Hermitage Announces A Full Slate Of January And February Programs For The New Year Throughout Sarasota County

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announced today a full slate of early 2022 programs featuring new and returning Hermitage Fellows, from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel and Avery Fisher Prize-winning flutist Claire Chase to Beyonce collaborator and soloing band member Lady Jess and interdisciplinary artist Ni'Ja Whitson.

The program lineup - presented at outdoor venues throughout Sarasota County including the Hermitage Beach and Selby Gardens Downtown - also includes "Say Their Names," a partnership with Manasota ASALH to present selections from composer-saxophonist Matthew Evan Taylor, inspired by the fight against anti-Black racism. These new programs add to the Hermitage's previously announced January programs with Tony Award-winning Broadway star Gavin Creel on January 14th and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical theater playwright-composer Michael R. Jackson on January 21st.

"We are thrilled to launch 2022 with an exciting slate of programming that introduces our Gulf Coast community to some of the most extraordinary talents and performers working today," said Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. "We are grateful to continue our collaboration with Selby Gardens to present a new program with Lady Jess, a brilliant violinist who has frequently shared the stage with Beyoncé, as well as returning Hermitage Fellow Michael R. Jackson, who won the Pulitzer Prize last year for his musical A Strange Loop. We're also looking forward to new partnerships with Manasota ASALH (featuring Matthew Evan Taylor) and the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast (featuring Claire Chase and Ni'Ja Whitson), among other leading arts and cultural institutions in our region. Where else can audiences experience - in the span of a few weeks - works in progress from so many of the world's greatest artists, alongside theater legends like Paula Vogel and Gavin Creel?!"

In addition, the Hermitage has announced that the January 14th public program on the Hermitage Beach with Gavin Creel will now be presented in partnership with all of the leading theaters in Sarasota County, exemplifying our community's spirit of collaboration. Creel's Hermitage residency will be sponsored by Charlie Huisking.

All of these outdoor programs are free and open to the public with a $5/person registration fee. Due to capacity limitations and social distancing, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org.