{"id":325881,"date":"2026-07-01T12:43:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T12:43:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/325881\/"},"modified":"2026-07-01T12:43:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T12:43:11","slug":"sarasota-florida-goes-all-in-on-the-arts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/325881\/","title":{"rendered":"Sarasota, Florida goes all-in on the arts"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sarasota, Florida\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\n <\/p>\n

\n Florida leans hard into sun, sand and surf. But Sarasota has way more more going for it than just its beautiful beaches\n <\/p>\n

\n Sarasota County is branded as the Sunshine State\u2019s \u201cCultural Coast.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n It was those cultural credentials that proved irresistible to Tammy Hauser, a 62-year-old self-described \u201carts person.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Hauser was sitting at a French bakery in Sarasota enjoying a croissant when she called her daughter, back home in Minneapolis, to let her know she was moving to the Gulf Coast city.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI said \u2018I found it. I found a town that has so many interesting aspects to it. Plus, it\u2019s beautiful, plus it\u2019s on the water, plus it has a downtown,\u201d recalled Hauser of the 2014 visit.\n <\/p>\n

\n She had been looking for a town to move to with great theater, music, dance and other cultural offerings, nurtured by a supportive community. And she wanted a \u201csmaller town with a nice central downtown Main Street area.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\"Sarasota's<\/p>\n

\n There\u2019s all of that and more in Sarasota, a mid-size city home to roughly 60,000 people, about an hour\u2019s drive south of Tampa.\n <\/p>\n

\n Calling Sarasota Florida\u2019s \u201cCultural Coast\u201d<\/a> is no exaggeration, said Brian Hersh, CEO of the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI think what can surprise you is when you come down here, that there is absolutely incredible artistic excellence. Some things that you can see here, you would maybe not see anywhere else, or only see in a major metropolitan area,\u201d said Hersh, who lived in New York City and worked at Lincoln Center before moving to Sarasota 18 years ago.\n <\/p>\n

\n And the gorgeous beaches at Sarasota\u2019s doorstep deliver sun, sand and surf, too.\n <\/p>\n

An arts and culture heavy-hitter<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\n At the city\u2019s cultural heart and the inspiration for much of the creativity spawned here is the official art museum of the state of Florida, The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art<\/a>. But the complex that sprawls across acres of verdant waterfront just north of downtown Sarasota is far more than an art museum.\n <\/p>\n

\n The location was originally the winter residence for circus magnate John Ringling, who left<\/a> his estate and art collection to the state of Florida when he died in 1936 \u2014 and to whom Sarasota owes much of its cultural evolution.\n <\/p>\n

MORE AMERICA’S BEST TOWNS TO VISIT 2026<\/p>\n

\n Together with his wife, Mabel, Ringling had purchased the property in 1911 on Sarasota\u2019s waterfront to build their future residence in what was then little more than a fishing village. In 1927, Ringling officially made the town the winter headquarters for his Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which traces its roots to Wisconsin. The operation \u2014 along with hundreds of circus performers and animals \u2014 moved south to Florida from its previous base in Connecticut.\n <\/p>\n

\n Today, the couple\u2019s former estate is The Ringling, a 66-acre complex on Sarasota Bay that is home to a Museum of Art housing Baroque and Renaissance collections (including one of North America\u2019s largest collections of paintings by Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens) within the original 21 galleries<\/a>. A pavilion featuring studio glass, an Asian art center and other galleries are part of the complex as well.\n <\/p>\n

\n There\u2019s also a Circus Museum on the estate housing historical and modern memorabilia, circus art and the world\u2019s largest to-scale circus model.\n <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\n The lavish Venetian-Gothic mansion Ca\u2019 d\u2019Zan<\/a> is a striking centerpiece. The couple\u2019s former winter residence, spanning 36,000 square feet and 56 rooms, was built in 1926 and features ornate painted cypress ceilings and colored glass window panes.\n <\/p>\n

\n Among Sarasota\u2019s many other cultural institutions are the Sarasota Opera<\/a>, Sarasota Orchestra<\/a>, the only professional ballet company<\/a> on Florida\u2019s Gulf Coast, the Asolo Repertory Theatre<\/a>, a contemporary dance company<\/a> and a contemporary black box theater<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n

\n Add to that, too, the Sarasota Art Museum<\/a>, a contemporary gallery that occupies a 1926 Gothic building and modernist annex on the Ringling College of Art + Design\u2019s campus.\n <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\n Recently, the city\u2019s chamber music ensemble, ensembleNewSRQ <\/a>, performed Steve Reich\u2019s \u201cMusic for 18 Musicians\u201d at the Sarasota Opera House to mark the 50th anniversary of the piece around the composer\u2019s 90th birthday.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWhen I experienced this work, I realized, in that moment, that this is the kind of thing that you would only debut in New York City,\u201d Hersh said. \u201cThat\u2019s the only kind of place where you would see something like this. And here it was in Sarasota, with a crowd that was just lapping it up.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n It\u2019s thanks to Ringling that Sarasota evolved into a place of wealth, sophistication and the arts, Hauser said.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cHe really gave so much to Sarasota that people are still appreciating today,\u201d she said, noting that in addition to signing over his entire art collection to the state, John Ringling built the first bridge across Sarasota Bay to connect the city to its barrier islands or \u201ckeys,\u201d including St. Armands Key and adjacent Lido Key.\n <\/p>\n

\n St. Armands Circle<\/a>, Sarasota\u2019s main shopping area that\u2019s lined with cafes and home to the city\u2019s oldest restaurant, Columbia<\/a>, was also John Ringling\u2019s creation.\n <\/p>\n

\n Laid out in the shape of a wagon wheel to commemorate the circus, Ringling originally developed the circular plaza as Harding Circle when he was trying to entice President Harding<\/a> to have his winter White House in Sarasota, said Hauser. While he didn\u2019t lure Harding, the circle today draws pedestrians, window shoppers and people watchers to its sidewalk cafes, resort-wear boutiques and watering holes.\n <\/p>\n

\n A short stroll away, fronting the beach at Lido Key, is the circus-themed Cirque St. Armands Beachside<\/a> hotel and its Ringside Restaurant<\/a>, which pay homage to Ringling\u2019s circus lore with an evocative under-the-big-tent theme.\n <\/p>\n

\n Hauser\u2019s company, Discover Sarasota Tours<\/a>, leads tours that dive into more of the town\u2019s circus lore, architectural highlights and other themes. The company grew out of consulting work Hauser was doing with what\u2019s now called Architecture Sarasota<\/a> and her surprise that the tourist destination didn\u2019t have tours focused on its standout architecture.\n <\/p>\n

\n She then added circus-themed tours that explore landmarks and the history of the greatest showmen who once lived in the city.\n <\/p>\n

\n Beyond Sarasota\u2019s circus history, visitors are often surprised to see Amish people pedaling large-wheeled tricycles and bikes on Sarasota\u2019s streets during the winter season, when they head south for sunshine and a break from farming in states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana.\n <\/p>\n

\"Sarasota<\/p>\n

\n A few miles east of downtown Sarasota, the historic neighborhood of Pinecraft has attracted Amish and Mennonite visitors since the 1920s for a winter warmup.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cThe only place in the world they come to vacation en masse is here in Sarasota,\u201d said Hauser, referring to the months of winter and early spring when thousands of Amish and Mennonite visitors arrive. From November to April, tourists can head out with her company on 90-minute Amish Experience<\/a> tours that hit places like Der Dutchman Amish Kitchen Cooking<\/a>, known for its \u201cbarn raising buffets\u201d for lunch and dinner, and Alma Sue\u2019s<\/a> quilt shop.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI think the thing that\u2019s so interesting about Sarasota is the juxtaposition of all of these different elements. Amish, circus, the arts, natural beauty, tourism, the attractions,\u201d said Hauser.\n <\/p>\n

\"This<\/p>\n

\n In Sarasota, nature can be enjoyed in carefully curated or entirely wild environments.\n <\/p>\n

\n Marie Selby Botanical Gardens <\/a>in the heart of downtown spans 15 acres on the bayfront and houses what\u2019s considered the best living plant collection of warm-tropical epiphytes, including native Florida ferns, orchids and bromeliads as well as global varieties that are among some of the rarest plants in the world.\n <\/p>\n

\n Following a multi-million-dollar expansion (the first in a multi-phase plan), the site debuted as the world\u2019s first net-positive botanical gardens in 2024, generating more renewable energy than they consume. Visitors can take guided tours here to see how baby orchids are germinated in the orchid seed lab and view rare spirit-preserved<\/a> plant specimens within the gardens\u2019 vast collection, paired with lunch or brunch at The Green Orchid<\/a>. This solar-powered onsite restaurant serves dishes like Korean lettuce wraps and Cobb salad made using produce from the rooftop organic garden .\n <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\n The wondrous water worlds of Sarasota Bay, the Gulf of Mexico and other ocean environments come to life at the new Mote SEA<\/a> (Mote Science Education Aquarium), which opened in October 2025 about 9 miles northeast of downtown Sarasota.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWhen we look at our waterways, both coastal and inlets are really a central part of the community\u2019s identity,\u201d said Kevin Cooper, the aquarium\u2019s vice president for communications and strategic initiatives.\n <\/p>\n

\n Sarasota Bay\u2019s seagrass beds, a favorite place for manatees to feed, are a critical part of the ecosystem and a \u201cbellwether area for the health of the coastal ecology here in the area,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n

\n In addition to state-of-the-art STEM teaching laboratories, the new facility houses an Indo-Pacific Gallery, a colony of Humboldt penguins and a 400,000-gallon Gulf Coast Gallery where visitors can see sharks, rays and sea turtles as well as stroke stingrays in a touch tank. Rescued manatee Lou, who lost part of his tail in a boat strike in 2000, is also at home here.\n <\/p>\n

\n That said, often all you have to do to see manatees, dolphins and other Gulf Coast creatures in this stretch of Florida is head out to one of Sarasota County\u2019s 35 miles of barrier island white sand beaches in places like Manasota Key, Siesta Key, Lido Key or Longboat Key.\n <\/p>\n

\n Longboat Key is about 15 minutes from downtown Sarasota and is also a favorite escape for daytrippers from Tampa that\u2019s a more low-key alternative to St. Pete Beach and Clearwater Beach to the north. There\u2019s a mix of Gulf-front accommodations that run the budget range, from the luxurious new St. Regis Longboat Key Resort<\/a> to smaller mom and pop-style motels that have been here for decades like the recently refurbished SeaHorse Beach Resort<\/a>, originally built in 1960.\n <\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\n Any visit to Longboat Key should include raising something cold to drink \u2014 perhaps a Hugo Spritz or mojito \u2014 and sampling a grouper sandwich or blackened grouper tacos at Dry Dock Waterfront Grill<\/a>, where alfresco tables overlook Sarasota Bay (a playground for eco tours and dolphin cruises) and egrets stalk the breakwater. Just be sure to make it down to the sand on the beach side of the Key when the sun starts sinking toward the Gulf of Mexico at the end of the day.\n <\/p>\n

\n It\u2019s having the best of both worlds \u2014 natural and cultural \u2014 that might be the best thing of all about Sarasota.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cSo you can go chill on those beautiful beaches that you like. But you can also then go to a really modern performance or exhibition,\u201d said Hersh.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cYou know, you can\u2019t really do that in New York. You\u2019re just not going to unplug in New York in the same way.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n A New England oasis with a century-old pizza scene\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sarasota, Florida\u00a0\u2014\u00a0 Florida leans hard into sun, sand and surf. But Sarasota has way more more going for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":325882,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-325881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325881","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325881"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325881\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/325882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}