Scene & Heard

+ Art Center bids farewell to ‘iconcept’ whiz
Lisa Berger has put in her two-week resignation at Art Center Sarasota.

If you don’t know Berger, you should.

The development director and marketing maven is partially responsible for reinvigorating the aging Art Center.

Those of you who’ve enjoyed the raucous fun and fashion of the organization’s “iconcept” art-meets-fashion show have Berger to thank for the event.

A fashion designer by trade, Berger has spent the last three years helping buoy the Art Center by creating fresh programming for new artists and young audiences.

Her “iconcept” concept, which featured a controversial striptease this year, has become Sarasota’s must-see fashion show of the season.

So, what’s to become of Berger and her popular fundraiser?

Berger is headed next month to New York City to join the high-end sports apparel company, Ellesse, for which she worked as the director of design 17 years ago.

The company, which recently signed Chris Evert as its spokeswoman, is re-launching its brand this fall with a line of luxury tennis garb, followed by golf, equestrian and ski designs.

Berger, whose last day at the Art Center is Sept. 30, is currently shopping around for an event planner to organize this year’s “iconcept,” which she hopes will get off the ground despite her absence.

“It’s going to be hard to separate from it,” Berger says. “It’s like my baby.”

If anyone out there is interested in adopting Berger’s baby, please contact the Art Center. The show must go on!

+ Asolo Rep cleans out its costume closet
It’s so hard to find a good piece of armor these days.

Thank goodness the Asolo Repertory Theatre is holding a rummage sale.

Well, “rummage sale” might be too lowbrow a term for this costume sale. Some of the pieces are marked as high as $400.

The theater, which will hold its sale from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, at the Asolo Rep Scenic Studios on Tallevast Road, is hawking wardrobes and accessories from “The Imaginary Invalid,” “Ariadne auf Naxos,” “Equus,” “Julius Caesar” and “Oh, What a Lovely War,” to name a few.

According to David Covach, costume shop manager, the event soars in comparison to previous sales. It took him six weeks just to sort through the pieces, many of which were sewn from scratch.

A cast of notable Asolo Rep actors, including David Howard, Doug Jones, Carolyn Michel, Sharon Spelman and Brad Wallace, has worn the costumes.

If you want to impress your buddies on the Halloween party circuit, I suggest picking up the ostrich costume from “Peter Pan.”

No one will ever know it’s you.

+ New addition opens at Ringling’s Museum
The Ringling Museum is keeping true to its roots by adding yet another addition to its beloved Circus Museum.

The new $7.5 million addition to the Tibbals Learning Center will open Sept. 24 in conjunction with Smithsonian National Museum Day, which means admission to all museums is free.

The addition, funded by yet another sizable donation by master circus model builder Howard Tibbals, adds another 24,475 square feet to the Circus Museum.

City of Sarasota Mayor Suzanne Atwell will be on hand to celebrate the completion of the project and the 100th anniversary of John and Mable Ringling’s famous Sarasota property purchase.

Atwell will lead a proclamation ceremony at the Bolger Campiello at the Cà d’Zan mansion.

+ Local author walks the red carpet at Emmys
Sarasota writer Marlene Resnick’s son has done her proud.

Resnick, a children’s book author, just returned from the Creative Emmy Awards, in Los Angeles, where she accompanied her son, Noah Rosenstein, who was nominated for an Emmy for “Outstanding Short-Form Picture Editing” for his work on the 83rd annual Academy Awards.

And Resnick isn’t the only local lady to walk the red carpet at the Emmys.

The Primetime Emmy Awards, which aired Sunday night on FOX, was hosted by “Glee” star Jane Lynch, the wife of former Sarasota psychologist Dr. Lara Embry.