The Ocala Civic theater attracts the top talent from the surrounding counties, matches it with…read moreoutstanding directors brought in from around the country and displays it on sets worthy of the best theaters in the US. A main stage "season" will usually include 3 musicals as well as 2 comedies/dramas. Music is LIVE, not taped. The theater seats about 400, making it an intimate experience. We enjoy theater and have seen dozens of shows in NY, as well as travelling shows in great theaters in many cities including Tampa, Orlando, Atlanta, Chicago and Boston. We have been attending performances here for more than 20 years and about 99.5% of the time we come out absolutely amazed that these are local people putting on these kinds of performances. Do yourself a favor...go see a show. The performance is great, the price is right (I think $25-28/show with discounts for the season) and the experience is first class.

The show was very well received. Great show. Seats were very comfortable and refreshments were…read morefairly priced

Congratulations to the organizers on this 15th annual Festival for another incredible experience…read more This is my only "taste of Greece" in these parts and I always take advantage of it. There's always so much to see and do here...especially eating!!! Everything is homemade and the desserts are some I have never seen. In fact the line for them is always the longest. New this year is an outdoor area so there's even more seating in the beautiful sun. If you should need an interesting gift for someone you'll certainly find something here as most vendors sell Greek items as well as some groceries. Entertainment is always fun as anyone is welcome to dance to their fantastic band. Then there are the professional dancers who attend UF and perform the classic Greek choreographed dances. Definitely the best 3 day festival around that good for kids and families!

Small festival with a lot of heart. Good band started at 5pm. Lots of nice merch along the sides of…read morethe event room. ONLY 1 kind of GREEK BEER...hubby didn't like that kind. In a warehouse like room, but all the tables were dressed up festively. Souvlaki was boring, fries were overcooked, gyro was just ok, napoleon was kind of nasty--basically just frosting piled up with very tough phillo layers in between frosting layers. Kid activity area looked just awful! Once was enough. We may try Tarpon Springs next time for Greek festivals.

I highly recommend Trish for Ballroom dance instruction. She is an excellent instructor! I thought…read moreI had 2 left feet, yet she assured me that everybody has rhythm and that nobody has 2 left feet... she broke things down very simply and we were doing the foxtrot, waltz, and rumba after just one lesson! I walked out of there feeling like I can really do this... It was fun & easier than I thought it would be! We're looking forward to this being a lifetime hobby. Thanks Trish!

This was the 6th year for the Habitat Strawberry Festival and it was again a big hit! In fact it…read morewas so large this year they had to move it to a larger location and still was packed. Rows and rows of vendors selling their wares was over whelming. Interspersed were some amazing food vendors making everything you could imagine. Even though most people weren't watching, the live bands were very good. A car show, pet contest, pie eating contest and expensive kiddie rides rounded out the activities. Strawberries? Flats of strawberries could be preordered and picked up at the festival. That was it. No other strawberries or strawberry related items. Bottled water? Couldn't find it sold anywhere. I'm thinking it may be hanging out with the strawberry items that weren't there. :(

This is the 13th year for this annual event. Restaurants as well as businesses take part in serving…read moreup their finest chicken wings. The range is wide and everyone has a great time. How can you not have fun when wings are involved? Attendees purchase an arm band which provides them with wing samples at all the participating booths. The fans then vote on their favorite all around wing and that vendor is awarded the "king of the wing" for the year. There are other awards that are not voted on by the fans. Some are the best decorated booth, the hottest wings, etc. The sponsor is the Marion County Road Builders and the proceeds benefit ARC. Please check the address because they often change venues.

For over a half of century (66 years) Blessed Trinity has put together the largest carnival this…read morecounty has ever seen. Their first ever carnival began with a simple donated pony ride in 1949. You know they have to be doing something right! It has gotten so large with 10,000 in attendance that it has been expanded to 4 days. Single ride tickets are available but it's best to purchase a wristband so you can ride all the rides as many times as you'd like for one designated day. That's a whole lot of fun! What's best is if you purchase the wristband in advance, there's a substantial discount. Riding all day means you get to eat your all your meals there. There are local restaurants there that you can purchase a meal ticket in advance from and just pick up your dinner when you're ready. Of course the fried food stands are always the most popular as well as the cheesesteaks. The raffle for prizes are always the annual highlight. The sponsers go all out in donating these large items to the school. Trips, cruises and cars are always some of the favorite big ticket items. A lot of funds are generated from solely the raffles. It's a win-win for everyone as it's an inexpensive day out with the proceeds going to a great cause.

This is an annual event that should not be missed. Mostly because it benefits our wonderful,…read moredepleted and somewhat polluted Silver Spring. While discovering all about the Silver Spring you can enjoy a multitude of fun. For 2 days there are musicians playing mostly blue grass at the mansion stage as well as the dock stage. This year there were 40 vendors selling a wide variety merchandise. Movies and exhibits are always fun and educational. New this year were beautiful mermaids in a cute indoor setting where children can have there photo taken with them. It's surely to return next year as it was a huge hit. Auctions of one of a kind art run both days and there's always a signing of a celebrity of some sort. The most popular event are the famous glass bottom boats. It's your only chance to ride one for only 1/2 price!

Every year they out do themselves from the previous year and this year was wayyy over the top!!…read moreAfter 32 years they're really pros at it. Breaking it down, there were over 100 local & out of town vendors, 5 hours of non-stop entertainment, the most well attended annual event at 20,000 people, 10 whole blocks of fun, Santa's first appearance in his sleigh, Jr. Sunshine parade, ice skating rink, 4 stages of live music & entertainment, Whoville, large children's entertainment area and a 42' Christmas tree. Whew! New this year is the children's area, the Grinch & all of Whoville made you want to be a kid again. I loved all the photo ops. The 4 stages had continuous live entertainment so no matter where you were you could enjoy what they had to offer. The faux ice skating rink is always enjoyed by the kids and it's just a joy to see this added lighted tent through out the season. Then there's the lights. Ohhhh those lights. Blinking, changing, twinkling, hanging from trees, wrapped around the trunks, along the buildings, they're beautiful and they're everywhere. It was also good to see private employees working at night--fixing or holding up electrical extensions, telling people to be careful not to trip over the cords and other mechanical related issues. I have to say a personal thanks to the city for being the only event downtown to have a legitimate, large, dedicated ADA parking lot that was over seen by OPD! This is how it should be at every downtown event and I'm hoping others will take a cue from this. If you miss the official LUO day no fear. You can visit downtown every night during the season to view the lights, ice skate on weekends and see Santa and Mrs. Claus every Tues. & Thurs. I can't wait to see how they top this family event next year!