The MTB crew, augmented by our friend Doug Mazanec (AKA InfoMan), went back to their old stomping grounds at Talkies Friday September 22nd to talk with James Levin. Most of us around here know James best for his work with Cleveland Public Theatre, but we really need to get to know him as the driving force behind the Ingenuity Festival, now planning in its third year of providing the unique showcasing of talent that’s putting Cleveland back on the map. You must listen to this podcast to find how we’ve already outdistanced other productions like this in other cities, and how The Ingenuity Festival is creating the synergies we’ve hoped for for years.
James is an engaging guy capable of some high-quality entertainment, and our conversation ranged over the Ingenuity Festival (IF), MTB and the Voices and Choices booth, artist William Higgins, the age composition/makeup of the IF attendees, being ambushed by road closures and RTA mess, Clear Channel, San Jose and the Silicon Valley festivals, Ripon, the “interactive installation� at 621 Prospect, the 2007 IF at Playhouse Square, IdeaStream, Denis Leary’s rip, good neighborhood/bad neighborhood, “ a V-ish L�, the IF electronic application at www.ingenuitycleveland.com due November 1st, waived fees for worthy but strapped entrants, awards and grants of very generous proportions, stipends of $5,000/10,000/20,000, the panel making the selections, “stakeholding institutions,� The Fringe Festival, The Grand Festival, Spoleto, Thomas Mulready, an “atoms & molecules� concept, ZeroOne in San Jose, Steve Dees with light and fog, the Walker Museum, The Wired Festival in NYC, Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) in 1983, Brookside Park, Shakespeare at the Zoo, paying artists, validating professionalism, compensating for time, December 15th ticket sales, a sense of being on a mission from God, having the Karma be just right, being in the zone, “An Icon of the New Cleveland,� “a city of innovation,� biotech, Boston, New York, San Francisco, an Intel City, Cleveland’s density, the Drum Circle, Dave Gilbert, WCPN, WVIZ, IdeaStream, state of the art, Tom Furnas, the eHatchery, OneCleveland, the Playhouse Square Foundation, synergy, networks, and establishing trust. Listen to find how Cleveland is preeminent in this sort of production, and how the Ingenuity Festival is the catalyst for a prosperous regional future. Get aboard now, because the train’s leaving the station November 1st, even though the IF isn’t staged until next summer. James Levin is our conductor, providing the leadership and the energy this region needs. All you need do is witness the explosive growth of CPT, and you’ll be able to divine what the future holds with the IF.
Other topics from this point on are Gary Galbreath and telecom dance, Shaker Heights High in 1971, a law degree, University of Michigan, Case, NYC and Café LaMaMa, off-off-Broadway, stickball on the streets of New York, Dario D’Ambrosi, the garment district, The Passion of the Christ, “chief flagellator,� getting us all moving in the same direction, Dick Clough, Riverfest, Alice Tucker, gospel singing, Rich Weiss, CFO Christy, the United Church of Christ, and classical music.
If you want to start feeling good again about the future of Cleveland, listen to this podcast now. All aboard.
Part 1. Time: 10.37
Part 2. Time: 13.26
Part 3. Time: 13.11
Part 4. Time: 14.19
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