Coconut Grove Arts: A theater festival fights displacement

Gentrification in Coconut Grove has displaced many of the neighborhood's artists, leaving a gap in local cultural life. William Hector is using theater to fill that void. He founded the Coconut Grove Theatre Festival to create a dedicated space for performance, arguing that art serves as a form of resistance to the changing community.

Hector established the festival after studying at the University of Miami in 2015. He was the first student to complete an independent major combining politics, philosophy, economics, and playwriting. This academic background shaped his approach to building institutional structures from the ground up. He sought to create opportunities in theater that did not previously exist in the area.

The need for the festival arose after the Playhouse closed in 2006. For nearly two decades, the Grove lacked a consistent venue for staged works. Hector spent the final two years organizing a response to this cultural silence. He pitched the idea to Irene Munroe, a board member of the Women’s Club of Coconut Grove and a longtime friend.

Munroe initially agreed to stage a single play. The scope expanded during their discussions to include eight different productions. The first festival took place in May 2025 at the historic Women’s Club on South Bayshore Drive. More than 700 people attended the event, which featured original works by South Florida playwrights, directors, and actors.

Hector organized the event by raising nearly $40,000 in a few months. He contacted every business in the Grove to secure sponsorships and build local support. He framed the festival as a benefit to the neighborhood by promoting accessibility and public space. "It encourages the audiences to come to the festival but also to eat, to shop, to stay in the Grove… so it’s not just one event but a whole ecosystem, building culture and community," Hector said.

Victoria Collado, a director for the festival, noted that Hector’s work requires precise planning. She recalled how he could revise scripts with exact timing. She described reading his piece G7: 2070, an immersive work set in future Miami, as discovering a fully imagined universe. "I didn’t get a play," Collado said. "I got an immersive novel… he really built an entire universe for you."

The festival is scheduled to return for its third year from April 19 to May 2, 2026. The upcoming season will feature fresh, original work. Hector aims to inspire local youth to participate in theater. The programming will include short plays, readings, dinner theater, outdoor performances, and children’s matinees.