Arts Alive! podcast: The Florida Orchestra

This week on Arts Alive! we’re celebrating The Florida Orchestra, with President and CEO Ignacio Barrón Viela, along with Music Director Michael Francis.

A good deal of the conversation concerns the 59th season, which began Oct. 2 and will continue, with classical concerts, pops concerts, film score presentations and more, through May 2027.

Both Barrón Viela and Francis enthuse about the variety of programming in this (and every) TFO season, as well as the special daytime concerts for young people and the varied performances that take place outside the concert hall.

We also talk about the proposed agreement between TFO and the City of St. Petersburg, giving the orchestra managerial custodianship of the city-owned Mahaffey Theater. Under the terms of the deal, which must still be approved by City Council, TFO would co-manage with Iowa-based VenuWorks, which operates 60 theaters around the country.

It’s proposed that VenuWorks would book the theater and handle all personnel, property and maintenance concerns, while The Florida Orchestra would have oversight and control over its own Tampa Bay concert schedule – including a season of Saturday nights at the Mahaffey – and use the theater for office and rehearsal space.

Barrón Viela says the expectation is that Council will take up the matter, and hopefully approve it, before the end of 2026. He, Francis and the TFO board have lots of positive plans to unveil.

Click on the arrow to listen to the conversation.