The Levitt AMP Ocala Music Series will return in April after being postponed last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Marion Cultural Alliance, in partnership with the City of Ocala, was awarded the Levitt AMP grant to host a fourth consecutive year. Staff members worked with the Levitt Foundation and artists from the 2020 lineup to bring back the series this year.
The series will return April 16 to June 25 (excluding May 28 for Memorial Day), from 7 to 9 p.m. and features 10 free, family-friendly concerts to the public every Friday night. Concerts will take place at Webb Field at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Complex, located at 1510 N.W. Fourth St.
In the event of inclement weather, the concerts will move indoors to the E.D. Croskey Recreation Center, which now features improved acoustics and sound absorption through the installation of a functional art piece called “Patchwork Parable.”
The series will feature a diverse lineup of high-caliber talent spanning a variety of musical genres. Each concert also will spotlight a local nonprofit organization that will conduct a special activity or performance during the intermission.
Food will be available for purchase at each concert. Blankets and chairs are encouraged. The series will also reflect safety measures through socially distanced seating areas across the field. Sanitation stations and procedures to sanitize high-touch areas will take place throughout the series.
“The activation of Webb Field through the Levitt AMP Ocala Music Series has brought investment to the surrounding historic neighborhoods and is catalyst to creating one of the city’s three cultural arts hubs on the west side of Ocala,” said Laura Walker, Cultural Arts and Sciences division head.
“Marion Cultural Alliance is proud to partner with the city to bring back the Levitt AMP Ocala Music Series in 2021,” said Jaye Baillie, executive director of the Marion Cultural Alliance. “This series has reimagined and injected new life into the historic Webb Field with 10 weeks of free concerts. The diverse lineup features acclaimed, emerging talent to seasoned, award-winning artists on the local, regional and nation circuits ensuring access to high-caliber performances.”
For information, vending or sponsorship, visit please www.ocalafl.org/levittamp or contact City of Ocala Cultural Arts at artinfo@ocalafl.org or (352) 629-8447. To learn more about the Levitt AMP series, visit the Levitt Foundation website at www.levittamp.org.