5 Things You Need To Know Today: November 29

1. The City Council will meet Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. to discuss plans and funding for the Manatee River Hotel aka, the pink palace.

2. The County Commission meets in a worksession at 9 a.m. today to discuss the county jail.

3. The School of Russian Ballet will present The Nutcracker at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. Saturday at the Auditorium. The School of Russian Ballet dancers will be joined on stage by International guest artists: Sergiy Mykhaylov (Ukraine), former Principal Dancer of the Sarasota Ballet of Florida and Director of the School of Russian Ballet, as Herr Drosselmeyer; Maksim Maksimov Spasov (Bulgaria), former Soloist Dancer of the Bulgarian National Ballet, as the Rat King; Cara Marie Gary, Dancer of the Orlando Ballet, as the Sugar Plum Fairy; and Balazs Krajczar (Hungary), Dancer of the Orlando Ballet, as the Cavalier. Tickets are $15 to $25 adults and $12 for children 3-11. For information call 941-962-6664 or 941-962-6607.

4. will host Holiday's with Healing Heroes Network Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Healing Heroes was established after the attacks on the twin towers. Healing Heroes provide financial assistance for therapies and services for injuries such as Traumatic Brain injury and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Mixon's doesn't usually open at night so this is an opportunity for those that are working to support our military and do a little shopping at the same time.  It will cost $15 to enter Mixon's and the check should be written out to the Healing Heroes Network. Mixon's will give the first 200 people a gift bag with items from Mixon's plus some promotional items valued between $15 and $25 from local businesses that support the cause. There will be a drawing for a Swarovsky Crystal necklace with a value of $99. For more information 748-5829

5. A free screening of The Good Kids, a short film that addresses bullying, will be offered to the public at Lakewood Ranch Cinemas at 9 a.m. Saturday. The Good Kids was created by elementary, middle, and high school students during the Inspired Minds’ Film Kids Camp, and provides a unique, student perspective on the problem of bullying. In creating this short, the students of Film Kids participated in all aspects of the filmmaking process, including screenwriting, acting, directing, and production. For more information contact Heather Manley at 941-807-1303 or email Inspired Minds.