Living Arts Festival Sarasota

The Living Arts Festival, organized by the advocacy group Sarasota Rising, coordinates performances and cultural events across the city's major venues. Instead of importing external productions, the multi-day initiative showcases the region's existing resident companies, including collaborative presentations by the Sarasota Ballet, local theater troupes, and classical ensembles. The schedule incorporates mainstage performances alongside street activations and youth arts programs, functioning as a consolidated opening to the cultural season. Planners designed the festival to break down silos between disciplines, encouraging patrons of the visual arts to attend theatrical readings or contemporary dance pieces.