Pictured: Sarasota Rising Executive Director Jeffery Kin.

In the works since 2021 and making its debut November 8, the Living Arts Festival comes to Sarasota for a 10-day celebration of the arts and the many local arts organizations that give the Cultural Coast its cultural capital. Produced by Sarasota Rising and led by Executive Director Jeffery Kin, the Living Arts Festival promises parties, performances of all kinds, a Saturday festival, and ample opportunity for artists of all ages to experience the varied artistic disciplines the community has to offer—and even try their hand at a few. Participating organizations include Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, Sarasota Jewish Theater, Sarasota Ballet, The Indigenous Dance Troupe and more, as well as several local schools.

“We’re highlighting what we have and celebrating who we are,” says Kin, who envisioned the Living Arts Festival as a means to champion the arts scene as a whole, while giving a helping hand especially to those organizations lacking their own venue but looking to break through to a wider audience. “We want more butts in seats and feet on streets,” Kin says. “And after Milton, it’s even more important that people know we’re open for business and that we have tickets to sell.”

The festival kicks off on November 8 with an opening party for festival sponsors at Art Ovation Hotel, where a ticketed fete from 5:30pm to 7pm features performances by Azara Ballet, Indigenous Dance Troupe and Kathryn Parks. Tickets are available for $100. At 7pm, the doors open to the greater community, for a free-to-attend opening celebration with live performances by Sarasota Jewish Theater, Diversity: Voices of Sarasota and more.

November 9 brings Rise and Shine Saturday, a 9am-5pm family-focused outdoor arts festival located on the civic greens by the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium. While the multiple stages provide platforms for local dance school and performing arts schools, such as Jump Dance and Manatee School for the Arts, 14 different types of classes, including yoga, improv, and mask-making, give attendees plenty of chances to flex their own artistic muscles. And the 5X5$5 event sees area artists donating small-scale works that cost only $5, so even the kids can buy their first piece of local art.

Then, oddly enough, the festival takes a break until November 14. Kind of. “The whole point of the festival is to shine a light on the arts organizations that are here,” Kin says, so the intervening days are an opportunity for festival-goers to attend other events, such as Florida Studio Theatre’s production of Waitress or Asolo Rep’s Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. The second half of the festival includes a day exploring Venice arts groups, pop-up events around town, a one-man-show at Burns Court Cinema, and a closing performance called Sarasota Rising: A Celebration of Youth, featuring Key Chorale, Circus Arts Conservatory, and more.

“And wouldn’t it be great if that audience was full of families and kids, and they can see other kids doing magnificent things,” says Kin. “And they’ll think, ‘I would like to try that!’”

For tickets and more details, visit sarasotarising.org

Pictured: Sarasota Rising Executive Director Jeffery Kin.

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