🏎️ Racer and Creator Expo

Friday, July 31, 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 1, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd., Palmetto.

YouTube racing personality Cleetus McFarland brings his fleet of high-powered vehicles indoors for the inaugural Racer and Creator Expo, alongside sponsor displays and conversations with members of the Freedom Factory crew. General admission is $20 per day, with free parking and free admission for children ages 12 and younger. Tickets that include the exclusive speaking panels are $100. For more information, click here.

🎪 Loomis Bros. Circus

Friday, July 31, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 1, 1:30, 4:30 and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, Aug. 2, 3 and 6 p.m., Robarts Arena at the Sarasota County Fairgrounds, 3000 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota

Loomis Bros. Circus rolls into Robarts Arena with three rings of traditional circus entertainment, contemporary acts, daredevils and performing animals. Adult admission is $30 and includes admission for up to two children ages 2–12. Additional children’s tickets are $8 and children younger than 2 enter free. Online purchases carry additional fees. For more information, click here.

🎧 Season 5 Electronic Music Takeover

Thursday, July 30, 10 p.m.–Sunday, Aug. 2, 4 p.m., Hotel Venezia, 425 U.S. Highway 41 Bypass N., Venice

Essential Freaks and Gitterdone transform Hotel Venezia into an electronic-music playground with multiple stages, pool parties, after-hours sets, vendors and designated room parties. Headliners include BT, Justin Martin and Pink Panda, with music running from noon Friday through Sunday afternoon. Weekend passes, single-day tickets and hotel packages are available at varying prices. For more information, click here.

🎭 Forgotten Broadway

Friday, July 31 and Saturday, Aug. 1, 7:30 p.m., Browne’s Lab at Florida Studio Theatre, 1265 First St., Sarasota

Orlando improvisers invent a Broadway revue from scratch, using audience suggestions to create forgotten theater stars, nonexistent shows and original songs in the moment. Since there’s no script or prepared score, each 90-minute performance takes a completely different route. Tickets are $18–$20. For more information, click here.

 🎶 Laser Motown

Thursday, July 30, 6 p.m., The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature, 201 10th St. W., Bradenton

The Bishop Planetarium pairs vivid laser displays with Motown classics from Marvin Gaye, The Supremes, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder and other favorites. Expect loud music and flashing lights. Tickets are $15. For more information, click here.

🎞️ Gigi

Friday, July 31, 7–8:56 p.m., Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave., Sarasota.

Vincente Minnelli’s lavish 1958 musical returns to the big screen with Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan and Maurice Chevalier. The Paris-set romance won nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Tickets are $12. For more information, click here.

🎷Jazz Cabaret Night

Friday, July 31, 7–10 p.m., Solis Hall at Downtown Wellen, 19745 Wellen Park Blvd., Venice

Jeremy Russell and his band settle into an intimate cabaret program of jazz standards and soulful ballads. Tickets are $60 and include light bites, a complimentary drink and reserved seating. For more information, click here.

💿 House Party Rave

Friday, July 31, 8 p.m. doors, 9 p.m. show, Oscura, 816 Manatee Ave. E., Bradenton.

Relive the gloriously sweaty chaos of a 2010s dance floor with LMFAO, Skrillex, Rihanna, MGMT, Swedish House Mafia, A$AP Rocky and other era-defining favorites. The 18-and-older party encourages shutter shades, neon bracelets and the questionable fashion choices preserved in countless blurry photos. General admission is $23.62, including fees. Guests younger than 21 must pay an additional $5 cash fee at the door. For more information, click here.

💀 Jerry Garcia Day and Vinyl Swap

Saturday, Aug. 1, 11 a.m.–3 p.m., The Bazaar on Apricot & Lime, 821 Apricot Ave., Sarasota

Celebrate Jerry Garcia’s birthday with a vinyl swap, guest vendors, local makers, games and live sets from Sabrina, Zeena and Palmer beginning at noon. Bring records to trade and a little tie-dye if the spirit moves you. This event is free. For more information, click here.

🖼️ Group Exhibition and Savannah Renee Carroll: Perversion

Friday, July 31, 5–8 p.m., 502 Gallery, 502 S. Pineapple Ave., Sarasota.

Two exhibitions open across 502 Gallery’s Burns Court space. Gallery 1 gathers paintings, works on paper and mixed-media pieces by artists represented by the gallery, while Savannah Renee Carroll’s Perversion uses self-portrait photography to examine the body, religious and domestic surveillance and the reclamation of identity. This event is free. For more information, click here.

☘️ Celtic Summer Jam

Saturday, Aug. 1, 1–10:30 p.m., Freckled Fin Irish Pub, 5337 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach

Three Celtic rock bands—Drunken Shrubbery, Clover’s Revenge and Black Thorne Brigade—take over the island pub for a day of Irish standards, American favorites, whiskey tastings and raffles. This event is free. For more information, click here.

⚽ Sarasota Paradise vs. FC Naples

Saturday, Aug. 1, 7:30 p.m., Premier Sports Campus, 5895 Post Blvd., Lakewood Ranch

Sarasota Paradise welcomes regional rival FC Naples for a Saturday-night USL League One matchup at Premier Sports Campus. Expect fast-paced professional soccer, an energetic hometown crowd and a little extra intensity when these two Gulf Coast clubs meet under the lights. Tickets start at $13. For more information, click here.

📷 Summer Meet and Greet With Clyde and Niki Butcher

Sunday, Aug. 2, 10 a.m.–3 p.m., Clyde Butcher Venice Gallery & Studio, 237 Warfield Ave. S., Venice

Meet the artists and explore “This Land We Share,” an exhibition drawing on Clyde Butcher’s decades of landscape photography across the United States. An RSVP includes automatic entry in the gallery’s raffle. This event is free. For more information, click here.

👑 Head Over Heels

Tuesday, Aug. 4, 7:30 p.m., Pinkerton Theatre at Venice Theatre, 140 Tampa Ave. W., Venice

The Go-Gos supply the irresistible soundtrack for this exuberant, gender-bending musical about a royal family, a mysterious prophecy and the many forms love can take. Expect big laughs, queer romance and pop-rock favorites such as “We Got the Beat” and “Our Lips Are Sealed.” Tickets are $35 for adults and seniors, $26 for college students and educators and $19 for youth. For more information, click here.

🤘Dressed 2 Kill: A Tribute to Kiss

Thursday, July 30, 7 p.m., Encore Live, 8341 Lockwood Ridge Road, Sarasota.

Nashville-based tribute band Dressed 2 Kill brings Kiss’ arena-rock spectacle to Sarasota with costumes, makeup and classics built for shouting along. Tickets are $10. For more information, click here.

🚚 July Food Truck Rally

Friday, July 31, 5–10 p.m., Big Top Brewing Company, 3045 Fruitville Commons Blvd., Sarasota.

Food trucks and local vendors gather outside the brewery for a casual Friday-night rally, with live music by Undr8ed and additional surprises planned. This event is free. Food and drinks are available for purchase. For more information, click here.

🪄 Happee Birthdae Harry: A Harry Potter Beer Event

Saturday, Aug. 1, noon–11 p.m., Corporate Ladder Brewing Company, 4935 96th St. E., Palmetto

Corporate Ladder turns its taproom into a Potter-inspired pub with costumes, movies and limited beer releases such as Butter Beer, Dementor’s Kiss, Chocolate Frog and Golden Snitch. The lineup spans gluten-free dessert beers, stouts, a triple IPA and a wood-aged pilsner, with several varieties available to take home. This event is free. Beer and food are available for purchase. For more information, click here.

🐦 Amazing Purple Martin

Friday, July 31, 2–3:30 p.m., North Port Library, 13800 Tamiami Trail, North Port

The Venice Audubon Society explores purple martins’ breeding habits, family life and epic migration between North and South America, along with practical ways people can support their conservation. Registration is required. This event is free. For more information, click here.

📚 Books on Tap Book Club

Wednesday, Aug. 5, 7–8 p.m., Oak & Stone Downtown Bradenton, 102 Old Main St., Bradenton

Manatee Library’s monthly off-site book club trades the reading room for a downtown tavern, pairing informal literary conversation with Oak & Stone’s extensive self-serve beer wall. This event is free. Food and drinks are available for purchase. For more information, click here.

👜 Drop-In Art: Custom Tote Bags

Monday, Aug. 3, 5:30–7 p.m., Palmetto Branch Library, 923 6th St. W., Palmetto

Use fabric pens and paint to turn a plain tote into something personal during this relaxed adult art session. All supplies are provided and no registration is required. This event is free. For more information, click here.

🛍️ Magnolia Bay Community Yard Sale

Saturday, Aug. 1 and Sunday, Aug. 2, 8 a.m.–1 p.m., Magnolia Bay Community, 205 Holly Bank Ave., Nokomis

Fourteen households around this Nokomis neighborhood are clearing out baby gear, toys, clothing, furniture, home décor, tools, bicycles, sporting goods and other finds. This event is free. For more information, click here.