We couldn’t gather in our usual spaces but we could gather outside. Our first in another new series, Performances in Our Parks, featured violinist and composer Daniel Bernard Roumain in a series of pop-up, flatbed truck performances around Portland. Each of these innovative, safely-distanced outdoor experiences featured local Maine artists with Daniel, and on a beautiful, sunny fall day brought us all together to experience the joy of live music in new ways.

And since we couldn’t bring thousands of school students to Merrill for our School Time Performances, we created new ways for students, their teachers and families to engage with theater with the Letter Sized Little Theater Activity Kit, which allowed them to build their own mini-Merrill stage and create their own plays at home.

We didn’t want to lose the beautiful music of end-of-year holiday traditions, so we finished the year with the elegant eight-voiced choral ensemble VOCES8, who shared a beautiful holiday program with us all from their home in Britain, thanks to the local sponsorship of Great Diamond Partners.

‘New Year, New Works’ launched Ovations’ new year with the introductions of our Maine commissioned artists and their new works in development. Culture, music and theater collided in bite sized virtual experiences to move all ages, crafted by world-renowned educator and performer Paige Hernandez in Paige and Friends!. Five Days with Step Afrika! filled our screens and classrooms with percussive dance styles practiced by historically Black colleges and universities. And Maine musician Samuel Jamesinterwove music, performance, Black American history and a few life lessons in a virtual multimedia tale, the Story of Tiny Bill McGraw for audiences young and old.

Performances in Our Parks returned with Ice Dance International’s Solstice at Thompson’s Point. This family friendly piece took the audience on an adventure in a magical winter wonderland. Families gathered in the cold fresh air with hot chocolates in hand, to take in these special performances, and even had the chance to virtually meet two-time United States Ladies Champion skater Alissa Czisny, as she shared the secrets to her spectacular spins and a career on the ice.

Our partnership with Indigo Arts Alliance continued with Seeking Resonance: Toward Being Future Beings, a sweeping virtual conversation on contemporary art making with a dynamic group of North American Indigenous artists, including renowned Yup’ik artist and choreographer Emily Johnson who will return to Portland Ovations to continue development of her newest performance. At the end of the month, POP 90 celebrated Ovations’ 90th year and brought us back to the Merrill stage with a dynamic virtual/live benefit event featuring artists and performances live, from the stage to your homes.

April was Ovations’ International Month. We took a tour of the world with two unique virtual programs bringing far-flung artists – and their favorite recipes – directly to you. One Night of globalFEST, generously sponsored by Coffee by Design, gave audiences the opportunity to experience extraordinary artists from all over the globe, while the Fauré Quartett joined us from Germany, offering their favorite recipes for guacamole and piña coladas as we made important connections between food and culture.