By Nanette Wiser
SUNSCREEN FILM FESTIVAL Now in its 18th year, the globally recognized Sunscreen Film Festival returns to DTSP’s AMC Sundial 12 4/27-4/30, hosted by the St. Pete/Clearwater Film Commissionand showcasing 41 feature films and 150 short films as well as numerous workshops. We’re excited about Opening Night’s preview of A Taste For Love, shot in Dunedin and starring Erin Cahill (Christmas Bedtime Stories) Jesse Kove (Cobra Kai, Money Run) and Martin Kove (Cobra Kai, Karate Kid) who will walk the red carpet. Also shot in DTSP is 115 Grains with the support of the St. Pete Police Department and tackles the topic of police officer suicide. sunscreenfilmfestival.com
THEATER The Straz Center for the Performing Arts announced the 2023-2024 Bank of America Broadway at The Straz season which will feature Beetlejuice, Funny Girl, Company, Girl from the North Country, Mrs. Doubtfire, Peter Pan, Clue and, for a two-week engagement, the Tony Award®-winning best musical Moulin Rouge! The Musical as well as The Choir of Man in the intimate Jaeb Theater and encore engagements of Jesus Christ Superstar, THE BOOK OF MORMON and Les Misérables.
BOOK NOOK We love independent book stores like Tombolo, Book + Bottle, Treasure Island’s Books on the Beach, and coming this fall, Read The Waves bookstore on St. Pete Beach’s Corey Ave. In DTSP, Pieces of A Dream and The Merchant also sell books and we discovered author and pianist Chaim Freiberg who fell in love with downtown St. Pete’s ambience and historical buildings. Originally from Israel and trained at Juilliard, Freiberg’s love of music and people he has known inspires his upcoming novels as well as his charming children’s stories (Ms. Flora and the Squirrel And Other Tales of Friendship and Gratitude).
“My stories center on music as it is the medium I feel so strongly,” says Freiberg. tombolobooks.comw
MUSIC FOR SOCIAL CHANGE
Iris DeMent performs 4/16 @ CPPAC at Largo Central Park showcasing songs to heal our broken inner and outer spaces from her transcendent new record, Workin’ On A World. With an inimitable voice as John Prine described, “like you’ve heard, but not really,” and unforgettable melodies rooted in hymns, gospel, and old country music, she’s simply one of the finest singer-songwriters in America as well as one of our fiercest advocates for human rights. Her debut record Infamous Angel recently celebrated its 30th anniversary and was named one of the “greatest country albums of all time” by Rolling Stone. DeMent’s songs have been featured in film (True Grit) and TV (The Leftovers). cppac@largo.com
A STAR IS BORN The Suncoast Blues Society (SBS) is looking for bands and solo/duo Acts to compete in the Suncoast Blues Society Road To Memphis Competition to be held July 23 starting @1pm at the Palladium Theater. Entry fee for this year is $25 per act and you must be SBS members. SBS is also looking for a Youth Showcase act to represent the Society; all members of the band must be under 21. One band and one solo/duo act will be chosen by the five judges to to represent SBS at the International Blues Challenge January 16-20, 2024 in Memphis, Tennessee. SBS is also soliciting entrants for the Best Self-Produced CD competition. suncoastblues.org
