Cultural Arts Showcase 2018 at King Center in Melbourne: Showcasing symphony & arts groups

Pssst! I've got a great tip for you.

The King Center is having a full day of concerts and performances that will cost you and your gang a price of absolutely nothing, nada, zilch-o.

With the beginning of fall, Brevard’s artistic community blossoms beautifully in the Cultural Arts Showcase, a no-holds-barred celebration of the arts where guests can enjoy a full day of artistic inspiration, cultural demonstrations, family activities and performances across not one, not two, but three stages.

This year’s Showcase opens at noon on Sunday, Sept. 23, and runs through 5 p.m., promising plenty for everyone throughout the day.

It’s a lot of work for the King Center and the Brevard Symphony Orchestra to orchestrate this super culture vulture extravaganza, but nobody minds the effort.

“The Cultural Arts Showcase is one unique day where all Brevard County arts organizations get together to promote their organizations and season events to arts supporters throughout the county,” said King Center executive director Steve Janicki.

“The King Center and the Brevard Symphony Orchestra take pride in supporting Brevard County arts organizations by providing a venue for our arts colleagues to speak one-on-one with past, present and future arts patrons.”

The 20th century writer, poet, scholar and mystic Thomas Merton noted that “art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” If he is right, there will be a lot of folks finding and losing themselves at the King Center come Sunday, when art in Brevard explodes in all its diverse gloriousness.

Like music? You are covered by Brevard Community Chorus, Brevard Symphony Youth Orchestra, Brevard Youth Chorus, Central Florida Winds, Harbor City Harmonizers, Lite Rock 99.3, Melbourne Chamber Music Society, Melbourne Municipal Band, Space Coast Jazz Society and WFIT.

Oh, yeah, then there’s also that family concert the Brevard Symphony Orchestra is planning for 2 p.m. On a regular day, you would have to pay the bucks to hear the symphony, but during the Showcase you and yours get to experience a full-hour concert just because the symphony loves you and the rest of the community.

Melbourne Municipal Band is a frequent flyer at the Showcase, considered by conductor Staci Rosbury Cleveland a win-win for the community and for her organization.

“It gives us a chance to get the word out to potential audience members about our new season of concerts and dances, and it's a great opportunity to connect with all our friends in the other arts organizations of Brevard,” she said.

Like the other musical groups, the band will serve musical samplings to tempt audiences to join the regular season of concerts.

If dance is more your thing, the Showcase has got you covered with presentations by the American Belly Dance Company, Ballet Esprit, Brevard Arts Academy, Dance Arts Centre, Heather’s Dance Studio, Melbourne City Ballet Theatre, Melbourne City Dance Center, Space Coast Ballet Company and Voice of Indonesians in Florida dance troupe.

For theater bugs, there is Blast Off Performing Arts, Eastern Florida State College Theatre Department, Henegar Center for the Arts, Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse, Melbourne Civic Theatre, Not Quite Right Comedy Improv, Riverside Theatre, Surfside Playhouse, Viera Studio for the Performing Arts, and, of course, the King Center.

Visual artists will be all around the place, too. Participating this year with demos and exhibits are Camera Club of Brevard, Central Brevard Art Association, acrylic artist Erin Fox and watercolorist Deanna Yates, Foosaner Art Museum, puppet master Howard Gordon of Our Father’s Puppets, acrylic artist Phyllis Shipley, Space Coast Art Festival, Space Coast Weavers and Fiber Artists, Space Coast Writers’ Guild and the Strawbridge Art League.

“Members of the Strawbridge Art League look forward to illustrating a little of the visual candy available in downtown Melbourne almost directly across the street from City Hall,” said Art League member and stained-glass artist John Emery. “All sorts of artists from all points of Brevard County are there to be seen and heard.”

Beyond the entertainment value, the Cultural Arts Showcase serves to squash any claims that the Space Coast can’t compete art-wise with the big boys of Orlando and other metropolitan areas.

“It is amazing the scope and depth of the arts in our community,” said Janicki. “This one day proves the arts are alive and well in Brevard County!”

For the complete program of activities, visit culturalartsshowcase.com.

Photos: Hair, the rock musical at Titusville Playhouse