The Gasparilla Pirate Fest begins 11 a.m., taking over Bayshore Boulevard, downtown Tampa and its surrounding waterways. From 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Jose Gasparilla and the flotilla will make their way up the Seddon Channel to Tampa Convention Center; 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Gasparilla Invasion Brunch at the Convention Center; 2 p.m.-5:30 p.m.: Gasparilla Parade of the Pirates, starting from Bay to Bay Boulevard up Bayshore Boulevard to Brorein Street East, and north on Ashley Drive to Cass Street. Throughout the day, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. is the Gasparilla Street Festival on Ashley Drive from Kennedy Boulevard to Cass Street Entertainment stages are set up at MacDill Park and Curtis Hixon Park. Click here for City of Tampa parking info and more.
[jump]If it's all too much for you to do, there's more to do in the immediate environs and outside Tampa.
Let the kids see a brighter side of downtown Tampa culture at the Tampa Museum of Art's Art Spot 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The special area offers drop-in, self-guided art projects for children in the Museum's Golding-Scher classroom. Or duck out at Tampa Theatre for a screening of the Coen Brothers'Inside Llewyn Davisat 7:30 p.m. If you're in a more sporting mood, catch the Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Colorado Avalanche at 7 p.m. at the Forum. Fans of whodunit's should stroll over to the Straz for Jobsite's Sherlock Holmes comedy The Hound of the Baskervilles at 8 p.m.
Get your warm and fuzzy on with the Best Friends art show, our Best of the Day.
The Lunatic Fringe Reading Series: Beyond TherapyA Simple Theatre Company, the theater company in Residence at Eckerd College, opens its 2014 play reading series with Christopher Durang's play, touted by director Gavin Hawk as “one of the funniest plays ever.” The play is shining example of the genre of absurdist humor. Beginning in the 1980s, playwright Durang was at the forefront of a wave of off-beat comedies that would redefine the American theatre. $10. 8 p.m., Sat., Jan. 25. Bininger Theater on the Eckerd College Campus, 4200 54th Ave. S., St. Petersburg. 727-864-7811. asimpletheatre.org.
Sarasota's Asolo is offering more Durang —Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, a recent Broadway sensation that takes us into the home of middle-aged siblings Vanya and Sonia, named after Chekhov characters by their theater-loving, professor parents. The two still live in their parents’ upscale farmhouse in Bucks County, Pa., and when their movie-star sister, Masha, makes a surprise visit with her 20-something boy toy, Spike, things get a little insane. The New York Times recently featured actor Jefferson McDonald, who portrays Spike. Through April 13 at Asolo Repertory Theatre, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. asolorep.org.
If you're still in Tampa, end the night with Fireworks at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park or Thx Mgmt and TampaBayHipHop.com's big Talib Kweli show at Crowbar, with Dynasty, Jinx, The Villanz and DJ Fader. Show starts at 9 p.m. Get tickets here.