1.) Brew this: For a brew fest experience off the beaten path, sidle up to the Wild Rover Pub and Brewery First Anniversary. Some of the day’s highlights include live music, prize drawings, beer releases and the opportunity to help design and brew a brand new beer for Wild Rover. There will also be food from The Red Rover Bus, so come hungry. Saturday at noon. Free admission. 8740 N. Mobley Road, Odessa. 813-475-5995. thewildroverbrewery.com. (Text contributed by Emma Sims)
2.) Nice weather, eh? Get outside: The 24th Annual Thanksgiving Art & Craft Festival allows you to celebrate Small Business Saturday at an outdoor showcase on one of the area’s most scenic downtown strips. Sat.-Sun., Nov. 29-30, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. facebook.com/ThanksgivingArtCraft.
Make the most of the warming temperatures at outdoor festivals. Harbour Island Art Walk, where more than 50 vendors will sell fresh produce, spirits and art. Live music and kids art activities add to the fun. Free, Sunday, noon-5 p.m. Harbour Island Art Walk, Tampa. 813-451-7936. harbourislandartwalk.com/#/home.
3.) Onstage: Celebrate the official start to the Christmas season with freeFall’s annual musical production of the Dickens holiday favorite, A Christmas Carol. This year’s lavishly vintage redux stars award-winner David Mann as Scrooge and will feature new staging and an all-new cast. Opens Saturday with discounted preview performances Friday at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. Shows Thursdays-Sundays through Dec. 24. $23-$41. freefalltheatre.com.
Also, the Neil Simon comedy Laughter on the 23rd Floor has hit the ground guffawing at American Stage. Read Mark Leib's review here.
4.) Neptune's Last Stand: If you haven't seen it yet, it's your last chance to catch Poseidon and the Sea: Myth, Cult and Daily Life at the Tampa Museum of Art. The exhibition features 125 pieces from the U.S. and Europe — the first major exhibit to focus on Poseidon and sea life. Up through Nov. 30; free admission 4-8 p.m. on Friday. tampamuseum.org.
5. Looking for some worthwhile kid fun? Take the kids to see Santa and make gifts in one of his satellite workshops at the Museum of Science and Industry. Photo opportunities will be available with Santa and Mrs. Claus in MOSI’s Idea Zone 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Afterward, parents can get a blast from the past watching more than 60 strategists compete in Florida’s first Rubik’s Cube Competition. Or head to the IMAX Dome Theater to see NatGeo's Mysteries of the Unseen World at 2 p.m. (trailer below). For more information on Santa’s Workshop, call MOSI reservations at 813-987-6000 or visit mosi.org.
6. Classic flicks: Revisit the endearing, comedic great that was John Candy (1950-1994) and iconic 1980s-’90s director John Hughes (1950-2009) with a double-feature of their all-time best collaborations: Uncle Buck and Planes, Trains and Automobiles. In 1989’s Uncle Buck, Candy is the loser uncle who becomes a winner after babysitting his brother’s children. In 1987’s Planes, Trains and Automobiles, he teams up with Martin for the ultimate Christmastime road movie. Here’s to Candy and Hughes making great movies together wherever they are. $7 for both films. 7 p.m. Saturday night at Capitol Theatre, 405 Cleveland St., Clearwater. athecap.com.
Tampa Theatre Holiday Classics brings holiday favorites to the big screen in vintage splendor, starting with young Natalie Wood in the 1947 favorite Miracle on 34th Street on Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $10. tampatheatre.org.
7. Holiday weekend comic relief: You might recognize womanhood-musing comic Mary Ellen Hooper by that signature quaver in her voice, which makes her sound like she’s this close to losing it. Her act offers self-deprecating and amusingly neurotic observations about being a wife and mother. Hooper headlines the Improv Friday 8 and 10:30 p.m.; Saturday 7:30 and 10 p.m., and Sunday at 7 p.m. Tampa Improv, 1600 E. Eighth Ave., Ybor City. $15-$17. improvtampa.com. Orlando comic Pedro Lima — "observational humor from a wanna-be, miserable, happy-go-lucky father who has an awesome, brutally-honest wife who keeps him from jumping off a ledge" — headlines Side Splitters. Read Michael Murillo's Q&A with Lima to find out more about the "Rican Gorilla."
8. Ride the Heights: The monthly group bike ride event starts at Mermaid Tavern. First stop: the new Angry Chair Brewing; Stop two is a surprise. End: The Corner Club. As always, “lights required, helmets recommended and no bad attitudes.” Free. Last Sunday of every month. facebook.com/pubbikeride.
9. Happy Anniversary, Microgroove! On Sunday, drop in to to Microgroove’s Third Anniversary Party for a family-friendly event with free PBR, coffee from Commune and Co. and live music by Mrenc, Zulu Wave, Awkward Age and Meatwound. Visit facebook.com/microgroovetampa for more details.
10. Everything is illuminated: There are plenty of sites with sparkly, blinking lights to stroll amidst this holiday season. Head to North Straub Park in downtown St. Petersburg for the official ceremony to light St. Petersburg’s Christmas tree on Friday at 5 p.m. After the tree lighting, make your way along a path glowing with thousands of lights and of giant greeting cards. For a truly pretty wonderland, pay a visit to the Florida Botanical Gardens, where more than 750,000 lights, lasers, animated figures and entertainers will line the walkways. 12520 Ulmerton Road, Largo, Admission is $4 for adults; kids ages 12 and younger get in free; flbg.org. For more holiday lights, festivities and shows, click here.
This article appears in Nov 27 – Dec 3, 2014.