Category: Residents

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announces its return to Hermitage Beach on Manasota Key on Thursday, June 26^th. This will be the first public program presented on the Hermitage Beach since the devastating impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The Hermitage campus, along with many neighbors and friends on Manasota Key and throughout the region, experienced an unprecedented storm surge from Hurricane Helene in September, followed by even greater damages caused by Hurricane Milton less than two weeks later. This newly announced program – “Key Change: A Return to the Beach!” – marks a significant milestone for the Hermitage’s recovery efforts and a return to beach programming on Manasota Key.

Returning Hermitage Fellows and award-winning musical theater writers, the Lazour Brothers and Mark Sonnenblick, will join forces for this special program, sharing their original songs as they help to welcome audiences back to the Hermitage Beach for the first time in many months. Sonnenblick and the Lazour Brothers were represented earlier in the Hermitage’s 2024-2025 season with two of the most memorable Hermitage programs in recent memory. Fresh from his West End collaboration with Elton John on The Devil Wears Prada, Sonnenblick beguiled Hermitage audiences at Selby Gardens in January with an in-depth look at the elusive process by which songs are written and incorporated into a narrative musical. Back in August of 2024, in one of the last Hermitage Beach programs before the hurricanes hit our shores, the Lazour Brothers offered a stripped-down acoustic set of songs from their acclaimed musical We Live in Cairo, just a few short weeks before it opened Off-Broadway. Sonnenblick’s The Devil Wears Prada continues to be a success in London and stars Vanessa Williams. Daniel and Patrick Lazour recently received a number of nominations in this year’s New York theater award season for We Live in Cairo. Join these celebrated composers, lyricists, and librettists for a triumphant return to the Hermitage’s celebrated beach programing Thursday, June 26^th at 6:30pm. 

Since the fall hurricane season, the Hermitage has continued its expansive programming throughout Sarasota and the greater Gulf Coast region. The Hermitage team worked swiftly in the aftermath of the storms to remediate the historic buildings and grounds, and to remove nearly eight feet of sand that covered much of the campus following the unprecedented storm surge. Due to ongoing repairs to the neighboring Blind Pass Park and various permit and procurement procedures mandated by Sarasota County, the Hermitage was not permitted to continue its repairs on the buildings. The Hermitage welcomed artists back to the historic Hermitage House in late January, while other buildings remain offline. This public program on June 26^th will be the first opportunity since the hurricanes for the public to experience one of the Hermitage’s iconic free beach programs.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome audiences back to the Hermitage Beach for what promises to be an unforgettable evening with the incredible talents of Mark Sonnenblick and the Lazour Brothers,” said Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. “Immediately prior to Helene and Milton, we had just completed a campus-wide restoration that had the Hermitage buildings and grounds in the best condition they had ever been, and we are passionately committed to achieving that same goal in the coming weeks and months. If we had not encountered unexpected impediments to our reopening, our driven team would have had the Hermitage campus fully re-opened months ago – particularly with the outpouring of enthusiasm, love, and support from our passionate audiences and generous donors. Nevertheless, we remain resolute in our goals and our commitment to serving this great community with one-of-a-kind arts programming!”

Hermitage Fellows Daniel Lazour & Patrick Lazour, brothers and musical theater writers, were finalists for the 2024 Hermitage Greenfield Prize. Their musical We Live in Cairo premiered at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge and recently had an acclaimed Off-Broadway run at New York Theatre Workshop, earning a 2025 Lucille Lortel Award nomination for Outstanding Musical and Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Music, among other accolades. Projects in development include a musical adaptation of Ritesh Batra’s film The Lunchbox at Lincoln Center Theater and their sing-along theater experiment about patients and caregivers, Night Side Songs, as a co-production at A.R.T. and Philadelphia Theater Company. Their movie musical Challenger: An American Dream is being developed with Bruce Cohen Productions. Original songs by the Lazours can be heard on their independently released albums Freres, Flap My Wings (Songs from We Live in Cairo), Beth’s Homemade Cowboy Breakfast, and Lullabies. Upon hearing about the hurricane damage at the Hermitage, the Lazours commented, “We were at the Hermitage just before rehearsals began for We Live in Cairo, and it was paradisaic being there on Manasota Key. Our residency at the Hermitage was a critical time and space with so much productivity, so to see that calm upended by the storms was devastating.”

Hermitage Fellow Mark Sonnenblick is an Emmy Award and Drama Desk Award-nominated songwriter for theater, film, and television. His projects include the current West End production of The Devil Wears Prada, starring Vanessa Williams, written in collaboration with Elton John, Shaina Taub, and Kate Wetherhead. His production of Theater Camp with Ben Platt and Molly Gordon earned a Sundance Special Jury Award, and Spirited, staring Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell, appeared on the Oscars shortlist. Lyle Lyle Crocodile, with Shawn Mendes and Constance Wu, is a family favorite. On the stage front, Sonnenblick’s musical Midnight at the Never Get was nominated for Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, and Outer Critics Circle Awards and was a New York Times Critic’s Pick. Sonnenblick’s production of The Independents was awarded Best Production by Fringe NYC and was also a New York Times Critic’s Pick. Sonnenblick collaborates with writers across multiple genres, including Elton John, Pasek and Paul, and The Black Label. Beyond his Hermitage Fellowship, he’s won a Jonathan Larson Award, the Harold Adamson Award, a MAC Award for “Show of the Year,” and his music has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. “The Hermitage is where you go and have the rare opportunity to work on – and then share – the art and performance that comes from your heart,” said Sonnenblick during his last Hermitage program.

All Hermitage programs are free and open to the public (with a $5/person registration fee), offering Gulf Coast audiences a rare chance to engage and interact with some of the world’s leading talent. Due to capacity limitations, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. 

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announces its newest May program, “Movement of Body and Story,” on Friday, May 30^th at 4pm, featuring award-winning choreographer, playwright, and director nicHi douglas, alongside acclaimed UK playwright and screenwriter Sam Steiner, a recent finalist for the Hermitage Major Theater Award. This event will be presented at and in collaboration with Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe.

In this two-part ‘master class’ experience, two award-winning Hermitage Fellows and theater artists at the top of their game explore how the mind moves the body and the body inspires the mind. Choreographer and experimental theater-maker nicHi douglas is fresh from the news of winning the prestigious Callaway Award and Lucille Lortel Award, honoring nicHi’s exceptional work Off-Broadway with the production of (pray)as a multi-hyphenate playwright, director, and choreographer. UK playwright and Hermitage Major Theater Award finalist Sam Steiner visits the Hermitage from London, where his work has been produced on the West End and beyond. His acclaimed plays have been translated into a dozen different languages and performed all over the world. This international playwright and screenwriter’s subjects are as wide-ranging as the cultures that have embraced his work – from draconian censorship laws to Kayne West and table tennis, Steiner mines theatrical and cinematic gold in some of the most unexpected places. Sam Steiner’s Hermitage Artist Residency is generously sponsored by Sondra & Gerald Biller, and the Hermitage Major Theater Award is made possible with generous support from Flora Major and the Kutya Major Foundation.

Hermitage Fellow nicHi douglas, based in Brooklyn, is a Lucille Lortel, AUDELCO, Callaway, and Princess Grace Award-winning experimental theater and dance maker who is interested in leading community care centered creative processes. They are an Assistant Arts Professor at NYU/Tisch, where they teach dance and movement methodologies. The critically acclaimed theater project (pray), for which douglas served as the playwright, director, and choreographer, won the 2024 Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical, Best Director, and Best Ensemble. Reconstructing (Still Working but the Devil Might Be Inside), a new play created by The TEAM and choregraphed by douglas, will have upcoming presentations at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). 

2024 Hermitage Major Theater Award finalist Sam Steiner is a playwright and screenwriter from Manchester, England. Among his acclaimed stage plays is Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons, which has been performed all over the world in over a dozen languages and made its West End debut in 2023. For film, Steiner co-wrote the film Fingernails, starring Jesse Buckley, Riz Ahmed, and Jeremy Allen White, as well as the upcoming film Rich Flu, directed by Galder Gaztelu-Urrrutia and starring Mary-Elizabeth Winstead and Rafe Spall. His current feature film slate includes Morning, which Justin Kurzel will direct; Laura Dern, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Noah Jupe will star with Cumberbatch’s SunnyMarch producing. Steiner is also working on the original horror film Banquet and an original feature drama The Endling. 

All Hermitage programs are free and open to the public (with a $5/person registration fee), offering Gulf Coast audiences a rare chance to engage and interact with some of the world’s leading talent. Due to capacity limitations, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. 

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announces the newest program in its popular “Hermitage Sunsets @ Benderson Park” series, an ongoing partnership with Nathan Benderson Park Conservancy that was established in 2023. The first Hermitage/NBP collaboration in 2025 is scheduled for Thursday, March 20 at 6:30pm, featuring playwright, director, performer, and Hermitage Fellow Madeline Sayet. Known throughout the theater world for her work in contemporary Native American theater and indigenizing Western classics, Sayet is a member of the Mohegan Tribe in Connecticut, where she was raised on a combination of traditional Mohegan stories and Shakespeare – both of which have influenced her work. Hermitage Sunsets @ Benderson Park: “For the Love of Language” showcases this multi-talented playwright who has been honored as a Forbes “30-Under-30,” a TED Fellow, and was a recipient of the White House Champion of Change Award from President Obama. This singular theater artist discusses her work – including the recent national tour of her one-person show Where We Belong – and how the love of language informs her creative process. 

The 2023-2024 “Hermitage Sunsets @ NBP” featured the work of two celebrated Hermitage playwrights, Terry Guest and James Anthony Tyler, followed by two memorable evenings of music showcasing the talents of two past Hermitage Greenfield Prize finalists, Kamala Sankaram and Etienne Charles, plus an improvisational jazz experience featuring two of the industry’s most innovative composers and trumpet players,  Chris Ryan Williams and Amir ElSaffar (recently seen again in Sarasota leading theTwo River Ensemble at The Ringling). The first Hermitage event at Benderson Park in 2023 featured the pop, rock, and folk music of award-winning composer and Hermitage alumna Zoe Sarnak. 

Each program in the “Hermitage Sunsets @ Benderson Park” features a celebrated Hermitage artist (or artists) sharing their original work with the greater Sarasota and Manatee communities. This outdoor series features performances and explorations of works-in-progress by Hermitage artists-in-residence and alumni. “Hermitage Sunsets @ Benderson Park” events take place by Benderson Lake near the Nathan Benderson Family Finish Tower (5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota, FL 34235). 

“As we continue to offer one-of-a-kind Hermitage programming throughout the region, we are excited to continue our collaboration with Nathan Benderson Park, welcoming Gulf Coast audiences to another fantastic venue where they can share a magical evening with Hermitage artists amidst a beautiful sunset,” says Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. “We are thrilled to build upon the success of previous programs at Nathan Benderson Park. Much like our beach programs on Manasota Key and other locations throughout Sarasota and Manatee County, these hour-long events offer our community the opportunity to experience a ‘sneak peek’ into these extraordinary artists’ creative process.” 

“We are honored to partner with the Hermitage Artist Retreat to celebrate the arts at Nathan Benderson Park,” said Bruce C. Patneaude, Chief Operating Officer of Nathan Benderson Park Conservancy, when these two organizations launched their collaboration “The artists coming to the Hermitage are some of the very best in the world. It is a unique opportunity to watch their creative performances and interactions with the audience. Hosting this event at the Park is one of the many ways we are pleased to bring creativity, diversity, and culture to the Sarasota County and Manatee County communities.” 

The next “Hermitage Sunsets @ Benderson Park” program is scheduled for Thursday, May 8, 2025 at 6:30pm, with an artist to be announced. Additional dates and events will be announced for the 2025-2026 season.

All Hermitage programs are free and open to the public (with a $5/person registration fee), offering Gulf Coast audiences a rare chance to engage and interact with some of the world’s leading talent. Due to capacity limitations, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. 

The Hermitage Artist Retreat today announced new March programs in Sarasota, Venice, Boca Grande, and Bradenton. Continuing its commitment to innovative year-round arts programming, these events will be presented throughout Florida’s Gulf Coast region. Hermitage programs celebrate works-in-process from world-renowned artists through musical performances, candid conversations, theatrical presentations, literary readings, dance performances, and more. Each of these hour-long Hermitage programs offers a completely different experience, providing the Gulf Coast community a rare glimpse into innovative works and the creative process behind them. In recent years, the Hermitage has continued to expand the geographic reach and impact of these unique programs. 

On Monday, March 3^rd, James Nyoraku Schlefer returns to Sarasota for three separate performances of “Schlefer on Shakuhachi: Ancient Flute in Modern Times.” The first two daytime programs are a part of the Sarasota Institute of Lifetime Learning’s (SILL’s) “Music Mondays” series, which offers program attendees new insights and fresh perspectives on the careers of professional musicians. Performances are at 10:30am at the Church of the Palms in Sarasota and 3pm at Venice Presbyterian Church. 

Please note the two SILL programs are not part of the Hermitage’s traditional free programming. The first two presentations of “Schlefer on Shakuhachi” are hosted by the Sarasota Institute of Lifetime Learning (SILL) as a part of the “Music Mondays” series. $15 single tickets are available at the door for this special event with James Nyoraku Schlefer. 

That same evening, in a special sunset program on Boca Grande, Schlefer will meld the ancient sounds of the shakuhachi with the waves on Monday, March 3^rd at 6pm at the Gasparilla Island State Park – Range Lighthouse on Boca Grande. James Nyoraku Schlefer’s Hermitage Residency is generously sponsored by Alice & David Court. 

Registration for the 6pm program on Boca Grande is available through the Hermitage website: HermitageArtistRetreat.org.

Revered for its sonic as well as its spiritual resonance, the simple bamboo flute known as the shakuhachi has been an iconic part of Eastern culture since at least the Eighth Century. Hermitage Fellow James Nyoraku Schlefer is one of the few non-Japanese practitioners who has achieved the rank of Grand Master, blending the instrument’s essential traditions with contemporary Western instrumentation while still honoring what many consider its meditative properties. A scholar as well as a performer, join this uniquely gifted Hermitage Fellow, learn more about the history of the shakuhachi, and hear this magical instrument played by one of its greatest living practitioners. 

On Monday, March 10^th at 6:30pm, the Hermitage presents its first program at the Manatee Performing Arts Center in Bradenton. From Tony Award winners like Jeanine Tesori, Michael R. Jackson, and Doug Wright, to generative artists and composers revolutionizing the form like Adam Gwon, Zoe Sarnak, Rona Siddiqui, and more, the Hermitage provides space and time to some of the most exciting musical theater writers working today. Hear selections from acclaimed Hermitage composers, librettists, and lyricists, performed by the Gulf Coast’s finest talents at this special program in Manatee County. In addition to the works themselves, “Songs from the Sand: An Evening of Hermitage Music” provides audiences with the opportunity to hear little-known stories about the creation of some of New York theater’s recent success stories and insights into the creative process.

Next up on Thursday, March 13^th at 6pm, Hermitage Fellow and author Jamila Minnicks will present “Moonrise Over New Work” at Bookstore1 in downtown Sarasota. Minnicks’ debut novel Moonrise Over New Jessup won the 2021 PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, the 2024 Black Caucus for the American Library Association First Novelist Award, and the 2023 Southern Literary Review Book of the Year. The novel boldly questions the value of integration and acceptance if it means losing the comfort that separation has created. Hear selections from this incredible story, read by the author, and get a taste of where this gifted writer will take you in her next novel as she works to complete it while in residence at the Hermitage. Jamila Minnicks’ Hermitage Residency is generously sponsored by Georgia Court & Robin Radin.

All Hermitage programs are free and open to the public (with a $5/person registration fee), offering Gulf Coast audiences a rare chance to engage and interact with some of the world’s leading talent. Due to capacity limitations, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. (The two SILL programs in Sarasota and Venice are not part of the Hermitage registration.)

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announces a new program with Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Doug Wright as he returns to Sarasota for “The PlayWRIGHT’s the Thing.” Join the Hermitage at the Asolo’s Cook Theater in the FSU Center for Performing Arts, as Wright engages in conversation with Hermitage Artistic Director Andy Sandberg on Monday, February 10^th at 6pm. In addition, program attendees will have the opportunity to hear selections from Wright’s lesser-known original works, performed by some of Sarasota’s brightest talents. Register here.

With his hit Broadway play Good Night, Oscar gearing up for its regional premiere at Asolo Repertory Theatre this spring, Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and librettist Doug Wrighthas been creating celebrated works of theater and film for over two decades. Many of Wright’s worlds and characters have their basis in real life people and events, from Charlotte von Mahlsdorf in I Am My Own Wife, to Big and Little Edie in Grey Gardens, to the famous rivalry between Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden in War Paint. Hear what draws this acclaimed playwright to these stories, as well as other fascinating insights into his process. 

Wright is a proud Hermitage alumnus and trustee, and he served as a juror for the inaugural Hermitage Major Theater Award in 2021. He has remained an engaged and active member of the Hermitage alumni community. His Broadway credits include I Am My Own Wife (Pulitzer Prize; Tony Award), Grey Gardens,Hands on a Hardbody, War Paint, and The Little Mermaid. In film, Wright’s credits include screenplays for Fine Line Features, Fox Searchlight, and DreamWorks SKG, among others. His recent Amazon film The Burial stars Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, where he served as President for many years. He previously returned to the Gulf Coast just last year, where he presented Hermitage programs in collaboration with SILL in Sarasota and Venice, as well as a Hermitage event in Boca Grande.

His most recent play, Good Night, Oscar, originally directed by Hermitage Fellow Lisa Peterson, received critical acclaim at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre before transferring to Broadway, where it earned SeanHayes a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Lead Actor. Asolo Repertory Theatre will present the Florida premiere of Good Night, Oscar this spring, running April 2-26, 2025.

Programs are free and open to the public (with a $5/person registration fee), offering Gulf Coast audiences a rare chance to engage and interact with some of the world’s leading talent. Due to capacity limitations, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org.

The Hermitage Artist Retreat is pleased to announce the fourth annual concert in the Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series at the Hermitage, featuring Grammy-nominated composer and award-winning pianist Vijay Iyer. This event will take place on Thursday, February 20^th at 7pm at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens (Downtown Sarasota). This alumni music initiative was launched in 2022 to a full-capacity crowd at Selby Gardens with “Soulful Strings: An Evening of Harp Music,” featuring celebrated harpist and Hermitage alumna Ashley Jackson. The 2023 concert, “The Pop-Rock-Folk World of Zoe Sarnak,” featured award-winning New York City-based Hermitage alumna Zoe Sarnak, with Sarasota-based vocalists and musicians performing Sarnak’s original songs at Nathan Benderson Park. Last year’s concert, “Piano Classics Remade,” featured world-renowned pianist and Hermitage alumnus Conrad Tao performing for a sold-out crowd at Selby Gardens. 

This year, the Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series at the Hermitage continues   this popular series with Grammy Award-nominated pianist, composer, and past Hermitage Greenfield Prize winner Vijay Iyer. Described by The New York Times as a “social conscience, multimedia collaborator, system builder, rhapsodist, historical thinker, and multicultural gateway,” Hermitage Fellow and composer-pianist Vijay Iyerhas earned a place as one of the leading music-makers of his generation. Beyond his recognition as aHermitage Greenfield Prize winner in the discipline of music, his honors include a MacArthur Fellowship, a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, a United States Artist Fellowship, three Grammy Award nominations, and the Alpert Award in the Arts. 

The Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series at the Hermitage offers the opportunity for a distinguished Hermitage alum to return for additional residency time and a special community concert. This initiative is made possible by a generous multi-year gift from the Ruby E. and Carole Crosby Family Foundation. Current Hermitage Board President Carole Crosby initiated this gift as a special tribute to her mother Ruby, who helped to inspire her own deep love of music. A musician herself, Carole Crosby graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music and played the harp in both the Atlanta Symphony and Detroit Symphony.

“The Hermitage brings some of the most talented artists and performers in the world to our community,” said Crosby. “Music was always incredibly important to me and to my mother, so it’s an honor to celebrate her memory with this initiative spotlighting and supporting some truly extraordinary composers and musicians. I am deeply inspired by the Hermitage’s commitment to these artists and the impact these magnificent talents are having in our region.”

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Vijay Iyer back to the Gulf Coast to share his talents with our growing Hermitage audience,” added Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. “Vijay is one of the most innovative composers of his generation, not to mention an early recipient of the Hermitage Greenfield Prize. As we continue to reengage with and provide more opportunities for Hermitage alumni, this generous gift from Carole Crosby in her mother’s honor allows our community to celebrate and reconvene with groundbreaking musical talents who have come to know Sarasota through their time at the Hermitage.”

There isn’t much Hermitage Greenfield Prize winner Vijay Iyer hasn’t done in the world of music. A Grammy Award-nominated composer, he has performed at the world’s most iconic venues, composed works premiered by leading institutions such as the London Philharmonic, and collaborated with celebrated musicians and ensembles similarly admired for their innovative approach, such as Hermitage Fellow Claire Chase and the International Contemporary Ensemble. His newest albums are Defiant Life, his second suite of duets with visionary composer-trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith; Compassion, featuring his acclaimed trio with drummer Tyshawn Sorey and bassist Linda May Han Oh; Trouble, a composer portrait album comprising three of his orchestral works, including the titular violin concerto performed by Jennifer Koh; and Love in Exile, his Grammy Award-nominated collaboration with Arooj Aftab and Shahzad Ismaily. He teaches at Harvard University. The original composition resulting from Vijay’s Hermitage Greenfield Prize, Bruits, was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2022, performed by the critically acclaimed ensemble Imani Winds.

“Piano in the Key of Vijay” will be presented at Selby Gardens’ Event Center (Downtown Sarasota) on Thursday, February 20^th at 7pm. This program is free and open to the public with a $5/person registration fee. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. Capacity is limited, and registration is available on a first-come, first-served basis, at which time registration will shift to a waitlist. Previous events in this series have reached capacity, so early registration is strongly encouraged.