Arts & Culture

A small Romanian Orthodox community nestled here in Southwest Florida hosts an annual Fall Festival. Generations gather together to celebrate their faith, culture, and tradition.

Opening on November 17th at the Sarasota Art Museum is an exhibition of miniature paintings titled “Contemplating Vermeer.” SAM Executive Director Virginia Shearer thinks this show will really blow people’s minds.

A person’s body language, gestures and facial expressions provide important clues about how they’re feeling and what’s on their mind. For as long as he can remember, local artist Daniel Venditti has tried to capture these nuances in his portraits and figurative work. But the 32 paintings in his solo show this November at the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center are truly an enigma.

Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe opened its 25th season in Sarasota this month with “Soul Crooners: Solid Gold Edition.” Founder and Artistic Director Nate Jacobs wrote and directs the company’s signature jukebox musical, which holds a special place in the annals of WBTT's history.

The Marco Island Historical Society is hosting a retrospective exhibition of works by Naples-based impressionist painter Paul Arsenault titled, “Reflections of South Florida: A 50-Year Art Adventure,” through Feb. 15, 2025. Ahead of an Oct. 17 opening reception, we talk with Arsenault about his work, his storied career, and his advocacy for protection of our natural world.

According to recent studies, the average person spends 4 hours and 49 minutes on their phone each day. That usage creates a profile of the person you are and the people who are important to you. What would your profile look like if someone found your phone in the minutes following your unexpected death? That’s the premise of Sarah Ruhl’s dramedy, “Dead Man’s Cell Phone,” on stage at Golden Gate Community Center through October 13.

"Chicago's" current six-week stint at Broadway Palm is just the first leg in a nearly year-long journey. On the musical’s opening night, Will Prather announced that he’ll be taking “Chicago” on a national tour.

Disco got its start during the early 1970s in clubs like the Ginza and La Martinique in midtown Manhattan. Record companies finally began giving it airtime, with hits cracking the Billboard top 10 in 1976. But it wasn’t until the release of Saturday Night Fever in December of 1977 that the disco phenomenon exploded across the county. You can relive that experience at The Belle Theatre in Cape Coral, where the stage version of the iconic movie is being performed through October 13.

After the fear and anxiety of back-to-back hurricanes, folks are clamoring for a diversion. In spite of wind, rain, surge, mud and power outages, the show will go on at all seven Lee and Collier theaters tonight and this weekend.

Southwest Florida-based artist Susie Krichbaum’s first solo exhibition titled “Whispers of the Bayou: Voodoo and Forest Magic” opens Oct. 4 at the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center. We talk with Krichbaum about her art, her creative process, and embracing the peculiar.