Weston, FL Indoor Activities

In 1989, Young At Art began as a small, 3,200-square-foot children’s museum dedicated to shaping young minds and enriching the community through the transformative power of art. Since then, the tiny workshop has grown into a 55,000-square-foot collection of activities celebrating the diverse influences of art on our lives and imaginations, garnering a rare accreditation by the American Association of Museums for its efforts. At ArtScapes—one of the four main exhibits—kids and their parents travel through The Cave, a frantic slideshow of images conveying 5,000 years of human history, step into a replica of a New York City subway car, and view examples of graffiti as a means of creative expression against the oppressive forces of aluminum spray cans.

Elsewhere, WonderScapes transports children up to 4 years old to a world inspired by the illustrations of DeLoss McGraw, whose version of Alice in Wonderland won the Society of Illustrators Book of the Year award in 2002, and GreenScapes demonstrates the immutable intersection of art and the environment as visitors build sculptures from natural materials. Never ones to ignore their creativity, teenagers can find refuge in the Teen Center, where a graphic design lab with Mac computers and a recording studio let them convert their pre-calc homework into digital form before it’s too late.

With only 130 seats, Mosaic Theatre can justly claim that there’s not a bad seat in the house. Designed to be a maximally flexible space, the venue changes its seating for every performance to enhance the theatergoing experience for visitors or to clear way for the mid-play goat chorus line.

Robin Ryan and Christine DeStefano know that in each person’s body is written the story of their lives, from wear and tear caused by a job to past injuries that can limit mobility. Using Reformer machines—exercise-enhancing equipment invented by concept founder Joseph Pilates—they help write a new chapter in the body’s history. Among their many benefits, Reformers help remove unnecessary joint and muscle stress from exercising, allowing people to achieve body-transforming workouts without irritating old injuries. With only five Reformers in the studio, class sizes remain intimate, allowing Robin and Christine to provide personal instruction to teach student. Classes typically last one hour or the amount of time it takes a beer belly to come to terms with its shrinking existence.

As they continue to find their ice-footing this year, the Panthers strive to wrest control of the NHL's jungle gym by dominating visiting pucksters on their home ice. Witness the squad's skate-borne feats of athleticism as they attempt to vanquish their Eastern Conference foes the Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders, or Toronto Maple Leafs. Premium lower-bowl seating gets spectators close enough to see the intricate weaving of line formations and collect ice flecks from the players’ skates to make snow cones. Your exact stadium location will be determined upon your arrival, and groups must purchase tickets together for consecutive seats if they don't want their painted torsos' letters to accidentally spell, "Flo, rid a pant. Hers."

At the Art Institute of Weston, master artist Conchita Firgau and her associate professors lead students of all ages in learning the classic style of European painting. Drawing on traditions of color, light, and composition practiced by Renaissance painters, Conchita and her staff give students the confidence and skill to develop their own style. But painting is not the only activity that goes on here. Photography classes help shutterbugs master digital cameras, and guitar classes use fun, easily digestible techniques to give more credibility to students’ air-guitar performances. The friendly studio also hosts after-school programs and camps to hone kids’ artistic talents.

Studio director Alina Primelles began practicing yoga at the age of 15 and dedicated herself to her practice, honing her technique and learning to teach classes herself. Now joined by a staff of instructors, Alina leads students of varying skill levels, abilities, and interests through an eclectic schedule of sessions that, like a treadmill-powered Jeopardy board, exercises minds and bodies. The versatile practice space accommodates a variety of yoga styles, including hot yoga, which takes advantage of magma-filled heating ducts to raise the studio space up to a sweat-inducing 100 degrees. Blue Sol Yoga's mirror-lined practice room also hosts occasional workshops, special events, and chakra cotillions in order to broaden students' yogic horizons.