Music
Jan. 17
The Charlatans (UK) and Ride
Thirty years ago, The Charlatans, a dancy alternative band out of England’s Madchester scene, went on tour with English shoegaze pioneers Ride, both groups promoting their second albums. Now they’re reliving the experience with a tour stopping by The Fillmore Silver Spring with sets focusing on those sophomore efforts as well as some other fan favorites, such as The Charlatans’ “The Only One I Know.” livenation.com
Jan. 20
Drum Tao 2024
Combining ancient Japanese traditions and instruments—including drums, harps and flutes—with modern dance, acrobatics and flashy lighting and costumes, the world-renowned Japanese percussion ensemble updates the art of taiko drumming for modern times. See its performance at The Music Center at Strathmore. strathmore.org
Jan. 26
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis: Max Roach at 100
January marks 100 years since the birth of pioneering jazz drummer and activist Max Roach, who was a prominent member of the Charlie Parker-Dizzy Gillespie Quintet and played with Miles Davis on his influential album Birth of the Cool. The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by Wynton Marsalis, celebrates the musician and bandleader with a program at The Music Center at Strathmore that reflects his innovative music. strathmore.org
Jan. 26
Peabo Bryson
Nineties kids will know the singer-songwriter for his Grammy-winning performances of animated Disney classic theme songs such as Aladdin’s “A Whole New World” with Regina Belle and “Beauty and the Beast” with Celine Dion. Their parents will remember his romantic duets with Roberta Flack, Natalie Cole and Chaka Khan. Expect to hear old hits, as well as music from his latest album, Stand for Love, when the balladeer performs at the Bethesda Theater. bethesdatheater.com
Jan. 27
BSO: Back to the Future in Concert
Adjust your flux capacitor and head Back to the Future with Marty McFly and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at The Music Center at Strathmore. See the beloved 1985 film on a high-definition screen while the orchestra performs Alan Silvestri’s score. bsomusic.org
Feb. 16-18
Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival
The Jazz Academy of Music Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to advancing and preserving the genre, produces this annual festival at the Hilton Washington DC Rockville. Expect three days of jazz on four stages, as well as master classes, live interviews with musicians, line and swing dances, and free jam sessions. midatlanticjazzfestival.org
Theater
Jan. 24 through Feb. 25
Next to Normal
Mental illness, suicide, grief and drug use aren’t the subjects of your typical musical, but they are in this Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning show about a family in which the mom has bipolar disorder, the daughter is a stressed-out overachiever, and the dad is just trying to keep it together. Although the subject is dark, the rock musical, being staged at Round House Theatre in Bethesda, has a hopeful message. roundhousetheatre.org
Feb. 7 through March 10
Ken Ludwig’s Lend Me a Soprano
The gender roles are reversed in this version of the Tony Award-winning comedy Lend Me a Tenor at Olney Theatre Center. The story is set in 1934, when Cleveland Grand Opera Co. general manager Lucille Wylie is set to welcome famous Italian opera star Elena Firenzi for a one-night-only concert. Wylie tasks her assistant, Jo, to keep Firenzi out of trouble, but, of course, things veer out of control. According to the theater’s website, this show would be rated PG-13 if it were a movie. olneytheatre.org
Feb. 15 through April 5
Cinderella: A Salsa Fairy Tale
Bethesda’s Imagination Stage puts a new twist on the old story. Instead of a ball, Cinderella needs to make it to a ballgame—a basketball game—in this bilingual Latin American musical update of the classic. The show is recommended for kids age 5 and older. imaginationstage.org
Dance
Feb. 8
Ballet Hispánico
This professional dance company, which has been celebrating Hispanic and Latin American culture through dance for more than 50 years, comes to The Music Center at Strathmore with a contemporary dance performance that reflects the diversity of Latino culture and America’s changing cultural landscape. strathmore.org
Comedy
Feb. 15
Heidi Gardner
A Saturday Night Live cast member since 2017, the actress, writer and comedian known for recurring characters such as Angel (Every Boxer’s Girlfriend from Every Movie About Boxing Ever) and awkward teen film critic Bailey Gismert does a live stand-up comedy set at the Robert E. Parilla Performing Arts Center on the Rockville campus of Montgomery College. montgomerycollege.edu/events/robert-e-parilla-performing-arts-center
Art
Jan. 26 through March 2
Prism: Connections in Color
“Prism,” the theme of the 32nd annual Strathmore Juried Exhibition, challenges artists to communicate in color through a range of media, subjects and styles at The Mansion at Strathmore. strathmore.org
Film
Jan. 13
Say it Loud: The JoGo Project Featuring Elijah Jamal Balbed and Desiree Jordan
Germantown’s BlackRock Center for the Arts celebrates Aretha Franklin with a concert by the jazz and go-go band paying tribute to the Queen of Soul, as well as a poetry slam and the presentation of two movies. Tickets are required for the concert, but the film screenings throughout the day are free and open to the public. blackrockcenter.org
Community Events
Jan. 15
MLK Day of Service
Spend your day off helping the community at the Montgomery County Volunteer Center’s MLK Day of Service. Past projects have included packing food for the hungry, making blankets for hospice patients and assembling “snow day” boxes for homebound seniors. Expect similar family-friendly projects at the main site at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center. Register online to participate there or at one of the satellite service project sites around the county. montgomerycountymd.gov/volunteercenter
Feb. 17
Lunar New Year
Cultural dances, musical performances, live demonstrations, crafts and displays welcome the Year of the Dragon at this free event at Rockville High School. Learn about Asian cultures and pick up a to-go snack box at the celebration, organized by the city of Rockville and its Asian Pacific American Task Force. rockvillemd.gov
This story appears in the January/February issue of Bethesda Magazine.
