Adrienne Arsht Center Turns 15

Miami FL

11 November, 2021

9:14 AM

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By Bianca Marcof, the Miami Times Nov 9, 2021 It's showtime! Grab a seat and take a look at a brand-new season full of entertaining plays, dances and concerts at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, which turns 15 this year. As part of its yearlong 15th-anniversary celebration, more than 100 shows and events have been announced for this month through 2022, and $15 tickets are available for a variety of performances. Arsht Center CEO Johann Zietsman (L) and Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. (WorldRedEye.com) "It's an important milestone for us and in this community," said Johann Zietsman, president and CEO of the Arsht. It's a season worth waiting for. After halting live shows for 18 months due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Arsht is bringing in-person gatherings back safely. Theatergoers are asked to wear masks and are required to provide either proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test or proof of vaccination. "There's nothing like live audiences and people sharing the same space and enjoying the same experience from different perspectives," Zietsman said. "To have a full season with the kind of planning and the diverse programming that we have in our plan is so exciting." When all venues were closed in March of last year, the programming team had to undo all its plans for the year ahead. Typically, the season launches acts that have been finalized about a year to two years earlier. "Some of the artists that we see now have been planned for previous years and are now finally able to come," Zietsman said. "It's taken us a long time to put this season together and to finally get it to where it is, but as the season goes on and as we see the audience's response, we plan to add more shows." Dubbed as housing some of the world's finest music, dance and theater, the center's Jazz Roots Series is returning with six electrifying concerts featuring a powerful lineup of jazz veterans. "The Hip Hop Nutcracker" (Tim Norris/Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) Dianne Reeves (Jerris Madison/Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) Beginning with the Christmas season, there is "The Hip Hop Nutcracker" on Saturday, Dec. 11 at Knight Concert Hall. It's a holiday mashup for the whole family that reimagines Tchaikovsky's classic score through explosive hip-hop choreography by a dozen all-star dancers joined by an onstage DJ and electric violinist. "Which really is quite a phenomenon; it's been around for a while and I'm really glad we're getting it this year," Zietsman said. "I think it's a very novel idea to combine the classical music of Tchaikovsky with hip-hop. I think that's brilliant." Another holiday offering this year is "Dianne Reeves: Christmas Time is Here" on Friday, Dec. 17, also at Knight Concert Hall. The five-time Grammy Award-winning vocalist Reeves will deliver jazz renditions of holiday favorites like "Let it Snow" and "I'll Be Home for Christmas." The Peter London Global Dance Company will perform its productions of "Touch" and "Rain On Me" at The Arsht next month. (Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) Then you can dance to the new year with "Peter London Global Dance Company: Touch & Rain On Me" Dec. 28-31 at Carnival Studio Theater. Miami's leading multicultural contemporary dance ensemble premieres a contemporary, Afro-Caribbean dance-fusion compilation showcasing the struggles many people faced during the height of the pandemic. Ballet and Dance Orchestra (BAD) will provide musical accompaniment, with scores commissioned by the dance company and composed by BAD's founding artistic director, Ezra Haugabrooks. The program includes world premieres by London, Brooke Logan, Gentry Isaiah George and Justin Rapaport. Ledisi, a 2021 Grammy Award winner and 13-time Grammy-nominated vocalist, will honor one of her greatest inspirations at the Knight Concert Hall on Friday, Jan. 14, 2022. "Ledisi Sings Nina" bringsthe powerhouse singer with a career spanning almost two decades back to her jazz roots to honor Nina Simone, the brilliant and celebrated American musician and civil rights activist. "I'm really looking forward to [her], especially since she's going to pay tribute to Nina Simone, (who) is one of my favorites of all time. It's really soulful music," Zietsman said. Then switch over to opera for "Our Song, Our Story: The New Generation of Black Voices" on Sunday, Jan. 30, 2022, at Knight Concert Hall. Including some of the world's best-known arias, art songs and spirituals, the powerful concert pays homage to legends Jessye Norman and Marian Anderson and features two of today's exciting operatic voices, Raehann Bryce-Davis and Brandie Inez Sutton. They will be accompanied by a string quartet and show creator Damien Sneed on piano. The Adrienne Arsht Center's 2020 Heritage Festival. (/Amanda Smith Photography/Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) On Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, the Arsht's third annual Heritage Fest, a community event designed to spotlight artists representing the African diaspora in South Florida, will come back for an afternoon of free fun-filled activities for the entire family, with performances by local artists, delicious bites from a variety of food vendors and beats pumping from the dance floor. "We want to make sure that we are a part of the community's life and make [residents'] lives better through the arts as much as we can," Zietsman said. "Make them smile if we can during this time." Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (Andrew Eccles/Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) The Ballet Ziff Opera House (Justin Namon/Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) And celebrating more than 60 years of unparalleled artistry, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will return to the Ziff Ballet Opera House Feb. 25-26, 2022. These dancers dazzle with their trademark technical brilliance and passionate energy, and bring audiences to their feet at every performance, never failing to remind us of the power of dance to bring people together. 'It's an iconic American institution, and an important story to tell here is the story of the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater," Zietsman said of the show. The groundbreaking company returns with new and classic works, including founder Ailey's masterpiece, "Revelations." Patti LaBelle (Whitney Thomas/Courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center) The incomparable force known as Patti LaBelle will return to the Arsht on Friday, March 18, 2022, at Knight Concert Hall with a repertoire ranging from classic R&B to pop standards and spiritual sonnets. Having sold more than 50 million records, the artist has enjoyed one of the most lauded careers in entertainment. One week later on Friday, March 25, 2022, the "SFJAZZ Collective: New Works Reflecting on the Moment" will take the stage at Knight Concert Hall. The supergroup of influential jazz musicians includes vocalists Gretchen Parlato and Martin Luther McCoy, saxophonists Chris Potter and David Sánchez, trumpeter Etienne Charles, vibraphonist Warren Wolf, keyboardist Edward Simon, bassist Matt Brewer and drummer Kendrick A.D. Scott. They will present original compositions in response to the extraordinary social and global issues of the past year. Multigenre quintet SHENZI will open the show, whose sound is a revolving reaction to elements old and new. New Mural by Chalk and Brush at the Ziff Ballet Opera House. (WorldRedEye.com) Then usher in the summer with "Bob Marley's Three Little Birds" June 22-July 10, 2022, at Carnival Studio Theater. The jammin' family musical in a new production by City Theatre will entertain kids and adults of all ages. Featuring the timeless music and lyrics of Bob Marley and based on the children's book "Every Little Thing" by his daughter, Cedella Marley, the show shares the legendary reggae artist's message of peace and love with a new generation of songbirds. "We're very proud of our diverse history and that's been a priority for us from day one," said Zietsman. Since opening in 2006, the Adrienne Arsht Center has brought events and programs to all people of the arts, including the county's Black community, from Free Gospel Sundays – a free concert series that delivers the power of gospel music – to AileyCamp Miami – an annual six-week summer dance day camp for Miami-Dade County public middle school students. "[These] programs have been extremely successful and also very impactful in our Black community and we continue to plan to do those," Zietsman said. For the "Sweet $15" discount deal, sign up for Adrienne Arsht Center emails at ArshtCenter.org/email and select "Discount Programs" to be the first to know when the limited number of tickets become available. The Miami Times is the largest Black-owned newspaper in the south serving Miami's Black community since 1923. The award-winning weekly is frequently recognized as the best Black newspaper in the country by the National Newspaper Publishers Association.