This is the weekend of the vernal equinox (still unclaimed as a drag queen name, if you’re in need), also known as the first day of spring. The Farmer’s Almanac tells us the astronomical moment happened at 10:46 a.m. Friday — who had that in their bracket?
No matter what may be happening outside your window right now, the scientists who predict the weather are saying that the rest of the weekend will be windy, but mostly rain free. Which is a good thing, as there will be plenty of ways to get outdoors and welcome the new season.
Among the highlights will be the nationally renowned West Palm Beach GreenMarket and the new Huizenga Park Community Market in Fort Lauderdale, the Palm Beach Reggae Music & Arts Festival, the Florida AIDS Walk & Music Festival (with Queen Latifah), the Riverwalk Mutts & Martinis fundraiser, and a flowery spring fling at The Wharf in Fort Lauderdale.
Note: This is also the last weekend you can catch Miami Marlins spring training baseball at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter (along with preseason games with the St. Louis Cardinals in Jupiter, the Houston Astros and Washington Nationals in West Palm Beach, and the New York Mets in Port St. Lucie). The Fightin’ McCulloughs start a new MLB season at loanDepot Park in Miami on March 27 against the Colorado Rockies. Play ball!
Friday
The eye-popping Broadway tour of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” is at the Arsht Center in Miami through Sunday. (Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade/Courtesy)
Bohemian rhapsody: The Broadway tour of sumptuous romance “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” continues its run at the Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami through Sunday. A winner of 10 Tony Awards, this new mashup of Baz Luhrmann’s revered film will have performances at 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, and 1 and 7 p.m. Sunday. “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” is recommended for guests age 12 and older. Tickets: ArshtCenter.org.
Take the kids: Disney On Ice will bring its latest production, this one titled “Mickey’s Search Party,” to Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise for shows at 7 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday; and 1 and 5 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: AmerantBankArena.com.
Alicia’s wonderland: You can still catch the Broadway tour of Alicia Keys’ coming-of-age jukebox musical “Hell’s Kitchen” at the Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale, with final performances at 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: BrowardCenter.org.
ABBA-solutely fab: The Gay Men’s Chorus of South Florida will perform all your favorites — from “Dancing Queen” and “Lay All Your Love on Me” to “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)” — during “ABBA: Thank You for the Music” at The Parker in Fort Lauderdale on Friday at 8 p.m. Disco attire is “optional,” nudge-nudge. Tickets are down to resale at ParkerPlayhouse.com.
Delray reggae: The Palm Beach Reggae Music & Arts Festival will set up at Old School Square in downtown Delray Beach with films, live music and more on Friday through Sunday. The festival will kick off Friday with a screening of the reggae documentary “Inna De Yard: The Soul of Jamaica” at 6:30 p.m. Live music will take over on Saturday starting at 4 p.m., with sets by Inner Circle, The Resolvers, Xperimento and Yvad & The Legal Roots, supported by MC Lance-O (Kulcha Shok Muzik). Sunday will feature a 6:30 p.m. showing of the documentary “Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul,” which traces the city’s development as a global hub of Caribbean music. Tickets: PalmBeachReggae.org.
Date night lights: The Candlelight Concerts series comes to St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Boca Raton on Friday with two concerts: At 6:30 p.m. the Collins Quartet will perform hits by Coldplay and Imagine Dragons for an audience bathed in flickering light; at 8:30 p.m., the string quartet Listeso will play favorite melodies from Netflix hit “Bridgerton.” Tickets: Feverup.com. … Grammy-nominated choral ensemble Seraphic Fire will perform its popular candlelight concerts at 7:30 p.m. Friday at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Coral Gables, 7:30 p.m. Saturday at All Saints Episcopal Church in Fort Lauderdale and 4 p.m. Sunday at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Boca Raton. Tickets, information: SeraphicFire.org.
Weekend laughs: Actor, writer and comedian Deon Cole, as seen on “Black-ish,” “Average Joe” and innumerable Old Spice commercials, will be at the Miami Improv for weekend shows at 7:30 and 10 p.m. Friday, 7 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, and 7 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: MiamiImprov.com. … Actor and comedian Kevin Farley (brother of Chris) will play the Boca Black Box at 7:30 p.m. Friday, and 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets: BocaBlackBox.com. … Writer, actor and comedian Nick Thune (he’s been in everything, mostly in the background) will perform at the Fort Lauderdale Improv in Dania Beach at 7:30 and 10 p.m. Friday, and 7 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets: ImprovFTL.com.
Cabaret nights: Broadway star Patti Murin (Princess Anna in “Frozen” and Glinda in “Wicked”) will offer two evenings of cabaret hits and Disney favorites at the clubby 54 Below at the Rinker inside the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach. Showtimes will be at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets: Kravis.org.
Free music: South Florida favorite Joel DaSilva will unleash his swaggering brand of rock-infused blues during the free Friday Night Sound Waves concert series on Friday from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at Las Olas Oceanside Park on the beach in Fort Lauderdale. Information: Facebook.com/SoundWavesFLB.
Friday tribute: Local band Made of Metal will celebrate the music of KISS at the Culture Room in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, joined by Just Priest and Maximum Friction. Doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets: CultureRoom.net.
Bronx to Boca: A longtime staple in Las Vegas, The Bronx Wanderers will bring their energetic act — the setlist may include everyone from Frankie Valli and Dion to Green Day — to The Studio at Mizner Park in Boca Raton for shows at 7:30 p.m. Friday (sold out), and 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets: TheStudioAtMiznerPark.org.
Saturday
Queen of heart: The Florida AIDS Walk & Music Festival will take place at Fort Lauderdale Beach Park on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., highlighted by the 5K walk (beginning at 10 a.m.), food and drink, and a music lineup featuring Emmy and Grammy winner Queen Latifah (set time 12:10 p.m.). Tickets: FloridaAIDSWalk.org.
Saturday laughs: Actor and comedian Martin Lawrence, seen recently in the filmed-in-South-Florida “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” returns to the stand-up stage on his Y’all Still Know What It Is! Tour, stopping at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood on Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets: MyHRL.com.
Actor-comedian Martin Lawrence is bringing his 2026 tour to Hard Rock Live in Hollywood on Saturday. (Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood/Courtesy)
Green party: The West Palm Beach GreenMarket, which brings more than 130 vendors to the downtown waterfront each Saturday through May 30, is an event of national renown, having been voted No. 1 on USA Today’s 10Best list of favorite farmers markets in the country in 2021 through 2023 (it was No. 2 in 2024-2025). Well, the market is again in the running for that crown in voting that opened this week and continues through April 13. You can cast one vote per day at 10Best.USAToday.com. The market is open Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (closed March 28 for Palm Beach International Boat Show). For information, visit WPB.org/greenmarket.
It’s a twang thang: The second annual two-day Brewgrass Revival will bring local food, craft beer, vendors and banjos to LauderAle Brewery & Tap Room, the famously hidden gem in Fort Lauderdale. Saturday’s lineup will include music from Hare of the Dawg (1 p.m.), Gypsy Strings Revival (4 p.m) and The Wire Jays (8 p.m.), with food by Bourbon Street Eatery. Sunday will begin with beer yoga (10:30 a.m.), followed by sets from Smerks and the Night Mares (noon) and Possum Crossing (3 p.m.), with food from Atomic Biscuit. Information: LauderAle.co.
Small wonders: Hundreds of original 6-by-6-inch artworks will be on display during “Empty Walls,” a fundraising exhibition and sale at the Coral Springs Museum of Art on Saturday. The event encourages visitors to empty the walls by purchasing the works, which have been created and donated by artists of all skill levels to support art programming and access at the museum. Each piece will cost $25. The evening will include a DJ, light bites and a cash bar. Admission to “Empty Walls” is free for members and contributing artists from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.; $10 for public entry from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.; and free for all beginning at 7:30 p.m. Museum admission is free. Information: CoralSpringsMuseum.org.
Dog day afternoon: The 19th annual Riverwalk Mutts & Martinis fundraiser returns to Esplanade Park in downtown Fort Lauderdale on Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m., featuring canine competitions, a four-legged fashion show, dog-oriented vendors, a half-dozen local rescues, food trucks and, yes, martinis and such. Admission is free. Information: GoRiverwalk.com.
Flower power: The Wharf in downtown Fort Lauderdale and the Broward County chapter of the Sierra Club will join forces to celebrate the advent of spring on Saturday afternoon, with the waterfront lounge decked out with fresh flowers and a special honey-inspired cocktail menu. Sierra Club members will be on hand to chat about local conservation efforts and ways to help protect native wildlife. RSVP at WharfFTL.com to score a complimentary flower crown (while supplies last). Information: Facebook.com/BrowardSierra.
Sunday
Ode to ZipOdes: The spirited poetry gang at O, Miami will celebrate the Broward launch of the book “Literally Everyone’s Invited: An Ode to South Florida” at MAD Arts in Dania Beach on Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m. A collection of poems and photography from across the region, the book also celebrates the 10th anniversary of ZipOdes, the inventive, place-based poetic form created by O, Miami in partnership with WLRN. The book was edited by Fort Lauderdale resident Gesi Schilling and Sarah Trudgeon, includes ZipOdes dedicated to neighborhoods from Davie to Wilton Manors and Plantation, and features photographs by Broward-based artists, including Melanie Metz and Ronny Hantash. Sunday’s gathering will include poets and photographers sharing their work and the stories behind them. Admission is free with RSVP: Instagram.com/madarts_space.
Fresh market: If you have been looking for a reason to spend time in downtown Fort Lauderdale’s beautifully revivified Huizenga Park, perhaps you’ll be interested in the new Huizenga Park Community Market on Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Presented by locals Sunny Side Up Market, the afternoon will take place on the Civic Lawn and include goods by local artisans and makers, food vendors, a DJ and an Easter theme, with an Easter egg hunt for the kids. The day begins at 11 a.m. with yoga. Information: HuizengaPark.org.
After a $15 million renovation, Fort Lauderdale’s Huizenga Park has become a cool place to hang for a variety of events. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Sunday laughs: An Army veteran with a master’s degree in education and a man of faith, Mike Goodwin has reinvented himself as a comedian earning his laughs (as seen on “America’s Got Talent”) without leaning on profanity. How does he do it? Find out at the Fort Lauderdale Improv at 6 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: ImprovFTL.com.
‘Whose Line’ live: Cast members of the Emmy-nominated TV show “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” will bring their new improv tour to The Parker in Fort Lauderdale on Sunday at 7 p.m. The show will feature Ryan Stiles, Greg Proops, Jeff B. Davis and Joel Murray spinning improvised comedy and songs out of audience suggestions, so come prepared to torment them. Tickets: ParkerPlayhouse.com.
Sunday night live: Pompano Beach rapper Loe Shimmy & Friends will take over the War Memorial Auditorium in Fort Lauderdale on Sunday at 8 p.m. Tickets: FTLWarMemorial.com. … Latin pop-rock favorites Reik are sharing soon-to-be-released new music on the tour coming to Hard Rock Live on Sunday at 8 p.m. Tickets: MyHRL.com. … Touring Steely Dan tribute band Dirty Work will play The Studio at Mizner Park in Boca Raton at 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: TheStudioAtMiznerPark.org.
Jazz encounter: Grammy-winning jazz pianist Bill Charlap and rising talent Brandon Goldberg will be paired in “A Special Two Piano Jazz Encounter” at 5 p.m. Sunday at the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center as part of the Miami International Piano Festival. Tickets: MiamiPianoFest.com.
Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on IG: @BenCrandell.