2009 Spotlight Award Winners

In case you just emerged from 12 months of living “off the grid,” we’re sorry to be the first to tell you: It’s been a rough year for the arts. (Also: Michael Jackson is dead. Seriously!) Not surprisingly, when the economy takes a dive, so do theater and arts attendance numbers. But it’s not all bad news (don’t go running back to your yurt just yet). Our city remains rich in exciting arts offerings for the fall and beyond. We’ve collected our favorites here—as well as those of a few local arts leaders—and grouped them by personality (in the Fall Arts Calendar) so you can take in the arts according to your ever-changing moods. We’re also thrilled to present our 3rd annual Spotlight Award winners—five up-and-coming, peer-recommended local artists whose work we had the true pleasure of experiencing in the last year, and who we believe are on the brink of tremendous achievements. That should be plenty to keep you out of the woods and into the arts.

Filmmaker Bao Tran busts stereotypes on screen

Dancer Ellie Sandstrom takes moving and shaking to the max

Poet Karen Finneyfrock is queen of the spoken word

Actor Ray Tagavilla steals the show on small stages

Artist Kristen T. Ramirez prioritizes place