CARBONELL AWARDS Names MICHELLE F. SOLOMON as Winner of Charlie Cinnamon Award 2026
The Floridant/10345572

BOCA RATON, Fla. - Floridant -- (South Florida – August 11, 2026) Gary Schweikhart, board president of the Carbonell Awards, South Florida's Theater & Arts Honors, today announced the recipient of the fifth of nine Special Awards that will be presented at the 49^th annual Carbonell Awards Ceremony on Monday, November 16, at 7:30 pm at FAU's University Theatre in Boca Raton 33431.

"While we will be honoring specific people and productions in 20 competitive categories from approximately 100 shows presented between September 2025 and August 2026, the Carbonell board of directors has unanimously voted to also bestow this Special Award," said Schweikhart.

The Charlie Cinnamon Award 2026

For Outstanding Support of South Florida Theatre & the Carbonell Awards

Michelle F. Solomon

As the editor of Artburstmiami (http://artburstmiami.com) and miamiartzine.com and theater critic for Artburstmiami, Michelle F. Solomon has been instrumental in ensuring comprehensive theater criticism and coverage for local and regional theater companies. She has spent her career chronicling the arts as a performer, journalist, editor, and on television as a reporter and producer. She began her journalism career as a theater critic and arts writer after earning a bachelor's degree from Emerson College, Boston, with majors in theater and mass communication and a master's degree from the State University of New York. She went on to become arts editor/writer at major newspapers, including the Albany Times Union and the Detroit Free Press. She then joined NBC affiliate WDIV-TV in Detroit as an on-air entertainment reporter and managing editor of New Media before serving as executive producer of New Media at ABC affiliate WPLG-Local 10 in Miami, where, among other special projects, she created the syndicated original true-crime podcast The Florida Files. Her theater reviews and feature stories are regularly republished by The Miami Herald, el Nuevo Herald, and other publications. Solomon also serves as a Carbonell judge and is assistant professor in the Department of Communication, Media and the Arts at Nova Southeastern University, where she teaches digital storytelling, television, and video production.

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According to Brooke Noble at Actors' Playhouse, "At a time when arts coverage is increasingly scarce, Michelle Solomon has become one of the most important champions of our cultural community… She doesn't simply review productions; she tells the stories behind them. She takes the time to learn about the people, the process and the purpose… She shows up. She listens. She celebrates the successes of others. And she works tirelessly to elevate the arts in South Florida.".

Attached Image:

Michelle F. Solomon

(Photo courtesy of Michelle Solomon)

Available for Interview:

Michelle F. Solomon

artbursteditor@gmail.com

Media Contact:

Gary Schweikhart, President

The Carbonell Board of Directors

561.756.4298 / gary@pr-bs.net