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Weekend forecast: Country’s Jamey Johnson in Pinellas Park
Jamey Johnson, the “outlaw” country music singer and songwriter whose songs have been recorded by George Strait, Willie Nelson, Trace Adkins and others, performs Friday at the 10-acre England Brothers Park in Pinellas Park. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for the show, which also features Ben Haggard (the youngest son of late legend Merle Haggard) and country/folk performer Zandi Holup.
Johnson, whose own hits include “In Color” and the million-selling albums That Lonesome Song and The Guitar Song, is a former U.S. Marine. He last played the area in 2022, as part of the Last Waltz salute concert (at the Mahaffey Theater) with guitar great Warren Haynes and others. Find concert tickets here.
Prideful ’24
And here’s Pride Weekend, with all the bells, whistles – and LGBTQ-centric entertainment options – that arrive with it:
Drag performer, actress, dancer, trans advocate and activist Sasha Colby performs Friday at Jannus Live; Colby won Season 15 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. Click here for tickets.
The Pride Parade Day Festival, 2-10 p.m. Saturday in North and South Straub parks, features multiple performance stages, food trucks and beverage gardens, a family area and more. Rapper Saucy Santana is the musical headliner (at 9 p.m.)
The Trans March steps off down Bayshore Boulevard, with the 22nd annual St. Pete Pride Parade – the largest in Florida – starting at 6 p.m.
For the Grand Central Street Fair, 11 blocks of Central Avenue (from 2000 to 3100) will be closed to vehicular traffic Sunday (noon until 5 p.m.) The celebratory, family-friendly, free block party includes live entertainment, vendors, food, street performers, community partners and more.
Bats#!t is a 75-minute comedic monologue by actor and playwright Steven J. Burge; it’s being presented (by American Stage) in a staged reading three times on this Pride weekend. Friday (7:30 p.m.) at Tombolo Books, Sunday (3 p.m.) at FloridaRAMA (formerly Fairgrounds St. Pete), includes an “unplugged” set from musician Siobhan Monique and more) and again Monday (7:30 p.m.) at Book + Bottle.
Its disclaimer: This show contains a cis white man talking about himself for over an hour. It also contains some legit-upsetting topics like parallel parking; theater camp; coming out in small-town, rural America; assault; addiction; pickleball; and mental illness. Oh! And clowns!
Bats#!t premiered in March as part of American Stage’s Lift Every Voice New Play Festival, at the James Museum of Western and Wildlife Art.
Tickets and information are here.
Let’s not forget Dirty John’s Big Gay Prom: The Musical, Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings at The Studio @620. Tickets for the DJ company’s Pride Weekend comedy show are going fast (at press time, Friday was already sold out, and tonight was almost gone). Here’s the deal (click to read).
“Falsettos,” at Stageworks Theatre, closes Sunday. Image: Stage Photography of Tampa.
The other stuff
Comedian and Juicy Scoop podcaster Heather McDonald appears tonight (8 p.m.) at the Seminole Hard Rock Event Center. Find tickets here.
Red Hot Chili Peppers are onstage Friday at the Mid-Florida Credit Union Amphitheatre. Tickets.
The William Finn/James Lapine musical Falsettos is entering its final weekend at Tampa’s Stageworks Theatre. Click here for tickets for Friday (8 p.m., Saturday (3 and 7:30 p.m.) and Sunday (3 p.m.).
Abducted by the 80s, a rock ‘n’ roll package show with Wang Chung, the Motels, Men Without Hats and Naked Eyes touches down Saturday at Ruth Eckerd Hall. Tickets can be found here, and click here to read our conversation with Marty Jourard of the Motels.
At the Capitol Theatre, The Wizard of Oz is screening Saturday at 1 p.m., with a $5 admission. Advance tickets are here.
Your weekend arts forecast appears every Thursday in the Catalyst.
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You can also submit your events to the Catalyst calendar, by clicking here.
Comedian and podcaster Heather “Juicy Scoop” McDonald performs at the Seminole Hard Rock Event Center tonight. Photo provided.
