In the City

THE CITY

CLIFFORD BROWN JAZZ SERIES, ART LOOP WILMINGTON RETURN

Mayor Mike Purzycki and Cultural Affairs Director Tina Betz are pleased to welcome back to Wilmington two of the City’s more popular cultural events: the monthly Clifford Brown Year-Round concert series, first launched in September 2020, and longstanding Art Loop Wilmington, which has been on a pandemic-induced hiatus since March 2020.

The Clifford Brown Year-Round series returned with a special performance by Gerald Chavis and the Clifford Brown Festival Orchestra at the Christina Cultural Arts Center on Fri., Nov. 19, in front of a limited in-person audience. Live-streamed virtual viewing was also available.

“As we transition to regathering after a time of separation and uncertainty, there’s no better way to reconnect than through music,” said

REVIVED CLIFFORD BROWN YEAR-ROUND KICKED OFF AT CCAC IN NOVEMBER

Cultural Affairs Director Tina Betz. “This series offers the chance to hear live music and interact with our talented artists in person, or to enjoy a high-quality live-streamed arts experience at home. It’s an incredible opportunity for all music lovers and a boost for the local arts and music scene.”

Proceeds from Concert Series support programs like the Urban Artist Exchange Community Revitalization Project, Arts Work Summer Youth Apprenticeship Program, and the Clifford Brown Jazz Festival. Clifford Brown Year-Round will continue to showcase jazz musicians from around the world each month leading up to June 2022 and the 35th Annual Clifford Brown Jazz Festival — Wilmington’s premier music event and the largest FREE jazz festival on the East Coast. Details about future shows in this series to follow

Gerald Chavis and the Clifford Brown Festival Orchestra.

Photo by Moonloop Photography

DECEMBER SEES FIRST IN-PERSON ART LOOP IN 20 MONTHS

December 3rd also sees the return of the first in-person Art Loop Wilmington since March 2020. Shuttered last spring due to the coronavirus pandemic, the rejuvenated FREE art exhibition is a self-guided exhibition of visual art displayed at galleries, studios, museums, and alternative spaces in and around Wilmington. Now in its 33rd year, Art Loop Wilmington is a partnership between the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs and Out & About.

Details about specific exhibitions scheduled for December as well as the return of the complimentary shuttle to and from The Delaware Contemporary can be found at artloopwilmington.org

The work of Terron Mitchell, exhibited in the Louis L. Redding Gallery, is part of December’s Art Loop Wilmington.

MAYOR HELPS CELEBRATE NEW ARTISTIC PARTNERSHIP

Mayor Mike Purzycki joined dozens of longtime friends and supporters at The Delaware Contemporary to celebrate the new partnership between TDC and City Theater Company, Delaware’s OffBroadway collective. City Theater Company will use TDC’s refurbished Wings Auditorium Black Box performance space for its Fearless Improv performances as well as its mainstage productions, beginning with Once (December 10-18) and the Tax-Free Comedy Festival (May 6-7, 2022). The new space will also be available to other arts and culture organizations for performances and events.

ABOVE: Mayor Purzycki joined in celebrating the new partnership between City Theater Company and The Delaware Contemporary in November. RIGHT: (l-r) Kerry Kristine McElrone, Mayor Purzycki, and Cultural Affairs Director Tina Betz.