Arts & Entertainment
Top Events Taking Place In Tampa Bay Feb. 23-24
Wondering what to do this weekend? Here are some events taking place in Tampa Bay that you might want to check out.
TAMPA BAY, FL – Wondering what to do this weekend? Here are some events taking place in Tampa Bay that you might want to check out:
Clearwater Sea-Blues Festival
In what's becoming one of Florida's most anticipated events, the 2019 Clearwater Sea-Blues Festival presented by Visit St. Pete/Clearwater will rock out downtown Clearwater and Coachman Park this weekend, Feb. 22-24.
The action begins along Cleveland Street on Friday night with Blast Friday and Blues Walk. The headliner for Blast Friday will be The Fixx with special guests Fire & Ice and Memphis Rub Band. There will also be blues artists playing at different areas along Cleveland Street to promote the weekend's main event, the Sea-Blues Festival.
Find out what's happening in Clearwaterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Saturday is when the entertainment and excitement moves to Coachman Park. Visitors will enjoy two days of listening to some of the top artists in modern blues while enjoying fresh seafood from some of the area's best restaurants and vendors. There will also be a variety of craft beers available for purchase during the shows.
The biggest draw will be the intimate performances on Clearwater's waterfront by artists such as Vintage Trouble, two-time Grammy award-winner Fantastic Negrito, Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band, The Devon Allman Project featuring Duane Betts, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram and more.
Find out what's happening in Clearwaterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
VIP and reserved seating is available for purchase. Click here.
While general admission is free, visitors attending the Sea-Blues Festival are encouraged to donate $5 to the Homeless Empowerment Program as they enter the gates.
St. Petersburg Fine Art Festival
The sixth annual St. Petersburg Fine Art Festival will be held Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 23-24 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at South Straub Park, 198 Bayshore Drive N.E.
The event is a boutique fine art festival of approximately 120 of Florida’s and America’s top fine artisans. The event is co-sponsored by the City of St. Petersburg and coordinated with the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance.
The art festival transforms the grounds of South Straub Park into an outdoor gallery showcasing original and handmade artwork including paintings, glass, mixed-media, ceramics, sculpture, photography, metalwork, digital art, fiber art and woodworking.
Admission is free.
Bay Area Renaissance Festival
Step back 400 years in the past and explore the world of knights, minstrels and damsels in distress at the annual Bay Area Renaissance Festival at the Museum of Science & Industry, 11315 N. 46th St., Tampa.
Running each weekend from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through March 29, the event features themed weekends, a recreated 16th-century marketplace with more than 100 artisans, 12 stages of minstrel, marionette, magic, court jester and dance shows as well as full armor jousting competitions, a live mermaid cove, roaming musicians and traditional and modern-day treats and savory eats.
Advance tickets are $18.95 for adults and children over 13 and $10.95 for children age 5 to 12. Click here.
Tickets at the gate are $21.95 and $13.95. Students and seniors pay $17.95 at the gate.
For more information, click here.
SunWest Crab & Shrimp Festival
The SunWest Crab & Shrimp Festival is back for a fourth year, taking place Feb. 22-24 at SunWest Park, 17362 Old Dixie Highway, Hudson.
This event brings thousands to SunWest Park for three days of live bands, crab races, carnival rides, crab-eating contests, a cornhole tournament, craft and business vendors, photos with a mermaid, a free kids area and a variety of seafood options.
Proceeds benefit The Stano Foundation and Gulfside Hospice & Pasco Palliative Care.
There will be a crab claw-eating competition Saturday at 2 p.m., a cornhole tournament Saturday at noon, free photos with a mermaid Saturday and Sunday from noon to 3 p.m., , free hourly crab races and a master chainsaw-carving show in between bands.
Click here for information.
The Art of Women: A Heart and Soul Celebration
Experience an evening of engaging art installations by Tampa Bay area female creatives, DJ Shannon C music, dancing and a full cash bar during The Art of Woman: A Heart and Soul Celebration on Saturday, Feb. 23 from 8 to 11 p.m. at American Legion Post 111, 6918 N. Florida Ave., Tampa.
Installations include digital projections, performance artists, paintings, sculptures and photography presented in a black-box setting.
Tickets are $20 in advance, $30 at the door. Click here.
A portion of the proceeds benefit The Helen Gordon Davis Centre for Women.
Hosted by Renee Warmack Productions, sponsors include Film Tampa Bay, Florida Women Magazine, Actor Norma Caltagirone, Artist Teresa Davis - Studio4111.com, Carole Gordon Acting Class and Social Women in Motion.
Fiesta Day Ybor City
The Ybor City Chamber of Commerce will host the 72nd Fiesta Day Ybor City Saturday, Feb. 23 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Centro Ybor, 1600 E. 7th Ave., Tampa.
This family-friendly, free street festival commemorates the Cuban, Italian, Spanish, Jewish and German immigrants who settled in Ybor City in the late 1800s as the cigar factories thrived.
Ybor City’s famed “La Setima” or 7th Avenue is closed to traffic as the festival celebrates ethnic food, arts and crafts, and ethnic music on the 7th Avenue Stage.
The entertainment lineup includes:
11:30 a.m. Gina & Mack performing Salsa, Bachata, Cha Cha and the Argentine Tango
12:30 p.m. Gina & Mack teach Salsa
1 p.m. Promenade of Flags
1:30 p.m. Mariachi Band
2:15 p.m. Miss International World USA Lisa Patel
2:30 p.m. Flamenco dancing
3 p.m. Local artists Ashley Thunder, Tony Delaine, Mckayla Walls and Alexander & Grace Wilson,
4 p.m. La France Fashion Show
5 p.m. Corrine Bach performance
5:30 p.m. Tampa City Ballet
Matinee Opera Players - Various times throughout event
Najmah Nour - Various times throughout event
A kids' zone at 19th Street and 7th Avenue will include a coloring station and Fiesta Day fan decorating.
The art zone at 15th Street and 7th Avenue will include exhibits by local artists, live painting and interactive wall art.
Click here for information.
Pasco County Fair
The 72nd Pasco County Fair, sponsored by AdventHealth Dade City, continues through Feb. 24 at the fairgrounds at 36722 State Road 52 in Dade City with fair food, midway rides and agricultural exhibits.
On tap during the fair's final weekend are:
The Miss Heart Pageant is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 22 at 6 p.m. at Dan Cannon Auditorium.
The Miss Pasco Princess, Mister Pasco and Prince Baby pageants will take place Saturday, Feb. 23 starting at noon. Click here for applications.
There will be a Kids Karaoke Contest Sunday, Feb. 24 at 2 p.m. as well as a karaoke contest for adults age 18 and over on Saturday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. in Dan Cannon Auditorium.
The 15th annual Pasco County Fair Championship Rodeo is set for Feb. 22 at 8 p.m. and Feb. 23 at 1 p.m.
Fair admission prices are $10 for adults, $5 for children age 6- 12, and free for children 5 and younger.
An unlimited midway ride wristband on Friday, Saturday and Sunday is $25.
Parking is free.
Florida Food & Brews Festival
The Florida Brews & Food Festival will take place at England Brothers Park, 5010 81st Ave., N., Pinellas Park, on Saturday, Feb. 23 and Sunday, Feb. 24 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Enjoy local restaurants and food trucks offering dishes available for $5 or less, plus music performances, stand-up comedians, shopping and a wide selection of craft beer.
Featured performers include Reno Collier, The Bearded Brothers, Betty Fox Band, Juanita Lolita, Holey Miss Moley, Rahn Hortman, Wildroot, Johnny Bell, Geri X and Dean Johanesen and The 24-Hour Men.
Tickets are $13 each or $18 for two. Click here.
(For more local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.