Jacksonville Indoor Activities

Originally built in 1927, 5 Points Theatre has undergone a transformation throughout the years from "talkie" palace to neo-modern nightclub to contemporary art-house cinema, earning accolades from the Florida Times-Union for its eclectic and offbeat lineup of films. The upcoming calendar hosts a variety of exclusives and special showings in addition to popcorn-popping Hollywood releases. Stop in for cult-classic midnight screenings, during which the theater transforms into a pumpkin carriage piloted by the delicate dreams of cinematic fans. The eclectic mix of motion pics ensures you'll still be able to catch Blue Valentine between viewings of foreign flicks, such as the Best Picture–nominated British historical drama The King's Speech.

The student walks into the packed studio, decked out for a night on the town. He’s nervous, thinking that perhaps one salsa class wasn’t enough to prepare him for the social setting. But once the Latin beats start to fill the space, the steps come back to him. He grabs a partner’s hand, and they hit the floor. Such is the scene at one of The Dance Shack’s in-house dance parties, where Shackers try out the skills they have learned in group or private lessons within the studio’s familiar confines before they hit the club.

Even though Perry Farrell coined the phrase “Alternative Nation,” invented the Lollapalooza concert series, and played midwife to the genre of modern rock in the 1990s, his musical powers are even more attuned in 2012. Jane’s Addiction, composed of frontman Farrell, guitar wizard Dave Navarro, drummer Stephen Perkins, and Chris Chaney on bass, could be Florida retirees betting on games of shuffleboard and coasting off the success of seminal albums such as Nothing’s Shocking and Ritual De Lo Habitual. Instead, the band lets its freak flag fly with its latest album, The Great Escape Artist and its subsequent Theatre of the Escapists tour.

A year before her death in 1959, Ninah Cummer—an art collector, garden enthusiast, and civic leader—donated her riverfront home and art collection to the community, imploring her fellow citizens to help support the foundation of an art museum. In less than 10 years, the board of trustees transformed the abode into the verdant Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, adding to Ninah's original gift of 60 pieces until the collection included nearly 1,000 works of art.

Today, the permanent collection holds pieces that span more than four millennia, from 2,100 B.C. to the 21st century. An ancient Egyptian stone tablet intrigues viewers with cryptic hieroglyphs and stylized portraits while, nearby, Peter Paul Rubens' The Lamentation of Christ epitomizes the colorful, sweepingly histrionic style of the Baroque painters. American treasures include Gilbert Stuart's iconic portrait of George Washington—one of over 100 he painted in an attempt to perfect the likeness of the first president and design a killer mask for the White House Halloween party.

After getting their fill of indoor beauty, guests can head to the open air and vibrant scenery of the museum's gardens. Begun more than a century ago, the gardens crisscross with winding paths that take guests under the canopies of majestic oaks and alongside the Italian garden's shimmering reflecting pools.

Culled from samples found in her own backyard, Madge Wallace exhibited her first small naturalist collection in her New Riverside School classroom in 1910. Her museum relocated to a Victorian mansion in the decades to follow before settling on its current location on the south bank of the St. Johns River. Known as Museum of Science & History since 1988, the facility currently hosts changing and core exhibits that feature towering marine skeletons and interactive stations strewn through a mock digestive tract where visitors learn about bodily functions. At Currents of Time, history buffs can amass nuggets of local knowledge as they trace Jacksonville's history to more than 12,000 years ago. Elsewhere, The Bryan-Gooding Planetarium's 35,000-watt sound system enthralls guests at Cosmic Concert laser shows every Friday night, and monthly MOSH After Dark sessions educate adults with hands-on workshops and scientific lectures.

Known locally as MOCA, the Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville boasts a collection of almost 800 works of art in media ranging from paintings and prints to sculpture and photography, spanning the decades from 1960 to the present. Members of MOCA enjoy free admission to the museum as well as previews of temporary exhibitions and special promotions from interest groups, and more than 200 North American museums reciprocate benefits, offering members free admission and teaching them their unique secret handshakes. The curators of the museum harness their artistic expertise to help educate kids on the pros and cons of finger-painting on dogs, and infuse local classrooms with art-education programs with the help of a long list of volunteers and docents.