South Florida Sun-Sentinel Palm Beach (Sunday)
Area offers lots to do this month
Whether you’re visiting from out of town for pleasure or business (or maybe you’re a local looking for something to keep holiday house guests entertained), there’s a lot going on in South Florida.
Here’s an insider’s guide to hot December events in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Wilton Manors, West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach and Delray Beach.
Dec. 1 — The mysterious and thrilling Bill Clinton
The former prez has teamed up with author James Patterson for a mystery-thriller novel titled “The President Is Missing.” The dynamic duo hit the road to promote the novel. And, yes, a full-priced ticket gets you an autographed copy of the book. The program starts at 8 p.m. at Knight Concert Hall at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., in Miami. Tickets cost $50 and $100. To order, call 877-949-6722 or go to ArshtCenter.org.
Dec. 1-2 — Art and Armory
Right upfront, you should know this event is free. The third annual West Palm Beach Arts Festival will feature 80 artists working in sculpture, photography, printmaking, painting, ceramics, drawing, glass, textiles, jewelry and mixedmedia. That all takes place outside of the Armory Art Center on Saturday and Sunday. Inside, the Armory will have an open house on Saturday where adultcourse instructors will be on hand to tell you about their classes. There will be a $30 discount if you sign up for classes that day. The Arts Festival is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day on the campus of the Armory Art Center, 811 Park Place, in West Palm Beach. The open house is 1-4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, in Montgomery Hall. For more information, go to Armory Art.org.
Dec. 8, 15, 19, 22 — Will there be a figgy pudding?
South Florida is a foodie’s paradise, so there are loads of culinary tour companies here. One of the most popular is the Palm Beach County-based Taste History Culinary Tour, which is giving holidaythemed bus and walking tours that blend information of regional art, history and food. Lake Worth and Lantana are Dec. 8. Delray Beach and Boynton Beach are Dec. 15. A daylong trip to Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Lake Worth and West Palm Beach is Dec. 19. And finally, Delray Beach and Boynton Beach are Dec. 22. Prices are $51-$60 per adult and free for children under the age of 14. For more information, call 561-638-8277 or go to Taste HistoryCulinaryTours.org.
Dec. 5, 10 — We’re going to need a bigger shot glass
Maybe it was a dream of yours: a cement-truck mixer filled with whiskey. That’s exactly what is coming to the Death or Glory bar in Delray Beach and the gastropub’s holidaythemed pop-up in West Palm Beach. Monkey Shoulder Blended Scotch Whisky has a cement truck where the drum is a giant cocktail shaker filled with, you guessed it, whiskey. The 27-foot-long drum holds the equivalent of 12,000 bottles. The Monkey Mixer will visit the West Palm Beach pop-up (550 South Rosemary Ave., suite 158) from 6 to 8 p.m. Dec. 5 and the Delray Beach location (116 NE 6th Ave.) from 6 to 8 p.m. Dec. 10. For more information on Death or Glory, call 561-808-8814 or go to DeathOrGloryBar.com.
Dec. 6 — Festive fun for Florida Fanilows
Barry Manilow will kick off his 2018 “Manilow: A Very Barry Christmas” tour in Miami. This is the second year that the music maestro has done a Christmas tour with a show of yuletide classics and, of course, his impressive list of chart toppers. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. at AmericanAirlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., in Miami. Tickets cost $55.75-$312.34. To order, call 786-777-1000 or go to AAArena.com.
Dec. 9 — ‘Real Housewife’ brings a pretty mess to Fort Lauderdale
Erika Jayne, of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” fame, will perform in concert at Revolution Live. For those who don’t know, Jayne (whose surname is Girardi) has several top 10 dance hits, including
"Roller Coaster,” “Give You Everything,” "Get It Tonight,” "Painkillr,” “Xxpen$ive," “One Hot Pleasure” and "Party People (Ignite the World)." The tour is titled “Erika Jayne Presents: The Pretty Mess Tour” after her 2009 debut album, “Pretty Mess.” After joining the “Real Housewives” TV franchise in 2015, she went on to appear on “Dancing With the Stars” and “The Young and the Restless” in 2017. Showtime is 9 p.m. at Revolution Live, 100 SW Third Ave., in Fort Lauderdale. Tickets cost $40-$250. To order, call 954-449-1025 or go to Ticketmaster.com.
Dec. 12 — Star sommelier stops in Miami for vino event
DLynn Proctor, whom wine fans may recognize from the “SOMM” documentaries, will attend a winetasting event at Wine by the Bay, a Miami retailer. Proctor is the director of Fantesca Estate and Winery in Napa Valley (participants will be tasting four wines from the vintner) and is a superstar in the wine world, having won a slew of honors and awards including “Best Sommelier in America.” He regularly provides food and wine content for TV shows and print magazines. The event starts at 7 p.m. at Wine by the Bay, 6942 NE Fourth Ave., in Miami. Tickets cost $55 per person. To order, call 305-455-9791 or go to
WineBTB.com.
Dec. 13-16 — Cirque du Soleil serves ice skating in ‘Crystal’
When this show first played South Florida this past summer, it proved to be so popular that Cirque du Soleil is bringing it back for a winter run. “Crystal” marks the first time in Cirque’s 34-year history that the Montreal-based company has produced an ice-skating production. In this show, skaters and gymnasts perform synchronized skating, freestyle figures and extreme skating combined with traditional circus acts such as swinging trapeze, aerial traps and hand-to-hand. “Crystal” will play the AmericanAirlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd., in Miami. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 8 p.m. Saturday, 5 p.m. Sunday and matinees are noon and 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. Tickets cost $38-$160. To order, call 800-745-3000 or go to CirqueDuSoleil.com /crystal.
Dec. 15 — Aretha Franklin and Leonard Bernstein get Nu Deco props
One of Miami’s hippest secrets is the Nu Deco Ensemble, a chamber orchestra that is anything but stodgy, preferring instead to sample from several music genres and perform work from cutting-edge composers. Nu Deco continues its fourth season with a concert that will include special guests Macy Gray, BJ the Chicago Kid and the Miami Mass Choir performing a program of soul music (including an Aretha Franklin symphonic suite) as well as excerpts from Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story” for the 100th anniversary of his birth. Showtime is 8 p.m. at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., in Miami. Tickets cost $25-$80. To order, call 877-949-6722 or go to ArshtCenter.org.
Dec. 16 — Y100 FM gives you a jingle
The Y100 Jingle Ball
2018 is bringing in a lineup of hitmakers including Khalid, Shawn Mendes, Calvin Harris, Marshmello, Bazzi, Bebe Rexha, Sabrina Carpenter and Alessia Cara. This year the radio station’s (100.7 FM) show will benefit the Ryan Seacrest Foundation, with $1 of every ticket going to the nonprofit that works with at-risk youths. Showtime is 7 p.m. at the BB&T Center, 1 Panther Parkway, in Sunrise. Tickets cost $46-$251. To order, call 800-745-3000 or go to TheBBTcenter.com.
Dec. 20-22 — Rolling with Bayskate Miami
For the fourth year, “Bayskate Holiday Boogie” comes back to Bayfront Park in downtown Miami with live music and DJ sets. Best of all it’s free — although you may want to bring some moola to rent skates, grab a bite to eat or enjoy the bars. You may also want to register for a quicker check-in at the skate-rental station. The al fresco rink will be set up around the Pepper Fountain in Bayfront Park, which is located at 301 Biscayne Blvd., in Miami. Bayskate will be open 4-11 p.m. Thursday, 4 p.m. to midnight Friday and 1 p.m. to midnight Saturday. For more information, go to BayskateMiami.com.