HARRIET HOWARD HEITHAUS

What's in a name? A new name is only one part of the story.

"The definition of Artis is a collective of the arts in Naples," she explained in an interview after the announcement. "The name philharmonic center for the arts focuses one portion of what we really are."

ne of many reasons to love Sheryl Crow: While other female stars slip into new costumes between numbers, she’s more worried about changing her guitars.

When Rachmaninoff is on the program, it’s worth standing in line to get tickets. This weekend, with the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra playing and Rossen Milanov conducting the Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2, it’s worth camping out.

The United Arts Council will offer a helping hand to local organizations by adding a clearinghouse ticket office for local events to its services.

The Collier County Fruit Growers Council is offering the chance to not only green up your yard, but feed your family, this weekend.

Frank Ver Poorten, director of art and culture Flanders House, in New York City, has been named the new director of the Patty and Jay Baker Naples Museum of Art.

Jim George loves choral music. He knows he's not alone in Southwest Florida, and the Fort Myers man has founded Ensemble, a monthly newsletter for those of us who care about all things choral.

WGCU-FM has decided to drop its classical music programming altogether with the advent of Fort Lauderdale-based WNPS-FM into the Southwest Florida market.

There's a rumor there are more Ohioans in Florida in January than in the Buckeye State. If so, the Philharmonic Center's visiting orchestra series has them squarely in its sights: The Cleveland Orchestra opens the series Jan. 27.

Marco Island's cultural leaders want it to be an arts destination, and they mean to literally set the stage — with a theater. The location would be on the property beside the current Marco Island Center for the Arts. The ...

The concert at the Philharmonic Center for the Arts Friday night turned into an exercise class for the audience. Over and over it was jump up, clap hands, shout, sit down, jump up, shout, clap hands, whistle. But exercise is ...

There is a bountiful spread of arts and culture, in price ranges that start at free. If the Russian Imperial Dinner at the Ritz-Carlton, Naples, (7 p.m. May 13, $300 per person) isn't for you, your children can still learn ...

Elton John did not play a concert at Germain Arena Tuesday. He immersed the sold-out house in a three-hour, piano-propelled, light-splashed hit intensive.

Bach never heard his most famous Mass in B minor performed. You can, however.

In the world of celeb­rity advance interviews, there are the stars who snuff out questions. “I’ve been straining my voice and the doctor wants me to rest it.” Give scripted answers. Or simply refuse to talk: “That’s not a sub­ject ...

We all knew Faust was going to Hell at the end of this opera. But the ride was heavenly.

The artist formerly known as — or perhaps he is again — Prince has a song titled "Let's Go Crazy." That's much more succinct than Beethoven's title for his dive off the cliff: String Quartet in F Major, Opus 59, ...

The Philharmonic Center has added two members; Naples Players is offering winter classes for theater hopefuls; last week for that groundbreaking exhibition at the Marco Island Center for the Arts.

The marching orders at the Phil were to go fourth: The Beethoven Piano Con­certo No. 4 and the Brahms Symphony No. 4 in E mi­nor. The Naples Philhar­monic Orchestra, under the direction of Edwin Outwater and with guest artist William ...

Opera Naples and TheatreZone, crewing the legendary Cotton Blossom, brought a top-notch production of "Show Boat" to Naples last weekend.

Tuesday morning, the New York-based Parsons Dance troupe was wading gingerly through Big Cypress National Preserve waters, an unlikely pack of matches for the pyrotechnics. Five of its members were taping a dance that will be seen next Sept. 8 ...

Intriguing bands come and go. What elevates one to classic is an enduring mastery of the musical triumvirate: strong melody, engaging lyrics and audience sensitivity.

Tickets go on sale and class signups start this week for a number of arts events in Southwest Florida.

One of the longest-running — and most-anticipated — free music programs in Collier County is the Hyacinth Series sponsored by Moorings Presbyterian Church. This year, its 19th, the fare ranges from a raft of harps to a pair of international ...

Things are changing fast at the Philhar­monic Center for the Arts. That claim may surprise Kathleen Missall van Ber­gen, the new CEO and president who is at the crux of all the change. To van Bergen, 35, “fast” is cruise ...

The master gardeners of the Collier County Extension Service answer questions every Saturday at the Home Depot store on 1651 S Airport Pulling Road. This Saturday they will offer a short class for orchid lovers and are offering other tips ...

The Philharmonic Center for the Arts says its preseason orchestral concert on Sept. 24 will feature Stuart Chafetz conducting “the top 10 classical works in the world.” Oh, really, Mae­stro?

A 76,700-square-foot building in Fort Myers that was formerly occupied by Robb & Stucky sold for $6.3 million, according to LandQuest Commercial, which represented the seller.

The guard quietly changed at the Naples Philharmonic Center on Thursday with the arrival of Kathleen van Bergen, chosen successor to founder-director CEO Myra Janco Daniels, who has retired after 22 years.

This is not your parents’ — or your — rock ‘n’ roll. In fact, it won’t be your kids’ rock ‘n’ roll, either, when individual performers from some player bands take the makeshift stage at Fleischmann Park’s hall Sept. 10. ...

The Metropolitan Opera rolled out its landmark live, high-definition opera performance series for cinema in 2007. There were five transmitted productions, and opera lovers had to drive to Fort Myers or Miami to see them. This year there are 11. ...

Four Naples Art Association fine art festivals and two Bonita Springs festivals are again on the just-released Sunshine Artist Magazine list of “100 Best Fine Art and Design Shows.”<

Clotilde Otranto, former Naples Philharmonic conductor, will conduct two performances during the world premiere week for the Paul McCartney-Peter Mar­tins collaboration, “Ocean’s Kingdom": two arts contests are looking for artists; and Marco Players has new board members.

It’s a charitable idea you can clink a cup to. In association with Goodness Products, the Naples Art Association this year conducted an art contest as part of its annual ARTScool sum­mer art education program to create art for coffee ...

A sip of ice-chilled grape juice at the Skrede household goes down sweet and rich, yet amazingly clean, with no sticky sensation or bitter aftertaste. The little kid in you envisions how wonderful this stuff would be frozen on a ...

A late-night fun web page, the work of little Rembrandts and a call for artists are among this week's events.

Four Alfred Hitchcock suspense classics — “Psycho,” “Rear Window,” “The Birds” and “Vertigo” — are coming to Silverspot cinema in remastered high-definition ver­sions during August.

Bayshore CAPA Festival of the Arts returns for Year No. 2 nipped and tucked and ready for the swimsuit competi­tion. Organizers announced they have snagged country chanteuse-composer Casey Weston for its featured singer Jan. 28 and the Band of the ...

“While we’re standing around waiting our kids are suffering,” Carrie Wingo said. “We’re going to take it into our own hands, and hopefully we’ll make enough money we can make it into an annual scholarship event.”

Let’s say you’re tearing out the drywall in a couple rooms of your house. That’s a lot of wallboard, and you can’t just dump it into a bag for disposal. Or can you? Waste Management offers a sort of supersized ...

There are songfests, auditions and dinners this week in Southwest Florida.

Design has been spiced up by Taco Bell.

The Philharmonic Center for the Arts starts selling tickets today for a 2011-12 season that reflects a sea change from the “Greatest Generation” to baby boomers as the audience to court here.

Opera Naples has loaded its upcoming 2011-12 season with rich visual icons: a tall-stacked paddlewheeler, a gingerbread house and the devil himself.

Home Front: wallpaper, worst kitchen contest, FPL’s Power Tracker

With the orchestra brass at glass-shattering fanfare, the soprano at high C, all the chariots onstage and a 100-voice chorus in cos­tume, Opera Naples announces, with a drum roll, the hiring of its first full-time managing director, Tom Smith. Well, ...

“Passion and Discovery” are the themes for the Southwest Florida Symphony 2011-12 subscription series announced this week. Look for treats such as an all-British program in January — Sir William Walton, Ralf Vaughn Williams and Edward Elgar — and a ...

Here’s a simple delineator of glass values: Cut glass is assembly line. Etched glass is artistic. J. William Meek, own¬er of the Harmon-Meek Gallery in Naples, knows the difference, and as chair of the upcoming 2011 National Convention of the ...

As the curtain rose to half height and a sea of feet click-click-clicked smartly across the floor, the audience at Sugden Community Theatre cheered. It’s exactly the same reaction the opening gambit of “42nd Street” received when it premiered on ...