Midsummer Highlights

The Culture Edit, July 2025

Author

Susan Bannon
June 29, 2025

Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami presents “Summer Dances” at the Moss Center July 12th.

Summer is definitely the slow season for our arts scene here in Miami, but not all of our cultural institutions take the summer off.

If indie cinema is your thing, you can find solid programming throughout the hot months at Coral Gables Art Cinema (I’m particularly excited about their Kurosawa retrospective this month). Other tireless standouts are the Miami Beach Bandshell for live music and Books & Books for author talks. These places just don’t quit, so if you’re looking for something to do, be sure to take a look at their calendars.

Topping my list for July is Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami’s Summer Dances at the Moss Center on July 12th, with the Progressive Art Brunch on July 20th a close second. And if you’re here for the Fourth, you don’t want to miss Miami Symphony Orchestra playing in Peacock Park for the fireworks.

I’ll be back in a month with a hitlist for August, and shortly after with a special “Highlights of the Fall Season” issue so you can get those must-see events on your calendar for the upcoming season.

Until then, have a great summer!

Let’s get planning...

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Friday, July 4th

MISO in Peacock Park

This Fourth of July, the Miami Symphony Orchestra returns to Peacock Park for a free concert of patriotic favorites under the fireworks. Longtime conductor Eduardo Marturet will be leading MISO in fireworks classics like Frank von Suppe’s Light Cavalry Overture and Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever, along with some special guest performers. Needless to say, if you want to see this concert, you and your blanket need to be there early.

7:30pm, Peacock Park, Free

Neighborhood: Coconut Grove

Nearby Eats: Krüs Kitchen, Bellini, Bartaco (save a spot in line and have a drink upstairs while you wait) | Drinks: Mayfair rooftop, Level 6, Bodega (speakeasy, door at the back behind the counter)

Also on July 4th: 

  • The Miami Beach Bandshell hosts a special July 4th Roller Disco as part of Miami Beach’s “Fire on the Fourth” celebration. Roller Disco at 5pm, fireworks and a drone show at 9pm.

Friday, July 11th

Thérèse Mulgrew at Andrew Reed

Andrew Reed Gallery celebrates the opening of a solo show of new paintings by artist Thérèse Mulgrew. Despite her tender years, Chicago-based Mulgrew has had several solo shows of her large-scale still lifes and portraits, both nationally and internationally. This will be her first show in Miami and your first chance to see this emerging artist.

Opening reception 6-8pm, Andrew Reed Gallery, Free

Neighborhood: Allapattah

Saturday, July 12th

Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami: Summer Dances

Founded by former MCB principals Jennifer Kronenberg and Carlos Guerra in 2016, Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami has been shaking up classical dance in South Florida ever since with their contemporary ballet repertoire. My only complaint about this exciting young troupe is that we have so few opportunities to see them. So you don’t want to miss their summer performance if you can help it.

8pm, The Moss Center, $25-$45

Neighborhood: Cutler Bay

Nearby Eats: Not much! Grab dinner at Platea or Golden Rule Seafood on your way down there and have some rooftop cocktails at Ivy Rooftop or martinis at Fox’s on your way back.

Also on July 12th: 

  • Songwriting legend Elvis Costello and his longtime band The Impostors play The Fillmore Miami Beach, with special guest guitarist Charlie Sexton, at 8pm.

Sunday, July 13th

Miami short Film Festival: Focus on South America

A still from “El Día de mi Independencia,” a short film from Chile screening at the Deering Estate.

The 24th annual Miami short Film Festival is coming up in November, but leading up to the big event, they’ll be showcasing selections of short films from around the world. This July, MsFF and Deering Estate present a selection of five shorts from South America, with a pre-screening red carpet and cocktail reception.

7pm Cocktail Reception, 7:30pm Screening, Deering Estate, $20

Neighborhood: Palmetto Bay

Wednesday, July 16th

Gary Shteyngart at Books & Books

Books & Books welcomes Gary Shteyngart, internationally bestselling author of Super Sad True Love Story and Our Country Friends, to discuss his new novel, Vera, or Faith. Shteyngart’s string of biting satires with a soft, emotional center have have earned him an international following, and his new novel about an ethnically diverse family trying to hold together in today’s America looks likely to deliver the same satisfactions. The author will be in conversation with local literary hero Mitchell Kaplan, founder of Books & Books and co-founder of the Miami Book Fair.

7pm, Books & Books Coral Gables, $32 (includes a copy of Vera)

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

Nearby Eats: Vinya Table, Zitz Sum, Dojo Izakaya | Drinks: Books & Books, Cebada Rooftop

July 16th - August 10th

Actor’s Playhouse: Step by Step

Actors’ Playhouse presents the U.S. premiere of Step by Step, a play by Peter Quilter, whose hit Broadway play End of the Rainbow about Judy Garland was adapted into the movie Judy (that won Renée Zellweger an Oscar). Step by Step follows three women as they climb a mountain in honor of a recently deceased friend. They plan to place stones at the peak in her honor, but the climb proves to be more challenging and more hilarious than anyone expected.

Various times, Miracle Theatre, $60-$105

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

July 17th-31st

Kurosawa Retrospective at CGAC

Coral Gables Art Cinema celebrates the work of legendary Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa with a three-film retrospective, kicking off with a 75th year anniversary screening of Rashomon, a world cinema classic (and one of my favorite movies of all time). Next up is a 40th anniversary, 4K restoration of Ran, his go-for-broke retelling of the King Lear story, complete with clashing armies and burning castles. And finally, a new 4K restoration of Ikiru, a heartbreaker that features no samurai, no sweeping battles, just a man facing death in postwar Tokyo and finding meaning in his final days. More titles may be added, so keep your eye on the CGAC calendar page.

Various times, Coral Gables Art Cinema, $10-$12

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

July 18th-20th

National Theatre Live: A Streetcar Named Desire

Coral Gables Art Cinema is proud to present National Theatre Live, a groundbreaking project to broadcast the best of British theater, live from the London stage to cinemas around the world. In this sold out performance of A Streetcar Named Desire at The Young Vic, Gillian Anderson takes on the role of Blanche, facing off against Ben Foster’s Stanley for their date with destiny. Showings Friday thru Sunday.

12pm, Coral Gables Art Cinema, $15

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

Sunday, July 20th

Francie Bishop Good: The Blur Between

Baker-Hall Gallery celebrates the opening of The Blur Between, a solo show of recent drawings by South Florida multimedia artist Francie Bishop Good. This new body of work deepens Bishop Good’s ongoing exploration of memory, emotional vulnerability, and the porous boundary between observation and imagination.

*You can check this show out during the Progressive Art Brunch, one of Miami’s most popular art events, where 14 local galleries open their doors (and pour free prosecco).

Opening reception 11am-4pm, Baker-Hall Gallery, Free

Neighborhood: Allapattah

Wednesday, July 23rd

Barrington Levy at the Bandshell

The Miami Beach Bandshell welcomes reggae legend Barrington Levy for a night of high energy dancehall and reggae. Coming out of Kingston in the late 1970’s, Levy’s unique fusion of roots reggae, dancehall, and R&B made him one of the most influential Jamaican artists of the 1980’s. He’ll be performing his timeless hits, like Under Mi Sensi, alongside new material from his highly anticipated final album "It's About Time."

7:30pm, Miami Beach Bandshell, $50

Neighborhood: North Beach

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