RECURRING EVENTS
Tuesdays & 4th Saturday • 9am-3pm, Gulfport Tuesday Fresh Market, Beach Blvd. below 28th Ave. S. gulfporttuesdayfreshmarket.com
Fridays • 5-9pm, First Friday Art Walk, Downtown Gulfport. A juried event featuring emerging and professional artists. First Friday of every month.
Last Friday • 6-9pm, live music at the John’s Pass Bell Tower, John’s Pass Boardwalk and Shopping Village, 12902 Village Blvd., Madeira Beach
Saturdays • 9am-2pm, St. Petersburg Saturday Morning Market, First Ave. SE and First St., Al Lang Stadium parking lot near the marina. Celebrating community, food, and creativity. October through May.
1st Saturday • 8am Beach Cleanup, Archibald Park,15100 Gulf Blvd. Mad. Beach.
2nd Saturday • 8:30am, Beach Cleanup. TI Waffle House, 11185 Gulf Blvd.
• 5-9pm, St. Pete Artwalk. Artists and gallery owners from 40 studios and galleries in five arts districts show off their latest works. Take the trolley, drive or park and walk. stpeteartsalliance.org/artwalk
3rd Saturday • 5-9pm, Indie Faire, Beach Blvd., Gulfport. Outdoor, socially distanced event in Gulfport features local art, handmade crafts, jewelry, and pottery to locally sourced botanicals.
4th Saturday • Gulfport 4th Saturday Fresh Market 9am-2pm • Pinellas Arts Walk 4-8pm, Pinellas Arts Village Walk, 5600-5800 Park Blvd. (north side), Pinellas Park. Pinellas Park Art Society, Donnelly COVE, Complete Sweet Shoppe, Pompei Factory, Studios @5663, Painting with a Twist, Bottles Pub, and Swartz Gallery.
Sundays • 9am-1pm Indian Shores Sunday Morning Market, Indian Shores Municipal Center, 19305 Gulf Blvd. Local vendors offer everything from gourmet foods to fine art. (November-April). TheBeachMarkets.com. Library Book Sale every third Sunday.
• 10am-2pm/Summer 9am-1pm, Corey Sunday Market, Corey Ave. (74th Ave), St. Pete Beach. Almost a hundred vendors with an emphasis on local fresh, hydroponic and organic veggies, gourmet take-out treats, locally made crafts and live music. (9-1 June – Sept.)
Every other Sunday • 9am-noon, Organic Farming at Eco-Village, 302 15th St. N, St. Pete. Volunteer in a community garden that provides access to fresh organic produce, opportunities for physical activity, connection with nature.
ONGOING
Through Jan. 1 – Enchant
$35+, children $20, hours vary by date, Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg. This 10-acre event features an immersive walk-through light maze created from over 4 million sparkling lights. Enchant also includes a 100-foot-tall holiday tree, an ice-skating trail, live entertainment, Santa visits and a village marketplace with crafts, gifts, festive culinary treats, and holiday cocktails. enchantchristmas.com
Through Jan. 22 – Hamilton
$49-$229, times vary by date, Straz Center, Tampa. With a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B and Broadway, Hamilton has taken the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton and created a musical that has had a profound impact on culture, politics, and education. It has won Tony®, Grammy®, and Olivier Awards, the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and an unprecedented special citation from the Kennedy Center Honors. 800-955-1045 www.strazcenter.org
UPCOMING
Jan. 4 – Andy Offut Irwin
$15, 7pm, Safety Harbor Art & Music Center, 706 Second St. N, Safety Harbor. This famous storyteller, musician, whistler and humorist will treat your ears and tickle your funny bone. The next day, from 2-4pm, Irwin will conduct a workshop ($25) – described as “lawn darts meets Eudora Welty” – at which he will discuss steps for developing personal narrative, freeing participants to delve into the past and “chip away the unmovable stone of self-doubt in order to reveal the treasure of new stories.” For information, call 813-767-4575.
Jan. 6 – The State Ballet Theatre of Ukraine’s “Sleeping Beauty”
$69 and up, 7:30pm, Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg. This bewitching and dark tale comes to life in Andrey Litvinov’s exquisite production. Visually stunning with lavish sets, this superb classical production features Tchaikovsky’s delightful music performed by the Dnipro Philharmonic Orchestra. www.themahaffey.com
Jan. 13-15 – John’s Pass Seafood Festival
Free admission, 2-10pm Fri/10-10 Sat/10am-6pm Sun, John’s Pass Village, 12902 Village Blvd., Madeira Beach. For the last 41 years, the historic John’s Pass Village & Boardwalk in Madeira Beach Florida has become a venue for a large celebration of fresh Gulf seafood – the John’s Pass Seafood Festival. The three-day outdoor event features hundreds of local vendors offering a plethora of seafood, an art and crafts show, live music and various family-friendly activities. Scheduled musical entertainment includes Dracula Parrot, Fusebox, The Black Honkeys, Soul Circus Cowboys, and U2.0.
Jan. 13 – The Rocket Man Show
$46 and up, 7:30pm, Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg. Rus Anderson, the official body double for the Rocket Man himself, performs as the young Elton John in a night of Elton’s greatest hits with spot-on vocals and fierce piano playing in a painstakingly recreated early Elton concert with costumes actually worn by Elton. www.themahaffey.com
Jan. 13 – Let Freedom Ring
Free, 7:30-9pm, Straz Center Riverwalk, Tampa. The Straz Center remembers and honors the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with an evening of gospel music, powerful words of the writings of Dr. King and young voices sharing their hopes and vision.
Jan. 14 – SPACEcraft Final Show
Free, 3-6pm, Creative Pinellas, 12211 Walsingham Road, Largo. The final “deployment” of the traveling art project that has traveled to 13 different open-air venue throughout Pinellas County for more than two years. SPACEcraft activities are led by local artists and educators who share simple, inspiring projects such as seed planting, drum circles, clay sculpture, jewelry making, writing prompts, and more.
Jan.14-15 – Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival: Music Fest 2023
$10-$200 via Eventbrite, 1-9pm, Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, 600 N. Ashley Drive, Tampa. Dru Hill, featuring Mark “Sisqo” Andrews, Tamir “Nokio” Ruffin, and Larry “Jazz” Anthony; and Jazz Funk Soul with Jeff Lorber, Everette Harp and Paul Jackson Jr. are scheduled to perform. The music fest is part of the larger Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival, a family-friendly cultural experience focusing on music, education, economic and social empowerment, and the arts. It begins Jan. 6 and will take place at various locations around the Tampa Bay area. Events will include a 5K run and a VIP reception with cast members of Hamilton. Visit tampablackheritage.org.
Jan. 19-22 – St. Petersburg Power and Sailboat Show
$21/$15 age 15 and under; 10am-6pm Thurs-Fri/10am-7pm Sat/10am-5pm Sunday; Mahaffey Theater Yacht Basin. The largest boat show on the Gulf Coast will gather an impressive selection of the latest powerboats, center consoles, motor yachts, and sailboats in-water and on land. A 40,000-square-foot tent housing all types of marine accessories, electronics, art, and more will keep everyone cool and dry. Boating and fishing seminars will be given by the Annapolis School of Seamanship while kids’ fishing clinics will be provided by Capt. Don Dingman. Advance tickets at https://www.eventspass.com/event/stpeteboatshow?pr=WEB/#/buyTickets%20. No ticket sales onsite.
Jan. 19 & Feb. 11 – Reclamando Our Narrative Writing Series (Sessions 2 & 3)
Free, times and locations vary. In-person and virtual workshop series for the Latinx community to claim their stories, heal and connect, and participate in conversations about race equity, unity, and advocacy. The first session took place Dec. 11. Session 2 (Jan. 19) occurs 7-8pm and is virtual only. Session 3 is Feb. 11, 1:30-4:30pm and is hybrid. Meetings are once a month through May 12. The series is organized by Mi Gente Mi Pueblo. For more information, and to register, visit the Reclamando Our Narrative Writing Series on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/events/1265133814270883/?active_tab=discussion) and scan the QR code.
Jan. 27-Feb. 26 — Blues in The Night
$45-$55/ $25 age 18 and under, 2pm and 7pm, freeFall Theatre Co., 6099 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. This Tony-nominated musical set in a 1948 Chicago hotel that has seen better days interweaves stories of Blues in The Night to evoke the struggle and humor of life, love, and dogged determination to do more than just survive. The drama reveals itself through songs by Bessie Smith, Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer, Alberta Hunter, Harold Arlen, Jimmy Cox, Ida Cox and more. freefalltheatre.com
Jan. 28-29 Pinellas Taco Fest
Free admission, 10am-5pm, England Brothers Park, 5010 81st Ave. N, Pinellas Park. Don’t think just tacos. This second annual family-friendly event will also have spicy food, sauces, salsa and lots more specialty foods.
Jan. 31-Feb. 28 – St. Petersburg Celebration of the Arts
Various venues. This fifth season of the Celebration will have a diverse collection of performances from a spectrum of local artistic talent, from The Florida Orchestra, American Stage, and the One City Chorus to talks on the many expressions of freedom. For a partial list of the dozens of activities planned, visit artsofstpete.com/calendar
Feb. 10 – Cajun Occasion seafood boil fundraiser
$100/$1,500 table/other sponsorships available, 5:30-10:30pm, Bilmar Beach Resort, 10650 Gulf Blvd., Treasure Island. This event offers excellent food and outstanding entertainment to benefit the under-construction Sunny Green Acres rescue for exotic and farm animals. It’s a massive “fais do-do”, with 110 unique vendors and 18 seafood vendors. The evening will include a Gator Bite Sunset Toast, seven-piece New Orleans jazz band Hot Tonic, a DJ, silent auction, games, dancing, and fun! For information, sponsorships, and tickets visit sunnygreenacres.org. Proceeds will go to building habitats, an outdoor pavilion, education programs and conservation efforts.
Feb. 18 – Localtopia 2023
Free admission, 10am-5pm, Williams Park, 330 Second Ave. N, St. Petersburg. Localtopia is St. Pete’s largest “Community Celebration of All Things Local,” showcasing over 300 of our city’s favorite independent businesses and community organizations. It’s been voted “Best Festival” two years in a row in the Tampa Bay Times and has been referred to as “the most St. Pete-esque event a resident or visitor can attend.” Because of the expected large crowds, PLEASE leave the pets at home.