ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Visual/Performing Arts & Museums
1. Arnold Martinez Art Gallery 1909 19th St. N., 813-248-9572. Painter Martinez creates the best possible combination of virtue and vice: his materials include tobacco, wine and coffee, but his most famous painting (done in plain ol' acrylic) is of the Sacred Heart Church. Commission a work, and he'll paint it using your substance of weakness, from your fave vino to one of Ybor's famous cigars.
2. Brad Cooper Gallery 1714 E. 7th Ave., 813-248-6098, bradcoopergallery.com. The gallery's penchant for auctions means that patrons can come away with a piece of local culture for a bargain — everything from contemporary art and ceramics to jewelry by more than a dozen artists-in-residence. Open by appointment only.
3. Gallery 1707 1707 E. 5th Ave., 813-404-2012, ellenmarshall.com. This colorful bungalow on a quiet stretch of 5th Avenue houses the pastels and paintings of Ellen Marshall, who splits her time between Ybor and Saugatuck, Michigan.
4. HCC Ybor Performing Arts Building Palm Avenue and 14th St., 813-253-7695 (theater office), 813-253-7674 (gallery), hccfl.edu/yc/art-gallery. Quite possibly Ybor's most underrated art and event space, HCC brings in big-time acts from Philly's finest (Pig Iron Theater) to constantly changing student and local art exhibits, to internationally acclaimed contemporary dance acts (Troika Ranch Dance Company), to multimedia theater extravaganzas (All Out Repertory's The Agreeable Husband) to, most recently, a former South Park voice actor (Eliza Jane Schneider). Popular draws include the annual homage to the written word, Deep Carnivale, the Homemade Music Symposium, and the indie movie party, Ybor Festival of the Moving Image (which returns this April).
5. Hoffman Porges Art Gallery 1907 E. 7th Ave., 813-247-2000, hpartgallery.com. A decades-old boho-warehouse gallery space turned museum-quality framing experts. A selection of paintings by Gwyn Zesch Fallon are currently on view, along with work by Kurt Piazza.
6. O1 Organic One Fine Arts Gallery 1517 E. 7th Ave., 813-242-0101, o1organic.com. A combination marketing/promotions/public relations firm with interesting art in its gallery space, including the work of Tampa artists like Arnold Martinez and Noah Deledda, who recently won the grand prize (a trip to Art Basel in Switzerland) in Red Bull's Art of Can competition.
7. Redletter1 1818 N. 15th St., 813-241-2435, redletter1.com. There are a bevy of tattoo parlors lining 7th Ave. where skin art enthusiasts and drunken partiers alike can get inked — but none of them has the cool aesthetic of Redletter1, which regularly hosts gallery shows by art scene staples — most recently, Tes One, whose super-future prints have even graced the hallowed cover of CL.
8. The Roosevelt 1812 N. 15th St. www.therooseveltybor.com (Check website and Facebook page for event listings). Set to be Ybor's most sustainable building, playing host to various local artists and DJs as well as various green workshops from permaculture to upcycled arts and crafts.
9. Silver Meteor Gallery 2213 E. 6th Ave., 813-300-3585. A breeding ground for great local theater and the former home of Jobsite Theater, now of course the troupe-in-residence at the Straz. Silver Meteor has recently staged such divergent works as I Am A Cuban Sandwich by local playwright Richard DiPietra, Hat Trick's This Is Our Youth and All Out Repertory's recent staging of The Bottom of the Glass.
10. Singing Stone/Casa de Art 1903 N. 19th St., 813-247-ARTS (2787), singingstoneonline.com. Just open a few weeks on "casita row," Dan and Nataly Balk's gallery features their own silver jewelry and a wide variety of work by artists they've gotten to know on the festival circuit. See the profile elsewhere in this week's issue.
11. Ybor Art Colony 1521 1/2 E. 7th Ave., myspace.com/yborartcolony. It's less hippy-dippy than it sounds: the near dozen resident artists play together and paint together, too. The multitude of multimedia collabos make the Colony a popular stop on the Ybor Art Association monthly art walk, where collectors, tourists and New Tampanites who've ventured into the heart of the district can see the daily endeavors of the new wave of Ybor creatives.
12. Ybor Art Studio 2702 7th Ave., 813-868-4879, yborartstudio.com. Ybor's go-to multimedia space, the Studio hosts live art collabos, film fests, belly dancers, and body painters alongside non-arty types who just wanna use the free WiFi, shoot some pool, or show off their mad chops on the karaoke stage.
13. Ybor Centennial Park Art Studio 1800 E. 8th St., 813-242-5370. It doesn't get more Ybor-iffic than classes in this city-operated studio in Centennial Park, taught by resident artists who specialize in everything from candlemaking to paper mache to photography and ceramics.
14. Ybor City State Museum 1818 E. 9th Ave., 813-247-6323, ybormuseum.org. Housed in the old Ferlita Bakery building, the museum is a good first stop for Ybor first-timers, with displays on city founder Vincente Martinez Ybor and the rise and fall of the cigar industry. But the real beaut is the garden, filled with Florida flora and ideal for a midday escape from the heat and concrete.
Comedy
15. The Tampa Improv Centro Ybor, 1600 E. 8th Ave., 813-864-4000, improvtampa.com. Tampa's most prestigious comedy spot just happens to rest right in the heart of Ybor. Catch everything from locals honing their stage skills on weeknights to hilarious hypnosis acts to stars of the scene like Pauly Shore, Pablo Francisco, Jim Breuer and Mike Birbiglia.
Movies
16. Muvico Centro Ybor, 1600 E. 8th Ave., 813-242-0664, muvico.com. The movies just got affordable again: Mon.-Thurs., all day and all night, Muvico gives you entrance to the soda-steeped, popcorn-scented, reclining chair glory of the theater for just $6 a pop.
Games
17. Gameworks Centro Ybor, 1600 E. 8th Ave., 813-241-9675, gameworks.com. Every game — electronic, manual or in forms you didn't know existed — in an atmosphere that seems to bring out the kid in every customer, whatever the age. Jax Grill serves bar food to fuel the chaos.
Cultural Centers
18. Centro Asturiano 1913 N Nebraska Ave., centroasturianotampa.org. A historic three-story establishment built in 1914 that hosts festivals, fashion shows, domino tournaments and weekly swing dancing socials as well as Latin and traditional Spanish music events, which are generally held in the third floor grand ballroom.
19. Cuban Club (Circulo Cubano de Tampa) 2010 Avenida Republica de Cuba, 813-248-2954, cubanclub.org. A multi-use, multi-floor establishment erected in 1917 and featuring several spaces perfect for live entertainment — a snazzy ballroom, a theater with seats, a roomy basement with a sunken dancefloor and raised stage, and an outdoor patio with an amphitheater-style stage; plus, each space has its own bar area. For more info, see the listing under "Dance Clubs & Live Music."
20. Italian Club (L'Unione Italiana) 1731 E. 7th Ave., Italian-club.org. The stately edifice at 19th and 7th honors the longstanding Italian traditions of Ybor City, and is about to host its biggest event of the year: the 13th Annual Festa Italiana on March 28, featuring song, cinema and, of course, lots of wine.
Adult establishments
21. Skin Tampa: Full Nude Ultra Lounge 1620 Adamo Dr., 813-242-9600, fullnudetampa.com. Open until 6 a.m. No liquor. But you don't go here to drink.
22. Ybor Resort & Spa 1512 E. 8th Ave., 813-242-0900, yborresortandspa.com, membership limited to men only. Billed as "Tampa's largest all-gay private club and resort" and located in the thick of things opposite Streetcar Charlie's and next to MC Filmfest, YRS offers the option of extended stays in the "hotel styled rooms on the resort lover floor," or you can get a locker or a spa room if you're considering more temporary pleasures.
23. Scarlett's at Ybor Strip 3819 E. 7th Ave., 813-241-6969, yborstrip.com. Full nude. No liquor. Now if you hear somebody referring to The Strip, you'll know they're not talking about Sunset.
