Pirates of Penzance goes adrift at Toby’s
A recent Sunday matinee performance of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance at Toby’s Dinner Theatre of Columbia probably did not convince many of the kids in the audience to become fans of light opera or satire.It’s not because their doting parents and grandparents did not try; there were quite a few pre-teens in attendance, evidenced by the number of... READ MORE
Arts award winner has a song in his heart
“I nearly fell off my seat when the Governor’s office called,” said Eugene Langbehn, recalling the moment he learned he was to be presented with the Maryland Department of Aging’s Performance Arts Award.The award is given annually as part of the Governor’s Leadership in Aging Awards, which honor Marylanders age 60 and older for excellence in various categories, ... READ MORE
Celebrate summer with outdoor concerts
What says summertime fun better than breaking bread with friends or family while enjoying live musical performances in a scenic outdoor setting? Southern California offers an array of opportunities to celebrate summertime at several outdoor concerts around the region, some are even free. Within a short drive from the Coachella Valley you can enjoy a quintessential summertime experience... READ MORE
A D-Day eyewitness returns to Normandy
It’s hard to believe, but 70 years ago, on a dreary June morning, I watched a glider troop regiment slowly file out of their barracks onto the airstrip at Ramsbury, England, loaded with the paraphernalia of war. They entered their assigned gliders for a final trip into the hell that was to become their home for the next month, fighting in the fields of Normandy.I was there in 1944,... READ MORE
Lion King still the crown of live theatre
There’s a double dose of magic with The Lion King, evident in the national touring company of the Broadway mega-smash now settled in at the Kennedy Center’s Opera House for a nine-week summertime run.Most of us are aware of the magic of the story and the spectacular staging that brings it to life. The coming-of-age tale set to African rhythms has become part of America’s... READ MORE
Free outdoor music and movies begin
Summertime, and the outdoor movies and concerts are free —at least many of them around Howard County.While most of these events will take place in Columbia and Ellicott City, the communities of Cooksville and Highland, among others, are also slated for free entertainment under the stars.On tap for the hopefully soft summer nights are movies for adults, movies for kids, and jazz, rock, ... READ MORE
All the summer’s a stage around Baltimore
Theater lovers can rejoice this summer, as the region’s thriving community theater scene offers a full slate of performances to keep even the most ardent theater-goer happy. Spotlighters Theatre closes out its run of Edward II on June 22, but comes right back with God of Carnage, from July 4 to 27. This dark voyeuristic drama is a verbal battle of wits between two pairs of... READ MORE
Science vs. faith in Freud’s Last Session
Words are wielded like rapiers in Theater J’s incisive production of Freud’s Last Session, a two-man play running through June 29. Ideas are generated, examined, and then punctured and reaffirmed in defiance of those who like easy answers.The stakes are high, the issues momentous. Life. Death. Life after death.It’s easier to digest than it might seem at first glance, as... READ MORE
Valley libraries schedule cool, lively summer
Libraries from Palm Springs to La Quinta are plunging into a very active season of their own. In the desert, summertime is reading time, without the distractions of what we term “the season.”“It’s a different kind of busy,” Julie Warren of the Palm Springs Public Library says. And Lisa Brock, spokesman for the Palm Desert Library county branch library, notes... READ MORE
June arts and jazz festivals in Columbia
It’s festival time in Columbia.In June, the city will host both the 22nd annual Capital Jazz Fest and the 2014 Columbia Festival of the Arts.First, from June 6 to 8, will be the jazz fest at Merriweather Post Pavilion. The event is scheduled to feature, among others, singer-songwriter-nine time Grammy winner John Legend, jazz vocalist legends Al Jarreau and Dianna Reeves, bassist... READ MORE
