This is the week the fall calendar starts feeling full again, and I love it. A first wine evening at the Sarasota Art Museum on Tuesday, a whole downtown Venice weekend with the sidewalk sale and the Art & Craft Expo, and a new comedy opening at Venice Theatre. Here is where I would point you if you asked me for a plan for the week of September 14 through 20.
Uncorked Comes Back to the Art Museum
On Tuesday, September 15 at 5:30 p.m., the Sarasota Art Museum pours its Uncorked monthly wine tasting on the Marcy and Michael Klein plaza at 1001 South Tamiami Trail. Six pours, some cheese, and the chance to wander the galleries before the wine even arrives. I mention it to every client who asks about living in the Sarasota city core, because it is exactly the kind of evening you start downtown and end on a patio nearby.
The museum's current pair of shows, Something Borrowed, Something New and Maria A. Guzmán Capron: Penumbra, stay up through September 27, so this is also a good week to finally see them without the season crowds.
A Craft Weekend Taking Over Downtown Venice
Venice does things properly, so the Venice Avenue district stretches the celebration across the weekend. Venice MainStreet kicks off Friday, September 18 with the September Sidewalk Sale, when downtown merchants bring racks and tables out to the brick walkways. Then on Saturday the 19th, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Venice Art & Craft Expo gathers juried makers, jewelers, potters, painters and vintage dealers into the historic district.
My usual rhythm for that weekend: coffee at a West Venice Avenue café, the Expo first so I can take my time, lunch somewhere on the walk, then a slow cruise down to the Venice Pier. If you are house hunting in the area, this is also a wonderful weekend to wander Venice Avenue and see how walkable the whole thing feels, then call me and we can talk about what is nearby. The dining guide has my Venice Avenue favorites when you get hungry.
Season Opening at Venice Theatre
The same Friday, Venice Theatre opens Four Old Broads, a comedy kicking off its 77th season and running from September 18 through October 11. It is a comfortable first act of the year: dinner at one of the Venice Avenue dining rooms, then a short stroll over to the theatre at 140 West Tampa Avenue.
And the Evenings Roll On
Marina Jacks keeps the Blue Sunshine Patio and the Deep Six Piano Bar live through the weekend, always with a bayfront sunset on the house. Down at Art Ovation, the lobby keeps its resident music programming going all week, and the Echoes of Yesterday gallery exhibition stays up through November for an easy pre-dinner wander.
If any of this lands on a weekend when you are scouting the area from out of town, do more than enjoy the festival: tour a few properties in Palmer Ranch, spend a morning on the Legacy Trail, and we can book a call for the week you arrive. Reach out and I will build you a route through the season.