Back in May I attended my first meeting of the Davenport Arts & Cultural Alliance (DACA) and was not disappointed. Headed up by Abel Gonzalez and Scott Cook, these folks, via their 10-year-old organization named TheatreWorks Florida, are kicking off projects that should interest art lovers throughout Florida.
For three years now, TheatreWorks Florida and DACA have helped to occupy the new section of the old Davenport school house. They’ve made improvements and got Polk County to tent the building for termites, thus protecting the value of this structure for posterity. (Why this building’s not our future community center is beyond me.)
Some of the items in DACA’s future planning include:
- Theater Performances produced by TheatreWorks Florida (All comedies, my fav):
- The Marvelous Wonderettes — September 8-17;
- Winter Wonderettes — December 1-17 ; and
- The Great American Trailer Park Musical — March 9-25.
- For tickets, go to TheatreWorks Florida’s web site.
- A special program for veterans called Vet Voices. TheatreWorks Florida has applied for a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for this one. They plan to work with Florida Veterans Administration hospitals and clinics to provide creative outlets for our vets in need. It would be part of what they’re calling Arts & Healing, a program designed around creative writing, arts, and theater. VetVoices will launch this Summer 2017.
- The Plein Air events, which is all the rage in Europe, the next one being at the Sunshine Foundation Dream Village on July 29th.
- Next year’s Horse Creek Arts & Heritage Festival set for March.
DACA’s next meeting‘s on Tuesday, July 18th at 6:30 PM. If you’re into the arts in North-Eastern Polk, this is the meeting to attend.
For more information about DACA, go to TheatreWorksFL.org. Don’t forget to LIKE DACA’s Facebook page too. They’ll keep you up to date there.
Darhlene.com 
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