Free Fall Baltimore in Mount Vernon

It's back for the third year, Free Fall Baltimore. Throughout October, some of the best of Baltimore's cultural events are free for the public. Free Fall activities in Baltimore's Mount Vernon include:

  • Dance Classes - Free dance classes for teens and adults. October 14, 21, & 28 from 6-8 pm. Eubie Blake Cultural Center.
  • The Gambit - Free staged reading of UB Professor Peter Toran's award-winning play about Rudolf Hess, the last surviving military official convicted at the Nuremburg Trials. Monday, October 13, 7 pm. For free passes, email spotlightub@ubalt.edu.
  • Opera Potpourri - A program of one act operas sung in English. Peabody Institute, Monday, October 20, 7:30 pm, Friedberg Concert Hall. 
  • Tom Hall and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society - Family concert and community sing-along featuring great American choral classics. Enoch Pratt Free Library. Saturday, October 25, 2 pm.

For more information, visit www.FreeFallBaltimore.com.

  

WYPR Mount Vernon Minute

Featured this week on the WYPR Mount Vernon Minute, airing Friday morning following the 10 AM NPR News Headlines:

  • The Baltimore Opera Company opens the season with Giuseppi Verdi's Aida. Performances at the Lyric Opera House October 11, 15, 17, 18, 19.
  • James Harp, Chorus Master of the Baltimore Opera Company, leads a lively discussion on Aida called Opera in Plain English. Enoch Pratt Free Library, Sunday, October 12, 2 pm.
  • Opening Thursday, October 16, at the Strand Theater, Watch, A Haunting, a new play by Molly Rice.
     

  

Kids Love Downtown Baltimore in October

October is filled with events for kids in Downtown Baltimore during Kids Month 2008.. Activities throughout the month include:

  • Halloween Happenings at the Maryland Historical Society - Cider, popcorn, and scary stories. Saturday, October 25.

For the complete schedule of Kids Month activities, visit www.KidsLoveDowntownBaltimore.com.

 

  

One Maryland, One Book & One Great Night

The Maryland Humanities Council uses literature, history, philosophy, archeology, and the social sciences as tools for exploring and generating conversations about critical issues. This mission is demonstrated by two current programs:

For more information on the Maryland Humanities Council, visit www.mdhc.org.

 

Coming Soon to Theatre Project

Theatre Project continues its history of experimental theater and music in 2008-09:

  • Cyclopedia - Unpredictable adventures of three odd and ever-changing characters as they make their way through a sea of manmade madness. October 16-19.Margolis Brown Company.

For more information, visit www.TheatreProject.org.

  

This Fall at the Contemporary Museum

Sound, theater, literature, and storytelling come together at the Contemporary Museum in a new project by Kianga Ford titled, My Life in Fiction. Hear short stories, narratives, and oral histories that involve the audience in earthly and site-specific experiences. Running through Sunday, November 23.

The Contemporary Museum recently announced Art Auction 2008. On Friday, October 24, attend a reception & silent and live auction. The reception and silent auction start at 6:30 pm, with the live auction at 8 pm. Admission: Non-members $30;  Members $25.  

For more information, visit www.Contemporary.org. The Contemporary Museum, named Best Art Museum in 2008 by City Paper. 

  

October Dazzles at the Walters

October offers a full menu of events at the Walters Art Museum:

  • Autumn Colors - Celebrate the beauty of autumn with a selection of Japanese Edo paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries. Open through November 30. 
  • Bedazzled: 5,000 Years of Jewelry - Starting Sunday, October 19, see over 200 items from the Walters collection - many never displayed before - that demonstrate jewelry as an expression of creativity, wealth, and position. Through January 4, 2009.
  • The Family Festival of Treasures - From 10 am to 4 pm Saturday, October 25, families can celebrate kings and queens.

For more information on the Walters, visit www.TheWalters.org. 

  

2008-09 at the Peabody Institute

An exciting new season of opera, jazz, classical, contemporary music and more is underway at the Peabody Institute. Upcoming attractions include:

  • Opera Potpourri - A program on one-act operas sung in English. Part of Free Fall Baltimore. Monday, October 20, 7:30 pm. Friedberg Concert Hall.
  • Peabody Symphony Orchestra - Guest conductor, Gustav Meier, leads a program that includes Bela Bartok's Two Portraits and Rimsky Korsakov's Scheherazade. Tuesday, October 21, 8 pm, Friedberg Concert Hall.  
  • The Peabody Trio - An evening of chamber music featuring William Sharp, Baritone. Wednesday, October 22, 8 pm, Friedberg Concert Hall.


For information on tickets and the full 2008-09 season, go online to the Peabody Institute Calendar.

  

Fall Concert Schedule at the Basilica

America's First Cathedral presents a series of concerts this Fall at the  Basilica of the Assumption.  

  • Christmas with Choral Arts - Music Director Tom Hall and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society return to the Basilica. For tickets call 410-523-7070 or visit www.BaltimoreChoralArts.org. Tuesday, December 2, 7:30 pm.
  • Catholic Charities' Christmas Festival - The Concert Artists of Baltimore join the Catholic Choir for a lively holiday concert of traditional Christmas music. This year's concert, presented by PNC Bank, supports the senior residents of Catholic Charities' Jenkins Senior Living Community. Tickets: $125. For ticket information, call 410-646-6544. Thursday, December 11, 7:30 pm.
  • Baltimore Consort Christmas Concert - A special performance by the world-renowned Baltimore Consort. For ticket information, call An die Musik at 410-385-2638. Tickets: General Admission $20; Seniors $15, and Students $10. Saturday, December 13, 8 pm.  

For more information, see Concerts at the Basilica.

 

Finance Stoop Storytelling Style

Tired of reading and watching the Wall Street financial crisis? On Monday, November 10, Stoop Storytelling takes up the issue with a different twist with a program called, Money Changes Everything: Stories About Striking it Rich, Getting By, and Going Broke. As usual, the "Stoop" takes place at CENTERSTAGE. Cocktails and live music by Caleb Stine and the Brakeman at 7 PM, Storytelling at 8 PM. Advanced tickets strongly recommended. For more information, call 410-332-0033 or go to stoopstorytelling.com.

The "Stoop" offers old-fashioned storytelling for 21st century audiences. Each performance seven storytellers are given 7 minutes each to tell true, personal stories on a shared theme. No notes, no scripts, no actors - just true stories, artfully told.

 

An die Musik Live!

Named by City Paper as Best of Baltimore 2007 & 2008. This week at An die Musik Live!:

  • Jazz Film Series, Part II - A focus on musicians from the "key years" starting in 1958: Miles Davis, Wynton Marsalis, Clifforn Brown and many more. Wednesday, Octoberr 15, 7 pm.

For a complete list of films and concerts, see the An die Musik Live! Calendar.

  

Turning 50 at Spotlighters Theatre

Hats! a hillarious look at one woman's struggle with her impending 50th birthday. A fabulous musical celebration for women and the men who love them.

Hats! opens at Spotlighters Theatre Friday, October 10, and runs weekends through Sunday, November 2. One Thursday performance on October 30. Performances Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 PM & Sundays at 2 PM. For more information, visit www.Spotlighters.org.

 

  

Coming Soon at the Pratt!

Keep your calendar open for the following activites at the Enoch Pratt Free Library:

For information on other upcoming events at the Pratt, visit www.PrattLibrary.org.
 

  

"The Matchmaker" at CENTERSTAGE

Thorton Wilder's timeless romantic comedy, The Matchmaker, opens the 2008-09 season at CENTERSTAGE. Dolly Gallagher Levi uses her guile to nuture love, spread wealth, and maybe even find a husband for herself. The Matchmaker runs through Sunday, October 12.

For more information on The Matchmaker, the upcoming October 22 opening of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and the complete 2008-09 CENTERSTAGE schedule, visit www.CENTERSTAGE.org. 

 

Coming Soon to the Lyric Opera House

Opera plus comedy, music, theater, and more can be found at Baltimore's historic Lyric Opera House. Coming soon:

  • Baltimore Opera Company - The 2008-09 season opens with Aida, October 11, 15, 17,18,19.
  • Robin Williams - Award-winning actor and stand-up comic returns to the Lyric on his first tour since 2002. Thursday, October 23, 8 pm.

For tickets and a complete schedule, visit www.LyricOperaHouse.com.

  

New at the New Strand Theater

The Strand, Baltimore's newest theater, presents the world premier of Molly Rice's Watch, A Haunting. A young girl who lives with her neurotic mother and elderly grandmother spends more and more of her time in her room...consuming large amounts of food and speaking with people who might be dead. Opening Thurday, October 16, and running on selected nights through Sunday, November 2.

For more information, visit www.StrandTheaterCompany.org.

 

Baltimore's Maritime Heritage at the Maryland Historical Society


New addition to the permanent collection at the Maryland Historical Society: Maryland's Maritime Heritage: From Fells Point to the World, 1760-1850. Baltimore's history is entwined with seafaring men and ships. As one of America's earliest commercial ports and a base for the growth of the United States Navy, Baltimore played a major role in the development of the United States. The exhibit includes ships models, nautical instriments, artifacts and paintings of famous captains and ships at sea. Come see this story on display at the Maryland Historical Society.

 

2008 Basilica Lecture Series

America's First Cathedral, Baltimore's Basilica of the Assumption, hosts a series of lectures this fall:

  • The Councils of Baltimore: The 19th Century Church in the United States - Reverend Timothy Kulbicki, St. Mary's Seminary & University, Sunday, November 9, 2 PM.

All lectures free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.BaltimoreBasilica.org.

 

Walking Tours of Mount Vernon

The spring is a great time to put on your walking shoes and tour Baltimore's Mount Vernon. Options include:

  • Mount Vernon Cultural Walk - Park Rangers guide you on a walk from the Inner Harbor up Charles Street to Mount Vernon. This free tour leaves from the Inner Harbor Visitors Center at noon on weekends in April and daily starting in May.
  • Guided Walking Tours of Mount Vernon Place - Saturdays at 10 AM. Meet at the lobby of the Peabody Court Hotel. Reservations must be made in advance by calling Ed at 410-385-0424. $10 per person.
  • Mount Vernon Literary Walking Tour - the Maryland Humanities Council offers a self-guided tour of the Mount Vernon haunts of famous writers like Edgar Allan Poe, H. L. Mencken, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and more. Downnload a map from MDHC.org. and take a walk.  

 

Mount Vernon Ghost Walk Returns!

They're back...the Ghosts of Mount Vernon. The Mount Vernon Ghost Walk returns every Friday starting March 7. The fun starts at 7:00 PM at the Owl Bar of the Belvedere Hotel. Admire architecture while guides regale you with the history and haunted lore of Mount Vernon...home to many of Baltimore's legendary citizens. For ticket information and more, contact Baltimore Ghost Tours at  www.BaltimoreGhostTours.com.

 

  

Farmer's and Flea Markets Return!

On the first Saturday of every month from May to November, come check-out the vendors offering antiques, paintings, clothing and other items for sale at the Station North Arts District Flea Market. In its second year of operation, the market opens at 9:00 AM at a new location on North Avenue between Howard Street and Maryland Avenue. The next flea market is Saturday, October 4.

The place to be on Sunday mornings - from May 4 through the December 21 -  is the Baltimore Farmer's Market. Underneath the Jones Falls Expressway at the corner of Holliday and Saratoga you'll find fresh produce, fruit, herbs, flowers and more. The market opens at 8:00 AM. 

  

Tour the Basilica - America's Oldest Cathedral

The City Paper calls it Best of Baltimore 2007, the restored Basilica of the Assumption - America's first Cathedral. Free tours are available daily to see the light-filled Cathedral designed by Benjamin H. Latrobe, architect of the United States Capitol Building. 

  • Monday - Friday: 9AM, 11AM, & 1PM
  • Saturday: Call 410-727-3565 Monday-Friday for Saturday tour availability.
  • Sunday: 12 Noon

For more information on Basilica Tours, including maps, directions and frequently asked questions, click here.  

 

  

Smooth Live Jazz at the Tremont Park


Set aside Friday and Saturday evenings to hear Smooth Live Jazz at the Celebrities Lounge of the Tremont Park Hotel. Performances run from 6-9 PM on Fridays and 7-10 PM on Saturdays. Admission is free with door prizes and drink specials. Great music, great food, great fun in an intimate setting. Tremont Park Hotel, 8 East Pleasant Street, call 410-576-1200 for more information.

 

Charm City Attractions

For more things to do in Baltimore, visit Baltimore Attractions at Baltimore.Org.