Art

Galleria Silecchia. Opening May 7 to run through May 30: an exhibition featuring ceramicist Yasuka Nakamura, photographer Michael Kahn, and glass artists Nick Mount and Duncan McClellan. 365-7414.

Selby Gallery. The Ringling College Senior Thesis Exhibitions continue through May 7. Opening with a reception at 5 p.m. May 14, shows featuring the Florida Suncoast Watercolor Society and the work of late Sarasota artist Robert Hodgell. 359-7563.

ArtCenter Manatee. Shows presenting Fabulous Funky Furniture and The Figure and the Abstraction (the latter by Darwin Leon) continue through May 22. Coming up May 25 through June 18 (reception at 5 p.m. May 28): Flashback: A ’60s Revolution, an open, juried, all-media exhibition. 746-2862.

Longboat Key Center for the Arts. Continuing through May 26: Celebrating The Great Themes of Photography, a juried photo exhibition. 383-2345.

Museum of Fine Arts. Both A Test of Faith: William Blake’s Illustrations for the Book of Job, and The Art of American Life: Winslow Homer’s Graphics, remain on view at the St. Petersburg museum through May 30. (727) 896-2667.

Ringling Museum of Art. Currently on view: Splendid Treasures of the Turkomen Tribes from Central Asia, presenting jewelry designed by artists of these largely nomadic tribes, through July 18; also, The World Ransacked for All Its Wonders: P.T. Barnum and American Popular Culture, through Aug. 16. Coming up next: Heyday: Photographs of Frederick W. Glasier, displaying more than 60 photographs and lithographic posters focused on the circus, May 15 to Sept. 5. 359-5700.

State of the Arts Gallery. Juxtapose, a show featuring related bodies of work by the gallery’s artists, runs May 1 through July 1. 955-2787.

Dabbert Gallery. Sculpture, Metal, Marble & More opens with a reception at 6 p.m. May 7 and continues through May 31. Featured are pieces by Eric Boyer, Richard Hager, Candace Knapp, Gert Olsen and Thyra Davidson-Wexler. 955-1315.

Venice Art Center. Only works having no recognizable objects appear in this exhibition, titled Absolute Abstract and on view May 7-27. 485-7136.

Art Center Sarasota. Home Bodies, a show celebrating where and how we live, opens May 20 to run through July 3. The general is invited to submit pictures, taken with cell phones, digital cameras, etc., that relate to what we call “home.” 365-2032.

Downtown Sarasota Craft Festival. Hundreds of crafters crowd Main Street May 22 and 23 for this fest; there’s also a Green Market with exotic plants. (954) 472-3755.

 

Benefits

Element Au. The Sarasota YMCA Foundation presents “The Essence of Light” in this fund raiser, starting at 6:30 p.m. May 1 at the Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota. Dinner, dancing, auctions and surprises are promised. $250; call 951-1336.

Handbags and Happy Hour. An evening to benefit our local chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, starting at 6 p.m. May 6 at Michael’s On East. $45 in advance; $55 at the door. 952-9474.

Children First Celebration Dinner and Auction. May 8 at the Sarasota Yacht Club; for complete info call 953-3877 ext. 124.

Dick Vitale Gala. Special guests Tony Dungy and Tom Izzo are honored at this fifth annual gala to benefit the V Foundation for Cancer Research, May 21 at the Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota. For tickets, call Joyce Aschenbrenner, (919) 380-9505.

 

Children

Honk! A musical about Ugly, a duckling separated from his mother and pursued by a hungry cat. Running May 11-23 in a Venice Theatre Generations Theatre production. 488-1115.

Jack and the Giant. The Players Kids present their version of this classic tale, at 7 p.m. May 14 at the Players Theatre. 365-2494.

 

Comedy

McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre. Comics on tap include Thomas Brown (May 1 and 2), The Midnight Swinger (May 5-9), Brian Bradley (May 19-23) and Carl Faulkenberry (May 26-30). There’s also a Comedy Golf Classic for charity on May 23; for more details call 925-3869.

 

Dance

Moving Ethos: A Contemporary Dance Company. The troupe presents The Center Ring, creations inspired by the Ringling Museum exhibition of Frederick W. Glasier’s historic circus photographs, May 14 and 15 at the Historic Asolo Theater. 360-7399.

The Players Dance Co. The company, comprised of dancers from the Players Theatre studios, presents a revue of ballet, jazz and other dance styles at 7 p.m. May 25 at the theater. 365-2494.

 

Film

Monday Night Film Series. Showing at the Ringling Museum’s Historic Asolo Theater this month: Inherit the Wind, May 3; Elmer Gantry, May 10 and Butterfield 8, May 17. All screenings at 7 p.m. 360-7399.

 

Miscellaneous

Fiesta on Main. Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with a few thousand other people from noon to 7 p.m. May 1 on Main Street and benefit All Children’s Hospital, too. 706-3102.

Classic Corvettes on the Circle. More than 200 of these cool cars will be on display at St. Armands Circle Park May 1; award ceremony at 3 p.m. 388-1554.

 

Music

Giving Hunger the Blues. The annual street party and music fest takes place once more in Southside Village, to benefit All Faiths Food Bank. From noon to 8 p.m. May 2; for more info go to givinghungertheblues.org.

Sarasota Orchestra Great Escapes. “Beyond the Blue Horizon” is the theme for this month’s musical escape, which means tunes like Stormy Weather, Blue Skies and Music of the Spheres. May 5, 6, 7 and 8 at Holley Hall. 953-3434.

Courtyard Concert. The Alan Zahn Orchestra entertains in the Ringling Museum courtyard, 6:30 to 9 p.m. May 6. 359-5700 ext. 5705 or 358-3180.

The Black Spider. The Sarasota Youth Opera presents British composer Judith Weir’s piece May 7 and 8 at the Sarasota Opera House. The work weaves together a 15th-century story about an evil spider with a newspaper account of a virus in 1970s Poland. 366-8450 ext. 1.

Brahms Liebeslieder Waltzes. Eighteen lyrical love poems arranged for two pianos and a vocal quartet are presented in this Artist Series of Sarasota concert, 7:30 p.m. May 9 and 11 at the Historic Asolo Theater. 360-7399.

Sarasota Orchestra Chamber Soiree. The orchestra’s Sarasota String Quartet performs Sibelius’ String Quartet Voces Intimae and Smetana’s String Quartet From My Life, at 4:30 p.m. May 13 at Holley Hall. 953-3434.

Sybarite5. This string quintet, dedicated to eclectic programming, returns to Sarasota (hometown of founder Louis Levitt) for concerts May 14 at the HuB Incubator and May 15 and 16 at Holley Hall. For more info, (513) 543-1981.

Italian Saxophone Quartet. This quartet plays ragtime, tango and blues from artists such as Gershwin, Joplin and Weill, at 7:30 p.m. May 16 and 18 at the Historic Asolo Theater, in an Artist Series of Sarasota offering. 360-7399.

Third Thursday Cocktails at Cà d’Zan. The Venturas provide the music, from 6 to 9 p.m. May 20. 359-5700.

Sarasota Music Festival. The venerable classical/chamber music fest returns with classes, lectures, recitals and nine public concerts featuring students and faculty, May 30 through June 19. Call 953-3434 or head to sarasotaorchestra.org.

Jacobites’ Memorial Day Concert. The musical group, featuring bagpipes, dancers, fiddlers and more, performs at 4 p.m. May 30 at Church of the Palms. 350-0271.

 

Sports

SPARCCLE on the Links. A golf tourney at The Plantation Golf and Country Club to benefit Safe Place and Rape Crisis Center, May 6. For more info, call 365-0208 ext. 106.

Sarasota Open. The 2010 tournament takes place once more at the Longboat Key Club’s Tennis Gardens, from May 8-15, with the main draw beginning May 10. 914-9412 or sarasotaopen.org.

Physicians Golf Tournament. The ninth annual tourney to benefit the Physicians Endowment (an education fund for Sarasota Memorial Health Care System staff), May 7 at the Ritz-Carlton Members Golf Club. Call 917-1286.

 

Talks

Traces of Our Past. New College of Florida and Time Sifters Archaeological Society present William Lees of the Florida Public Archaeology Network, who’ll discuss “Discovering Civil War Florida,” at 6 p.m. May 19 at the Sainer Pavilion on the college campus. 487-4888.

Forum Truth. National political reporter (Newsweek, NBC) Jonathan Alter, whose book The Promise: President Obama, Year One, bows this month, speaks at 7:30 p.m. May 25 at Holley Hall. 349-8350.

 

Theater

The Game of Love and Chance. This FSU/Asolo Conservatory presentation of Pierre Marivaux’s 18th-century comedy ends its run at the Historic Asolo Theater on May 2. 351-8000.

The Who’s Tommy. The Pinball Wizard is set to play his last game May 2 at the Players Theatre, but the run could be extended. 365-2494.

Beast on the Moon. Richard Kalinoski’s love story about two people impacted by the Armenian genocide of the early 20th century continues through May 2 at Venice Theatre’s Stage II. 488-1115.

Jar the Floor. Continuing through May 9 is this Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe production about several generations of women in an African-American family. At Art Center Sarasota. 366-1505.

Shotgun. A new play by John Biguenet, set in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, continues through May 29 on Florida Studio Theatre’s mainstage. 366-9000.

The Andrews Brothers. This Roger Bean musical takes us back to the days of the 1940s and a USO show that simply must go on, even though Patty, Maxene and LaVerne can’t make it. Cue Patrick, Max, Lawrence and the wigmaster. Running through May 30 at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre. 366-5454.

Night Train to Memphis. This show featuring the music of such Memphis-based singers as Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley and B.B. King continues through June 5 at FST’s Goldstein Cabaret. 366-9000.

Doubt. Patrick Shanley’s award winner about a priest suspected of misconduct by an authoritative nun takes the stage May 4-23 at Venice Theatre. 488-1115.

Gypsy. The musical tale of young Louise, who becomes stripper Gypsy Rose Lee; her little sister, June; their friend and manager, Herbie; and the stage mother to end all stage mothers, Rose, onstage May 6-23 at the Manatee Players Riverfront Theatre. 748-5875.

Backwards in High Heels. Subtitled The Ginger Musical, this show pays tribute to Ginger Rogers’ singing, dancing days in film—with perhaps a mention of her most famous partner as well. Playing May 7-30 in an Asolo Rep production on the Mertz Theatre stage. 351-8000.

The Prisoner of Second Avenue. The ever popular Neil Simon struck again with this comedy about a man laid off from work in New York City. (Yes, we said it was a comedy.) Onstage May 13-23 at the Island Players. 778-5755.

Mary Poppins. The recent Broadway musical about that high-flying nanny plays May 20 through June 6 at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa. (800) 955-1045.

Married Alive! Venice Theatre presents a cabaret production of this musical about two married couples, one new, one old, May 28 through June 13. 488-1115.