Weekend preview: Bark, brunch, Brad and 10+ other things to do in South Florida

We are firmly in the dog days of summer, which is not just an expression but a fixed period (thanks, Farmer’s Almanac) determined by the constellation Canis Major and Sirius, the Dog Star. Or, in South Florida, the return of Bark at the Park.

We are also smack in the middle of what used to be our summer concert season, the traditional gusher reduced to a trickle in 2021. Remember concerts? Brad Paisley is fixing to remind you of those good old days and nights with his tour stop in West Palm Beach on Saturday. Here’s some of what’s going on this weekend and beyond.

The road to ‘Freedom’

With all due respect to the work of personable country star Brad Paisley, his summer tour stop at iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach on Saturday got a lot more interesting after opening act Jimmie Allen was crowned New Male Artist of the Year at the Academy Of Country Music Awards in April. Their duet on “Freedom Was a Highway” may be one of the best live-music moments of the summer. Tickets are still available, starting at $30 (or $22.25 each for a four-pack) at LiveNation.com. Allen, incidentally, is part of the Nov. 14 closing-day lineup at the 2021 Tortuga Music Festival in Fort Lauderdale.

More country

Sam Hunt is finally going to share his new music in South Florida, with tickets ($45+) on sale 10 a.m. Friday for a Sept. 9 Hard Rock Live show at MyHRL.com. You can access a venue presale via the Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood Facebook and Twitter pages with the password NIGHT. Hunt’s critically lauded 2020 sophomore album “Southside” included hits “Kinfolks,” “Breaking Up Was Easy in the ’90s,” “Hard To Forget” and the ubiquitous “Body Like a Back Road.” It was named one of the best albums of the year by The New York Times.

On Old School Square

Cult-y Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall will be the official reopening performer at the newly renovated Crest Theater on Old School Square in Delray Beach on Sept. 22, with tickets on sale 10 a.m. Friday. Prices start at $25. Visit Facebook.com/OldSchoolSquare.

YOLO 2.0

Sunday is the last day to have your favorite dish/drink at downtown Fort Lauderdale restaurant YOLO before it closes in advance of a months-long project to renovate the 13-year-old Las Olas hot spot. Folks with The Restaurant People say the new version will, of course, include an Instagram-ready visual statement on the patio. O Lounge next door also will close for a renovation, but Java & Jam café will remain open. More to come. Visit YOLORestaurant.com.

Local colors

More than 30 of South Florida’s most accomplished muralists and graffiti artists — they have been featured at Art Basel, Miami Art Week and Wynwood Mural Fest — will take part in Stairwell Visuals 3, a free weekend pop-up art exhibition at the new Delray Beach Marketplace (33 SE Third Ave.). Be sure to look out for Delray Beach resident Cruise Bogle, the spirited 30-year-old artist who has painted with his mouth since a teenage skimboarding accident left him a quadriplegic. Bogle will produce an exclusive, signed event print to be sold as a fundraiser for Old School Square. Visit DelrayBeachMarket.com., CruiseBogle.com.

Sunday goal

I’m watching the England-Italy Euro final on Sunday (3 p.m., ESPN) at Mickey Byrne’s Irish Pub in downtown Hollywood because it’s a Tottenham Hotspurs bar and Spurs are my No. 2 club. My No. 1 club is Wolverhampton, which is why I needed a second team to root for. Visit MickeyByrnes.com.

Jailhouse rock

What’s going on under that orange-striped big-top tent near the Palm Beach Kennel Club? It’s “Cirque Alcatraz,” an R-rated performance by the acrobatic theater troupe Cirque Italia. The evening of prison-set intrigue dramatized by performers via wires, trapeze, BMX bikes and other daredevilry takes place nightly Aug. 8-18. Tickets costs $10-$50. Guests ages 13-17 must be accompanied by an adult. The tent is at 1111 North Congress Ave., West Palm Beach. Visit CirqueAlcatraz.com.

Canine innings

Not that you need another reason to watch those pesky Miami Marlins after their captivating series against the Dodgers, but the bring-your-dog-to-the-game series Bark at the Park returns to LoanDepot Park for Sunday’s 1:10 p.m. grudge match with the rival Atlanta Braves. Visit Marlins.com.

Drinking ahead

Tickets are on sale for Sangria Saturday, a fundraising festival for Good Karma Pet Rescue of South Florida noon-8 p.m. July 24 at Huizenga Plaza on Fort Lauderdale’s Riverwalk. The family-friendly and dog-friendly event will feature live music, raffles and food vendors, with tickets ($20 in advance) including two glasses of red, white or rosé sangria. The event host, Fort Lauderdale wine boutique Versare, hopes to set a record for the world’s largest sangria-tasting party. Good to have goals in life. Visit Facebook.com/GKPetRescue.

DAER ya

Speaking of old dogs, the charismatic Busta Rhymes will perform 11 p.m. Friday at DAER nightclub at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood. The same space will feature veteran French DJ Cedric Gervais on Saturday at 11 p.m. Tickets for each of those shows start at $30. At noon Sunday, the pool party at DAER dayclub will be a showcase for DJ Chizzle. Admission is $80. Visit HardRockNightlife.com.

Musical brunch

Sweat Records will revive their popular Waffle Party series at the Waffle Party Vinyl Brunch 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday at Dogfish Head Miami. The monthly feature will include a rotating lineup of DJs spinning vinyl live (this weekend Hiltronix) and, of course, waffles and the new Wynwood brewery’s beer. Visit SweatRecordsMiami.com. … A different kind of music will be featured at the Family Karaoke Sunday Brunch at female-owned, family-run Luv’n Oven Ale House in Sunrise. Visit Facebook.com/luvnovenalehouse.

BleauLive is back

The BleauLive music series returns to the Fontainebleau Miami Beach resort on Saturday with a performance by Sister Hazel (“All for You,” “Changes Your Mind,” “Happy”). Tables start at $75 per person, including open bar in the Fontaine Ballroom during the show and discounted valet parking ($15). VIP dinner packages also available. Doors open at 8 p.m., concert at 9 p.m. Visit BleauLive.com.

Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com .