The extra-long holiday weekend means there will be plenty of things to do in the Sarasota area, including two of May’s biggest festivities locally.
Downtown Sarasota will hold its annual Memorial Day Parade on Monday, while the boat party AquaPalooza will take place the day before at New Pass Sandbar in front of MarineMax.
This weekend will also include the return of a food truck rally at Sarasota brewery Big Top, a laser light concert series at Bradenton’s Bishop Museum and an outdoor art festival on St. Armands Circle.
Looking for even more options? Sarasota-Manatee Originals’ newly reimagined Originals Culinary Tour returns for its first tour of the season 5-8:30 p.m. Thursday, visiting Michael’s on East, Mimi Brasserie & Speakeasy, Rose & Ivy, Brick’s Smoked Meats and Hanami Sushi Cocktails & Grill. Tickets are $155 and include food and wine pairings, trolley transportation, gratuities, and a $20 wine credit.
Along with “The Mandalorian and Grogu” (among the other summer blockbusters showcased in this week’s Ticket cover story), there will be two more notable films screening locally this week. Downtown Sarasota park The Bay’s free outdoor movie series Cinema on the Bay at 7:30 p.m. Thursday will screen the Coen Brothers’ 1998 comedy classic “The Big Lebowski” starring Jeff Bridges, John Goodman and Steve Buscemi, who introduced the movie during another free outdoor screening at the 2024 Sarasota Film Festival.
Then at 11 a.m. Friday and Saturday, Burns Court Cinemas will screen the documentary “First They Came for My College” about the Florida government’s takeover of Sarasota’s New College. The documentary comes to Sarasota after playing film festivals such as South by Southwest and True/False. Tickets are $15, with the first 30 New College students at each screening getting in free.
1. Downtown Sarasota Memorial Day Parade
The annual Memorial Day parade will start at Main Street and Orange Avenue and conclude at Chaplain J.D. Hamel Park at Main Street and Gulfstream Avenue, where a ceremony will be held at approximately 11 a.m.
The parade will include performances by the Sarasota Military Academy band and participation from local law enforcement agencies, first responders, color guards, veterans’ groups, community organizations and dignitaries. The ceremony is scheduled to feature guest speaker Charlie Halley, a U.S. Army veteran who served in active duty and reserves for nearly 11 years, and is known locally as The Comet on his WSRQ weekday morning show and the founder of DD-214 Jeepers, a Sarasota veterans nonprofit.
10 a.m.-noon Monday; Main Street, Sarasota; free; sarasotafl.gov
2. AquaPalooza at MarineMax Sarasota
MarineMax Sarasota will host this annual Memorial Day weekend event featuring a full day of boating, music and fun.
Boats will gather and anchor together to listen to live music from local reggae favorites Jah Movement, country/classic rockers Dr. Dave Band, and alt-country act Zach Regan and the 776. The party will be at New Pass Sandbar, outside of MarineMax.
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday; MarineMax, 1601 Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota; free; 941-388-4411; facebook.com/marinemaxsarasota
3. Food Truck Rally at Big Top in Sarasota
Sarasota brewery Big Top Brewing Company, in partnership with Smokin Momma Lora’s BBQ, will host this food truck rally.
Featured food trucks will include Smokin Momma Lora’s, Chasin’ Chicken, Windy City Throwdown, Dirty Sara-Soda, Whipped Strawberry Wonders and Groovin Grouper. There will also be live music courtesy of area bluesman RJ Howson and Friends, local vendors, axe-throwing and more.
5-9 p.m. Friday; Big Top Brewing Company, 3045 Fruitville Commons Blvd., Sarasota; free entry; 941-225-8438; bigtopbrewing.com
4. Laser Light Nights at The Bishop Museum in Bradenton
The Bishop Museum’s laser light shows set to pop and rock music, which returned in 2022 after a 21-year absence, will kick off another season this week.
Thursday will feature the music of Journey, who just recently visited Tampa’s Benchmark International Arena. Friday will feature the music of Motown, then one of the biggest stars to come from it, Michael Jackson. Then Saturday will feature pop-rock royalty with Queen and then Prince.
6 p.m. Thursday and 6 and 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature, 201 10th St. W.,Bradenton; $15 per show; 941-746-4131; bishopscience.org
5. St. Armands Fine Art Festival in Sarasota
The Lakewood Ranch-based Paragon Festivals, which organizes seafood and music events as well as art shows across Florida, will host the latter on St. Armands Circle this weekend.
The festival will transform the Sarasota shopping and dining district into an outdoor gallery of arts and crafts in mediums including sculpture, jewelry, painting, photography, glass, ceramics, mixed-media, metalwork, fiber art, woodworking and more.
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; 434 St. Armands Circle, Sarasota; free admission; 941-487-8061; paragonfestivals.com
Email entertainment reporter Jimmy Geurts at jimmy.geurts@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Top Sarasota events Memorial Day weekend include parade, boat party
Reporting by Jimmy Geurts, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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