Episode 115 with Tony Spiridakis, Founder & Executive Director of the North Fork Art Center

Today on the podcast, we sit down with Tony Spiridakis, screenwriter, director, and the founder and executive director of the North Fork Art Center. Tony’s story is one of vision, persistence, and a deep belief in the power of art to shape and uplift a community.

We talk about what first brought him out to the North Fork, how that led to the founding of the Manhattan Film Institute, and how a long-standing dream took shape: to breathe new life into the historic Greenport Theatre. What began as an idea became a movement—a nonprofit, a million-dollar fundraising effort, and, finally, the reopening of the space as the North Fork Art Center.

Now a year in, Tony shares how the center has blossomed, welcoming world-class performances like the Brooklyn Ballet, premiering his feature film Ezra at the beautifully restored Sapan Theatre, and creating a vibrant space where education, film, music, and live performance all come together.

We look back on the center’s first year and ahead to what’s coming this summer and beyond: exciting new events, expanded educational offerings, and a continued commitment to the role of the arts in our community and across the country.