July arts: “Predictor” at Powerstories, “Art in the Air” in Westshore, Tampa Archives Awareness, more

July is a big month for Powerstories Theatre’s new Executive Artistic Director Clareann Despain. 

As Powerstories’ 2026 season picks up steam, she’ll oversee her first production as executive director, playwright Jennifer Blackmer’s “Predictor,” which tells the story of Margaret “Meg” Crane, inventor of the home pregnancy test. Despain, Powerstories’ artistic director since the start of 2024,  took the reins as executive director in late March. The first few months on the job haven’t been dull.

“It’s exciting, it’s thrilling, it’s terrifying, and I’m loving every minute of it,” Despain says.

Powerstories founder Fran Powers formed the theater company in 2000 as an outlet for women-led productions that tell the often untold stories of women’s contributions to history and the personal stories of contemporary women.  After more than 25 years leading Powerstories, she passed the torch to Despain, her hand-picked successor.

“She’s retired from the role of executive director, not from being involved, not from being a vital force in our community, and not from being a creative being who has lots to offer,” Despain says of Powers. “She’ll never retire from those things.”

Despain has decades of theater experience. She’s directed a laundry list of local productions and worked in theater management across the Tampa Bay area and the country. She’s worked in community theater, with Stageworks, and served as the producing artistic director of the Straz Center’s Produced series in the Jaeb Theatre. In addition to her theater bona fides, Despain is committed to Powerstories’ mission. 

“I feel like when Fran started this company years ago, she built something for me,” she says. “If she had known me then and had me in mind, she couldn’t have done any better. They have built something that feels like a gift for me. I was always the little girl who wanted to know about what the women did. What are girls doing? How are women contributing? Where are my leaders? Where are my role models? So I’ve always hunted stories of exceptional women and day-to-day women who make a difference. Because when you begin to scratch the surface of women’s history, you learn day-to-day women sure make a huge difference.”

Despain is also focused on promoting and growing the Powerstories program providing sponsored tickets to local nonprofits for free. THrough the program, which Despain has named STAGE, supporters have helped provide tickets to MacDill Air Force Base, Project Return, PFLAG, and Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.

“It has always been part of Powerstories mission to give away tickets to nonprofits and to folks who can’t access theater another way,” Despain says. “When I first came on board, I said, ‘This is amazing! I had no idea. Let’s give it a name. We’ve gotta let people know that this is happening so they can reach out if they want tickets, or contact us if they want to sponsor them.’”

“Predictor” runs July 17th through 19th and 23rd through 26th at Stageworks Theatre in Tampa’s Channel District. Crane, the play’s real-life protagonist, will make two special appearances during the second weekend of the run: a meet-and-greet before the July 24th 7 p.m. show and a talkback session after the 2 p.m. show on the 25th. 

“As soon as Meg found out we were doing the play, she said, ‘I’m coming!” Despain says. “We’re over the moon.” 

As for the rest of the 2026 season, Powerstories will present a staged reading of playwright Joe DiPietro’s “Conscience” from August 14th-16th at Stageworks. “Conscience” tells the story of Margaret Chase Smith, the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress and the first senator who publicly rebuked Sen. Joseph McCarthy for his false and public accusations that communists had infiltrated the government, film industry, and other American institutions.

In October, Powerstories will cross the bridge to Pinellas County for a second year in a row to present a show in collaboration with St. Petersburg’s The Studio@620. Their production of Kelundra Smith’s “The Wash,” a play inspired by the Atlanta washerwomen’s strike of 1881, is at The Studio@620 October 1st through 11th.  

The season wraps with a Powerstories holiday tradition, Fran Powers’s musical “Raising Twelve on a Nickel and a Prayer,” which runs December 16th through 20th at Hillsborough College’s Studio Theatre on the Ybor City campus.

For more information, go to Powerstories Theatre

Westshore Alliance’s “Art in the Air”

The Westshore Alliance’s banner art display “Art in the Air” is up and on view along Boy Scout Boulevard between West Shore Boulevard and Dale Mabry Highway. On view until early September, “Art in the Air” features 35 banners adorned with artwork by 15 local professional artists and several student artists from the MacDonald Training Center. The artwork depicts sights and scenes around Tampa Bay: a waterfront sunset, shorebirds, tropical plants, docked boats, historic Ybor City, and more.

The Westshore Alliance is also accepting entries for its  World Photography Day photo contest through July 31st. Contestants may submit up to five photographs. Entries must be photos taken within the boundaries of the Westshore District.  Winners will be announced on World Photography Day (August 19).

For more information, go to Art in the Air and World Photography Day contest

Tampa Bay Archives Awareness Week events 

Tampa Archives Awareness Week, the annual exploration of the city’s history, runs July 12th-18th with exhibits, programs, tours, and other events at the Tampa Bay History Center, Henry B. Plant Museum, Sacred Heart Church, Tampa International Airport, USF Libraries Special Collections, J.C. Newman Cigar Company, Robert W. Saunders, Sr. Library, C. Blythe Andrew, Jr Public Library, and John F. Germany Library.

The City of Tampa, Tampa General Hospital, and Tampa Firefighters Museum also have online documents or events.

For more information and a full schedule of events, go to Archives Awareness Week 

“Mapping the 14th Colony” at Tampa Bay History Center

“Mapping the 14th Colony: British Florida and the American Revolution is on display at the Tampa Bay History Center through November 29th.

As the title indicates, the exhibit explores Florida’s role during the American Revolution.

“While the original 13 American British colonies joined the fight for independence, East Florida and West Florida remained loyal to the British crown,” a description of the History Center website says. In ‘Mapping the 14th “Colony: British Florida and the American Revolution,’ visitors can explore the history of the British Floridas from their transfer from Spain to Great Britain in 1763 through the Revolution and their return to Spain under the 1783 Treaty of Paris. Featuring dozens of original maps and charts, this exhibit offers a fresh look for America250 at a surprising chapter of history and reveals the place of the Florida colonies in the nation’s founding story. From loyalists in St. Augustine to the capture of Mobile and Pensacola by the Spanish in support of the revolutionary cause, Florida’s role during the American Revolution is a fascinating, if often overlooked, part of the story.”

For more information, go to Mapping the 14th Colony

St. Pete galleries’ Venezuelan earthquake relief fundraiser

Neighboring St. Petersburg contemporary art galleries ARTicles and D-Gallerie are hosting a fundraiser for Venezuelan earthquake relief at 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 11th.  

The “Art Solidarity for Venezuela” exhibit and silent auction will feature artwork donated by local and international artists. All auction proceeds, 10 percent of event-night sales at ARTicles, and 10 percent of sales in July at D-Gallerie will be donated to the Carlos Carrasco Foundation. The foundation, which veteran MLB pitcher Carlos Carrasco and his wife, Karelis, lead, is supporting immediate on-the-ground humanitarian and community relief efforts in Venezuela, a press release says. The fundraiser, at 1234 Dr. MLK Jr. St. N., is presented in partnership with local Venezuelan restaurant Carupano Kitchen.

For more information, go to D-Gallerie

FMoPA fundraiser, anniversary exhibit

From 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, July 18th, the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts (FMoPA) “Ybor Gangster Speakeasy” fundraiser will feature author Paul Wilborn reading excerpts from his new book, “The Everlasting Life of Charlie Wall,” the story of the 1955 bludgeoning and murder of the Tampa crime boss in his Ybor home. Tickets are $50 until July 11th, when they rise to $60.

The anniversary exhibit “Exposure: 25 Years of FMoPA,” which showcases pieces from the museum’s permanent collection, runs July 23rd through December 6th. “Exposure” features work by well-known international photographers such as Sally Mann, Nan Goldin, and Martin Parr, as well as local artists like Bud Lee, Selina Roman, and the late David Hall. A 25th anniversary celebration is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 25th. 

Also at FMoPA, the 2026 International Photography Competition exhibition is on display in Gallery 2 through August 2nd.  The FMoPA website also has an online exhibition.

For more information, go to FMoPA 

“Oh, Cuore Mia” at Tempus Projects

Tempus Projects’ summer group exhibition “Oh, Cuore Mia” is on display July 16th-September 17th at the Tempus gallery in Ybor City's Kress Contemporary. The exhibit is a celebration of the historic, yet ever-changing Ybor and features work from19 artists: Abby Araniego, Todd Bates, Ryan Cahanin, Heidi Clapp-Temple, Chris Coxwell, Suzanne Camp Crosby, Dave Decker, William Downs, FAX 727-289-3069, Kendra Gaunt, Joe Griffith, John Gurbacs, Latonya Hicks, Micheal Hooker, Michael Jones, Luca Molnar, Anat Pollack, Matthew Drennan Wicks, and Theo Wujick. Artwork and “vintage ephemera” from private collections will also be on exhibit.  

For $20, there’s an exhibit preview fundraiser from  6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on July 11th. The opening reception is 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on July 16th.  There will also be Exhibit-related programming by writer and musician Paul Wilborn, artist Jon Seals, and Palimpsest Book Studio, dates TBD.  

For more information, go to Tempus Projects

America250 exhibits, artist projects 

The Woodson African American Museum of Florida, Pinellas County’s Heritage Village history museum and park, and arts organization Creative Pinellas have America250 exhibits and initiatives in the works. 

Through a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum on Main Street initiative and Florida Humanities, The Woodson and Heritage Village are each hosting a traveling version of the Smithsonian’s “Many Voices, One Nation” exhibit.

At Heritage Village, the exhibit “Many Voices, One Nation: Stories of Democracy in Our Parks” uses historic photographs, personal stories, interactive experiences, and community perspectives to celebrate local heritage and help tell the larger American story, a Heritage Village Facebook post says.  The exhibit opens during an 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 11th event celebrating the museum’s 50th anniversary and the country’s 250th. 

For more information, go to Heritage Village

The Woodson is holding a grand reopening ceremony at noon on July 11th to mark the completion of a six-month renovation project. The Woodson’s America250 exhibit, “Many Voices, One Nation: Our Community,” will also open in July.

For more information, go to The Woodson

Creative Pinellas has selected six Pinellas County artists to receive National Endowment for the Arts grants supported with America250 funding.

Artist Kirk Ke Wang's art installation honoring Chinese-American horticulturist Lue Gim Gong, dubbed “The Citrus Wizard” for saving the Florida citrus industry, will be unveiled at 11:30 a.m. July 11th during the Heritage Village anniversary celebration. “The Citrus Wizard” unveiling event will also include a cultural performance by Rebecca John and Riona John and one by Baozheng Li and Zhaorui Sun.  

From 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on August 1, artist Vanessa Cunto’s “Paths Like Past” exhibition opens at ARTicles Gallery and Fine Art Services in St. Petersburg. The exhibition features large-format drawings that explore “the intersection of nature and human impact in shaping the future identity of the United States,” according to a Creative Pinellas description.

From 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on August 28th at St. Pete City Theatre, Dave and Heather Hamar present “The Women of my Life,” an evening of original music and personal storytelling that will include the debut of a song crafted in collaboration with 25 Pinellas residents that explores the country’s past, present, and future.  

In addition to those grant-funded projects, filmmaker, writer, theatrical director, and producer Erica Sutherlin is working on a film, and Colombian-born filmmaker Felipe Zamudio is making a documentary. Both will debut in the fall. 

For more information, go to Creative Pinellas America250 grants

“ONE  BY ONE” at FloridaRAMA

“ONE BY ONE,” a free gallery exhibit curated by St. Pete artist Luke Heath, is on display at FloridaRAMA in St. Pete’s Warehouse Arts District through August 2nd.

The exhibit features 144 original 12″ x 12″ works by 72 artists from the Tampa Bay region and beyond.  From 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, July 18th, Heath will moderate a free panel discussion featuring local arts leaders John Gascot, Regan McCreight, Lance Rothstein, and Kirsten Hutchings.  

ADA celebration at Straz

At 7 p.m. on July 24, the Straz Center for the Performing Arts, in collaboration with the Mayor’s Alliance for Persons with Disabilities and Hillsborough County Alliance for Citizens with Disabilities, will celebrate the 36th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with an evening of entertainment and community advocate recognition awards. 

The event is free, but registration is required

“The Art of Banksy” at Straz Center

“The Art of Banksy,” the world’s largest authenticated privately-held collection of Banksy’s work, is on display in the Straz Center’s Morsani Hall from July 31st through August. The collection features more than 160 pieces worth a combined $35 million.

For more information and to purchase tickets, go to Art of Banksy