Like a beating heart, red-cloaked dancers unfurl pagan patterns in a pool of golden light. Above, a fragmented wheel of fortune casts shadows on the scrim. Voices rise and fall to the rhythm of the bass drum. Antique cymbals signal a crescendo.

In one moment, I am connected to the joy, immediacy and sensuality of life. This is Carmina Burana, a dramatic cantata by composer Carl Orff, a live medieval tapestry of earthly delights woven by the Sarasota Ballet of Florida, Key Chorale and the Southwest Florida Chamber Symphony Orchestra. And it's just one of the sensory feasts that awaits the culturally inclined in Sarasota and Her Islands.

Artful Avenues and Such
Fresh ideas in art are the hallmark of Selby Gallery at Ringling School of Art & Design, which provides an intimate space for emerging and visiting contemporary artists. Its annual faculty show is a must-see in early fall.

The City of Venice offers a handful of galleries, including one of famed Everglades photographer Clyde Butcher's, as well as the Venice Art Center, a gallery and learning space.

And for art al fresco, amble along our avenues. Palm Avenue and Main Street delight with a range of intriguing galleries. View them at your own pace during the downtown art walks from 6 to 9 p.m. the first Friday of each month.

At Towles Court Artists Colony, wander in and out of 1920s bungalows daily, or during gallery art walks the third Friday of each month from 6 to 10 p.m.

Frescoes and Friezes
In addition to its permanent collection of paintings by Rubens, Van Dyck and Rembrandt, and excellent examples of non-Western art, the Ringling Museum of Art hosts traveling exhibitions from top international collections.

This year's highlights include Francisco Goya's influential series, Los Caprichosa. There, you'll also be mesmerized by Cuba Avant-Garde: Contemporary Cuban Art from the

The Sarasota Ballet of Florida performs at the Sarasota Opera House

Farber Collection.

The contemplative and serene sculptures and exquisite small Chinese objects once on display at the Museum of Asian Art are now housed at the Ringling as part of its permanent collection.

Adagio and Allegro
Beauty, athleticism and grace combine with stunning scores and fabulous costumes in the 16th anniversary season of the Sarasota Ballet of Florida. The landmark ballet, Coppelia, in March will feature a farewell performance by artistic director Robert de Warren, who leaves the ballet after 12 years. His final season included the U.S. premiere of Othello, a de Warren production based on Shakespeare's dramatic masterpiece, and The Nutcracker's return after a two-year hiatus.

Sarasota Opera is known for its traditional staging and ebullient costumes and sets. The 2006-2007 season features Moniusko's Halka, long considered Poland's national opera; Puccini's Madama Butterfly; and Verdi's Attila, a thrilling story of love, ambition, passion and betrayal.

Vene, Vidi, Verdi
Strings, winds, percussion and maestro - add music and you've got the Florida West Coast Symphony. The symphony brings sonic variety and richness to several venues throughout the community. Chamber music enthusiasts will enjoy Salon Soirees on Sunday afternoons, Wednesday late afternoons and Friday evenings.

Savor Enchanted Evenings with Florida West Coast Symphony maestro Leif Bjaland in late February, as well as everything from Beethoven to Tchaikovsky to Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera. This top-flight symphony shines brilliantly.

The Venice Symphony performs December through April, and offers pops and classical concerts at various locales in Venice.

Festivals celebrating all things musical include La Musica, an annual chamber music festival scheduled for April; and June's Sarasota Music Festival, which celebrates its 43rd year. The annual Sarasota Jazz Festival will feature scat-and-jam masters from near and far in March.

The Play's the Thing
Theaters and their companies provide a plot twist for the cultural arts scene, from professional groups to dinner theaters to amateur dramatics.

At the Asolo Repertory Theatre, enjoy professional productions such as the powerful Amadeus, the classic Pride & Prejudice and the charming comedy, Darwin in Malibu.

The reborn Historic Asolo Theater gears up for its first season in decades. The theater is on the grounds of the Ringling Museum of Art (and is across the street from the Asolo Repertory Theatre). A staging of Nobody Don't Like Yogi kicks off the 2007 season, followed by a Sarasota Pops Orchestra concert in March and the Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe productions of Fences, Dreamgirls and Once on This Island.

The Banyan Theater Company keeps theater alive during the summer months, as do other marvelous venues such as Sarasota's Florida Studio Theatre (FST) and the award-winning Venice Little Theatre. The Venice mainstage season features The Full Monty, Moliere's The School for Wives and The Rocky Horror Show. FST presents world premieres and contemporary works from on and off-Broadway.

Wine and dine at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre, where a recent Broadway production is slated for a January 2007 debut.

Music? Dance? Theater? You can see it all at Sarasota's Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, affectionately known as the purple cow. Revel in the Russian National Ballet Theatre's Romeo & Juliet, Broadway's Mamma Mia and a performance by singer Tom Jones. The Florida West Coast Symphony, the Sarasota Concert Association and the Jazz Club of Sarasota all call the hall home.

The Players Theatre just north of downtown Sarasota delights year after year with up-tempo musicals, including Miss Saigon, The Sound of Music and Red Hot Cole, as well as concerts.

Recently, area arts venues have taken advantage of their bayfront settings: Live music and cocktails on the gorgeous terrace of Cà d'Zan mansion every Third Thursday; Friday Fests throughout the summer at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and live jazz under the banyans at Selby Gardens.

Come to Sarasota and Her Islands to create your own sensory feast from an artistic smorgasbord that offers, like Orff's cantata, moments that connect us to the wheel of life.