Partnerships

The Hermitage partners with organizations of all kinds to support residencies and to create meaningful arts programming for the community. Local, national, and international partnerships have included:

Alliance of Artists Communities

American Opera Projects
Brooklyn, NY

Art Center Sarasota
Sarasota, FL

Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County
Sarasota, FL

Asolo Repertory Theatre
Sarasota, FL

Aspen Music Festival and School
Aspen CO

Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation
Sarasota, FL

The Bay Park
Sarasota, FL

Black Theatre United
New York, NY

Booker High School Visual and Performing Arts (VPA)
Sarasota, FL

Bookstore1
Sarasota, FL

Camargo Foundation
Cassis, France

Charlotte County Public Schools
Port Charlotte, FL

City of Antwerp
Belgium

Community Foundation of Sarasota County
Sarasota, FL

Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast
Osprey, FL

ensembleNEWSRQ
Sarasota, FL

Florida Alliance for Arts Education
Orlando, FL

Florida Humanities Council
St. Petersburg, FL

Florida Studio Theatre
Sarasota, FL

Greenfield Foundation
Philadelphia, PA

Gulf Coast Community Foundation
Sarasota, FL

John & Mable Ringing Museum of Art
Sarasota, FL

Manasota ASALH
Sarasota, FL

Manatee County School District
Bradenton, FL

Nantucket Screenwriters Colony
Nantucket, MA

New College of Florida
Sarasota, FL

Observer Media Group
Sarasota, FL

The Players Centre
Sarasota, FL

Resilient Retreat
Sarasota, FL

Ringling College of Art & Design
Sarasota, FL

SaraSolo Festival
Sarasota, FL

Sarasota Contemporary Dance
Sarasota, FL

Sarasota County Schools
Sarasota, FL

Sarasota Film Festival
Sarasota, FL

Sarasota Museum of Art
Sarasota, FL

Sarasota Opera
Sarasota, FL

Sarasota Orchestra
Sarasota, FL

Selby Foundation
Sarasota, FL

Selby Gardens
Sarasota, FL

South Arts
Atlanta, GA

State College of Florida
Bradenton, FL

Urbanite Theatre
Sarasota, FL

Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe
Sarasota, FL

Van Wezel Foundation
Sarasota, FL

Visit Sarasota County
Sarasota, FL

Venice Theatre
Venice, FL

The Hermitage property is owned by Sarasota County and is leased to the Hermitage Artist Retreat, Inc.
The property is maintained by the Hermitage Artist Retreat, Inc. and the Sarasota County Department of Parks and Recreation.

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Jan

Thu

“Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens: Book, Music, and Lyrics” @ Selby Gardens Downtown Campus

Tickets

Jan 30 @ 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm

“Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens: Book, Music, and Lyrics”
with Hermitage Fellow Mark Sonnenblick

Presented in partnership with Marie Selby Gardens

Mark Sonnenblick’s Hermitage Residency generously sponsored by the Huisking Family Fund of Community Foundation of Sarasota County.

Thursday, January 30 at 5:30pm

Selby Gardens Downtown Campus (entrance at 1534 Mound Street Sarasota, FL 34236)

Register here.
Registration is required. $5 per person.

Fresh off the ‘heels’ of his collaboration with Elton John on the West End premiere of The Devil Wears Prada and celebrated for his talents as a lyricist, book writer, and composer, Hermitage Fellow Mark Sonnenblick’s work has been called “lushly romantic” by The New York Times, as well as “sly and unexpectedly subversive” by The New Yorker. With a career that already spans stage and screen, including songs on such hits as Apple’s Spirited, starring Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell, Searchlight Pictures’ Theater Camp, and Netflix’s Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, Sonnenblick’s abilities span styles. An Emmy Award and Drama Desk nominee as well as a recipient of the Jonathan Larson Grant, Sonnenblick shares stories and songs from his work so far, and previews some of what might be next.

Mark Sonnenblick is an Emmy and Drama Desk-nominated songwriter for theater, film, and television. His projects include the current West End production of The Devil Wears Prada (starring Vanessa Williams, in collaboration with Elton John, Shaina Taub, and Kate Wetherhead), “Theater Camp” (with Ben Platt and Molly Gordon, Sundance Special Jury Award), “Spirited” (with Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell, Oscar shortlist), “Lyle Lyle Crocodile” (with Shawn Mendes and Constance Wu), Harlem (Amazon Prime), “The Good Whale” (podcast for Serial and The New York Times), Midnight at The Never Get (Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel and Outer Critics’ Circle nominations; NY Times Critic’s Pick), and Independents (“Best Production” Fringe NYC, NY Times Critic’s Pick). Mark collaborates with writers across multiple genres, including Elton John, Pasek and Paul, and The Black Label. He’s won a Jonathan Larson grant (American Theater Wing), the Harold Adamson Award (ASCAP), a MAC Award (“Show of the Year”), and Best Production at the New York Fringe Festival; he has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.

Feb

Mon

“The PlayWRIGHT’s The Thing” @ FSU Center for the Performing Arts

Tickets

Feb 10 @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

“The PlayWRIGHT’s the Thing”
with Hermitage Fellow Doug Wright

Presented in partnership with Asolo Repertory Theatre and FSU Actor Conservatory

Monday, February 10 at 6pm

Cook Theater (entrance at 5555 N Tamiami Trail Sarasota, FL 34243)

Register here.
Registration is required. $5 per person.

With his hit Broadway play Good Night, Oscar gearing up for its regional premiere in Sarasota this spring, Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and librettist Doug Wright has 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 as he engages in conversation with Hermitage Artistic Director Andy Sandberg. In addition to the conversation, hear selections from Wright’s original works, performed by some of Sarasota’s brightest talents.

Hermitage Fellow and Trustee Doug Wright is a Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright. He is a proud Hermitage alumnus and also 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. Most recently, his play Good Night, Oscar, starring Sean Hayes, opened at the Goodman Theater in Chicago under the direction of fellow Hermitage alum Lisa Peterson before transferring to Broadway. His film The Burial is currently on Amazon, starring Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones. Wright’s play Quills premiered at Washington, D.C.’s Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in 1995 and subsequently had its debut Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop. Quills garnered the 1995 Kesselring Prize for Best New American Play from the National Arts Club and, for Wright, a 1996 Village Voice Obie Award for Outstanding Achievement in Playwriting. In 2000, Wright wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation of Quills, which starred Geoffrey Rush. Wright’s play I Am My Own Wife was produced Off-Broadway by Playwrights Horizons in 2003. It transferred to Broadway where it won the Tony Award for Best Play, as well as the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. In 2006, Wright wrote the book for the stage musical adaptation of Grey Gardens, which opened on Broadway to critical acclaim. He has adapted the Disney film The Little Mermaid as a Broadway musical, which opened in 2007. In 2009, he was commissioned by the La Jolla Playhouse to adapt and direct Creditors by August Strindberg. In another La Jolla commission, he wrote the book for the musical Hands on a Hardbody, with the score by Amanda Green and Trey Anastasio. The musical had a run on Broadway in 2013 after premiering at the La Jolla Playhouse in 2012. He has also written the book for the musical War Paint, with a score by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie, and starring Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole. For television, Wright worked on four pilots for producer Norman Lear and teleplays for Hallmark Entertainment and HBO. In film, Wright’s credits include screenplays for Fine Line Features, Fox Searchlight, and DreamWorks SKG. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, where he served as President for many years. In addition to his role as a Hermitage trustee, he also serves on the board of New York Theatre Workshop. He is a recipient of the William L. Bradley Fellowship at Yale University, the Charles MacArthur Fellowship at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, an HBO Fellowship in playwriting, and the Alfred Hodder Fellowship at Princeton University. In 2010, he was named a United States Artists Fellow. Mr. Wright lives in New York City with his partner, songwriter David Clement.

Feb

Thu

Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series “Piano in the Key of Vijay” @ Marie Selby Botanical Gardens (Downtown Campus)

Tickets

Feb 20 @ 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series “Piano in the Key of Vijay”
with Hermitage Greenfield Prize Winner Vijay Iyer

Presented in partnership with Marie Selby Botanical Gardens

Vijay Iyer’s concert and Hermitage residency are made possible through the Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series at the Hermitage.

Thursday, February 20 at 7pm

Selby Gardens Event Center (entrance at 1534 Mound Street Sarasota, FL 34236)

Register here.
Registration is required. $5 per person.

There isn’t much Hermitage Greenfield Prize winner Vijay Iyer hasn’t done in the world of music. A Grammy Award-nominated artist, he has performed at the world’s most iconic venues, composed works premiered by leading institutions such as the London Philharmonic, and collaborated with other musicians and ensembles similarly admired for their innovative approach, like Hermitage Fellow Claire Chase and the International Contemporary Ensemble. It is no surprise that The New York Times described him as a “social conscience, multimedia collaborator, system builder, rhapsodist, historical thinker, and multicultural gateway.” This prolific composer and performer continues to inspire musicians and audiences alike with daring fusions of musical styles from across the world and his virtuosic skills at the piano. Hear selections of Vijay’s vast catalogue of work — performed on the piano by the artist himself — and gain new insights into his creative process as he returns to the Hermitage through the Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Initiative.

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 Iyer has earned a place as one of the leading music-makers of his generation. Beyond his recognition as a Hermitage 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. His newest albums are Defiant Life (ECM, 2025), his second suite of duets with visionary composer-trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith; Compassion (ECM, 2024), featuring his acclaimed trio with drummer Tyshawn Sorey and bassist Linda May Han Oh; Trouble (BMOP/sound, 2024), a composer portrait album comprising three of his orchestral works, including the titular violin concerto performed by Jennifer Koh; and Love in Exile (Verve, 2023), 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.

Artist Photo Credit: Ebru Yildiz

Apr

Fri

Hermitage Greenfield Prize Premiere “Losing My Religion” @ The Ringling Museum of Art, Historic Asolo Theater

Tickets

Apr 4 – Apr 5 all-day

“Losing My Religion”
by Hermitage Greenfield Prize Winner Rennie Harris

Presented in partnership with The Ringling Museum of Art

Made possible with generous support from the Greenfield Foundation.

Community Foundation of Sarasota County, Lead Community Sponsor.

Friday, April 4 @ 7:30pm
Saturday, April 5 @ 7:30pm

The Ringling Museum of Art (entrance at 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota, FL 34243)

Click here for more information.
Please note this performance is not part of the Hermitage’s traditional free programming. This ticketed event ($30-$40/person) is hosted by The Ringling in the Historic Asolo Theater as a part of the ‘Art of Performance’ subscription series.

Losing My Religion is a new dance creation from Rennie Harris, resulting from his 2023 Hermitage Greenfield Prize commission. The performance is a retrospective inspired by Harris’s life journey, the human experience, and today’s current political and socioeconomic theater. Through this original piece and his remarkable body of work, Harris challenges both what has come to be expected of street dance and hip-hop culture and degenerative social normatives/beliefs with his reconstructionist philosophy and approach to artmaking. As a part of this work, Harris will incorporate a reimagining of his renowned solo Endangered Species. The piece’s inclusion tells a story of systemic racism and revolt and offers a shift away from what was, to what is, and what can be. Losing My Religion examines languages of protest, resilience, and power, while the choreography and forms invite audiences to imagine the ways in which they can use their bodies as resistance.

Lorenzo ‘Rennie’ Harris, winner of the 2023 Hermitage Greenfield Prize in Dance and Choreography, was born and raised in an African American community in North Philadelphia. In 1992, Harris founded Rennie Harris Puremovement, a street dance theater company dedicated to preserving and disseminating hip-hop culture through workshops, classes, hip-hop history lecture demonstrations, long-term residencies, mentoring programs, and public performances. Harris founded his company based on the belief that hip-hop is the most important original expression of a new generation. With its roots in the inner-city African American and Latino communities, hip-hop can be characterized as a contemporary indigenous form, one that expresses universal themes that extend beyond racial, religious, and economic boundaries, and one that can help bridge these divisions. Harris’ work encompasses the diverse and rich African American traditions of the past, while simultaneously presenting the voice of a new generation through its ever-evolving interpretations of dance. Harris is committed to providing audiences with a sincere view of the essence and spirit of hip-hop. Harris was voted one of the most influential people in the last one hundred years of Philadelphia history. Among his awards are honorary doctorates from Bates College and Columbia College. The London Times wrote of Mr. Harris that he is “the Basquiat of the U.S. contemporary dance scene.”

Apr

Sat

Hermitage Greenfield Prize Exhibition “Currents of Resistance” @ The Ringling Museum of Art

Tickets

Apr 5 @ 10:00 am – Aug 10 @ 5:00 pm

“Currents of Resistance”
by Hermitage Greenfield Prize Winner Sandy Rodriguez

Presented in partnership with The Ringling Museum of Art

Made possible with generous support from the Greenfield Foundation.

Community Foundation of Sarasota County, Lead Community Sponsor.

Friday, April 5 – Sunday, August 10th, 2025

The Ringling Museum of Art (entrance at 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota, FL 34243)

Click here for more information.
Please note this program is not part of the Hermitage’s traditional free programming. This exhibition is part of The Ringling’s admission fees ($30/person).

Sandy Rodriguez, a first-generation Chicana who grew up along the US-Mexico border, is an artist who engages with the colonial histories of the Americas, Indigenous knowledge systems, memory, and issues surrounding migration, both past and present, all grounded in the specificity of land. One of the unique aspects of her practice is her engagement with and research into the material aspects of indigenous artistic traditions for the Americas. She is using hand processed pigments derived from earth, plants, and insects, sourced from specimens collected during her fieldwork and residency at the Hermitage for her watercolors. This Hermitage Greenfield Prize commission is a further exploration of a series of exhibitions for which she has been celebrated, which maps the ongoing cycles of violence on communities of color by blending historical and recent events; this will be her first in this region.

Sandy Rodriguez (b. 1975, National City, CA) is the recipient of the 2023 Hermitage Greenfield Prize in Visual Art. She is a Los Angeles-based artist and researcher, and first-generation Chicana raised on the US-Mexico border. Her Codex Rodriguez-Mondragón is made up of a collection of maps and paintings about the intersections of history, social memory, contemporary politics, and cultural production. Rodriguez earned her BFA from California Institute of Arts. She has exhibited her works at the Denver Art Museum, The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Garden, The Amon Carter Museum of American Art and Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Museum of Contemporary Art, Busan, South Korea. Her work is in the permanent collections of Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA; Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, AR; Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth, TX, The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Garden. San Marino, CA and others. She was awarded the Caltech-Huntington Art+Research Residency, Creative Capital Award and Migrations initiative from Mellon Foundation Just Futures Initiative and Global Cornell. Rodriguez and her work have been featured in BBC News: In the Studio, Hyperallergic, LA Weekly, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Spectrum News/NY1, and on several radio programs and podcasts.

Apr

Sun

2025 Hermitage Greenfield Prize Dinner @ Michael's On East

Tickets

Apr 6 @ 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Anchoring a series of events celebrating the prestigious Hermitage Greenfield Prize, this elegant dinner heralds the jury-selected prize recipient. The $35,000 Hermitage Greenfield Prize commission is awarded annually by the Hermitage Artist Retreat in partnership with the Greenfield Foundation, and rotates among music, theater, and visual art.

The 2025 Hermitage Greenfield Prize will be awarded in the discipline of music, and the newly commissioned work will premiere in Sarasota in the spring of 2027.

Click here for more information.

January – April 2025 Jan – Apr 2025

Partnerships

Hermitage Artists Respond to COVID-19.

Engage Creativity