It could be a great partnership. Can we make it happen?
I’m excited about the flurry of redevelopment and positive energy around our city recently: the successful return of the small business incubator Project Pop-Up, which has enlivened Ninth Street’s corridor; the opening of Harlan Flats residences on Justison Street; not one but two locations of an iconic coffee company (Now we’ve truly arrived!); the ribbon-cutting for the multi-location Market Street Village retail and residence project. Combine all this with the steady buzz that the arts and culture scene has generated, and you see that Wilmington is reaching a significant point in its revitalization.
Wilmington artists, arts and culture organizations have long been some of the city’s greatest champions—and key drivers in its vitality. Numerous individual artists and organizations large and small are committed to Wilmington as their “home base.” They celebrate being a part of the city and believe in its potential. They create and promote some of the very best parts of Wilmington through music, dance, spoken word and visual arts.
There is also exciting momentum for cultivating, expanding and promoting arts and culture in Wilmington—most notably in the large-scale project of The Creative District, but also with programs like Gable Music and World Cafe Live at the Queen’s Wilmo Wednesdays performance showcases and soon-to-reappear Block Party events from the IN Wilmington Campaign.
All of us—residents, non-residents (I like to call us “Wilmington enthusiasts”), business and property owners, elected and appointed officials—should embrace and support these efforts at every level. They bring more opportunities for people to live, work and play in Wilmington.
There is much potential in downtown Wilmington that has yet to be tapped. There are underutilized buildings, lots and spaces, and there are occupied spaces that could be improved, and attract more traffic, with just a little out-of-the-box thinking. There are artists and art organizations—especially those small in size—that often seek space to present their work. Some don’t have the funding to purchase a building outright or pay high rental fees; other organizations don’t require a “permanent” home. But all have a need for a space in which to create.
In the past, downtown has been host to imaginative and effectively executed events such as Fringe Wilmington, Downtown Visions’ Music Garden series and Art on the Town. While these projects are ongoing and successful, we should work collectively to connect even more downtown business and property owners with artists to develop regular programming or “pop-up” events within their spaces. Think house concerts or coffee house setups, pop-up art exhibits, even “flash mob” performances. Keep the collective energy flowing, provide more experiences to drive more people downtown, and give artists and smaller arts organizations affordable and distinctive options to put their work “out there.”
I’d love to see more of this happen…how about you? Are you an artist? Tell me what your needs are. Do you own property in the city? Let’s talk about what you might be able to offer to some of Wilmington’s most talented. Are you a public servant? Maybe you can help connect the dots between the two.
These efforts together can surely create something even greater for Wilmington. Until then, you can find me here: mfitzgerald@artsinmedia.com or @ArtsinMedia. In the meantime, I’d love to hear your ideas.
such renowned international musicians as Arthur Haas, Luc Beauséjour, Janine Johnson, Adam Pearl and Davitt Moroney. A complete festival pass, including admission to three days of performances, the opening reception, all lectures and lunches, is $120. Details and tickets are available 
Techniques; live performances by faculty and guest artists; and the Delaware Premiere of Concrete Rose by choreographer Dara Stevens-Meredith, featuring Eleone Dance Theatre. Festival tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for students. At CCAC’s Clifford Brown Performance Space, musical trio WeBe3 presents a performance and vocal workshop for regional singers on Friday, May 8, and Saturday, May 9, respectively. Concert tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Vocal workshop registration is $25 for students and $40 for adults; advance reservations are encouraged. 705 N. Market St., Wilmington • 652.0101 • 
(theatren.org) features weekly independent and foreign films in addition to special events and presentations by local filmmakers. The Visual Fringe Festival (fringede.org), May 20-24, will feature visual art exhibits and outdoor installations of non-traditional topics, materials or styles by visiting and local artists.
world. Songs include “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” “21 Guns,” “Wake Me Up When September Ends,” “Holiday” and “American Idiot.” CTC’s Fearless Improv team continues to deliver belly laughs to comedy fans on the second Saturday of each month at Penn’s Place in Old New Castle. Tickets for American Idiot are $25-$40; Fearless Improv tickets are $5. All are available now 
Concert at The Grand Opera House on Friday, May 1, at 7:30 p.m. The Chamber Concert will feature works by Mozart and the piece Arcana by composer Kevin Puts, winner of the 2015 A.I. du Pont Composer’s Award. The Classics Concert celebrates works by Webern, Bach and Rachmaninoff. Tickets for both concerts are $66 and available at the Grand Box Office, 652.5577, or at ticketsatthegrand.org. Limited $10 tickets are offered for students under 21 with ID (by phone or in person).
written by Duncan Sheik (Tony Award winner for Spring Awakening) with book and lyrics by Nell Benjamin (Broadway’s Legally Blonde: The Musical) and animal direction by Bill Berloni (Broadway’s award-winning dog trainer). Every Saturday during the production run, DTC will host adoption events in conjunction with Delaware animal shelters. In May, DTC joins forces with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra to present Stephen Sondheim’s Putting it Together. Stay tuned for more details!
he recorded the relationship between humans and their canine companions. Families are invited to the Dog Dogs Free Family Day on Sunday, April 19, from noon to 3:30 p.m., for dog-themed art activities and The Barker of Seville puppet show. Adult art lovers can stop by Art is Social: Dog Dogs on Friday, May 15, 7 to 10 p.m., for music by jazz band JD3, gallery games, dog-themed activities and treats, a cash bar and café. The event is free for museum members and $5 for non-members. Admission to the museum is free on Thursday evenings and Sundays.
he DCCA’s Friday, May 1, Art Loop will feature the first Rolling Revolution Food Truck Rally and an album release party with Richard Raw performing from his new hip-hop album, Conversational Pieces. On May 3, contemporary and baroque ensemble Mélomanie will premiere composer Larry Nelson’s work “Moonbow.” Scheduled for Saturday, May 9, is the DCCA’s 2015 Gretchen Hupfel Symposium, Selfies and Social Robotics in the Digital Age, which will explore the historical, contemporary, and future contexts of the ways we both connect to and distance ourselves from face-to-face engagement in an age of social media. Exhibitions opening in April and May include Layering Constructs, with works by Margo Allman, Charles Burwell, and Antonio Puri; Relics by Drew Leshko; Whisper by David Slovic; and the Annual Members’ Juried Exhibition, New Eyes: Experimental Photography Today; as well as shows by DCCA studio artists Rachel Briggs, Hugh Atkins, Dan Jackson and Ken Mabrey.
April 3, from 5 to 8 p.m. in the Toni & Stuart B. Young Gallery. Enjoy the best student work from this past year, as selected by studio faculty. The work on display represents a variety of assignments and media from each of DCAD’s six majors: Animation, Fine Arts, Graphic Design, Illustration, Interior Design and Photography. The exhibition will be on display until April 24.
performance art. NOTE: This is not an open mic; interested performers should contact Jeremy Hebbel at jeremy@gablemusicventures.com. Additional Gable projects include April 17 and May 15 Friday Singer Songwriter Showcases at the Queen; Betty & The Bullet at Cromwell’s Tavern on Saturday, April 18; and WilMusic Festival, a free event at Wilmington University featuring The Splashing Pearls, Nadjah Nicole, Minshara, Kevin McCove and more on Saturday, May 2.
peraDelaware chorus led by Maestro Anthony Barrese. For audiences who attend the performances of La Tragédie de Carmen, Peter Brook has transformed Bizet’s timeless classic, adding more passion, fresh blood and sexual fury than you’ve ever seen. Audrey Babcock’s portrayal of this seductive sorceress is irresistible. Shows are Saturday, May 9, and Friday, May 15, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, May 17, at 2 p.m. at the Laird Center for the Performing Arts. On May 14-16 at 7:30 p.m., opera blends with the culinary arts in Wine, Women & Food. The event will feature Bon Appétit, a 20-minute, one-woman opera based on Julia Child’s famous chocolate cake episode, capturing all the joie de vivre of the original French chef.
Festival Concert on Saturday, May 16, celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the Gabriel Kney organ with a rare performance by concert organ virtuoso Nathan Laube. Laube has earned a place among the organ world’s elite performers with his brilliant playing and creative programming, which spans five centuries.
his ensemble are juxtaposed with contemporary works of the DCCA’s featured gallery artists. The concert at 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 3, welcomes guest violinist Daniela Pierson and composer Larry Nelson. Nelson’s piece, Moonbow, will mark its Wilmington premiere with this performance, which also includes works of Vivaldi, Boismortier and Telemann.
$5-10. The music continues on Sunday, May 3, at 4 p.m. for the Spring Choral Concert, which showcases performances by the Delaware Children’s Chorus, the Delaware Women’s Chorus (who will be prepping for their tour of Ireland in June) and special guest ensemble Brotherly Love, the chamber group from the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus. This performance is free. On Friday, May 15, the Wilmington Community Orchestra performs its final concert of the season with Winners of the Delaware Concerto Competition for Young Musicians. Tickets are $5-10.
