Looking for fun events? Top 5 Things to Do this weekend in Jacksonville

Tom Szaroleta, Florida Times-Union
·3 min read

Heading out to the big Jim Gaffigan shows at the Florida Theatre this weekend? Not so fast. The comedian rescheduled all four shows for April due to "a production conflict."

But that doesn't mean you just have to sit home and eat Hot Pockets. You'll have time for a concert or an art show or a festival and still be able to make it home in time to watch the Jaguars open their NFL season at Washington.

Hometown show

Jacksonville native Conrad Oberg brings his blues guitar back to town for a hometown show at the Mudville Music Room at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Oberg, blind from birth, was a piano prodigy as a kid before turning to the guitar. Just look at the pictures on his website — Oberg and Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Guy, Dr. John, Marcia Ball — to see how far that guitar has taken him. Seating is limited. $15-$20.

Train fest

Pablo Beach Train Day is Saturday at the Beaches Museum.
Pablo Beach Train Day is Saturday at the Beaches Museum.

Back in the day, there was no such place as Jacksonville Beach; locals called it Pablo Beach until 1925. Celebrate those old days at Riding the Rails: Pablo Beach Train Day at the Beaches Museum from 10 a.m.to 2 p.m. Saturday. They'll have a car show, model trains, live music, trackless train rides and crafts for kids. It's all free.

Downtown art shows

"Never Give Up" by 12-year-old Quinalia, is part of the Art with a Heart Healthcare show at MOCA Jacksonville.
"Never Give Up" by 12-year-old Quinalia, is part of the Art with a Heart Healthcare show at MOCA Jacksonville.

How about an art show? The Ritz Theatre & Museum in downtown Jacksonville opens a new show, "Through Our Eyes: Female Led Legacies," dedicated to female trailblazers. The show opens Friday and runs through Jan. 9. "What Lifts You Up," an Art with a Heart in Healthcare show that features pieces created by young patients at Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Nemours Children’s Specialty Clinic, St. Vincent’s Medical Center, Mayo Clinic and Baptist Medical Center, opens Sunday at MOCA Jacksonville with a 2 p.m. reception. The show will run through Jan. 8.

Live music

Matisyahu performs a sold out show at Vinyl Music Hall Thursday night.
Matisyahu performs a sold out show at Vinyl Music Hall Thursday night.

Matisyahu made quite an impression when he broke into the music business as a Hasidic reggae singer 15 years or so ago. He's shaved his beard and gone more mainstream in the intervening years, and he's at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre Backyard Stage at 7:30 p.m. Friday. $32-$35. The Malpass Brothers, young champions of old country music with some of the best hair in the business, are at the Thrasher-Horne Center at 7 p.m. Saturday. $49-$69. Country singer Billy Currington brings his Summer Forever Tour to the St. Augustine Amphitheatre at 7 p.m. Saturday. $44-$79.

Artist Series preview

"Alladin" is one of the shows on the FSCJ Artist Series schedule for this season.
"Alladin" is one of the shows on the FSCJ Artist Series schedule for this season.

The FSCJ Artist Series has a blockbuster season of touring shows coming to Jacksonville this season, and they're ready to show it off with a Broadway in Jacksonville Season Kick Off party on Monday. Browse the schedule, try out your seats, buy extra tickets and enjoy live music and a cash bar. The preview party is free. 5-7 p.m. Monday at the Jacksonville Center for Performing Arts.

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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Top 5 Things to Do this weekend in Jacksonville