Arts and exhibitions in Lakeland: November 2026

Last checked Nov. 7, 2026. Covers Nov. 7 to Dec. 19. Every listing is from the organizer’s own page: the Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art, Lakeland Community Theatre, the Polk Theatre’s box office, the RP Funding Center, the Lakeland Symphony Orchestra, Color Wave and the Lakeland Downtown Development Authority’s calendar. This page is refreshed each month at the same address.

Lakeland’s arts calendar for November: the city’s first mural festival paints 11 downtown walls from Nov. 6 to 14, Misery runs at Lakeland Community Theatre, and The AGB opens LIFE: Six Women Photographers on Nov. 14. The Polk Theatre shows a classic film most weeks, and the holiday shows start with Cirque Dreams on Nov. 19.

Updated Nov. 7: past dates dropped; Warhol Condensed added; Frozen now runs to Dec. 20; Three Dog Night time, Celtic Angels Christmas Dec. 15 and the symphony’s Carols Dec. 19 added.

Exhibitions now showing

The Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art, known as The AGB and formerly the Polk Museum of Art, is at 800 E. Palmetto St., across Lake Morton from the Lakeland Public Library. The museum says parking is free. It is closed Mondays and major holidays; check its visit page for opening hours before you go.

• LIFE: Six Women Photographers, opens Saturday, Nov. 14, through March 7, 2027. More than 70 images by Margaret Bourke-White, Marie Hansen, Martha Holmes, Lisa Larsen, Nina Leen and Hansel Mieth, who shot for LIFE magazine from the late 1930s, the museum says. Exhibition page.
• Florida in Bloom: The Rise of the Highwaymen, through Dec. 31, 2027. Landscapes by the Florida Highwaymen, the Black artists who sold their paintings from their cars from the 1950s, on long-term loan from the Woodsby family. Exhibition page.
• The Sheriff Shoots: Photographs by Grady Judd, through Jan. 3, 2027. Wildlife photographs of Florida habitats by the longtime Polk County sheriff. Exhibition page.
• Balancing Dualities: The Sculpture of Li Hongwei, through Feb. 28, 2027. Porcelain and steel sculpture by the Chinese artist, the museum’s own original exhibition. Exhibition page.
• When Old is New: American Art Reconsidered, through Dec. 31, 2027. The museum’s American works hung beside loans from the Ulrich Museum of Art in Wichita, Kansas, by theme, not by date. Exhibition page.
• Lasting Impressions: Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection (1859-2010), through Feb. 28, 2027. Prints, drawings and mixed media on paper. Exhibition page.
• This Just In! New Works From the Permanent Collection, through Feb. 21, 2027. Exhibition page.
• Surface, Service, and Splendor: Decorating History in Clay, through Dec. 31, 2027. Decorated ceramics from the collection. Exhibition page.
• Student Gallery: Learning to Be Me, art by Polk County students in kindergarten to second grade, through Nov. 29; then Art Out Loud, grades 6 to 8, from Dec. 5 to Jan. 10, 2027. Learning to Be Me and Art Out Loud.
• Warhol Condensed: From Marilyn to Soup and Back Again, through Feb. 21, 2027. Andy Warhol’s Pop Art from the museum’s collection. Exhibition page.

Color Wave Mural Festival, through Saturday, Nov. 14. Lakeland’s first mural festival brings 11 artists to paint 11 walls across downtown; the organizers plan to hold it every two years. Color Wave.

Theater and dance

• Misery, Lakeland Community Theatre main stage, 121 S. Lake Ave., through Nov. 15: 7:30 p.m. Nov. 7, 13 and 14, and 2 p.m. Nov. 8 and 15. Tickets $24 to $30. Lakeland Community Theatre.
• Cirque Dreams Holidaze, Thursday, Nov. 19, RP Funding Center, 701 W. Lime St. A holiday circus show; one performance. Check the RP Funding Center for the curtain time.
• Swan Lake: Symphony of Lights, 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 27, Polk Theatre, 121 S. Florida Ave. Box office.
• Disney’s Frozen, Lakeland Community Theatre, Dec. 11 to 20: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11, 12, 17, 18 and 19, and 2 p.m. Dec. 12, 13, 19 and 20. Tickets $24 to $30. Lakeland Community Theatre.

Concerts and classical

• Lakeland Symphony Orchestra: American Ingenuity, 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, at The AGB, 800 E. Palmetto St. The orchestra’s chamber orchestra in its Gallery Concert Series. General admission $60, including a 6 p.m. reception. Lakeland Symphony Orchestra.
• The Women of Rock Las Vegas Show, 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7, Polk Theatre. Box office.
• Magical Motown Christmas, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5, RP Funding Center. RP Funding Center.
• Three Dog Night, 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 11, RP Funding Center. RP Funding Center.
• Almost Carpenters Christmas Show, 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12, Polk Theatre. Box office.
• Celtic Angels Christmas, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 15, Polk Theatre. Box office.
• Lakeland Symphony Orchestra: Carols, 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 20, Branscomb Auditorium at Florida Southern College, 111 Lake Hollingsworth Drive. $60 reserved, $30 general admission, students free. Lakeland Symphony Orchestra.

Film

Classic and family films at the Polk Theatre, tickets through the box office:

Classes and workshops

• Auditions: Lakeland Community Theatre holds Theatre for Youth auditions for Trolls Jr. from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, the theater lists, and auditions for Finding Neverland at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 30, and Tuesday, Dec. 1. Audition details.

Regular events

• First Friday downtown, 6 to 9 p.m. on the first Friday of each month, with a Makers Market of local artists. December’s is the Holiday Spectacular on Friday, Dec. 4. There is no First Friday in January, the LDDA says.

Coming next: The Nutcracker by the International Ballet of Florida at 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 20, at the Polk Theatre. See our Nutcracker and holiday shows page. For everything else this month, see things to do this month and things to do this weekend. Downtown parking is free on weekends and after 5 p.m.; see our downtown Lakeland guide.

Send us your event

Running a gallery opening, a show or a concert in Lakeland? Email us the date, time, venue, price and a photo, and we will add it to this page.

Frequently asked questions

What exhibitions are on in Lakeland now?

The Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art (The AGB) has Florida in Bloom: The Rise of the Highwaymen, The Sheriff Shoots: Photographs by Grady Judd, Balancing Dualities: The Sculpture of Li Hongwei and several permanent collection shows on view. LIFE: Six Women Photographers opens Nov. 14 and runs to March 7, 2027.

What is on at Lakeland Community Theatre this fall?

Misery runs through Nov. 15, with tickets $24 to $30, then Disney’s Frozen plays Dec. 11 to 20, also $24 to $30, at 121 S. Lake Ave.

What is the Color Wave Mural Festival?

Lakeland’s first mural festival, Nov. 6 to 14, 2026: 11 artists paint 11 walls across downtown, the organizers say. It is planned as a festival held every two years.

When is the Lakeland Symphony Orchestra’s next concert?

American Ingenuity, a Gallery Concert Series program by the orchestra’s chamber players, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, at The AGB. General admission is $60, including a 6 p.m. reception. Its Carols concerts follow on Dec. 19 and 20.