Jay Handelman | Leaving Sarasota Herald-Tribune, planning new outlet
As shared with ATCA members in the August 13, 2025 THE UPDATE newsletter, colleague Jay Handelman has decided to shift his professional homebase from his long-term home at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune for an outlet he is developing. He has no plans to leave his continuing work on several ATCA committees and initiatives.
Handelman has worked as theater critic at the Herald-Tribune since 1986, and has accepted a buyout from the newspaper’s parent company Gannett. He will be leaving that job on September 5.
He has been the newspaper’s arts editor since 2016 and spent a decade as TV Critic and TV editor. He began his career as a reporter and editor in the Washington, D.C. bureau of United Press International, before moving to Sarasota in 1984 as assistant city editor. He was named the newspaper’s first full-time theater critic in March 1986. Over the years, he has written thousands of reviews of professional and community theater shows, profiles of a wide variety of artists, and many stories about the business of the arts in a community that bills itself as Florida’s Cultural Capital. He has witnessed the growth of the arts, particularly the theater, in the community and wrote frequently about new companies in need of attention from potential audiences. He has received numerous awards for his writing. He reflects on his extensive career covering the arts scene in Florida in a May 2025 interview.
Jay served four terms on the ATCA Executive Committee, including four years as chair (1994-1996 and 2011-2013), and two terms (2002-2005 and 2013-2025) as president of Foundation ATCA., where he remains a member of the Foundation board.
Jay plans to continue covering the arts and writing reviews on a new platform under development.
– Submitted by Martha Wade Steketee based on reportage shared with ATCA members
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