Andy Sandberg, Artistic Director and CEO of the Hermitage Artist Retreat, announced today that accomplished theater artist and director Shariffa Ali has been selected as the 2022 recipient of the Hermitage Major Theater Award (HMTA). This national jury-selected prize, newly established by the Hermitage last year with generous support from the Kutya Major Foundation, offers one of the largest non-profit theater commissions in the country. Ali will receive a cash prize of $35,000, as well as a residency at the Hermitage (Sarasota County, Florida) and a developmental workshop in a major arts capital such as New York, Chicago, or London in the fall of 2023. Ali’s past theatrical productions as a director include Eclipsed, Detroit ’67, Intimate Apparel, We Are Proud to Present, and the original musical We Were Everywhere. She has worked as an arts administrator at The Public Theater and The New Group, and she has taught at New York University, Brooklyn College, Yale University, and Princeton University. She is the second recipient of the HMTA, which was first awarded in 2021 to playwright and filmmaker Radha Blank.

“It is surreal and the most gratifying and pleasant surprise to be honored in this way by artists whose work has been a compass in my own upbringing as a theater maker,” said Shariffa Ali on receiving the Hermitage Major Theater Award. “The fact that they support my art and wish to carve out space for myself and my collaborator Vuyo Sotashe with this project is a huge honor. It is extremely surprising, humbling, and life-affirming. This award will alter the course of my life; it is a true game changer.”

The Hermitage Major Theater Award (HMTA) was established in 2021 to recognize a playwright or theater artist with a $35,000 commission to create a new, original, and impactful piece of theater. HMTA winners are nominated and selected by a jury of nationally recognized arts leaders in the field of theater. The 2022 HMTA Award Committee included Lynn Nottage, two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and past Hermitage Fellow; David Henry Hwang, Tony, Grammy, and Obie Award winner; and Regina Taylor, Golden Globe Award-winning actress, director, playwright, educator, activist, and past Hermitage Fellow.

“It is thrilling to be able to uplift and support the work of Shariffa Ali, said 2022 HMTA Award Committee member Lynn Nottage. “She, like her fellow finalists Jonathan McCrory, Vanessa German, and José Rivera, is a groundbreaking artist whose work continues to push the boundaries of storytelling in inventive and inspiring ways.”

“Shariffa is a brave and brilliant theater maker – sensitive and bold in her craft, challenging and subversive in her choices,” added fellow juror Regina Taylor. “The Hermitage Major Theater Award is a change maker, and I’m excited about what Shariffa will create and share with us in this next year ahead.”

Born in Kenya and raised in South Africa, Shariffa Chelimo Ali is an international theater maker, creative leader, director, and educator committed to advancing radical change through the power of art and activism. In addition to her theater credits, Ali’s films have been featured at acclaimed film/VR festivals and institutions throughout the world, including Sundance Film Festival (USA); Zeitz Museum of Contemporary African Art (South Africa); Brooklyn Film Festival (USA); Pan African Film Festival (USA); Electric Africa VR festival (South Africa) and DOK Neuland (Germany). In 2022, Ali was named the Elizabeth M. Swayzee Artist-in-Residence at Miami University, where she curated the inaugural Black Roots Festival in the spring of 2022. Ali has been a director and arts administrator at The Public Theater and The New Group, both in New York. She has directed and lectured at Yale University, NYU, Brooklyn College, and Princeton University, where she is currently a faculty member at the Lewis Center for the Arts. Shariffa.com

In describing her intended HMTA commission, Ali writes: “Despite the homophobia and transphobia inherent in small-town South Africa, a middle school choir, their principal, and their parents make an agreement to disguise the town’s most talented and beloved singer Vuyo (he/they) as a girl in order to have him sing as a female soloist in a national choir competition. As Vuyo increasingly feels at home in this new role as a female soloist, they begin a journey that will see them come to reckon with identity, community, and finding a voice of truth.” Vuyo is a friend and collaborator of this year’s HMTA recipient, so Ali is particularly passionate about capturing the heart and soul of her friend’s true story through this commission. “It is my hope that Vuyo’s remarkable story and lessons of healing and forging community can be a healing force for us all.” 

2022 Hermitage Major Theater Award (HMTA) Recipient Shariffa Ali. Photo Credit: Tammy Shell.

First published in Norway in 2019, the novella Grown Ups is finally making its way to the States. Most similar to Elena Ferrante, Marie Aubert pulls no punches in her depiction of family dysfunction. In Grown Ups case, the relationship of focus is two sisters with classic older younger sibling dynamics.

The older of the two, Ida, who we see in third person narration is a just turned forty, single, successful architect with anxiety over if, when and how to have a family. Her younger sister Matilde, is the more dependent sister, with a dutiful husband, step-daughter and child on the way. The sisters have deep resentment, yet do their minimum to keep the peace. At odds personality-wise to start, the new tension between them is a lake cottage of which Matilde and her husband would like to buy Ida’s share.
Candid scenes of intimacy, jealousy, and vengeance give this book copious amounts of spice. The visit from their Mother and step-dad only magnifies their past grievances. And while I found many of Ida’s thoughts relatable in that younger siblings are more coddled, I also relished disagreeing with some of Ida’s more intrusive actions. You know a book is great when you can argue with some of the characters’ actions, but yet still thoroughly enjoy the ride.

Grown Ups by Marie Aubert is available for pre-order at sarasotabooks.com or in store beginning May 24th at BookStore1 Sarasota 117 S. Pineapple Ave. Sarasota, FL. 34236. Publication Date: 6/21/22 ISBN 9781782277088

Effective immediately, Sheila McLean has accepted the assignment of Interim Chief Financial Officer for Manatee County Government.Ms. McLean brings over three-and-a-half decades of financial management experience to the role—with nearly a quarter-century of that locally in Manatee County. Most recently, she was the Deputy Director for Budget for Manatee County Government. Ms. McLean has Sheila McLeana bachelor’s degree in accounting  and finance and a master’s in business administration and accounting. Of her 24 years in local government work, 16 were in the Finance Department at the Manatee County Clerk of Circuit Court, and eight years have been in the County’s Financial Management Department. She has been working in accounting—both public and private—for more than 35 years. That sort of wide-ranging experience is vital to oversee the operating and capital improvement budgets, infrastructure sales tax revenues and financial analysis for all county departments. 

Captain Mike Harden and his crew, along with the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, will celebrate the official opening of LobsterCraft, a New England-based lobster roll and seafood restaurant, on Wednesday, June 1 at 4PM. Located at 28A South Blvd of Presidents, on St. Armands Circle in Sarasota, FL, amid the bustle of the community’s vibrant retail, dining, and tourist activity, LobsterCraft’s 1400 square foot space offers indoor/outdoor seating for 30 people and a robust take-out, delivery, food truck, and catering business. Celebrating its 10-Year Anniversary, LobsterCraft began as a local food truck phenomenon based out of the coastal community of Norwalk, CT, and has since morphed into a thriving brick and mortar Restaurant Group, offering their over-the-top hot and buttery lobster rolls to hungry consumers looking for their next lobster roll fix. Owner, Captain Mike Harden, a Coast Guard Captain and licensed Lobster fisherman, launched LobsterCraft in 2012 and filled a void in the local culinary/catering landscape by offering Connecticut’s state sandwich, the (hot and buttery) lobster roll. With a fleet of trucks, restaurants throughout the Northeast, and numerous regional and national awards and accolades later, LobsterCraft has now expanded its brand, opening its first restaurant in the Sunshine State. 

Lakewood Ranch, the nation’s best-selling master-planned community for all ages, recently announced four new tenants for its newest town center, the 36-acre Waterside Place. The retail, dining, and entertainment destination will add Monkee’s at Waterside, Florida Provisions Co., Deep Lagoon Seafood & Oyster House, and Tim’s Wine Market.

Previously announced tenants include Marmalade Waterside Boutique, John Cannon Homes, Integrity Sound, Capstan Financial, Mexican-American restaurant and tequileria Agave Bandido, Italian restaurant Osteria 500, Shore Rejuvenation Day Spa, Modish Salon, O&A Coffee Supply, CROP Juice, The Yoga Shack, Man Cave for Men, Bay Area Aesthetics, Duck Donuts, Forked at Waterside, and Good Liquid Distillery.

Recently named the “Best Lifestyle Program in the U.S.” by the National Association of Homebuilders, the vibrant lifestyle and suburban location at Waterside Place is an ideal location for many brands.

“We’re thrilled to expand Waterside Place’s diverse culinary offerings with the opening of Korê Steakhouse and the signing of Deep Lagoon Seafood and Oyster House,” said Kirk Boylston, president of Lakewood Ranch Commercial. “Waterside Place’s large restaurant spaces are fully leased – a testament to the town center’s waterfront appeal and an exciting preview of its transition into a retail, dining, wellness, and entertainment hub.”