Things to do in Tallahassee: Beat the heat with Caribbean fest, blast of harmonicas

The August intensity burns as college students return and the streets fill up. Exhale the humidity and adopt a faster groove.

Get the beat when the Caribé! festival brings music and dance to Railroad Square Art Park on Saturday. Pick and taste when FAMU returns with the juicy 20th Annual Grape Harvest Festival on Saturday after a pandemic hiatus.

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The rhythm continues with the 8th Annual Greater Southeastern Harmonica Championships Saturday at the Bradfordville Blues Club. On Sunday, the Rockin' with Spirit benefit concert brings Tobacco Rd Band and Confederate Railroad to Goodwood Museum.

Here's a roundup of entertaining happenings around Tallahassee we've culled from emails, the Council on Culture & Arts online listings and elsewhere.

Catch island vibe at Caribé! Festival

Caribé! A Festival of Colors, will be held from noon-6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20, at the FAMU Way Market Area next to Railroad Square Art Park in Tallahassee. The free celebration focuses on the arts and crafts, music, dance, food, history and folklife of the Caribbean.

There will be food and drink, music, performance, vendors, displays and more.

Featured performers include: Yvette Smith, "La Reina" of Flamenco, DJ RRane, Jamaica/Tallahassee (Reverb Live Show), Gyasi Clarke, singer-songwriter from St. Croix, The Forgotten Coast Dancers, from Franklin and Gulf Counties, DJ Dean, Jamaica/Tallahassee (Live 11 Radio), Excellence Dance Studio, Tallahassee, Breanna Jade, Jamaica/Tallahassee (FSU), DJ Zoe, Haiti/Tallahassee (WANM FM 90.5), Miriam Watkins & the Tallahassee Salsa Dancers from Studio D, Elio Delgado, Cuba/Tallahassee, DJ Ju, St. Maarten/Tallahassee (FAMU), Lion Steel Band, Leon High School, Tallahassee, DJ Vizyon, Haiti/Tallahassee, and DJ Stan Man, St. Maarten/Miami (Large Radio & 96MIXX).

It is being produced by the Tallahassee-St. Maarten Foundation with partial funding from Leon County/Visit Tallahassee.

Gyasi Clarke will also perform at 7:30 p.m. at 615-4 Railroad Square Art Park, by the Cat/Book shop and across from Craft Brewery.

Blow the blues away with Polly O'Keary, harmonica champs at BBC

Banish the summertime blues at the Bradfordville Blues Club with offerings with Polly O'Keary from Washington State, with a double header on Saturday with The 8th Annual Greater Southeastern Harmonica Championships followed by Swingin' Harpoon that night.

Polly O'Keary and The Rhythm Method meander in from the Pacific Northwest for their inaugural BBC appearance at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 9. O'Keary is a powerhouse singer and six time winner of the Washington Blues Society Best Female Vocalist Award and four time winner of the Best Blues Songwriter Award. O'Keary fronts this trio with guitar virtuoso David Miller and Tommy Cook on drums. They blend classic and contemporary blues with jazz, zydeco, rockabilly and fun

Advance tickets are $20 at bradfordvilleblues.com/events-tickets. Cover at the door is $25

Big Bend Blues Society presents The 8th Annual Greater Southeastern Harmonica Championships at the BBC starting at 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20. The competition features harmonica players from the Tri-State area who will be judged in five categories: Technical; Showmanship; Crowd Pleaser; Uniqueness; Acoustic (no amp used); and Overall. There is no charge or entry fee for Participants.  This event gets better each year with the level of play and attendance. Sure to blow folks away!

Cover is $10 either at the door or at bradfordvilleblues.com/events-tickets. General admission seating only.  No reserved seating for the competition.

Tallahassee's Swingin' Harpoon keeps the juke movin' to their brand of swingin' blues at 7:30 p.m. This band, a Tallahassee staple, is fronted by Mike Lanigan (who organizes the harmonica championship) on vocals and harp, with Allie McKay on vocals, keyboard, acoustic guitar and some of Tallahassee's best musicians. Take the big sound of a swing big band and arrange blues harp into the mix with solid blues, and you have Swingin' Harpoon.

Advance tickets with a guaranteed table reservations are $20 at bradfordvilleblues.com. You can also use this ticket for general admission seating for the harp championship that afternoon. Cover at the door is $25.

Bring an appetite for Ms. Ernestine's fried fish cooked fresh in the fry shack next to the bonfire.

Humming and strumming at Blue Tavern

Get happy from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19, at Blue Tavern, 1206 N. Monroe St., with the Delta Ringnecks. Enjoy another round of music from 8-11 p.m. with Jazz Etcetera. Stan Rosenthal describes the band's sound as world jazz: "Tango, rumba, gypsy jazz, flamenco rumba, bossa nova, bolero, blues, swing, raga, klezmer, standards, funk, rock, classical & contemporary are all styles and influences that show up in our music." $5 cover.

3rd Saturday Traditional Irish Session gets cranking from 4-6 p.m., followed by Swillbilly from 8-11 p.m. Hang out with Dave Langston, Billy Samford, Dave Leporati, Brent Kittrell and Kim Thomas as they delve into their bottomless barrel of brewgrass. $5 cover.

Happy hour with Angel's Share is 5-7 p.m. Tuesday at Blue Tavern, followed by Tuesday is Bluesday from 8-19 p.m. Every Tuesday is Bluesday, but this one will be special, because staff member Kirill Litvak is turning 21! We're going to celebrate with a jam – including Deb Berliner, Ken & Kaye, Chris Balding, Tom Longfellow, and some other guests from the rogue's gallery. $3 cover.

Catch happy hour with Isabel Ruano from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday. Doc Russell hosts Open Mic Night at 8 p.m. Happy hour is 5-7 p.m. Thursday with Pickfoolery featuring Butch Burns and Brent Kittrell. End of summer film night gets rolling at 8 p.m. with "Psycho Beach Party" and short films by Jacques Tati.

Rockin' with Spirit benefit at Goodwood

Confederate Railroad headlines the concert featuring Jason Byrd and Tobacco Road Band for Rockin’ with Spirit from 6-10 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 21, at Goodwood Museum & Gardens, 1600 Miccosukee Road. The Spirit of a Child Foundation’s main fundraising event showcases musicians for an evening of entertainment. The Foundation's goal is to help families and identify and overcome the obstacles impeding parent-child relationships. Tickets are $55. Visit spiritofachildfoundation.org.

FAMU Essential Theatre presents 'Dissonance'

On the heels of summer 2020, can a black woman and a white woman have an honest, civil, and candid discussion about race? "Dissonance," a new play written by Marci Duncan in conjunction with Kerry Sandell is being presented by FAMU's Essential Theatre this weekend. Directed by James Webb, the show will be at 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the  Ronald O. Davis Acting Studio.  Dissonance is a two-woman play about race, love, and friendship. Admission is $15 adult; $12 senior citizen and FAMU Employees; $8 children and Non-FAMU Student; and $5 FAMU Student. Tickets can be purchased at etix.com.

Grape Harvest Festival is back

The Florida A&M University Grape Harvest Festival returns from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 20 at the FAMU Center for Viticulture and Small Fruit Research, 6361 Mahan Drive.

The 20th Annual Grape Harvest Festival is expected to draw more than 2,000 participants who will celebrate family, food, fun, and agricultural discovery to recognize the University’s role as a national leader in viticulture research. This is the first grape harvest festival since 2019.

Tickets, $10, can be purchased on site the day of the event. Festival Parking at the Antique Car Museum, 6800 Mahan Drive.

EXHIBITS

LeMoyne Arts: A New Renaissance, featuring UNF professors Jason John & Amy Bennion, is on display at LeMoyne, 125 N. Gadsden St. It showcases over 15 local and regional artists who incorporate elements of art history into their work in a contemporary way, with a focus on the Renaissance and enlightenment era. Gallery hours are 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday - Saturday.

OTHER EVENTS

Great Oaks Pub at Southwood: “Night Shift” returns from 7-10 p.m. Friday to the Great Oaks Pub, 3750 Grove Park Drive. Rick Christian, Bobby Jett and Stan Gramling will be shifting gears and grinding the hits outside on the Gazebo. This trio plays the hits from all ages with a blues/jazz flare.  Full bar and restaurant. Call  850-942-4653 for reservations.  3750 Grove Park Drive.

Young Bucks at Red Shed: Aaron Sorin and Tony Young of the Young Bucks will be performing as an acoustic duo for a happy-hour set at the Red Shed from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19. "Aaron and I both live just down the street, so this is a neighborhood gig for us," singer-songwriter Tony Young said.  "And I personally think their dry rubbed St. Louis style ribs are the best in town!"  The Red Shed is on Tallahassee's eastside at 3031 Crump Road. For more info, call 850-510-3992.

926 Bar: Hotel Fiction with Rohana, Airport Drive & No Parts on Wednesday, Aug. 24 at 926 Bar, 926 W. Tharpe St. Doors @ 8 p.m., show @ 9 p.m., $12 advance, $14 day of show, all ages

Oyster City Brewing Company: Oyster Mom will be shucking in the garden with Tallahassee Beer Society, 3-6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 2, to celebrate brewery's 1-year anniversary. Tim Russell will be on stage live. 603 W. Gaines St.

Tallahassee Ballet: 50th anniversary open house 3-5:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 21, at new location, 2910 Kerry Forest Parkway. Visit tallahasseeballet.org.

Theatre Tallahassee, 1861 Thomasville Road, has been deep in the mind of Charles Dickens for its latest musical, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood," which runs Aug. 19-28. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday and again the next two weekends. Tickets are $20-$25. Visit theatretallahassee.org.

COMING UP

Tallahassee Caribbean Carnival: Rebirth of Carnival village, parade and music. Friday, Sept. 9 (noon-8 p.m.) , Saturday, Sept. 10, (noon-9 p.m.) and ends Sunday, Sept. 11, (noon-8 p.m.) 2810 Sharer Road. Tickets $3 for kids, $5 for adults. Visit tccarnival.com

Have an event coming up? Email details to limelight@tallahassee.com.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee weekend: Blow away the blues, catch Caribbean beats