Cultural Alliance of Fairfield County: Spotlight on Arts & Culture

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | August 8, 2022 | The Levitt Pavilion + Other Great Free Concert Venues This Summer

Hosted by David Green of The Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield County.

For our August show we turned our attention to some of the great free concert series in our region. Our main focus was on The Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts in Westport. For almost 50 years, this community-based, magical performance space has welcomed performing artists from all genres and from the local to the internationally known. With a few fundraising concerts, it otherwise offers mostly free concerts. We interview Freda and Carleigh Welsh, the driving forces behind The Pavilion and its commitment to creating a strong community through music and the other performing arts. We also hear from Bennie Wallace, renowned saxophonist with BackCountry Jazz, who created the Greenwich Jazz Festival, and from Paul Frucht, Artistic Director of the Charles Ives Music Festival.

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | August 8, 2022 | The Levitt Pavilion

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | September 12, 2022 | What Paier College Is Bringing To Bridgeport Arts & Culture 

Hosted by David Green of The Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield County.

Our September “Spotlight on Art & Culture” interview is with President Joseph Bierbaum, President of Paier College, that last year took over the Arnold Bernhard Center for Arts & Humanities, formerly owned by the University of Bridgeport.

We will also talk with Khanlar Gasimov, an Azerbaijani sculptor with an international reputation, who is the new director of the Schelfhaudt Gallery, one of the largest in the region, founded in 1968, and to Ian McDonald, Technical Director & Event Coordinator at the Mertens Theater. Both the Schelfhaudt and Mertens are part of the Arnold Bernhard Center. 

Discover what Paier College is bringing to Bridgeport Arts & Culture

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | September 12, 2022 | What Paier College Is Bringing To Bridgeport

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | October 10, 2022 | Double Header: Americans for the Arts & The Bridgeport Art Trail

Hosted by David Green of The Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield County.

In our double-header show in October, we first introduced Randy Cohen, Vice President of Research at Americans for the Arts, and the main force behind the influential Arts & Economic Prosperity Study. This measures the economic impact of the nonprofit arts and culture industry on our towns, regions and states, and the Cultural Alliance is leading the study by conducting audience surveys at cultural events through April 2023. Hear from Randy why this is such a big deal.

Then we invite several of the organizers and presenters of the Bridgeport Art Trail to talk about some of the highlights of the upcoming 14th Art Trail, slated for Nov. 10-13. Hear founder and chief organizer, Suzanne Kachmar, and other key participants, including artist and gallerist Cris Dam, artist Richard Killeaney, and Bridgeport Downtown Special Services District President & CEO, Lauren Coakley Vincent, talk to what’s special about the BAT and why this one promises to be the “best ever.”

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | October 10, 2022 | Americans for the Arts & The Bridgeport Art Trail

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | November 14, 2022 | Giving Thanks for Arts Support in Connectcut

Hosted by David Green of The Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield County.

In our November "Spotlight on Arts & Culture” we took advantage of the season, and of the recent election results, to give thanks - for the support that the arts and culture sector receives from our state legislature, as well as from individual donors, our local businesses and family foundations.

Guests included two recently re-elected legislators, Lucy Dathan, representing Norwalk and New Canaan, and David Michel representing Stamford. They were joined by Brett Thompson, Executive DIrector of the CT Arts Alliance, the main advocacy body for the arts in Connecticut, and Scott Wands, in Director of Grants & Programs at CT Humanities.

Guests reviewed how arts, culture and tourism (ACT) are currently funded in CT, what the impact was of recent post-COVID windfall funding, and how together we can create a plan, or Roadmap, to put ACT funding on a more equitable, sustainable and predictable footing in the future.

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | November 14, 2022 | Giving Thanks for Arts Support in CT

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | December 19, 2022 | Symphonic Changes

Hosted by David Green of The Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield County.

In our December broadcast, we talked to the leaders of four of the prestigious orchestras in our region about the changes happening with the orchestras. Meet Mark Halstead, Executive Director of the Greater Bridgeport Symphony, Russell Jones, President & CEO of Orchestra Lumos, Stuart Malina, Music Director of The Greenwich Symphony, and Jonathan Yates, Music Director of the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra. 

The Greater Bridgeport Symphony is auditioning conductors for its new Music Director; Orchestra Lumos, formerly the Stamford Symphony found its new Music Director, Michael Stern in 2019, and the Greenwich Symphony recently selected Stuart Malina as its new Music Director. Jonathan Yates, on the other hand, has been Music Director at the Norwalk Symphony and the Norwalk Youth Symphony since 2011. Hear how these orchestras found creative ways to respond to the COVID challenge to keep audiences connected, and how they continue to plan new ways of expanding their audiences and attracting new sponsors through increasingly creative and innovative programs.

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | December 19, 2022 | Symphonic Changes

Hosted by David Green of The Cultural Alliance Of Fairfield County.

Our September 2019 conversation was with Peter van Heerden, Executive Director of Fairfield University’s Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.

Peter van Heerden is approaching his fifth anniversary leading the region’s flagship performing arts center. Peter has brought an unprecedented international flair and perspective to this institution. A South African performance artist, with a Master’s in Performing Arts from the University of Cape Town, he moved with his wife to Westport, where he then ran the Westport Arts Center for 4 years. What difference has his international perspective brought to the arts of Fairfield County? How is the Quick’s intensifying program impacting the community and our issues - from gun violence to the health and wellbeing of our veterans, to an awareness of the wealth disparity among our population?

Spotlight On Arts & Culture September 9 2019

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | September 9, 2019 | The Quick Center’s Peter van Heerden

WPKN is a nonprofit, freeform, community radio station (arts organization) that is more than 50 years old.  The vision of WPKN is to build community, a loyal and growing audience, and an engaged and educated citizenry by providing the highest quality of free-form programming that broadcasts entertainment, music, news, thoughts, sounds, ideas and event listings that support free speech, diversity, and the interests of the local and global communities WPKN serves.  Our radio frequency of 89.5-FM (Bridgeport)includes a coverage map of 1.5 million people in Farfield, New Haven and Litchfield counties in Connecticut and Suffolk county (The North Fork and Hamptons) in New York.  WPKN also maintains an on-demand streaming and archive of WPKN programming as well as our WPKN PODCASTS that focus on 22+ 'talk-oriented' community, cultural and news programs. We also feature an expanding list of interviews with music personalities and artists from all over the world.

Spotlight On Arts & Culture | September 9, 2019 | The Quick Center’s Peter van Heerden

WPKN Community Radio