To have community events listed free in The Potomac Almanac, send e-mail to almanac@connectionnewspapers.com. Deadline is Thursday at noon for the following week’s paper. Photos and artwork encouraged. Call 703-778-9412.
<cal1>Now Through Jan. 1
<cal2>Festival of Lights. Free. Nightly indoor concerts at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. They include Sandra Turley, the Harbor City Music Company Show Chorus and the McDonough High School Chamber Choir: “The Madrigal Lords and Ladies.” Bell choirs, flute ensembles, vocal choirs, dance troupes and other forms of holiday entertainment will be presented in the Temple Visitors’ Center’s theater. Open daily until 10 p.m. Lights illuminated at dusk with nightly performances at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. At the Washington D.C. Temple Visitors’ Center at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Temple Grounds, 9900 Stoneybrook Dr. Kensington. Visit www.dctemplelights.lds.org.
<cal1>Now Through Dec. 20.
<cal2>Holiday Food Collection. To benefit the Manna Food Center, a nonprofit food bank providing food to low-income households, food pantries, soup kitchens, group homes, and schools in Montgomery County. Bring non-perishable food to participating stores: Safeway, Chicken Out and PNC Bank, River and Falls Road in Potomac. Visit www.mannafood.org
<cal1>Now Through Dec. 30
<cal2>International Exhibition of Fine Art in Miniature. Free. Gallery hours are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Wednesday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information call 301-581-5200 or visit www.strathmore.org.
Michael Bignell & Mikhail Kononov. Free. Explore Bignell’s works in acrylic and Kononov’s works in oil. Gallery hours are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Wednesday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information call 301-581-5200 or visit www.strathmore.org.
PHOTO: POT-1208-102 25x36 picas
<cal1>Now Through Jan. 9
<cal2>Junie B. in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells! Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 and 4 p.m. Some Saturday 11 a.m. performances. Single ticket prices range from $10-$22, with group rates available. It’s holiday time in Room One and that means drama! Tattletale May keeps picking on Junie B., and things get even worse when Junie B. draws May’s name for Secret Santa. She hatches a plan to give May a lump of coal, while getting an awesome Squeeze-A-Burp for herself. Will Junie B. have a last-minute change of heart and show her true holiday spirit? Just like its heroine, the show has laughs, verve and energy to spare! At Imagination Stage 4908 Auburn Ave., Bethesda. Imagination Stage offers discount ticket packages with benefits that emphasize the flexibility that parents and grandparents value, as well as significant savings. Details are on the website, www.imaginationstage.org.
<cal1>Now Through Jan. 9
<cal2>Holiday Art Show and Sale. Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The exhibition will feature works by resident artists, instructors and invited artists and will include glass, ceramics, jewelry, photography, painting, and more. In the Popcorn Gallery of Glen Echo Park. Call 301-634-2222 or visit glenechopark.org.
<cal1>Now Through Jan. 1
<cal2>Winter Lights Festival. A 3.5-mile drive through a holiday light show at Seneca Creek Park with more than 350 illuminated displays. (Closed Mondays and Dec. 24). Proceeds from the Festival benefit local charities. Call 301-258-6350 or visit www.gaithersburgmd.gov.
<cal1>Thursday, Dec. 16
<cal2>Open Rehearsals. 2 to 3:30 p.m. Free. Encore Choral for singers 55-plus. Calling all former high school and college choristers, church, synagogue and community choral singers. Be a part of the Encore Chorale conducted by Jeanne Kelly, past conductor of the United States Naval Academy Women’s Glee Club, Georgetown University Concert Choir and Senior Singers’ Chorales of the Levine School of Music. Encore Choral of Washington Conservatory of Music at Glen Echo Park. At the South Arcade, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Bethesda. Call Jeanne Kelly at 301-261-5747 or email Jeanne.kelly@encorecreativity.org.
Slow Blues and Swing Dance. 9 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $8. Slow blues lesson from 8:15 to 9 p.m.; dancing from 9 to 11:30 p.m. With DJ Mike Marcotte and guests. At the Back Room of Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Donna Barker at 301-634-2231 or go to info@CapitalBlues.org or www.CapitalBlues.org.
<cal1>Friday/Dec. 17
<cal2>Super Fiesta Latina Party. 8:15 to midnight. Cost is $15. The evening will include a lesson from 8:15 - 9 p.m. for Salsa beginners and up. The lesson is followed by dancing from 9 p.m. - midnight with teacher and DJ Fabio Bonini playing the best of Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Cha-Cha, Reggaeton. At the Ballroom Annex at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Phone 703-798-1071.
Contra Dance. 7:30 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $9. There is a Contra dance lesson from 7:30 to 8:15 p.m. followed by the called dance to live music from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. This week Michael Barraclough calls to the Morrison Brothers with Jim Morrison on fiddle, Owen Morrison on guitars, and Will Morrison on percussion. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Email: fndcontra@yahoo.com
<cal1>Saturday/Dec. 18
<cal2>Swing Dance. 8 p.m. to midnight. Cost is $15. With the Tom Cunningham Orchestra. Beginning swing lesson at 8 p.m. is followed by the band from 9 p.m. to midnight. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Visit tomcunningham.com.
<cal1>Sunday/Dec. 19
<cal2>Winter Concert. 3 p.m. Rockville Concert Band performs at F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 603 Edmonston Drive. A $5 donation is suggested.
Holiday Concert. 7:30 p.m. Rockville Chorus performs at F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 603 Edmonston Drive. A $5 donation is suggested.
Chevy Chase Christmas Concert. 4 p.m. Free. The annual tradition of the singing and ringing choirs of Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church is sure to enhance your Christmas spirit with a candlelight processional as well as presentations by each of the choirs and audience carol singing. At the Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church, One Chevy Chase Circle, NW, Washington, D.C. Call 202-363-2202.
Contra and Square Dance. 7 to 10:30 p.m. Cost is $12/nonmembers; $9 FSGW members. The evening can include square dances, mixers, waltzes and other couple dances. All Contras and Square dances are taught, no partner is necessary. There is a lesson is at 7 p.m., followed by dances with the Morrison Brothers from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Contact: fsgw.org
Waltz Dance. 3:30 to 6 p.m. Admission is $10. Introductory waltz workshop from 2:45 to 3:30 p.m.; dancing from 3:30 to 6 p.m. With the band Terpsichore, which will provide a lively mix of folk waltzes with a few other couple dances, including Hambo, Schottische, Swing, Tango, and Polka. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Joan Koury at 202-238-0230 or Glen Echo Park at 301-634-2222, go to www.WaltzTimeDances.org or e-mail info@WaltzTimeDances.org.
<cal1>Dec. 20
<cal2>Day @ the Ring. 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Featuring seated exercise, a three-course hot lunch and live music by classical guitarist Charles Mokotoff. Ring House, 1801 E. Jefferson St., Rockville. Lunch $5. Bus transportation from selected sites $5.
<cal1>Tuesday/Dec. 21
<cal2>A Candlelight Christmas. 7:30 p.m. With the splendor of brass, organ, percussion, and the 200-voice Washington Chorus, this beloved holiday event features Christmas classics, sing-alongs, and the glorious candlelight processional. Music Director Julian Wachner. Tickets are $15. At the Music Center at Strathmore. Pick your seats online: www.thewashingtonchorus.org
<cal1>Thursday, Dec. 23
<cal2>Slow Blues and Swing Dance. 9 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $8. Slow blues lesson from 8:15 to 9 p.m.; dancing from 9 to 11:30 p.m. With DJ Mike Marcotte and guests. At the Back Room of Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Donna Barker at 301-634-2231 or go to info@CapitalBlues.org or www.CapitalBlues.org.
<cal1>Sunday/Dec. 26
<cal2>Contra and Square Dance. 7 to 10:30 p.m. Admission is $12/nonmembers; $9/FSGW members. The evening can include square dances, mixers, waltzes and other couple dances. There is a lesson is at 7 p.m., followed by dances with live music from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. In the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Contact: fsgw.org.
<cal1>Friday/Dec. 31
<cal2>Swing Dance. 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Admission TBD. Flying Feet Enterprises welcomes the New Year with an exciting Swing dance and live music by Lush Life. Beginner Swing Dance lesson from 8 - 9 p.m. is followed by dancing from 9 p.m. - 12:30 a.m. In the Spanish Ballroom of Glen Echo, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Contact: dance@flyingfeet.org.
<cal1>Saturday/Jan. 1
<cal2>Salute to Vienna. 2 p.m. Featuring The Strauss Symphony of America led by European maestro Guido Mancusi, Hungarian soprano Anita Luk·cs, Hungarian tenor Zsolt Vad·sz European, dancers from the National Moravian-Silesian Ballet of and lastly, and famous operetta excerpts by “Waltz King” Johann Strauss Jr. Tickets are $49. At 5301 Tuckerman Lane in North Bethesda, MD, or 301-581-5100. Visit strathmore.org.
<cal1>Sunday/Jan. 2
<cal2>Jewish Book Sale. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. A Judaica book sale, the largest of its kind in the greater Washington area, with an estimated 1,600 titles. The used books will cover a wide range of subjects, including Bibles, Talmud and Rabbinic literature, philosophy and theology, American Jewish history, Holocaust studies, Israel and Zionism and Kabbalah and Hasidism. Nearly three-fourths are hard covers, most of them nearly new. Proceeds will benefit Jewish studies in India. At Congregation Tikvat Israel, 2200 Baltimore Road, Rockville. Call 301-762-7338.
Waltz Dance. 3:30 to 6 p.m. Admission is $10. With the band, Crowfoot playing a lively mix of folk waltzes with a few other couple dances, including Hambo, Schottische, Swing, Tango, and Polka. Introductory Waltz Workshop from 2:45 to 3:30 p.m. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Joan Koury at 202-238-0230 or Glen Echo Park at 301-634-2222, go to www.WaltzTimeDances.org.
<cal1>Thursday/Jan. 6
<cal2>Slow Blues and Swing Dance. 9 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $8. With DJ Mike Marcotte & Guests. Slow Blues lesson from 8:15 to 9 p.m. At the Back Room, Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Donna Barker at 301.634.2231 or go to info@CapitalBlues.org or www.CapitalBlues.org.
<cal1>Saturday/Jan. 8
<cal2>New Year’s Ball. 11:30 a.m. Sponsored by the Eminence Dance Studio. A fun-filled family extravaganza at the Robert E. Parilla Performing Arts Center at Montgomery College, 51 Mannake street, Rockville. Tickets can be ordered by calling 202-465-6465 or e-mailing
eminencedance@netzero.net.
<cal1>Sunday/Jan. 9
<cal2>Cajun and Zydeco Dance. Admission is $12. With the band, Savoir Faire Cajun Band. Introductory Cajun dance lesson from 3 to 3:30 p.m.; dancing until 6 p.m. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Michael Hart at 301-762-6730 or Glen Echo Park at 301-634-2222, or go to www.DancingbytheBayou.com.
<cal1>Tuesday/Jan. 11
<cal2>Erica Wheeler and the Harley String Band. 8 p.m. Tickets are $18/door; $15/advance. At the Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockville, 100 Welsh Park Dr., Rockville. Visit FocusMusic.org.
<cal1>Thursday/Jan. 13
<cal2>Slow Blues and Swing Dance. 9 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $8. With DJ Mike Marcotte & Guests. Slow Blues lesson from 8:15 to 9 p.m. At the Back Room, Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Donna Barker at 301.634.2231 or go to info@CapitalBlues.org or www.CapitalBlues.org.
Open Rehearsals. 2 to 3:30 p.m. Free. Encore Choral for singers 55-plus. Calling all former high school and college choristers, church, synagogue and community choral singers. Be a part of the Encore Chorale conducted by Jeanne Kelly, past conductor of the United States Naval Academy Women’s Glee Club, Georgetown University Concert Choir and Senior Singers’ Chorales of the Levine School of Music. Encore Choral of Washington Conservatory of Music at Glen Echo Park. At the South Arcade, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Bethesda. Call Jeanne Kelly at 301-261-5747 or email Jeanne.kelly@encorecreativity.org.
<cal1>Sunday/Jan. 16
<cal2>Waltz Dance. 3:30 to 6 p.m. Admission is $10. With the band, Night Watch playing a lively mix of folk waltzes with a few other couple dances, including Hambo, Schottische, Swing, Tango, and Polka. Introductory Waltz Workshop from 2:45 to 3:30 p.m.; dancing from 3:30 to 6 p.m. At the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Joan Koury at 202-238-0230 or Glen Echo Park at 301-634-2222, go to www.WaltzTimeDances.org.
<cal1>Thursday/Jan. 20
<cal2>Slow Blues and Swing Dance. 9 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $8. With DJ Mike Marcotte & Guests. Slow Blues lesson from 8:15 to 9 p.m. At the Back Room, Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Donna Barker at 301.634.2231 or go to info@CapitalBlues.org or www.CapitalBlues.org.
<cal1> Saturday/Jan. 22
<cal2>Pianist Brian Ganz. 8 p.m. The recital, which begins the series “Brian Ganz and the Strathmore Chopin Project,” marks the start of his ambitious endeavor to perform the 250 works of Chopin over the next decade. Visit nationalphilharmonic.org or call the Strathmore ticket office at 301-581-5100. Tickets are $34-$44; kids 7-17 are free. At the Music Center at Strathmore, 10701 Rockville Pike in North Bethesda.
Shir Ami- Song of Our People. At 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $28 (Stars price $25.20). Explore the rich mid-20th century musical heritage of the Jewish people. From Rimsky-Korsakov to Jewish composers who perished in the holocaust to musicians who emigrated after the holocaust and became cultural leaders, this moving performance recovers and rejuvenates music from this tumultuous period of history. At the Mansion at Strathmore. Call 301-581-5109 or visit www.strathmore.org.
<cal1>Monday/Jan. 24
<cal2>James Hill in Concert. 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15/advance; $20/door; $10/students. At IMT at Saint Mark Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Road, Rockville. Call 301-754-3611 and visit www.imtfolk.org
<cal1>Tuesday/Jan. 25
<cal2>Small Potatoes. 8 p.m. Tickets are $18/door; $15/advance. At the Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockville, 100 Welsh Park Dr., Rockville. Visit FocusMusic.org.
<cal1>Thursday/Jan. 27
<cal2>Slow Blues and Swing Dance. 9 to 11:30 p.m. Admission is $8. With DJ Mike Marcotte & Guests. Slow Blues lesson from 8:15 to 9 p.m. At the Back Room, Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo. Call Donna Barker at 301.634.2231 or go to info@CapitalBlues.org or www.CapitalBlues.org.
<cal1> Friday/ Feb. 4
<cal2> Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and the Seldom Scene. At 8 p.m. Tickets are $25–$42 (Stars price $22.50–$37.80). With a career that spans five decades, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band has influenced a generation of country rockers with hits like “Mr. Bojangles,” “Dance little Jean” and “Fishin’ in the Dark.” Opening are bluegrass favorites, The Seldom Scene who pull up some chairs and start telling stories with their brilliant arrangements of tunes by Duane Allman, John Fogerty, Merle Haggard, Steve Earle and Bob Dylan. At the Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda. Visit www.strathmore.org or call 301-581-5100.
<cal1>Feb. 6 to March 13
<cal2>Perseus Bayou. Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 and 4 p.m. Some Saturday 11 a.m. performances. Single ticket prices range from $10-$22, with group rates available. This award-winning musical sets the classic Greek myth of Perseus and his quest for the snake-headed Medusa in post-Civil War Louisiana. To save the bayou from the evil Polydectes, Percy must journey to the edge of the human world with the help of a conjure woman, Miss Athena, a spirit-cat, Panther Hermes, and a tomboy named Andromeda. Percy's coming-of-age is vividly told in this epic and magical theatrical work. Imagination Stage is delighted to welcome back Mary Hall Surface, whose The Hundred Dresses and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice played here in prior seasons. At Imagination Stage 4908 Auburn Avenue, Bethesda, MD. Imagination Stage offers discount ticket packages with benefits that emphasize the flexibility that parents and grandparents value, as well as significant savings. Details are on the website, www.imaginationstage.org.
<cal1>Tuesday/ Feb. 15
<cal2> Duo Recital. At 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $28 (Stars price $25.20). This intimate duo recital in the Mansion pairs the critically acclaimed superstar cellist Alisa Weilerstein with singer/composer/pianist Gabriel Kahane, whose music “absorbs everything from nineteen twenties neoclassicism to bluegrass and modern indie pop” (The New Yorker), in a program featuring Bach’s Suite No. 5 and solo works by Kahane.
The performance culminates with the Washington premiere of a new sonata created by Kahane for cello, piano and voice which draws on the poetry of the great 20th century Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert. At the Mansion at Strathmore. Call 301-581-5109 or visit www.strathmore.org.
<cal1> Tuesday/ March 8
<cal2> Cirque Mechanics: Boom Town. 8 p.m. Tickets are $25–$45 (Stars price $22.50–$40.50). Join the acrobats of Cirque Mechanics as they time-travel to the 1865 mining town of rosebud, where an unlikely discovery sets off a hilarious series of events full of the lore and adventure of the old West. Treat the whole family to an evening The New York Times calls “exceptional, evocative, eye-catching, ear-catching, and engrossingly entertaining.” At the Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda. Visit www.strathmore.org or call 301-581-5100.
<cal1>April 9 to May 29
<cal2> George & Martha: Tons of Fun! Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 and 4 p.m. Some Saturday 11 a.m. performances. Single ticket prices range from $10-$22, with group rates available. The two endearing hippos from the James Marshall picture books stomp onto stage in this warm and funny musical adaptation. George and Martha are best friends. They play music together and share meals, presents, picnics, and exciting adventures like flying a balloon. Sometimes they have differences as all friends do. But it cannot last. Like all good friends, George and Martha just can’t stay angry for long! This simple story says much about our relationships at any age. Geared for our youngest theatre-goers but enjoyable for all, this new musical by Joan Cushing sparkles with clever lyrics and laughter. At Imagination Stage 4908 Auburn Avenue, Bethesda, MD. Imagination Stage offers discount ticket packages with benefits that emphasize the flexibility that parents and grandparents value, as well as significant savings. Details are on the website, www.imaginationstage.org.
<cal1>April 16 to May 21
<cal2> The Day John Henry Came to School. Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 and 4 p.m. Some Saturday 11 a.m. performances. Single ticket prices range from $10-$22, with group rates available. Johnny is a typical 5th grader, way into video games and not especially motivated at school. Imagine his surprise one night when there’s a loud knock at the door and his ancestor John Henry bursts into his bedroom, wielding a 12 lb. hammer and insisting that he will visit Johnny’s class the next day for “Show & Tell.” At first unimpressed by John Henry’s tragic tale about his race with the steam engine, the children in Johnny’s class come to appreciate the importance of his ultimate sacrifice. The award-winning playwright of Lost & Foundling has created another witty and insightful contemporary comedy. At Imagination Stage in the Annette M. and Theodore N. Lerner Family Theatre. At Imagination Stage 4908 Auburn Avenue, Bethesda, MD. Imagination Stage offers discount ticket packages with benefits that emphasize the flexibility that parents and grandparents value, as well as significant savings. Details are on the website, www.imaginationstage.org.
<cal1> Thursday/ May 12, 2011
<cal2> Piano Recital. 7:30 p.m. Tickets $28 (Stars Price $25.20). This artist channels the 19th century composer and pianist Clara Wieck Schumann (wife of Robert Schumann), recreating an 1871 concert by Clara. Performing on Strathmore’s 1850s Broadwood piano, Sharon Joshua deftly intersperses works by Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Robert Schumann, Bach and Chopin with engaging readings from Clara’s diaries and letters. A Gerald M. Woofter Memorial Concert Program. At the Mansion at Strathmore. Call 301-581-5109 or visit www.strathmore.org.
<cal1>July 22 to Aug. 14, 2011
<cal2> The Wind in the Willows. Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 and 4 p.m. Some Saturday 11 a.m. performances. Single ticket prices range from $10-$22, with group rates available. This musical retelling of the classic is faithful to the novel and features the beloved characters Mr. Toad, Mole, Ratty and Mr. Badger. It is early in the twentieth century and Mr. Toad falls hard for the charms of the motor car. His reckless driving results in his being thrown into prison, but, dressed as a laundry lady, he manages to escape. But will Mr. Toad be able to expel the Wild Wood squatters from Toad Hall and reclaim his home? Prepare to be enchanted by this irresistible mix of adventure and camaraderie. At Imagination Stage 4908 Auburn Avenue, Bethesda, MD. Imagination Stage offers discount ticket packages with benefits that emphasize the flexibility that parents and grandparents value, as well as significant savings. Details are on the website, www.imaginationstage.org.