too risky in fire-prone, drought conditions despite projected rains. The $30,000 worth of fireworks may be staged around Labor Day.
In a Victory for Flagler Boaters, FWC Rejects Its Staff’s Proposed Manatee Speed Zones
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission asked its staff to draw up a new compromise favoring Flagler County’s position on manatee speed zones on the Intracoastal, a significant defeat for manatee advocates.
“P.S. Your Cat Is Dead”: Raunchy, Earnest, Serious Fun at the Flagler Playhouse
In “P.S. Your cat Is Dead,” the early 1970s play by James Kirkwood, the hilarity of losers competes with sexual ambushes through blazing dialogue to produce an endearing, if adult, comedy. A review.
Florida Wants Privatized Camping and RV Sites at 56 State Parks, Including Washington Oaks
The privatization quietly developed plan would bid out the 56 parks to companies that would build and operate the camping and RV sites as a way to generate money and ostensibly help keep the parks running.
Synchro Belles Prepare to Defend State Title For 6th Year in a Row with Sunday Exhibit
The Flagler County Synchro Belles, established in 2000, have been reigning state champions since 2006. The 32 girls, ages 9-18, will put on a two-hour exhibition at the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Sunday evening.
Counterpunch: Priceline and Travelocity Sue Over Tourist-Development Bed Taxes
The case is of interest to Flagler, whose Tourist Development Council has been aggressively pursuing avenues, including a lawsuit of its own, to compel online companies to pay their fair share of sales and bed taxes.
Early Bette Midler, Men Painting Men, Sondheim’s Forum: Culture Worth the Miles
120 competitors ages 10 to 22 at the World Ballet Competition at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Center, Men painting Men at the new Gateway Center in DeBary, early Bete Midler, ageless Stephen Sondheim.
Eying Jobs and Tourism Dollars, Orlando Ready to Build $274 Million Arts Center
Arts columnist Josh Garrick appraises the value of Orlando’s Philips Center for the Performing Arts–stalled for four years, now scheduled to open in 37 months with two stages, and a third at a later date.
$150,000 for New Fields at Indian Trails Complex as Tourism and Sports Merge
Palm Coast is looking to expand the Indian Trails Sports Complex to attract more lacrosse and soccer tournaments to the area, and with them more visitors.
In Frying Heat and Sacks of Spuds, Bunnell Sculpts Itself Another Potato Festival
Mardy Gilyard was having a field day at Carver Gym, the french fires were the very best this side of Belgium, and potatoes of all sorts and in all shapes were the star of the day at Bunnell’s third annual Potato Festival.
Long Before the Potato Festival, Long Before Bunnell, Flagler Bred the Mighty Potato
Ahead of this weekend’s Potato Festival in Bunnell, Sisco Deen, the archive curator for the Flagler County Historical Society, traces the history of the potato’s evolution in Flagler County going back to the 19th century.
Flagler Whacks Proposed Speed Zones on Intracoastal as Manatee Advocates Protest
Tuesday’s public hearing was the latest step in months of wrangles between Flagler County and the Fish and Wildlife Commission over manatee-protecting speed zones on about a third of Flagler’s 18 miles of Intracoastal.
An Eye for a Lens: Art League’s Photography Show Brings Out Simpler Pleasures
The Flagler County Art League’s 2nd Annual Photography Show pays homage to Photoshop, landscapes and animal pictures, with 75 works from 33 artists from Flagler, St. Johns and Volusia counties.
Thelma and Louise of Geometric Abstractions Ride Into Hollingsworth Gallery
Louise Lieber, a sculptor and painter, and Antoinette Slick, a painter, are paired in a beguiling new show at the Hollingsworth Gallery. Their art is a journey into the possibilities and beauties of geometry.
The Taste of 100 Wines, Henry Patrick Raleigh, Shrek & Fringe: Culture Worth the Miles
All Florida art at the Mennello Museum, American illustrator Henry Patrick Raleigh at the Maitland Art Center, the science of wine-tasting at the Orlando Science Center, Shrek at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Center, violinist Joshua Bell, and more.
Wicked Transition to Stage Magic as FPC Goes Emerald With “Wizard of Oz” This Weekend
“The Wizard of Oz” at the Flagler Auditorium is the biggest FPC stage production to date, with a live orchestra and a cast and crew of 75. The production gelled in a mere six weeks under a new director, after the previous one quit.
“For Colored Girls Who’ve Considered Suicide”: Blunt Poetry Theater at AACC Saturday
Ntozake Shange’s play for seven women characters, staged at the African American Cultural Center, was a Broadway hit in 1976 and remains a classic of an entirely original style of American stage poetry and oral folk traditions.
Brahms, Folk and Zeppelin as Youth Orchestra Bows in Season Finale at Flagler Auditorium
The concert, at 7 p.m. Wednesday evening, features some 250 musicians and five orchestras, showcasing students’ various skills. The concert includes a symphonic collaboration with members of the FPC band.
“The Me Nobody Knows” at Flagler Playhouse: Vivid, Raw and Joyful Ghetto Truths
“The Me Nobody Knows,” at the Flagler Playhouse for the next three weekends (April 29-May 15), is an original and affecting 1970 musical drawn from the true stories of adolescents in New York City’s slums.
Jacksonville Symphony Pops “Americana Under the Stars” at Palm Coast Concert
Featuring a slew of favorites from Gershwin to Berlin (Irving, that is) to Strauss, the Jacksonville Symphony’s annual pilgrimage to Flagler is the Palm Coast Arts Foundation’s signature event and fund-raiser.
State of the Ax: from Flagler to Tallahassee To D.C., Arts Funding Is Under Siege
The NEA’s federal arts dollars are on the defensive. Florida cut back its arts funding to almost nothing. Palm Coast, Bunnell and Flagler Beach are just as stingy. The county and school district alone still support art and culture.
Preliminary Report Suggests Walker May Have Lost Consciousness Before Air Show Crash
The National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report of the March 26 crash at Wings Over Flagler reveals that to Bill Walker was unresponsive when a fellow-pilot radioed him immediately before the crash.
TDC Approves $30,000 for Dual July 4th Fireworks Under Unifying Americana Theme
With Palm Coast fireworks on July 3rd and Flagler Beach fireworks on the 4th, the tourist council is hoping Flagler County will be a destination for racing fans worn out by July 1 and 2 races in Daytona Beach.
It’s Not Enough to Say No to a Seawall in Flagler Beach: An Action Plan Past Opposition
Sherry Epley, a resident of Flagler Beach, lays out a six-point action plan on how to build and sustain opposition to a seawall while developing a viable alternative that saves the beach and State Road A1A.
BP Oil Spill Aftermath: “Spillionaire” Profiteers of Mismanagement’s Gulf Spoils
How the BP oil spill has made profiteers rich from BP’s $16 billion in clean-up spending while hiding the results of the cleanup, because BP, not the federal government, is in charge.
Driver Takes Truck on Bunnell’s Dirt-Bike Course, Flips Into a Pond, Triggers Rescue
The 60ish driver was riding his truck illegally on the Bunnell’s Pax Trax Motocross course. Two men–Jeff Armstrong, a former fireman, and Jake Flumerfelt–rescued him as water filled his truck and he sat there, awake but not moving.
Flagler Beach Against DOT’s Seawall: County Joins City’s Opposition, With Conditions
Flagler County doesn’t want a seawall in Flagler Beach either, but the county doesn’t want to lose $6 million in highway funding–earmarked for SR A1A’s protection–that it hopes to shift either toward a study or toward an alternative to the seawall.
The Art League’s Nomadic Spring Festival Finally Finds a Home at City Market Place
Formerly known as Art in the Park, the Flagler County Art League’s Spring festival inaugurates its new home at City Market Place this weekend with some 50 vendors, 10 galleries and hundreds of artists and their works.
Flagler Palm Coast YMCA Closing After 9 Years At Florida Hospital; Stand-Alone Y a Goal
The Palm Coast-Flagler Family YMCA was losing $50,000 a year for the past three years despite a membership of 900. The location was constraining. Local organizers hope to launch plans for a stand-alone Y in the future.
July 4th Twice Over Again As Flagler Beach And Palm Coast Will Each Launch Fireworks
The Tourist Development Council would grant each city $15,000. Flagler Beach will have the July 4 display this time, while Palm Coast will launch on July 3rd, at Town Center. Last year, they did it in reverse.