Blake Shelton. That guy from The Voice who keeps losing to Kelly Clarkson. 3/8, 7 p.m., Amalie Arena.
Firestone Grand Prix. The vroom-vrooms take over the streets of downtown St. Pete, much to the delight of racing fans and city boosters (all that national TV coverage of the waterfront!) and much to the chagrin of Beach Drive apartment dwellers. 3/8-10, St. Petersburg, gpstpete.com.
ArtsXchange: These Masks We Wear. An exceptional exhibition created by students with disabilities attending Pinellas County schools. “A student-led, visceral, visual concept meant to evoke the spirit of imagination,” says Zach Thompson, an instructor at Sanders Exceptional. Opening reception 3/9, 5-9 p.m. in the Tully-Levine gallery; continues through March. 515 22nd St. S., St. Petersburg, warehouseartsdistrictstpete.org/ArtsXchange.
3/9-10
Gasparilla Music Festival. One of the most anticipated musical events of the year, GMF brings together headliners like the Avett Brothers and Gary Clark Jr. with a truly awesome range of musical acts both familiar and new in a wide range of genres: 40+ bands in all, on four stages down by the river in Curtis Hixon Park. Add a smorgasbord of food vendors from local restaurants, and it’s just a fine way to while away a spring afternoon. gmftickets.com
3/10
CatVideoFest 2019. I’ll let the folks at Tampa Theatre describe it: “…the best, funniest, fuzziest and cuddliest of the only thing the Internet is any good at anymore: cat videos.” True that, and as a bonus 10% of the proceeds go to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay. All together now… AWWWWWWW! 3/10, 3 & 7 p.m., Tampa Theatre.
Through 3/10
Florida Strawberry Festival. Livestock shows, carnival rides, commercial exhibits and, of course, strawberry shortcake. Plus musical headliners: The final weekend’s big acts include Tanya Tucker (3/8, 3:30 p.m.) and Keith Sweat (3/9, 7:30 p.m.). Fri., 12 noon-11 p.m.; weekends, 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Admission $10 for adults 13 and up; $5 for children 6-12; children 5 and under free with paid adult admission. Additional costs for headliners. 303 N. Lemon St., Plant City, 813-752-9194, flstrawberryfestival.com.
Hamilton. This is it, kids: your last chance to win a pair of $10 lottery tickets to the Tampa run of the world’s hottest musical (and yes, it’s every bit as good as you’ve heard it is). Enter today, 3/8, for tickets to Sunday’s 2 p.m. matinee and cross your fingers. https://www.luckyseat.com/hamilton-tampa
