USPS Publication Number 16300
T h is C o m mu n i t y N ewsp a p er is a pu bl ica t ion of E sca m bia-S a n t a Rosa B a r Assoc ia t ion
Se r v i ng t he Fi r st Jud icial Ci rcu it
Section A, Page 1
Vol. 19, No. 25
Visit The Summation Weekly Online: www.summationweekly.com
June 19, 2019
1 Section, 8 Pages
N E s M u L T A U RE EAR T W a’s l o c sa n e er s P i a t e r Ball al Fund y at a ur w g n u u a n R I e r h e t t r s a u Hit Q e l Sevil
Photo by Guy Stevens BY Kaitlyn peacock
A spotlight, a stage, music, perhaps a little to drink, and, most importantly, a tutu. And of course, grown men wearing said tutu. This is not your average dinner and a show. Ballet Pensacola has unveiled plans for their latest fundraiser, the Mr. Tutu Competition, to be held June 28, 7 pm, at Seville Quarter in Phineas Phogg’s. Approximately twenty competitors will strut their stuff down a runway while wearing, you guessed it, a pink tutu. Guests can donate on behalf of their favorite competitor, one of which will be crowned the 2019 Mr. Tutu. First born from a similar competition hosted in New Orleans called Mr. Legs, Ballet Pensacola’s Board President Michael Ellis said this new event was inspired by a need to do something a little unusual to match the style of the organization. While the event will be considerably less risqué than the New Orleans style, Ellis hopes Mr. Tutu will become a staple evening out for supporters of the ballet, or people who just like to have a little fun. “We’ve been trying to come up with different ideas for fundraising from your traditional galas,” he said. “The art that our artistic director displays in his ballets, of course we have the more traditional ballets in The Nutcracker and,
this year, we had Cinderella, but we have more avant-garde ballets like A Nightmare Before Christmas, Divas, We will Rock You, that appeal to a non-traditional ballet audience, utilizing the traditional ballet methods but also more of a cheeky atmosphere so to speak.” The funds raised from donations to the competitors will go to Ballet Pensacola, a nonprofit that serves as Pensacola’s only residential professional ballet company. The organization serves around 300 students a year and maintains a company of 40 dancers from all around the world. Considerably different from the typical fundraisers many of the other arts organizations in Pensacola present, the event will offer a completely unique experience to people who expect something a little more traditional from the increasingly non-traditional ballet. While a lot of people who participate in arts events in the city are largely the same for every organization, Ballet Pensacola has seen an influx of younger people interested in their shows and events. “We’ve identified a significantly younger audience, so we are trying an alternative fundraising mechanism that is more in tune with that younger audience. Not the sitdown, five-course dinner, we want it to be entertaining. And what’s more entertaining than grown men walking around in a tutu?” Competitors will be given a stage
to walk down to the music of their When choosing competitors, it was choice, fashion show style, wear- important for the ballet to include ing the costume of their choice to a large range of community and go along with their tutus. Guests business leaders to reflect the dican donate to their favorite com- verse audience of the ballet. petitor via texts in the style of real“We’re trying to have a diverse ity shows like So You Think You population,” Ellis said. “We try to Can Dance and American Idol. do that with all the different funThe top five competitors with the draisers we have. We don’t want highest donations will go before to try to focus on this one select a panel of judges to answer some group, we want to try to broaden questions and the judges will de- our scope so that we can engage cide who will win the crown of Mr. as much of the community as we Tutu. can.” Guests of the Mr. Tutu competiEllis said they are hoping to raise tion can look forward to seeing about $20,000 from the competiBill Warren of the Naval Aviation tion, with an expectation of 300 and Training Command from NAS guests to cheer on their favorite Pensacola, Mitchell Goldstein from tutu-wearing competitor. For him, Gulf Power, Dustin Fosness, the the competition marks a great opnew CFO of West Florida Hospital portunity to expand the ballet’s and Dr. Peter Smith from Pensaco- audience and show they are not la Physical Medicine and Medical afraid to be a little different from Spa to name a few donning tutus the other art centers in the city. “The highlight for me is raising for the cause. The twenty or so money for the competitors ballet,” he said. will be an“But there’s also nounced by the excitement the ballet • Hosted by of a brand-new prior to the event unlike any competiother event that tion. Those Ballet Pensacola I’ve seen an arts interested organization do.” can find • Seville Quarter Tickets are short biog$40 to see the raphies of • June 28, 7 pm show and can be each compurchased at the petitor on • Tickets: $40 door or online at the Penwww.balletpensacola Balsacola.org. let website.
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