The History of Diving Museum and local performing artist Adrienne Z, in collaboration with students from Coral Shores and Marathon High Schools, will celebrate “Art Builds Community” with three February musical performances.
Beginning Friday, Feb. 6 at 5 p.m., the Blue Marlin stage at MM 81.5 oceanside in Islamorada, will debut original songs performed by Adrienne Z and students, followed by a reading of several blackout poems created from pages of the novel “Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea.” Lyrics and music will showcase how the project was brought to life.
Blackout poetry is a form of found or erasure poetry that transforms an existing text by blacking out words to reveal a new poem, often offering satirical, personal or playful commentary on the original source.
After the event, the Florida Keys Brewing Co. has “Dive Into Art & Music” on tap, featuring an art exhibit/sale and musical tribute to Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. The concert will feature Rainbow Full of Sound from 6 to 10 p.m. Created in 2012, when several “Dead Head” musicians decided to replicate the band’s 1980 Radio City Music Hall run, they have played ever since with a rotating cast. The evening will include limited-edition Jerry Garcia art and merchandise, a food truck, and a Key Westys’ hippie van as well as raffles and silent auctions. The benefit concert will support the “Dive Into Art: Stories From the Sea” featured exhibit at the History of Diving Museum, located at MM 83 bayside in Islamorada.
On Wednesday, Feb, 11, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. the Marathon Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours will include a performance by Adrienne Z and blackout poem readings by students from Marathon High. The event will take place at Crane Point Museum and Nature Center, MM 50 gulfside.
The final celebration will take place on Friday, Feb. 19, at the Eco-Discovery Center, 35 Quay Road, in Key West, again with a performance by Adrienne Z, a poetry reading and other program highlights from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
These events are made possible by the History of Diving Museum’s sponsors and partners, including the Art Guild of the Purple Isles, Blue Marlin Jewelry, the Carolan Foundation, Crane Point Museum and Nature Center, Florida Art and Culture, Grateful Diver, the Jerry Garcia Foundation, Florida Keys Council of the Arts, Key West Art and Historical Society, Key Westys, NOAA, Silent World Dive Center, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council and Wire Sculpture Live.
