From the President/CEO
and Chairman of the Board
Dear Straz Friends –
Welcome to spring at The Straz – a time for new
growth and possibilities, which makes this the
perfect moment for an exciting announcement
about our own growth and possibilities.
Who in the world has the talent and versatility
to perform with Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie,
Dr. Maya Angelou, West African indigenous
healers, Patti La Belle and Deepak Chopra? That
person is The Straz’s beloved Fred Johnson, an
international musician, teacher, speaker and, we
proudly announce, our new Artist-In-Residence.
As we move forward with our Master Plan,
we’ve asked Fred to help us hone and preserve
the artistic legacy
of the Straz Center
and to share in our
ongoing efforts to
reach out to new
generations of
students, artists
and audiences. In
addition to his years
of experience in arts
administration, Fred
is an accomplished
vocalist,
percussionist
and one of the world’s greatest vocal jazz
improvisers and chanters of sacred text. With his
depth of knowledge and caring soul, he inspires
people to be conduits of joy, truth and creative
potential.
Bringing people together from diversi ed
spiritual and cultural backgrounds to nd the
healing power of arts and creative expression
within ourselves is one of Fred’s greatest gifts
to all of us.
To hear more from Fred, subscribe to the Straz
Center’s new podcast, Act2. Fred hosts exciting
conversations celebrating arts and artists in and
around Tampa as one of the hosts of Act2. Find
Act2 on the iTunes Store, the Podcasts app for
iO or on the Google Play Music app for Android
by searching “Straz Center.”
David A. Straz, Jr. Center
for the Performing Arts
Board of Trustees
Allison Adams
Johnny Adcock
R. Troy Atlas
Yvonne Yolie Capin
Santiago Corrada
Theodore J. Couch, Jr.
Victor Crist
Gina d’Angelo
Douglas J. Dieck
Jeff Eakins
Jonathan Ellen
Ignacio A. Ferras, III
Michele M. Freedle
Tampa Bay
Performing Arts Center Foundation
Board of Directors
A.D. “Sandy”
MacKinnon, Chairman
R. Kent Bailey
Don DeFosset
John Jaeb
Helen Kerr
Jack Kirkland
Judith Lisi
Frank L. Morsani
Frank J. Rief, III
Gary Sasso
Hinks Shimberg
Martin L. Silbiger
William E. Starkey
David A. Straz, Jr.
Susan Sykes
Bill West
Jerry Williams
The David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts
is owned by the City of Tampa and operated by
the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts, Inc.,
a not-for-profi t organization.
MAYOR
Bob Buckhorn
TAMPA CITY COUNCIL
Yvonne Yolie Capin, Harry Cohen, Guido Maniscalco,
Charlie Miranda, Frank Reddick, Mike Suarez,
Luis Viera
Ryan Freking
Judy L. Genshaft
Jeffrey Gibson
Gordon Gillette
Bill Goede
Terry Igo
Don E. Jones, Jr.
Kasey Shimberg Kelly
Jack Kirkland
Scott Kizer
Zena Lansky
Barry Levine
A.D. “Sandy” MacKinnon
Gene Marshall
Gene McNichols
Steven H. Mezer
Frank L. Morsani
Vera Muzzillo
Rick Nafe
Erika Noonburg-Morgan
Robert Norman
Adam Palmer
Pallavi K. Patel
Jake Raburn
Royce W. Reed
Dennis R. Rogero, Jr.
Alfred Rogers, Jr.
Ann McKeel Ross
Gary Sasso, Chairman
David Scher
Hinks Shimberg
Jeff Sikorske
Martin L. Silbiger
Lisa Simington
Rick Simonetti
Sharon Stein
Catherine Lowry Straz
Cindy Stuart
Chuck Sykes
Susan Sykes
Ronald Vaughn
David B. Weinstein
Bill West
Todd Wickner
PRESIDENT’S
COUNCIL
Helen Kerr
Helen Torres
FRED JOHNSON
Artist-in-Residence