The three tween best friends at the center of Good Boys refer to themselves as “The Bean Bag Club” (an endearingly literal-minded nickname based on their affection for bean bags) so many times, I began to wonder if that was an early title of the film. If so, I’m glad they went with the slightly generic alternative. It fits. The most charming thing about Good Boys is that the three buds are, indeed, good boys. Their parents only exist in the margins of the film, but in some ways, they are front and center, having instilled their sons with sound liberal values. The boys hate drugs (“they destroy lives and communities” they recite solemnly), they respect authority (almost to a fault), and, most significantly, they consider sexual consent a sacred trust.

This is particularly important because our hero Max (Jacob Tremblay) is suddenly interested in girls—one girl, in fact, a pretty skater named Brixlee (Millie Davis), whom Max stares at, in slack-jawed admiration, whenever he encounters her. Because this is the beginning of sixth grade, they negotiate through intermediaries: If Max admits he has a crush on Brixlee, her best friend reports, she might admit that she has a crush back. (This detail tugged at a long dormant memory of my own sixth grade deal making.) And now, looming in the near future: a basement kissing party that both Max and his buds, Lucas (Keith L. Williams) and Thor (Brady Noon), and Brixlee have been invited to. They have to learn how to kiss—and fast.

Good Boys is about that particular developmental time when a trio of best friends might be at completely different levels of maturity. One brags that he has “six pubes.” They all think beer tastes gross. Lucas is extremely attached to his parents, cheerfully telling them every (sometimes outrageously sordid) detail of his young life. They wisely talk about things they only partially understand (“a nymphomaniac is someone who has sex on both land and sea,” Max reports). But only Max has truly become sex obsessed.

Because this film is brought to you by the Seth Rogen-led production team that created Superbad, Sausage Party, and Neighbors, you know there’s going to be plenty of raunchiness and drug-related mischief ahead. One of the film’s ongoing gags is that Thor’s parents have a very, um, robust sex life, so the kids are constantly misidentifying sex toys for things they are not. Most amusingly, they mistake a sex doll for a CPR doll. They decide to practice kissing on the doll, and this is the first time we encounter their consent evangelism. “Wait! You didn’t ask for consent!” Lucas says earnestly, as Max leans in for a pucker.

Good Boys is the kind of film where the “plot” is merely an excuse to put the characters in increasingly absurd situations, but even by those loose standards, it’s a bit flimsy. Basically, the boys use a drone belonging to Max’s father (Will Forte) to spy on a teenage girl (Molly Gordon) whom they think must be a kissing expert; the drone crashes; she ends up with the drone and they somehow manage to steal the molly she and her friend (Midori Francis) were planning on taking for a wild night out on the town. An elaborate cat and mouse game ensues.

Although Good Boys largely plays like a tween version of Superbad—with an explicit nod to Stranger Things and even a touch of Stand By Me—it’s clear that writers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky (who also directs) are fans of the great old Tom Cruise vehicle, Risky Business, too. Just as Cruise’s Joel Goodson was racing against the clock to retrieve his parents’ precious crystal egg, Max is determined to get the drone back before his father knows he took it.

There are lots of laughs in Good Boys and the trio of young actors are top notch. Tremblay, with his “sad eyes” and tossled hair, has already established himself as a pint-sized movie star, but Williams is particularly funny as the sweetest of them all, a nervous tween narc (“we have drugs!” he blurts out to an indifferent cop), who has the misfortune of looking like an 18 year old. Noon nails the “theater kid who desperately wants to be cool” vibe.

As outrageous as the jokes and scenarios get—a drug deal at a frat house, a death defying sprint across a crowded highway—the film never loses sight of the fact that these are really nice boys. (On top of all the sex jokes, there’s a family-friendly joke about the boys battling the scourge of child-proof drug caps.) And, as in Superbad, there’s a poignance here as well. Childhood friendships are wonderful, magical—and, yes, generally ephemeral. Good Boys knows this. It adds a slightly bittersweet undertone to all the mayhem. For all its stupid fun, Good Boys is pretty darn smart.

Natalie Wall is not shy about sharing her sex life with you. Want to hear about her weird first New York City hookup? She’ll tell you. Her favorite anecdote is about the first time she had sex with her (still!) boyfriend and got explosive diarrhea. Awkward? Yes. Embarrassing? Not so much anymore.

She is one of the five comedians who mine their personal lives to tell tales of sex, dating, and all the weirdness that comes with them for Awkward Sex…and the City, an NYC-based comedy show whose tour makes its stop in Baltimore on February 8. Wall is joined by Bobby Hankinson, Anita Flores, Karolena Theresa, and Jen Keefe, who cover a range of experiences from questionable late-night decisions to fantasies involving Abercrombie shopping bags.

Whether you’re looking for a memorable first date activity or just need to be reminded that you are not the only one out there with some weirdness in their hookup history, this show at Motor House should be a fun one. We talked with Wall about how it all got started, what it’s like when your friends share everything, and how to see humor in our awkwardness.

Tell me a little about what inspired Awkward Sex…and the City.
Obviously I’m a huge Sex and the City fan, but it’s also a lot of different things. My mom especially was very open about sex and sexuality, and she was very, very adamant that I understood how to get an orgasm and that my experience is really important too, not just my partner’s. So it was really a combination of watching Sex and the City, having a really cool, sex-positive mom, and then being super awkward.

When you start having sex and sexual experiences, you just realize how awkward they are. No one ever wants to talk about them because it takes away from the sexiness of it. And I just felt like there needed to be a space for that and that there is definitely a huge audience for that. And it just kind of went from there.

And now there are five of you traveling around sharing your stories. What’s it like touring with this group?
I’ve toured with the show for almost five years. It’ll be five years in August. And it’s slowly grown and evolved to include the people that I’m with now. This group has turned into a lot of my really good friends, and they all bring such a different energy and perspective to sex and sexuality. I would consider them like the dream team. They’re always fun, they’re always great on stage. When you travel so much, you want to like these people.

Are you excited to sort of bring them home with you?
Yeah, I am! I was born in Baltimore at Johns Hopkins, and I have family in Middle River, Baltimore, and Towson. So yeah, I’m coming home like a little baby. It’s going to be really fun.

Having been on the road together for a while, is there anything that you guys don’t know about each other at this point?
Honestly, no. We’ve heard all of it. There’s what we put on stage, and there’s a lot of things that don’t go on, and it’s because some things people aren’t ready to talk about. So it’s like, well wait, what are we not hearing? But in the group I would say we talk about everything: masturbation, what porn we watch, what just happened weird sex-wise with this new person or our partners.

It’s kind of awesome that you have a group of friends that you can be that completely candid with.
It is! I’ve always been very earnest and brutally honest about my flaws and faults, so that even if I had like barely met you, you’re going to hear something about me that’s crazy. And then it just becomes a habit in a way. Basically we’re just the modern day Sex and the City. But way more progressive and positive.

What advice do you have for people who want to see the humor in their sex lives and maybe embrace that awkwardness?
Everyone’s experience is so different and so personal. My advice would be that if something happened that you can’t see the humor in, that’s okay, and you shouldn’t feel guilty for wanting sex to always be fun and funny. In a way, me doing this show is a way of dealing with some really awkward moments in my life. Like in some of these stories I remember feeling very different about myself, being like, “Wow, I can’t believe that happened,” or “What does that say about me?” And a lot of it comes from societal pressures and what we’ve been taught, especially if you are a woman or identify as a woman.

And in a way humor is just how I’ve chosen to deal with it. The more I’ve done that, the easier it becomes to see that you aren’t alone with your weird sexual experiences. If you want to really find the humor in your own personal sex life, you will, when you’re ready. And we’ll all be right there with you cheering you on.

It sounds like, at least sometimes, you’re dealing with those situations that are funny looking back, but don’t feel so great at the time.
Exactly. Like my first story I ever wrote was about my first hookup in New York City, and I just remember feeling like, “Wow, I can’t believe I did that,” and I wasn’t happy about it. And then a year later I thought it was hilarious. But there was a good eight months where I was like, “I can’t believe I did that. I can’t believe I got that drunk. I can’t believe I did this or that.” But it’s okay. It’s your story. It’s your journey. And it’s hilarious now for me and for everyone who hears the history. But I guess sometimes I do it so people can see that these really bad stories help make us who we are. It’s okay to not be afraid of that, because perfection does not exist, especially in our sex lives.

Do you have a favorite story to tell?
Well, I’ve been with my boyfriend for almost four years now, but the first time we had sex I got explosive diarrhea. It’s a shit show, literally. And when I tell the story, you don’t realize that I’m still with him. It sounds like a dating story gone bad. It was just awful in the moment. But that one got pretty funny pretty quickly. I was like, this is hilarious. That’s my favorite.

Losing my virginity is also a go-to. I didn’t have sex until later in college, and long story short, I had sex Easter weekend with no condom or birth control of any sort, and then I couldn’t find Plan B anywhere because I went to a school that was in a very Baptist area and everything was closed. So that’s a very fun journey for everyone to go on.

What do you think people absolutely need to know about this show?
We are going to talk about sex. We are going to talk about very personal stuff. I put it in the title. But also know that you’re going to come away feeling way better about yourself. You’re gonna feel very seen in a way that you never thought you’d be able to be seen. Like people usually come up as after show like, “Oh my God, let me tell you about this.” They’re ready to share.

What does Awkward Sex…and the City mean to you after all this time?
I love this show so much, and I can’t believe what it’s become. It’ll be almost six years in August, and touring for five years, it’s just great that there has been an audience for it. I’m so thankful for people coming to the show and just really allowing us to be brutally honest and truthful about some things that people don’t really want to hear sometimes.

Volunteering Untapped Fake Wedding
Feb. 23. The Baltimore Museum of Industry. 7 p.m. Prices Vary. On a Saturday night last February, John Magiros jumped in front of a crowd of dressed-to-the-nines party-goers at the Baltimore Museum of Industry and called out, “Who’s single and wants to get married tonight?” Magiros then ushered two volunteers forward, gave the “groom” a top hat and the “bride” a veil, and “married” them using Mad Lib-style wedding vows in front of hundreds of strangers. And while the wedding was fake, the mission of the party—to support the local nonprofit network Volunteering Untapped—was very real. At this year’s Black Tie Baltimore Fake Wedding on February 23, the VU leadership team including Jeremy Raichle, Teddy Davidson, Brittany Fowler, and Magiros, will cut out the obligations of attending a wedding—no presents or plus-ones required—while keeping the drinks flowing all night. “It’s all the fun of a wedding with none of the commitment,” says Magiros. “What more could you ask for?”

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Grateful Dead Tribute for Kids
Feb. 2. 800 Key Hwy. 9 a.m.-11 a.m. Free-$50. Deadheads, rejoice! If you’ve been looking for a way to introduce your kids to the mother of all jam bands, you’re in luck: the American Visionary Art Museum and local radio station WTMD are hosting a Saturday morning celebration of all things Grateful Dead. Local cover act Ed Hough’s Dead Collective will perform kid-oriented favorites in the museum’s banquet hall, with plenty of snacks, drinks, and art to go around.

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Jim Gaffigan
Feb. 7-8. 140 W. Mt Royal Ave. 7 p.m. $35.25-204. Whether it’s in his scene-stealing TV roles, his bestselling books, or his four Grammy-nominated comedy albums, Jim Gaffigan always manages to earn a laugh. The family-friendly comic, who launched his Quality Time tour in January, is known for finding humor in the mundane, such as doctor visits, food, and fatherhood. Get your tickets quickly—his show is almost guaranteed to sell out.

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Lunar New Year Celebration
Feb. 10. 600 N. Charles St. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Free. Across Asian cultures, the lunar new year marks the beginning of a new calendar year. To ring in the Year of the Pig, the Walters Art Museum is throwing a free, family-oriented celebration in their sprawling Mt. Vernon complex. Visitors of all ages can explore the museum’s expansive and much-lauded Arts of Asia exhibition, followed by a chance to create their own Asian-inspired works. Make sure to catch the traditional lion dance performance, which is believed to bring good luck in the new year.

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Creature Feature
Feb. 12. The Senator Theatre, 5904 York Rd. 7 p.m. $15-$23. Whether you love them, hate them, or are allergic to them, there’s no denying that animals have a special connection with humans. This month, the Stoop Storytelling Series invites locals to get onstage at the Senator Theatre to share the good, bad, or the ugly about their relationships with four-legged friends (or foes). Get to the theater early to grab a pre-show cocktail and hear live music by (appropriately) Brooks Long and the Mad Dog No Good.

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A Date With John Waters
Feb. 14. 124 Market Place. 8 p.m. $44-110. Perhaps no one embodies the spirit of Charm City more than hometown auteur John Waters. Fresh off of a retrospective at The Baltimore Museum of Art, the beloved director of films such as Pink Flamingos and Hairspray is making Valentine’s Day a little weirder with a monologue about his artistic influences, good taste, and sexual politics. To make date night unforgettable, filth followers can even spring for a meet and greet with the Pope of Trash himself after the show.

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Max’s Belgian Beer Fest
Feb. 15-17. 737 South Broadway. 11 a.m.-2 a.m. Free. According to Lyft, Max’s Taphouse was the most visited bar in Baltimore during 2018, and for a good reason. During this annual beer fest, belly up to the bar and sample a selection of rare European pours that will join the pub’s usual 200-plus bottles and taps for the entire weekend. If you have one dubbel or tripel too many, no worries, the Fells Point favorite will be serving up Belgian-inspired snacks to soak up the suds.

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Charm City Django Jazz Fest
Feb. 22-23. 3134 Eastern Ave. 8 p.m. $25-28. In celebration of this finger-plucking music genre pioneered by Belgian jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, gypsy jazz musicians from near and far will take over Creative Alliance for two days of blazing guitar runs and jazz heat during this fourth annual jam fest. Revel in the chance to hear the likes of Ellicott City-based wunderkind Samuel Farthing, local jazz group Ultrafaux, and Philly-based accordionist Dallas Vietty and his group Passarinho. creativealliance.org.

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Frozen Harbor Music Festival
Feb. 22-23. Inner Harbor, 34 Market Pl. Prices vary. While most music festivals wait until the warm weather months to host big-name acts and sold-out crowds, the Frozen Harbor Music Festival embraces the cold and parties on anyway. This year, spend the weekend show-hopping to Inner Harbor venues (think Baltimore Soundstage, Rams Head Live!, and Leinenkugel’s Beer Garden) to hear 160 regional and national acts jam out across 10 stages.

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American Craft Show
Feb. 22-24. Baltimore Convention Center, 1 W Pratt St. $5-$50. Times vary. Whether you’re visiting this revered makers festival for an hour or for the entire weekend, the American Craft Show is guaranteed to have something for everyone. The three-day downtown event, which features work by artisans from near and far, hosts wares such as jewelry, ceramics, and furniture at every price point. Be sure to stop by one-of-a-kind booths like Tristan Sopp’s, where you can buy DIY folded-paper animals, and Marc Tickle’s, which features handmade kaleidoscopes.

Visual Art

First Fridays Free Curatorial Tour: Meleko Mokgosi: Acts of Resistance
As part of a free series at the Baltimore Museum of Art, curators give tours of exhibitions they curated and explain the shows in further detail, providing rich insight into the artists and their work. This month, senior curator of contemporary art and department head Kristen Hileman will lead a group through the much-talked-about show Meleko Mokgosi: Acts of Resistance. Mokgosi explores race and gender through intimate yet larger-than-life portraits and paintings of domestic environments. Curatorial tour from 2-3 p.m. Aug. 3; the show remains up through Nov. 11. Baltimore Museum of Art, 10 Art Museum Drive.

We Are Everywhere: Travels of the African Diaspora
Photographer Schaun Champion will show images from Baltimore and around the world that represent the African diaspora in her exhibit We Are Everywhere: Travels of the African Diaspora at Ida B’s Table, a beloved Southern soul food restaurant in downtown. The show is part of the monthly series Necessary Tomorrows, created by resident curator Sharayna Christmas to feature work that complements the visit and mission of the restaurant. Opening reception and artist talk, 5-8 p.m. Aug. 7. Ida B’s Table, 235 Holliday St.

Counterweight
Sera Boeno, Cevahir Özdoğan, and Noa Heyne examine concrete as a material and as a gender—its cultural and sociological implications and history—in the show Counterweight. Artist talks, a printmaking/archiving workshop with Lebanese archivist and artist Celia Shaheenon (Sept. 9), and an exhibition catalogue release on Sept. 21 will accompany the show. Aug. 10-Sept. 21, opening reception from 7-10 p.m. Aug. 10. The Menial Collection, 243 W. Read St.

Music

Summer in the Squares: Symphony Number One
Pull up a chair (or blanket) for the finale of this season’s Summer in the Squares. Symphony Number One will perform at Mount Vernon Place for the free series of shows that bring the work of emerging composers to the stage alongside beloved pieces by classical greats. During this show, the Baltimore-based chamber orchestra will feature the Aaron Copland’s “Appalachian Spring” alongside new works and pop favorites. 7-8:30 p.m. Aug. 29, Mount Vernon Place, 699 Washington Place

Baltimore International Surf Music Showcase
Four instrumental surf acts from around the world will take the Ottobar stage this month for a totally tubular night. Headlining the show will be Surfer Joe, based in Italy and often called the “international surf ambassador.” The legendary California surf band The Volcanics, and Les Agamemnoz (France) will also perform alongside local surf rockers the Flying Faders. 8 p.m. Aug. 15. Ottobar, 2549 N. Howard St.

Art/Sound/Now: Suldano Abdiruhman and The Compositions
In collaboration with the High Zero Foundation, The Walters Art Museum will present its annual ART/SOUND/NOW, featuring artists creating soundscapes throughout the museum’s various gallery spaces. This year’s event highlights work by interdisciplinary artist Suldano Abdiruhman, a member of the artist collective BALTI GURLS and cofounder of 4c Gallery. 7-8:30 p.m. Aug. 23. The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St.

Film

High Fidelity / Empire Records Double Feature
When a beloved music shop in Baltimore turns 25, a nostalgic screening of two cults classics is in order. The Sound Garden was born in 1993, and shortly thereafter, the films Empire Records and High Fidelity were released—in 1995 and 2000, respectively—both set amid the backdrop of record stores. And if watching these back-to-back on the big screen weren’t nostalgic enough, please note they’ll be screened on 35mm. 7-11 p.m. Aug. 30. The SNF Parkway Theatre, 5 W. North Ave.

Theater

Variations on Sacrifice
Rapid Lemon Productions will present its annual Variations Project this summer with Variations on Sacrifice. Eleven 10-minute plays by local authors will premiere during two weeks, followed by a third week (new this year) of staged readings of eight additional plays. Audiences of 2017’s Variations on Magic voted to select this year’s theme, Sacrifice. Plays, Aug. 3-12; staged readings, Aug. 16-19. Baltimore Theatre Project, 45 W. Preston St.

Literary Arts

‘Sentiments’ by Press Press: Baltimore Book Launch
What could be better than a summertime potluck? A summertime potluck hosted by Press Press, with readings to satiate your palate. The launch of “Sentiments: Expressions of Cultural Passage,” the latest publication by Press Press, will feature readings about creating sanctuary, by Bilphena Yahwon, Rami Karim, and others, beginning at 5 p.m., plus a reading of “Manifesto for Sanctuary-Building & Sanctuary-Keeping.” Bring along a snack or something to grill at this community potluck of Baltimore creatives. 3-7 p.m. Aug. 11. Press Press, 427 N. Eutaw St.

Miscellanea

Comedy, Music and Poetry Showcase with Heda Rose and Guests
A lineup of Baltimore talent will take the Motor House stage for an evening of poetry, standup comedy, and music, headlined by vocalist, songwriter, actress, model, activist, and film producer Heda Rose. The remaining lineup includes comedian Larry Lancaster, comedian Ebony “Miz Jaxxxn” Jackson, comedian Ray Diva, and poet Gradalove. Heda will perform a comedy set and music set with a live band. 8-11 p.m. Aug. 31. The Motor House, 120 W. North Ave.

Fluid Movement’s ‘The Water Ballet’
The Baltimore-based performance art group Fluid Movement channels the master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock for its latest production, “The Water Ballet” at Patterson Park. Take a deep dive into all that horrifies you. Day and night shows, Aug. 3-5. Patterson Park.

Kinetic Sculpture Race 
May 5. American Visionary Art Museum, 800 Key Hwy. Sat. 10 a.m. Free. 410-244-1900. Just weeks after learning how to ride a bike at age 4, Eli Hess found himself wearing rubber gloves and goggles, peddling alongside his dad, David, as an official participant in the first Kinetic Sculpture Race. Since then, the Hesses, including David’s now 81-year-old father, George, and the rest of Team PLATYPUS have created and raced 13 human-powered sculptures, including a 25-foot-tall rocket and a cold-cut sub, in AVAM’s annual 14-mile trek around the city. This year, their team, which stands for Personal Longrange All-Terrain Yacht Proven Unsafe, will ride “the mothership,” through water, mud, and the uphill Linwood Avenue stretch on May 5 in the museum’s 20th anniversary race. “The water separates the adults from the boys,” George says with a laugh. “It’s the rough and tumble world of kinetic sculpture racing.”

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Maryland Film Festival 
May 2-6. Parkway Theatre, 5 W. North Ave. Times vary. $11-425. 410-752-8083. This year marks the 20th anniversary of Baltimore’s cinematic celebration, which has hosted thousands of novice moviegoers, flick aficionados, and renowned filmmakers such as John Waters, David Lowery, and Greta Gerwig. This cinephile’s paradise returns with a five-day jubilee of movies—from shorts to full-length narrative features and documentaries—shown throughout the Station North Arts District. In between screenings, attend Q&A sessions with filmmakers, as well as workshops and panel discussions at Red Emma’s.

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M3 Rock Festival 
May 4-5. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 5 p.m. $60-850. 410-715-5550. Bust out your leather pants, studded jackets, and big hair—it’s time to party like it’s 1989. Now in its 10th year, this head-banging music festival is a celebration of all things metal, with iconic bands turning back the clock for all generations of devoted fans to rock out together. Spanning two days and two stages, catch headliners including Baltimore’s own Kix and crowd favorites Tom Keifer, Ace Frehley, and Night Ranger.

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FlowerMart 
May 4-5. Mount Vernon Square, 699 Washington Pl. 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Free. 410-274-5353. Nothing says springtime in Baltimore quite like seeing the square around the Washington Monument filled with flowers, colorful hats, and classic lemon peppermint sticks. For the 107th year, Mount Vernon’s beloved celebration kicks off the spring season with arts and crafts vendors, live music and entertainment, and plenty
of festival eats. Stroll through the neighborhood to pick out the perfect plant or join in the maypole dance.

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Wham City Comedy 
May 9. Metro Gallery, 1700 N. Charles St. 8 p.m. $10. 410-244-0899. Baltimore’s favorite band of merry misfits is bringing its offbeat brand of comedy back to the Station North neighborhood that started it all.
On the final stop of their spring tour, catch Wham City Comedy’s viral, volatile performance art, as seen on Adult Swim and Comedy Central. Fingers crossed that they perform their hilarious eight-part live series, The Cry of Mann.

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The Catonsville Nine, 50 Years Later 
May 12-31. Maryland Historical Society, 201 W. Monument St. Wed.-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun. 12-5 p.m. Free. 410-685-3750. The Maryland Historical Society is commemorating the Catonsville Nine, a group of Catholic men and women who, 50 years ago this month, burned nearly 400 A-1 draft records to protest the Vietnam War. Featuring artwork by Tom Lewis, who was a member, and additional photographs and materials from the period, the exhibit examines the group’s motivations amid the political chaos and conflict of the late 1960s.

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Preakness 
May 19. Pimlico Race Course, 5201 Park Heights Ave. 8 a.m. $40-720. 410-542-9400. Every year, horse-racing (and day-drinking) fans from near and far come to cheer on the country’s finest thoroughbred horses as they compete for the second jewel of the Triple Crown. Before heading to your seat for this 143rd event, partake in pre-race festivities throughout the city, or hear chart-topping rappers
Post Malone and 21 Savage take over the raucous Infield Fest. 

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Brew At The Zoo 
May 26-27. The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, 1 Safari Pl. 1-7 p.m. $25-75. 410-396-7102. Tap into your wild side at The Maryland Zoo’s 17th annual fundraiser with beers from more than 80 breweries, including local suds from DuClaw Brewing and The Brewer’s Art. In between refilling your glass and gushing over the zoo’s newborn African penguins, listen to live music by local rockers Nelly’s Echo and The Kelly Bell Band and sample snacks from dozens of food vendors. 

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Maggie Rogers 
May 30. Baltimore Soundstage, 124 Market Pl. 7 p.m. $30-35. 410-244-0057. Since skyrocketing to internet stardom after a video with Pharrell Williams (gushing over her now-hit song “Alaska”) went viral, this Maryland native has signed a record deal, toured the globe, and released her first EP, Now That the Light Is Fading. For one night only, the singer-songwriter brings her earthy rhythms and soulful sound to her home state for a must-see performance.

Baltimore Rock Opera Society (BROS) is one of the most glorious representations of what is good and special about the Baltimore arts community. It’s a group of more than 100 artists who volunteer hundreds of hours of their time to create original, weird musical productions that explode with creativity and joy.

Now playing is the only full-scale production of the BROS’ 2017 season, “The Terrible Secret of Lunastus,” a remount of its 2011 show. The sci-fi comedy is set in the near future, in outer space, and focuses on four astronauts’ quest to find a new home for the human race in the face of the impending destruction of Earth.

There are sexy, cotton-candy-haired aliens; red, dancing trees that feed on blood; Styrofoam lasers that actually work, thanks to the props department; lots of intentional plot holes; and a giant puppet operated by three actors. Written and directed by Chuck Green (whose dad is the production’s stage manager), “Lunastus” is a love letter to kitschy episodes of the original Star Trek, amplified in the epic way only BROS can.

The show runs through October 8 at the beautiful and historic Zion Lutheran Church in downtown Baltimore. Friday nights are the church’s “Brats and Bier” fundraiser, which the BROS promote before each performance. “Lunastus” is actually performed in the church’s beer hall, not in any of its sacred spaces.

When audience members enter Zion Lutheran Church, they are greeted by a clan of costumed BROS volunteers at various stations, including a bar offering drinks like the blue Day-Glo “Ginfinity and Beyond” and a merch table with show posters, T-shirts, and the original soundtrack of “Lunastus.”

There are so many delightful creative touches to the experience of seeing the show—and the original music, sung mightily by a talented cast, is a highlight. The band Magnetaur incorporates Bowie-esque rock and ’70s disco into the score to create unique songs for each scene. A standout is the funky “Nocturnal Emotions,” co-written by Green and Erica Patoka, which provides the perfect bow-chicka-bow to an alien-human sex scene that culminates in suggestive shadow puppetry.  

“Lunastus” is the only production of 2017 as a result of the shutdown of the BROS’ office and workshop in the Bell Foundry last December. The company is currently trying to reach a $75,000 fundraising goal to obtain their own workshop and performance space.

It takes eight pages of the show’s program to list everyone involved in the production—from set designers and actors to puppeteers and front-of-house co-leaders. Green and artistic director Aran Keating welcome the audience at the top of each performance and give cheers to various things to be grateful for, in which the audience gleefully responds “Hear ye!” Some chants include: “To volunteerism!” “Hear ye!” “To true rock!” “Hear ye!” “To Baltimore!” “Hear ye,” indeed. 

Hampdenfest
Sept. 9. W. 36th St. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Free. For one Saturday, celebrate the hons and Hampdenites of one of our city’s most quintessentially Baltimore neighborhoods. This beloved block party features regional food, local beer, and three stages of music for homegrown bands like PLRLS and Wume. Don’t miss the annual toilet bowl races, as porcelain flies past the rowhomes of Chestnut Avenue.

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Baltimore Comedy Festival
Sept. 1-4. Locations & times vary. Free-$15. 410-960-7821. If laughter is the best medicine, the first-ever Baltimore Comedy Festival is the ultimate Rx. For four days, attend standup showcases, podcast recordings, and comedy-themed discussions at different venues across the city.

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Madonnari Arts Festival
Sept. 8-10. Little Italy. Fri. 5-10 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Free. 410-967-5441. Madonnari art is an age-old practice of street painting, still found commonly along the cobblestones of Italy and, for one weekend, alongside the byways of Baltimore’s Little Italy. At the beginning of the month, watch master Madonnari artists from around the world—and right here at home—set up shop in the heart of the Italian neighborhood and create beautiful works of chalk art to the theme of “Freedom.” Listen to live music, dig into carb-loaded eats at local enotecas, and kick things off early during a cabaret dinner on Thursday at Germano’s Piattini.

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Maryland Collects: Jacob Lawrence
Sept. 9-Jan. 7. Reginald F. Lewis Museum, 803 E. Pratt St. Wed.-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. 12-5 p.m. Free-$8. 443-263-1800. In this new exhibit at the Lewis, explore more than 50 artworks by Jacob Lawrence, one of America’s most acclaimed 20th-century artists. Using bright colors, blocky shapes, and mesmerizing patterns, the celebrated painter weaves stories of African-American life in the 1900s. Featuring pieces culled from collectors in and around Maryland, the show might just be the must-see art event of the fall.

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Sturgill Simpson
Sept. 15. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 7 p.m. $40-59.50. 410-715-5550. As summer slowly comes to a close, we recommend getting outside for one last night of live music. What better way than to giddy up with this Southern outlaw, who blends rock-and-roll, bluegrass, and country into a boundary-breaking, Grammy-nominated sound. With both rebellious rock numbers and heartbreaking ballads (we swoon over “The Promise”), Sturgill is sure to send the season off with a bang.

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Baltimore Seafood Festival
Sept. 16. Canton Waterfront Park, 3001 Boston St. 12-7 p.m. Free-$99. 410-409-7123. Maryland and seafood go together like Old Bay and, well, pretty much anything. At this waterfront festival, join fellow seafood-lovers for blue crabs, local oysters, cooking demos, live music, and activities for the kids. 

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Baltimore Book Festival
Sept. 22-24. Inner Harbor. Free. During the Baltimore Book Festival, the Inner Harbor transforms into a bookworm’s dream, filled with book sales, author signings, poetry readings, and more. For the 22nd year, peruse the goods and gather for panel discussions with renowned writers like TED Talk celeb Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, former Sun sportswriter John Eisenberg, and National Book Award winner Alice McDermott. While you’re there, be sure to enjoy a Dogfish Head happy hour with brewmaster Sam Calagione, a meet-and-greet with a Guerrilla Girl, and a chance to ask rock-star-matriarch-turned-author Virginia Grohl your burning Foo Fighters questions. 

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Baltimore Comic Con
Sept. 22-24. Baltimore Convention Center, 1 W. Pratt St. Fri. 1-7 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $25-1,000. 410-526-7410. At the 18th Baltimore Comic-Con comic book convention, come dressed to impress and let your geek flag fly. Compete in the costume contest, peruse or purchase your favorite cartoons, and meet famous superheroes, like OG Wonder Woman Lynda Carter. You might even get an autograph from Maryland cartoonist Frank Miller, of late-era Batman comics, Daredevil, Sin City, and 300 fame.

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Baltimore Innovation Week
Sept. 29-Oct. 7. Locations & times vary. Free-$75. Move over, Silicon Valley­—Baltimore was recently named one of the fastest-growing cities for tech. During Baltimore Innovation Week, release your inner techie and foster the city’s burgeoning innovation scene with events related to business, development, media, the sciences, and more. 

JUDAH FRIEDLANDER
6/2. Creative Alliance, 3134 Eastern Ave. 8 p.m. $17-23. This Maryland native and 30 Rock castmate performs his dry and witty standup comedy in Highlandtown.

STANDUP COMEDY TO BENEFIT THE HOMELESS
6/6. The Windup Space, 12 W. North Ave. 8:30 p.m. Free. Catch more than 25 comics to benefit HashtagLunchbag, an organization working to feed the city’s hungry.  

BRIAN POSEHN
6/9. Rams Head Live, 20 Market Pl. 8 p.m. $15-20. This seasoned comedian has starred in The Simpsons, The Big Bang Theory, and The Sarah Silverman Program, and now comes to Baltimore for a live set. 

CHRIS D’ELIA
6/15. Baltimore Soundstage, 124 Market Pl. 7:30 & 10 p.m. $30-50. This comedian turned up-and-coming actor brings his raunchy humor to the downtown stage. 

LOUIE ANDERSON
6/18. Rams Head on Stage, 33 West St., Annapolis. 5:30 & 8:30 p.m. $35. Throw back some laughs with this lauded entertainer who boasts three Emmys, a nod on Comedy Central’s list of 100 Greatest Stand-Up Comedians of All Time, and a lauded new role as a woman on Baskets by Louis C.K. and Zach Galifianakis.

JOHN MULANEY
6/18-19. Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St. 8 p.m. $28-38. Live from Baltimore, it’s John Mulaney! Known best for his writing with Saturday Night Live, this comedic natural displays his wit and charm at the Meyerhoff.  

AWKWARD SEX & THE CITY
6/23. The Ottobar, 2549 N. Howard St., 8 p.m. $10. This New York City-based comedy group comes to Remington for just one night to tell stories about their most embarrassing sexual experiences. Be sure to attend for all the hysterical—and cringe-worthy—moments from from this group of women (and one guy!). 

CRAIG ROBINSON
6/23-6/25. Baltimore Comedy Factory, 5625 O’Donnell St. 7 p.m. $27. Though he started off as a Chicago public school teacher, Craig Robinson is now known for his hilarious roles in The Office, Hot Tub Time Machine, and his own Mr. Robinson. Expect him to blend his two passions on stage: comedy and music.

BILL MAHER

6/24. Modell Performing Arts Center at The Lyric, 140 W. Mount Royal Ave. 8 p.m. $45-305. This dry, unfiltered HBO host performs standup at The Lyric.

Larry Noto sat in the ballroom of a convention center in Nashville one night last summer at what appeared to be an ordinary conference awards dinner that was far from ordinary to him. This was the National Association of Music Merchants’ semiannual gathering, where seven music stores would be honored out of a membership of thousands—and a place that, a year or so ago, Noto would never have imagined he’d be.

Then, the announcer reached for an envelope, and, in a few words read with Oscar-style panache, Noto’s night turned extraordinary. “And the winner in the category of Best Store Turnaround is . . .” the announcer exclaimed, “Music Land in Bel Air, Maryland!”

The band struck up, and Noto, who’d sprung up in surprise, jogged toward the stage. He got about halfway there before he had to wipe his eyes behind his glasses, and by the time he reached the stage, he was really crying. His face was red as he was handed a crystal pillar and the announcer patted him on the shoulder. “Thank you so much,” said Noto, obviously overwhelmed to be accepting an award for his father’s vision, which he himself had brought to reality.

The announcer started to speak, but stopped when he saw that Noto had choked up again. Regaining his composure, Noto looked out at the audience and did what comes most naturally to him—he lightened the moment with humor. “She’s just really cute, you know?” he said, pointing in the direction of a knockout in a red strapless dress, who served as the award presenter. “I mean, it brings tears to your eyes, look at the dress.” The audience, and people on stage, began to laugh. Then, Noto got more serious.

“My father came over from Italy when he was 16 years old,” said Noto, gesturing toward the image of his father on the T-shirt he wore beneath his button-down shirt. “He was an accordion player, and he had a dream, and he built it from this small, little store to this 8,000-square-foot building that he ran morning, noon, and night for 50 years. We lost him a year ago, and I quit my job.”

“[You] have been so welcoming to a person who didn’t know what a humbucker was,” he said, referencing an oddly named electronic guitar part. The audience laughed appreciatively, then leapt to its feet. The announcer hugged Noto, who, after another round of thank yous, walked off the stage with his award.

At one point in his life, the 40-year-old Noto thought he would be gracing a very different kind of stage, one where wisecracks—like the one about the knockout in the red dress—would be his sole reason for standing before an audience.

Noto was bit by the comedy bug early in life, and he honed standup skills that earned him gigs at East Coast cities like New York and Philadelphia, an audition at CBS, and a regular spot at the Baltimore Improv—opening for such comedic greats as Bob Saget and Richard Lewis. The defining moment in his career came in 2011 when he spent a week performing in Las Vegas at a comedy club run by Brad Garrett of Everybody Loves Raymond fame. “I was at the point in my career where I had found my confidence, where I approached every gig with the mindset of, ‘Okay, let’s get on stage and do it! Let’s punch ’em in the mouth and do it!’” he writes in his 2015 memoir The Opening Act: Comedy, Life, and the Desperate Pursuit of Happiness.

“It’s surreal. But I’m excited, and I’m really proud that I can do this for my dad.”

Though he did well in Las Vegas, it didn’t lead to another career benchmark. But in the weeks that followed, Noto realized he was all right with that. “I wasn’t frustrated or unhappy,” he wrote. “What I was left with instead was a genuine appreciation for my good fortune and the great memories I’d always have. . . .”

Similarly, that night last July, and the award, cemented a radical change in the path Noto took to honor his father.

“It’s surreal,” he says, as he reflects a few months later. “But I’m excited, and I’m really proud that I can do this for my dad. I can say now, ‘Hey, we’re going for it. And we’re going to make it.’”

Last winter, before the award ceremony was on his radar, Noto sat in Music Land with a pile of architectural plans on a desk that was already covered with a mountain of papers. He was juggling plenty—his father’s death seven months prior, a new career as a small business owner, plus a huge renovation and expansion of the Bel Air institution where countless customers had learned to play guitar or bought their first drum set since 1971.

And add book promotion to all of that. Along with comedic anecdotes and backstage stories—like the time he smoked cigars at a bar past 2 a.m. with Saget, or when he drove Lewis back and forth from his hotel between sets—The Opening Act (which is co-authored by local scribe Kevin Cowherd) explores Noto’s decision to stay with the ones, and the community, he loves.

Though his wholesome brand of comedy that features one-liners about growing up in an Italian family earned him accolades from big stars, and occasionally got him recognized on the street, Noto realized that wasn’t ultimately what would make him happy. “[The book is] about having a dream and getting a taste of it, but also knowing you weren’t willing to risk it all in order to make it,” he writes. He also chronicles his college days at Loyola University, his time in radio and TV, and his career in tourism at what is now Visit Baltimore and at the National Aquarium.

As usual, Noto turns to humor to explain the latest addition to his packed schedule. “I’m on dates, treating it like [book] junkets,” he quips, an ever-present twinkle in his eye. “I don’t even want a relationship, I’m just trying to sell books.” Then he stops, and continues on a more serious note. “I wanted to write the book for about 10 years. I always had the title, and I think the subtext was, ‘Stories and conversations from a comedian you’ve never heard of.’ But certainly, the events of last year helped form the ending.”

He’s, of course, talking about the death of his father, Joe Noto, the accordion player and singular force behind Music Land. In April 2015, as his father was dying of throat cancer, Larry Noto and his family met to discuss what would happen with the business. It was the same day that protests in Baltimore surrounding the death of Freddie Gray were escalating into violence.

“The fact that those events and my father’s death happened in the same week, I don’t know if there’s a word for it,” says Noto. “It was numbing, but for me personally, I felt that I was where I was supposed to be at that point, which was with my family. . . . Out of all this chaos came a very clear moment that showed me the right thing to do.”

So Noto resigned as director of marketing and sales for the National Aquarium and started taking a far shorter commute from his home in Bel Air five miles down the road to Music Land. He plunged himself into a world of instrument rentals, music lessons, and negotiating with guitar reps. “It’s been like The Da Vinci Code, trying to figure everything out,” he says. “He left us a tremendous gift, just without the instructions.”

Noto also quickly saw that the store was in need of some updates. Though during its five decades the store had weathered competition from music corporations like Guitar Center, it required a new computer system and new flooring and lighting. Plus, his father had purchased the adjoining storefront some years earlier, and Noto began to envision a stage there that would feature open mic nights and performances.

It was a big undertaking, though, requiring a significant investment, permits, meetings with architects, and seeming endless construction work. As his former life of performing at Magooby’s Joke House in Timonium and nights out with friends in Little Italy began to seem further and further away, Noto wondered, “Am I moving too fast? Am I doing the right thing?”

Donna Noto has always described her son in two ways—as a comedian and a go-getter. “Not only is he funny, but he’s also got the courage to go up to or get up in front of people,” she says. “From the time he was little, he could talk to anybody, anywhere—he’d strike up a conversation with total strangers. It was like he was 3 going on 33.”

She knew no matter what he chose to do with his life—whether that was comedy, marketing, or something else—he would jump in wholeheartedly. So she wasn’t surprised at how quickly he began to put his own stamp on Music Land. “He will give it 200 percent, and he will love it and make the most of it,” she says.

As Noto rolled out plans for an acoustic guitar room and concerts, patrons got excited and started bringing in friends and relatives.

Friends in the comedy world, though surprised at Noto’s career change at first, began to see that it made sense. “Now, the way he talks about the music store and taking over the family business, he’s way more passionate about that than I ever thought he would be,” says fellow Baltimore comedian Mike Finazzo. “The people who do go to New York, [comedy is] their wife, their mistress, and their family. And for Larry, I think he’s content doing so many different things that this area suits him, and he seems really at peace and happy with that.”

Larry Noto also had the support of Music Land’s long-time customers and staff. As he rolled out plans for a climate-controlled acoustic guitar room and concerts featuring members of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, patrons got excited and started bringing in friends and relatives. The business’s Facebook page is littered with comments like, “This place is the best! Massive selection, amazing team, awesome energy,” and, “This store is what makes the difference from the big box music stores—it has class, character, and excellent customer service.”

“When you see all the things that are going on, the excitement, and how the employees are stoked about each new project we have going on, it’s neat,” says Vincent Corson, who has worked at Music Land for more than 30 years. “I’m reminded every day about what a great place it is to work.”

Noto’s mind was made up even more when one day last spring, as he glanced over items from his father’s old desk, he found a binder with a piece of notebook paper that he immediately recognized as a sign. In his father’s writing, it began, “Don’t worry about the past. Full[y] commit to the future!”

“Be creative, be innovative,” Noto reads from the paper. “I got chills. And not only that, but I found a piece of paper that was a sketch of the store that [closely mirrored] our plan. He just didn’t have time to implement it.” He taps the paper gently. “I’m going to frame this.”

Now, a year and a half after taking over the store, winning big at the national convention, and completing the expansion, Noto is tired, but content. He hasn’t had much time for comedy lately, but he accepts that might be his current reality. “I don’t know what to talk about anymore,” he jokes. “I did an open mic night and I got up and sold people clarinets.”

He has also promoted his memoir at venues like the Baltimore Book Festival and wants to develop a public speaking gig based on it. And the book has taken on new meaning for him. “It’s so funny with the timing—the title obviously meant that I was the opening act comedywise, but it’s also the opening act of my life that led to this,” he says. “There are times that I wish that I could have worked [with my dad]. But I would never have been able to have the experiences I had and learn so much from the people that I worked with that I’m applying here.”

And he’s thinking about writing a second book, starting where the last one ended. The title?

“What the Hell Is a Humbucker?” Noto says with a smile.

Star Struck

St. Paul Street
July 9, 2016

“Now don’t accuse me of putting in a slide,” Herman Heyn cracks, adjusting his telescope and tripod in front of the Chipotle in Charles Village as a middle-school girl peers in.

“Oh wow!” she squeals, which, after the half-million “looks” Heyn figures he’s offered over the past three decades, still makes the 85-year-old, street-corner astronomy busker smile. “The rings are so bright!”

The “rings”—billions of ice, dust, and rock particles circling Saturn—are so geometrically exquisite at 800 million miles away that it’s hard to believe one’s eyes. “I’ve been doing this 29 years. Same number it takes Saturn [hurtling at 21,000 miles per hour] to go once around the sun,” Heyn laughs. “And I’ve been accused of all kinds of tricks.”

A few minutes later, a retired Indian-born biologist who lives nearby takes a peek. “They’re perfect,” he gasps.

Tonight, Mars is “near” Saturn. Jupiter, meanwhile, sits to the right of the moon, which is half-lit in its current phase, with craters resembling a pockmarked sidewalk. Later, two 20-something researchers from the Johns Hopkins-based Space Telescope Science Institute—home to the Hubble—walk by. “Scientists we work with stare at data being downloaded on their computer all day long,” Joseph Long says. “They couldn’t even tell you when the planet they’re studying is visible.”

“Herman introduces the beauty and scale, which is visceral, to people. You feel it in your gut,” adds Brendan Hagan, who with Long has followed in Heyn’s footsteps, bringing “pop-up” telescope events to the Inner Harbor and downtown.

“Years ago, a woman stopped by and told me she’d just submitted her master’s thesis on Venus. And then admitted she’d never seen Venus directly,” Heyn recalls. “I said, ‘Would you like to?’”

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Death in Diorama

Cathedral Street
July 13, 2016

Frances Glessner Lee, considered the mother of forensic science, often wore all black and was nicknamed “the Tarantula” by her family.

“I would’ve loved to have met her,” Bruce Goldfarb, spokesman for Maryland’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, deadpans to the sold out crowd at a presentation about Lee’s famous miniature dioramas known as “the Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death.”

Goldfarb, in fact, is enthralled with Lee’s story and legacy, which he’s sharing tonight at The Maryland State Medical Society. Bright and born to a wealthy family, Lee was nonetheless discouraged from attending college. Instead, she became the first woman invited to join the International Association of Chiefs of Police in 1943. Through a brother’s friend, she’d become intensely interested in early forensic science and eventually began the painstaking process of building intricate, true-to-life, dollhouse-size crime scenes where “unexplained” deaths—accidents, suicides, and murders—had taken place.

The purpose of the models—authentic down to hand-rolled cigarette butts that are half the size of a fingernail and filled with tobacco—is to teach detectives how to observe, record, and evaluate crime scenes. The whodunit answers are kept secret to protect the learning process.

The 18 studies, along with witness statements, were given to the Baltimore office in 1966 after Lee’s death. They continue to serve as a component of an acclaimed law enforcement seminar, but from time to time, visitors come by for a look as well.

“The other day two women stopped me and wanted to know the answer to one scene,” Goldfarb says. “I explained I wasn’t allowed to say and that it wasn’t really the point.

“As soon as I finished,” Goldfarb continues, “one woman turns to the other and says, ‘I think the husband did it.’”

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Laugh Out Loud

North Charles Street
July 16, 2016

“Whenever I go do shows in D.C. or in the county and I tell people I live in Baltimore City, everyone’s like, ‘Oh my God, you must be so brave!’

“And, I’m like, ‘Yo, look at me, I’m wearing skinny pants and black, thick-framed glasses,” 27-year-old Umar Khan tells the LOL@Artscape crowd as it breaks into laughter at the second of the annual festival’s two nights of live comedy. “I live in a neighborhood with cupcake shops. I’m safe.”

A city schools’ psychologist by day, and proud resident of gentrifying Hampden—which he notes by taking a gentle swipe at his neighborhood’s charcuterie trend—the self-deprecating Khan is serving as host of Artscape’s comedy shows for the first time this year. “It was a really diverse crowd—young, old, black, white—which actually makes for a lot better show for a comedian,” Khan says afterward. “Telling jokes about white hipsters to white hipsters isn’t funny. There’s no tension.”

Several performances fall flat—the over-sharing 20-something female comic who’s more uncomfortably awkward than funny, and an orange-jump-suited ukulele singer-songwriter who sounds like country star Trace Adkins, for example. But most of the comics effectively play off their personas and the audience, cracking jokes about loved ones, race, drugs, and Baltimore—sometimes all at once.

Mike Smith, an animated, mid-30s newcomer to comedy, talks about urban life and family—in particular, a close relative who’s recently turned her life around.

“She used to be a crackhead and now she’s a vegan,” the basketball-jersey clad Smith says, rolling his eyes. “Now, she’s a real pain in the ass.”

The new year is all about trying new things, making resolutions, and, most importantly, sticking to them. This January, challenge yourself to learn something new with one of these eight events.

Taste the City

JAN. 10: RA SUSHI LESSON
RA Sushi Bar Restaurant, 1390 Lancaster St. 2 p.m. $32-60. 410-522-3200. Learn the traditions of sushi, its cultural significance, and, of course, how to roll your own at RA.

JAN. 28: WINE & CANVAS
Baltimore Museum of Industry, 1415 Key Hwy. 6:30-9:30 p.m. $40. 410-727-4808. Enjoy a glass of wine while you learn to paint a Ravens-themed masterpiece.

Get Moving

JAN. 1: NEW YEAR’S DAY RESOLUTION RUN
Patterson Park, 2638 E. Baltimore St. 2-6 p.m. $15-30. 410-308-1870. Start the year off right with a 5K through Patterson Park, finished off with a hearty chili dinner.

JAN. 5-26: GROUP TANGO CLASSES
Towson Dance Studio, 9486 Deereco Rd., Towson. Tues. 7 p.m. $65-70. 410-828-6116. Dance your January nights away with tango lessons in Towson.

See Something New

JAN. 20-MAR. 5: RAOUL MIDDLEMAN
C. Grimaldis Gallery, 523 N. Charles St. Tues.-Sat. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Free. 410-539-1080. Don’t miss prints and watercolors by this prolific contemporary American painter and MICA professor whose works have been shown at the Met, National Gallery, and BMA.

JAN. 21: MAKE NIGHT: INSCRIBING THE SELF, ISLAMIC BOOKBINDING
The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St. 6-9 p.m. $25-35. 410-547-9000. Learn about the history of Islamic bookbinding and try it for yourself with help from bookmaker Kelly Laughlin.

Conquer Your Fear

JAN. 23: COMEDY TONIGHT!
Everyman Theatre, 315 W. Fayette St. 10 a.m. $100. 443-615-7055. Whatever your experience level, head to the local theater and partake in this comedy acting workshop with noted playwright Michael Hollinger.

JAN. 30-31: REPTICON
Maryland State Fairgrounds, 2200 York Rd., Lutherville-Timonium. Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. $5-12. 863-268-8573. Forgo your fear of scaly, snaky things at this up-close-and-personal exhibition featuring hundreds of reptiles, exotic animals, vendors, activities, and informational seminars.

When Donnie Sengstack was growing up in Damascus, he loved Jim Gaffigan’s comedy and was inspired to write his own material.

However, the jokes remained in his journal for years—partly because he was born with a stuttering speech impediment.

He didn’t break out of his shell until a high-school drama teacher, who also had a stutter, encouraged Sengstack to act in Anything Goes. Now a freshman at the University of Maryland, Sengstack hasn’t looked back.

“My stutter is unpredictable,” he says. “I always want to address it to the crowd right away, so I’m always writing new jokes about it.”

He describes his act as “observational wordplay,” and certainly uses his stutter for material. (“I put the stud in stutter,” “I can turn a one-liner into an entire HBO special.”)

His witty sets earned him a finalist spot in the New Comedian of the Year Competition at Magooby’s Joke House and performances at the Baltimore Comedy Factory and Broadway Comedy Club.

Sengstack says performing comedy full-time is the ultimate dream. “I have tried speech therapy,” he says. “But this isn’t going away, so I have learned to embrace it and make it funny.”