The University of South Florida’s dance company in residence, led by Artistic Directors Shelley Bourgeois, Erin Cardinal and Cynthia Hennessy, is that stellar example of why Tampa is a little more culturally sophisticated than many think. When your friends from the big city pooh-pooh our metro, pop on a vid from movingcurrent.com and show them MC’s vivid dance narratives told through poetically inspired movement. No doubt they’ll see how masterfully the moods range from light and mischievous to intense and heart-wrenching. After getting that taste, take ‘em to see Moving Current live during their 15th anniversary season. The collective’s “current” is inspired by the idea of electricity, and Moving Current’s performances continue to electrify. 813-237-0216, info@movingcurrent.com.

Sorensen was all over Bay area stages last season, playing multiple lovers in Stageworks’ The Blue Room, a naïve young American threatened by omnisexual ghouls in The Rocky Horror Show, a smug would-be rescuer of females in Becky Shaw, and an earnest American come to Weimar Germany to find something to write about in Cabaret. And in every role, he was just about perfect.

Watch: Recently married Natalie Symons and Jim Sorensen — Most Promising Playwright and Best Actor — talk w. CL's David Warner during the Best of the Bay awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing, and Natalie almost spills the beans about a part she just might be writing for her husband.

Sargent had a near-impossible mission in Tampa Repertory Theatre’s Streetcar Named Desire: to make the audience forget Vivien Leigh’s iconic performance in the film. But Sargent did it: her Blanche DuBois was skittish, vain, manipulative, self-deluding, fragile and tragic. She dominated the play and brought down the house. Amazing work.

An album 10 years in the making, Tin Year is an impeccably crafted LP by veteran local musicians and New Granada Records leaders Keith and Susie Ulrey, plus Brian Roberts, Melissa Grady and Michael Waksman. Longtime collaborators Susie and Michael whittled down years of songwriting to the 13 tracks that were recorded, mixed and mastered by this year’s Best of the Bay-winning sound engineer and studio, Mark Nikolich at Atomic Audio. Tin Year is a thoughtful and stunning collection easing between buoyant folk roots, warm indie pop and gently-driving alt rock. Susie's pure piping vocals soar bright and vibrant, or glide delicate and serene over shimmering cello-fused instrumentals, complementing the delicate masculine vocal harmonies and occasional turns on lead by Keith and Michael. Overall, salve to the soul.

Runners-up: Morean Art Center, Florida Craftsman Gallery

With remarkable rapidity, Davis has made freeFall Theatre into a jewel of a venue, a place where incisive straight plays and potently re-imagined musicals (this season’s Cabaret) are consistently offered on the highest levels of theatrical art. In Davis’ capable hands, first-rate Shakespeare has again become an annual event (The Comedy of Errors) and he’s shown an openness to local playwrights (Rip.Tied.) and a fine instinct for contemporary triumphs (Becky Shaw). He deserves our thanks.

Runners-up: Gasparilla Arts Festival, Florida Craftsman

I'm not sure exactly what San Francisco composer/multi-instrumentalist Adrian Younge and his "Venice Dawn" band played during their set at Antiwarpt 2012; aside from some cuts off latest release Something About April, it was all a blur of unadulterated badassness. A natural showman in hip aviator-style eyewear, Younge traded off instruments with his bandmates, from bass to organ and synths to flute and sax, then back to bass again. He expressed his excitement about being in Florida, struck a bargain at the beginning of the set — "Give us your all, and we’ll give you our all. Do we have a deal?" — and left both sides feeling like champions as the near full-house at State Theatre got the fuck down. Now that’s what I call a Sunshine State debut.

Weezer’s Pinkerton and Belle and Sebastian’s If You’re Feeling Sinister both dropped in 1996. It was also a good year for Tampa area music, as evidenced by the formation of Spiller and the release of their debut recording that year, Gold Leader EP, which features a catchy, sunshine-drenched mix of alt-rock and power pop. The reunion on April 7 at New World Brewery featured original members John McNicholas and Marcus McCord with new drummer Vinnie Cosentino. The Semis and Jensen Serf Co. opened, demonstrating the delightful progression of Tampa Bay indie rock through the years. Gigs at Heatwave and Antiwarpt have since followed; new music and more shows in the works. spiller.bandcamp.com

The boys of Jensen Serf Co. will have to wait a good long while before they can publicly indulge in the ol’ alcamahol, but Benjamin Saylor and Peter Kokkinakos aren’t the types that need to build courage via booze. Their assault of salt-licked garage rock only gets better as the volume increases, and their live shows are tinnitus-inducing pleasure sessions. They’ve got new vinyl on its way to being pressed and will undoubtedly turn heads if they end up touring. They may be young but have still managed to prove themselves stellar ambassadors of Bay area music. jensenserfco.bandcamp.com

Watch: CL's David Warner talks to Benjamin Saylor and Peter Kokkinakos of Jensen Serf, who confirm that they are indeed The Best Band That Can't Drink Legally. Recorded during the Best of the Bay awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing.

First, a perfunctory disclaimer: It’s totally not cool to douse a band with beer, no matter how awesomely punk rock it may seem. Musicians don’t get paid much, use expensive equipment that shorts out when wet, and because they are there to entertain with their songs, it’s lose-lose all around. That being said, if you’re merely sharing your beer to help quench a hard-working musician’s thirst, and if, while you’re draining your PBR down the lead singer’s throat, some happens to spill down his shirt or get emptied over his head — hey, these things happen. And no band takes a beering with more panache than The Dukes of Hillsborough. myspace.com/dukesofhillsborough

The puppetry, acting and singing were spot on in MAD Theatre’s August production of the Broadway hit Avenue Q, and the intimate setting of the Straz Center’s Shimberg Playhouse made the audience feel part of the show (especially when the puppets begged us for money). MAD’s naughty puppets and their very human issues led to nightly standing ovations. If you missed it, it sucks to be you. (Inside joke.) madtheatre.com.

Runners-up: Le Teaze, Meow Factor

Runners-up: DJ Neal MEGA Stoll, DJ Ku

After a $36 million renovation, the USF Sun Dome is nearly unrecognizable. What with the bright new lighting shining down on reconfigured seating, the center-hung scoreboard, the concourse level with concessions and restrooms, and the full restoration of the exterior, the building might as well be entirely brand spanking new. The arena rivals any other basketball court in the country, and with the big improvement in stadium acoustics, the Sun Dome not only looks a thousand times better, it sounds a thousand times better, too, perfect for concerts and events of all types (like Florence + the Machine on Sept. 25). sundomearena.com.

In January, the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts honored Bud Lee, the prolific photographer and photojournalist who influenced a generation of artists in Ybor City. The exhibit showcased Lee’s extraordinary images of Tampa as well as the places and people, e.g., Clint Eastwood, he shot for magazines including Esquire. While a stroke ended Lee’s career in 2003, he remains a vital touchstone for local artists.

Amid a brilliantly mesmeric display of video and lighting technology, British art rock heavyweights Radiohead ripped, oozed, slithered and slinked their way through a near-epic performance of 23 songs during their Leap Day concert at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. The band delivered explosive, quietly transcendent and sublimely beautiful moments as guided by frontman Thom Yorke's mournful serenades, and moments of concentrated experimentation, when the musicians simply layered percussion, guitar and waves of synth haze together into a noisy propulsive brew that seemed chaotic until it was reined in with seeming ease. Some people say Radiohead is overrated. This performance proved they are rated exactly as they should be, and deserve all the praise they’ve earned, along with some they haven't.

Such a huge diversity of fantastic bands landed in town this year, it was hard, nay impossible, to narrow the smaller-scale concert category down to just one. So I picked three. All occurred between March and June of this year, and all managed to tickle a different musical funny bone. At New World Brewery, native NYC five-piece Caveman lulled us into a hypnotic sway with their pretty melodic miasma of haunting percussive-fueled folk pop, while San Francisco’s Monophonics turned up the heat from the onset of their New World set and got the whole place moving, the tight and brassy-chugging machine delivering heavy-grooving psychedelic funk with bluesy organ grit. And finally, at Crowbar, there were the outrageous and impressive musical antics of Man Man, a band that draws on Old World Gypsy music, brash experimental pop, Zappa-style prog rock, and skull-twisted doo-wop. The live instrumentals writhed and lurched with colorful instrumental embellishments by wildly offbeat real-life gypsy frontman, Ryan Kattner (aka Honus Honus).

Runners-up: KISS/Motly Crue, Tim McGraw/Kenny Chesney

Downtown Tampa's prestigious multi-stage performance center thundered full steam ahead through its 2011-12 concert season, booking an incredibly diverse range of top-notch talent that included but was not limited to Wanda Jackson, Tiger Lillies, Josh Ritter, Janet Jackson, Dickey Betts and Great Southern, Matisyahu, Stephen Kellogg and The Sixers, Trey Songz, The Civil Wars, Bon Iver, Mary J. Blige, Pink Martini, Beach Boys 50th Anniversary Tour, Puscifer and Hot Tuna. Anticipation for the 2012-13 season has already begun, with confirmed dates at the Straz by Andrew Bird and Here We Go Magic, and Carolina Chocolate Drops. 1010 N. MacInnes Place, Tampa, 813-229-7827, strazcenter.org.

There was every kind of character to costume in freeFall’s Cabaret this season: the Emcee and gender-bending dancers of the Weimar-era Kit Kat Klub, a careful young American novelist, his German landlady, her Jewish lover, the uncageable Sally Bowles, an irrepressible prostitute, and several more. Thanks to Mike and Kathy Buck, the costumes we saw on these life-loving personages brought early 1930s Berlin to St. Pete’s Central Avenue with total persuasiveness. Thanks for the professionalism.

Runners-up: The Round-Up, Waterin’ Through

Independent curator Jade Dellinger masterminded two of the year’s best visual art exhibits: the interactive album-spinning installation John Cage 33-1/3 — Performed by Audience at the Tampa Museum of Art and Things Not Seen Before: A Tribute to John Cage at Tempus Projects. In helping Tampa celebrate Cage’s birthday centennial, Dellinger showed off his chops as the area’s most creative and knowledgable curator of contemporary art.

From Polaroid art shows to snippets of mail, Eve ’n’ Odd packs a lot of imagination and whimsy into its compact space. The gallery shows artists like Coralette Damme, Calan Ree and Hugo Porcaro who, like creator/owner Jennifer Kosharek, have skills as kickass as their sense of humor and adventure. 645 Central Ave., Suite 11, Crislip Arcade, St. Petersburg, evenoddgallery@gmail.com.

Longtime Ybor dwellers might remember this sprawling complex as Frankie’s Patio, but Barbarella Tampa has ushered in a new age for the old club. It has the best indie rock dance night around on Fridays with music so current you actually have to use your Shazam app. Saturdays go new wave/old wave downstairs, but the DJ mixes in some newer tracks at the upstairs patio bar overlooking Seventh Avenue. The outdoor GaYbor Sunday Tea Dance features jousting and bouncy castles, Wednesday’s Electrohead is for the goth/industrial set, and Thursdays are going to be Mods ’n’ Rockers soon. Friendliest bartenders in town and amazing drink specials. Best of all, no cover. 1920 E. Seventh Ave., Ybor City. facebook.com/barbarella.tampa

Runners-up: Castle, Push Ultra Lounge

If you thought you knew everything about The Rocky Horror Show, Hartley’s staging for American Stage proved you wrong: the seemingly all-too-familiar pageant became an opportunity to explode all wisdom about sexuality and leave undifferentiated libidos loose at Demens Landing. Then Hartley pulled off the opposite feat — a play about regimentation and its discontents — for Stageworks’ Biloxi Blues. What doesn’t this artist do well?

While many DIY bands assemble their own records, few put together the components with as distinctive a personal twist as Tampa Bay's Awkward Age did with their new self-titled 7". The pop punk three-piece (bassist/vocalist Vic Alverez, guitarist Matt Shumate and drummer Eric Turner) hand-assembled the packaging, screen-printing each cover and attaching unique photos to each record showing a range of subjects, from a local gadfly to a Tinker Toy version of a Ferris wheel. awkwardage.bandcamp.com

Local product Doug “Dougie Fresh” Hensel always knew there were nightlife possibilities in downtown St. Petersburg. Growing up on the “other side of the bridge,” Hensel, like so many other Pinellas County residents, would make the tiresome trek to Ybor City in the 1990s to experience the dynamic sights and sounds of club music. He got his start spinning records at WILD 98.7 FM and worked the turntables at the Pleasuredome club in Ybor before eventually starting his own production company in St. Petersburg. In the mid-aughts, Hensel used his networking ability to influence local bigwigs to invest in turning the Central Avenue block area into a nightlife haven, using the First Friday event as a starting block. Whereas just a few age-old relics like Mastry’s and The Oyster Bar used to rule the roost, there’s now a plethora of choices for party-goers. One of those places is Suite Six Bar & Lounge, a New York-style shotgun type bar co-owned by Hensel. He has had several special events at Suite Six, including fashion show benefits. In addition, Hensel recently opened up for Calvin Harris at a Tampa Bay Rays concert night, and performs on Friday and Saturday nights for all Rays home games. —Chris Girandola

Runners-up: Tralia Parks, Sharon Needles

Runners-up: Trixie the Trivial Tranny, Alexis Mateo

St. Pete Beat is the local digital film production company spearheaded by Ryan Zarra, and in a little over a year, he’s shot, edited and posted videos of more than 30 noteworthy local bands performing in various Bay area haunts, including four acts featured in collaboration with CL as part of a pre-Antiwarpt III video series. The dude is a maniac, relentlessly driven to seek out good music and new locations to shoot bands performing it, and he is all self-budgeted; he produces these videos for fun, while freelancing out other video-related gigs to pay the bills. facebook.com/stpetebeat

Runners-up: TIGLFF (Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival), Sunscreen Film Festival

As the name implies, The Happiness Machine purveys bright, refreshingly lighthearted folk pop with breezy, bouncing percussive-fused beats and an effervescent energy as exuded by the five young musicians who make up the band. Members include three alums of similarly cheerful but now-defunct acts Grecian Urns and The Sun Society — dulcet-toned sisters Kathleen and Shaundra McGuire. and guitarist Nick Arnal. thehappinessmachine.bandcamp.com

The Tampa Bay local music community was shocked earlier this month at the news that Candy Bars drummer Ryan Fujiki-Hastings had died in a motorcycle accident. Seen often at New World with his magazine-beautiful, sweetly down-to-earth wife, Tanya, and their equally adorable baby girl, Anaïs, he was a fixture in the scene and respected by fellow musicians, his talent admired outside his intimate circle in the New Granada family. All who knew him will miss his acerbic humor, which almost belied his genuine soul and generous heart. A Ryan Fujiki-Hastings Memorial Fund is currently being set up for baby Anaïs and the Fujiki-Hastings family. Send contributions to the Fujiki-Hastings Family Trust; c/o The Yates Law Firm, P.A.; 320 W Kennedy Blvd., Suite 520; Tampa, FL 33606; or donate online through fujikihastings.com. Proceeds from sales of the Candy Bars' album will also go to the trust. You can find the album at facebook.com/Candybarstampa.

Collectively, St. Pete’s galleries blow Tampa’s tiny scene away, but the ‘Burg doesn’t have Tempus Projects. Run by artist Tracy Midulla Reller, the space consistently hosts the best exhibits of contemporary art outside of the region’s museums. Last year’s highlights included a show devoted to John Cage, a benefit exhibit for The Spring of Tampa Bay and events like one artist’s 16mm “cine-performance.” tempus-projects.com

He’ll want to share credit with collaborators including Chris Parks, aka Pale Horse, and BASK, but there’s no debating that Tes One has had a banner year. In addition to co-curating Leave a Message, the Morean Arts Center’s street art-inspired show, Tes left his graphic mark on St. Pete with two different murals (one painted with BASK, the other with Parks) and on the covers of Mead’s Five Star notebooks.

The former front man of Rancid Polecats does sound, watches the door and shows up on a moment’s notice to help out. He’ll even give you advice about your love life and offer a much-needed hug during those existential moments that occur around 2:40 a.m. Gary Dizon supports local bands behind and in front of the stage and is a sight for sore eyes wherever he’s seen on the music scene.

Local collective Gwan Massive encompasses a huge, rotating (but usually jam-packed) lineup featuring emcees like Breakdown and Jinx, hip-hop trio The Rukus (Emcees KeithElite, Rude, and DJ Mike Blenda), singer/keyboardist Monica Delgado, and members of Tribal Style (bassist MugDub, guitarist Blake Yeager) and d’Visitors (like vocalist Nikki Ferraro and trumpeter Kenny Pullin). They brew up an intoxicating, ass-shaking, hip-swaying brew of funky soulful hip-hop. facebook.com/gwanmassive

Hump day is a magical thing, but Ybor’s finest watering hole ups the ante each Wednesday evening by offering a hearty plate of smoked bird, baked beans and garlic bread for a mere $5 (ambitious stomachs can add ribs and/or sausage for an extra $3). The deal gets even sweeter as the patio plays host to two hour-long acoustic sets featuring artists ranging from nationally recognized heavy-hitters to local legends and newbies alike. newworldbrewery.net

His intricate illustration style recalls tattoo art, Fritz the Cat and other ’70s-nostalgic comic blitzes. It’s finely detailed and full of humor and grotesque satire about people and situations we encounter every day.That should be enough for you to know, but we’re compelled to add that the 42-year-old Tarpon Springs artist and Volkswagen enthusiast is also a paraplegic. He learned to wield his pens and pencils with his mouth, manipulating them with his teeth, after a swimming accident left him paralyzed from the neck down. It was a tragedy that could have rendered Kuster helpless, but instead he showed everyone the depth and breadth of his talent and imagination, reminding us that there are very few instances in life where the word "can't" applies. To check out Kuster’s work, visit paintbyteeth.com.

Ignition starred local metal-man artist/badass Frank Strunk III and featured familiar faces, sounds, and sights. It was styled to perfection and the footage was beautiful. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t the most compelling or original storyline, it was gorgeous and it was ours. The crowd was dotted with local filmmakers like Charlie Diaz, Eric Hunter and Ryan Zarra. To them, and to us, what mattered most about the Vitale Brothers movie was the inspiration it provided.

Runners-up: Shaun Hopper, Tim Riddle

Runners-up: La Lucha, Nate Najar Trio

Runners-up: New World Brewery, Boneyard

Runners-up: Love to Sing Karaoke with April and, Corner Club

It’s really got that Cheers feeling (well, a little smokier and muskier, maybe) and lots of nice folks from all walks of life — from Vietnam vets (our favorite goes by the nickname “Animal”) to trendy college-age kids to the yuppies next door. The decor is mid-’70s with low ceilings, earth tones and a fine illustration of Willie and Waylon. Singers from local bands like to grab the mic, and KJ Hollie Bruneau and her dad “The Captain” are good sports when drunk housewives scream Toni Braxton's “Unbreak My Heart” in the style of Jello Biafra. Bartender Patty Denmark is quick and friendly and takes an occasional break to belt out her anthem, “Short Dick Man.” Watch out for Joe Raguckas from Ella’s, who’ll set you up unawares with a song you don’t particularly know or like as part of a game he calls Karaoke Roulette. Our favorite Corneoke performance is Eric Mayers’ “Beat on the Brat” by the Ramones, sung like the Count from Sesame Street. Oh, and yes, the beer is the coldest in town, a decent variety of imports and domestics. Karaoke is on Friday and Saturdays, and starts fairly early in the evening, around 9 p.m., but most folks come around midnight. It stays open until 3. 1502 E. Sligh Ave., Tampa, 231-5010.

While plenty of bands ran successful crowd-funding campaigns for their creative projects over the past year via sites like Kickstarter.com and Pledge.com — November Rush, Guiltmaker, Mighty Mongo, and King of Spain among them — none scaled the mountain of money quite like the God-revering indie-worship foursome Ascend the Hill, which set and exceeded a goal of $25K in 30 days with more than 650 donors, ending at a huge $28,149. On the non-God front, alt rockers Oceana raised an impressive $10,896 to fund the recording of their next full-length and the support tour that follows. Finally, alt roots songstress Geri X raised $5,115 during a $1,000 campaign to press copies of and tour behind this year’s The Work Is the Wolf, an impressive 511 percent of her goal.

Candy Bars. Zillionaire. Rec Center. Sleepy Vikings. Red Room Cinema. Alexander & The Grapes. They would be among the best, most talked-about bands in any scene, and we have the privilege of calling them our own. New Granada Records shares these bands with the world, as well as other equally talented groups from Orlando, Jacksonville and even Austin, letting dedicated indie fans everywhere know that Tampa Bay deserves to be known for so much more than early ’90s death metal. What’s more, owners Keith and Susie Ulrey do it for no other reason than their love of making and hearing daring, resonant music for its own sake. newgranada.com. (For more on Keith & Susie Ulrey, follow the link to the "Power of Twos" interview under "Related Stories" below.)

Runners-up:Tampa Bay Times Forum, Ruth Eckerd Hall

Have a work of art, play, music you want to create and have a brand new way to present it? Hampton Arts Management offers small grants to help finance arts projects in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties. The program leverages grant awards up to $500 to fuel Tampa Bay’s grassroots and developing arts community. The criteria? “Programs funded by the Arts Microgrant are ambitious, exciting, experimental, risk-taking, and relevant to contemporary trends in the National arts scene,” the website says.

Watch: They're everywhere, so of course they're here. T. Hampton Dohrman talks about his Best of the Bay-winning microgrants program and arts website, Articulate, edited by Mitzi Gordon. We forgot to ask him where his socks went. Interview w. CL's David Warner recorded during the BOTB awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing.

Living room concerts are a growing phenom in cities across the U.S., the Tampa Bay area included. Performers benefit from reduced expenses, higher cash returns and attentive audiences, and can build a sustainable fanbase in small but loyal chunks. Fans enjoy an intimate atmosphere, a noise-free listening experience, and more opportunities to get quality facetime with the artists. March saw the launch of the Listening Room Festival by locally based singer-songwriter and ConcertsInYourHome.com founder Fran Snyder. The multi-day fest of private house concerts was paired with public artist showcases and workshops at St. Pete’s own listening room, Hideaway Café & Recording Studio. Stay tuned for a second edition next spring. listeningroomfestival.com, concertsinyourhome.com

Runners-up: Patrick Wilson, Matthew McGee

Runners-up: Kari Goetz, Katrina Stevenson

Runners-up: Danfield, Sleepy Vikings

Runners-up: Damon Fowler, The Black Honky’s

Runners-up: No Clubs!, Jack Spatafora (Aestheticized)

Runners-up: Tie between The Outpatients and Sanctuary,

Runners-up:Hip Expressions, New Level Dance Company

Runners-up: Ryan Zarra, Anesti Vega

Runners-up: The Stick Martin Show, tie between Dynasty and Gwan Massive

Runners-up: Hawk&Wayne, Nine and Numb, Dear Aunt Gertrude, Wit Improv

Runners-up: Funky Seeds, Uncle John’s Band

Runners-up: Retribution, Set and Setting, Party Time

Runners-up: Nolan Wiley, Branden Hollywood

Runners-up: Anchor Atlantic, Rubix Cubed

Runners-up: Car Bomb Driver, Permanent Makeup

Runners-up: Slasher Mini Records, Kiss of Death Records

Runners-up: Tribal Style, Shaka

Runners-up: Gary Schutt Band, The Stick Martin Show

Runners-up: Urbane Cowboys, Rebekah Pulley & The Reluctant Prophets, and The Black Honkeys

Two local foursomes with very different aesthetics shined on national festival stages this summer. Applebutter Express jammed funky ukulele newgrass tunes during a Thursday afternoon set at the 11th annual Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee, playing for several hundred amid a mass of 80,000. A month later, Zulu Wave kicked off the free Saturday concert at the inaugural CBGB Festival in NYC’s Times Square. They were introduced by none other than Matt Pinfield himself, and their propulsive prog-fused indie rock warmed up the crowd for such acts as The Hold Steady and Superchunk playing the stage later that day.

Runners-up: Rebekah Pulley, Kate Reuter

Runners-up: Betty Fox & the Dirty Bastards, Funky Seeds

Runners-up: David M. Jenkins, Tony Gilkinson

Runners-up: Rocky Horror Picture, Avenue Q

Runners-up: Scott Durfee, Duncan McClellan

A unique concept that combined a cycling shop with a pub and live-music venue, the Neptune came of age during the late-’90s heyday of alternative Tampa Bay music; fans from all over the region made the drive to see their friends take the stage at this (for most of us) out-of-the-way destination. As the last local original-music boom went, well, bust, live rooms everywhere shifted their focus or just plain closed. But the Neptune soldiered on, nurturing a loyal all-ages crowd with quality punk, emo and posthardcore bills that continue to this very day. Bay area indie aficionados who find themselves disinterested in the usual Ybor City or downtown St. Pete fare might want to remember the scene that seems to be alive and well where Pinellas and Pasco Counties meet. 13 S. Safford Ave., Tarpon Springs, 727-943-5713, neptunelounge.com

Flat Stanley lead singer Buck Sands has never met a microphone stand he couldn’t destroy. As soon as his band launches a set, the mild-mannered Sands transforms into an aggressive dynamo BUCK SMASH!-ing his way through every unassuming tripod or boom stand the venue has to offer. It may be a massive annoyance to any band that follows, but to everyone else, it’s pure and fervent rock 'n’ roll. myspace.com/FlatStanley2006

Just in time for the RNC, Tampa-based artist collaborative Experimental Skelton revived an idea they’d set aside: inviting community members to co-create a giant collage. Add political discontent and a Bluebird Books Bus full of old tomes and magazines, and you get the Silverfish Revolution, a collective work of art in the form of cut, compiled and pasted text and images — part protest, part play.

Runners-up: MOSI, Tampa Museum of Art

The Florida Museum of Photographic Arts moved out of obscurity and into the Cube (aka, 400 N. Ashley Drive, next to the Beer Can), thanks to the leadership of board chair Roger Robeson and co-founder Chuck Levin, among others. The 11-year-old institution’s growth has been slow and steady; now it’s FMoPA’s time to shine with expanded exhibits, events and membership programs. fmopa.org

Runners-up: Gasparilla Music Festival, Tropical Heatwave

Local musician Mark Etherington puts 110 percent into whatever he's doing, whether he's belting out haunting choruses and strumming guitar as frontman of folk rock outfit RedFeather, pummeling drums with exultant unabashed vigor as half of the two-man rhythmic assault of set and setting, or doing the solo acoustic thing as Mountain Holler. With his fiery, wildly flying head of hair and magnetic stage presence, he’s also fun as fuck to watch. setandsetting.bandcamp.com, mountainhollerredfeather.bandcamp.com

A new website run by Creative Pinellas that blends journalism and marketing, Articulate offers tourists and art lovers in St. Pete, Clearwater, Dunedin, Tarpon Springs and other Pinellas County nooks and crannies a resource for arts news and views. Penned by local artists and arts aficionados across genres (music, theater, visual and literary arts), the site’s blogs offer an insider’s perspective on what’s hip and happening now. articulatesuncoast.com.

Gordon has recruited seasoned writers Gina Vivinetto, once pop music critic for the Tampa Bay Times, and Scott Harrell, a regular contributor to CL. (Harrell will write about music for Articulate, while Vivinetto’s beat will center on literary arts.)

Artists including poet David William Durney and experimental musician David Manson will offer first-hand insight into their respective genres. Other bloggers include Marysia Lopez and Danny Olda (visual art), Alexis Quinn Chamberlain (fashion), Tony Armer (film), Laura Kepner (writing) and Katie Mulford (theater). They will blog across genres according to their interests.

Watch: They're everywhere, so of course they're here. T. Hampton Dohrman talks about his Best of the Bay-winning microgrants program and arts website, Articulate, edited by Mitzi Gordon. We forgot to ask him where his socks went. Interview w. CL's David Warner recorded during the BOTB awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing.

Box on 5th, the newest art space to crop up in Ybor City, should help the historic district maintain its artistic cred. The white box gallery and lounge made a strong impression with its first exhibits this year and promises to exhibit more work by emerging and mid-career artists, along with a curated selection of books for sale and events including art discussions. 1801 E. Fifth Ave., Ybor City, 813-361-8205. boxon5th.com

¡Bienvenidos to Octavio Martin! He was Primer Bailarin for five years with the Ballet Nacional de Cuba, a globally recognized dance company, but Martin and his wife, Yaima Franco, longed for the personal liberties promised by the U.S. of A. So last year they became American citizens, and on Aug. 1 Martin was named artistic director and master teacher for the Brandon Ballet. The company (like its hometown) has taken a while to reach fruition, but has steadfastly moved forward with performances and fundraisers. Be on the lookout for a season concert premiere soon. Brandon Ballet, 161 E. Bloomingdale Ave., Brandon; 813-482-4282. brandonballet.org

More than 6,000 people converged on downtown Tampa for the inaugural Gasparilla Music Festival, and the conditions couldn’t have been better; pristine weather, picturesque setting, an overall laid-back vibe. GMF engendered renewed feelings of appreciation for our evolving cityscape and riverfront, with the three stages spread over Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park and Kiley Gardens Park and Amphitheatre. The large main stage boasted a backdrop of the Hillsborough River and University of Tampa, and a natural amphitheater was created by the lush rectangular lawn that rose in a gentle incline toward Ashley Street, the music echoing off the glass-and-metal Skypoint building. The overall effect was like being hugged by the city or held in its palm. Sound seepage was minimal, set times were staggered so that no band played much longer after another had started, facilities included running water along with Port-o-Let options, the food offerings came from local eateries and food trucks, and the musical bill featured acts ranging from Deer Tick to Rebirth Brass Band to Ra Ra Riot. I can’t tell you how many times I ran into someone who expressed how great the day was going, who brought their kids with no fuss, who were already planning on booking a downtown hotel for the next one. The groundwork has been laid and the stage set for a second annual fest. gasparillamusicfestival.com

This season, TRT brought us two of its three inaugural plays: Cold Storage and A Streetcar Named Desire. Ronald Ribman’s Cold Storage, the story of two hospital patients, offered a superb performance by TRT artistic director C. David Frankel, and Streetcar boasted a dazzling Blanche DuBois courtesy of the astonishing Emilia Sargent. When a one-year-old company can already offer these excellent portrayals, the prognosis is very good. Keep your eye on TRT.

What a pleasant surprise! A super clean club that doesn’t have Kenny Chesney blaring from the jukebox — in Pasco County! The décor includes the leg lamps from A Christmas Story, in keeping with the cool but quaint 1960s basement party atmosphere. DJ Jason Barco (also of The Castle) does Thursdays with a great mix of past and present alternative rock, and the live bands sound great despite the small stage-less space. Full bar, fantastic prices and an even-keeled crowd. 1542 U.S. 19, Holiday, facebook.com/orbit19

Runners-up: Hideaway Café, Sacred Grounds

With an average attendance that swells exponentially with each installment, this free first-Thursday-of-every-month concert series showcases why Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park is the crown jewel of downtown Tampa. The University of Tampa minarets glisten on the horizon and Leo Villareal’s incandescent light installation illuminates both the Tampa Museum of Art and the concert-goers enjoying the idyllic view of the Hillsborough River, all while Rock The Park presents a live music lineup as refreshing and entertaining as it is eclectic. rocktheparktampa.com

Musicians know that hours spent in the studio playing the same songs over and over can be both mind-numbing and expensive. Tampa’s Atomic Audio makes the recording process as painless as possible by offering a topnotch studio environment (and practice spaces) at reasonable prices. It helps that owner/sound-engineer Mark Nikolich is great at what he does and is one of the nicest guys around. Slews of bands have recorded — and return to record — at Atomic; more than 150 bands can’t be wrong. atomicaudiorecording.com

Two thirds of the three department chairs at the Straz Center’s Patel Conservatory (the third, in theater, is Ami Sallee), Ruffer and Stark have upped the ante in its music and dance programs in a very short time. Head of music for a year and a half, Ruffer says he wants the Straz to become known as “the place America goes to sing.” Stark has already made it the place America goes to dance. A former principal with the New York City Ballet, he left his job as head of the Orlando Ballet School to become the Patel’s first dance department chair in 2010. Shortly thereafter he created the Next Generation Ballet, a by-audition-only junior troupe that has attracted talented young dancers from around the country and has sent them on to top ballet companies and international competitions (as well as stints with So You Think You Can Dance? and Billy Elliot). He and Ruffer, a couple for 17 years, complement each other; Ruffer, who has a Masters in education, has inspired Stark “to reach out to students in new and innovative ways,” while Stark has helped his partner to “see” music. They work together, too, at Opera Tampa, as chorus master and choreographer, and share big dreams for the future of the Straz as a performing arts training mecca: “I don’t see a ceiling in it,” says Stark. (For more of our interview with the couple, click on "The Power of Twos" interview under "Related Stories" below.)

Spring Hill-based photographer Jeremy Scott snapped an image that captured the year’s artistic zeitgeist. Titled “Woman Carrying Fish,” the black-and-white photo featured a striking model wearing a vintage dress and standing on a dirt road near Weeki Wachee, melding the tone and visual style of Depression-era photos with hipster nostalgia.

Runners-up: Strokers, Peabody’s

Brilliantly directed by Todd Olson, Tracy Letts’ August: Osage County was the highlight of the season at American Stage and the Bay area generally. An all-star cast brought us a United States high on Xanax and painkillers, afflicted by terminal narcissism, rent by money-love and youth-addiction and committed to no principle higher than every man and woman for him/herself. Is the American dream so tattered and soiled? This play said “yes” — and said it boisterously, viciously, poignantly.

During the RNC, he led journalists on a tour of Tampa’s depressed neighborhoods, speaking of injustices and discrimination with a long list of facts to back up his charismatic eloquence. In addition to hosting Tampa’s longest-running open mic night, Malcolm is a yearly participant in The Great American Teach-In, sponsors Candy Lowe’s Black Business Bus Tour, assists with the Gina Oliva Fundraiser, is an organizer of the “Write For Our Future” program and financial supporter of WMNF’s “Poetry Is” and “Sunday Forum,” and volunteers regularly by giving performances at Metropolitan Ministries. When he’s not helping the poor and trying to bring the community together, he’s wrangling talent for weekly events. On Wed., Sept. 26, BET Comedian LC joins him to present Laughs Over Lyrics: Round 1 at the Tampa Improv in Ybor City. 727-810-3582, lifeizpoetry.com.

Tampa native and NYU student Settecasi wrote, directed, acted in and designed Future Tense, a more than interesting look at recent college graduates and their many secrets. The play was presented at the Silver Meteor Gallery — for once, a set there looked professional — and brought us ringleader John (Settecasi), his on-and-off again lover Meghan, the goofy and inexperienced Alex, and the sexually aggressive Carrie. It wasn’t Virginia Woolf but it was well on the way. Look for more from this multi-talented artist.

The historic downtown Clearwater theater is among the oldest operating in Florida right now (est. 1922), and possesses the tasteful grandeur of old Hollywood — gold picture frame molding on the walls, a few with colorful old-fashioned scenes of Florida projected into their centers, crystal chandeliers dripping soft light from the ceiling, crimson velvet curtains falling onto the polished wood floor of a stage looking out onto the 650-seat space and its intimate mezzanine. The acoustics are pristine, the notes soaring to the far reaches of the room directly into your awaiting ear. Last season's offerings as booked by that other noteworthy Clearwater venue, Ruth Eckerd Hall, proved as diverse as they were tempting; singer-songwriters of all varieties — Sondre Lerche, Lindsey Buckingham, Kaki King, Shelby Lynne, Dar Williams, Brandi Carlile, Glen Campbell, Jake Shimabukuro and Greg Lake among them — and select vibe-appropriate bands like Gipsy Kings and Little Feat. 405 Cleveland St., Clearwater, 727-442-6152, rutheckerdhall.com.

Runners-up: Microgroove, Banana Records

Delivering sweat-soaked sets of Southern drone-stoner griminess and pounding spaghetti Western-tinged psych rock-tronics is Florida Night Heat. Bassist Andre Jones rages the low end, a usually bare-chested force who head-bangs or shifts in explosive bursts as beat-keeper Chris Wood crashes cymbals, wails on toms and kicks bass drum with a perfect Animal-Grrr face. Guitarist Jensen Kistler offers a calm and cool counterpoint to both, fingers dancing along the fretboard and delivering heady riffs, solos and layers of reverb and noise, all with a Mona Lisa smile. New four-song Omegas EP — recorded at BOTB 2012-winning Short Circuit Studio — will see a vinyl-only release this fall.facebook.com/floridanightheat

By far the coolest event associated with a film fest this year, GIFF’s rooftop showing of John Carpenter’s The Thing brought vintage drive-in flavor to the top of the Hyde Park parking garage. Cars filled the lot in front of a giant screen that had been lifted into place by a crane, each tuning its radio to the right frequency to hear the movie soundtrack. There was food and drink available throughout (though The Thing tends to make us need alcohol more than the nosh), and a post-movie party that featured a live DJ. Here’s hoping that the fine folks at GIFF make this one an annual event. Maybe next year they can show Christine.

Chavez’s stunning black-and-white set for A. R. Gurney’s Sylvia was the best ever in the new Stageworks space, not to mention the whole Bay area. This was a dream of an environment: a posh New York apartment with a view of the Manhattan skyline, a white sofa on a black and white spotted rug, a black and white striped floor, bookshelves filled with white books, and seven empty picture frames on blank white walls. It wasn’t the least bit realistic, and it was utterly splendid.

On this particular Saturday night in January, an overabundance of shows were happening all over town, which may have accounted for the small crowd that showed up at Crowbar to check out Dead Kenny G's. The three-piece jammed punk-heavy on their avant cocktail of mostly instrumental tunes; Mike Dillon showed off his ridiculous prowess on drums, vibes and percs, Brad Houser traded fatty basslines and growling baritone sax, and ostensible leader Skerik delivered playfully warped sax, plunked some funky keys or raged through distorted guitar riffs, at all times a lively mischievous presence who offered a running commentary as his eyes bugged out and eyebrows jiggled up and down in self-parody. A fine showing of humor, smarts and musicianship that was witnessed by too few people.

“You are not a slave,” hissed Jun Bustamante with the fury of a thousand goddesses, mesmerizing the audience with her presence, her words, and her voice. That was during AntiWarpt 2011 at Starbooty in downtown St. Petersburg. In the months since, you’d be hard-pressed to go anywhere in the ‘Burg without seeing Jun. She established a weekly music series at the Ale and the Witch on Monday nights where all matter of musical fabulousness has performed alongside her. Besides being a great singer and songwriter, she’s a scenemaker and scene supporter, too.

Runners-up: State Theater, Ritz Theater

It takes more than a good ear to be a great sound engineer. A full command of equipment and technology, a willingness to work with — and not just push buttons for — the bands that bring you on, and a genuine interest in making the best recording possible are crucial. Atomic Audio sound engineer Mark Nikolich offers all this with a jocular affability and a level of patience that puts a saint to shame.

Runners-up: 2001 Space Odyssey, Thee Dollhouse

Even though she drummed in one of the Tampa Bay area's most buzzed-about bands (Sleepy Vikings), had started establishing herself as a frontwoman to be reckoned with in noise-rock outfit Loins, and delivered impressive showcases of her visual art imaginings via assorted platforms around town, SUNY Purchase fine arts grad school called, and the effervescent Ryann Slauson had to answer. SUNY's gain is Tampa's loss, but here's hoping that the roads lead her back here to brighten up the scene again one day.

He’s co-owned and operated The Buzz coffeehouse, he promotes local film with monthly showcases of Tampa Bay moviemakers, he wrote a well-received book called The Dark Side of Sunshine with evocative narratives about Tampa’s seedy past, he’s the senior writer at Cigar City Magazine and he has written and produced a number of award-winning independent films, including Charlie Wall: The Documentary. And his biggest challenge yet? Changing baby boy Ben’s diapers. The Buzz is at 710 Harbour Post Drive on Harbour Island. Coffeehouse Films is held every second Thursday of the month. Call 813-224-9214 for more info.

Although the competition’s getting stiffer, American Stage offered more winners last season than any other local theater. Consider a year that brought us Tracy Letts’ brilliant August: Osage County, August Wilson’s luminous Seven Guitars, and Oscar Wilde’s witty An Ideal Husband. Then there was Matt McGee in The Rocky Horror Show, Lisa Powers in 2.5 Minute Ride, and Drew DeCaro and Justin Campbell in A Steady Rain. A season — and a theater — to treasure.

Runners-up: freeFall, Jobsite Theatre

Meg Heimstead turned down Shawn Paonessa the first time he made her an offer. That was several years ago, when he asked her to play a part in a play he was directing. That role didn’t feel right to her, but luckily for Paonessa, she has happily accepted a more significant partnership: The pair is getting married later this year, a union of two powerhouses in the local theater scene. Heimstead is a mercurial, winning actress, equally adept at wacky (freeFall’s Vibrator Play) and poignant (Dead Man’s Cell Phone at Jobsite), and last year she joined with Gavin Hawk and Roxanne Fay to create A Simple Theatre, a promising new company that has won glowing reviews. Paonessa, an actor/director/playwright with a flair for comedy who has played everything from Shakespeare to Neil Simon, made a huge impact with Jobsite’s 2005 premiere of The March of the Kitefliers, a play he wrote with Neil Gobioff that was so successful it spawned a production company, Kitefliers Studios, which has gone on to make films and co-produce Off-Broadway. By the way, Paonessa asked Heimstead out for the first time on the closing night of the 2007 Kitefliers revival (she was in both versions). “I was a bit shocked,” recalls Heimstead, “and my answer was a bumbled ‘Um…Yeah … Uh … Okay.’ It wasn’t exactly the response he had hoped for, but the rest is history.” (For more on the couple, follow the link to the "Power of Twos" interview under "Related Stories" below.)

Watch: Meg Heimstead & Shawn Paonessa — Best Theatrical Talent Merger in this year's Best of the Bay — talk to CL's David Warner about why Shawn had to compete with Al Roker when he proposed. Taped during The Loafies, Sept. 19, at Creative Loafing.

You knew this event was a good idea as soon as you entered Stump’s Supper Club. The Mustache Bash had an unbelievable turnout, everyone took their ’80s attire seriously, and upper-lip coifs of all shapes and sizes were everywhere, regardless of gender. The best part is, the silliness was for a good cause — the event raised more than $3,000 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Stump’s, alas, has closed, as has its Channelside cohort Howl at the Moon, but stay tuned for news of JDRF’s fun-raising bash for 2013. jdrf.org/tampabay.

Our honoree leaves us with a conundrum: We want to list his accomplishments, particularly in the past year-ish, most likely his busiest ever. But we don’t want to bore you, like some snoozy awards banquet attendee. So, as briefly as possible, we'll dispense with some of Gavin Hawk's notable achievements. He co-founded A Simple Theater (Congratulations Joe, Death and the Maiden) in Sept. 2011. He also appeared in American Stage productions of The Foreigner and Barefoot in the Park as well as his own improv night with Ricky Wayne (News of the Weird — Live!). Hawk even somehow found time to venture across the bridge and direct a play at Jobsite, Closetland, and did a formidable job with that, too. Hawk holds a diploma from The Juilliard School Drama Division, and an M.F.A. in Acting/Directing from California State University, Long Beach. He is a also a member of the Actors Equity Association. Whew! That's not all — suffice it to say that Gavin Hawk has shown up everywhere in Tampa Bay's theater scene of late, and we were glad to see him every time.

Our honoree leaves us with a conundrum: We want to list his accomplishments, particularly in the past year-ish, which has seen what is most likely his busiest ever. But we don’t want to bore you the way like a snoozy awards banquet attendee.

So, as briefly as possible, we'll dispense with some notable achievements. Hawk co-founded the non-profit acting company, Simple Theatre (Congratulations Joe, Death and the Maiden) in Sept. 2011 and has appeared in American Stage plays The Foreigner and Barefoot in the Park as well as his own improv night with Ricky Wayne (News of the Weird: Live). Hawk even somehow found time to venture across the bridge and direct a play at Jobsite, Closetland, and did a formidable job with that too.

Hawk holds a diploma from The Juilliard School Drama Division, and an M.F.A. in Acting/Directing from California State University, Long Beach. He is a also a member of the Actors Equity Association.

That's not all but we'll leave it at that.

A rising number of notable albums are being recorded in relative obscurity and with high-quality results at this small but high-tech Seminole Heights compound operated by co-producers/engineers Owen Meats and Troy Cedeno. Because both men have full-time "day jobs" and produce music purely for the love of it, they cherry-pick the bands they ultimately work with, make time and budgetary concessions to suit the needs of each, and plunge every cent they earn from the projects back into the studio. Short Circuit has established a reputation entirely through word of mouth, has fostered deep and long-lasting relationships with the bands on its roster, and is currently in the midst of finishing recordings by Brahm Bones, Death Starsky, Poetry n’ Lotion, and Florida Night Heat. 813-610-6400, scsav.com

It’s not underground, actually — it’s just down a short flight of stairs from the Palladium lobby — but the Side Door Cabaret is the closest thing to a basement boîte à la the Village Vanguard as you’ll find in these parts. Palladium Executive Director Paul Wilborn is a piano man himself, so he knows how to set the scene — round tables, low lighting, slightly raised stage. Even more important, he knows how to program, bringing in top-flight jazz, roots and blues performers as well as Broadway spellbinders like Susan Egan who sing as if they’re having a private conversation with everyone in the room. Coming attractions include jazz vocalist Whitney James and cast members from St. Petersburg Opera’s Sweeney Todd. 253 Fifth Ave. N., St. Petersburg. 727-822-3590, mypalladium.org

Watch: Paul Wilborn — executive director of The Palladium in St. Pete, whose Side Door Cabaret won Best Underground Music Series — with his wife, actor/director/teacher Eugenie Bondurant, who puts everyone else's posture to shame. They talked with CL's David Warner during the Best of the Bay awards reception on Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing.

Bradenton's break-out purveyors of rockin' Americana, Have Gun, Will Travel, were tapped for CBS' legal drama The Good Wife, their track "Blessing and a Curse" (from 2008 debut full-length Casting Shadows Tall as Giants) played during the final scenes and credits of an April episode. Meanwhile, The Semis enjoyed their moment in the cabletown spotlight when the foursome's salt-stained surf-rockin' "Fun In The Sun" (off 2011's Decapitator Blues) was used in a lengthy, frequently-airing Sundance Channel commercial for its summer film programming.

Steve Miller’s comedy career has been exponentially growing the last couple of years. His loud, opinionated and charming personality is made for the stage. His political and social material is hilarious, and his banter with the audience is perfection. Besides regular gigs at Tampa’s Side Splitters, he has been performing around Florida and Georgia and has a weekend stint in Knoxville around the corner. Hopefully he will remember us little ole Tampa folk the further north he gets. Warning: If you go to see Miller perform, do not heckle him. He will win. Steve Miller will open for Tom Arnold at Side Splitters in Tampa, Oct. 5-6. sidesplitterscomedy.com.

Whether it's the dance-inducing mix of hip-hop, funk and soul at Ol' Dirty Sundays, the amalgam of super-hip indie rock, pop, electro and other tuneful tastiness of All Good Tuesdays, or a night of live music by a hard-buzzing genre-jumping national act, Crowbar consistently sets the tastemaking tone of the Bay area musical landscape. On any given night, you can drop in and get a feel for what's hot right now, or what should be, or even what was once and is again.

It’s one thing to have eclectic entertainment, but New World presents music, comedy and theatrical cabarets and sometimes even puppets(!) with a community-minded approach and intuitive grasp of its discerning audience. Along with the latest indie band from Brooklyn, you can attend a local or national standup show, cabaret shows, spoken word and political entertainment, or just hang out with patrons enjoying the numerous beers on tap and quality grub. Thanks to New World and its in-house curators for bringing us the specialness with sass. 1313 E. Eighth Ave., Ybor City, 813-248-4969.

There aren’t too many places you can go in Tampa with a focus on upscale urban entertainment, but Mocha Browns sprinkles a cool dash of arts and culture with coffee drinks, open mics, variety shows, movie screenings, panel discussions and live jazz and neo-soul. Just look at the photos on Facebook and you’ll see some good-looking people having a really good time. Every second Sunday of the month the club opens from 5 to 9:30 p.m. for “Sunday Play Day” hosted by Keisha Pickett of “Black in the Bay.” 428 W. Waters Ave, Tampa, facebook.com/mocha.browns, 813-789-2291.

Runners-up: Chihuly, Crochet Coral Reef @ Florida Craftsmen Gallery

Runners-up: Ol’ Dirty Sundays, Suite Six Tuesdays

Artists Michael Parker and Carl Cowden III are creating one of the largest murals in Florida on a 12,000-square-foot warehouse along Adamo Drive between downtown Tampa and Ikea. Both artists have left their mark throughout Hillsborough: Cowden painted the famous Tampa postcard mural at 1102 N. Florida Avenue (recently restored in time for the RNC), and Parker, as co-director of Community Stepping Stones, worked with teens on murals in Sulphur Springs’ Rowlett Park. The new mural will be around 35 by 350 feet and will cover the side of Fabricated Products of Tampa at Adamo and 17th Street. A huge and expensive undertaking, the mural is being made in collaboration with community and youth groups throughout all aspects of design and production as the artists strive to form “an accurate, contemporary representation of Ybor’s identity.”

Watch: Gen. David Scott and Suzanne Parks are two of the movers and shakers behind the Best Welcome Addition to Ybor, the new mural being created by artist Mike Parker, HCC students and community residents on Adamo Drive. Interview w. CL's David Warner recorded during the Best of the Bay awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing.

As an events writer, I’m constantly amazed by the number of quality, forward-thinking shows presented every month at the Studio@620. From modern dance to adult proms, the highly functional Studio@620 delivers highbrow with low-brow fun — even during the so-called slow season, which saw Friday recreational happenings, an international film festival and performances by A Simple Theatre. Throw in some visual arts installations and exceptional live music, too. Oh, and let’s not forget artist Dan Lasata’s vivid new mural on its exterior wall. … Whew. They sure keep me busy. 620 First Ave. S, St. Petersburg. studio620.org.

As the androgynous Frank N. Furter in American Stage’s Rocky Horror Show, Matt McGee made it finally clear: he’s the funniest, most sympathetic, most ingratiating performer in the entire Bay area. This guy has so much fun on stage, you can’t help but share the enjoyment with him. And he was the perfect emcee for the Jeff Norton awards — the one personality sure to bind all area theater artists together in good feeling, good intentions, and, why not say it, love. The votes are in, Matt: you’re one of a kind.

Dominating freeFall’s terrific Cabaret was local actor Mann as the Weimar-era Kit Kat Klub’s Emcee. With his shaved head and zoned-out eyes, he looked just like a character in a George Grosz drawing: depraved, depressed, jaded and doomed. He sang with an irony that Brecht would have envied, and managed with a portentous glance to sum up the anguish of a Germany about to enter a 12-year nightmare. Willkommen, Mr. Mann.

Several talented local playwrights offered their work during this season, but the play that went beyond a mere facility with dialogue and character was Symons’ Lark Eden, produced at New American Theatre a year ago and then reprised at freeFall in March. It followed three friends from childhood to old age and showed a canny understanding of the changes time, circumstances and accident can bring. Thelma was religious, Emily the poet, Mary the prankster; but all were subject to life’s surprises and difficulties. This was intelligent — no, wise — playwriting. (Jim Sorensen and Natalie Symons married earlier this year; for more on the couple, click on the Power of Twos interview below.)

Watch: Recently married Natalie Symons and Jim Sorensen — Most Promising Playwright and Best Actor — talk w. CL's David Warner during the Best of the Bay awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing, and Natalie almost spills the beans about a part she just might be writing for her husband.

Watch: Recently married Natalie Symons and Jim Sorensen — Most Promising Playwright and Best Actor — talk w. CL's David Warner during the Best of the Bay awards reception Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing, and Natalie almost spills the beans about a part she just might be writing for her husband.

Best Actor Sorensen and Most Promising Playwright Symons got married four months ago. They responded via email to CL's questions about their relationship and their work.

CL: When and how did you meet? And you married… when?

Jim: "We actually met at a Dramatists Guild meeting at American Stage in June of 2011. After dating for about three weeks, we realized we were just meant to be, and have been inseparable since. We were married 5/25/12 in a small backyard ceremony at Thelma Rothman's house."

Did working together in freeFall's Becky Shaw onstage give you an idea of how you'd work together as a couple offstage?

Jim: "Working with Natalie during Becky Shaw was stellar — she's such a strong actor, she made me better — kinda like our life offstage — we have a great respect for each other, and yet it's a very yin-yang thing. We fall into fairly traditional male-female roles, and we both truly enjoy supporting where the other is less strong."

Natalie: "We were already living together by the time Becky Shaw rehearsals started. So thankfully we worked as well together onstage as we did offstage. But more than anything working on Becky Shaw together was a great way to spend time together."

How does your relationship feed your theater work?

Jim: "As far as the relationship feeding the theater work — it definitely does. As is to be expected, we have very similar tastes in acting styles & choices, and a great love of dissecting the minutiae of characters and author's intent. Also, she's basically an unofficial staff member here at freeFall — she does so much to help us out — and I saw The Foreigner (Nat's last show at Am Stage) five or six times — didn't hurt that it was funny and she was great in it — we definitely are each other's biggest fans."

How do you support each other in your work?

Natalie: "For me, part of supporting Jim in his work is about knowing when to offer my feedback or two cents and knowing when to keep it to myself and make him chicken parmesan. It might not be very feminist of me, but there are times when I just like to be his wife. And part of that is taking a step back from being a theater person. It's why I left the theater for so many years. I needed perspectives in order to be a better artist. I think that balance holds true in our marriage as well.

Jim, does Natalie ask for input on her writing?

Natalie: "I haven't asked since we disagreed over the use of the word lope in a sentence."

How do you help each other when you're preparing for roles?

Jim: "We help each other with lines, understanding the character, the show, and our specific relationship to the other characters. And then we laugh & drink lots of wine and [edited for mature content]. At the end of the day, she's my best friend and biggest supporter, and it's very convenient that she sleeps in the bed next to me :)"

Susie and Keith Ulrey have been married 12 years, but she met him when she was 16, so they’ve known each other almost 20. A petite beauty on a motor scooter, she's living with Multiple Sclerosis and coming out on top. She and Keith do their share of funds and awareness-raising whenever possible, and Susie’s even due to speak at a few panels about experimental treatments soon. She's also a recruiter for an HR outsourcing firm and works from home; he runs small Seminole Heights indie record shop (and “Best Vinyl Survivor” award winner) Microgroove, and as of September, is the sole proprietor after an amicable parting, which found Keith purchasing former co-owner Carl Webb’s share. Together, the couple runs the New Granada record label and play in the band Rec Center; a percentage of select CD sales go to MS research, including Rec Center's 2012 LP, Tin Year.

Their work together on New Granada Records was a natural progression.

“I think it was just a default of being married, and being in the same bands,” says Keith. “Of course we’re going to work on it together. Most of the earlier releases, we were already kind of working on together, anyway.”

The label was originally a co-op, a way to put out recordings of their own bands, eventually morphing and becoming an Ulrey-run endeavor. “It wasn’t until Candy Bars in 2006 that there was actually a scenario where we wanted to put out something that none of us were involved in. At that point, it was really just Keith and I,” Susie explains.

“That was the first time we approached a band as a label and said, ‘We want to invest, we want to put money into your band,” Keith elaborates. The Candy Bars record came out in 2006, number 11 on the New Granada roster; come November with The Winter Sounds, they’ll be at 31. “And this year’s been our busiest year. By the end of the year [2012], we will have released six titles, which is a lot.”

The proceeds from all New Granada Presents shows still go directly back into the label and backing bands. "We’ve been able to put these releases out, either with putting very little money into them personally, or investing in them and getting paid back," Susie says. “As far as the collaboration on the label, he handles the business side of it, I am more of the advisor. And I’m with him when we meet with all the bands and I have a lot of input as far as that’s concerned, and I can also offer advice to the bands, because not only am I in a band, but I’ve walked with him through this whole process.”

“Susie’s kind of like final say – like, veto power. If I get excited about a band, I want her to get excited also,” Keith says. “Not that we carry any titles at all, but I guess if an outsider were looking in, she could almost be like A&R. Once the band is signed, then she’s done, I handle everything after that. I do all the business and the numbers and the money. She’s more my conscience in helping me decide.”

A few not-so-great decisions were made without her input, so everything goes through her first. She’s the calm, grounded core of the partnership; when he starts obsessing over a band, he brings it to her and she gives him some cool-headed perspective. In Rec Center (this year’s winner of “Best Album” with Tin Year), they switch roles a bit. She writes the songs with Michael Waksman and while Keith admittedly has no songwriting ability, he does have a great ear for arrangement and makes his two cents heard when he likes something — or not. “When we’re in the band space, she’s a band member. She’s prone to being told something’s not good.” He also stands as only one of two drummers whom Susie has ever worked with.

“I don’t take it personally anymore,” Susie said. “There can be uncomfortable moments for the rest of the band if there’s bickering going on, so we try our best to keep that in check. He says what’s on his mind. I try to take it as constructive criticism.”

“We are able to separate the work from our marriage.”

Watch: Meg Heimstead & Shawn Paonessa — Best Theatrical Talent Merger in this year's Best of the Bay — talk to CL's David Warner about why Shawn had to compete with Al Roker when he proposed. Taped during The Loafies, Sept. 19, at Creative Loafing.

The soon-to-be-married Shawn Paonessa and Meg Heimstead had these answers to CL's questions about their relationship:

CL: How and when did you meet?

Meg: "Shawn and I knew each other for a few years before we started dating. He actually cast me in a show shortly after I moved here from North Carolina, but the show didn't really 'speak' to me so I turned down the role. We got to know each other a bit better when we did The March of the Kitefliers the first time in 2005. We liked each other but the timing wasn't right. Shawn asked me out for the first time on closing night of the second Kitefliers production in 2007. He was so sweet about it! We had just finished strike and he told me that he wanted to speak to me for a minute privately. I had no idea that he was going to ask me out. I was a bit shocked, and my answer was a bumbled, 'Um…Yeah…Uh…Okay.' It wasn't exactly the response he had hoped for but the rest is history."

When did you get engaged?

Meg: "We got engaged on my birthday, eight months ago. We had been talking about it so it wasn't a complete surprise but I didn't know when he was going to ask. On the morning of my birthday I was sitting in my pajamas watching the Today Show and checking my email. He asked me if I wanted my present now. I told him that I could wait until after work. He told me that it was something that I would really like. He tried for a few minutes to convince me that I really wanted it now. I saw that he was intent on giving it to me right away so I agreed. He got down on one knee and popped the question. I was so excited! I said yes right away. I kept hugging and kissing him [so] that I didn't pay a lot of attention to the ring that he had designed himself. He had to stop me for a moment and get me to focus on the ring. I never expected to get engaged in my PJ's but that's how it happened and I wouldn't change a thing."

What drew you to one another?

Meg: "I was immediately drawn to his sense of humor. He is soooo funny! He would always make me laugh backstage. He still makes me laugh on a daily basis. Shawn is also so smart and well read. I love that. He likes a lot of the same things that I like; music, art, travel, books. I also respected him (still do) as an actor, writer and director. I admired his work and thought that he had great creative impulses. I have always thought that I was a bit weird and silly and he totally appreciates that about me. Other men that I have dated thought that I was too weird. Shawn has always liked me just the way I am.

…"For many years I swore off dating actors. I felt like they were either too unstable or I worried that we would be too competitive with each other. I wanted to have a work/life separation. But all of those relationships didn't work out because they couldn't understand my career. They resented the long hours that I would put in. Many of them hadn't been to see a play in years. They just didn't get it. Shawn totally understands why I do what I do because he does it too. I sometimes work seven days a week. I work nights and also bring a lot of work home with me. So does he. We understand that what we do is fueled by love and a great compulsion to create. It is wonderful to have a partner that respects and supports who you are and what you do. I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else."

Shawn: "For me, I think it was a combination of Meg's senses of humor and fun with her work ethic and common sense. Like her, I was sworn off actors, because… well, they're almost all crazy. Actually, we're all mentally deranged; it's just a matter of degree. Meg and my versions of crazy border about as close to normal as possible, so the chemistry started there. That, and a lot of serendipitous commonalities: what we do, art, photography, music – it all just fit.

"…It works surprisingly well. Like Meg said, there's a mutual understanding of our schedules, and that goes a long way. Because we work in the same field and know so many of the same people, but don't work at the same companies, we can bounce a lot of ideas and projects off each other. There's no metric for creative success, so you have a lot of 'Am I deluded, or does this work or not work?' moments. To have someone you can trust with a fresh set of eyes/ears is really invaluable. We have very similar standards and tastes, and a lot of complimentary experiences. We're very good constructive critics."

How do you help each other with your respective work in the theater — with writing, acting, company-founding, etc.?

Meg: "Shawn helps me all of the time. He just finished the sound design for the American Stage School Tour show that I am directing. He proofreads grants and play guides that I write. He runs lines with me and also helps with my audition pieces. He is a great sounding board for ideas, and he gives helpful advice about managing people. We compare notes about challenges that he has had with Jobsite and that I have had with A Simple Theatre or American Stage."

Will you be working on any projects together in coming months?

Meg: "The biggest project that we will be working on next is our wedding. It's now just over three months away and there is so much to do! I have cleared my fall schedule of shows so that I can focus on planning. Our wedding is what this year is all about for us. I did a lot of shows these past few years and I told Shawn that this year I would slow down a bit and focus on us."

"I would love to act in a play with him again. We haven't been onstage together since Kitefliers. However, when both of us are in a show at the same time, managing regular life gets difficult. It's easier if we take turns. I am also waiting for the day that he and Neil write a part for me in one of their films. But the truth is that we work together all of the time in little ways. I couldn't do my job at American Stage or with A Simple Theatre without his support and wise advice."

Shawn: "The wedding is a pretty big production. Shy of that, I don't know when I'll be on stage next. I miss performing immensely, but I'm devoted pretty heavily to getting Kitefliers off the ground. I'm sure it'll happen again one day, but nothing's set in the foreseeable future."

Orlando's loss was Tampa Bay's gain. Peter Stark, 45, was the acclaimed head of the Orlando Ballet School when he was hired two years ago to be chair of the dance department at the Straz Center's Patel Conservatory. His partner, Greg Ruffer, 47, was director of choral activities and applied voice at the College of Central Florida and music director/founder of the Orlando Chorale when he followed Peter to the Straz to become head of the Patel's Music Department. Fortunately for HR, the two do not supervise one another, but they do bring insight to each other's respective disciplines.

Greg's background in education — he has a Masters and is studying for a Ph.D. — has helped Peter reach out to students "in new and innovative ways," Peter says. He's learned to ask questions like, "'Stop right where you are. Does that feel right?'"

Greg in turn says that Peter's strong visual orientation has helped him to "see" music: "I'm a much better musician for all the dance that I've seen."

Like other creative couples, they understand the demands placed on the life of a partner in the arts. And "we don't shut if off when we get home," says Peter. No wonder. They're not only department chairs; Peter also heads the highly competitive Next Generation Ballet, which he founded, and both work for Opera Tampa as choreographer and chorus master, respectively.

Next Generation is a phenomenon. The Straz-based youth company selects 40 students from 600 applicants nationwide, attracting dancers who have turned down scholarships from the likes of American Ballet Theatre to study at the Straz. Alums have gone on to win international competitions and spots in prestigious dance companies (not to mention gigs with So You Think You Can Dance and Billy Elliott).

According to Greg, Straz CEO Judy Lisi says "dance had never been successful at the Straz till Peter." Greg sees similar potential in music. "I have a vision that the Straz Center is where America goes to sing."

Though they complement one another in their work, their tastes are so different in other areas — like how to furnish a home — that if they're shopping and they both like something, "we buy it immediately," says Peter, because such an agreement is so rare.

But they're in agreement about the bright future of arts training at the Patel Conservatory and the Straz. "I don't see a ceiling in it," says Peter.

Together 17 years, the pair met, aptly enough, in an elevator. They've been going up ever since.

Runners-up: Pitbull Toddler, The Black Honkeys