DAYTONA WEST
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 2, NO. 4
TOP COP PAGE 3 FREE
YOUR TOWN MAINLAND, FSU GRAD WINS THEATRICAL AWARD
• DECEMBER 2020
SIMPLY CHRISTMAS
The Casements Guild prepares house for the holidays. For the story see OrmondBeachObserver.com
Courtesy photo
Tai Thompson
City or Ormond Beach employee Zach Stohner carefully places decorations on the 15-foot tree in The Casements.
Photo by Jarleene Almenas
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The Audience Development Committee’s 2020 VIV Awards are in, celebrating the best of black theater during the 20192020 season. While La MaMa Experimental Theatre’s “The Dark Star from Harlem: The Spectacular Rise of Josephine Baker” was this year’s most nominated musical with eight nominations, the star of the show on this night was director Tai Thompson, who walked away as winner of Best Director of a Musical. The show captured five of the eight VIV Awards it was nominated for on New York’s Grand night for black theater. This was the first AUDELCO nomination and first win for Thompson, who is rapidly becoming one of the hottest young female directors of color on the stage. “I was honored to be in a position to direct a cast of committed actors who generously lent their talents to the story and brought it to life,” Thompson said. A gifted actress. writer and director based out of New York, Thompson recently directed the critically-acclaimed “Miami Motel Stories: North Beach” in 2020. She attended high school at Mainland in Daytona Beach. She continued her growth and exposure at Seaside Music Theatre and summer workshops at Bethune-Cookman University while earning a degree in theater from Florida State University.
JOYRIDE Ormond Beach resident Dan Fuchs.
Car lovers set up camp at the Speedway for 47th Turkey Run. See more at OrmondBeachObserver.com Photo by Michele Meyers