{"id":409596,"date":"2026-09-24T20:23:06","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T20:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/409596\/"},"modified":"2026-09-24T20:23:06","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T20:23:06","slug":"photos-after-powerful-city-council-presentation-tampa-city-ballet-raises-funds-at-black-tie-gala","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/409596\/","title":{"rendered":"Photos: After powerful city council presentation, Tampa City Ballet raises funds at black-tie gala"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AnPaul Nu\u00f1ez at Palma Ceia Country Club in Tampa, Florida on Sept. 18, 2026. Credit: Dave Decker \/ Creative Loafing Tampa Bay<\/p>\n

Tampa City Ballet<\/a>\u2019s roots go all the way back to 2002 when founder Paula Nu\u00f1ez and her husband opened her dance studio in New Tampa with just three students.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On Sept. 17 at city hall, Nu\u00f1ez, a Venezuelan immigrant who\u2019s been in the Bay area for 24 years, was at Tampa City Council presenting her vision for the future of dance in Tampa<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the center of everything we do is Tampa, its people, its history, and its future,\u201d Nu\u00f1ez said, reminding councilmembers and the chamber that artists need to be able to train in the Bay area, perform, and live.<\/p>\n

Two dozen years after founding the company, TCB has seen its students go on to American Ballet Theater, Hamburg Ballet, Houston Ballet, Orlando, and Ballet X. TCB now produces more than 20 performances each season across 15 venues; 30% of the performances are free and open to the public.<\/p>\n

But Nu\u00f1ez said the kind of training available at Tampa City Ballet cannot be reserved for families that can afford it.<\/p>\n

\u201cTalent has not to do with a family\u2019s income or a zip code,\u201d she told city council, adding that through collaboration with the Prodigy Cultural Arts Program and Mort Elementary, TCB has brought free after-school ballet classes directly into Title 1 schools \u201cOur goal is to have 300 students in the Hillsborough County Public School System enroll in free ballet classes within the next two years.\u201d<\/p>\n

The night after Nu\u00f1ez\u2019s presentation to city council, Tampa City Ballet staged a black-tie \u201cAn Evening in the Secret Garden\u201d gala and auction at Palma Ceia Golf & Country Club.<\/p>\n

On Oct. 2, TCB will devote a night of dance to relief and rebuilding efforts in Venezuela, and on select nights between Oct. 3-17, the company will stage \u201cLa Septima,\u201d a story about Ybor City that finds TCB taking over four stories of the Cuban Club.<\/p>\n

All photos by Dave Decker<\/p>\n

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\"AnPaul Nu\u00f1ez at Palma Ceia Country Club in Tampa, Florida on Sept. 18, 2026. Credit: Dave Decker \/ Creative Loafing Tampa Bay<\/p>\n

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Pitch in to help make the Tampa Bay Journalism Project a success.<\/a><\/p>\n

Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.<\/a><\/p>\n

Follow us:\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0BlueSky<\/a><\/p>\n

This article appears in Sept. 24 \u2013 30, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n

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