Welcome to Thursday Morning, Orlando!
Alright, people. Valentine’s Day is coming up on Saturday. This is your time to shine because this weekend edition has some fantastic outings for couples! Chaaaarge!
Now, in today’s issue:
- Faded to Fabulous
- Jane Austen Fest
- Carmen
- + lots of weekend recs
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Let’s roll!
- Philip
P.S. Want some hawt community sourced foodie recommendations? Check out the Orlando Signal Restaurant Guide, right here.
P.P.S. Check out tons of open Orlando area jobs at the Orlando Signal Job Board, right here.
🍽️ Your February just got more interesting: OS Dinner Club hits College Park Feb 27th
We’ve already tackled Ivanhoe Village, Milk District, and Winter Park. Now, our 4th Orlando Signal Dinner Club installment arrives in College Park on Thursday, February 26th at 6:30 p.m..
Here's how it works: Take our quiz. We match you with five people from around Orlando. You all meet at a yummy local College Park spot for dinner and delightful conversation. Then, we text everyone a nearby place to reconvene and keep it rolling in an after-party style so all tables can meet each other.
Mark your calendars, take the quiz, get matched, and come out to meet some new friends and neighbors.
🖱️Tap/Click & Reserve Your Spot, Right Here
3 QUICK NEWS BITS ⏲️
The Birds Are Back: Audubon's Raptor Haven Returns
After months of waiting, the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey in Maitland is throwing open its doors February 14th and 15th for a weekend celebration.
The star attraction? The shiny new Sitek Smith Owl Aviary, where you'll get crystal-clear views of resident Barred Owls and Great Horned Owls, nothing between you and these feathered night hunters.
Expect Raptor Chats, owl meet-and-greets, and activities for everyone. Starting Friday, you can wander the outdoor aviaries and discover how Florida's injured raptors get patched up and sent back to the skies.
Missing your favorite feathered friends? Your reunion awaits.
Check out the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey in Maitland, right here.
From Faded to Fabulous: How Orange County Neighborhoods Are Getting a Boost
Orange County is handing out up to $15,000 per neighborhood to spruce up shared spaces across unincorporated areas, and residents are jumping at the chance.
The Neighborhood Beautification Grant Program helps communities tackle everything from crumbling entrance walls to tired playgrounds.
Neighborhoods without formal associations can snag non-matching grants for projects like fresh signage and solar lighting.
Homeowner associations get matching funds covering up to 50 percent of costs for landscaping makeovers, irrigation fixes, and playground upgrades.
The best part is, these projects do more than pretty up the block, they bring neighbors together and stop decline before it starts. It's proof that a little money in the right hands can make streets feel like home again.
⁉️ Want to learn more about the Beautification Grant Program? Check it out, right here.
Busted Dealers Just Bought Your Neighborhood Free Ice Cream
The Orange County Sheriff's Office just got into the ice cream “business,” and yes, it's exactly as delightful as it sounds.
OCSO recently picked up an ice cream truck using funds confiscated from drug dealers, flipping dirty money into something decidedly more wholesome: free frozen treats for the community.
The truck will cruise through Orange County neighborhoods in the coming weeks, dispensing complimentary cones and popsicles.
Want to know when it's rolling your way? Follow OCSO on social media for location updates and prepare to flag down what might be the most popular vehicle in law enforcement.
It's poetic justice with a cherry on top, literally turning ill-gotten gains into Good Humor bars and smiles.
🍦 Check out this video, right here.
WEEKEND SPOT HIGHLIGHT 🔦
MOUNT DORA Jane Austen Fest
Source: Mount Dora
📍Annie Donnelly Park. 530 North Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL, 32757. Map to this location.
🕐 Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, February 13th through 15th
This is outstanding for a day experience just outside of Orlando!
While Bridgerton fans scroll through costume boards, Mount Dora offers something better: the chance to actually live it.
This weekend, the Mount Dora Jane Austen Fest transforms the historic lakeside downtown into a Regency haven. Think elegant balls, afternoon teas at the historic Donnelly House, dance lessons, and lectures from published Austen scholars.
It's literary devotion meets historical authenticity, an invitation to step beyond the page and into the romance and wit of Austen's world.
👉 Check It Out
TOP 3 FUN RECS FOR THE WEEKEND 🍊
The Golden Retriever of Comedy - Dan Soder
Source: Dan Soder
📍The Plaza Live Orlando. 425 N Bumby Ave, Orlando, FL 32803. Map to this location.
🕐 Friday, February 13th, 7 p.m.
When Dan Soder takes the stage this Friday, expect comedy that feels like catching up with your funniest friend.
Soder has built his career on authenticity, from his breakout Netflix appearance on The Standups and Comedy Central's Not Special to his 2019 HBO special Son of a Gary.
His latest, Dan Soder: On The Road, has over 4 million YouTube views. Currently on the second leg of a 25-city national theatre tour with Outback Presents, he's also known for co-hosting SiriusXM's The Bonfire (2015-2023), playing Mafee on Showtime's Billions, and hosting the podcast Soder.
👉 Get more info, right here
Lakeridge Winefest 2026
Source: Lakeridge Winery & Vineyards
📍Lakeridge Winery & Vineyards 19239 US-27, Clermont, FL 34715. Map to this location.
🕐 Friday through Sunday, February 13th-15th, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Winefest invites you to savor the previous year's harvest across three days of music, wine, and vineyard views.
Lakeridge's award-winning wines, from dry to sweet, flow alongside live performances from the area's top bands. Local artisans display handcrafted treasures while cornhole games dot the grounds beneath shade trees.
The food pavilion offers plenty of options, plus ice cream and kettle corn. Winery tours depart every 15 to 20 minutes, tracing Florida grapes from vine to bottle.
It's where time slows down just enough to notice the details.
👉 Get the full details
Orlando Ballet’s Carmen
Source: Orlando Ballet
📍Steinmetz Hall. 445 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL 32801. Map to this location.
🕐 Thursday through Friday, February 12th through 15th, 7:30 p.m. & 2 p.m.
Orlando Ballet strips away familiarity from this iconic tale with visceral intensity. The staging unfolds like film, driven by a pulsing score and explosive choreography that's all grit and heat.
At the center: Carmen, a woman living entirely on her own terms. Magnetic and untamed, she derails lives with effortless charisma. What follows is a tight spiral of desire, possession, and ruin, where jealousy festers and obsession blurs into destruction.
This production doesn't hold back. Sensual without softness, dramatic and unapologetically bold.
👉 Check it out, right here
MORE WEEKEND HAPPENINGS 🎭 🥁
Multi-Day
Love Your Shorts Film Festival | Fri, Sat, Sun | Sanford | More
Spark STEM Fest | Sat, Sun, Mon | Downtown | More
UCF Knights Baseball vs. Siena College Saints | Fri, Sat, Sun | More
Anthem’s Got Balls: Cupid Ball | Sat & Sun | Downtown | More
Friday - 13th
🔥Biergarten Fridays | 5 p.m. | Casselberry | More
TABV: Festival Pass | 8 a.m. | Delaney Park | More
Lovers, Goats & Coffee | 3 p.m. | Audubon Park | More
Board & Boujee’s Galentine’s Party | 6 p.m. | Conway/Curry Ford | More
Love & Misfit | 6 p.m. | Mills 50 | More
Good Terms, Pretty Pity, Braveweather | 7 p.m. | Mills 50 | More
Timucua Amplifies Black Voices: K.I.M. (Keeping It Moving) | 7:30 p.m. | Wadeview Park | More
The Blues Is Alright Tour | 8 p.m. | UCF | More
Nuthin’ But Love | 10 p.m. | Mills 50 | More
Saturday - 14th
This Is Spinal Tap | 9:30 p.m. | Maitland | More
Indie-Folkfest at Mennello Museum | 12 p.m. | Lake Formosa | More
Daylite Love Fest at Elixir | 10 a.m. | Downtown | More
Zafra | 2 p.m. | Downtown | More
UCF Knights Mens Basketball vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Men's Basketball | 6 p.m. | UCF | More
Joey Valence and Brae | 6 p.m. | Downtown | More
Druid Lord's Anti-Valentine's Day Party w/ Hatred Creation, Gnarcoossee, and Riffissippi | 7 p.m. | Winter Park | More
15th Annual Monster Bulls | 7:30 p.m. | Kissimmee | More
Robert Cray Band | 8 p.m. | Milk District | More
Sunday - 15th
Sensory Sunday: Celebrating Black Storytellers | 12 p.m. | Downtown | More
UCF Knights Womens Basketball vs. Baylor Bears Womens Basketball | 2 p.m. | UCF | More
Community of the Heart Sound Journey | 5 p.m. | Winter Park | More
Unwritten Law, Zebrahead, Suck Brick Kid | 7 p.m. | Winter Park | More
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THANKS!
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We’ll see you on Monday.
My Best,
Philip - Publisher, Orlando Signal
