With temperatures stuck in an annoying, chilling rut as the new year begins, the array of hot cultural activity ahead looks all the more attractive. Something warm and interesting awaits inside museums, theaters and concert halls during the bleak, wintry weeks all across the Baltimore area.
Since everybody likes Top 10 lists, here's one outlining highlights (in chronological order), but this only scrapes the surface. Plenty of other comforting jolts from the arts can easily be found.
Center Stage The tale of the world's most pronounced schnoz, which is connected to a deeply sensitive soul, gets a fresh "adaptation for three actors" by Jo Roets. "Cyrano," directed by David Schweizer, stars Manu Narayan in the title role, with Sarah Grace Wilson and Luke Robertson. Jan. 13 to Feb. 7. 410-332-0033, centerstage.org.
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Ever-stylish pianist Garrick Ohlsson plays Beethoven's Concerto No. 3 with the BSO, led by eminent Czech conductor Jiri Belohlavek. The program offers two vivid Czech works: Dvorak's "Othello" Overture and Janacek's "Taras Bulba." Jan. 22 and 24 at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (Jan. 23 at Strathmore). 410-783-8000, bsomusic.org.
Pro Musica Rara Baltimore's hearty early-music ensemble teams up with the fine Philadelphia-based group Tempesta di Mare for Pro Musica's annual "SuperBach Sunday" program, this one featuring a couple of Bach's Brandenburg Concertos and music of Vivaldi. Jan. 24 at Towson University Center for the Arts. 410-704-2787, towson.edu/artscalendar.
Shriver Hall Concert Series This is a tie, since two of today's most rewarding keyboard virtuosos are giving successive recitals on this valuable series. Emanuel Ax plays music of Schumann and Chopin on Jan. 31; Yefim Bronfman tackles works by Beethoven, Schumann, Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev on Feb. 21. 410-516-7164, shriverconcerts.org.
Peabody Institute Venerable pianist Leon Fleisher will be joined by violinist Pamela Frank and several other excellent artists on the Peabody faculty for a chamber music program that includes Brahms' Piano Quintet in F minor. Works by Beethoven and Webern round out the concert. Feb. 2. 410-234-4800, peabody.jhu.edu.
Baltimore Ballet This educational and performance company celebrates its 10th anniversary with a gala concert that features Cem Catbas (Baltimore Ballet's co-founder and artistic director) and dancers from American Ballet Theatre, Washington Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and more. Feb. 6 at the Lyric Opera House. 410-547-7328, ticketmaster.com.
Baltimore Museum of Art "C?zanne and American Modernism," one of the season's most anticipated exhibits, puts 16 of Paul C?zanne's compelling works in context with more than 80 paintings, watercolors and photographs by several 20th-century artists from this country who were influenced by his work. Feb. 14-May 23. 443-573-1700, artbma.org.
Lyric Opera House The first full-length, fully staged opera production to be presented in this theater since Baltimore Opera Company's tragic swan song in 2008 will be Bizet's "Carmen." The vibrant Denyce Graves stars in this Opera New Jersey production, which also features the reassembled Baltimore Opera Chorus. Feb. 14. 410-547-7328, ticketmaster.com.
Hippodrome Theatre Winner of four Tony Awards in 2008, including Best Musical, "In the Heights" tells a slice-of-life tale from the dynamic, way-uptown Latin-American neighborhood of Manhattan's Washington Heights. The popular, salsa-spiced show, conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda, visits Baltimore on its first national tour. Feb. 23-March 7. 410-547-7328, broadwayacrossamerica.com.
Everyman Theatre By the closing weeks of winter, we'll all be ready for a change of scenery. A heartwarming option will be Grover's Corners, the fictional spot immortalized by Thornton Wilder's "Our Town." Everyman teams up with the Baltimore School for the Arts in a new production directed by Donald Hicken. March 17 to April 18. 410-752-2208, everymantheatre.org.
Slatkin returns to D.C.
Leonard Slatkin sounds like his old self over the phone, shortly after arriving in Washington on Monday, speaking as rapidly and enthusiastically as ever about life and music. Two months ago, things were not so chipper for the distinguished American conductor.
On Nov. 1, while guest-conducting the Rotterdam Philharmonic in the Netherlands, he had a heart attack.
"I finished the concert," Slatkin, 65, says. "I don't know why. Stubborn, I think. Then I collapsed in the dressing room. Thirty minutes later, there were three stents in me. I was supposed to be on a plane to Germany that night. If I had gone, that would have been the last people saw of me."
Slatkin, the current music director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and former music director of the National Symphony Orchestra, will make his first podium appearance anywhere since the health scare this week with the NSO.
After his hospitalization in Rotterdam, Slatkin had follow-up treatment in Florida, including a stay at a clinic specializing in healthy lifestyle changes.
"It used to be called a fat farm, now it's a longevity center," Slatkin says. "I called the diet "no salt, no fat, no flavor, no fun." But once you get in a regimen, you do change the way you think."
With exercise and careful eating, the conductor has dropped 20 pounds and reduced his cholesterol 35 percent since November. "I'm actually doing very well, probably better in a long time in my life," he says. "I also took lessons in posture. I used to conduct hunched over."
Having stayed pretty much out of sight since the heart attack, there's extra interest in Slatkin's return to the podium, which also marks his first appearance with the NSO since stepping down as music director two years ago.
"When I say to the musicians [at Tuesday's rehearsal] how nice it is to be back, that phrase will have more significance than usual. Going through something like this really does change how you approach your own life, and, to a certain degree, music itself."
The NSO program reflects Slatkin's longtime advocacy for English music - Elgar's deeply lyrical Violin Concerto, with soloist Nikolaj Znaider, and Holst's blockbuster "The Planets."
"They couldn't be more different, even though they were written a few years apart," the conductor says. "The concerto is a wonderful piece. Nikolaj is going to play it on the same [Guarnerius] violin that Fritz Kreisler played the premiere on 100 years ago. And it's always fun to come back to 'The Planets.' "
Slatkin will make his return to the Detroit Symphony's podium later this month.
"I live in Detroit now, and I like it very much," he says. "The orchestra is a dream to work for. Financially, it's tough right now for them. The city is still reeling. Our audiences are increasing, but getting people to contribute is not very easy."
Slatkin says he is "cautiously optimistic" about the Detroit Symphony's future, and "excited to see everyone again" at NSO this week. He also seems determined to safeguard his health.
"My son is 15," he says. "I'd like to be around a little longer."
Leonard Slatkin conducts the NSO at 7 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Kennedy Center. Call 202-467-4600 or go to kennedy-center.org.