This region is blessed with many world-class cultural institutions, though our devotion to our own individual missions often means that we have little time to work together.

I'd like to publicly voice my gratitude to the Garde Arts Center and Executive Director Steve Sigel, who opened its door to the O'Neill and our National Theater Institute students this week for our training program and rehearsals. With most of our Waterford campus without power or heat, Steve offered his space unconditionally and immediately. It allowed our students - undergraduates from across the nation - to proceed with their curriculum uninterrupted, and the additional joy of working in that beautiful space.

I am also grateful that Steve is one of the organizers in forming a new regional arts council, as this part of Connecticut - one of the richest in cultural institutions - is the only one that lacks a council. I look forward to future and deeper collaborations between all of this region's institutions.