Pinellas County is home to seven professional theater companies, and six of them are taking part in Pinellas Theatre Week, happening Nov. 9-22. The series is part of the county’s not-so-new November celebration of local arts, now called Arts Everywhere.
Funded by Creative Pinellas and Visit St. Pete-Clearwater (VSPC), Pinellas County Theatre Week includes 36 performances—and buy-one-get-one-free tickets to all of them.
In a recent episode of CLTV, Avery Anderson, publisher of Tampa Bay Arts Passport and founder of the series, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that 340 tickets had already been sold, equating to about $5,000 in free tickets to the community. Because of the grant from Creative Pinellas and VSPC, the local theaters still get money for the free tickets, meaning they won’t take a loss, which was crucial to making Pinellas Theatre Week work.
“Budgets are so tight right now, so the theaters can’t be giving away a bunch of tickets,” Anderson said during a recent CLTV taping. “[Now] they’re still able to meet their budgetary needs and their goals without having to charge a bunch of money.”
Anderson added that Bay area scene is much scrappier than others in cities like Denver or in the Northeast; they attributed that gusto to the “many committed individuals in this area really fighting to keep their doors open,” adding that the pandemic really opened up a new path to more collaboration between companies.
“I don’t think six years ago, the idea of six theaters coming together saying, ‘Yeah, I’ll cross sell your show and I’ll push on,’ like I just don’t know if that would have happened,” Anderson told CLTV. “But the pandemic has really shifted things in such a way. I don’t think every community is as collaborative as we’re being, which is amazing and wonderful, but also you know we’re in the South. There is a lack of funding.”
“Unless they are selling $100 tickets,” Anderson added, even sold-out shows might not be enough for Tampa Bay’s professional theaters, which support union actors and also employ behind the scenes staff lighting the productions, fabricating sets and more.
Anderson is excited for all the performances, but really hopes audiences make time to check out one of Pinellas’ newest theater companies, Dead Canary, plus performances of the off-Broadway play “A Bodega Princess Remembers La Fiesta de Los Reyes Magos, 1998” written by Iraisa Ann Reilly.
“[She is] one of the most glorious humans you’ll ever meet. Like you meet her and charisma rolls off of her hair. She’s just lovely” Anderson said.
Reilly’s father owned the town bodega, and the play takes the audience back to Three Kings Day, which was her favorite holiday. The day falls on Jan. 6, and the insurrection changed the meaning of that date on the calendar.
“This play is really about her working through the nostalgia of that day, but reclaiming it as a celebration and saying this is what that day is supposed to be about,” Anderson said. “It is about community and joy and the festivities.”
See Jennifer Ring’s rundown of Pinellas County Theatre Week festivities below.
The Da Vinci Code freeFall Theatre brings Dan Brown’s international bestseller to the stage in an adaptation by Rachel Wagstaff and Duncan Abel. When a murder at the Louvre sets off a trail of cryptic clues, symbologist Robert Langdon and cryptologist Sophie Neveu race across Paris and London to uncover a centuries-old secret. Directed by Matt McGee. Part of the inaugural Pinellas County Theatre Week, with buy-one-get-one-free tickets.Wednesday-Sunday, Nov. 11-22. Wednesday-Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. $60; second ticket free. freeFall Theatre, St. Petersburg. tbartspassport.com
A Bodega Princess Remembers La Fiesta de Los Reyes Magos, 1998 The Off-Broadway hit gets its Florida premiere in this solo show written and performed by Iraisa Ann Reilly and directed by José Avilés. Set during a Three Kings Day celebration in 1998, the autobiographical production brings audiences into a family bodega and the traditions, food and community that make it a home. Part of the inaugural Pinellas County Theatre Week, with buy-one-get-one-free tickets. Thursday-Sunday, Nov. 12-22. Thursday-Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. $30; second ticket free. First United Methodist Church, Pinellas Park. tbartspassport.com
Destroying David The Off-Central invites audiences on an unconventional tour of Michelangelo’s “David” in Florence in Jason Odell Williams’ play. Led by an enthusiastic guide, the seemingly straightforward art-history lesson becomes an interactive experience that takes an unexpected, personal turn, exploring the ways art can help us make sense of life’s biggest questions. Directed by Alexa Peréz. Part of the inaugural Pinellas County Theatre Week, with buy-one-get-one-free tickets. While you’re there, take a look at “Everything Is Fragile: An Exploration of Cyanotype,” an exhibition by Becca McCoy on view in the lobby Oct. 15-Nov. 22. The series combines photographic negatives, botanicals and found objects to consider fragility, permanence and the ephemeral. The project was funded by the Gobioff Foundation. McCoy will also lead an artist talk on Tuesday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, Nov. 12-22. Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 5 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. $40; second ticket free. The Off-Central, St. Petersburg. tbartspassport.com
Regrets Only Dead Canary Theatre presents Paul Rudnick’s high-camp comedy of manners, set in a glamorous Park Avenue social circle where marriage, friendship, privilege and gay rights collide. When a political controversy threatens to upend the relationships of a fashion designer, his longtime best friend and her high-powered attorney husband, the result is a sharp satire packed with one-liners. Directed by Stephen Riordan. Part of the inaugural Pinellas County Theatre Week, with buy-one-get-one-free tickets.Thursday-Sunday, Nov. 12-15. Thursday and Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 5 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. $40; second ticket free. The Studio, St. Petersburg. tbartspassport.com
Meteor Shower Two couples gather to watch a meteor shower in Steve Martin’s offbeat comedy, but what begins as a seemingly ordinary dinner party takes increasingly bizarre turns as the guests’ behavior sends the evening into comic chaos. Written by Martin and directed by Anthony Gervais. Part of the inaugural Pinellas County Theatre Week, with buy-one-get-one-free tickets. Wednesday-Sunday, Nov. 18-22. Wednesday and Thursday at 7 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. $60; second ticket free. American Stage, St. Petersburg. tbartspassport.com
Candlelight & Strings: A Coastal Arts Weekend in Dunedin Dunedin Public Theater brings the music of the 1960s through today to historic First Presbyterian Church of Dunedin for an intimate candlelit concert featuring the Paradies String Quartet. A courtyard reception begins at 6:30 p.m., doors open at 7 p.m. and the concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Part of the inaugural Pinellas County Theatre Week, with buy-one-get-one-free tickets. Friday, Nov. 20. 6:30 p.m.-8:45 p.m. $20 general admission; $40 reserved seating; $55 VIP (includes a pre-concert reception at Stirling Wine). First Presbyterian Church of Dunedin, Dunedin. tbartspassport.com
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This article appears in Oct. 29 – Nov. 04, 2026.
