John Davis

Fort Myers

Host, Reporter and Assistant News Director at WGCU Public Media

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Articles

15th annual Fort Myers Film Festival preview

1 month ago | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

The red carpet rolls out again next week for the 15th annual Fort Myers Film Festival, which runs May 14 – 18. Over the course of the five-day event, attendees will get the chance to experience a wide variety of feature films, short films and documentaries from filmmakers here in Southwest Florida and from around the world.
“Venus in Fur” at the Florida Rep. explores power and dominance through the lens of sex and intimacy

1 month ago | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

Florida Repertory Theatre in downtown Fort Myers is presenting a production of playwright David Ives provocative, sexy and witty comedy drama “Venus in Fur,” through May 18. With plenty of risqué humor, this one-act play deftly explores male and female power dynamics through the lens of sex and intimacy.
The Naples Players makes theater accessible to all

2 months ago | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

As April marks Autism Awareness Month, Autism Acceptance Month and World Autism Month, we explore how The Naples Players works to make theater accessible to neurodivergent audiences and performers. Such efforts include special relaxed performances of all their mainstage shows.
“The Business of Murder” at Players Circle Theater inspired by a true story

2 months ago | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

Players Circle Theater is mounting a production of the enduring psychological thriller “The Business of Murder,” April 15 – May 11. The play premiered in 1981 at Theatre Royal in Windsor and ran for nearly a decade in the West End. Revenge and manipulation are central themes to this murder mystery fraught with psychological tension, twists and turns. We explore the show in a conversation with Bill Taylor, who makes his Players Circle Theater directorial debut with this production.
Blues musician/instrument maker James “Super Chikan” Johnson

2 months ago | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

For more than 20 years, James “Super Chikan” Johnson has performed with an all-female backing band, “The Fighting Cocks.” The self-taught, Clarksdale, Mississippi based musician has performed at festivals across the country and internationally. His debut album “Blues Come Home to Roost” came out in 1997, and he’s recorded nine subsequent albums, including his latest, “From Hill Country to Mississippi Delta Blues,” recorded with collaborator Terry “Harmonica” Bean.
Mutantrumpet inventor Ben Neill on AI and the future of music

Mar 27, 2025 | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

Internationally-acclaimed composer, performer, inventor, educator, and author Ben Neill comes to the Bob Rauschenberg Gallery for a special concert event, March 27, through the ArtSPEAK@FSW lecture series at Florida Southwestern State College in Fort Myers. Neill is the inventor of the Mutantrumpet, which is a hybrid electro-acoustic instrument with three trumpet bells, a trombone slide, two sets of valves along with electronic elements. He began developing the instrument in the early 1980s.
Gulf Coast Symphony’s 30th Anniversary Concert features premiere of symphonic work by local young composer Frazar Henry

Mar 20, 2025 | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

The Gulf Coast Symphony’s upcoming 30th anniversary concert celebration will include the premiere performance of a new symphonic work titled, “Seas of Glass,” written by young composer and multi-instrumentalist Frazar Henry. Gulf Coast Symphony Music Director Maestro Andrew Kurtz commissioned Henry to compose the piece specifically for a premiere at the 30th anniversary concert, March 30, at the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall.
Alliance for the Arts hosts a four-day Storytelling Festival

Mar 13, 2025 | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

The Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers is hosting a four-day family-friendly storytelling festival March 13 – 16. The event includes storytelling performances covering a wide variety of subjects and genres including tall tales, heartfelt narratives, folk tales, ghost stories and even storytelling through dance with a performance by Dance Bouchette. Ahead of Thursday’s opening reception, we’ll get a preview with two of the festival’s headliners Paul Strickland and Erika MacDonald.
Players Circle Theater performs comedic play “Flatlanders”

Mar 6, 2025 | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

Players Circle Theater in Fort Myers will soon open a production of multi-award-winning playwright Bruce Graham’s comedic play “Flatlanders.” It’s the story of a middle-aged couple, Michael and Ronnie, on the way to their wedding in the Pocono Mountains when they wind up stranded in a blizzard and must resort to breaking into a cabin to survive the night. This will mark just the second production of the play, ever after it premiered in Philadelphia in 2024.
Encore conversation with playwright Steven Dietz as Florida Rep. performs his time travel love story “Bloomsday”

Feb 27, 2025 | news.wgcu.org | John Davis

Florida Repertory Theatre’s production of playwright Steven Dietz’s time-travel love story “Bloomsday,” approaches its final weekend of performances. The play tells the story of an American man who returns to Dublin, Ireland to find the woman who captured his heart 35 years prior. The four actors in the play depict Robbie and Caithleen at the age of 20, and those same characters at the age of 55 (who then go by Robert and Cait).