Daniel senses my bubbling enthusiasm and invites me to tour his school, The Florence Academy of Art, along the via Aretina on the city’s outskirts. To enter is to be drawn back centuries. The 100 artist-students, of all backgrounds and ethnicities, might be dressed in 21st-century casual, but one immediately sees Botticelli, Vasari and Nelli in their figures and faces. Some seem to be adorned in 16th-century robes of hemp, palette in one hand, Mahl stick to support the brush hand in the other, a parade of fine artists floating in the natural white light.
That was a little more than a year ago. Now students are separated by plastic, painting through some odd looking-glass in order to stay safe and healthy. The plague has been in these parts before, devastating, debilitating and deadly, but the art of Florence persisted then, as it does now, while the world slowly rights itself. For the moment, the school is not a place for visitors, so Daniel, master painter, founde
The Huntington will present the virtual premiere of
Eleanor Burgess s
Lisa Banes and
Jordan Boatman. The show is free and will be available until June 13. Viewers can sign up to see it here.
Tony-nominated actor
We Have to Hurry, streaming live via Broadway on Demand for two performances only, Saturday,
June 5, at 8pm and Sunday,
June 6, at 3pm. The heartwarming new play, about a pair of mature people reigniting their spark during the sunset years of life, is written by playwright, director and actor
Dorothy Lyman and is directed by
Patricia Vanstone. Proceeds will benefit the Actors Fund Home East and West. Tickets are available here.
Marco Ramirez s
Rachel Chavkin,
through May 16 for free via Broadway On Demand. Those looking for access can register on the Lincoln Center Theater website. Ramirez s drama is inspired by the life of
Jack Johnson, the first Black heavyweight world champion. The production opened at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater on March 7, 2016, with a cast made up of
McKinley Belcher III, Khris Davis, Montego Glover, John Lavelle, and
Clarke Peters.
Sergei Rachmaninoff in the world premiere of
Anna & Sergei Live From Florence on
May 16 at 8pm ET. Taking place as a memory play in the house in which the Russian Rachmaninoff died in Beverly Hills, this is the story of a very strange meeting between Rachmaninoff and Anna Anderson, the woman who claimed to be the sole surviving member of the Romanov Dynasty, the Princess Anastasia. Featuring Rachmaninoff s most beloved melodies and music. Purchase includes the live stream and a week of ON DEMAND viewing access to the recording of the liv
Marco Ramirez s
Rachel Chavkin,
through May 16 for free via Broadway On Demand. Those looking for access can register on the Lincoln Center Theater website. Ramirez s drama is inspired by the life of
Jack Johnson, the first Black heavyweight world champion. The production opened at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater on March 7, 2016, with a cast made up of
McKinley Belcher III, Khris Davis, Montego Glover, John Lavelle, and
Clarke Peters.
Sergei Rachmaninoff in the world premiere of
Anna & Sergei Live From Florence on
May 16 at 8pm ET. Taking place as a memory play in the house in which the Russian Rachmaninoff died in Beverly Hills, this is the story of a very strange meeting between Rachmaninoff and Anna Anderson, the woman who claimed to be the sole surviving member of the Romanov Dynasty, the Princess Anastasia. Featuring Rachmaninoff s most beloved melodies and music. Purchase includes the live stream and a week of ON DEMAND viewing access to the recording of the liv