On a typical Saturday, Miami Beach residents Brad and Margaret Klimek would never imagine themselves spending a night on Ocean Drive, where tourists usually outnumber locals.

``We would usually go to eat somewhere else on the beach or hang out with friends,'' said Brad, 34, who works for the U.S. Coast Guard. ``Not tonight.''

Along with thousands of South Floridians and visitors happily caught off guard, the Klimeks sat near the beach Saturday evening plotting late-night traipsings around the city and agreeing to lose a few Z's.

Sleepless Night, a 13-hour cultural extravaganza of free art, music and dance made a comeback Saturday evening and Sunday morning after fundraising shortfalls forced its cancellation last year.

The 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. event included 150 performances and exhibits at 80 locations. Modeled after the Nuit Blanche series in Rome and Montreal, the most popular attractions were around South Beach, where crowds spilled from sidewalks along Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue for performances. But events ran all night from North Beach to the South of Fifth neighborhood.

While Brad and Margaret watched a gravity-defying aerial dance performance by Animate Objects Physical Theater on a stage near Ocean Drive and Eighth Street, revelers sporting boxer shorts and cotton pants -- the night kicked off with a one-mile pajama race -- checked out a mini-circus of theater and trapeze acts a few blocks north.

Near the Wolfsonian Museum, where admission was free, crowds gathered to catch shuttles to events north and south. Jessica Machadl of the Miami Poetry Collective took a breather outside the building before performing original poems on demand inside the ``museum of thinkism'' known for its out-of-the-ordinary collection.

`GETTING BETTER'

``Ten years ago, South Beach was just club kids, but now there's much more art,'' said Machadl, 33. ``It keeps getting better.''

Organizers did not release attendance numbers Sunday for this year's Sleepless Night, but more than 100,000 people attended in 2007. The event cost about $675,000 -- raised mostly through grants and private sponsorships.

Revelers who saw both incarnations agreed: This year's crowds were bigger, the shuttle buses and information booths were better organized and events were better spread out. In a year when arts funding has been cut and when a ticket to cultural productions may not be as affordable, a big draw of the night was that everything was free, including Red Bull and Café Bustelo.

``I love it!'' said Joyce Meyers, a city planner from Coral Gables while on her way to catch a 10 p.m. gospel performance by Seraphic Fire at the Miami Beach Community Church. ``I go to cultural events often, but it's great to have them all at once.''

Groups such as the Miami City Ballet, Miami Light Project and the Miami Symphony Orchestra also performed for free.

CUBAN SALSA BEATS

At the Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater, DJs and instrumentalists threw a six-hour dance party to Cuban salsa beats. At Collins Avenue and 22nd Street, bands including the Spam Allstars and Jacob Jeffries Band rocked until early morning.

``I just turned 21 and have started coming to the beach for clubs, but this is a nice change of pace,'' said Jessica Goldfarb, of Aventura, while headed to a performance at the Miami Beach Botanical Gardens shortly before 11 p.m.

Around the same time a few blocks to her north, Theresa Clough was just leaving the Miami Beach Regional Library as it closed.

She had no idea what Sleepless Night was but was delighted to have five more hours than usual to read books like Robinson Crusoe.

``It's great to see folks out tonight,'' said Clough, 60. ``They should do this more often.''

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