Women's History Month continues with People en Español's Poderosas ¡Live! empowerment summit and a screening of the documentary Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed. And if you're looking to dance to throwback jams, Ginuwine and Sugarhill Gang will play the Miami-Dade County Fair this Saturday.
Here's a look at the best things to do in Miami this weekend.
Fred Rogers, the subject of the documentary film Won't You Be My Neighbor?
Courtesy of Miami Film Festival
Russian trolls, tiki-torch Nazis, nuclear war threats, oh my! The world could really use a healthy dose of kindness from Mister Rogers right now. Leave the sunken place and enter Mister Rogers' neighborhood when Coral Gables Art Cinema screens Won’t You Be My Neighbor? during Miami Film Festival and ahead of the documentary's official June 8 release. The film explores the continuing legacy of the TV show Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, the messages of which live on 15 years after Fred Rogers' death. Wear your comfiest cardigan. 9:45 p.m. Friday at Coral Gables Art Cinema, 260 Aragon Ave., Miami. Tickets cost $13 via miamifilmfestival.com.
For some of us, the question "Where are you from?" is an easy one to answer. For others, not so much. Pulitzer Prize and National Book Critics Award winner Junot Díaz's latest book, Islandborn, explores a girl's quest to learn about her roots. Though she knows she is from "The Island," she does not fully know how it has shaped her life until she embarks on an educational journey with family and friends. In addition to chatting about the book, Díaz will also sign copies. 6 p.m. Friday at Miami Dade College Wolfson Campus Auditorium, 300 NE Second Ave., Miami. Tickets cost $17.99 plus fees via eventbrite.com.
Author Jeff Goodell once wrote a fictional piece for Rolling Stone about what the world might look like once the effects of climate change took hold. There were super-hurricanes, buildings damaged by rising surge, and conflicts made worse by dwindling resources. As the realities of climate change have set in, Goodell's vision has crept ever closer toward the nonfiction column. He has since visited Alaska with President Obama and written the book The Water Will Come: Rising Seas, Sinking Cities, and the Remaking of the Civilized World. Goodell will visit South Florida to speak about the ways society can move forward in a world where climate change has already arrived. 6 p.m. Friday at Bailey Hall at Broward College, 3501 Davie Rd., Davie. Tickets cost $5 via baileyhall.org.
Jacuzzi Boys
Photo by Monica McGivern
If you're looking to get into a little trouble on St. Pat's Day, a dose of rock 'n' roll at your favorite dive bar might do the trick. Join Jacuzzi Boys, the Woolly Bushmen, Heavy Drag, Dama Vicke, and more of Florida's best bands for the inaugural St. Patrick's Day Festival at Las Rosas. The lineup is good enough to pay for, but there's no cover, so you'll have more money for drinks. Don't forget to tip your bartender. 6 p.m. Saturday, March 17, at Las Rosas, 2898 NW Seventh Ave., Miami; 786-780-2700; lasrosasbar.com. Admission is free.
The ladies sure as hell know how to rock. For the eleventh consecutive year, Femme Fest Miami will hit Churchill's Pub with three stages of live tunes, spoken word, poetry, live art, and comedy from the likes of November May, Maria Marocka, Drawing Bored, and Rose Dickeson. Come for the music, stay for the pamper room with massages, mani/pedis, and makeup. 8 p.m. Friday at Churchill's Pub, 5501 NE Second Ave., Miami; churchillspub.com. Admission costs $10.
Does your hungry soul need some feeding? Jazz in the Gardens has a feast for you. The fest offers jazz, R&B, and soul heavy-hitters live at Hard Rock Stadium. This year, the two-day event will present the sparkly-eyed Smokey Robinson, funk queen Chaka Khan, chanteuse Anita Baker, and many other legends. Plus, gorge on the '90s-inspired lineup of big names such as Salt-N-Pepa, Kid 'n Play, Biz Markie, and Trick Daddy. 3 p.m. Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium, 347 Don Shula Dr., Miami Gardens; jazzinthegardens.com. Admission starts at $96.
Remember when the Dade County Youth Fair was all about farm animals, the Gravitron, and seeing your poem on display with a blue ribbon? Somewhere between then and now, the Miami-Dade County Fair & Exposition stepped it up and added millennial-approved nostalgic concerts to the affair. This Saturday, the Main Street Stage will present Ginuwine and the Sugarhill Gang. Pack the kids into the car and tell them you're going to the Youth Fair just for them. They don't need to know you just want to ride that pony one last time. 8 p.m. Saturday at the Fair Expo Center, 10901 Coral Way, Miami; 305-223-7060; fairexpo.com. Admission starts at $14 and includes access to standing areas for concerts; concert seat tickets cost $10 to $25.
People en Español will host Poderosas ¡Live!, an empowerment event specializing in business and career development for women of all backgrounds and life stages in honor of Women's History Month. Experts will conduct panels and workshops in the areas of finance, human resources, leadership, health, and entrepreneurship, and guests can attend one-on-one consultations on how to update their resumés. But the summit isn't all business: Attendees can also get makeovers. 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 17, at FIU Graham Center, 11200 SW Eighth St., Miami; poderosas.peopleenespanol.com. Admission is free.
In 2016, the United States got closer than ever to electing its first woman president. We all know how that turned out, but before there was Hillary Clinton, there was Shirley Chisholm. In 1972, Chisholm became the first black woman to run for president after becoming the first black woman elected to Congress four years earlier. In tribute to this trailblazer, the Black Lounge Outdoor Film Series will host a screening of Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed at Gibson Park. The number of women in Congress still lingers below an anemic 20 percent, and women of color represent an even smaller share. Revisiting stories like Chisholm's might inspire the next generation of girls to increase those numbers. 6 p.m. Saturday, March 17, at Gibson Park, 401 NW 12th St., Miami; eventbrite.com. Admission is free.
Sunday
It is sometimes said that nothing good in life is free, but Gramps is proving the old adage wrong this Sunday with a free concert by the hard-rockers of Torche. Smvt and Armageddon Man will open for the veteran Florida group in a venue that's quickly becoming the choice stage for touring bands rolling through the Magic City. 8 p.m. Sunday, March 18, at Gramps, 176 NW 24th St., Miami; gramps.com. Admission is free.
The Brahma Kumaris Meditation Center wants you to meditate on what a world ruled by women might look like. Would it be more peaceful? This self-proclaimed largest spiritual organization led by women might have an idea. Kathleen Shea, a longtime civil rights and gender equity advocate, will lead the center's workshop "Peace and Persistence: Valuing the Feminine in All of Us." 5:30 p.m. Sunday, March 18, at Brahma Kumaris Meditation Center, 4160 SW Fourth St., Miami; brahmakumaris.org. Admission is free.
