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Festivities that includes carnival rides and avenue meals, plus arts occasions and stand-up comedians this vacation weekend within the Sarasota space, Jan. 16-19.
With Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, it is one other January vacation weekend, throughout which quite a few notable occasions will happen right here within the Sarasota space.
We begin with two separate occasions providing carnival rides and avenue meals all weekend, with the Sarasota Winter Carnival and Street Food Invasion at The Mall at University Town Center and the annual Manatee County Fair in Palmetto.
We even have two arts occasions, one in every of which includes a message of inclusion and celebrating range that makes it a becoming selection for the weekend of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Then this weekend, McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre in downtown Sarasota will host two notable comedians, one in every of whom was raised in Sarasota, the opposite with a number of ties to the higher Tampa Bay space.
Looking for much more choices? Downtown Sarasota park The Bay’s free out of doors movie screening collection Cinema at The Bay continues 7 p.m. Thursday with 1996’s “Fargo,” one of the crucial notable motion pictures celebrating its thirtieth anniversary this yr. The Coen brothers movie follows Midwestern police chief Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand) as she investigates the kidnapping of the spouse of a automotive salesman (William H. Macy.)
Though the Coen brothers and McDormand’s greatness was evident from their very first movie, 1984’s “Blood Simple,” “Fargo” grew to become their breakout success, incomes the Coens their first Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and McDormand the primary of her three Best Actress Oscars.
1. Sarasota Winter Carnival and Street Food Invasion at The Mall at UTC
The Mall at University Town Center is the positioning for this multi-day occasion combining carnival amusements and avenue meals, offered by the Clearwater-based Florida Penguin Productions.
Dreamland Amusements will present the carnival rides and actions, whereas round 30 meals vans will present the culinary choices. The full competition will happen Friday via Monday, with one carnival-only day Thursday.
5-10 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15 (carnival solely), 5-11 p.m. Friday, noon-11 p.m. Saturday, noon-11 p.m. Sunday and noon-9 p.m. Monday; The Mall at University Town Center, 140 University Town Center Drive, Sarasota; free admission/parking, journey tickets and wristbands accessible for added buy; 727-674-1464; floridapenguinproductions.com
2. Manatee County Fair in Palmetto
Of course, you too can discover carnival rides and engaging meals on the a hundred and tenth annual Manatee County Fair, one of many first massive Florida gala’s of the yr, which returns Thursday via Jan. 25.
The eleven-day truthful options rides, video games, meals, dwell leisure, pageants, competitions, arts and crafts, livestock reveals and extra.
Thursday, Jan. 15-25; Manatee County Fairgrounds, 1402 14th Ave. W., Palmetto; $8 advance, $10 day of each day admission, $6 ages 6-12 and navy with energetic standing ID, free ages 5 and underneath, $10 parking, with particular pricing days and truthful armband specials; 941-722-1639; manateecountyfair.com
3. Embracing Our Differences grand opening in downtown Sarasota
The annual exhibition consisting of fifty billboard-sized artworks, every accompanied by a thought-provoking citation — with the said aim of selling inclusion, kindness and respect, and displaying our frequent humanity in addition to the variations that make us distinctive — returns to downtown Sarasota’s Bayfront Park for a months-long run.
A grand opening celebration will happen Saturday, that includes dwell music by the RythmTrail Steel Drum Band, native arts and training organizations at cubicles with interactive/family-friendly actions, and meals vans Big Blue Grilled Cheese Company, Carousel’s Soft Serve Icery of Sarasota, and The Empanada Girl.
Saturday-April 19 (park open 7 a.m.-11 p.m. each day), 1-4 p.m. Saturday grand opening celebration; Bayfront Park, 5 Bayfront Drive, Sarasota; free admission; 941-404-5710; embracingourdifferences.org
4. Lynne Koplitz, Robert Kelly at McCurdy’s in downtown Sarasota
McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre in downtown Sarasota could have two notable comedians headlining in a single weekend when Lynne Koplitz performs there Thursday and Sunday, and Robert Kelly on Friday and Saturday.
Koplitz, who was raised in Sarasota, launched the 2017 Netflix particular “Hormonal Beast” and has appeared in movies akin to “The King of Staten Island” and “Top Five” and TV reveals akin to “Bupkis” and “Crashing.” Kelly is thought for roles akin to Louis C.Ok.’s brother in “Louie,” podcasts together with “You Know What Dude” and specials such because the St. Petersburg-filmed “Kill Box,” plus showing on 102.5 The Bone’s “The Mike Calta Show” regionally.
7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15 and Sunday, $28 (Lynne Koplitz); 6:30 and eight:50 p.m. Friday-Saturday, $31 (Robert Kelly); McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre, 1923 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota; 941-925-3869; mccurdyscomedy.com
5. Fine Arts & Crafts Festival in Venice
Venice-Nokomis Rotary Club presents this thirty fourth annual competition, going down over three days at Venice Airport Festival Grounds.
The competition will function greater than 100 artists and crafters, beer and wine backyard, meals vans, dwell music and duck pluck tent. The dwell music lineup will likely be Karate within the Garage (6-9 p.m.) Friday; Cryn’ Shames (noon-2 p.m.), Occasions (2:30-4:30 p.m.) and O2H — Oates’ Revenge (7:30-9 p.m.) Saturday; and Paisley Craze (noon-2 p.m.) and Deep Blu (2:30-4 p.m.) Sunday.6-9 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday; Venice Airport Festival Grounds, 610 Airport Ave. E., Venice; $5 at gate, free children underneath age 10; facebook.com/venicenokomisrotary
Email leisure reporter Jimmy Geurts at [email protected]. Support native journalism by subscribing.
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https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/entertainment/events/2026/01/15/top-5-fun-things-to-do-in-sarasota-this-weekend-jan-16-19/88103808007/
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