Art Beat - Wucf

ArtBeat meets Chefs Dave and Renee as they oversee “Chef Camp” at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management. For the past five summers a group of 9 to 12 year olds have gotten frontline experience in the culinary arts – and even as these kids get the hang of the craft some miscalculations get thrown into the pot as well!

Nyahzul is a Colombian-born artist who feels the world strongly; to make sense of both the good and the bad she opens herself up and puts her innermost thoughts and feelings on canvas. Not everyone gets it, but she's content to continue finding her own way.

Whether self-appointed or unofficially elected by the local arts community, professional actor and improv comedian Mark Baratelli has ideas about how to make Orlando a vibrant cultural scene. Told with passion, humor and snark, Baratelli's tough-love message bears a surprising amount of weight.

Art and business don't mix? They do for painter Brian Demeter. In this episode of ArtBeat you'll learn that flying penguins, attitude adjustments and juvenile art deals are all in a day's work.

As part of UCF's Master of Fine Arts program filmmaker Dino Gallina was required to raise fifty-thousand dollars for his first feature film. But theory put into practice is a whole different ball game. Listen in to hear how the film "Red Tide" made it through production, and about some skills that couldn't be taught.

While training to volunteer in Zimbabwe multi-instrumentalist Jason Isla found the one instrument that truly calls to him. If you're interested in hearing about Southern Africa jam sessions, drum burning, and an impromptu couch-side performance - this episode's got it!

The Martian attacks in “War of the Worlds” have inspired books, films, television programs, and that infamous '38 radio broadcast that terrified many of its listeners. So what more is there to say? Play directors Joseph Fletcher and Aradhana Tiwari say, Just wait! Performed by Play the Moment theatre troupe.

Screenwriter Carol Chiodini has had a long-standing career in film and television, but in creating her first feature film script she feels like she's starting all over again. Thankfully, she has sage advice coming from some unexpected sources. Chiodini is feisty, funny and passionate about her script, “The Last of the Tough Guys”. This edition of ArtBeat is not to be missed!

Painter Everett Spruill may have ditched piano lessons as a child, but music has come back to him as one of his greatest sources of inspiration. Spruill forges his own path in art - even if he doesn't quite know it yet.

Brain walking, enchanted cows, drive-in puppet shows? It's the first annual Orlando International Puppet Festival! Witty, and armed with a fair number of character voices, puppeteer and festival consultant Sean KeoHane shares an insider's look into the lovable mad world where puppet professionals from across the globe converge.

Time colors once clear memories with new patinas; some mourn the fading of well-loved memories - artist David McLeish celebrates and immortalizes them in a series of sculptures. Unlike some of his shiny and polished pieces to date, these wax, steel and woodworks in "A Journey" look well-worn and well-traveled because, as the artist says, "That about sums up where my mind is at."   

ArtBeat's original host, Becky Morgan, has been a longtime fixture in the local arts community. Her public radio work in Central Florida has been rewarding and often challenging. Becky is moving away to Denver, but before she goes ArtBeat's new host, Katie Ball, shares an insider's look into her mentor and friend's experience as an arts reporter in Central Florida.

A band reuniting after 40 years? New tunes penned for the occasion? Free barbecue? Southern Fried Sunday coordinator Jessica Pawli says she's pulling out all the stops for this month's benefit for the Mustard Seed of Central Florida.This feature includes music clips from some of the performers on the roster.

As the daughter of a preacher Dr. Rebekah McCloud grew up with a love for life in and around the church. As an adult she wonders and worries about the preservation of the historic black churches of West Winter Park. Her research has been "her passion" but also not without its heartbreak.Her findings have culminated into a gallery exhibit at the Hannibal Square Heritage Center.

Dr. Natalie Underberg talks about her latest digital folklore project, Peruvine.org - the interactive site teaches the culture of the country through Peruvian festivals.

Lisa Mills, a professor of film at UCF, has several documentaries to her credit, including a short film that won the Cultural Achievement Category at last month's MoFilm Festival in Barcelona, Spain.

Jeanine Taylor Folk Art was a popular gallery in Winter Park, but five years ago, she moved to First Street in historic downtown Sanford. Her gallery is part of the larger Gallery on First, featuring eight studios where you can watch artists work. See all the art work there, and at surrounding galleries, at the monthly Alive After 5 event, Thursday, July 9 from 5-9pm.

The Enzian Theater in Maitland has long been known for innovative independent films but the demise of the Orlando Opera Company prompted the Enzian to diversify its movie programming by reaching out to displaced opera patrons with its Summer Opera Series. Enzian Marketing Manager, Jordana Meade, explains why, if opera isn't for everyone one, it should be.

The UCF College of Arts and Humanities is excited that after years of planning, construction began last month for the Arts II Complex. The new performing arts center will house academic space for the music & theatre departments and, in Phase 2 of the project, four performance venues will be built. I talk with Associate Dean Lyman Brodie and Assistant Dean Paul Lartonoix.

Jazz singer Sophie Milman's third album, Take Love Easy, was released earlier this month. In this rebroadcast from last April, I talk with Sophie about her quick rise to fame and the new recording.