- December 4, 2025
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A new season is coming up, and while the weather may be unpredictable, the cultural forecast is reliably strong. From bold exhibitions to boundary-pushing performances, the months ahead promise something for every kind of art-lover.
Here’s what’s catching our eye — and what you might want to note in your calendar.
Sarasota Art Museum’s “Art Deco: The Golden Age of Illustration” whisks you back 100 years to 1925 — the dawn of Art Deco. Step inside, and you’re instantly surrounded by sleek, seductive posters that defined the look of a generation. Think ocean liners, cigarette holders, flappers and sugar daddies. Deco legends like A.M. Cassandre and Edward McKnight Kauffer created these stylized dreams. Curated by Rangsook Yoon, the exhibition showcases 100 dazzling Jazz Age posters from the Crouse Collection, along with Deco-designed objects, including sculpture, cocktail shakers, furniture and more. The result? A heady, high-style plunge into a world where elegance ruled and everything gleamed. Don’t just see it — step into it. August 31-March 29. Visit SarasotaArtMuseum.org.
Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431, but she never faded from history. For centuries, playwrights, directors, writers and choreographers have kept her story alive. Sarasota Contemporary Dance Artistic Director Leymis Bolaños Wilmott and composer Mark Danciger’s collaborative creation, “Jehanne,” is an evening-length work inspired by the legendary French heroine. Longstanding company member Melissa Rummel takes on the lead role, embodying Joan’s unshakable spirit through movement. With Danciger’s original live music and SCD’s emotionally charged choreography, this is a stirring tribute to a fearless human spirit. January 15-18 at FSU Center for The Performing Arts. Visit SarasotaContemporaryDance.org.
When you think of abstract artists, mid-century masters like Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock probably come to mind. But Native American visual artists were creating abstractions centuries before Pollock hit the cover of Life magazine. To see what they’re creating today, check out “Ancestral Edge: Abstraction and Symbolism” at The Ringling. This site-specific exhibition showcases abstract art by nine indigenous female artists. It’s all new work, by critically recognized talents. Their abstract artistry spans a range of mediums. Their motifs and designs draw on deep ancestral knowledge — but also their lived experiences in today’s indigenous communities. These Native American artists stay in touch with their past. But they don’t want to live there. September 13-April 12. Visit Ringling.org.
EnsembleNEWSRQ’s penultimate spring concert is all about the numbers — and these ones add up. The centerpiece? Steve Reich’s groundbreaking “Music for 18 Musicians,” composed for (you guessed it) 18 musicians. The concert takes place on April 24, exactly 50 years after the work premiered — and on Reich’s 90th birthday. It also happens to be EnsembleNEWSRQ’s 10th anniversary season and our nation’s 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The result? A rhythmic, resonant tribute to a living legend and to the enduring pulse of American music. At Sarasota Opera House. Visit EnSRQ.org.
“The Magical Carnival” is the world premiere of Michael Stephen Brown’s whimsical, deeply evocative composition, presented by La Musica Chamber Music. Described by the composer as “a zoological fantasy of endangered wonders,” this new work takes inspiration from Saint-Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals” and leads listeners on a sonic journey through 14 threatened habitats across the globe. It’s scored for two pianos, flute, clarinet, percussion and strings, and La Musica co-commissioned the piece with chamber music groups from across the country and partnered with Mote SEA to support its Sarasota debut. (Three of the species reside at Mote.) April 9 at Sarasota Opera House. Visit LaMusicaFestival.org.
