Feb. 25-March 3, 2026
A recap of Immerse Fest, a review of downtown restaurant Leiah, interviews with Slugg and Steve Hackett ahead of their concerts this week, and our Selections of the best things to do this week.
Cover Stories
Downtown Orlando was the stage for a legion of visual and performing artists at Immerse
Immerse took over downtown Orlando for a long weekend of visual and performing arts filling the streets.
Two Orlando events explore what being ‘immersed’ truly means
In recent years, “immersive” has become the most overworked buzzword in the entertainment business, with producers integrating interactive multisensory elements
Daikaiju and Yogurt Smoothness go toe-to-toe at Will’s Pub
The first draw of this show is, of course, the kabuki-masked live insanity of Alabama surf punks Daikaiju. But the second one is of particular local interest because it also features the reunion of Yogurt Smoothness, the hard-rocking homegrown duo who were reviving true grunge — not fucking post-grunge, mind you — two decades before…
Local food news: Prairie House Coffee opens in College Park; Suffering Bastard tiki bar moves to Mills 50
Local food news: Prairie House Coffee Co., run by sisters Jade Dinsdale and Alexa Maisonet, has opened a second location in College Park just a few doors down from the Gnarly Cuban.
The Deslondes bring a bouillabaisse of folk, country, blues and soul to Orlando
This young NOLA showcase mines the terroir beyond the Big Easy clichés. The Deslondes are a good band who play a rootsy bouillabaisse of folk, country, blues and soul.
Leiah in downtown Orlando combines tasting menu elegance with gastropub comfort
Leiah in downtown Orlando offers à la carte selections alongside four-, six- and eight-course tasting menus.
Bills up in Legislature could make Floridians target of secret surveillance and potential arrest
Floridians could find themselves the target of secretive government surveillance and potential arrest under legislation quietly moving through the 2026 legislative session.
Guitarist Steve Hackett plays from the book of Genesis (the band) in Orlando this week
“I’ve toured in all sorts of ways. But I do actually like working with a band. The camaraderie is important to me, the joy in that communicates to an audience wherever we happen to be.”
New on Netflix: ‘Bridgerton’ Season 4 wraps up; first Bruce Bruce stand-up special in 14 years
New on Netflix this week: Bridgerton, Baki-Dou: The Invincible Samurai, Crap Happens, Agents of Mystery, Formula 1: Drive to Survive, Bruce Bruce: I Ain’t Playin’
Orlando electronics music wizard Zap Danger releases new album ‘Hotwire’
Zap Danger does electronic dance music. But before you start getting any EDC ideas, his source inspirations are from decades before the term “EDM” was even in common parlance.
Comedic proving ground the Second City tour through Orlando this week
Sixty-seven years after its founding, the Second City is still practicing untamed improv and spirited sketch.
Comedian Katt Williams returns to an Orlando arena stage, and he’s got plenty to say
With a career spanning two decades, Katt Williams has sold out arenas by staying independent and tackling taboo topics
Viral sensation (in a good way) Petey USA is coming to Orlando to play some songs
Petey USA is different. Unlike the usual internet dregs of humanity like vacuous influencer wannabes or manosphere blowhards,
Demings gives feds more time to renegotiate reimbursement for ICE detention costs
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings on Friday extended the county’s deadline for federal officials to negotiate a higher reimbursement rate for immigrant detention costs, as county officials warn the local jail — serving as a temporary holding center for federal inmates — is stretched thin and overburdened. Mayor Demings, a former sheriff and Democratic candidate…
Ohio noise project Slugg comes to Stardust to play with some of Orlando’s wildest this week
A Slugg performance is a can’t-miss proposition — even on a weeknight — a harrowing, almost theatrical, journey through several distinct musical movements: ambient dread, minimal synth majesty, Atari Teenage Riot-style breakcore freakouts, shrieking noise and playful manipulation of trinkets and baubles as musique concrète-style sound sourcing.
The Central Florida Fair is back in Orlando with new rides and even a battle of the bands
For the 114th year, the Central Florida Fair is back in Orlando with all of the attendant rides, games and fair food.
Boundary-pushing jazz percussionist Makaya McCraven plays two nights in Orlando
Chicago-based producer, percussionist and experimental jazz artist Makaya McCraven is coming to Judson’s Live.
Juvenile and his 400 Degreez Band back into Orlando’s Hard Rock Live
Juvenile helped catapult Southern rap into the mainstream in the late 1990s with gritty storytelling and club-shaking anthems.
Orlando Sings to perform Spanish rendition of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ at Steinmetz Hall
A Spanish-language rendition of Handel’s Messiah comes to Steinmetz Hall as Orlando Sings marks its fifth anniversary season.
Downtown nightlife faces new monthly billing rules as Orlando pushes forward with Project DTO
“They are doing anything and everything they can to squeeze people out. … We already have a mechanism for this, it’s called taxes,” says Eric Fuller, owner of the nightclub Celine on Magnolia Avenue.
Randy Fine can’t stop saying he would choose dogs over Muslim people
Florida Congressman Randy Fine unleashed a series of racist social media posts that have resulted in calls for his resignation.
Planned Parenthood to close Lakeland location next month
According to the clinic’s website, the Lakeland location at 2250 E. Edgewood Drive will close its doors March 13 and provide final appointments on March 6.
