A brassy Christmas in Mizner Park, a vinyl destination in West Palm Beach, and Broadway-level “Illusionists” bring that holiday magic. Plus, shop small in Delray and more in your week ahead.
FRIDAY
What: Record Store Day Black Friday
When: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Where: Rust & Wax Record Shop, 2512 Florida Ave., West Palm Beach
Cost: Free to attend, prices vary per record
Contact: 561/660-4675, rustandwax.com
For many of the vinyl heads out there, the day after Thanksgiving is one of their two favorite holidays of the calendar year (the other being in April, for Record Store Day, or RSD). Like the original RSD, Black Friday welcomes a boatload of new releases, in limited numbers, available exclusively at brick-and-mortar shops like West Palm Beach’s Rust & Wax, one of the few vinyl retailers remaining in Broward or Palm Beach. This year’s offerings are as eclectic as ever: Highlights include a six-sided Jerry Garcia live show from 1987; a picture-disc soundtrack to the newly released Gladiator II; Anywhere I Lay My Head, Scarlett Johansson’s sultry tribute to Tom Waits; a two-disc set from free jazz luminary Sun Ra, recorded in Paris’ Left Bank in 1978; and a 25th anniversary repress of MF Doom’s vital Operation: Doomsday. Pro tip: Get there early for the best stuff, and be prepared to wait in line to enter.
What: The Broken Hearts
When: 8 p.m.
Where: Stage 954 at the Casino at Dania Beach, 301 E. Dania Beach Blvd., Dania Beach
Cost: $22.50-$60
Contact: 954/381-8312, casinodaniabeach.com
The Broken Hearts is an appropriate name for a Tom Petty tribute band, because it describes how millions of us felt when its inspiration shed this mortal coil on Oct. 2, 2017. The band, under the auspices of Tom Petty/Mudcrutch bandmate and bassist Charlie Souza, formed shortly thereafter—from their home base in Gainesville, naturally—for a series of supposedly one-off gigs. Demand rose, and in 2018 the Broken Hearts became a full-time touring concern. Souza no longer plays with the group, but frontman and guitarist Shawn Scheller is an uncanny Petty mimic, and the same goes for his crack quartet of faux Heartbreakers. See them perform hits and deep cuts alike at this Black Friday gig.
FRIDAY TO SUNDAY
What: The Illusionists: “Magic of the Holidays”
When: 6 p.m. Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
Where: Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach
Cost: $29 to $115
Contact: 561/832-7469, kravis.org
This fast-paced marriage of the magical and the macabre, the harrowing and the hilarious, has been hailed by critics as “the Cirque du Soleil of magic” and “brain-bendingly spectacular.” It’ll be tough to top a Dream Team of conjurers as charismatic and award-decorated as this quintet, with each member specializing in a different magic branch, from levitation and mentalism to grand illusions. They include “The Inventor,” Kevin James (not that Kevin James), whose innovative theatrics were seen in the movie “Adaptation;” “The Deceptionist,” James Moore; and “mind reader” Chris Cox. Expect the high level of stagecraft associated with their typical show but with holiday costumes, pageantry and themed tricks such as a gravity-defying Christmas present.
SATURDAY
What: Shop Small 2024 Delray Beach
When: Store hours vary
Where: Downtown Delray Beach
Cost: Items vary
Contact: downtowndelraybeach.com/shopsmall
While the city of Delray Beach doesn’t light its beloved Christmas tree for another week, the holiday festivities really kick into gear on Saturday. Small Business Saturday is the best day to hit up downtown’s favorite local small businesses—which happen to encompass 96% of all businesses in Delray Beach—and give a rest to the the big-box stores, with their doorbuster mishegoss. Official participating stores in Delray’s version, called Shop Small Delray Beach, include Furst, with its bespoke handbags; the chic home goods retailer Coco & Co; Patricia G Fashion Studio; Beach Planet, with its surf-and-sand necessities; the women’s clothier Periwinkle; the over-the-top dessert purveyor Sugar Factory; and many more.
SUNDAY
What: Tuba Christmas
When: 5 p.m.
Where: Mizner Park Amphitheater, 590 Plaza Real, Boca Raton
Cost: Free
Contact: tubachristmas.com
Tuba ensembles have long been a staple of the holidays even, with players of the largest and lowest-pitched instrument in the brass family taking on classics from “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” to pop compositions like John Lennon’s “Happy Xmas (War is Over).” Celebrating its 50th anniversary the season—the very first Tuba Christmas was hosted in New York’s Rockefeller Plaza Ice Rink in 1974—this beloved holiday tradition provides dozens of tuba and euphonium players the opportunity to create glorious harmony together through the national vernacular of Christmas music. Our version is organized by FAU’s esteemed music professors and students. The concert is open seating, and guests are invited to bring their own chairs or blankets.
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