Vacation Reminder

Plus a Brief Culture Edit for May 12th-18th

Author

Susan Bannon
May 11, 2025

Happy Mother’s Day, everyone! This is a friendly reminder that this newsletter writer is on a brief vacation (and enjoying Mother’s Day with my feet up). I’ll be back next Sunday with a full Culture Edit, but here’s the scoop for this week, at least.

Let’s get planning...

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Ongoing Theater

Zoetic Stage: The Comeuppance

Playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins is having quite a Miami year, with Zoetic Stage’s production of his award-winning play, The Comeuppance, following a great run of his Broadway hit Appropriate at Gablestage earlier this season. The Comeuppance follows a self-proclaimed "Multi-Ethnic Reject Group" that reconvenes for their 20th high school reunion. Over alcohol and other substances, they try to reconnect who they once were with whom they've become.

Performances through May 25th, Carnival Studio Theater at Arsht, $56-$61

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

Thursday, May 15th

Actors’ Playhouse: The Girl on the Train

Actors‘ Playhouse presents The Girl on the Train, a new play based on Paula Hawkins’ internationally bestselling novel that will keep audiences guessing until the final moment (unless, of course, they’ve already read the book or seen the movie). The story revolves around Rachel Watson, a troubled woman entangled in a web of intrigue and deceit as she becomes intertwined with the lives of strangers she observes during her daily train commute. Performances through June 8th.

8pm, Actors’ Playhouse, $50

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

Also on May 15th:

  • ICA Miami presents a public lecture by Brazilian art historian Roberto Conduru on how Afro-Brazilian artists reflect the persistence of slavery-related oppression in Brazilian cities from the late nineteenth century to the present, at 6pm.

  • Sanctuary of the Arts presents Four by Four (4×4), a rare look inside the creative process with the Sanctuary Choreographic Ensemble performing works-in-progress by four notable choreographers: Alice Arja, Randolph Ward, Emily Bromberg, and Stéphano Candreva, at 7:30pm.

Friday, May 16th

Wanda Sykes: Please and Thank You

Emmy-winning stand-up comic Wanda Sykes has been named one of Entertainment Weekly’s “25 Funniest People in America” and her decades-long career has included six Netflix comedy specials, ABC’s Black-ish, and the new incarnation of Mel Brooks’ History of the World Pt. 2 - along with more projects than I could ever list here. On May 16th, she’s bringing her latest stand-up hour, Please and Thank You, to Miami for one night only. Get those tickets! Thank you.

7:30pm, The Fillmore Miami Beach, $64

Neighborhood: Lincoln Road

Also on May 16th:

  • Mindy Solomon Gallery celebrates the opening of three new solo shows for Osamu Kobayashi, Ricardo Alcaide, and Eduardo Cardozo (who represented Uruguay at last year’s Venice Biennale), with a reception from 6-8:30pm.

  • Nu Deco Ensemble presents Four Seasons for the Five Senses, a totally immersive concert with visuals and even scents, at the Miami Beach Bandshell at 7pm and 9:30pm.

  • The Miami dance scene shows off in Miami Dances, our annual showcase of local dance companies, including Miami City Ballet, Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami, and Dance NOW! Miami, at the Sandrell Rivers Theater at 7pm.

Saturday, May 17th

Gablestage: Fat Ham

Gablestage presents the South Florida premiere of Fat Ham, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play that relocates the story of Hamlet from a windswept Danish castle to a fly-swatting North Carolina BBQ pit. The familiar storyline follows Juicy, a queer Black kid with a lot on his plate already before his father’s ghost shows up, demanding vengeance. Called “hilarious yet profound” by The New York Times, James Ijames’ play was a hit on Broadway after winning the Pulitzer in 2022. Performances through June 15th.

7:30pm, Gablestage, $40-$50

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

Also on May 17th:

  • Fountainhead joins forces with Bakehouse Art Complex for an open studios event at Bakehouse, from 12-2pm.

  • For a second night, Nu Deco Ensemble presents Four Seasons for the Five Senses, a totally immersive concert with visuals and even scents, at the Miami Beach Bandshell at 7pm and 9:30pm.

Sunday, May 18th

Peter London Global Dance Company

Peter London Global Dance Company presents Miami Night Stars, an evening of contemporary dance by one of Miami’s most dynamic young companies. Featured works include London’s choreographic vision for Carmen, blending flamenco influences with American contemporary dance, and Awakening, an athletic, jazz-infused piece by Justin Rapaport with a score by Grammy-nominee Martin Bejerano.

7pm, Miami Beach Bandshell, $27-$43

Neighborhood: North Beach

Also on May 18th:

Planning Ahead:

The cultural calendar is getting a bit thin as summer approaches, but here’s at least one event to have on your radar now…

Wednesday, June 18th

Faena Jazz Series: Something Else!

Faena Theatre is proud to close out its 7th Annual Jazz Series with jazz supergroup Something Else!, featuring legendary bandleader and alto saxophonist Vincent Herring. The band’s debut album, Soul Jazz, is a master class on the soul jazz genre (a crowd-pleasing mix of R&B and bebop), played by some of the best session musicians in the business. Seating at the Faena is two-by-two, and tables can be upgraded with fancy bottle service, so this is definitely a date-night booking.

8pm, Faena Theater, $65-$300

Neighborhood: Miami Beach

Nearby Eats & Drinks: Make it an all-Faena night, with dinner at Pao or Los Fuegos and drinks at Living Room or The Saxony Bar.

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