FESTS
SPF16 (St. Petersburg Festival). St. Pete's Arts Alliance turns September into a month-long celebration of the city’s vibrant arts community. Many of the events in the fest (like the SHINE Festival) are covered elsewhere in this issue, but to get a full list of what's under the SPF umbrella, check out stpetefest.org.
Ringling International Arts Festival. Afro-Brazilian musicians, Australian acrobats, hot cellist Matt Haimovitz, solo theater visionary Thaddeus Phillips and witty choroegrapher Doug Elkins are on the bill of this year's fest, always worth a trip south. Oct. 13-16, The Ringling, 5401 Bay Shore Rd., Sarasota, ringling.org.
DANCE & PERFORMANCE
Our Town: A Moving Dance Tour of St. Pete. Public art that moves! In this curated series of original, short, site-specific dance performances throughout downtown St. Pete (presented as part of SPFestival 16), the audience travels from piece to piece on a guided walking tour that begins at the shuffleboard courts and ends in the mural alley along 6th and 7th Streets Sept. 17, 6 p.m. Free.
Moving Current Dance Collective Fall Concert. MC’s 19th season kicks off with new work by Brian Fidalgo, Maria Juan, Cindy Hennessy and somebodies dance theater from San Diego. Oct. 15-16, USF Theatre 1 TAT, 3829 Holly Dr.. Tampa, movingcurrent.com
University of Tampa Evening of Experimental Dance. Students and faculty incorporate dance, music, spoken word, visual art, and more to redefine the boundaries of performance art. Nov. 11, 7:30 p.m., Scarfone/Hartley Gallery, 310 North Blvd., Tampa, ut.edu.
USF Fall Dance Concert. USF dancers will showcase their work from the fall semester, choreographed by Jeanne Travers, Michael Foley, Andrew Carroll, and more. Nov. 16-20, USF Theatre 1. theatreanddance.arts.usf.edu.
iLuminate. The America’s Got Talent sensations take the stage at the Straz, performing in the dark using lighting technology. Company founder Miral Kotb, a dancer and engineer, combined her passions to facilitate this unique art form. Ferguson Hall, Straz Center, Sun., Nov. 20, 8 p.m., strazcenter.org.
BEACON Performance Series. After a smashing debut last spring at The Palladium, this valuable dance series returns in early ’17. “The series is unique in that only professional dancers and choreographers are featured, every work in the show has a tie with St. Pete (made by, with, or for the concerns of local community members), and we are particularly interested in supporting women,” explains cofounder (with Helen Hansen French) Lauren Ree Slone. Fri., Jan. 13, 2017, The Palladium, 253 Fifth Ave. N, St. Petersburg, 727-822-3590, mypalladium.org.
TALKS
Cigar City Mafia — A Look at Organized Crime in Tampa. In 2003, Scott Deitche wrote Cigar City Mafia about Tampa organized crime in. People still love the stories 13 years later. St. Petersburg Museum of History, 335 2nd Ave. N.E., St. Pete. Sept. 8, 6:30 p.m. 727-894-1052. spmoh.org.
Fifty Years Aboard the USS Enterprise: Star Trek and the Cultural Revolution. Exactly 50 years after Star Trek premiered on television, Rick Kistner takes you deep into the world of the the Trekkie and discusses how eight separate series, 13 feature films and over 100 books have forever altered our culture and woven their way into our collective histories. Sept. 8, 10-11:30 a.m., OLLI at Eckerd College or Sept. 8, 1:30-3 p.m., The Centre of Palm Harbor, Palm Harbor. 727-864-7600. eckerd.edu/olli.
Tampa Bay History Center Book Group: The Deep Blue Goodbye. Rediscover the magic of John D. MacDonald and Travis McGee with the Tampa Bay History Center’s book group. Travis McGee, although fictional, inspired generations of boaters to live the dream in a marina where the beer is cold, the women are willing and the sun always shines. Tampa Bay History Center, 801 Old Water St., Tampa. Oct. 20, 10:30 a.m. 813-228-0097. tampabayhistorycenter.org.
What is Public Art, and Should We Care? Curious about the murals all over St. Pete, or wonder what all the fuss is about with the mural in St. Pete’s City Hall? Over three days, Diane Craig will discuss public art, including the ever-important questions “Who pays for it?”, “Who owns it?” and “Who should maintain it?” Sept. 6, 13 and 20, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. OLLI at Eckerd College, St. Pete. 727-864-7600. eckerd.edu/olli.
BOOKS
Born to Run. Bruce Springsteen, in his own words. Read his autobiography like a Boss. After all, it took him seven years to write and a lifetime to come up with the material. September 27. Simon & Schuster. $19.99.
Shrimp Country. I initially ordered this book for Meaghan Habuda, our food editor, to review for the books issue, but when I browsed through it I lost track of time. Anna Marlis Burgard offers a look at shrimp along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts in an engaging fashion that captures far more than simple recipes. September. University Press of Florida. $26.95.
The Sinner. The fourth in Amanda Stevens’s Graveyard Queen series introduces — at long last — another ghost seer. These books take you through the shadows and sunlight of Charleston and vacillate between the worlds of the living and the dead. I’ve read every one of them so far, but none while I’m home alone. September 27. MIRA. $7.99
FILM
The Light Between Oceans. When a couple that lives in a lighthouse find an infant in a boat with a dead body, they decide to raise the child as their own. Based on the 2013 book, which means at least half the people in the theater will leave disappointed, no matter how well-executed the film is. Sept. 2. Drama, romance. PG-13. Alicia Vikander, Michael Fassbender.
Solace. The FBI works with a psychic to solve a serial murder mystery. The FBI seeks out Anthony Hopkins’ character, which makes this almost like Silence of the Lambs, except with no fava beans and also Hopkins appears to be on the side of the good guys. Sept. 2. Mystery, crime. R. Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell.
Morgan. A corporate troubleshooter learns of a bioengineered child who has begun exhibiting strange behavior. By strange, of course, we mean murderous and, of course it’s on an island and of course we wrought this by engineering a human. The movie looks riveting but I swear, I see/read/hear this plotline so much I feel as though when it actually happens we’ll all shrug our shoulders and say “meh.” Unless the bioengineered child takes the form of a zombie, because that would scare me. Sept. 2. Mystery, science fiction. R. Kate Mara, Anya Taylor Joy.
The Wild Life. A parrot, goat and a chameleon live happily on a tropical island until a bizarre creature washes up on shore — a sailor named Robinson Crusoe. So this is the story from the animal’s point of view, then? Sort of a “Stranger danger on our island!” type of thing? Sept. 9. Adventure, comedy. PG.
Sully. In a classic moment of armchair quarterbacking, people who weren’t on the plane and didn’t have to make split-second decisions that could save or kill hundreds of passengers make Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger feel like a loser after he lands a commercial jet in the Hudson River. Everyone's a critic. Watch for the sequel, How Nelson Mandela Could Have Done More. Sept. 9. Drama, biography. PG-13. Clint Eastwood, Tom Hanks.
Bridget Jones’s Baby. After Bridget dumps Mark Darcy, she focuses on her career. However, she soon meets a charming American named Jack, and life seems perfect — until she realizes she’s still Bridget Jones, stuck in another movie where she whines and makes not-bright decisions. Sept. 16. Romance, comedy. R. Renee Zellweger, Colin Firth, Patrick Dempsey.
Snowden. Before I saw this preview, I thought of CIA analyst Edward Snowden as a treasonous ass. Now, I’m not so sure. Of course, this comes from the same man — Oliver Stone — who’s made a lot of money stoking Americans’ fear of conspiracies, so take what I say with a grain of salt. Sept. 16. Drama, thriller. R. Joseph-Gordon Levitt.
Blair Witch. A group of students explore the Black Hills Forest in Maryland to figure out whether the disappearance of James’s sister is connected to the Blair Witch. A group of filmmakers follows them in hopes that this time, someone will actually get scared watching the film. Sept. 16. Thriller, horror. R.
Storks. A corporate delivery stork accidentally activates a machine that creates a baby. Please don’t confuse this film with Morgan, above. Sept. 23. Comedy, animation. PG. Andy Samberg.
The Magnificent Seven. A town hires seven mercenaries to fight a powerful industrialist in the Wild West or, as we like to call it today, the 1 percent and Wall Street. Pretty sure this remake’s going to have more dust and shooting, though. Sept. 23. Crime, action. PG-13. Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt.
Deepwater Horizon. Films like these are not unlike the Titanic movie: We all know how it’s going to end. When a drilling rig explodes in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, workers must try to survive against impossible odds. In real life, BP paid people out so fast they could have funded a propaganda film 40 times over and continue to drill for oil off our coasts, but hey, that’s not important now. Sept. 30. Drama, thriller. Mark Wahlberg.
Miss Peregine’s Home for Peculiar Children. A teenager discovers a secret place where children have special abilities and evil lurks — Tampa Bay! (Yes, Tim Burton actually directed parts of the film right around here.) Sept. 30. Fantasy, adventure. Asa Butterfield, Rupert Everett, Judi Dench, Samuel L. Jackson.
The Girl on the Train. Emily Blunt passes the same house every morning during her commute on the passenger train. When something mysterious happens involving the house’s inhabitants, she investigates (but hubby John Krasinksi does not help her out, mostly because he's not in the movie). Oct. 7. Mystery, thriller. R.
The Birth of a Nation. Hey, I have an idea: Racial tensions continue to mount as the number of unarmed or legally armed young black American men shot by white police officers mount and Trump spews racist rhetoric, so why not remake a movie that initially had the title The Clansman? Yes, folks, this is a remake of D. W. Griffith’s racist classic. On first blush it appears accused-yet-acquitted rapist director and star Nate Parker has tried not to make this racial, but it’s a movie about a slave rebellion. How meta. Oct. 7. Drama, biography. R. Nate Parker.
The Accountant. Christian Wolff is a mathematics savant who works as an accountant for criminal enterprises. I wish I could math that well; as it stands, my best chance at working for a criminal enterprise would be doing their media relations, and writing, just like crime, doesn’t pay. Oct. 14. Crime, drama. R. Ben Affleck, JK Simmons.
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. Jack Reacher discovers a secret conspiracy which, if you read the series by Lee Childs, won’t shock you. Oct. 21. Mystery, crime. Tom Cruise, Cobie Smulders.
Ouija: Origin of Evil. In 1965 LA, a fake séance goes wrong and becomes real when a demonic spirit possesses a young girl. You say “horror movie” we say “people finally get what they pay for.” Potato, po-tah-to. Oct. 21. Thriller, horror. PG-13. Doug Jones, Henry Thomas, Kate Siegel.
Keeping up with the Joneses. A married couple discover their classy neighbors are actually government agents, which does not explain how they can afford Lululemon and a Mercedes. Comedy, action. PG-13. Zach Galifianakis, Isla Fisher.
Inferno. Symbologist Robert Langdon and his doctor travel across Europe to stop a dangerous plot. I’m not sure, but I feel as though this ain’t their first rodeo. Oct. 28. Mystery, thriller. PG-13. Tom Hanks, Felicity Jones.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Harry Potter fans, rejoice. Looks like we’re going in for as many prequels and vaguely associated movies as the Star Wars franchises. Nov. 18. Fantasy, action. Eddie Redmayne.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Another Star Wars film and with it, more Star Wars merchandise and a second Christmas where all the White Elephant gifts have something to do with the Resistance or Clone Troopers. Dec. 16. Fantasy, science fiction. Felicity Jones, Diego Luna.
Assassin’s Creed. When Callum Lynch learns he’s a descendant of the society of Assassins, he must battle the infamous Templar organization. Yes, it’s the same actor as in The Light Between Oceans, because he’s versatile like that. We hope. Dec. 21. Fantasy, science fiction. Michael Fassbender.
Friday the 13th. Oh, for fuck’s sake. Are you kidding us, Hollywood? Jan. 13. Horror.
Live by Night. An American crime story written and directed by Ben Affleck, based on the 2012 novel by Dennis Lehane and set on the totally fake set of Ybor City, because Brunswick, Georgia apparently has better tax incentives for filmmakers. All we have is paella and King Corona. I think we make out better, but what do I know? Jan. 13. Drama, crime. Ben Affleck.
Lucas Till. A student constructs a monster truck from scrap metal and befriends a subterranean being. Working title: Song of the South. Jan. 13.
—Kelly DeWitz and Savannah Pearson contributed to the dance and film picks, respectively.
This article appears in Aug 25 – Sep 1, 2016.
