Itäó»s gonna be a heck of a week äóñ and especially, a heck of a weekend. Things are so packed, in fact, that we had to leave a couple of very honorable mentions off of our top five (see the bottom of this post). But it wouldnäó»t be hard at all for you to get up at 9 a.m. Saturday and soak in creativity until the sun goes down on Sunday. Have at it!
Assassins–FreeFall Theatre Company–October 8 through November 6
Itäó»s the first week for freeFalläó»s daring revival of Stephen Sondheimäó»s Assassins, which the company describes as äóìperhaps the most controversial piece of musical theatre ever written.äó The underlying conceit here is definitely challenging äóñ Sondheim presents a series of killers and attempted killers of American Presidents, from John Wilkes Booth to Lee Harvey Oswald, as the dark obverse of the American Dream. Rather than villains, exactly, theyäó»re presented here as flawed human beings, perhaps pushed further than they might have been by a culture of fame and ambition.
Shows every day except Monday and Tuesday. Get tickets at FreeFallTheatre.com.
St. Petersburg Second Saturday Art Walk–Saturday, October 8,æ5 p.m.
Organized by the St. Pete Arts Alliance, this gallery walk is an opportunity to meet artists and gallerists at over 40 sites across several neighborhoods, including the Grand Central District and the Warehouse Arts District. Trolleys are provided to take you from one hot spot to the next, and you can get a map of participating galleries at StPeteArtsAlliance.org.
The Florida Orchestraäó»s Cirque de la Sympohonie–Mahaffey Theatre–Saturday, October 8, 8 p.m.
For its Pops season opener, the Florida Orchestra will perform classical favorites with the accompaniment of acrobats flying through the air, and strongmen and contortionists strutting their stuff.
Tickets at TheMahaffey.com
Open Streets St. Pete–Mirror Lake neighborhood–Sunday, October 9, 1 p.m. äóñ 5 p.m.
Keep St. Pete Local has worked together with the City of St. Pete to close a handful of streets around Mirror Lake and Wiliams Park to car traffic. The idea is to encourage people to explore and experience the city in new ways äóñ on foot, and on bike. The event also includes a plethora of entertainment and activities, including interactive improv from American Stage, dance performance from Hip Expressions, and lots of biking and athletic action.
Find more information at Openstreetsstpete.com
First Stop Poetry Fusionäó»s Final Show–Sly Bar–Monday, October 10, 8:30 p.m.
Weäó»re really sad to learn of the conclusion of the exciting First Stop Poetry series. For years, Hostess Mona B. has been providing a place for local poets to share their work while also regularly welcoming poets from around the country. The offerings tend to fall on the slam poetry end of the spectrum, with sometimes-edgy content thatäó»s backed up by a real sense of support and community. This final go-round is sure to be a blowout, and we hope someone picks up the torch to keep a great thing going.
Honorable Mentions:
Cassette Store Day at Daddy Kool Records, Saturday October 8
Studio Waltz, Throughout Pinellas County, Saturday October 8
