On the Town

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Cleveland Orchestra Miami  1/27 - 1/28

The Cleveland Orchestra’s begins it’s sixth South Florida residency this weekend at the Arsht Center with the Symphony no. 6 by Dmitri Shostakovich, the piano concerto no 2 by Johannes Brahms with soloist Yefim Bronfman, and a new piece by Sean Shepherd called ‘Wanderlust’. Music starts at 8pm Friday the 27th and Saturday the 28th. clevelandorchestramiami.com

Johnson/Lin Duo  2/5

Violinist Gareth Johnson will team up with pianist Tao Lin for a matinee performance at in performance at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Their program is full of showpieces like Chopin’s Nocturne in C# minor, Poulenc’s masterful Violin Sonata and Camille Saint-Saëns’ Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso among others. Music starts at 3 next Sunday, February 5th at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Delray Beach. stpaulsdelray.org for tickets.

Chick Flicks: Office Killer    1/28

Girls’ Club Gallery presents a new film series called ‘Chick Flicks’. Once a month you can catch evening screenings of feature films and documentaries focusing on films by women. The series premieres this Saturday the 28th at 7pm with Cindy Sherman’s 1997 film called Office Killer. girlsclubconnection.org

Winter

A witty new play called Winter by Robert Caisley begins with a scheduling headache arranging their mother’s funeral evolves into an all-out blood feud between fraternal twins Peter and Christina Winter and their mother’s mysterious, young live-in assistant. Winter runs February 3rd through the 19th at the New Theatre in Coral Gables. new-theatre.org

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Rock Concerto

Violinist Alexander Markov original composition Rock Concerto makes its South Florida debut next Friday the 27th in Coral Gables. It’s called Rock Concerto, a piece for rock band, chorus, soloist, and string orchestra featuring students from The New World School of the Arts. Alexander is the violin soloist, playing his custom made electric violin. Music starts at 9pm at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden as part of the 1st Annual SpendforEd Gala fundraiser. www.spendfored.org 

Click here for the full interview with Alexander Markov

Toulouse-Lautrec

A new display at Coral Springs Museum of Art called Toulouse-Lautrec and His 19th Century Mentors features etchings, drypoint, pen & ink and pencil drawings created by internationally known artists Henri Toulouse-Lautrec. Work by Mary Cassatt, Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, James Whistler, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and other impressionists will be on display as well. This exhibition is only showing at the Coral Springs Museum of Art and for a limited time, now through February 11th at the Coral Springs Museum of Art. csmart.org

Love, Loss, and What I Wore

Loretta Swit, star of the TV series M*A*S*H will be onstage at the Broward Center’s Parker Playhouse this weekend in Love, Loss, and What I Wore, an intimate collection of stories by Nora Ephron. Its on stage now through Sunday the 22nd at the Broward Center. browardcenter.org 

Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens

The Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens is truly one of Palm Beach County’s treasures.  Walking through the museum’s doors you’ll learn a great deal of Japanese and Florida history as well as enjoy a tranquil and beautiful respite from the cares of the world.  Curator of Collections Veljko Dujin told me about the origins of the museum. To learn more about the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, visit  morikami.org.

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La Rondine Jan 21 - Feb 2
Starting next Saturday Ramon Tebar conducts La Rondine, an opera that shows Puccini’s lighter side. This production features a rising star lyric soprano and South Florida native, Elizabeth Caballero. La Rondine opens Saturday the 21st at the Arsht Center. For a show times, locations and tickets, visit fgo.org.

Carnival of the Animals Jan 14th
Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens…you’ve probably heard it, but have you seen it? Momentum’s Dancers bring this clever score to life this Saturday the 14th.  It’s free, so arrive early. It’s at the Coral Gables Branch Library. artscalendar.com

Capital Steps Jan 12 - 15
You’ve seen and heard The Capital Steps on NPR and all over television, now you can see them live on stage at the Broward Center. Former Senate staffers satirize the people and place that once employed them. You can bet that there’ll be some playful jabs about the primaries going on now. The Capital Steps, now through Sunday the 15th at the Broward Center. browardcenter.org

Palm Beach Poetry Festival Jan 16-21
2012 is proving to be banner year for the Palm Beach Poetry Festival.  Not only is this the 8th year for the event, but the Festival has been awarded the Palm Beach County Cultural Council’s Muse Award for Outstanding Arts & Cultural Organization. The Palm Beach Poetry Festival takes place January 16 – 21 at Old School Square in Delray Beach. palmbeachpoetryfestival.org

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Cabaret Jan 10 - 29
The Maltz Jupiter Theatre is in the midst of a very
successful season. Next up is Cabaret, the legendary
Kander and Ebb creation that made a star out of Liza Minnelli. 
Cabaret opens January 10 and runs through the 29th. 
jupitertheatre.org

Ever After  Jan 7 - 8
The first concert of 2012 with the New World Symphony
Orchestra is this weekend, Saturday the 7th. Romeo and Juliet
by Berlioz, The Love for Three Oranges by Prokofiev, and
James Ehnes is the soloist for Tchaikovsky’s violin concerto. 
Saturday the 7th at 7:30 and again Sunday afternoon the 8th at 2.
Saturday night’s concert is a Wallcast concert.
nws.edu

American Brass Quintet Jan 8
American Brass Quintet will celebrate it’s 51st anniversary
season this Sunday the 8th. The American Brass Quintet will give
a mini-residency at Lynn University this weekend, an intensive
musical boot-camp followed by a recital at 4pm at the Keith C.
and Elaine Johnson Wold Performing Arts Center at Lynn University.
lynn.tix.com

Schoolhouse Rock Jan 13
The Emmy Award winning animated series Schoolhouse Rock is onstage
next Friday the 13th at the Broward Center in multimedia form. All
the songs you remember from Saturday morning cartoons are featured
including “Unpack your Adjectives”, “Just a Bill” and “Conjunction
Junction”.Next Friday at 10 and 11:30 am.
Browardcenter.org.

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The Stranahan House

If you’re looking for something a little different to do and learn a few things about Ft. Lauderdale’s history at the same time, The Stranahan House offers a unique alternative.
For more information on the Stranahan House’s daily tours and weekly river ghost tours, visit stranahanhouse.org.

Flamingo Gardens
Flamingo Garden’s and the historical Wray Home are still decked out for the holidays through New Year’s Eve with thousands of lights and music accompaniment amid hundreds of native and exotic plants and trees, including the beautiful collection of orchids in their Tropical Plant House and the historic 1930’s Wray Home.
And each Saturday and Sunday in December, Flamingo Gardens offers holiday concerts and kids crafts. flamingogardens.org

Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol    Now through Jan. 1

This weekend is your last chance to see Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol at the Actors Playhouse in Miracle Theater. This is the A Christmas Carol from a different point of view…a behind-the-scenes look at the heroic efforts to save crusty ‘ol Scrooge’s soul.
Equal parts laughter and terror, redemption and renewal, this play offers a deeply moving twist on Dickens’ classic Christmas Story. actorsplayhouse.org

“The Field”  Jan 8 - Mar 10
If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to get involved in something creative, consider “The Field”, a 10 week workshop at the World and Eye Coffee House in Ft. Lauderdale that’ll help you develop your works-in-progress writing projects. The workshop starts January 8th and runs through March 10th, wrapping up with a performance.
worldandeye.com

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The Nutcracker  Dec. 21st - 24th

This weekend is your last chance to catch the Miami City Ballet’s run of The Nutcracker. The Miami City Ballet presents this classic production with a cast of over 100, music by Tchaikovsky and choreography by George Balanchine, now through Christmas Eve at the Broward Center. There are several matinee and evening performances to choose from, you can get more details and tickets at miamicityballet.org.

Moore Strings   Dec. 30th
A long time Miami resident, violinist, and violin instructor Thomas Moore passed away back in Februarywill and will be remembered next Friday, December 30th. James Brooks Bruzzese will conduct a moving program with music by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Elgar, Massenet, and many others.  There’ll be a silent auction with watercolors by Sandra Walsh Moore, all the proceeds from the auction will benefit the Classical Virtuosi of Miami. Music starts at 4pm at First Presbyterian Church in Miami, 609 Brickell Avenue.

Salute to Vienna   Dec. 30th - Jan. 1st
The Strauss Symphony of America and dancers from the Kiev-Aniko Ballet of Ukraine present “Salute to Vienna”, modeled after Vienna’s world famous new year’s day party.
This is the 13th season with a fresh, new program and a cast of over 75 musicians, singers and dancers all in costume. Friday December 30th at the Arsht Center, New Year’s Eve at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts, and New Year’s Day at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach. Visit salutetovienna.com for more details.

Seducing Charlie Barker 

South Florida native Amy Glazer returns to her roots this weekend with her latest film Seducing Charlie Barker.  The film opens Friday at the Living Room Theatres on the Boca Raton campus of Florida Atlantic University.  Visit fau.livingroomtheatres.com for more information.

Happy Holidays from all of us here at Classical South Florida!

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A Colonial Christmas  Dec. 18th
This Sunday the 18th, St. Paul’s Choir and Camerata del Re present their annual performance of Lessons and Carols.  This year the theme is “A Colonial Christmas”. Music from North and South America, from the east coast to the west coast is on the program. stpaulsdelray.org

Santa squared   Dec. 17th
There are two Santa-centered productions at the Broward Center this weekend. The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus shows how Santa became Santa, from being abandoned in the forest and adopted by wood-nymphs to making and delivering his first toys. The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus runs at 11am and 1pm. At 8pm, you can catch a story about Santa as a grown man…on trial…as Kris Kringle in the modern classic Miracle on 34th Street. browardcenter.org

Out of Africa   Dec. 18th
If you need a break from the holiday rush, the New World Symphony’s concert this Sunday the 18th may be the answer. This matinee concert with mezzo-soprano Amanda Crider doesn’t have a single carol in it. However it does have Mauricio Kagel’s The Compass Pieces, the string sextet no. 1 by Johannes Brahms, and Maurice Ravel’s Songs of Madagascar. The concert starts at 2pm at the New World Center. nws.edu

Madame Butterfly  Dec. 16th-18th
Palm Beach Opera is in the midst of its 50th anniversary season, and is mounting a production of what is probably the most beloved opera of all time, Puccini’s Madame Butterfly.  Details are online at pbopera.org.

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Grammy Noms for Seraphic Fire

Seraphic Fire was nominated for Best Choral Performance for their Brahms German Requiem, and Best Small Ensemble Performance for Seraphic Fire Christmas. Plus their producer,  Peter Rutenberg, was nominated for Producer of the Year, in part for his work on the Brahms recording. You can catch Seraphic Fire in performance at several South Florida venues now through December 20th at one of ten performances of their Christmas program.  Locations and performance times vary.  seraphicfire.org

SantaLand Diaries
The Santaland Diaries by David Sedares is now being presented by Zoetic Stage. Michael McKeever stars in this one-man show about Christmas in retail. The best part is, it’s all true. The SantaLand Diaries, running now through December 23rd at the Arsht Center. zoeticstage.com

Program I
The Miami City Ballet takes it’s season opening production north to the Kravis Center this weekend for Program I. Ballets by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Christopher Wheeldon and Twyla Tharp. Friday December 9th through Sunday the 11th with 4 performances over the three day run, showtimes vary. miamicityballet.org

FAU’s First Annual Madrigal Dinner
If you’d like to experience something unique this holiday season, consider Florida Atlantic University’s Madrigal Dinner.  You can relive the good old days of the Renaissance complete with wandering minstrels, a court jester, elegantly costumed Lords and Ladies, and a feast. December 10 at 6 p.m. at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Boca Raton. fau.edu/madrigal

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Messiah   Dec. 11th
The Alhambra Orchestra presents a piece that is synonymous with Christmas,
Handel’s Messiah. For this performance, the orchestra will team up with the Civic Chorale of Greater Miami. Keep in mind that this is no ordinary Messiah performance, it’s a sing-in, so you can feel free to join in if you like. December 11th at 4pm at First United Methodist Church of South Miami. alhambramusic.org

The Nutcracker    Dec. 9th
Ballet Etudes of South Florida has produced The Nutcracker every year since
it began, and this year marks its 37th performance. Laura Valentin & Jose Rodriguez, Principal Dancers with Balleteatro Nacional de Puerto Rico will join a cast of over 100 next Friday, December 9th; 11:15am for students and seniors, 8:15pm for the general public. balletetudesfla.com

Crossing Thresholds    Dec. 4th-6th
The PlayGround Theater has a series of workshops that’ll help the playwriting process. Crossing Thresholds: Creating Original work is a three day workshop led by acclaimed actor/writer/director Teo Castellanos. Sunday, December 4th through Tuesday the 6th at the PlayGround Theater in Miami Shores. playgroundtheatre.com

Images of Science  Now - Dec. 30th
Scott, the Palm Beach Photographic Center opened a new exhibition this week 
called Images of Science, the result of a partnership with the renowned Max Planck
Florida Foundation. Images of Science runs through December 30th at the
Photographic Centre in West Palm Beach. workshop.org

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Offering of the Angels   Now - Apr 8th

The Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale is the premiere museum for a rare collection of artworks from Florence, Italy. Offering of the Angels: Old Master Paintings and Tapestries from the Uffizi Gallery is on view now through April 8th. moafl.org

American Masterworks String Festival   Dec 5th - 10th

The 1st annual SoBe Arts American Masterworks Strings Festival, six day festival of concerts, demonstration lectures and master classes in South Beach, features some of the biggest international superstars in classical music. Lara St, John, and Anastasia Khitruk, violins;  Kim Kashkashian, viola; Matt Haimovitz, cello and Academy Award winning composer, John Corigliano is the composer in residence! December 5th through the 10th at Miami Beach’s SoBe Institute of the Arts in Miami Beach. sobearts.org/StringFest.html

Arts Garage   Nov 25th - 27th

Delray beach’s hip new arts venue, the Arts Garage has a full post-Thanksgiving weekend planned that’ll help get you out of the house. Friday the 25th it’s the Delray String Quartet with Carl Maria von Weber’s Clarinet Quintet and Franz Lehar’s Overture.

For Saturday the 26th, the Arts Garage turns into a jazz club with four time Grammy Award winning violinist Federico Britos. Then for Sunday the 27th it’s Divas in Art: passion, artistry, and performance with Delray’s Divine Divas – Ricky Rollick Klimas, Melissa St. John, and Roxi DeVine. delraybeacharts.org

Gabrielle Chou and Tao Lin   Nov 27th

This Sunday the 27th at 4pm, Trinity Lutheran Church hosts a performance by an amazing pair of young musicians, Gabrielle Chou and Tao Lin. For the piano part of the program, Gabrielle will play shorter works by Chopin and Bach, plus Beethoven’s Piano Sonata no. 23 “Appasionata”. In the second half she’ll take up the violin when pianist Tao Lin joins her for Dvorak’s Romance in F minor and Sarasate’s Carmen Fantasy. trinityftl.org