<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2k5pSV_0w7vREbj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2k5pSV_0w7vREbj00" width="1100" height="672" ><figcaption>Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens kicks off its fifth season on Thursday, Oct. 17, with "Let the Music Set You Free" featuring Hermitage Fellow Britton Smith.</figcaption></figure>Thursday, Oct. 17Opening reception for fall exhibitions5-7 p.m. at Art Center Sarasota, 707 N. Tamiami TrailFreeVisit ArtCenterSarasota.org.Raise a toast to the four new shows opening at Art Center Sarasota. They include Gabriel Ramos: “Echoes of Belonging,” Amy Sanders’ “Pouring, storing and ore-ing,” David Fithian’s “Faces &amp; Places” and the juried show, “Euphoria!” This cycle of exhibitions is on display through Nov. 16.DC Benny7 p.m. at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, 1923 Ringling Blvd.$26Visit McCurdysComedy.com.A Brooklyn native, DC Benny has made a name for himself in the world of comedy with his story-telling style, which he has perfected over a career spanning 35 years. Among his many credits is being a finalist on seasons 2 and 8 of NBC’s “Last Comic Standing.” Benny’s third appearance on NBC’s “Showtime at the Apollo” has garnered more than 17 million YouTube views. Runs through Saturday.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0FpOlU_0w7vREbj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0FpOlU_0w7vREbj00" width="850" height="566" ><figcaption>Jarius Miquel Cliett, Joyce Paulino, Carson Collins and Katelyn Bowman star in Florida Studio Theatre's "Off the Charts," which runs through Feb. 9 at FST's Court Cabaret.</figcaption></figure>‘Off the Charts’7:30 p.m. at FST’s Court Cabaret, 1265 First St.$18-$42Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.The creative team behind Florida Studio Theatre’s popular cabaret series is at again with “Off the Charts.” Richard and Rebecca Hopkins and Sarah Durham take the audience on a tour of 20th-century pop music with arrangements by Jim Prosser. Take a stroll (or a hum) down Memory Lane with hits that ruled the Billboard Top 100 ranking, which debuted in 1958. Runs through Feb. 9.‘Agnes of God’7:30 p.m. at Venice Theatre’s Pinkerton Theatre, 140 Tampa Ave. W., Venice$15-$35Visit VeniceTheatre.org. When a dead baby is found in the room of a young nun at a convent, all hell breaks loose. One of Venice Theatre’s revivals for its 75th season, “Agnes of God” features riveting performances by Shannon Maloney as the novice Agnes, Vera Samuels as a court-appointed psychiatrist and Lynne Doyle as the mother superior. Runs through Sunday. ‘Soul Crooners: Solid Gold Edition’7:30 p.m. at Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave. $22-$52Visit WestcoastBlackTheatre.org.Created and directed by Nate Jacobs, “The Soul Crooners” returns to Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe’s main stage for the first run since its 2009 premiere. The opening show of WBTT’s 25th anniversary season celebrates the soul music of the 1970s. “Solid Gold Edition” was a hit at this summer’s International Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Runs through Nov. 17.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0VDacT_0w7vREbj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0VDacT_0w7vREbj00" width="850" height="566" ><figcaption>Sarasota Orchestra performs movie music in its Great Escapes concert, "Reel Intrigue," from Oct. 13-19.</figcaption></figure>Great Escapes 1: 'Reel Intrigue'7:30 p.m. at Holley Hall, 709 N. Tamiami Trail$46-$63Visit SarasotaOrchestra.org.It’s the time to revel in the spooky season, whether your holiday of choice is Halloween, Samhain or Day of the Dead. Matthew Troy conducts the Sarasota Orchestra in a program of thrilling and chilling music from movies such as “Chicago,” “Phantom of the Opera,” “Murder on the Orient Express,” “Vertigo” and more. Runs through Saturday.Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens: ‘Let the Music Set You Free’5:30 p.m. at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 1534 Mound St.Free plus $5 registration feeVisit HermitageArtistRetreat.org.Hermitage Artist Retreat launches the fifth season of Hermitage Sunsets @ Selby Gardens with a program featuring Hermitage Fellow and Greenfield Prize finalist Britton Smith. An artist, activist and co-founder and president of Broadway Advocacy Coalition, Smith is also the leader of the alternative soul band Britton and the Sting.Friday, Oct. 18<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4UyXWt_0w7vREbj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4UyXWt_0w7vREbj00" width="850" height="753" ><figcaption>Kevin Celebi returns to Jazz Club of Sarasota's Jazz @ 2 on Friday, Oct. 18, at Unitarian Universalists SRQ.</figcaption></figure>Jazz @ 2 with Kevin Celebi2 p.m. at Unitarian Universalists SRQ, 3975 Fruitville Road$15-$20Visit JazzClubSarasota.org.Kevin Celebi and his Harmonic Sanity sextet return to Jazz Club of Sarasota’s Friday Jazz @ 2 series with an all new program. A favorite last season, the band covers jazz standards across various styles and plays original compositions. Zeniba Now: 'The Heartsong and Other Experiments'5 p.m. at Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, 1012 N. Orange Ave.$5Visit HermitageArtistRetreat.org. Hermitage Artist Retreat presents Zeniba Now, the inaugural recipient of the McNally Residency at the Hermitage. A 2024 “Woman to Watch” on Broadway, Now is an award-winning writer, musical storyteller, performer and vocalist from Los Angeles. Her program will feature remarks by Broadway and West End producer Tom Kirdahy (“Hades”), McNally’s widower and part-time Longboat Key resident.‘Nineteen’7:30 p.m. at Tree Fort Productions, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail$40Visit TreeFortProductionsProjects.com.Move over, “Suffs.” Sarasota’s got its own musical about the struggle for women’s suffrage. With her musical “Nineteen,” the multitalented Katherine Michelle Tanner celebrates the sacrifices and victories of suffragists on their long road to the 19th amendment. Runs through Oct. 27.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2b5UtS_0w7vREbj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2b5UtS_0w7vREbj00" width="850" height="566" ><figcaption>Urbanite Theatre's "Jennifer, Who Is Leaving," runs through Dec. 1.</figcaption></figure>‘Jennifer, Who is Leaving’7:30 p.m. at Urbanite Theatre, 1487 Second St.$5-$33Visit UrbaniteTheatre.com.Directed by Asolo Repertory Theatre Associate Artistic Director Celine Rosenthal, “Jennifer, Who is Leaving” is a comedy set in a Massachusetts donut shop about three overworked women. Urbanite Artistic Director Summer Dawn Wallace takes the stage as Jennifer, a caretaker doing her best to ignore her patient, Joey, played by Ned Averill-Snell. Working the night shift are Lili (Trezure B. Coles), whose mind is on her upcoming SAT, and Nan (Suzanne Grodner), whose husband keeps interrupting her shift with annoying calls.. Runs through Dec. 1.’The Lightning Thief’ 7:30 p.m. at 3501 S. Tamiami Trail, Suite 1105$25-$35Visit RiseAboveArts.com.Rise Above Performing Arts presents the tale of a half-blood son of a Greek god accused of stealing Zeus’s master lightning bolt. Adapted from the best-selling book of the same name, “The Lightning Thief” stars local students and features a pulsating rock score. Runs through Oct. 27. Saturday, Oct. 19Piano Marathon11 a.m. at Sarasota Music Conservatory, 323 Central Ave.FreeVisit SarasotaMusicConservatory.org.Sarasota Music Conservatory hosts a six-hour musical, a fundraising event that is open to the public free of charge. Featuring performances by conservatory students, faculty and friends, the Piano Marathon will showcase the newKawai grand piano. ‘Junie B. Jones: The Musical’Noon at FST’s Keating Theatre, 1241 N. Palm Ave.$12Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org,There’s plenty of song and dance on stage for kids at Florida Studio Theatre. FST’s new production, “Junie B. Jones: The Musical,” was adapted from the young adult books by Barbara Park. Join the heroine as she starts a new school year, recording her adventures in her Top-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal. Runs weekends through Oct. 26.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0scqrB_0w7vREbj00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0scqrB_0w7vREbj00" width="850" height="631" ><figcaption>Sarasota Jewish Theatre presents "Being Somebody" from Oct. 19-20.</figcaption></figure>‘Being Somebody — Growing up Brooklyn, a Father/Daughter Tale’7:30 p.m. at The Players Centre, 3501 S Tamiami Trail, Suite 1130$30Visit SarasotaJewishTheatre.com.A musical memoir, “Being Somebody” stars Dr. Howard Mase, an 88-year-old psychologist, and his daughter Marla, a gifted singer, playwright and actor. The father-daughter duo takes the audience on a musical journey that begins in 1940s Brooklyn and moves to the glamorous yet gritty disco era of the 1970s. Runs through Sunday. Sunday, Oct. 20‘Rhapsodies’4 p.m. at Fischer/Weisenborne Residence, 7459 Cabbage Palm Court$65Visit ArtistSeriesConcerts.org.Artist Series Concerts presents a performance of works by Brahms, Rebecca Clarke and Astor Piazzolla. The featured musicians are cellist Nicholas Mirascal, a member of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, violist Stephanie Block, a new member of the Sarasota Orchestra, and Clare Longendyke, a pianist who has served as artist-in-residence at the University of Chicago. Runs through Oct. 21.Tuesday, Oct. 22Arts Advocates Talk: Truman Adams - Murals and More4 p.m. at Arts Advocates Gallery, 3501 S. Tamiami TrailFree to $5Visit ArtsAdvocates.org.You may have seen Truman Adams’ work around town. Adams was commissioned to create the inaugural work for the city’s Florida Legacy Art Mural Series. His mural featuring Amphitrite, the goddess of the sea, can be seen on Tamiami Trail, across from Sarasota’s iconic sailor statue.</div></body>

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The best things to do in Sarasota, Lakewood Ranch, Longboat for Oct. 17-23

5-7 p.m. at Art Center Sarasota, 707 N. Tamiami Trail. Visit ArtCenterSarasota.org. Raise a toast to the four new shows opening at Art Center Sarasota. They include Gabriel Ramos: “Echoes of Belonging,” Amy Sanders’ “Pouring, storing and ore-ing,” David Fithian’s “Faces & Places” and the juried show, “Euphoria!” This cycle of exhibitions is on display through Nov. 16.