Your Top 10 Things to Do: April 19-25

Image: Shutterstock.com
Best of Sarasota Party at Selby Gardens
April 24
Feel the spirit of Aloha when Sarasota Magazine returns to Selby Gardens for its Best of Sarasota party. Prepare yourself for a Mai Tai, samples of the best fare from the area’s best restaurants and some exciting surprises. Always a sell-out; get your tickets now here.

DeAnna Wright and Dylan Crow in Much Ado About Nothing.
Image: John Revisky
Shakespeare in the Gardens
Opening April 18
The FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training’s joyful outdoor production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Selby Gardens last year was such a triumph that it’s inked a three-year deal to bring Shakespeare to the Gardens through 2020. First up is the Bard’s comedic Much Ado About Nothing, opening April 18.

The miniature Howard Bros. Circus at The Ringling.
Image: Courtesy TheRingling
World Circus Day: Free Admission to The Ringling Circus Museum
April 21
Everybody gets free admission to The Ringling Circus Museum and Tibbals Learning Center Saturday in honor of World Circus Day—a great opportunity to see the fascinating miniature Howad Bros. Circus, historic circus memorabilia and lots and lots of interactive fun for children of all ages. Plus, free family art-making activities from 1-4 p.m., a lecture on 250 years of the modern circus and more. Visit ringling.org for details.

A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line
April 24-25
That “One Singular Sensation” high-kicks into the Van Wezel for three shows Tuesday and Wednesday; hurry, it’s almost a sell-out.

The Silkroad Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma
Image: Jennifer Taylor
The Silkroad Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma
April 19
The Grammy Award-winning world music ensemble comes to the Van Wezel with its founder, Yo-Yo Ma, perhaps the greatest living cellist. We love its mission: music that engages difference, sparking radical cultural collaboration and passion-driven learning to build a more hopeful world.

Byron Stripling
Image: Courtesy Sarasota Orchestra
Sarasota Orchestra Pops: "Swingin' at the Club"
April 20-21
Trumpet virtuoso Byron Stripling is joined by jazz vocalist Carmen Bradford and tap dancer Ted Louis Levy for a lively end to the Sarasota Orchestra pops season. Three performances at the Van Wezel.

Sheldon Rhoden, Leon S. Pitts, II, Ariel Blue, Henry Washington, Raleigh Mosely II and Michael Mendez in Soul Man.
Image: Vutti Photography
WBTT presents Soul Man
April 18-May 26
The music of soul men Sam Cooke, Jackie Wilson, Sam & Dave, James Brown, Otis Redding, The Temptations, Solomon Burke, Ray Charles and more fill the Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe stage in its last production of the season.

Image: Shutterstock
Suncoast BBQ and Bluegrass Bash
April 20-21
Lots and lots of great barbecue at this popular fund-raiser for Suncoast Foundation for Handicapped Children, and musical groups Volume Five, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out and Lonesome River Band add to the fun. At the Venice Airport Festival Grounds.

Dither
Image: Courtesy Dither
New Music New College presents Dither
April 21
The acclaimed New York-based electric guitar quartet will perform an eclectic mix of experimental music at this last concert of the contemporary music series. Come half an hour early for a pre-concert talk, or join the free artist conversation at 5 p.m. Thursday at New College’s Sainer Pavilion.

Enrique Chia
Image: Courtesy Selby Gardens
Selby Gardens Music concert with Enrique Chia
April 22
The monthly outdoor Garden Music series returns with Grammy nominated Cuban pianist Enrique Chia and his danceable mix of soft pop, Latin dance tunes and boleros. Free with admission to Selby Gardens.
Special Events
Best of Sarasota 2018
Theater
"Much Ado About Nothing"
Theater
"A Chorus Line"
Concerts
The Silkroad Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma
Food & Drink
Suncoast BBQ & Bluegrass Bash
Concerts