A circuit court judge on Wednesday threw out a state Senate map that would have divided Sarasota County into two districts and would have meant North Port residents were represented by the same state senator as some residents of Okeechobee County. While the decision by Judge George Reynolds stated that map was clearly drawn in a way that benefitted Republicans at a statewide level, local Republican officials welcomed the decision.

“In our case, the judge chose the right map,” said state Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice. Desert had voted against the map that divided Sarasota County when it came out of special session earlier this year. State Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton had led the effort the produced the map.

But while Detert was happy with the map chosen by Reynolds, she did not appreciate the years-long process getting to this point. The special session came after the courts rejected a map drawn by the Legislature in 2012, and Detert still feels that map was sound. “I served on the committee that drew that map in 2012, and there was not a thing a matter with it,” she said. “I think the League of Women Voters, the Democrats and the ACLU put us through a painful exercise for pretty much no good reason.”

Pundits statewide predict that changes to boundaries in Tampa Bay and Central Florida could mean significant gains for Democrats in the Senate elections in 2016, when every Senator will be up for election under the new lines. With the map set, Detert’s district appears almost exactly as it did after the 2012 map was put in place, including all of Sarasota County and west Charlotte County. Galvano’s district, however, used to include most of Manatee County and part of south Hillsborough County while then sprawling eastward into all of Hardee, DeSoto and Glades counties and the southern half of Highlands County. Under the new lines, his district includes all of Manatee, southeast Hillsborough County and a small part of south Pinellas County. 

The Players Theatre next week reveals the lineup for its 87th season on stage, but this week bears banner news of a different sort, with the announcement of the incoming Arnold Simonsen Players Studio, a state-of-the-art facility currently in construction in the Rosemary Square development on Boulevard of the Arts, which will become the new home of The Players’ educational endeavours and workshop program.

Now in its 20th year, The Players Performing Arts Studio has been “bursting at the seams,” according to Managing Director Michelle Bianchi Pingel, training more than 300 students of all ages, as well as hosting summer camps and outreach groups. Within the expanded halls of the planned Arnold Simonsen Players Studio and under its new name, Pingel hopes to raise the number of weekly classes from 29 to near 50 and introduce comprehensive certificate programs, such as for musical theater.

Available courses currently cover near everything a budding performer could need, ranging from the expected—dance, acting, vocal training, playwriting—to more niche offerings such as stage make-up, but enrolling in a program puts the performer through a curated curriculum of required courses covering all aspects of, for example, musical theater performance or dramatic acting, culminating in a certificate of completion and an audition in front of Players Artistic Director Jeffery Kin and two other directors.

In addition, Pingel said the new space will allow the comeback of competitive events among students, such as dance-offs, and the educational program expansion will include annual trips to New York City, where students can participate in open mic events and even audition on Broadway.

“It’s the best-kept secret in town,” said Pingel of The Players’ educational program. “We’re the foundation—where it all starts.”

Made possible through the help of longtime Players supporter Arnold Simonsen, the studio that will bear his name will be ready to accept students by September 2016. 

The Broken Egg on Clark Road has been renamed The Original Egg. Dawn Hair, the restaurant’s owner, says the restaurant’s eye-opening recipes, comfortable ambiance and outstanding service will stay the same. Hair said the change came because Bob Kirscher, the original owner of the three area Broken Egg restaurants, sold all three of his venues in 2013. Hair bought the Clark Road location after managing it for many years. Kirscher sold the other two branches to the Louisiana-based Double R Restaurant Group, the largest franchisee of Another Broken Egg Cafes, with locations in Louisiana, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. The corporation also bought the “Broken Egg” name and exclusive licensing rights. Instead of becoming Another Broken Egg franchise, the restaurant will be independent. 

The Original Egg

Ringing College of Art and Design will hold a groundbreaking ceremony Jan. 8 for the new Richard and Barbara Basch Visual Arts Center at 4:30pm and a pre-opening viewing and reception for the 2016 Basch Glass Exhibition “Images of NATURE in Glass” at 5:30pm the same day. Renowned glass artist Martin Blank will be highlighting the reception and viewing, sponsored by BMO Private Bank. Barbara Basch will lead tours of the exhibition at 10:30am every Wednesday from when the exhibit opens to the public on Jan. 11 to March 19. 

Ringling College of Art and Design