Raoul Middleman, Mary Page Evans, Barbara Z. Lipman and Leonard Streckfus are among the artists who have donated works to next Sunday's WBAL Radio-Baltimore Sun auction to benefit Center Stage.
Scheduled to run from 8 a.m. to midnight Feb. 26, the 18th annual auction presents opportunities to bid on roughly 750 items ranging from exotic foreign trips to lunches with local celebrities. Categories include travel, restaurants, household and kitchen items, beauty, sports equipment and hobbies, jewelry and gardening.
Those interested in the arts can bid on season subscriptions to various musical and theater organizations; museum memberships will also be auctioned.
Last year's auction raised $132,500, bringing the total amount collected over the event's 17-year history to $1.3 million.
Those wishing to participate should tune to 1090 AM radio on auction day. A complete listing of items to be auctioned will run that day in The Baltimore Sun.
Books go to JHU
Baltimore book collectors Jacques and Suzanne Schlenge recently donated their collection of the works of Victorian author Anthony Trollope to the Milton S. Eisenhower Library of Johns Hopkins University. The 232-volume collection -- which also includes first editions of Thackeray, Dickens and Charlotte Bronte -- is now known as the Schlenger Collection of Victorian Literature.
Design for pops
The deadline is March 31 for artists to submit works for the 14th annual Holiday Pops design competition and art auction. The winning artist will receive $250 and his or her design will be used as the cover of the holiday pops program for the three-concert series by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and chorus. The annual holiday fund-raising concert series is sponsored by the Junior League of Baltimore.
All entries will appear in a three-day exhibition in December at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. For details and to receive applications, call (410) 379-5496.
Mongrel Theatre fund-raiser
A fund-raiser for Mongrel Theatre will run from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday in the Lida Lee Tall Auditorium at Towson State University. The evening includes music and performances by The Flying Tongues. Tickets are $10 per person. For details, call (410) 323-6888.
Auditions
* Tuesday, an open house will be held by the Maryland Fife & Drum Corps for those interested in joining. The nonprofit group is looking for fife players, honor guard and twirling flag carriers. You must be 18 years old to be considered. The open house will be at Bob Hall Inc., 5600 S.E. Crain Highway, Upper Marlboro.
Call (301) 855-7501 for information.
* Wednesday is the deadline for dancers aged 8 to 18 to apply for eight partial scholarships for master dance classes to be held March 11-12 in Annapolis. Produced by the Talent Machine Company, the weekend will provide classes in jazz, hip-hop, lyrical and partnering taught by various master dance teachers. A scholarship applicant must be enrolled in a dance program and receive a recommendation from a dance coach or director. Classes are scheduled in Key Auditorium of St. John's College. Call (410) 956-0512, Ext. 2.
* Auditions for the 1995 dance squad of the Baltimore Football Club are scheduled at 9 a.m. Feb. 25 at Louie Louie's, 1101 S. Howard St. Call (410) 235-1524.
* Auditions for a staged reading of "Asylum," directed by Beth Berman, are scheduled from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 25 at the Playwrights Theatre, 908 Washington Blvd. The production calls for men and women between the ages of 25 and 45 and a boy aged 8 to 14. Call (410) 727-1847.
* Encore Theatre will hold auditions for its spring production of "R&B;" at 3 p.m. today at the theater, 4801 Liberty Heights Ave. The production calls for singers (individuals and groups) who have acting ability. Singers should prepare a three- to five-minute rhythm-and-blues song from the '50s, '60s or '70s and be prepared to tell a joke. Call (410) 466-2433.
Etceteras
* Saturday is the deadline for Baltimore artists to register for the Seventh Annual Open Studio Tour sponsored by School 33 Art Center. The tour will be held from noon to 5 p.m. May 6-7. Participation is open to professional artists who have studios within the city limits. Artists outside the area may rent or share a space for the day. Call (410) 396-4641 or (410) 396-4642 TDD.
* The Baltimore Playwrights Festival will hold a reading of an original play at 8:15 p.m. Feb. 21 at the Fell's Point Theatre, 251 S. Ann St. A discussion and criticism of the play will follow the reading. For details, call (410) 276-2153.
* The deadline is March 15 for Maryland video- and filmmakers to enter the 1995 competition sponsored by the Baltimore Film Forum as part of its annual international film festival. Winning works will be screened during the festival and also broadcast on Maryland Public Television. For details and an entry form, call (410) 669-1137.