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Dunedin Fine Art Center’s infamous “Wearable Art” event was back last Saturday and took on the theme, “Blurred,” which is apropos since the fashion show has blurred the lines between fashion and art for almost 20 years now. Nearly a dozen artists-designers—including Rogerio Martinn, Josey Prior, and the Bay To Bay Collective—were on the bill for the 19th installment of the show that turned into an afterparty at the Blur nightclub. See all the photos via cltampa. com/slideshows.—Ray Roa
do this
Tampa Bay's best things to do from August 28 - September 03
Gummy a break
When she became a single mother, Sally Pye wanted to be cheery and fun like Mary Poppins and Mrs. Doubtfire. Instead, she felt herself becoming “overbearing, overstimulated, borderline psycho.” To stop herself from lashing out, Pye started making up silly songs and stories. The best of those, “Mummy Eats A Gummy,” is now an illustrated children’s book that sold out four months after its exclusive FloridaRAMA release. Pye and “Mummy” illustrator Kevin Peake share the ups, downs and upside downs of their journey in making the book at Wordier than Thou’s next open mic. Ten other open mic participants will have seven minutes each to read, with names chosen at random from a bucket.
Blah Blah Blah! Open Mic: Thursday, Sept. 4. 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. $5. The Studio@620, 600 1st Ave. S, St Petersburg. @ WordierThanThou on Facebook—Selene San Felice
Life is gourd
Fall doesn’t start for 21 more days, and it’s still hot enough to bake a butternut squash in your dashboard. But that’s not stopping The Wheelhouse from breaking out the pumpkin spice on Labor Day. For its ninth annual celebration, the bar is tapping all its local and national craft pumpkin beers, ciders and seltzers. Plus, it promises a special menu of pumpkin and fall-inspired food and desserts.
Release the pumpkins: Monday, Sept. 1. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. No cover. The Wheelhouse, 7220 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. @TheWheelhouseStPete on Facebook—Selene San Felice
28-SEPTEMBER 03, 2025 | cltampabay.com
Not for car insurance
Lots of places have “Keep (city name) weird” slogans, but that’s definitely not the concern in Gulfport. Tampa Bay’s tiny version of Key West is and will always be weird AF. This year’s GeckoFest marks 25 years of the city’s weird, bohemian spirit with live music, street performers, art and food. But the highlight is the 6 p.m. “wacky walking parade,” a birthday party for the city’s mascot G. Gordon McFly. Come in costume, unless you’re some kind of freak.
GeckoFest: Saturday, Aug. 30. 10 a.m.-8 p.m. No cover. Downtown Gulfport, 2100 Gray St. S, Gulfport. visitgulfportflorida.com—Selene San Felice
Goal models
The Sun lost its first game of the new season at Brooklyn FC last Saturday, but there are still plenty of winning opportunities ahead. The team’s first home match at Riverfront Stadium is against a USL newcomer, Sporting Jacksonville. While the current USL Super League Champions hope for back-to-back trophies, almost a dozen player transfers or changes (so far) have shaken up the roster. One notable loss is the Tampa Bay Sun’s leading goal scorer Cecil Fløe Nielson, who will play for Italy’s Napoli Femminile this year. She had 12 of the team’s 45 goals during the 2024-25 season. The Sun’s other big goal-scorers Natasha Flint and Carlee Giammona remain in Tampa, however, and will lead the charge in this weekend’s home opener. Tampa Bay Sun FC vs. Sporting Jacksonville: Saturday, Aug. 30. 8 p.m. $23-$56. Riverfront Stadium at Blake High School, 1701 N Blvd., Tampa. tampabaysunfc.com—Jani Burden
Literally dead
A few nationally-touring bizarre bazaars come through Tampa Bay each year, but our freak flag is firmly planted in Ybor City. Taxidermy and terrifying trinket shop Dysfunctional Grace hosts Tabernacle of Oddities each Labor Day weekend, complete with two full days of live bands and DJs, talks from experts in the uncanny, and a macabre market in the haunted halls of the Cuban Club. Highlights on the roster include Savannah’s Graveface Museum, Den of Dermistid, Orlando doll orphanage Nightmare Nursery and more.
Tabernacle of Oddities: 12-8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30 and 12-6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 31. $15&up. The Cuban Club, 2010 N Avenida Republica de Cuba, Ybor City. dysfunctionalgrace.shop—Selene San Felice
Raze and shine
Limited screenings of the homegrown documentary “Razed” have been emotional affairs, with audiences taking a ride that celebrates the joy of living in St. Petersburg’s former Gas Plant District and the pain of watching the neighborhood slowly dismantled for a baseball stadium. The movie, produced by Gwendolyn D. Reese (pictured, second from left) with Roundhouse Creative, hasn’t shown locally since last March, but returns for an on-campus screening where a past resident of the Gas Plant and co-director Andrew Lee will take part in a post-movie Q&A. Kudos to the staff at USF St. Pete’s student newspaper, The Crow’s Nest, for putting this on.
‘Razed’ screening and Q&A: Tuesdays, Sept. 2. 5 p.m.-8 p.m. No cover. Student ballroom (second flood, USC) at University of South Florida, 140 7th Ave. S, St. Petersburg. @usfcrowsnest on Instagram—Ray Roa
Overcast
FDOT is removing St. Pete’s rainbow street mural. Selene San Felice
The Florida Department of Transportation
will remove St. Petersburg’s street murals, including its rainbow crosswalk and “Black History Matters” paintings, city officials announced last Friday.
The move came a day after the state removed a rainbow crosswalk in Orlando honoring lives lost at the former Pulse Nightclub spot.
In a letter to residents, Mayor Ken Welch said that FDOT denied the city’s request for exemption from its recent mandate banning street murals in conjunction with the Trump administration.
“After consultation with the City Attorney’s office, and considering the implications of keeping the street art murals in question, we have determined that identified street art murals must be removed under FDOT’s order,” Welch wrote. “City personnel will not remove this artwork, rather FDOT has indicated that it will exercise its authority to do so in accordance with state law.”
Welch insisted that St. Pete is still committed to celebrating its community in a “lawful” way.
“While these specific art murals will be removed, the spirit of what makes St. Pete a special place can’t be suppressed by legislative fiat, and we will find meaningful ways to express our shared values,” Welch wrote.
exhausted, ensure that whatever is taken is replaced with something equal to or more than what was taken.”
St. Pete Pride president Byron GreenCalisch told WUSF that community businesses are ready to combat FDOT’s move with “a fleet” of rainbow signs and storefronts.
One of those is LGBTQ+ bar Cocktail, which posted last Thursday in solidarity with Orlando, saying it will have new rainbow graphics across its building front.
“We will not stand by and be erased,” Cocktail’s post reads. “We are proud and will not fight quietly.
Last week, Welch told CL that St. Petersburg should be prepared for the city’s rainbow crosswalks to be erased, adding that the city will still work towards the values of inclusion, creativity and resilience.
“Together with our community, we will continue to find meaningful ways to honor these principles—in every space and through every medium available to us,” Welch added.
LOCAL NEWS
St. Pete City Council heard from protesters earlier this month, urging council members to protect the city’s street art from FDOT—despite the department’s threats to revoke transportation funding. A Council committee was supposed to discuss the issue on Sept. 11.
Nadine Smith, president of St. Pete-based statewide LGBTQ+ advocacy group Equality Florida, told Creative Loafing that those upset by the announcement should focus on Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “extortion” and “blackmail” of municipalities like St. Pete.
“The governor is continuing his censorship and his government intrusion campaign to erase anything he disagrees with. He’s using taxpayer dollars and the threat of withholding funds that people impacted by hurricanes are going to need,” Smith said.
“Every city should fight back, not roll over and capitulate. Once those possibilities are
Days before, locals filled city hall to urge city council members to save St. Pete’s street murals.
“One erasure leads to the next and the next and the next and when we don’t stand up to tyranny, what happens is the most vulnerable pay the price first,” John Gascot, who helped paint the “Black History Matters” mural outside the Woodson African American Museum, said. “But make no mistake, it’s going to affect me and you eventually.”
Terri Lipsey Scott, Director of St. Pete’s Woodson African American Museum struck a more defiant tone in her comment, telling council that FDOt can paint the streets but that it won’t be able to erase the faces she sees every day. “They can edit the history books, but we will keep telling the truth,” she added.
Council member Richie Floyd, who chairs the committee that was supposed to discuss FDOT’s memo next month, recalled two instances of Central Avenue’s rainbow mural being defaced last year. At the time, Welch responded that the city is “no place for hate.”
“The people in charge of the state and the federal government are literally siding with the
people doing hate crimes,” Floyd said at the meeting. “This is no different to me, this is another one.”
The controversy over Florida’s rainbow crosswalks ignited shortly after St. Petersburg’s big Pride parade weekend.
The LGBTQ+ community has faced other, more tangible attacks under the Trump administration, including efforts to restrict gender-affirming care for transgender young adults (something Floridians are already subjected to under state law) and the rescission of federal regulations prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Still, Florida LGBTQ+ advocates like Florida Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith remain resolved. He and other Orlando residents used chalk to put the rainbow back in the crosswalk for Pulse the morning after its removal.
“I’m feeling betrayed, but we will not be erased,” said Guillermo Smith. “If the state gets their way and has the final say over this rainbow crosswalk, there will be a rainbow that shows up somewhere else, nearby that’s going to be even bigger, even gayer and even more colorful.”
Data proves that crosswalk murals—not unlike those previously approved by FDOT— actually make streets safer.
That didn’t stop Trump Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy from going on X and writing, “Taxpayers expect their dollars to fund safe streets, not rainbow crosswalks.”
Last month, officials in Tampa told CL they know of 47 places with painted streets “including multiple crosswalks students help paint for pedestrian safety purposes.”
One of the street murals—the infamous ‘Bock the Blub’ outside Tampa Police headquarters—was actually painted illegally.
The mural, located in front of at 411 N Franklin St., was created on Aug. 1, 2020, at the height of the George Floyd civil rights protests.
Retired Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan, who was still leading the force at the time, but retired a year later. Less than a year after hanging up the badge, Dugan told CL that while the folks painting it might’ve had good intentions, it ended up looking like “a first grader’s art project.”
CROSSED: St. Pete’s progressive Pride street mural soon to be erased by FDOT.
Hope floats
Despite legalities, billboards for abortion pills are coming to Pinellas.
By Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix
Abortion pills are safe, FDA-approved, and accessible by mail in Florida.
The first two assertions are correct. The third runs up against the plain text of Florida law and puts the provider and the patient at risk of felony penalties.
Nevertheless, an abortion pill advocacy group is spreading the messages via floating digital boat advertisements across some of the Tampa Bay area’s most prominent beaches this month—even though Florida abortion laws ban abortion pills from being sent in the mail. Abortion medication in Florida must be ordered by a physician and dispensed in person at a clinic or doctor’s office.
MAP. In a story published by WBUR in Boston in April, the group expected to mail 2,500 packages of abortion pills in that month alone, “with just over half going to Texas, Georgia and Florida.”
But Wallace stresses: “It’s important that individuals assess their legal risks and utilize trusted helplines to learn more about potential legal risks that can come with that—but it’s very medically safe.”
ABORTION
Mayday.Health’s abortion pill boat tour is cruising along two coastal routes in St. Pete Beach and Clearwater Beach throughout August with a simple message: “MIFEPRISTONE AND MISOPROSTOL”—the two FDA-approved medications used in medication abortion.
“In a state like Florida, where abortion access has been significantly restricted, many people still don’t know these options exist,” said Tamara Stein, deputy director of Mayday. Health, a health-education nonprofit. “Our campaign is designed to spark curiosity, prompt people to search for information, and ultimately empower them to make informed decisions. It’s bold, it’s visible, and it cuts through the noise.”
Whether it’s through floating advertisements on Florida beaches or through other routes, the message is being received.
A study conducted by #WeCount, a Society of Family Planning project, shows that 13,380 abortions in Florida were provided to pregnant patients under shield laws in 2024. These are legal protections put in place by some states to reduce legal risk for clinicians who offer abortion to states where abortion is prohibited or severely restricted.
#We Count says its data include clinicianprovided abortions, defined in this report as medication or procedural abortions completed by a licensed clinician within the United States in a clinic, private medical office, hospital, or virtual-only clinic.
Bree Wallace is director for case management with the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund. She says self-managed abortions with pills are becoming more popular because of websites like Mayday. Health, as well as PlanCPills.org and Aid Access.
“Many Floridians and people in other states with abortion bans use websites like Mayday or other trusted resources to find information about accessing pills on their own,” Wallace said. One such group is the Massachusetts Medication Abortion Access Project, or The
Those legal risks include breaking Florida law and facing criminal sanctions. Only a physician can perform an abortion here and they cannot use telehealth for medicinal abortions. “Any medications intended for use in a medical abortion must be dispensed in person by a physician and may not be dispensed through the United States Postal Service or by any other courier or shipping service,” state statute reads.
Any person who willfully performs, or actively participates in, a termination of pregnancy commits a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Tallahassee attorney Julie Gallagher said that means the physician and the patient are
breaking the law if they either order or receive the pills in the mail.
“I would say the pills are safe, but it’s not legal to get them through the mail in Florida. You have to go to a clinic and you have to get the doctor to dispense directly to you,” said Gallagher, an abortion-rights advocate who defended an abortion doctor when the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis tried to revoke her license.
When asked whether patients should be wary of physicians willing to violate the law, she replied: “Do you want to go to a physician who is willing to violate the law? And possibly put you in a situation where you’re violating the law? I wouldn’t.”
Florida’s abortion landscape
Abortions in Florida are legal but only through six weeks of pregnancy, before many women even discover they are pregnant. There are exceptions for rape, incest, or human trafficking when the fetus is not more than 15 weeks old.
Abortions also are legal in Florida through the end of the second trimester to save the pregnant patient’s life or to avert a serious risk of substantial and irreversible physical impairment, and when there’s a fatal fetal abnormality. Two physicians must certify that the termination meets the statutory criteria unless it’s an emergency situation, which requires certification from one doctor.
In addition to a six-week ban, before having an abortion a patient must undergo a sonogram and wait 24 hours. Minors must receive permission from a parent. And only physicians can perform abortions.
Options
Abortion rights advocates in Florida argue women need to be aware of what state law says but still need options.
“Florida bans abortion before many people realize they’re pregnant. And not everyone can afford to travel, take off work, or coordinate childcare in order to leave the state for abortion care,” said Cheyenne Drews, reproductive freedom program director with Progress Florida.
“Research shows that with the right information and support, having an abortion at home is overwhelmingly safe, and organizations like Repro Legal Helpline are helping people understand their specific legal risks,” she said.
Mayday.Health was founded in the immediate aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022. The organization does not itself ship pills needed for a medical abortion, but does provide information to patients and links to providers that do.
“We wanted to give people clear, trustworthy, and accessible information about how they could still make their own decisions about their own bodies—even in states with abortion bans,” Stein said. continued on page 20
“It’s bold, it’s visible, and it cuts through the noise.”
U.S.S. MISOPROSTOL: St. Pete and Clearwater beaches will see these billboards.
Voices at Risk
Voices at Risk
Is Freedom of Speech under Fire?
Is Freedom of Speech under Fire?
Nadine Strossen, New York Law School Professor Emerita and Senior Fellow at FIRE (the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression), was President of the American Civil Liberties Union from 1991 to 2008. An internationally acclaimed free speech scholar and advocate, who regularly addresses diverse audiences and provides media commentary around the world, Strossen serves on the advisory boards of the ACLU and everal academic freedom/free speech organizations.
Nadine Strossen, New York Law School Professor Emerita and Senior Fellow at FIRE (the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression), was President of the American Civil Liberties Union from 1991 to 2008. An internationally acclaimed free speech scholar and advocate, who regularly addresses diverse audiences and provides media commentary around the world, Strossen serves on the advisory boards of the ACLU and several academic freedom/free speech organizations.
She is the Host and Project Consultant for Free To Speak, a 3-hour documentary film series distributed on public television in 2023.
She is the Host and Project Consultant for Free To Speak, a 3-hour documentary film series distributed on public television in 2023.
Her most recent book is: The War On Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—And Why They Fail (coauthored with FIRE President Greg Lukianoff) (2025). In 2023, Strossen received the National Coalition Against Censorship’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Free Speech.
Her most recent book is: The War On Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—And Why They Fail (coauthored with FIRE President Greg Lukianoff) (2025). In 2023, Strossen received the National Coalition Against Censorship’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Free Speech.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4TH
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4TH
FREE INTERACTIVE PRESENTATION AT 7 PM
FREE INTERACTIVE PRESENTATION AT 7 PM
DOORS OPEN AT 6:15 PM
DOORS OPEN AT 6:15 PM
7 PM - 9 PM: Lecture and Q&A Session. 9:00-9:30 PM: Raffle Drawing and Book Signing for Raffle Winners.
USF OVAL THEATER
USF OVAL THEATER
GOOD TO KNOW: Bree Wallace is director for case management with the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund.
continued from page 19
“The moment demanded action, and we knew we had a responsibility to meet it with facts, not fear,” she said. “We understand that fear is real, especially in a state like Florida where the laws are complex and changing. But people deserve access to information. We believe everyone has the right to make informed decisions about their own bodies—safely, privately, and on their own terms.”
Telehealth abortions increasing
be criminally charged for prescribing over state lines, and is being protected by New York’s shield law against a lawsuit from Texas’ attorney general and criminal prosecution from Louisiana.
In July, a Texas man sued a California doctor in federal court for allegedly sending abortion pills to his partner. Jonathan Mitchell, former Texas solicitor general, filed the lawsuit July 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern Division of Texas, Galveston Division, on behalf of Jerry Rodriguez.
Florida only requires a physician to register as a telehealth provider, which means that the Florida Board of Medicine cannot rescind the license of a telehealth provider who violates the state’s abortion law.
MSC 2500 SECOND FLOOR No cost for entry, but registration is required https://tinyurl.com/voicesatrisk
Presented By:
7 PM - 9 PM: Lecture and Q&A Session. 9:00-9:30 PM: Raffle Drawing and Book Signing for Raffle Winners. Presented By: MSC 2500 SECOND FLOOR
The FDA first approved mifepristone to terminate pregnancies in 2000, initially through seven weeks of pregnancy. The drug blocks progesterone, a hormone necessary to maintain a pregnancy. Another drug, misoprostol, causes uterine contractions and sometimes in applied in miscarriages.
ABORTION
In 2016, the FDA extended the approval of mifepristone to 10 weeks. In May, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he had directed the Food and Drug Administration to review its regulations for mifepristone.
The practice of consulting with patients remotely and prescribing them medication via the mail has grown in recent years, with 25% of abortions delivered through telehealth as of the end of 2024, the #WeCount study shows.
More than 14% of the 92,040 abortions performed in Florida in 2024 were provided via telehealth, the report indicates, notwithstanding the law. The group reports that shield laws continue to facilitate abortion access, especially in the 12 states where abortion is banned in the United States.
Challenging the protections
Maggie Carpenter, a physician who practices abortion care via telemedicine, was the first to
Overall, medication abortions accounted for more than 60% of all abortions in the formal health care system in 2023, according to the Guttmacher Institute. The organization says that refers to data on procedural and medication abortions provided at brickand-mortar health facilities (such as clinics or doctor’s offices), as well as medication abortions provided via telehealth and virtual providers in the United States.
Abortions are counted as having been provided in the state in which a patient had a procedure or where pills were dispensed. It does not include medication abortions provided under the protection of shield laws to a patient in a state where abortion is completely banned.
Senior Reporter Christine Sexton contributed to this story. Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
“Admitnistrative warrants, issued by ICE itself, do not authorize forced entry into a home…”
PAPER CHASE: To enter a home, an ICE officer would need a valid search warrant signed by a judge.
Iced out
Arrest of Tampa man brings Fourth Amendment
By Valerie Smith
The arrest of a Tampa man and his family members has brought Fourth Amendment rights and immigration warrant nuances into the spotlight.
Last month, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents surveilled a Tampa home, suspecting it to be the residence of Marvin Isaac Caceres Maradiaga, a Tampa man who operated a small construction company. In a criminal complaint obtained by Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, ICE said that Caceres is a citizen of Honduras who was given a final order of removal in 2023. In the document, ICE said that agents confronted Caceres, at which point two relatives, Alfredo Fuentes and Luz Mary Vasquez Cruz emerged from the house. An altercation began between the relatives and ICE agents, and ICE said this is when Caceres entered the residence.
rights to spotlight.
be as simple as someone opening a door. In this case, ICE said they obtained verbal consent to enter. Fuentes, Caceres’ stepson, told WFLA: “They just pointed guns at us in our face. They told us to open our door, or they would break it down. They didn’t have no warrant.”
When ICE agents entered the home, Caceres had fled (and was later caught), and Fuentes and Cruz were arrested for “forcibly assaulting, resisting, or impeding a federal officer or employee,” per a press release from U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe’s office.
IMMIGRATION
Without a valid judicial warrant, ICE was prohibited by the Fourth Amendment from forcibly entering the property to search for Caceres. They instead relied on getting “consent” to enter from a resident. For ICE, consent to enter may
This case highlights what the American Civil Liberties Union says is a common tactic law enforcement uses to skirt around the Fourth Amendment—a part of the constitution which protects against unreasonable search and seizure. ICE can rely on officially-sanctioned ruses to gain consent to enter a home. Agents can claim to be missionaries wanting to talk about the Bible, or say that they are local police investigating a crime. They can also draw weapons and say they will break down yowwur door if you don’t let them in, which Fuentes said happened to his family.
The National Immigration Law Center says there are two different types of warrant ICE may provide: a judicial warrant, which is signed by a judge of a judicial court (not an immigration judge) to authorize search of a property; and an administrative warrant, which ICE issues internally.
Even if ICE has a warrant to arrest someone who is inside of your home, legal experts say they still can’t enter without a judicial warrant or your consent.
“To enter a home, an ICE officer would need a valid search warrant signed by a judge—even if they know someone inside is subject to an administrative ICE ‘warrant,’” Paul R. Chavez, Litigation Director at Americans for Immigrant Justice, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay when asked about immigrants’ rights in general, not in connection with Caceres’ case. “Administrative warrants, issued by ICE itself, do not authorize forced entry into a home, unlike judicial warrants signed by a judge. To enter a home, ICE typically needs either consent or a judicial warrant.”
Americans for Immigrant Justice, a nonprofit law firm that fights for justice for immigrants, is not representing the family in Tampa. NILC advocates for knowing your rights ahead of time so you can be prepared if ICE comes knocking at your door. A January 2025 document by the center outlines a few key differences between judicial warrants and administrative warrants.
A judicial warrant is issued by a judicial court and signed by a state or federal judge or magistrate. To be valid, NILC says it must accurately state the address of the premises to be searched and be executed within the time period specified on the warrant. If the judicial warrant is valid, you must comply with it. However, if it is not valid, or is an immigration warrant—which will be signed only by an immigration officer or immigration judge—then you may refuse to comply and ask the agents to leave.
When law enforcement knocks on the door, individuals shouldn’t open it, NILC says; opening it can be construed as “consent” to have the home searched. Individuals should ask to see a warrant, either slipped under the door or held up to a window, and take a picture of the warrant if possible. NILC says to open the door if the warrant pertains to the individual or the home specifically, is valid and is signed by a judge (other than an immigration judge). Anyone who does get arrested, NILC says, should only speak to assert their rights, refuse consent or to clarify instructions. Agents may attempt to coerce individuals to speak, but they are not required to do so without a lawyer present.
Even when ICE tries to say otherwise, individuals have the constitutional right to ask for a warrant, lock their doors and shut up.
On the move
Florida Democrats talk immigration in Tampa.
By Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix
Polls from the 2024 election showed that Democrats were on the wrong side of public opinion when it came to their immigration policies. But could a perception that the GOP has overreached to achieve President Donald Trump’s goal of mass deportations bring a correction next year? That’s apparently the philosophy several Florida Democrats are pushing, as demonstrated by their comments in Tampa on Aug. 19.
“Republican leaders are fighting communities, not crime,” said Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly, speaking during an immigration forum hosted by the Hillsborough County Democratic Hispanic at the Cuban Club in Ybor City.
Jolly maintains that the GOP has gone down the wrong path by conflating undocumented immigration with crime.
“This is a contrast of values and, fundamentally, the American people understand, regardless of party registration, cruelty and broken promises,” he said. “And we’re living through an era of cruelty and broken promises. It’s not new. We’ve seen it in years past, and it has taken people to speak up and say, ‘Enough.’”
general next year, denounced the Everglades detention center.
“If I was attorney general, what I would be focused on is going after the insurance companies,” he said. “Going after the utilities that are screwing people and taking advantage of us and getting away with anything with whatever they want in Tallahassee, right?
“Instead, we have this political theater where the only purpose is for the current attorney general and the governor to get a pat on the head by the president, and that’s what they got, right? But meanwhile, we are the ones who are left with the costs of this thing.”
IMMIGRATION
Tampa Bay area Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor said U.S. immigration laws are broken and repeated a talking point made by Democrats last year blaming Trump for killing a proposed bipartisan bill dealing with immigration. That proposal would have raised the bar for migrants to claim asylum, created a temporary procedure to shut down the border at particularly active times, and ended the practice of allowing migrants to live in the United States while waiting for their cases to be heard by an immigration judge, among other policies.
When speaking about immigrants lacking legal status, Gov. Ron DeSantis often focuses on those who have committed criminal acts, such as the immigrant accused of killing three people while trying to make an illegal U-turn in a tractor-trailer on the Florida Turnpike in Fort Pierce this month.
“And we’re living through an era of cruelty and broken promises.”
The Associated Press reported last month that ICE statistics showed that, as of June 29, 57,861 people had been detained by ICE, of whom 41,495—71.7%—had no criminal convictions. That included 14,318 people with pending criminal charges and 27,177 who are subject to immigration enforcement but have no known criminal convictions or pending charges.
The governor also boasts about how no state has done more to fulfill the president’s agenda. Those actions include legislation requiring many local and state law enforcement agencies to collaborate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in detaining and potentially deporting individuals. It also includes building the state’s own immigration camp to hold detainees (“Alligator Alcatraz”), and the governor announced last week that a second facility will soon open in North Florida.
‘Political theatre’
Former Miami-Dade County state Sen. José Javier Rodríguez, a candidate for attorney
“He was the one who blocked a bipartisan immigration reform effort where we would ensure those pathways to work in citizenship exist while strengthening border security and investing in the immigration courts, to make sure things moved smoothly,” Castor said. “So instead, right now, playing on the fears and prejudices and abusing his powers, because I think that everyone agrees that If you are not here legally and you violate the law, you’re subject to deportation. But what they’re doing now goes far beyond that.”
She added that the bulk of her work in her congressional office is dealing with “egregious case after egregious case” of people who she said were following the law but have now been detained and subject to deportation.
Joining the professional politicians on the stage were two Tampa immigration lawyers who, along with Javier Rodríguez, occasionally responded in both Spanish and English to the audience.
Expedited removal
Attorney Danielle Hernandez previously served as assistant chief counsel for the Department of Homeland Security in both the Obama and (the first) Trump administrations.
She said that among the changes that the current Trump regime has enacted is expanding what is known as expedited removal. Previously, ICE and Customs Border Patrol only used expedited removal against people within 100 miles of the border and within two weeks of their arrival in the U.S., Hernandez said. However, an executive order signed by the president in January changed that.
“They expanded that criminality and said, ‘Hey, if you came in illegally, you’re a criminal.’ Which is not true,” she said. “Coming in through the border is a civil infraction, it’s not actually a criminal action unless you reenter through the border, then it becomes a federal crime, right? So that’s one thing that people don’t know.”
NEW GUY: David Jolly says the GOP has gone down the wrong path by conflating undocumented immigration with crime.
DAVE DECKER
LONGVIEW: Patrick Manteiga is the third-generation publisher of La Gaceta.
continued from page 25
Hernandez explained that now anyone who entered the country after April 2023 is “fair game to absolutely any arrest.”
“They can go into any court, terminate your asylum proceedings, and arrest you outside. So that’s what you see on the news,” she added.
Combined with the discussion of illegal immigration on Aug. 19 was talk about how Democrats have lost their share of the Latino vote in recent elections—a trend that started in Florida years ago.
“We definitely have a war against Hispanics going on in the country,” said La Gaceta editor and publisher Patrick Manteiga. “The real problem is many of them agree with the Trump administration and helped put them into place today. I think they thought that it was some other Hispanic that was going to get picked up rather than themselves, and they were happy to close the door right behind them, and that’s a real shameful part of this whole thing.”
Changing sentiments?
Polls show political sentiment may be changing, however. A Suffolk University/WSVN-TV 7 News survey of 500 residents of Miami taken last month—52% of whom identified as Hispanic or Latino—showed that 61% said recent ICE enforcement raids had gone too far, and 52% of respondents said recent deportations of Venezuelans, Cubans, and Argentinians living in Miami made them less likely to support President Trump going forward.
IMMIGRATION
And a YouGov survey of 2,156 U.S. adult citizens published Wednesday found that 53% of Americans (and 56% of independent voters) say Trump’s approach on immigration is too harsh, with 36% saying it is “just right.” Two-thirds of those polled believe the Trump administration has wrongfully detained U.S. citizens in immigration detention centers.
“We definitely have a war against Hispanics going on in the country.”
Jolly said that Democrats need to talk to Latino voters about something other than immigration all the time. “The way we get them back is we speak to their true concerns that will inform their votes,” he said.
“What the other side got right in the last few cycles was they understood the anger and anxiety and they spoke to that. And it wasn’t necessarily around immigration, and we make a mistake by thinking that if I walk into a room of Black pastors, that somehow I have to speak about Black pastor issues, when their issue of getting their kid to school on time that was the same as mine. That’s where I think we have an opportunity to make up ground.”
Towards the end of the two-hour forum, a group of people began shouting suggestions to the panel about what do to reverse the situation.
Nearly all of the speakers on stage said, “vote.”
“What about now?” came one response.
The lack of an immediate call to action frustrated another member of the public, who said later that “we feed those communities. What do you do?”
“We cannot wait until November of next year,” cried another voice.
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
OPENINGS & CLOSINGS
RESTAURANTS RECIPES DINING GUIDES
A new leaf
Black Radish owners put all-vegan grocer up for sale.
By Kyla Fields
Tampa Bay may be losing yet another vegan business, but its owners don’t want you to mourn a loss just yet—because they’re hoping that someone will carry the torch. The Black Radish team took to Instagram earlier this month to announce the sale of the beloved vegan bodega after five years in Tampa.
“Time absolutely soars when you’re having fun…but the magic is in the moments in between. This story didn’t start with me, but the end is my choice,” co-owner Tina Sanchez recently wrote on social media. “Continuing to attempt to prioritize capitalism during its fall has taken a truly unprecedented toll on all of us. Things are not normal and that word holds no weight here.”
Despite stating that Black Radish—located at 2923 N 12th St.—had a profitable last few years at its flagship location in V.M. Ybor, Sanchez says that it’s simply time to pass ownership to someone else.
Black Radish’s last day under current management will happen on Monday, Sept. 1, with its retail shop and deli operating everyday until then.
And while Black Radish as we know it may be closing its doors soon, its ownership team is hopeful that they can find the right buyer to continue the small business’ communityfocused approach to plant-based fare and the vegan lifestyle.
“I truly feel positively about this—which I think can be hard to understand because it feels like I’ve broken up with hundreds of people at this point,” Sanchez told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, with a laugh. “But I really am hopeful that somebody wants to continue the project.”
“And this is not really a conversation about profits because I’m proud to say that the past two years have been great for us...instead this is a conversation about the passing of a guard,” she continues. “Black Radish is so important to us, that if it’s not the right person to carry that torch, we’re probably not going to go in that direction.”
Folks that are interested in purchasing Black Radish can call/text (813) 485-5845 or send an email to bodegaforsale@gmail.com.
Sanchez tells CL that the ownership team decided on two selling options: to sell the business title with its inventory, recipes and Instagram handle, or to purchase the building itself in addition to the business.
The business is listed for $120,000, while the business and parcel is running for $420,000. In the case that someone purchases the Black Radish name but doesn’t purchase the building, parcel owner Bryon Lippincott—who owns Black Radish alongside Sanchez and Mikey Schmidt— is open to renting it out to the new owners or to another business entirely.
“We’re really reasonable people and want the project to continue if someone is willing to run it. And in general, we want the neighborhood to keep the space instead of it going to a developer,” Sanchez adds.
Black Radish vegan deli and grocery store made its debut in Tampa’s V.M. Ybor neighborhood in the middle of 2020’s coronavirus
pandemic, and later rebranded as a bodega with a specialty coffee program alongside its popular sandwiches, shelf-stable goods and locally-made vegan products.
The plant-based bodega is known for its fundraising efforts, outspoken and transparent social media presence and hearty selection of made-to-order deli fare— boasting the title of the only all-vegan grocer in the state of Florida.
“We want the neighborhood to keep the space instead of it going to a developer.”
A second, short-lived location opened in St. Pete in late 2021 and closed about two years later— that’s when Sanchez, Lippincott and Schmidt took the opportunity to re-focus their attention on the flagship Tampa store.
While Black Radish is known for its tasty vegan bites, over the past five years the small business has also garnered a reputation for being involved in its local community.
Over the years, Black Radish has hosted massive events like the Indie Flea market, thrown countless fundraisers, and even organized an all-vegan “Friendsgiving” feast at Ybor City’s Lara last year. The team also fundraises for individuals in need, donates to organizations like Tampa’s Food Not Bombs and most recently, spoke out against the genocide in Gaza and other injustices around the world.
“Compassion is what our business is about to begin with, because of veganism, and so it was easy to talk to people that already care about life in its basic form,” Sanchez tells CL. “Being a vegan business meant that it was OK for me to talk about stuff that normally you can’t talk about. A lot of people would never have talked about genocide on their Instagram—and most people didn’t.
continued on page 33
TRIO OF LIFE: (L-R) Black Radish owners Mikey Schmidt, Tina Sanchez and Bryon Lippincott.
NOW OPEN!
We closed a bunch of times for people to go to local protests, too.”
“For me, I think the true end came when I couldn’t post on the internet anymore about people buying stuff. I was just like, ‘I literally can’t.’ I cannot pretend to be joyous in these current times,” she adds.
Other aspects of the business that Sanchez is proud of is the way in which she and her business partners (and best friends) were able to treat their staff, continuously prioritizing their safety through the Covid-19 pandemic and never paying them just the minimum wage.
And while Sanchez is looking forward to her respite away from the restaurant industry, both Lippincott and Schmidt are part-owners of St. Pete vegan restaurant Good Intentions, and will likely spend a bit more time there after the closure of Black Radish.
Black Radish’s retail shop will be open from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and its deli will be slinging sandwiches from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. until its last day of service on Sept. 1.
Head to @blackradishbodega on Instagram for the latest updates.
Ybor City gay bar Southern Nights moves, rebrands as
Disco Pony Nightclub
After a decade on Ybor City’s 7th Ave, Southern Nights Tampa has moved and rebranded. The LGBTQ+ bar now known as Disco Pony Nightclub opened July 10 at 1901 N 15th St., just around the corner from Southern
Nights’ spot at 1401 E 7th Ave. Southern Nights closed at the end of May.
Reminiscent of Chappell Roan’s hit “Pink Pony Club,” the bar has themed nights like “Hoofin’ it Up” happy hour, “Hay Girl Hay” ladies party and “Stirrup Trouble” Sundays.
Disco Pony continues Southern Nights’ tradition of hosting local drag performances and celebrity drag stars. “RuPaul’s Drag Race” judge T.S. Madison made her Disco Pony appearance earlier this month after performing Southern Nights’ last night. Contestant Mistress Isabelle Brooks performed last Sunday. Alexis Matteo is scheduled for Sept. 6.
The Disco Pony bar is owned by Orlandobased RKBARR, which also runs Southern Nights Orlando, District Dive, and Stiffy’s. Clara Barr took ownership of the company in January shortly after its previous owner Richard Kowalczyk was indicted on child pornography charges.
The spot at 3203 W Bay to Bay Blvd. won Creative Loafing’s Best of the Bay for Best Breakfast from 2012-2014.
Here’s what past CL food writers had to say about it:
“You can get the standards here, and you should when it comes to Pinky’s incredible pancakes. Almost absurdly thick and fluffy, a short stack is a tall order that tastes even better than it looks, rich and sweet with a depth of flavor that’s often missing from even the best breakfast spots. (Brian Ries, crowning Pinky’s the “Breakfast Bowl Champion” in 2011.)
OPENINGS & CLOSINGS
Disco Pony Nightclub is open Mondays, Thursdays-Fridays from 3 p.m.-3 a.m. and weekends from noon-3 a.m.—Selene San Felice
South Tampa brunch staple Pinky’s closes after nearly
two decades
“Pinky’s may be the boss of Benedicts. A smoked crab Benedict served on a croissant with a spot of grilled arugula is well-balanced and has an explosively delicious, gooey yolk. And then there’s the breakfast quesadilla. ... Breakfast quesadillas at more typical joints might be made with over- or under-cooked scrambled eggs. Not here. At Pinky’s the fried egg flows over chopped chorizo like a winsome yellow brook.”
(Daniel Figueroa IV in 2013.)—SSF
South Tampa country bar Sunset Rodeo offers live music, crazy food at the old Bar Hwrd
A new bar is bringing Nashville spirit to Tampa’s party scene—and it’s not called “Barn HWRD,” OK?
Ave. The bar is 23-and-up with the exception of Thursdays’ 21-and-up “Neon Stampede.”
Along with alcohol, Sunset Rodeo offers food and live music. The music lineup for the rest of August includes Forrest Hoffar, Hell on Heels, Piper Live Band, DJ duo Desert Rose and Derek Larson.
The menu includes smash burgers, hot chicken, loaded glizzies and a glizzy tower. Sundays from noon-4 p.m are “Boots and Brunch” with its own menu including a mimosa tower.
And of course there’s a mechanical bull. Sunset Rodeo is open 3:30 p.m.-3 a.m. TuesdayFriday and 11 a.m.-3 a.m. on weekends.—SSF
Salty Nun, St. Pete’s unofficial lesbian bar, has closed
After three years in downtown St. Petersburg, The Salty Nun closed its doors on Aug. 17. The bar announced its closure via social media last weekend.
The Nun took over the spot at 2501 Central Ave in 2022, which was occupied for the previous two years by Swingers. Owners Barbara Banno and J.P. Brewer maintained Swingers’ wooden swing seats and relaxed patio, bringing their mostly LGBTQ+ crowd.
Like Banno’s Gulfport restaurant, Stella’s, the spot was named for her aunt who was indeed a nun. The Nun was also known for hosting live music and drag shows several nights a week, and its loaded breakfast and brunch menu.—SSF continued from page 31
One of Tampa Bay’s best greasy spoons has closed after 17 years. Pinky’s, known for its quirky mismatched vibe and hangover-busting breakfasts, closed quietly about two weeks ago.
Sunset Rodeo opened Aug. 8, taking over Bar HWRD’s former spot at 302 S Howard
BIRD’S EYE VIEW: Co-owner Tina Sanchez couldn’t keep doing capitalism in these times.
DAVE DECKER
TAMPA BAY’S BEST LOBSTER ROLL
AS FEATURED ON FOOD NETWORK’S DINERS DRIVE-INS & DIVES
Tampa’s District 5 candidates dish on their favorite restaurants.
By Ray Roa
Tampa’s District 5 has been in the spotlight all summer, and it’s about time. The circumstances are horrible (the district’s councilwoman, Gwen Henderson, passed in June), but there’s never been more attention on some of the most dynamic neighborhoods in all of Tampa. The district stretches as far south as DeSoto Park in Palmetto Beach and north to the First Church of God within earshot of the roller coasters at Busch Gardens. It spans from the West Tampa Branch Library to the Grant Park neighborhood in East Tampa. Large swaths of the Heights neighborhoods, Ybor City, Wellswood, downtown, Water Street, and Davis Islands are all inside of it.
There seems to be at least one candidate forum a day lately, where housing, budgets, policy, and politics have been discussed ad nauseum. There’ve been some big endorsements (and big fundraising hauls), too, but one thing finally got addressed last week during WMNF Tampa’s on-air forum.
ELECTIONS
Special election for Tampa City Council District 5
Last Friday, this reporter asked 12 candidates what’s for dinner. More specifically, about their favorite thing to eat in the district. Because we need to judge candidates solely on what ends up on the table every night. Here are their responses, edited for brevity.
Early voting Sept. 4-7. Election Day: Tuesday, Sept. 9. votehillsborough.gov
For the last two months, Tampa residents have heard from about a dozen candidates all hoping to fill the seat of the late Gwen Henderson. Even more hopefuls jumped into the race as the qualifying deadline came. All told, the roughly 44,000 voters in the district will choose between 13 candidates who made the ballot and one write-in.
Albert Cooke “That’s easy—a Cuban sandwich,” the businessman and former member of Tampa’s police citizens review board, said. But where does Cooke get his? “La Segunda.”
Ariel Amirah Danley Danley, daughter of the late Gwen Henderson, said the best thing you can eat is on your grandmother’s table. “The matriarchs in my family definitely know how to take up space in the kitchen, so I’m gonna keep
it at home,” she added. “I’m so happy that before my mother passed away, I was able to inherit some family recipes, and I’m looking forward to getting involved myself.”
Alison A. Hewitt Hewitt, one of the most experienced candidates in the field, is a thirdgeneration Tampa resident and is obsessed with wings. She gets those on N 34th Street at Abella’s Sandwich Shop, but “if I need soul food, I’ll be at Mr. B’s on Nebraska.”
Audett Bruce Bruce runs communications for her church and lives near Lucky Tigre in West Tampa; she’s a disciple of the next-generation Filipino food dished out there by chef Julie Sainte Michelle Feliciano. “I’m also a big fan of Meacham Urban Farm and getting real quality food into our neighborhoods,” she added.
Carroll “Carrie” West After judging multiple Cuban sandwich competitions, West said Tampa’s signature sandwich is his go-to. Pressed for a specific Cuban, West, a co-founder of Tampa Pride, couldn’t answer. Sorry to leave you in a pickle, dear reader.
Darrell “Ash” Dudney In the current political climate, Dudney, a business owner and photographer who’s contributed work to Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, said, “Whiskey, The Hub.”
Elvis Piggott Pigott, a pastor who’s no stranger to a ballot, echoed Danley’s affinity for home cooking, but holds a special place in his belly for M&R Cafe Southern Cuisine on E Osborne Avenue.
Jose N. Vazquez Figueroa, a perennial candidate and business owner, Figueroa is the write-in candidate in the District 5 race and was pretty frank in his answer. “I’m Hispanic, so everybody’s thinking I love Hispanic food, but really it’s pasta,” he said. “But my favorite local restaurant is Salem’s.”
Juwanna Colbert Colbert, a Realtor and star on Netflix’s “Selling Tampa,” admits that she does not cook. “I go to every business in District 5,” she said, “but a few of my favorites are Outside BBQ, I go to 7th+Grove, I go to Los Chapos. There’s a lot, but I like to support small businesses.”
Naya Youn g Young loves to eat, and she’s fond of a spot close to her former job as Executive Director of the Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association. “I will say just Palm Avenue Sandwich Shop and La Segunda are my gotos, and I can walk from work,” she said. Thomas DeGeorge Jr. The owner of Crowbar in Ybor City is a pescatarian and cooks at home a lot. “It’s hard to find good fish,” he told WMNF before copping to being a fan of the Versaggi family shrimp that shows up on the flat top of Jaon “Clamaster” Rodriguez, who is a regular for parties on the Crowbar back patio.
Thomas Scott Scott, who’s served constituents during past terms on city council and county commission is a soul food guy, specifically, at Mr. B’s on N Nebraska Avenue.
POLLED PORK:
Barbecue is beloved by multiple D5 candidates.
PIZZA BY THE SLICE DAILY
MOVIES THEATER ART CULTURE
Let there be light
Coastal Film Lab celebrates four years of focusing on community.
By Ray Roa • Photos c/o Coastal Film Lab
Stephen Zane spends a lot of his waking hours working. Every day except Sunday, the bespectacled founder of Coastal Film Lab is surrounded by a handful of the shop’s dozen employees. On five of those days, customers buzz in, out, and around the store getting immersed in the world of cameras and film as they peruse the display cases and observe a hybrid workflow that turns light on celluloid into a digital folder of images. The 29-year-old, who founded Coastal as a passion project in 2016, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that he simply helps his talented staff out, filling in gaps here and there—and then looks ahead.
stare at them, thanks to an open lab format.
“The idea of this is to show everyone that comes in what the process of this is, and to have this level of transparency and honesty that is instantly educating every person that comes in as to what we’re doing,” Zane added.
In the lab alongside developing machines from the ‘90s and early-2000s are scanners that are anywhere from 15-20 years old, running Windows XP and Windows 2000. There’s also a processor that lets Coastal handle movie film and slide film, too.
LOCAL ARTS
“I’m trying to figure out whatever next new thing we’re thinking about doing and seeing how viable that is,” he said. “So I mostly just kind of learn all day, every day, which is fun, if exhausting,” he added.
Coastal Film Lab 4th birthday party
Friday, Aug. 29, 8 p.m.-11 p.m. $10-$15. 1704 N Nebraska Ave., Tampa. coastalfilmlab.com
His team at Coastal already has a lot of things figured out, apparently.
The shop—now located at 1704 N Nebraska Ave. in Tampa—opened in mid-2021 and is more like a hub for photography. Approximately 60-70 customers come through the doors each day. Most have spent film in their hands. Together with mailin orders, Coastal develops and scans about 500 rolls of film from across the U.S. each week. But Zane, who initially wanted to be a photojournalist before realizing that decently-paying jobs in that field are few and far between, doesn’t even care if someone spends any money should they stop by.
“This is kind of a niche thing, and I want it to succeed, and for it to succeed, people have to be excited about it. For people to be excited about it, they have to understand it,” Zane explained.
It’s easy to dive in at Coastal.
The staff itself is young, with ages ranging from 21-34 years old. Its cast includes Alex Vicente, a boy wonder who can not only fix cameras deemed unrepairable by other shops, but also probably get your car running again (he did it for a customer once). Zane is pushing him to create a signature camera for Coastal.
“I’m just so excited that they all have chosen to spend their lives here.”
“I mean, it helps because it keeps the lights on, but you can just come and get excited, and that’s fine,” he added. “Because I’ll just send you out in the world again, like, ‘Alright, go and take photos.’”
That welcoming attitude and warmth is a hallmark of the Coastal experience. This isn’t the kind of shop where staffers look down on customers. In fact, it’s customers that kind of
Maycee Padoll helps the shop connect with customers who want to archive and organize old tapes, prints and negatives. Then there’s Shelby Hazelton, a customerturned-employee, who now handles marketing and graphic design for Coastal. She wanted to get into film to capture her first year of marriage on the medium, but ended up just focusing on tiny moments that were cute or felt like they mattered.
“I came here to buy film, look at more cameras, ask them questions, get into it—and I just like the vibe here so much. I love the people,” Hazelton told CL, with her dog Tulip at her side. “I never had co-workers before, so I was also very lonely. I just wanted people to talk to you, which is crazy, because I love talking to people.”
That tribe will undoubtedly keep growing at Coastal.
The motion picture industry is the main consumer of film, so it’s not going anywhere, Zane explained, conceding that his shop’s challenge will be to keep old cameras running alongside maintaining the high volume processing equipment which always needs new parts.
“At some point somebody’s gonna have to come out with new scanners and new processors because these ones will have just hit end of life,” Zane said. “With ours, what we’d probably end up doing is cannibalizing our machines and building our own with parts from the existing ones—but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”
What the Coastal team is focused on right now is a fourth birthday party happening this Friday with food, drinks, an analog photo booth,
and more. Portfolio reviews may be on the horizon, Zane said, but the community events are a chance for him to take stock, be together, and take a break from the grind.
And at the end of the day, Zane—who used to be kind of a solopreneur type, trying to do it all himself—is really just thrilled to be surrounded by such a good group of people who’ve chosen to spend so much time at Coastal Film Lab with him. Asking others to help in the endeavour has been a humbling process and a good lesson to learn. Zane may be the bandleader, and sometimes obsessive-compulsive driver, but the ship is run by the team.
“I don’t necessarily feel like they’re working for me. They’re working for the lab, which is like an entity that exists outside of me,” he said. “I’m just so excited that they all have chosen to spend their lives here. It’s really fun.”
SPECT-OCULAR: Stephen Zane (front row, left) looks at his team and is grateful they chose to work at the Lab.
horiare a and used to it all surrounded chosen to with endeavour has lesson to someship workwhich me,” he chofun.”
SEPTEMBER12 - 14TH
Tell me more
The best local theater to check out this fall.
By David Warner
The fall theater season is afoot and we’re already spotting trends. Intriguing onewoman, one-man and two-person shows. Twisty thrillers. Juicy roles for women. One of the Straz Center’s most exciting Broadway lineups in years. Plus, a new new-play festival. And this is just our fall preview. Come January, we’ll look ahead to fresh takes on the classics, from Shakespeare to Hawthorne to “The Bash of the Titans.” (Yes, I said Bash; it’s a musical parody from the talented folks at freeFall, it’s not till June and I can’t wait. And the Greeks will take another bow in August when Colleen Cherry takes on the one-woman saga of “Penelope,” Odysseus’ very patient wife.) But we’re getting ahead of ourselves—let’s talk fall. Get links to all of these by visiting cltampa.com/arts.
Solos & duos
this new play by Doug DeVita (Fable) is a TV interior-design star whose hunt for clients takes some malevolent turns. But the play’s real villain may be social media. (Full disclosure: I’m in this one.)
‘White’ (Oct. 9-19, Off-Central Players)
James James’s hilarious Fat Ham at American Stage was a highlight of the ‘24-’25 theater season, so we were happy to see one of his works on Off-Central’s fall schedule: a play about a white male artist scheming to get included in an exhibition of works by people of color.
THEATER
‘Clone’ (Oct. 16-Nov. 2, TheatreFor) Graham Jones directs DC Cathro’s play, which is set in a nearfuture when clones have been discovered living secretly among us. When one man’s clone is apprehended and turned over to him as property, a power struggle ensues.
‘Bakersfield Mist’ (Sept. 4-14, The OffCentral) It’s a Pollock—or is it? That’s the question when a bartender thinks she’s picked up a modern masterpiece at a thrift store. The art expert who comes to look at it may have other ideas. This production marks a number of firsts for the Off-Central: It’ll be the first under the leadership of new Managing Director Alan J. Mohney Jr.; actors Jim Sorensen and Alix Faulhaber are making their first appearances on the O-C stage; and Roxanne Fay, who’s directing the show, was recently named the company’s Lead Artistic Associate.
‘Tell Me On A Sunday’ (Sept. 5-Oct. 5, freeFall) Broadway songbird Bernadette Peters won a Tony when this show was presented as the “Song” half of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Song and Dance. Now we get to see Tampa Bay’s favorite songbird, Julia Rifino, in the role of an English girl looking for love in all the wrong places in NYC.
‘Hundred Days’ (Oct. 22-Nov. 16, American Stage) So you met your soulmate with only 100 days to live? Seems like a good reason to start singing! A two-person rock musical by the married songwriters known as The Bengsons.
‘Latin History for Morons’ (Dec. 5-21, Stageworks) In this Tony-nominated solo show by John Leguizamo, a father discovers a glaring absence of Latin American contributions in his son’s history textbooks and embarks on a journey to fill in the gaps.
Secrets & lies
‘Goddess of the Hunt’ (Sept. 18-Oct. 5, Lab Theatre Project) The titular goddess in
‘Deathtrap’ (Oct. 24-Dec. 7) Matthew McGee takes the director’s chair for this one, leading a stellar cast (Eric Davis, Robert Teasdale, Sara DelBeato, Natalie Symons, and John Lombardi) in Ira Levin’s comedy thriller of back-stabbing playwrights and a psychic named Helga.
‘So Long Life’ (Nov. 20-Dec. 7, LAB Theatre Project) An aging actor with Alzheimer’s struggles to share secrets on the anniversary of his wife’s death. Owen Robertson directs another LAB premiere.
Leading women
‘Ada and the Engine’ (Sept. 12-21, Powerstories at Stageworks) Lauren Gunderson, one of the most-produced living playwrights in the U.S., uncovers neglected histories of female geniuses. In this play, her heroine is Ada Byron Lovelace, a young math genius (and daughter of the poet Lord Byron) who partnered with inventor Charles Babbage in 1830 in his exploration of the “engine,” a precursor of the modern computer.
‘Fat Pig’ (Sept. 18-28, Dead Canary at The Studio@620) The second production from a new company that’s as daring as its name, Fat Pig, by the ever-controversial Neil LaBute, challenges our notions of beauty and acceptance in a play about a man and his plus-sized girl friend.
‘The Good Peaches’ (Sept. 20, 2 p.m. & 8 p.m., American Stage at The Mahaffey) This sounds like a spectacle—a saga of girl vs. nature in a one-day-only multi-media blend of theater, music and dance from American Stage, The Florida Orchestra and projectALCHEMY.
‘Susannah’ (Oct. 17, 19 & 21, St. Pete Opera) The acclaimed opera by late FSU
professor Carlisle Floyd centers on a teenaged girl branded as a sinner in her Tennessee mountain town.
‘Cadillac Crew’ (Nov. 6-16, The Studio@620) Four Black female Civil Rights activists ponder whether the battle includes women. Produced in partnership with Powerstories.
‘Art’ (Nov. 13-23, The Off-Central) Is allwhite a’ight? Friendships are threatened by a dispute over an all-white painting in the Tonywinning comedy by Yasmina Reza. It’s usually performed by three men, but Off-Central is going with an all-female cast.
Spooky season
‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ (Aug. 28-Sept. 14, TheatreFor) This ain’t the onewoman multi-screen version that just won Sarah Snook a Tony, but TheatreFor says they’ll be upping their game for this eight-person adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s haunting novel by NY playwright Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, updated to
1988 London and 2009 Los Angeles.
‘Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors’ (Sept. 16-Oct. 26, Jaeb Theatre at the Straz) “Perfect for audiences of all blood types,” reads the Straz Center’s description of this fang-incheek romp, in which the vampire hunter is a woman and the scariest pursuit may be… real estate?
‘Ghost Brothers of Darkland County’ (Oct. 15-Nov. 9, Jobsite. A musical thriller by the killer duo of Stephen King and John Mellencamp, whose blues-tinged country score accompanies a Southern Gothic yarn about brothers in love with the same woman.
‘Evil Dead: The Musical’ (Oct. 24-Nov. 16, Stageworks) There will be blood. Stageworks brings back its hit musical horror parody, complete with chainsaws, flying limbs and naive college students.
‘Radio Theatre Project’ (Oct. 27, Studio@620) The Studio@620 fan favorite kicks off its new season with a seasonally continued on page 49
NEVER MISS A ‘SUNDAY’ SHOW: Tampa Bay’s favorite songbird, Julia Rifino.
spooky evening of Twilight Zone-ish radio plays. The series, in which actors on mics are accompanied by live sound effects, continues every fourth Monday through February, with varying Mondays in March and April.
‘The Turn of the Screw’ (Nov. 21 & 23, Opera Tampa) OT’s 30th anniversary season is almost all spooky, beginning with Benjamin Britten’s adaptation of the Henry James classic about a governess tormented by ghosts and her possibly possessed charges, then follows up in ‘26 with operatic treatments of The Shining and Macbeth (with Mozart’s comparatively lighthearted but still other-worldly Magic Flute in between).
Straz’ll dazzle
‘The Wiz’ (Oct. 14-19)
‘The Outsiders’ (Dec. 27, 2025-Jan. 4, 2026) The sheer jaw-dropping energy of this adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s beloved novel (and Francis Ford Coppola’s movie) came abundantly clear this year during the number excerpted for the Tonys, where it won Best Musical.
Getting festive
THEATER
The Wizard of Oz story, as retold musically through a Black lens, first hit Broadway in the 1970s. Now the Straz brings us the splashy 2024 revival, described by Variety as a “hypercolor whirligig.”
‘Water for Elephants’ (Oct. 28-Nov. 2)
Based on Sara Gruen’s novel about a boy who literally runs away to join the circus, this 2024 Broadway musical, acclaimed as “gorgeously imaginative” by the New York Times, features puppet animals and a cast of limber humans.
‘Kimberly Akimbo’ (Nov. 18-23) Tops on my must-see list is this Tony-winning musical adaptation of David Lindsay-Abaire’s lovely, funny, heartbreaking play about a teenage girl determined to get the most out of life despite a disease that’s aging her too fast. Big plus: Ann Morrison, a local favorite seen frequently at freeFall, is playing the title role for this national tour.
Tampa Bay Theatre Festival (Aug. 29-31, David A. Straz Center for the Performing Arts , other venues) The annual festival kicks off with a one-night only presentation of the jury-room classic “12 Angry Men,” featuring a cast of talented local actors including Cornelio Aguilera, Lance Felton, and Rick Stutzel under the direction of Festival godfather Rory Lawrence. A short play competition, new full-lengths, theater workshops and staged readings fill out the weekend.
Beach Theatre Festival (Sept. 19-21) The newly renovated indie cinema is dedicated to live performances as well as movies, thanks to venue director Hannah Hockman, who launches her new festival with a weekend of staged readings by local playwrights William Leavengood, Jenna Jane, and Alaina Rahaim Miller.
Happy holidays
Look for CL’s Holiday Guide in November, when we’ll have news of the many Christmastime attractions. They include the return of Cindy Lou Who in "Who’s Holiday" at the OffCentral, plus multiple takes on "A Christmas Carol," including a concert version at freeFall, a live radio play adaptation at Tampa Rep, and, in what sounds like an inspired mix of slapstick and Dickens, The Three Scrooges at TheatreFor.
JUST BEACHY: The renovated indie cinema and performance space reopened last month.
RYAN KERN
continued from page 45
Art-reprenuers
15 of Tampa Bay’s best markets for beginning vendors.
By Samuel Edme
Picture this: you’re an aspiring artist or craftsperson who has finished several pieces. You figure you could make a little money from your hobby and sell them at a local market. It should be easy. All you need is your work and a table, right? Turns out, it’s complicated. It might be exciting to table at a big market where hundreds will encounter your work, but some of Tampa Bay’s biggest festivals have vending fees in the hundreds, or stringent requirements like obtaining sales permits and insurance certificates. These are some of the best places to start, according to experienced vendors.
ACEcon The Palm Harbor Library has been hosting its two-day anime con for a decade. While the audience definitely skews towards teens (I was the only adult in one panel), it’s well-organized and attracts a decent crowd for its size. Happens annually in March. No vending fee. No supply requirements.
Art Alley Taking Artist Alley to a new level, Reservoir Bar’s Art Alley is at a literal street alley behind the bar. As with Dharma Art Market, the area is a wild west for anyone to set up, but with tables and crafts instead of guns and horses. Mc Food Trap is always there preparing delicious hibachi. First and third Mondays. No vending fee. BYO table and chair.
Broderick Comic Con
Richard Brock started this neighborhood convention last year at the Broderick Recreation Center in Pinellas Park, focusing on comic books, toys, and card-collecting fandom. As with Clearwater Comic Con and ACEcon, it’s free to attend and vend, making it a perfect first-time comic con. Happens annually in January. No vending fee. No supply requirements.
Dharma Art Market Based in Largo’s Dharma Kava Lounge, the 7 p.m.-11 p.m. indoor night market hosted by Sam Salem Witmer is a small yet vibrant space of communal camaraderie where recurring vendors feel like nomadic residents setting up wherever they please. Raffles are regularly held where vendors can choose to donate an item, with proceeds going to charitable causes like PFLAG Safety Harbor. If you get hungry, Shane is always outside cooking up some fine Southern cuisine. Monthly, generally on third Tuesdays. $20 vending fee. Bring a table. Bar chairs are available to borrow but not ideal depending on your table height.
Hey Market As far as monthly art markets go, this is as close as you can get to the punk zinester ethos and an artist alley rolled in one poetic toke. With over 30 vendors, this night market is located outside Café Hey in Tampa Heights. Like with Tampa Zine Fest, musical performances are a mainstay that bring in crowds. If you’re vending near the café entrance, there’s shade. Every third Saturday.$20-$25 vending fee. Limited tables and chairs are available to reserve.
LOCAL ARTS
Largo Playcon Playcon is Largo’s local comic con dedicated to celebrating gaming culture, sci-fi/fantasy, anime, and more geekdom galore. In previous years, it was at the Highland Recreation Complex, but this year it was held at the Central Park Performing Arts Center, which had less foot traffic, other vendors noted. Attendance is expected to pick up in the coming years. Last Saturday of April, yearly. Vending fee starts at $25. No supply requirements.
New Moons Makers Market Organizers
Clearwater Comic Con Hosted by the Clearwater Public Library, this convention brings the Floridian comics, cosplay, and fandom community together for an entire day of panels, contests, and even a few C-list celebrity appearances. What more can one ask from a free comic con? Happens annually between February and March. No vending fee. No supply requirements.
Daydream Art Market Organized in tandem with St. Pete Art Walk, the Historic Kenwood-based Daydream Shop & Maker Space goes from 5 p.m.-9 p.m. The 30 vendors host and sell merchandise ranging from artwork to jewelry and homemade recipes. Space is available outdoors in front of the shop and inside the neighboring Hawthorne Bottle Shoppe patio. Second Saturdays. $30-$45 vending fee. Limited tables and chairs available on a first-come, firstserved basis.
Artie and Emily breed a welcoming, relaxed environment of positive vibes at the progressive Allendale United Methodist Church. The staff is also very communicative and accommodating towards disability needs. Every last Sunday (currently on summer break). $50-$115 vending fee. BYO table and chair.
St. Pete Zine Fest Print St. Pete started this fest last year with 40 vendors and 500 attendees at the SPC-Gibbs Campus West Community Library. Activities like panels and workshops are featured throughout the morning and early afternoon. Every third Saturday of February annually, no vending fee. BYO table and chair. printstpete.org/spzf
Tampa Zine Fest Supply Requirements: As with most of the events you’ll see here, you are expected to bring your own table and chair. In operation for over a decade, Tampa’s premier zine fest brings together hundreds of
attendees and over 50 DIY printmakers and artists across Central Florida for a fun night including music performances and poetry slams. Normally held between February and March at Southern Brewery, the 4-hour fest happens in an elegantly lit patio area with ample roofing. Happens annually, no vending fee. BYO table and chair. @zinefesttampa on Instagram
Ybor Art Walk Each month in historic Ybor City, bars and other venues throughout 7th Avenue open their space for art vendors to sell their wares from 2 p.m.-6 p.m. In a neighborhood as diverse as Ybor City, you can choose wherever suits the vibe you’re going for. Whether it’s the gothic aesthetics of SpookEasy Lounge or the swashbuckling pirate backdrop of Gaspar’s Grotto, there’s no shortage of eclectic choices. Contact @sippinprettytampa on Instagram for more information. Every third Saturday (currently on summer break). No vending fee. Bring a table. Chair availability varies by bar.
Tampa Local Market Andrea Ponce is probably one of the busiest market organizers in the Bay area. This market’s location varies
but generally is at a Tampa or St. Pete-based brewery for 3-4 hours. Attendance is normally low, but buyers tend to purchase in high volumes! They can be inside or outdoors, so it’s a good idea to bring water and a fan. Usually happens four times a month. $20-$40 vending fee. BYO table. Chair availability varies by market.
Steep Station St. Pete The Steep Station kava bar in Historic Kenwood opens part of its parking space to vendors every Tuesday, firstcome, first-served, in a spectacle of DJs rocking the lot and stunt performers doing feats like fire-juggling. Tuesdays from 7 p.m.-1 a.m. No vending fee. BYO table and chair.
The Big Bend Market Based around Tampa and Ruskin, The Big Bend Market is a vendor-friendly experience that features a variety of makers selling products, including food, drinks, jewelry, self-care items, etc. Liz, the organizer, is very communicative and helpful with getting things set up. Since the location varies and can be indoors or outdoors, bring what you need to stay cool. Happens twice a month. $50-$60 vending fee. Bring a chair. Tables are provided in limited supply.
ARTISTS AT PLAY: Vendors at Largo’s PlayCon.
CITY OF LARGO
Get lit
‘Florida Cocktails’ talk brings Carrie Honaker to Ybor City.
By Maroon Stranger
For Ybor City locals Laurie and Teresa Rodriguez, co-owners of pop-up bookshop ‘Bookends: Literature & Libations’, Carrie Honaker’s “Florida Cocktails” is a dream come true. Laurie is a cocktail enthusiast, sporting a collection of 60 such books at home. When the sisters found out their favorite City Cocktails book series was adding a Florida issue, authored by food travel writer and Florida resident Carrie Honaker, they immediately invited her down to Ybor for this month’s special event.
Inspired by the signature drinks at various bars across Florida’s cities, the book reads like a cocktail-themed treasure hunt. Many of the drinks require locally-made, one-of-akind ingredients, explains Laurie at Bookends’ Saturday morning pop-up at Centennial Park in Ybor City. In order to make the special featured from Sloppy Joe’s Bar, she traced their rum to a Key West distillery, sold in grocery stores as Papa’s Pilar Rum.
The sisters have their own drink special at piratethemed bar Gasparilla Distillery in Ybor City, where the event will be held. Inspired by Laurie’s “Florida 206,” made with guava juice and Campari, the distillery’s “Tampa 206” adds a twist with an in-house cherry liqueur. The drink is featured on the bar’s regular cocktail menu, along with a newlylaunched tiki menu, available at a cash bar during the event.
Romantasy Study Group discussing ‘Shield of Sparrows’ by Devney Perry Saturday, August 30. 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. No cover.
Gasparilla Distillery, 2102 E 4th Ave., Ybor City. @bookendsybor on Instagram
Mystery Book Club discussing ‘All the Broken Girls’ by Linda Hurtado Bond Saturday, August 30. 7:30 p.m.-9 p.m. No cover. Gasparilla Distillery, 2102 E 4th Ave., Ybor City. @bookendsybor on Instagram
‘A Lesson in Deceit’: Book Launch with Allie Shante Saturday, August 30. 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. $23 ticket. Steamy Lit, 2832 S MacDill Ave. Unit C, Tampa. steamylitbookstore.com
Lady Leaders + Readers Book Club discussing ‘Million Dollar Women’ by Julia Pimsleur Sunday, August 31. 10 a.m.12 p.m. No cover. Book + Bottle, 17 6th St. N, St. Petersburg. events.humanitix.com
BOOKS
Bookends Ybor:
Florida-themed pop-up
Tampa Girls Book Club discussing ‘The Midnight Feast’ by Lucy Foley Sunday, August 31. 1 p.m. No cover. COhatch West Tampa, 2130 W Main St., Tampa. @tampagirlsbookclub on Instagram
Saturday, August 30. 3 p.m.-10 p.m. RSVP requested. Gasparilla Distillery & Cocktail Bar, 2102 E 4th Ave., Ybor City. @bookendsybor on Instagram
‘The Tilting House’: An Evening with Ivonne Lamazares Tuesday, September 2. 7 p.m.-8 p.m.
Join Laurie and Teresa at Gasparilla Distillery & Cocktail Bar on Saturday, August 30 starting at 3 p.m. for a Florida-themed pop-up. Enjoy cocktail trivia, prizes, and a make & take coaster craft. Honaker will join 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. for a Q&A, book sales & signing. RSVPs are requested.
Look below to check out some of the best book and literary events happening in Tampa Bay between August 28 - Sep. 4. For more (free!) events, check out your local library at hcplc.org/events.
Book + Bottle: Fiction Book Club discussing ‘Parable of the Sower’ by Octavia Butler Thursday, August 28. 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. No cover. Book + Bottle, 17 6th St. N, St. Petersburg. bookandbottlestpete.com/events
Tombolo Book Club discussing ‘Florida Palms’ by Joe Pan Thursday, August 28. 6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. No cover. Tombolo Books, 2153 1st Ave. S, St. Petersburg. tombolobooks. com/events
‘Heart Strings’: Book Signing + Convo with Ivy Fairbanks Friday, Sep. 5. 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. $22 ticket. Steamy Lit, 2832 S MacDill Ave. Unit C, Tampa. steamylitbookstore.com
‘Take Up Space, Y’all’: An Evening with Kelly Coon Saturday, Sep. 6. 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. $7 ticket. Oxford Exchange, 420 W. Kennedy Blvd. Tampa. oxfordexchange.com
Horror Book Club discussing ‘Girl in the Creek’ by Wendy N. Wagner Sunday, September 7. 9 a.m.-10 a.m. No cover. Tombolo Books, 2153 1st Ave. S, St. Petersburg. tombolobooks.com
‘As A Last Resort’: An Evening with Kristin Wollett Sunday, September 7. 3:30 p.m. $7 ticket. Oxford Exchange, 420 W Kennedy Blvd. Tampa. oxfordexchange.com
Social Justice Book Club discussing ‘Solito’ by Javier Zamora Monday, September 8. 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. No cover. Tombolo Books, 2153 1st Ave S, St. Petersburg. tombolobooks.com
Oxford Exchange Book Club discussing ‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald Monday, Sep. 8. 6:30 p.m. $33 ticket. Oxford
Exchange, 420 W. Kennedy Blvd. Tampa. oxfordexchange.com
‘The Secret Book Society’: An Evening with Madeline Martin Tuesday, September 9. 7 p.m.-8 p.m. RSVP requested. Tombolo Books, 2153 1st Ave. S, St. Petersburg. tombolobooks.com
Shut Up & Write: Tales & Tea Wednesday, September 10. 6:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. No cover. Steep Station, 2235 1st Ave. S, St. Petersburg. @steepstationstpete on Facebook
‘No Ordinary Bird’: An Evening with Artis Henderson Wednesday, September 10. 7 p.m.-8 p.m. RSVP requested. Tombolo Books, 2153 1st Ave. S, St. Petersburg. tombolobooks.com
Crime Travel Book Club discussing ‘King of Ashes’ by S.A. Cosby Thursday, September 11. 7 p.m.-8 p.m. No cover. Tombolo Books, 2153 1st Ave. S, St. Petersburg. tombolobooks.com
NOVEL SPRIT: Carrie Honaker is a Florida food travel writer.
CARRIEHONAKER.COM
UPCOMING RELATED EVENT ON VIEW NOW THROUGH SEPTEMBER 21
AFTER HOURS (21+): NINA YANKOWITZ | IN THE OUT/OUT THE
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 19 | 7-10 PM
Step into a fully activated MFA for a night where art meets sound in unexpected ways. At this 21+ community celebration, we’re blending live DJ sets, contemporary art, and hands-on experiences into one immersive evening. Explore the museum like never before—with live DJ sets by Brian Schanck, Justin Depth & jubilee, transforming our permanent collection into a sonic playground. In the conservatory, dance to DJ-curated beats, grab a signature drink, and dive into vibrant conversations. This special night features the dynamic In the Out / Out the In exhibition, including work by renowned multimedia artist Nina Yankowitz, whose groundbreaking contributions help reimagine how sound and visual art interact within the museum space.
Tickets start at $30.66 bit.ly/RetroWarehouseParty
Saturday, August 30, 2025 • 7:30 PM - 10:00 PM
Raul Giovannetti: Cantares @ HCC Ybor City Campus
2001 North 14th Street
Tickets start at $21.50 bit.ly/RaulYbor
Saturday, August 30, 2025 • 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
BROADWAY BACKWARDS by Luis Rivera
@ HCC Performing Arts Ybor City
2001 North 14th Street
Tickets start at $17.85 bit.ly/BroadwayBackwardsYbor
Sunday, August 31, 2025 • 11:30 AM - 3:00 PM
Festa della Madonna Luncheon 2025 @ L’Unione Italiana 1731 East 7th Avenue
To-Go Orders - $20, Adult Ticket - $30, Table of Ten - $300 bit.ly/FestaMadonna
Sunday, August 31, 2025 • 4:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Crème De La Creme: Upscale Party
@ 7th + Grove
1930 East 7th Avenue
Tickets from $12.51 bit.ly/CremeDeLaCremeYbor
Friday, September 5, 2025 • 6:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Chateau Cellars Jazz Night | Prix Fixe Dinner @ Chateau Cellars Ybor
2009 N. 22nd St.
Tickets drom $59.34
bit.ly/ChateauJazzNight
Saturday, September 6, 2025 • 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Bloom with Kindness - Bouquet Making For A Cause @ J.C. Newman Cigar Company
2701 N 16th St
Tickets $42.13 bit.ly/BloomWithKindness
Wednesday, September 17, 2025 • 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Wedding Pro Networking Night
@ Ybor City Museum
1818 East 9th Avenue
Tickets - $13.45
bit.ly/WeddingProNight
Asiatic Streetfood & Noodle BAR 1600 E 8th Ave D101, Tampa asiaticfl.blizzfull.com
Tampa Bay Brewing Company 1600 East 8th Avenue, Tampa
The Bricks 1327 E 7th Ave, Tampa thebricksybor.com
Where to Live:
Casa Ybor • casaybor.com
Casa Ybor offers unique retail spaces, office spaces, and apartment homes for rent or lease in both newly constructed and lovingly restored historic buildings throughout the vibrant National Historic Landmark District of Ybor City near Downtown Tampa, Florida.
La Union • bit.ly/LaUnionYbor
Community, connection, and culture come together at La Unión Apartments, where Tampa’s rich history and vibrant future unite. Inspired by the historic social hall once on this site, our Ybor City apartments honor that legacy by fostering bonds among residents, the neighborhood, and the area’s deep-rooted heritage.
Miles at Ybor • milesatybor.com
Step into the pulse of Tampa’s most vibrant neighborhood at Miles at Ybor, where modern luxury apartments in Tampa blend seamlessly with the rich cultural tapestry of historic Ybor City. These aren’t just furnished apartments in Ybor City – they’re your gateway to an elevated urban lifestyle that celebrates both heritage and innovation.
J.C. Newman Cigar Company 2701 N 16th St, Tampa
Handcrafted premium cigars & a small museum draw smoking aficionados to this longtime factory. jcnewman.com
Industrious Coworking Space 1600 E 8th Ave A200, Tampa
Once a movie theater, Located in the heart of Ybor City, Industrious Centro Ybor is a unique and flexible workplace, with dedicated offices, and on-demand meeting space with all-inclusive amenities and benefits bit.ly/IndustriousYbor
Ybor City Saturday Market 1901 N. 19th Street Tampa ybormarket.com
SEPT. 6 • 7PM
21 • 8PM
4 • 7PM
11 • 7:30PM
26 • 7:30PM
REVIEWS
PROFILES MUSIC WEEK
Giddy up
12 of the biggest and best concerts to check out this fall.
By Ray Roa and Josh Bradley
October’s show from resurgent J-pop icon Poison Girl Friend isn’t the only big concert coming to town this fall (read more on p 65). From now until late January when Creative Loafing Tampa Bay’s Spring Arts Guide drops, some of the Bay area’s biggest venues (think, Benchmark International Arena, the BayCare Sound) are hosting giant headliners. We’ve rounded up as many that’ll fit on the page, and sprinkled in some great opportunities to catch fantastic small shows, too. Read more via cltampa.com/slideshows.
Katara w/Kirtan/Selector El Flyer/DJ
Capybara/FKA Ophelia/Anthony Aldissi
Don’t ever skip a bill that has both Katara and Anthony Aldissi on the bill. The latter is a Bay area expat jazz composer and keyboardist whose output is more-or-less virtuoustic, and the former still reigns as one of the most unique and well-polished outfits in town. They come to Tampa Heights’ Lucky Cat Yoga Space for an intimate gig. Friday, Sept. 5. 7 p.m. No cover. 2740 N Florida Ave., Tampa Yo Majesty w/Julia Powell/Last Bias
Four years after a rare appearance at the VFW Post 39 in St. Petersburg, Tampa hip-hop and pop outfit Yo Majesty is back again, this time with new music in tow. Tracks from a forthcoming album find Shunda K treading into ‘70s, ‘80s club sounds all peppered with heavy old school flavor. “You can tell Yo! Majesty has matured over the years and are making music for both the young and the old these days,” Shunda K told CL. Saturday, Sept. 6. 10 p.m. No cover. The Bends, St. Petersburg
Nine Inch Nails w/Boys Noize Last January, NIN announced a new world tour with a possible stop in Tampa, only to promptly postpone everything and “unannounce” it all due to the wildfires in California. The show is happening though, and the upcoming concert will be Nine Inch Nails’ first show in the Tampa Bay area since a stop at MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre in 2014. Wednesday, Sept. 10. 7:30 p.m. $44.75 & up. Benchmark International Arena, Tampa—Colin Wolf
Benson Boone Last April at Coachella, the 22-year-old—who has already been a musical guest on “Saturday Night Live”—announced his new album Young American Heart, which he says takes after Bruce Springsteen, Americana,
and “retro vibes” as a whole. Saturday, Sept. 13. 8 p.m. $125 & up (resale only). Benchmark International Arena, Tampa
My Chemical Romance To celebrate the 20th anniversary of its groundbreaking rock opera
The Black Parade, MCR’s Gerard and Mikey Way, Frank Iero, and Ray Toro will perform the 2006 album cover-to-cover, along with the other bangers that made up the playlists of your emo friend’s high school years. While there’s no telling if these
totems of Black, Texas excellence are bringing their dreams to town. “We grew up in this thing together. From the smallest clubs you can imagine—places where you could hear a pin drop, or sometimes, folks talkin’ over the music. But we kept on grinding!,” the pair wrote on social media. “Now, to be able to share a stage together and bring this tour to big rooms and amphitheaters… man, it feels full circle.” Expect full sets from each artist brings together Grammy-nominated Crockett, a bonafide cowboy who’s no stranger to the Bay area, and Grammy-winning Bridges, one of this generation’s foremost crooners. Monday, Sept. 15. 6 p.m. $40.50 & up. The BayCare Sound, Clearwater
shows will be as theatrical as the original Black Parade tour, this run of shows also has different opening acts for each city, with the Tampa show getting alt-metal outfit Evanescence to warm things up. Saturday, Sept. 13. 6 p.m. $82 & up.
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa Leon Bridges w/Charley Crockett/ Reyna Tropical Leon Bridges and Charley Crockett go back about a decade, and now the
Franz Ferdinand Last year marked 20 years since the Scottish rock outfit released its indie, eponymous debut album—which featured a healthy fistful of hit singles (“Michael,” “Take Me Out”)—and the band’s 21st year on the map has been as big of a party as ever. Alex Kapranos and friends started the year off strong by having Johnny Marr of the Smiths join them onstage for a few songs across the pond in Manchester,
and days before that, releasing The Human Fear, a new album that centers around facing fears linked to drastic changes in life. Tuesday, Sept. 23. 8 p.m. $35. The Ritz, Ybor City
Alison Krauss & Union Station w/Willie Watson For the first time in a decade, Alison Krauss and Union Station are going on tour, and the band’s long journey ends right here in Florida this fall. A press release said the band now includes IIIrd Tyme Out’s Russell Moore, who is the most-awarded male vocalist in the history of the International Bluegrass Music Association. Moore, who just celebrated his 61st birthday, joins Krauss, 53, plus longtime Union Station members Ron Block, Barry Bales, and dobro legend Jerry Douglas, who joined in 1998. Saturday, Sept. 27. 7:30 p.m. $39.50 & up. The BayCare Sound, Clearwater
Freddie Gibbs w/Mavi Tampa’s getting another helping of Alfredo. The 43-year-old Grammy-nominated rapper is on the road fresh off the release of Alfredo 2, the sequel to his 2020 album (which lost two Nas’ King’s Disease for Best Rap Album in 2021). The 14-track album includes guest spots from Anderson .Paak, JID, and Larry June. Friday, Oct. 3. 6 p.m. $50.25. The Ritz, Ybor City
Reneé Rapp w/Ravyn Lenae Here’s one of a few shows where you can laugh, cry and feel like a baddie within a couple hours. After releasing her single “Leave Me Alone” in May, Reneé Rapp is celebrating a new album, Bite Me, released this month. Monday, Oct. 27. 8 p.m. $66.05 & up. Yuengling Center, Tampa Jani Burden
Sting The tour finds the 73-year-old co-founder of The Police joined by longtime collaborator, guitarist Dominic Miller, and Chris Maas, the touring drummer for Mumford & Sons and Maggie Rogers. Monday, Nov. 10. 8 p.m. $564 & up. Hard Rock Event Center at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Tampa Kaytranada w/Justice There are just a dozen dates on a new tour from electro icons Kaytranada and Justice—and two of them are in Florida. The bands—responsible for hits like “Glowed Up,” “D.A.N.C.E.” and a collaborative remix of “Neverender”—announced the run last week and shared a bill at Paris’ SacréCœur de Montmartre last year. Last February, both bands were nominated for Best Dance/ Electronic Music Album at the 2025 Grammy Awards (Charli XCX’s Brat took home the prize). Saturday, Nov. 15. 7 p.m. $55 & up. Benchmark International Arena, Tampa. See more at cltampa.com/music.
COWBOY, MEET CROONER: Leon Bridges (L) and Charley Crockett go back about a decade.
bill alongside a special performance from songwriter Shelby Sol and her partner, rapper Jinx. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
THU 28
C Dominic Walker Trio (album release)
One of the best jazz gigs in the Bay area happens every Friday night in the jampacked backyard of a Davis Island coffee shop. The maestro every week is guitarist Dominic Walker, but he’ll bring some of his favorite players—drummer Paul Gavin and pianist John C. O’Leary III—into the basement of the Palladium Theater to release a brand new album. Recorded at Morrisound, Hurricane Summer corrals the warm and soulful tone of Walker’s Gibson L4-CES, into a collection of jazz, rock and blues covers and originals that’ll come to life in a special way thanks to the addition of saxophonist Jack Wilkins and vocalist Allison Nash. (Side Door Cabaret at Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg)
C WMNF Save Our Sound-Waves: Mestaurant w/Lychee Camp/Shelby Sol & Jinx/Pet Lizard Since its inception, community radio station WMNF Tampa has been a surefire place for homegrown bands to get their first dose of airplay. To this day, 88.5-FM remains a core supporter of local musicians, and the scene is giving back in the wake of funding cuts from Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump. This gig is anchored by Mestaurant, the drum-centric project of producer and DJ Chris Wood. Rock bands Lychee Camp and Pet Lizard round out the
Z!ster w/Pilot Jonezz/Domino Pink/ Spiderwall Atlanta artist Zl!ster embodies the interests of a new generation of genreagnostic music lovers. On the surface, songs play like hip-hop, but Z meanders into indierock and pop, too. That unbridled joy likely comes from the attitude Z!ster adopted after nearly dying when he smashed into a semi truck on the interstate. Some of the Bay area’s equally-joyous bands open the show. (Music hall at New World Brewery, Tampa)
FRI 29
Black Valley Moon After Black Valley Moon’s Rock The Park set got moved down the street to The Hub a few weeks ago, the almost six-year-old spooky “gothabilly” quartet is heading to the other side of the Bay to host a belated release party for a new, two-song EP. The guitar licks on We Sleep (which actually dropped in June) take a more mellow and psychedelic turn from the Tampa band’s previous release, 2024’s Curses, Wishes & Haunted Transmissions Vol. 1, and if it’s an example of how Sam Williams and friends are going to continue their evolution as a group, we’re in for one trippy era. Local gritty rock outfit The Inhalers, garage-rock foursome The Vindicators, and “unknown quinquagenarian classic punk rock band” Olde Rage all play opener next Friday. (The Nest at St. Pete Brewing Co., St. Petersburg)—Josh Bradley
C Blink-182 w/Alkaline Trio After seeing the band in an air-conditioned arena two summers ago, Bay area Blink-182 (stylized “blink-182”) fans are really gonna have to take off their jackets. The “Missionary Impossible” run, which wraps in October at Las Vegas’ When We Were Young Festival, comes on the heels of Blink-182’s latest album, One More Time…, which marked the first collection of new, studio-recorded songs by the trio of Mark Hoppus, Tom DeLonge, and Travis Barker. Blink-182’s last local show was a grand reunion of sorts where Hoppus—who was declared cancerfree two years prior—couldn’t help but make jokes that made a generation of teenagers laugh back in the late ‘90s. “There is so much sexual tension up here,” Hoppus told a crowd of about 18,000 at Amalie Arena. (MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre, Tampa)
C Roc Helton (album release) w/Mercy McCoy/Joshua Reilly In between teaching summer camp classes in Dunedin, the young folk singer-songwriter spent his “sad song summer” giving life to a barrage of Tyler Childers and Jason Isbell-inspired material, some of it in Woodstock, New York. Roc Helton admits that his first time in a professional recording studio was last January, and yet, his debut album My Kind of Gone releases on Friday through Nashville’s Cloverdale Records. Joining him as both an opener and backing band will be Mercy McCoy (which we’re betting is going to open for The Wallflowers in downtown Clearwater this fall), and kicking off the night is Helton’s dad Joshua Reilly, who helped him write the new album’s title track. (Crooked Thumb Brewery, Safety Harbor)—JB
Rod Wave Wave’s homecoming birthday party arrives four years after he put the Sunshine City on the map by knocking Justin Bieber off the Billboard 200 in 2021 and as Wave—who turned 27 on Aug. 27—again finds himself in headlines for something other than music. His lawyer denies any wrongdoing, but Wave (born Rodarius Marcell Green), according to ABC News, faces 14 criminal charges, including aggravated assault and firearms violations, following what his lawyer called a break-in at his Georgia residence on April 21. In 2022, St. Pete police pulled over a 2021 Dodge Durango registered to the 22-year-old rapper who was riding in the front passenger seat—that case was dismissed months later. Wave’s upcoming birthday show is appropriately dubbed “The Introduction To: The Redemption Experience,” but support for the show has yet to be announced. (Benchmark International Arena, Tampa)
Seckond Chaynce w/Spyda JC/Rylan Partaka Write this down: After a quiet summer, Tampa’s favorite saloon brings its stage back to life with this up-and-coming, Jacksonville-bred country rapper. Seckond Chaynce (a Tampa local born Trevor Thomas) has amassed over 150 million views on YouTube alone, and his “unofficial Florida Gators anthem” “Chomp” actually played on CBS Sports during a Gators game. His first homecoming gig since 2017 comes at the beginning of a fall run of U.S. dates, which will almost certainly attract a wave of bro-country college dudes, possibly including some UF kids. (Dallas Bull, Tampa)—JB
continued on page 62
By Ray Roa C CL Recommends
SAT 30
C Big Britt w/DJ C. Nazte/DJ No Breaks After a maternity leave of sorts Tampa’s Big Britt is ready for a twerktastic return to the stage that will not only seek to find the best ass shakers in town (there’s a $500 cash prize for a twerk contest), but re-establish her position as a rapper that’s stayed true to the jookish Tampa sound while advancing the genre in the Southeast. Ladies get in free before midnight.
C The Bitch Cabaret: Shower Beers & Jeremy Gloff album release On the surface, there might not be two Tampa musicians with more juxtaposed personalities: pop songwriter Jeremy Gloff is outspoken and out-as-can-be, while songwriter Shae Krispinsky is more reclusive. Deep homies in real life, Gloff and Krispinky’s Shower Beers project have collided to combat the “hate, darkness, and disillusion” of the word with a 14-track LP that a press release describes as “loud, proud, queer, sexual, political, thoughtful, and definitely human.” The record pieces together up anthems (“C’mon Get Up”), synth-heavy odes to home (“813 Summertime), DEVO-esque ragers (“Shit Show”), and bedroom ballads (“Hurricane Season”). To mark the release, the duo stages “Bitch Cabaret” an immersive performance with help from tap dancers, performance artists, rappers, a choir, and improv musical comedy. “After years of occasional collaborations, we finally came together and discovered a power greater than the sum of our parts,” Gloff and Krispinsky wrote in a statement. “This album is about survival, joy, and reclaiming our voices. Honestly? We’re nominating ourselves for album of the year.”
(The Disco Dolls Studio, Tampa)
C Damag3 w/Figgy Baby/$leazy Ez/ Shno Xavier/K-Presto Ares Mascaro (better known as Damag3, stylized in all-caps) is from Louisiana, but her music is what happens when a Southern emcee immerses themselves in the best rap that the East Coast and Midwest has to offer. Part Tech9, part Eminem, Mascaro emerged in 2021 rapping about being trans (“I’ve been on estrogen for two years, know a bitch when I see one”) and everything from “Luigi’s Mansion” to Luigini Mangioni. They arrive in St. Pete a year after putting out her 3at Th3 Rich EP and fresh off of a feature with The Neighborhood Kids. If she’s the antidote to Slim Shady’s (and rap in general) toxic masculinity, it’s fitting Damag3 had Elon Musk’s home-grown antidote, Vivian Wilson, in her “GOD iMAG3” video over the summer—with no offense taken to her previously rapping about assassinating Wilson’s dad and members of Congress. (Bayboro Brewing, St. Petersburg)
Her Turn To Spin Orlando DJ Demi Korrin leads a beginner-friendly DJ workshop lecture for women 18-and-up. She started the project earlier this year “to create a space where women could feel empowered, creative, and connected through music.” A two-hour session will cover DJing basics, understanding equipment and an intro to software. Afterward, newly-minted DJs can get to know each other over a free glass of wine. Those who want to go deeper can also get 1-on-1 DJig classes with Korrin. (Suite E Studios, St. Petersburg)—Selene San Felice
Idigbetterday: Doodles w/DJ Shafiq Nerds who flip when they see a DJ pull out 7-inch vinyl and 45s should clear the afternoon for this one where Philadelphia DJ Doodles, inventor of Super Bad Slides slipmats, is joined by Tampa scene staple DJ Shafiq. (Velvet Gypsy, Tampa)
C Kenzie Wheeler Rocking one of the best mullets in country music, Kenzie Wheeler has long carried the torch of twang for the Bay area. He arrives at one of Tampa’s most storied venues with a powerful vocal that’s matured even more since his big local debut at Gasparilla Music Festival 2022. Wheeler, more George Strait than Morgan Wallen, has spent the last few weeks workshopping songs for a forthcoming album, so expect him to play a few under the Skipperdome. The show, booked independently by the venue, comes as Skipper’s Smokehouse embarks on a new chapter where the David A. Straz Center for Performing Arts will help research, suggest and secure artists to perform under the storied oak canopy. “We’re still fiercely independent and have 100% final say on all bookings,” Cricket Larson, the “head mullet” at Skipper’s wrote in a release. “And, of course, Skipper’s will continue to support local acts and fundraisers—just as we always have. We treasure those relationships.” (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
Lager’s Not Dead - SkaFest Vol. 3: Victims of Circumstance w/Control This!/Floridaze/Chilled Monkey Brains/ Saganaki Bomb Squad/Over Wait Mammal/Eric Best This ska smorgasbord brings together a handful of Tampa and Orlando’s best-known brassy bands, as well as a Reel Big Fish cover band. Chilled Monkey Brains just got back from New Orleans, where it opened a farewell show for Joystick drummer Kyle Bouque. (Grand Central Brewhouse, St. Petersburg)—JB
C Reversal of Man w/Meatwound/ Watts/Novely Reversal of Man once wrote in its Revolution Summer liner notes that reunion shows for the sake of “old school resurgence” should be a criminal offense. But after a few weeks of social media teases last April, the legendary Tampa hardcore group confirmed its first reunion show in 25 years, happening this weekend in Ybor City. The sold-out gigs, which will be opened by Meatwound, Novely, and Watts, won’t feature the exact same lineup you may have spent the late-‘90s with, though. Frodus drummer Jason Hamacher and Horsewhip frontman-slash-guitarist Shaun Drees will join forces with Matt Coplon, Jeff Howe, and friends, along with classic lineup guitarist Jasen Weitekamp returning to the fold for the first time since 1998. If you're traveling to town for the gig, the band has posted its own guide to Tampa coffee shops and experiences—because every good punk needs a great cortado. (Crowbar, Ybor City)—JB
C Slap of Reality w/Low Season/The Deluxe 12 Low Season is in the studio working on an eight-song EP. The Bay area pop-punk band hopes to release it by the end of the year, and recently shared a new mix for the song, “Dead Inside,” featuring the band’s original lineup. Expect to hear it when Low Season plays the heart of this old-school lineup. (Deviant Libation, Tampa)
Tabernacle of Oddities: Roger Alan Wade w/Black Sun Circus/Greymarket/ Jordan Foley Yes, the weirdest people in Florida will be in Ybor City this weekend for Tabernacle of Oddities (read more on p. 12), but so will a few musicians ready to play tunes for marketgoers. Orlando Americana songwriter plays the Saturday matinee (rock trio Greymarket does it on Sunday), while Chatanooga’s Roger Alan Wade—who’s penned songs for Cash, Waylon George Hones and Hank Williams II—closes the festival. You will need a ticket to get into the festival. (Cuban Club, Ybor City)
SUN 31
Donzii w/Julia Powell/Golden Hour Trees/Slam Duncan Whether it was serious or not, the “Los Angeles by way of Miami” trio Donzii recently wrote that a UFO passed over a post-Topanga Days Festival house party it was playing. Even if that really happened, the band’s latest single “On The Inside” gives off a nostalgic feeling of early 2010s British YouTube comedy and could very well attract the extraterrestrial with its funky, yet dark and industrial vibe. Expect to pick up plenty more of those on 27th Street this weekend, with a little help from “cinematic pop bitch” Julia Powell, Tallahassee-based psychedelic grunge outfit Golden Hour Trees, and psychedelic folk punk Slam Duncan. (Suite E Studios, St. Petersburg)—JB
C Choking on the Revelry w/Sculpted Air/Urbane Cowboys & Greymarket You're off on Monday, so go ahead and earn a hangover. Greymarket caps off its Tabernacle of Oddities weekend with a free gig at downtown Tampa’s most famous dive bar. The rock trio is joined by experimental outfit Sculpted Air along with country-ish Hub house band Urbane Cowboys and Jeff Brawer’s Choking on the Revelry project for this no-cover, holiday weekend gig. (The Hub, Tampa)
C Gruesome w/Virulence/Ramtha Last June at Raymond James Stadium, Metallica’s Kirk Kirk Hammett and Rob Trujillo paid homage to Florida-grown metal legend Death with a medley they worked on the week before while rehearsing in Indian Rocks Beach. That’ll probably never happen again, but a band dedicated to the early days of the Death hits Tampa in support of a new album, Silent Echoe s. (Orpheum, Tampa)
TUE 02
O Som Do Jazz w/Andrea Moraes The music of Tom Jobim, Moacir Santos, Baden Powell, Marcos Valle, David Manson and more is on tap when Manson’s O Som Do Jazz band joins forces with Brazilian singer Andrea Moraes Manson. (Side Door Cabaret at Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg)
WED 03
C Cynthia Erivo w/The Florida Orchstra Fresh off “Wicked: For Good” promo, and months before releasing I Forgive You , on June 6, Erivo stunned a packed Mahaffey Theater earlier this summer. Performing barefoot alongside The Florida Orchestra, she brought audience members to tears with renditions of “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “I Put a Spell on You.” She pays respects to some of music’s best names, including Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, Prince and Harry Warren—and she asks audiences to do the same. The 38-year-old has a single house rule: “I’d like to ask you to join in from time to time. That actually means join in. Sometimes, there will be songs where I will need you to join me. And I will look to you, and we will practice. If the practice does not work, we will practice again. We will sing out loud and be brave.” Clearwater should be ready to be brave, too. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)—Gabrielle Reeder
See extended Music Week listings via cltampa.com/music.
Gruesome
If Sade ever needs to start dipping into J-Pop, she ought to call Noriko Sekiguchi. Born in Yokohama and radicalized while clubhopping in the U.K. in the late-80s, the pop songwriter and producer better known as Poison Girl Friend is an underground legend who’s having something of a resurgence as of late.
And she’s bringing the revival to Tampa Bay this fall with an intimate club gig.
Sekiguchi’s 1992 outing Melting Moment earned a 9.2 rating on Pitchfork the first time critics assessed it (no re-do required!), with E.R. Pulgar lauding the record’s “intoxicating blend of trip-hop, UK club, yé-yé, and dream pop.” The songcraft is evident in the LP (she was initially signed to Polydor to do a singer-songwriter record), but what’s made her a beat-nerd icon is production that brings strings, vulnerable vocals, field recordings and texture into pop built to withstand the test of trends and time.
Poison Girl Friend did its first U.S. tour last year and will spend the next few weeks playing Europe before coming to North America for a run that includes just 10 U.S. dates (and two in Florida).
AltTaku Fest: Raspberry Pie w/ Miroux/Discord Theory/Buko Boys/ NowInColor/He Kindly/Spanish Bombs Saturday, Sept. 6. 5 p.m. $17.67. Crowbar, Ybor City
National Bourbon Heritage Month Kickoff feat. Nick Ewing & Friend s Saturday, Sept. 6. Event at 4 p.m., music at 7 p.m. $10 suggested donation. Shuffle, Tampa
Chucho Valdés Royal Quartet Sunday, March 22. 5 p.m. $54 & up. Ferguson Hall at Straz Center for the Performing Arts, Tampa
Tickets to see Poison Girl Friend play Crowbar in Ybor City on Sunday, Oct. 26 are still available and start at $35. Minneapolis producer and songwriter Annie Tammearuis (aka Mother Soki) opens.
Babies and demons
By Caroline DeBruhl
Dear Oracle, my husband and I have decided we’re ready to try for a baby! It’s an exciting time, but also terrifying. Do the cards have any advice on how to navigate this journey?—You and me and baby makes three Cards: The Lovers, Death, The Magician, The Empress (rev.)
Dear Baby, congratulations on your journey! This is an incredibly exciting time for you and your husband—and judging by the Major Arcana-only spread, I’d say this is a very big deal!
I am going to go out of order and address the terrifying elephant in the room, the Death card. The Death card is almost always symbolic and, judging by the surrounding cards, I would say this card is about your life/relationship and not actually, you know… In Tibetan Buddhism, there is a belief that after death, the soul moves through the bardo before being reborn. The Death card is very much like the bardo: it’s about endings and beginnings and the transitions between the two. Pregnancy is also like the bardo. Your body physically changes so much (it grows a human being AND another organ) and, once the baby is born, your life changes completely. It’s a cliché but it’s true. This, supposedly, can feel very natural to some parents. All the ones I know (including yours truly) can find it a bit of a rough adjustment because you don’t really know how it’s going
to be until it happens. Parenthood, especially the first few months, is a trial by fire. Your life will look very differently than it does now in ways you can’t even comprehend. There’s only so much you can do to prepare for that transition, so be prepared to give yourself grace.
time. If that’s been you’re heart’s desire, then I hope it happens swiftly, my dear.
Dear Oracle, I’ve been having a lot of nightmares lately that have been super realistic and terrifying ones that cause me to wake. It’s unlike anything I’ve had before, and I want to know if it’s a demon or something. What do the cards say?—Possessed?
ORACLE OF YBOR
Send your questions to oracle@cltampa. com or DM @theyboracle on Instagram
This might be a little difficult for you if you’re someone who loves a plan. The Magician is someone who’s in control and use to causing great change. As a parent, The Magician can be a powerful card of someone who arranges the world for the benefit of their child. As a downside, it can also be someone who is trying to fight fate. One of The Magician’s greatest gifts is his fluidity, so allowing yourself to go with the flow while still being grounded will be beneficial. (Because once that baby is born, they’re the ones running the show.)
But, all of this said, I think you and your husband are in a great emotional position to start a family. With The Lovers leading the spread, there is a lot of love in your relationship, and that unity is something you both value. By starting from a place of love, you already have a steady foundation for when the unknown comes knocking. Having open communication also helps, as does seeing a couple’s therapist who specializes in growing families.
With The Empress reversed, I think you may have wanted to be a loving mother for quite some
Cards: Queen of Swords, The Star (reversed), Five of Cups (reversed), Eight of Pentacles (reversed)
Dear Possessed, while I can’t say with 100% certainty, the cards don’t point to you being possessed, which is great news.
However, they do suggest that these nightmares are coming from a psychological wound, or “personal demon” if you will.
The Queen of Swords is the ruler of the mind, and while she can be sharp, she can also be repressed emotionally speaking. She is not an open book and can even be quite cold and critical in her most negative forms.
The Star, however, is our deep emotional and spiritual center. It is who we are when all the trappings of the world are taken away, our truest self. With these two next to each other— and The Star reversed—I do wonder if there is some past hurt that you’ve pressed down that’s bubbling to the surface now.
During incredibly stressful times, our mind can narrow the focus in order to survive. This is where fight, flight, or freeze comes in. It’s how we can bury our loved ones, tolerate unbearable amounts of pain, walk four miles after a terrible car crash. Your body and brain do what they can to get you through the moment.
But, when the event is over, when the danger or overwhelming experience has passed, there is now space for the brain to relax and process what happened, which can be a fucked-up time. This can certainly happen in dreams (and often does when you start an antidepressant). Something might have triggered a deeper feeling that’s coming to the surface and your brain has the space to process it now.
With the Five of Cups reversed, I wonder if it’s a feeling of loss, despair, or grief that you never got to feel fully. Has anything happened lately that’s reminded you of a loss? Has there been a lot of stress and fear about losing something/someone? Are you overwhelmed with despair?
Unfortunately, I think the only way out is through. With the Eight of Pentacles, I think you have to just “work” through it, whether that is with a support group, a therapist, journaling, or another way of processing. (Do NOT use an AI therapist. You’re better off with a CBT workbook than a system that can cause a whole host of psychological problems in itself.)
If you do want to include some witchy help in addition to the psychology, burning Frankincense and lavender can help cleanse your bedroom. Chamomile, rosemary, and thyme are all good purifying herbs you can throw into a bath or drink as a tea.
However you go about it, I hope you’re able to work through this and restful sleep returns to you.
Best of luck, my dear.
See more of Caroline and learn about her services via carolinedebruhl.com.
Four options
By Dan Savage
I’m a 31-year-old heterosexual woman who has been married for nine years. The math: my husband and I got married right after university. Like you, I grew up Catholic, and as a girl/ woman, all of the purity culture bullshit was foisted on me. Over the years, I’ve come to reject everything I was brought up to believe. I never stepped out of line, and now I grieve for my younger self because I missed out on formative experiences—sexual and otherwise—that I should’ve had in my teens/20s. I feel stunted. It was pounded into me (only figuratively, sadly) that I would deeply regret having sex before marriage. Ironically, what I actually regret is not having sex with the kind, loving guys I dated before my husband.
In the last year or so, I’ve developed a curiosity to experience more and some very ambiguous desires. I wonder what it would be like to have other sexual partners and what it would be like to date now. I’ve talked about this with my husband, and he validates that my feelings are normal given my/our strict upbringing and lack of experience, but ultimately shrugs it off. After all, he says, we can’t go back in time and get married later or have different partners, etc. I cannot imagine him being open to any arrangement other than what we have now: garden-variety monogamy. My ambiguous desire had no outlet until recently, when I developed a huge crush on a coworker. While we’re flirtatious together, he’s also unavailable, so there is nowhere for this attraction to “go.” I have not felt like this for as long as I’ve been married. The alchemy of this crush is staggering.
Dan, what do I do if I want to experience more, but I can’t put my finger on what that means exactly? If I want experiences that aren’t possible within my marriage, are my only options to suppress those desires or leave, when leaving could mean I would lose a mostly solid relationship for potentially nothing?—Grass Is Getting Greener Every Day
You have four options, GIGGED, not two. Option #1: Ask. You may think you already asked your husband for permission to fuck some other men, GIGGED, but if your husband was able to shrug your concerns off—come on—you failed to communicate to him exactly what it was you were asking him for. And if you can’t imagine him being open to “any arrangement” other than the one you agreed to when you married, that’s because you didn’t ask him a direct question about other possible arrangements. If you had, you wouldn’t have to imagine. You would know. Like a lot of married people who want to open their marriages, you kept the ask vague and plausibly deniable in case he reacted with shock or anger, and you wanted to deny having made the ask at all. So, ask him directly: Can we open our marriage? If he surprises you and says yes, you get the freedom you want without having
to give up the husband you love. If he says no…
Option #2: Leave. This means losing your marriage—and just asking about openness has cost some people their marriages—but even if you lose him, GIGGED, you won’t be left with nothing. You will have your freedom. Freedom isn’t a guarantee of current or future happiness, of course, but freedom isn’t nothing. You don’t mention children—which would radically change the math here—and divorce is painful and messy with or without kids, but you’re still young. And if you suddenly found yourself young and single, you could go out there and make up for all that lost time and all those lost dicks.
Option #3: Cheat. This is the advice that will piss everyone off, but it belongs on the table because people do it, and because in some instances—not yours, from the sound of things, but some—cheating is the least worst option for all involved, including the person who got cheated on. But it’s a high-risk gamble: you could get caught right away and blow your marriage up and be seen as a villain, or you could get away with it but then spend the rest of your life with the Sword of Damocles hanging over your head. Some people manage to have affairs and get away with them, some don’t. Some people learn to live with the stress of a secret, some crack under it.
smoother, given I was a single, unaccompanied male. At one point, though, another unaccompanied male, around age fifty, approached me and started talking. It became clear pretty quickly that he was flirting. Totally fine, all good, people do that! But I then dropped in a reference to my wife, almost without thinking about it, because that’s what I’d been doing all day, and he ended our conversation abruptly and walked away.
I felt bad about it afterward. I think he read it as me trying to communicate my straightness to him, which I wasn’t really trying to do. Or at least, I wasn’t communicating anything I hadn’t been communicating to everyone else all day. Is there a good way to subtly let a guy know I’m straight and not interested without making it sound like I’m trying to get out of the conversation because he’s gay and I’m not? And is that advice any different when we are both standing naked in front of each other?—Needs Understanding Dan’s Evaluation
SAVAGE LOVE
You’re overthinking this. In a mixed nudist environment—a mix of queers and straights, old people and young, folks there for the naked tennis and folks there for naked kayaking— you will occasionally be approached by men who are interested in your dick. So, unless you get “STRAIGHT” tattooed across your forehead (Pete Hegseth knows a tattoo artist who would be happy to do it), you’re gonna have brief interactions with gay men drawn to your dick.
long time, as I’ve watched porn involving trans women for quite a while. It’s not something I’ve ever acted on, but when I shared this kink with her—and indicated that I would be open to butt play—she was incredibly supportive. It could not have gone better. The biggest thing I’ve grappled with is my sense of self, and what to call it. Yes, sexuality is a spectrum, and it ultimately doesn’t matter, as long as you’re not hurting anyone who doesn’t want to be hurt. But I still feel like I need a name for it. Bisexual doesn’t feel right. The IDBND initialism you coined is a mouthful. Queer is a convenient catchall, but it could mean literally anything. Straightish is fine, and so is heteroflexible, I guess. But I came up with a word I would like to put on your radar: enamisexual. The first half of the word comes from the Greek word ενάμιση (enamisi (eh-na-me-see)), which means “one and a half.” I do not mean to suggest that trans women are not women or are half a person. Trans women are women—I don’t want to offend anyone—but the presence of a penis is a differentiating factor, an additional element (and not a bad one!). I feel I am somewhere between the poles of straight and bisexual, a comfortable 1.5. Enamisexual! Maybe it’ll catch on, maybe it won’t. But it’s worth trying! —Seriously Entertaining More Intimacy
Option #4: Suppress. Basically, suck it up. Tell yourself your marriage is good enough, your husband is good enough, and you’re willing and able to go to your grave fifty years from now without ever having sex with anyone else. This is the path of least resistance—it’s the path most monogamously-married-but-sexually-miserable people choose to walk; it’s also the path lots of cheaters who are getting away with it pretend to walk. (For the record: Not all monogamously married people are sexually miserable.) But it’s also the path most likely to rot your marriage from the inside out—very slowly—as your feelings of resentment build over time. Most people who wind up cheating were attempting to suck it up.
None of these options are perfect. All of them come with costs. But pretending you only have two choices—suppress or leave—isn’t true.
I’m a 40-year-old straight married guy. This past weekend, I got a day pass to a nearby nudist club—you know, the kind with families, a lake, kayaks, tennis courts, that sort of thing. I was basically on a scouting mission to see if it was the kind of place my wife might like to spend some time. (It was fun!) Everyone was super nice and welcoming, but I always made sure to drop a reference to my wife and kids in conversation, especially with women—it just seemed to make things go
Now, you only had one conversation that ended abruptly, NUDE, and unless that guy was the kind of pushy jerk who felt entitled to your dick because he could see it—and pushy jerks don’t do well in (and aren’t welcome at) nudist resorts—I doubt he took it personally when you mentioned the wife. He hoped you might be gay, he realized you weren’t, and he moved on. You most likely talked with other men that day you didn’t realize were gay because 1. they were just making conversation and weren’t trying to get into your invisible pants (and so they kept chatting with you even after you dropped the “wife” bomb) or 2. they were trying to get into your invisible pants but stuck around after they realized you were straight because they were enjoying the conversation.
All that said, you don’t need a secret handshake or subtle wink or an appalling tattoo to let people know who you are. All you need is a willingness to make conversation and the ability to slip relevant details about yourself into the conversational flow. This advice applies whether you’re wearing nothing at the nudist resort, a full gimp suit at the fetish club, or a tux at your best friend’s wedding.
Mid-30s straightish cis male here. I recently came out to my girlfriend as IDBND (into dick but not dude). It’s something I’ve struggled with for a
When you’re trying to launch a new dirty word—and I’ve launched a few in my time (pegging, monogamish, tolyamory, etc.)—it needs to be a word for something that doesn’t already have a name, it needs to be a word that the average person can pronounce, and it needs to be catchy. But even more importantly, SEMI, it can’t sound like a word that’s already out there. So, while “enamisexual” is clever, and while you make a solid etymological case for it, I don’t think it’s going to catch on. Because there are already words to describe men like you (“straight,” “heteroflexible,” “phallophile”), SEMI, and unless you’re hitting those vowel sounds like a Shakespearean actor who wants to be heard in the second balcony— “en-AH-m-IH-sexual”—most people are going to think you said “enema.”
Now, enemas are a fine kink—don’t get me wrong—but enemas aren’t as popular as dicks, SEMI, and most people won’t stick around long enough for you to clarify what you actually meant. Which means your new word will have the opposite of its intended effect: it’s not gonna get you dick, it’s gonna cost you dick. So, I think you’re better off sticking with straight or straightish or heteroflexible. You will have to explain what kind of straight/straightish/heteroflexible you are to new people you meet, SEMI, but that’s better than having to explain—over and over again—that you’re not into enemas.
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Notice of Public Sale Notice is hereby given that the undersigned will sell, to satisfy lien of the owner, at public sale by competitive bidding on www.storagetreasures.com. ending on September 12, 2025 at 10:00 am for units located at Compass Self Storage 1685 Hwy 17 N Eagle Lake Florida 33839 . Purchases must be made with cash only and paid at time of sale. All Goods are sold as is and must be removed at the time of purchase. Compass Self Storage reserves the right to refuse any bid. Sale is subject to adjournment. The personal goods stored therein by the following may include, but are not limited to general household, furniture, boxes, clothes and appliances, unless otherwise noted. Ivette Vazquez unit 1000 Cynthia Journell unit 1032 Darvyn Jones 1119 Traci Green unit 3094 Sharon Coleman E407. Run dates 8/28/2025 and 9/4/2025.
Notice of Public Sale Notice is hereby given that the undersigned will sell, to satisfy lien of the owner, at public sale by competitive bidding on www.storagetreasures.com ending on September 12th, 2025 at 10:00 am for units located at: Compass Self Storage 2291 S. Frontage Rd, Plant City, Florida 33563. Purchases must be made with cash only and paid at the time of sale. All goods are sold as is and must be removed at the time of purchase. Compass Self Storage reserves the right to refuse any bid. Sale is subject to adjournment. The personal goods stored therein by the following may include, but are not limited to general household, furniture, boxes, clothes and appliances, unless otherwise noted. Unit 103 Donna Hallback Unit 2039 Erika Saniago Unit 2087 Janeteria Mitchell Unit 2246 Elizabeth Trice Unit 3028 Kim Stone Unit 3179 Christopher Brower. Run dates 8/28/2025 and 9/4/2025.
NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Pursuant to Section 715.109, notice is hereby given that the following property will be offered for public sale and will sell at public outcry to the highest and best bidder for cash: a 1980 SKYL mobile home, VIN 0161822N and the contents therein, if any. abandoned by previous owner Leigh Jay Nations, Known Heirs of Leigh Jay Nations and Unknown Heirs of Leigh Jay Nation on Monday, September 8, 2025 at 9:30 a.m. at 6735 54 th Avenue N., Lot 47 St. Petersburg, FL 33709. ICARD, MERRILL, CULLIS, TIMM, FUREN & GINSBURG, P.A. Alyssa M. Nohren FL Bar No. 352410 2033 Main Street Suite 600 Sarasota, Florida 34237 Telephone: (941) 366-8100 Facsimile: (941) 3666384 anohren@icardmerrill.com smenasco@icardmerrill.com Attorney for Century Mobile Manor
65 Rose Parade sight
State of mind
Come together
Angry with
Victory ___
Hard wasser
“When I woke up, all my ___! ...” 77 Acropolis locale
Shell or Bell preceder 80 Astrologer Sydney 81 “I told the cops a dame got the better of me. One of them said, ‘___’ ...”
