At Portland Ovations’ annual auction – called POP! – it’s safe to expect seemingly random pop-up performances from groups as diverse as the Maine Squeeze accordion players, Maine Marimba Ensemble and Circus Conservatory of America.
“I like the variety of performances here because it kind of reflects the variety of performances we offer,” said Portland Ovations board member Jim Morgan. “And I like the food. The restaurants are part of the arts community as much as what happens on stage, and Portland is very much into the art of eating.”
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POP! is an event where southern Maine’s strong arts, culinary and business communities come together. Ten restaurants contributed tastings – including salmon, scallop and corn cakes from David’s, sweet potato hash from Personal Touch Catering and sea salt caramels from Dean’s Sweets.
Nearly 300 people attended, raising almost $40,000 for Ovations Offstage.The auction also supports Ovations’ preconcert lecture series, multi-day residency programs and teacher workshops focused on incorporating the arts in classrooms.
“This is what you want – a community that cares about the arts, wants to give and is willing to clap for people making new work,” said Gretchen Berg, director of Ovations Offstage, which connects about 10,000 Maine youths with the arts each year.
“It could be more,” said Mary Campbell, director of development. “I would love it to be more.”
However, Campbell said, an anonymous donor from Portland has contributed a significant amount of money that gives every student in the city exposure to the arts through Portland Ovations, Portland Stage, Portland Museum of Arts and Portland Symphony.
“This means that all the kids in Portland will be exposed to the major cultural institutions in Portland,” said Campbell, emphasizing the importance of private contributions in these years of declining school budgets.
Amy Paradysz is a freelance writer from Scarborough. She can be contacted at:
amyparadysz@gmail.com
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