From the playhouse to politics, from sea monsters to circus school and a hundred places to wine, dine and realign, the Suncoast thrives in the summer months and the idea of “off-season” is going the way of the dodo for the active and engaged. As conventional wisdom says: Only boring people are bored, now get out there and see what the snowbirds are missing.

Adventures at the Asolo

Jules Verne’s nautical epic, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, comes to the Asolo Repertory Theatre stage this year with a multi-media mixed bag of tricks both old and new bringing underwater vistas and great sea creatures to life through everything from puppetry and shadow-play to mass projections. Adapted for the stage by Craig Francis and Rick Miller, this modern update brings a time-traveling 21st century oceanographer named Jules into the mix. “We’ve taken the classic Jules Verne adventure and put a bit of a twist on it,” says Francis. “Nemo escaped to the ocean because we ruined the land, now it’s 150 years later and we have a character who understands how precious the oceans are and what we’ve done to them.” Rife with audience interaction, this is one show where you can bring your phone and leave it on. Asolo Repertory Theatre, 5555 North Tamiami Trl., Sarasota, 941-351-9010.


The Breakfast Club

Do you feel like the nerd? The princess? The jock? Doesn’t matter at this North Port Chamber of Commerce monthly event—everyone’s allowed to attend for free and check out what the business organization is all about. “Our breakfasts are informal and an opportunity for members to network with each other,” says Bill Gunnin, executive director of the North Port chamber. The next Breakfast Club Networking event will be held June 7 at Olde World. The low-key events typically include a speaker—in April, the city’s emergency management director talked disaster preparedness—and a chance for everybody to give a short elevator speech on their businesses. “It’s amazing how long people stay afterward just to get to know each other and learn who’s who,” Gunnin says. Anyone can attend for free; the only potential cost comes if you order something off the menu. A typical crowd includes 30 to 35 attendees. North Port Chamber of Commerce, 15141 Tamiami Trl, Sarasota, 941-564-3040.


Circus School

Whether your child dreams of walking the high wire or spinning on strands of silk, the experts at The Circus Arts Conservatory can help this summer. The Conservatory through its various summer and after-school programs sees hundreds of students every year interested in learning a variety of crafts from acrobatics to precision clowning around. The Sailor Circus program teaches more than 100 aspiring young circus stars during an after-school program during the academic year, and during the summer some 700 are expected to enroll in circus summer camp at the Conservatory. And despite the recent closing of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, Conservatory executive director Jennifer Mitchell says interest in the art form remains high. More than ever, today’s kids want to do more than watch the circus; they want a part in it. “We’ve seen a change in the audience to where it’s less about spectating and observing and more about engaging and doing,” Mitchell says. The Circus Arts Conservatory, 2075 Bahia Vista St., Sarasota, 941-355-9335.


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D
rum Down the Sun

Unwind island-style, barefoot on the sands of Siesta Key in the last light of the setting sun with good company and good cheer. Every Sunday, as dusk settles in and the night threatens, locals convene at the shoreline of Siesta Key Beach where local musicians and dancers have made a community tradition of the weekly drum circle. With blankets and chairs, portable grills and an appetite for dance, the gathering crowds ward off the workweek with one last hurrah in the beauty of the beach under darkling skies. For those who can’t wait till Sunday, Nokomis Beach hosts its own drum circle every Wednesday and Saturday.

 

Empanada, Empanada

Channel the summer heat into your lunch (or breakfast…or dinner) plans with spicy empanadas from Peperonata Pasta & Empanadas. Empanada queen Stefania Fochi has been making the golden puffs since she was a wee one, and cites three reasons why hers are the best: 1) The dough is made fresh from scratch on a weekly basis. “The dough is crucial to the dignity of any empanada, and one can always tell if it is made from scratch or not,” she says. 2) All of the ingredients are fresh, free of a single pre-fabricated filling. 3) Fochi respects the Argentinian tradition by using real Argentinian flavors and recipes. Try the spicy beef or the spicy chicken for a blast of that full Argentinian flavor. Pick them up at the Sarasota Farmers Market on Saturdays or at the brick-and-mortar store during the week. Peperonata Pasta & Empanadas, 4141 South Tamiami Trl., Sarasota, 941-870-2729.


Farm Fresh CSAS

Community-supported agriculture (CSA) has gained traction in the last decade, with more and more shoppers turning to a network of local farms to provide everything from produce to eggs, pasture-raised meat to honey and dairy to flowers. CSA subscribers generally receive/pick-up a box full of in-season goodies on a weekly(ish) basis for a set cost, supporting individual farmers and growers directly while stocking their shelves with the freshest provisions possible. Locally, CSA memberships can be found at a few choice farms: veggie boxes from Geraldson Community Farm can be picked up at Whole Foods, Wild Ginger Apothecary or Barre3 in Sarasota; order chicken thighs, necks, breasts and anything (poultry) in between online from Grove Ladder Farm and pick up at Phillippi Farmhouse Market, Seaward CrossFit or Sweetgrass Farms; or if you are farther south (say, Venice or Nokomis) get your harvest box full of organic veggies from Worden Farms. Geraldson Community Farm, 1401 99th St. NW., Bradenton, 941-792-0985. Worden Farms, 34900 Bermont Rd., Punta Gorda, Wordenfarm.com. Grove Ladder Farm,  1500 Lena Ln., Sarasota, 941-928-5891.


Grand Prix

Rev your engines. The Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix Festival takes to Gulf Coast waters for the 33rd year. Lucy Nicandri, festival director, says spectators will have plenty to do beyond watching powerboats zip past Lido Beach this year, from having a laugh at McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre on June 28 to enjoying fine cuisine at Michael’s on the Bay at Selby Gardens on June 29, but the banner event remains the races, which roar to the region July 1 and 2. “We should see quite a few big boats return to the area,” Nicandri says. “When you look at the Florida racing circuit, Sarasota is really where it all started.” And the festival this year will host a fan festival in the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall parking lot, where guests can watch feeds of the race under tents. The event will also host a Miss Powerboat P1 swimsuit contest this year. Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix, June 24-July 4, 2017,  941-487-7904.


Here Be Dragons . . .

The waters of Nathan Benderson Park teem with sea monsters and the audience cheers—the Suncoast International Dragon Boat Festival has arrived. Last year, 32 crews paddled their hearts out for victory, but this year the stakes have risen with the arrival of the 2017 Southeast Regional Dragon Boat Association Championships. Where before they fought for pride, now they fight for a coveted berth at the 2018 World Championships in Szeged, Hungary. From the traditional Waking of the Dragon at the festival opening to the closing awards, “this year is going to be bigger, better and more exciting,” says organizer Marty Millard. Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Cir., Sarasota, 941-358-7275.


Improv Inbound

Known in the improv community as a “festival of headliners,” the Sarasota Improv Festival lives up to its name this year with a roster including the return of both the Austin-based international improv troupe PGraph and the hip hop improv group North Coast, but also the world festival debut of Blank! The Musical. The only improvised show to ever run Off-Broadway, Blank! is a fully improvised Broadway-style musical, with everything from the book to the melody, lyrics and music invented on the spot each night. These aren’t shows that stay in the theater for weeks, says festival director Will Luera, but literal once-in-a-lifetime events. “The show you see that night,” he says, “is the only time that show will ever be done, because it’s completely improvised.” For those who want to try their hand at the craft, top performers from Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights will be leading classes for all skill levels on Saturday afternoons through the festival. Florida Studio Theatre, 1241 North Palm Ave., Sarasota, 941-366-9000.


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Jungle Gardens

This family-friendly Sarasota attraction offers a cheap way to spend the day learning about birds and reptiles. If you slip in during the Fourth of July weekend, you can enjoy further discounts while the park offers admission on a buy-one-get-one basis. It’s one of a number of promotions the animal attraction has utilized this year to entice and reward locals to enjoy the menagerie of creatures viewable at the Sarasota locale. “Families can enjoy feeding flamingos, watching interactive animal shows and exploring 10 acres of jungle paradise in the heart of Sarasota,” says Nancy Lavick, spokeswoman for Sarasota Jungle Gardens. The Bay Shore Road facility boasts a long history dating back to 1939, and it remains one of Florida’s oldest privately owned and operated tourist attractions. More than 200 native and exotic animals, from parrots to primates, reside on the campus. Sarasota Jungle Gardens, 3701 Bay Shore Rd., Sarasota, 941-355-5305.


Spruce Up Your Juice

It’s summertime—treat yourself and go for the sweet rather than the super-green when choosing your next cold-pressed juice. Try Crop Juice’s Juicy Fruit, an infusion of watermelon, cantaloupe, pineapple, orange, green apple, pear and beet. “Enjoy this 100-percent-organic, hand-poured fruit treat after a day at the beach,” says Crop Juice Sarasota manager Chelsea Katanic, “or add to your favorite adult spirit for an extra burst of flavor and nutrients as a Croptail.” Other juicy gems include SaraFresh Juice’s Liquid Sunshine (pineapple, apple, lemon, turmeric) and Green Zebra Café’s Forever Young wellness shot (Apothe cherry, hibiscus, lime). For an extra sophisticated pour, head to Michael’s on East and try the fresh-pressed vegetable juice of the day; recent combos have been carrot/pineapple/mango, tomato/celery/grape and apple/cantaloupe/pear.

 

Kids Summer Beach Runs

Held every Tuesday on Siesta Key Beach and Wednesday in Venice, the yearly summer beach runs turns the sands into a stampede as hundreds of local kids (and their families) turn out for a one-mile dash in the setting sun. Registration is free this year, and every little racer gets a punch card to keep track of their races—four punches gets an event T-shirt. It’s all about promoting a healthy lifestyle, beaches and family time, says Diana Finnegan of the Sarasota County Parks and Recreation Department, and she’s seen everything from parents pushing strollers to 17-year-old runners take part. As for the ultimate beach-running question—barefoot or shod?—Finnegan remains mum. “It’s your preference,” she says, but with 10 races scheduled, complete with timers on hand, racers can conduct their own science experiment to see what works for them.


Laugh Attack

Kevin Nealon is ready to pump (insert clapping sound) Sarasota up. From Weeds to Weekend Update, the comedian has amused audiences since the mid-80s. Now he brings his standup to McCurdy’s Comedy Theater. The comedian plays Sarasota June 30. The comedian’s been cracking jokes about Trump protests and rain storms—“We needed it,” he said of both during his A Prairie Home Companion routine—or of putting thumbs-down emojis in his phone contacts beside dead friends he need not call anymore. Club owner Les McCurdy says Nealon has been a long-time friend of the club. McCurdy’s Comedy Theater, 1923 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota, 941-925-3869.


Lionfish Derby

Snorkelers and spearfishers convene in Sarasota waters for another Lionfish Derby—a daylong team competition to catch the most lionfish by sundown. Last year, lionfish derbies brought in near 2,500 of the invasive species and had a “definite effect” on what some call an “ecological disaster” that the lionfish have wrought. Voracious eaters, each year many are caught mid-meal and brought in with the tails of native species hanging from their jaws. “That very easily conveys the unthinkable rate of consumption that these fish have,” says Emily Stokes of the Reef Environmental Education Foundation, which organizes the culling events. At the end of the day, everyone reconvenes at a local restaurant for a free bowl of lionfish ceviche and awards for most fish caught, biggest fish and smallest fish. Local artist Tim Jaeger selected the lionfish as the subject for several art projects including a custom silkscreen design featured at this year’s SartQ Annual Print Party. “I began painting ‘trash fish’ because of my friendship with Chef Steve Phelps and his organization of the Trash Fish Dinner,” says Jaeger. “This event opened my eyes and mind to the undervalued and underutilized species of fish in our Gulf. I was intrigued by what had been presented to me and was already searching for subject matter relating to our region. I started by painting a couple trash fish and instantly found myself enjoying the colors and expression—finding similarities to the other animals I’ve painted before. I painted Spanish Mackerel, Barracuda, Wahoo and many other species but for some reason avoided the Lionfish. The Lionfish was somewhat intimidating to me, (after all its a beautiful venomous fish) but soon I ran out of fish I hadn’t painted and gave it a shot. In it, I found color, beauty and even a political role because of its invasiveness in our waters."


March on Something

Protests. Counter-protests. The state of the nation is in the streets. You could see it at town halls held by Reps. Vern Buchanan and Tom Rooney this year that had to be moved respectively to the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall or Englewood Events Center to accommodate record crowds. And if anyone’s being honest, that wasn’t about a chance to engage in friendly dialogue. Rooney fielded questions about whether he plans to destroy Social Security while Buchanan got grilled on the future of the Affordable Care Act. JoAnne DeVries, chairman of the Sarasota Democratic Party, says you will hear more from the left in the age of Trump. “More people realize they need to be involved at the grassroots level in order to be involved in social change,” she says. “The Democratic Party is doing a better job mobilizing and organizing and people are seeing their voices will be heard.” But the right isn’t sitting on their hands. Pro-Trump marches could be seen in downtown Sarasota months after the election concluded. Christian Ziegler, state committeeman for the Republican Party of Sarasota, calls protests by liberals an act of desperation.  “The Left’s only move now is to attempt to obstruct by protest,” he says. “Unfortunately for them, their behavior at these protests, including in Sarasota, further showcases their extremism.” Yes, it’s going to be that type of election cycle.

 

Musical Milestones

Selected last summer as festival director and working since the fall, acclaimed conductor Jeffrey Kahane of Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra fame helms his first Sarasota Music Festival this year and looks set to make his mark on the Gulf Coast as well. With a class of performers “as strong as the festival has ever had,” says Kahane, the faculty and students will join this year on the first Friday of the three-week festival to perform all six of the Brandenburg concertos back-to-back for the first time in the festival’s history. “You get a remarkable sense of what a tremendous achievement they are creatively,” says Kahane. “They are arguably the best of the Baroque Period.”

 

Na'vi Dreams

It’s been eight years since James Cameron wowed audiences and made box-office history with Avatar, and though fans will still have to wait another two years at least for the first of the four planned sequels, they can visit Pandora firsthand while they wait. Opening this past May in Walt Disney World Resort, Pandora—The World of Avatar brings Cameron’s exotic world to life with everything from Na’vi River Rides to the floating mountains of Mo’ara. “You can go right under that central floating mountain and feel its mass above you,” says Cameron. “And that’s when you really know you’re on an alien world.”


Ocean Appreciation

The World Oceans Day family festival at Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium enters its 10th year this summer. More than 1,000 guests attended the celebration at the Sarasota aquarium last year. The June 3 event, held in conjunction with a national awareness day inspired by a United Nations summit, provides more than a family activity.  “It’s a chance to develop awareness and celebrate our connection to the sea,” says Mote Marine’s Kaitlyn Fusco. “No matter where you live, we all have one thing in common and that’s the ocean.” This year’s theme will be 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and folks can learn more about marine science through a series of crafts aiming to educate on sustainability and conservation practices that can be applied in day-to-day life all year round. Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium, 1600 Ken Thompson Pkwy., Sarasota, 941-388-4441.


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Purple Reign

The Purple One is gone, but this fashion show may make you wonder. We Care Manatee will host this luncheon and fashion show at Renaissance on 9th on June 9. With community leaders donning their best violet displays, expect more flare than a mere Raspberry Beret. We Care Manatee helps low-income, uninsured residents of Manatee County by providing free medical care by connecting them with volunteer physicians. Proceeds from Purple Reign will help keep the doors open at a primary care clinic and to help pay for cancer screenings and diagnostic services. Renaissance on 9th, 1816 9th St. W, Bradenton, 941-749-0100.


Play Ball!

Whether your kids live for every chance to step up to the plate or you just like to sit in the stands and root, root, root for the home team, the Fifth Annual Cal Ripken All Star Classic provides a good excuse to head to the ballpark. The tournament showcases one of Cal Ripken Baseball’s biggest advantages over rival Little League in that hopefuls can play a series of games before the official All-Star Tournament gets underway.  “The teams have the advantage of being able to get some practice games in before, then go off to district and state tournaments,” says Roger Miller, Sarasota Cal Ripken athletic director. Cal Ripken Baseball, a sort of minors for players age 13 and younger before the move on to Babe Ruth Baseball, offers young players already serious about the sport a place to compete on the diamond. In the tourney’s short life, the Classic has already fielded one team that went on to win the Cal Ripken Baseball national championship in the Manatee Cal Ripken team of 2015. Heritage Harbor, River Heritage Blvd., Bradenton; Sarasota Cal Ripken Complex, 2801 12th St., Sarasota; Twin Lakes Park, 6700 Clark Rd., Sarasota.


Playtime at The Players

The Summer Sizzlers series returns at the Players Centre for Performing Arts, bringing three plays to the stage throughout the summer, one for each month. Stop in for June’s production of the contemporary comedy Beau Jest, about a Jewish woman who hides her WASP boyfriend by hiring an actor to meet her parents, but come back come July for the Off-Broadway hit musical The Marvelous Wonderettes, taking the audience back to the 1958 Springfield High Prom with plenty of classics from the 1950s and 60s. The series culminates in August with a staging of Arsenic and Old Lace, which has not seen the Players’ stage since 1992, despite being the most requested play from the audience. It’s a packed series, says Players Artistic Director Jeffery Kin: “There’s no way there’s not something for everyone.” The Players Theatre, 838 North Tamiami Trl., Sarasota, 941-365-2494.


Quirky Pop

Cool down with an ice pop straight from across the border; La Michoacana Paleteria in Bradenton serves up Mexican-style frozen treats in flavors unheard of for the everyday popsicle. With options based in milk or water, there’s your garden-variety strawberry, coconut and watermelon, or the wilder concoctions for ambitious tasters. Try the blood-red grosella, or redcurrant—tart and rich—or the creamy beige tamarindo (AKA tamarind)—subtle, almost cinnamony. For the real wild child, opt for the mango con chile—it’s unexpectedly salty with a serious kick. La Michoacana Paleteria, 3537 1st St., Bradenton.


Rosemary Indie

Every third Saturday of the month, local artists, makers, bakers and designers join around the little Airstream behind Canned Ham Vintage for the Rosemary District Indie Market. Pop by and peruse the booths featuring everything from woodwork and African treasures, to vintage wedding dresses and hand-made paper goods; sway to the live music and grab a bite or a drink from one of the food trucks pulled up. “The Rosemary Indie Market has a goal of maintaining the reason we all fell in love with the Rosemary district in the first place,” says Canned Ham’s Ashley Rogers. “We want to keep it eclectic.” Chill out and enjoy while you support small businesses and their creativity—maybe you’ll be inspired to create something of your own. Canned Ham Vintage, 1435 7th St., Sarasota, 941-313-1280.

 

Selby's Splashing Saturdays

The Children’s Rainforest Garden becomes a veritable waterpark this summer as children play organized games at this family treasure each weekend from June 10 through July 15. On Selby’s Splashing Saturdays, the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens staff sets up activities by the Ann Goldstein Children’s Rainforest Garden so children can also learn about plant life and gardening between moments in the Water Zone. Hunter Carpenter, a marketing assistant at the gardens, calls the weekend set-up “one of our premier summer family events.” Children from toddler-age to 10 years old will enjoy this special time around the banyans while mom and dad take a peak at the art of Marc Chagall. Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, 811 South Palm Ave., Sarasota, 941-366-5731.


State Street's New Foodie Face

The 1500 block of State Street welcomes a host of new restaurants, from seafood to BBQ to good ol’ fashioned burgers. Brick’s Smoked Meats: Located at 1528 State Street, this is the first brick-and-mortar shop of the famed Sarasota Farmers Market booth. The 4,300-square-foot restaurant holds a reclaimed-wood face and will serves up even more of that signature smoky goodness that sells out in minutes every Saturday. S’macks Burgers and Shakes: Located on the corner of State and Lemon in the new 1500 State Street high-rise, the second location of the ever-popular French fry heaven (slated to open in early 2018) will feature the same quick-service burger model. And the downtown location speaks to the original concept of the restaurant: The Smack, a drive-thru restaurant located on Main Street in the 1950s. Atlantic Beer and Oyster: Two doors down at 1534 State Street, Atlantic Beer and Oyster (opening this year) will focus heavily on—you guessed it—oysters, with nods to classic fish and shrimp dishes. Owned by the parent company (BE-1 Concepts) behind neighbor Boca Kitchen, Bar + Market, ABO will be more casual than its Lemon Avenue sister.


Taylor Ham (Or is it Pork Roll?)

It’s not bacon, not bologna, certainly not SPAM—Taylor Ham is a thing unto itself, and New Jerseyans will defend it ‘till the end. Former President Barak Obama eats it, it’s the star of New Jersey’s official state sandwich—even Ween made a song about it. Sarasota long been without the sweet, pan-fried “ham” so fiercely beloved up North, but no longer, as Cask & Ale’s new brunch menu highlights the enthusiastic meat in the Chipped Pork Roll S.O.S, a “play on Shit on a Shingle, or a constructed pork roll with egg and cheese,” says Executive Chef Justin Sells, featuring grilled bread, scrambled eggs, beer cheese and, of course, Taylor Ham. Cask & Ale, 1548 Main St., Sarasota, 941-316-0500.


Trash Fish on Deck

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure—trash fish, that is. Coined as a way to differentiate varietals less desirable to chefs, fishermen and diners, trash fish can be made into gold in the tongs of the right chef. With that in mind, the nonprofit organization Chefs Collaborative teamed up with Edible Sarasota to create dinners focused on underutilized and invasive seafood species, along with insights into the future of sustainable seafood. While a date has as yet not been confirmed for the 4th annual Trash Fish Dinner (generally in August), of last year’s event, Indigenous’ Chef Steve Phelps said: “Awareness is increasing. We’re all teaching, learning and collaborating. I see my customers asking a lot more questions, and that’s exactly what we hoped to see.”


Upscale "Theateries"

Slow down and take a break from the summer heat with some summer blockbusters—and try some fine dining while you’re at it. The announced iPic at University Town Center may still be in the works, but CineBistro at Southgate is up and running with lounge, dining room and seven silver screens showing the summer’s biggest releases from superhero fare like Wonder Woman and Spiderman: Homecoming to the World War II epic Dunkirk and the science fiction finale of War for the Planet of the Apes. With restaurant-style meals delivered straight to your seat before the film and the under-21 crowd banned past 6pm, it’s the perfect date night for cinephiles and foodies alike. CineBistro, 3501 South Tamiami Trl., Sarasota, 941-361-2456.


US Rowing Youth Nationals

You don’t need to wait for the World Rowing Championships to see some of the nation’s best scullers hit the waters at Nathan Benderson Park. The top rowing venue in North America this month will host the 2017 USRowing Youth National Championships. The event in 2016 attracted 178 clubs to New Jersey’s Mercer County Park. Bob Sullivan, CEO of the Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associates, says the venue expects up to 1,800 athletes to attend the event this year. More than 350 crews will compete in 18 boat classes, according to USRowing officials. When last the event was here, in 2015, nearly 4,000 hotel rooms booked and an economic impact of $6 million-plus washed into the region. “Something like the World Rowing Championships comes along every decade or so,” Sullivan says. “[Youth Nationals] is the sort of event we want to do every year.” Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Cir., Sarasota, 941-358-7275.


VR Getaway

Take staycation to the next level with a trip to Mars or inside the pulmonary system of a human being. It may sound fantastical, but this is the world of virtual reality, where the only limitation is the imagination of the programmer. Between consumer products like the Oculus Rift, which allows the user to play games and explore otherworldly environments in a virtual space, special offerings at local establishments like Sarasota Escape Room and conventions at Ringling College of Art and Design, virtual reality is becoming a literal presence in the community and one more avenue to explore when summer heat is at its peak. A great escape when the summer rains set in or the sunburn gets too bad, virtual reality also brings the world to those travelers-at-heart whose globetrotting days may be behind them. Meet friends at the park for lunch and summit Everest from your living room in the evening. “Good life is about balance,” says Jim McCampbell, department head for computer animation at Ringling College. “There’s time for both.”

 

Wunderkind Restaurateur

Mark Caragiulo doesn’t stay dormant for long. Having opened his newest establishment, Veronica Fish & Oyster, just late last year, another project is approaching completion this month: The Shore. As a sister to flagship restaurant and shop Shore Diner on St. Armands, The Shore will feature a dock for boat access and an unadulterated view of pure-Florida coast. Caragiulo and co-owner Tom Leonard bought the former Moore’s Stone Crab Restaurant on Longboat Key in 2015 with plans to focus the 7,000-square-foot space on locally sourced, house-made fare, with Chef Dylan Elhajoui (formerly of MoZaic) at the helm. The Shore, 800 Broadway St., Longboat Key.


Xtreme Fossils

The time: 2.5 million years ago. The place: Florida. Nine-foot-tall flightless birds stalk the overgrown jungles, migrating up from South America where, in the absence of dire wolves and saber-toothed cats, the Titanis Walleri reigns supreme. “They’ve got huge talons and these terrifying beaks that could deal a death blow,” says South Florida Museum Director of Education Jeff Rodgers, who keeps the skull of a “terror bird,” as they’re affectionately called, on his desk. For those without a desk full of skulls, the South Florida Museum has, for a limited time, two casts of the full animal on display alongside the rest of the museum’s permanent fossil collection. “And they’re spectacular,” says Rodgers. South Florida Museum, 201 10th St. W., Bradenton, 941-746-4131.


Yoga En Plein Air

Get into your down dog outside of the studio and take your practice to the park with the Yoga Shack. Owners Courtenay Smith and Nikka Colorado have partnered with Nathan Benderson Park to host a free outdoor yoga series by the lake every first Sunday of the month, complete with a DJ and offerings from activewear darlings Lululemon. Bask in the sunshine while you move into triangle pose; feel the sweet breeze off the water as you align for warrior I; most importantly, take advantage of an hour among your strong yogi family.Yoga Shack, 423 North Lemon Ave., Sarasota, 770-846-9079.


Catch Some Z's

After all that eatin’, yogain’ and boat racin’, it may be time for a nice catnap. To help in your pursuit of REM, try out these calming overnight products that will lull you into blissful abandon.   Jo Malone London Vitamin E Hand Treatment Saks Fifth Avenue  Rich and luxurious, slather this sumptuous lotion over hands (and feet!) for an overnight infusion of moisture and conditioning.  Summit Chair Hammock KW Hammock Co. This isn’t your grandpa’s hammock—swing into sweet dreams in the summer breeze on the Summit chair, hand-crafted from solid oak and rope and designed to recline into your most comfortable position.  Saks Fifth Avenue, 120 University Town Center Dr., Sarasota, 941-364-5300.  KW Hammock Company, 24 N. Blvd. of the Presidents, Sarasota, 941-388-0006.