Things to do in Florida for snowbirds and travellers

Bob Adelman’s Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement is running at the Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale until May.

South Florida’s flourishing arts scene, and its growing potential as a meeting place for singles, is now drawing more than just snowbirds in the winter. Its numerous theatres, concert venues, exhibits, festivals and fairs of all sorts are attracting visitors of every age.

Among the singles groups in South Florida there is the Mosaic Outdoor Club (outdoor adventures and activities every Sunday), A Singles Affair by Carol (single parties and cruises), Faces Jewish Singles, The Single Gourmet, and others.

For theatre, the Arsht Center, Miami, is showing the Broadway hit, Once, Feb.4-9.

The Palm Beach Dreamworks Theatre brings Harold Pinter’s Old Times, until March 3. Dividing the Estate, by Horton Foote, runs March 28 to April 27.

The Broward Stage Door Theatre presents Tom Dugan’s immensely successful, and entertaining, one man show, Wiesenthal, until March l6, and The God of Isaac, March 14 to April 20. Crimes of the Heart will be at the Miami Beach Stage Door (at the Byron Carlyle Theatre), from March 7 to 30. They recently had a wonderful production of Alfred Uhry’s The Last Night of Ballyhoo.

On the dance scene, the Miami City Ballet will perform Jerome Robbins’ West Side Story Suite in February, at several venues, including the Arsht Center, the Broward Center, and the Kravis Center. The Paul Taylor Dance Company appears Feb. 8, at the Broward Center.

There is an abundance of music from pop to classical, to opera, to be enjoyed in south Florida. The BB&T Center, Sunrise, brings Andrea Bocelli, Feb. l4, and Justin Timberlake on March 4.

The Palm Beach Opera has scheduled Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, Feb. 21-23, and Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffman, March 21-23. Verdi’s Nabucco will be presented by the Florida Grand Opera on Feb. 6 and 8. Great Moments in Great Italian Opera will be performed, Feb. 25, at the Miramar Cultural Center.

The Delray String Quartet, at the Colony Hotel, presents Three Centuries of String Quartets – Haydn, Fuchs, and Tchaikovsky, on March 9.

The Jerusalem Tenors is a program at the Community Performing Ars Center, Boca Raton, March 12-14.

Jeffrey Biegel, with the South Florida Symphony Orchestra, presents A Summons To Life, at the Crest Theatre, Delray Beach, March 31.

Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, presents Klezmer East (Feb. 9), Aaron Kula’s 25-piece Klezmer Company Orchestra (March 2), Songs From Jewish Opera (March 6), and Israeli Jazz Night (March 8).

Among the musical programs at the Kravis Center, are Here to Stay: The Definitive Gershwin Experience, March 14; Neil Berg’s l04 Years of Broadway, March 16; and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, with Pinhas Zuckerman, March 24.

The Aventura Arts & Cultural Center features the Harvey Nevins Yiddish Swing Orchestra on Feb. l6.

For exhibits, the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach is running The Polaroid Years: Instant Photography, until March 23; David Webb: Society’s Jeweler, until April l3, and To Jane, Love Andy: Warhol’s First Superstar, until May.

The exhibit Bob Adelman: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, is running at the Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale, until May.

The Jewish Museum of Florida, Miami Beach, is running Growers, Grocers, and Gefilte Fish: A Gastronomic Look At Florida Jews and Food, until October 2014. The exhibit covers more than 400 photos and other objects, and over 250 Jewish families and companies. It has inspired a variety of public programs, cooking demonstrations, a walking food tour, a film and other interactive activities. 

An abundance of accommodation is available in south Florida, along with such legendary establishments as the oceanfront Breakers Palm Beach.

A five-star, Italian-inspired, historic resort, the Breakers is one of the most famous hotels in the world. Originally built in l896 by Henry Flagler, the hotel is magnificent, and inspiring, indoors, and out, because of its architecture and décor. Yet it’s very much up to date and offers all the luxurious amenities found in the world’s newest top hotels.

To the south, along the coast, in Fort Lauderdale’s Harbor Beach area, the ocean-front Lago Mar Resort & Club is a lovely retreat, in a secluded location, with an understated, sophisticated and relaxing ambience.

For other happenings, there’s O Miami, from April 1 to 30, the annual poetry festival at sites around Miami, features a poetry parade, film screenings, and readings.

A Kultur Festival: Celebration of Jewish Culture, takes place March 1 to 8, at Florida Atlantic University.

Feb. 1 to 22 brings the 14th annual Jewish Film Festival to the David Posnack Jewish Community Center, in the Fort Lauderdale area.

The Posnack JCC has scheduled its second annual Jewish Music Festival to start March 1 and run until April 6. Among the music programs will be an evening with the Miami City Ballet Orchestra, a cantorial event, and a Mocha and Music Coffeehouse.

For outdoor activities there will be a South Beach bike tour on Feb. 9. This leisurely tour of the island will have many stops at local points of interest. Sponsored by the Mosaic Club, the tour offers rental bikes at a discounted rate, for either a mountain bike or a beach cruiser.

The Blue Star Taverna, in Hollywood, is a popular Israeli venue, featuring Israeli songs every Thursday evening, with Ouri Gan and DJ Eli.