The year begins to wind down with the arrival of autumn, but the same cannot be said for the local arts scene. Over the next few months, brand-new seasons of cultural programming begin again at both small and large venues all across Baltimore, bringing with them fresh exhibitions, plays, performances, and much more—altogether showcasing the abundance of our local creative community.

9/8-13. GOOD NEIGHBOR DESIGN CAMP
Since opening in 2019, this Hampden coffee shop has become a cool hangout for creativity and culture, only amplified by its new Station North outpost at Carpet Company. Now in its fifth year, this annual celebration of hands-on craft is six full days of programming for and by a who’s who of artists of all practices.

9/10. BROMO ART WALK
Over the last century, Howard Street was transformed from a commerce epicenter into an emerging cultural hub in the form of the Bromo Arts District. For one fall night, follow the Light Rail for free events at the dozens of neighborhood galleries, music venues, theaters, and arts spaces that have revitalized the neighborhood.

9/10-10/17. ROUGHED OUT
At the Red Giant gallery in the Bromo Arts District, ogle the impressive works of contemporary stone sculptors, including both national and local craftsmen like Baltimore’s own Sebastian Martorana, who carves artworks out of reclaimed local marble, including the city’s famous steps.

9/12-10/18. 100 MILES AND RUNNIN’
Every day, the Eubie Blake Center pays tribute to its namesake jazz legend. And this fall, tip your hat to another great, in this exhibition honoring Miles Davis, launching an ongoing Next 100 Initiative honoring those who shaped the genre and creating new local access to the instruments to do so.

9/19. BALTIMORE BOOK FESTIVAL
In 1998, Mayor Kurt Schmoke dubbed Baltimore the “City That Reads.” Honor our literary legacy at this one-day, citywide celebration for bibliophiles, with author talks, book readings, kids’ activities, and more. Pregame the weekend prior with can’t-miss readings at Red Emma’s, from Claudia Rankine to Naomi Klein.

9/19. VOICES OF HISTORY STREET FAIR
Rescheduled from June, the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum presents its annual summer block party. Spend the afternoon in community on North Avenue, wandering the museum, witnessing live performances, enjoying family-friendly activities, and perusing local arts and craft vendors. The best part? It’s free for all.

9/24-27. HIGH ZERO
Nearing its 30th year, this one-of-a-kind music festival dedicates an entire weekend to experimental improvisational music. It’s a must-see live experience that will quite literally never be replicated, with dozens of musicians and performance artists like Baltimore’s Lexie Mountain and Martin Schmidt performing solo and together to push the limits of sound at Mount Vernon’s Theatre Project.

9/25-2/1. CHORA
Consider Emma Childs an artist to know now. The 30-year-old painter creates multifaceted worlds within her minimalist canvases. At her largest solo exhibition to date, curated by Teri Henderson and aptly titled after the Greek term for a liminal yet fertile space, explore new works amidst the dramatic backdrop of the Mount Vernon Place Church.

TO 9/26. SIDE BY SIDE
Is this the most epic exhibit of fall? Goya Contemporary brings together the “Gurlz of Baltimore,” a group of intellectual and creative leaders who have made outsized contributions to the art world in Baltimore and beyond. Contemplate works by artists, educators, and historians like Leslie King-Hammond, Oletha DeVane, Joyce J. Scott, and more.

9/26. AVAM PET PARADE
Rescheduled to autumn for better weather, the American Visionary Art Museum’s beloved procession of creatively costumed animals returns to Federal Hill. Dubbed the “Mutt Gala,” it encourages pet owners to dress up their four-legged family members for this popular parade, with prizes (and bragging rights) awarded for the likes of “Best Dressed” and “Best Hairdo.”

10/1-4. NEW/NEXT FILM FESTIVAL
This love letter to indie cinema has quickly become a Baltimore tradition. Presented by Baltimore Public Media, it’s now in its fourth year, serving up four days of all things film at The Charles Theatre, including shorts, docs, full-length features, and conversations with filmmakers from Baltimore and beyond.

10/1-18. NEVERMORE
It’s Edgar Allan Poe like you’ve never seen him before. During this run at The Voxel theater in Charles Village, the city’s Orange Grove Dance troupe will combine movement and media to present a “water-drenched fever dream” take on The Raven, the poet’s most famous work, now so deeply tied to Baltimore.

10/2-11/15. THE PANSY HOUR
Submersive Productions transports viewers back to the “Pansy Craze,” a rare moment of mainstream acclaim for queer culture and creative expression in the late 1920s. As the troupe’s Hampden headquarters transform into a glitzy club, explore personal stories of Maryland history through a cabaret drag show, live music, dance, comedy, and more.

10/10-11. OPEN STUDIO TOUR
For one weekend, get a behind-the-scenes look inside the studios of some of Baltimore’s most talented artists. Over the past 38 years, this citywide event has grown into a time-honored tradition, offering glimpses into the working lives of our local painters, sculptors, collage artists, ceramicists, photographers, and more.

10/4-2/1. FLASHBACK
For nearly two centuries, local photographers have been capturing Baltimore’s multitudes in a way that’s difficult to express in words. In the first major exhibition of its kind, the Baltimore Museum of Art traces the city’s role in the evolution of this art form, featuring more than 200 images by the likes of A. Aubrey Bodine, Irving Henry Philips, Connie Imboden, Devin Allen, and SHAN Wallace.

10/9-11. 8X10 GRAND REOPENING
Last year, music lovers lamented the impending closure of this beloved Federal Hill music venue after a four-decade run. But in the nick of time, new owners stepped in, including local singer-songwriter Cris Jacobs. The next chapter begins this fall, starting with a weekend-long lineup of live music.

10/9-11/1. FRANKENSTEIN
For those enamored by the Jacob Elordi version last year, the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company is now presenting its own adaptation of this Mary Shelley gothic masterpiece. In a new take on literature’s most famous monster, the author takes center stage, blurring story and storyteller as the ensemble recreates a wild and frightening world.

10/10. HORSE LORDS
In 2010, just two years after Rolling Stone named our music scene the best in the country, Horse Lords was formed in Baltimore, with drummer Sam Haberman, guitarist Owen Gardner, bassist Max Eilbacher, and saxophonist Andrew Bernstein embodying the city’s DIY spirit in their genre-defying experimental sound. Catch their only local show of the year, with new music in tow, at the Ottobar.

10/15-2/5. STARS AND STRIPES
Under founding director Myrtis Bedolla, Galerie Myrtis is celebrating its 20th year as a vital arts institution in Baltimore. To commemorate the occasion, and in conjunction with the 250th anniversary of the United States, this group exhibition creates a moment of reflection. Artists will newly consider the symbols, values, and narratives that have shaped this nation.

11/1. RITUAL AND REVOLUTION
For one day only, the Full Circle Dance Company premieres works of five choreographers in this new exploration of its title themes at the Baltimore Museum of Art. With double-header afternoon and evening performances, expect deeply moving dances that reflect on both our individual and communal worlds.

11/6-7. SWEATY EYEBALLS
Prepare to be wowed at this annual celebration of the world’s most imaginative animation, now in its 14th year. At the Maryland Institute College of Art’s Falvey Hall in Bolton Hill, see screenings of international shorts, independent feature films, and a Baltimore-based showcase, along with a corresponding group art exhibition at Area 405 in Greenmount West.

11/11-12/13. AUGUST WILSON’S JITNEY
Since 2024, local theaters have been paying tribute to a legendary playwright through the Baltimore August Wilson Celebration. If you missed the first seven plays, performed at various venues around town, fear not—one of the three final shows will grace the stage at the Fells Point Corner Theatre in November. In this production, follow the story of a worn-down taxi company in Pittsburgh.

11/6-12/12. AMERICAN BEEKEEPER
Anyone who’s ever tried to keep a hive alive knows that beekeeping is a true art form. The local Atlantic Bee Company combines that stewardship with community exchange, zine-inspired writings, and this multimedia exhibition at the Making Space gallery downtown. Through photography, printmaking, and public engagement, you’ll be encouraged to consider deep themes of ecology, food sovereignty, mutual aid, labor, and the resilient lessons honeybees can teach us.

“What is art?” It’s the question posed by Broadway star (and Baltimore native) André De Shields in the captivating trailer for this year’s Artscape, which is back after a three-year hiatus. Art is music, the trailer tells us. Art is dance. It’s murals and graffiti. It’s fashion. It’s personal expression.

In some ways, that same question is being asked—and answered—all around town, even at some of our most august institutions. At the Baltimore Museum of Art, immersive new exhibits like “The Culture: Hip Hop and Contemporary Art in the 21st Century” have us rethinking what a museum can be. At the Meyerhoff, recently appointed Baltimore Symphony Orchestra maestro Jonathon Heyward is bringing in younger audiences and assuring them that the Meyerhoff is their house. At the Maryland Center for History and Culture, the current Jim Henson exhibition comes complete with its own DIY puppet show.

The message is clear: Art is anything we want it to be—and there’s lots of it to savor this season.

Sept. 2 – Oct. 21: THERE WITHIN LIES THE GOSPEL: TRUTH
Featuring artists Tawny Chatmon, Wesley Clark, Morel Doucet, Monica Ikegwu, M. Scott Johnson, Delita Martin, and Felandus Thames, this exhibition highlights Black religious and spiritual traditions while challenging the ways in which these practices continue to evolve and adapt in response to contemporary social and cultural realities. Galerie Myrtis, 2224 N. Charles St.

Sept. 14-Oct. 8: LADY DAY AT EMERSON’S BAR AND GRILL
Four months before her passing, Baltimore jazz singer Billie Holiday performed at Emerson’s Bar and Grill, a small club in South Philadelphia. At Center Stage, this performance will be recreated—cabaret-style—featuring not just Holiday’s best known songs like “Strange Fruit” and “God Bless the Child,” but her candid reflections on her life, her struggles, and her triumphs. Center Stage, 700 N. Calvert St.

Sept. 15-16: LITTLE AMAL
This striking, 12-foot-tall puppet, depicting a 10-year-old Syrian refugee, has become a “symbol of compassion and human rights.” She has passed through 14 countries and about 100 towns and cities. Baltimore is set to join the list this month, as organizations like Creative Alliance and Baltimore Center Stage will welcome Little Amal through theatrical events and displays. Various locations.

Sept. 16: LOVE GROOVE FESTIVAL
Created by Baltimore musician and producer John Tyler, this arts and music festival encourages connections between Baltimore’s creative scenes and bolsters rising talents. Now in its seventh year, the annual event heads to the Royal Theatre, partnering with local organizations like Black Ass Flea Market. The Royal Theatre, 1635 Westwood Ave.

Sept. 22-24: ARTSCAPE
After a three-year break, the legacy arts festival, dubbed the largest free arts festival in America, returns in full capacity. This year’s event—announced via trailer starring Baltimore-born Broadway great André De Shields—includes visual art exhibitions, musical performances, gourmet delights, children’s activities, and more. Various locations.

Sept. 28-30: “NEW WORLD” SYMPHONY WITH JONATHON HEYWARD
Joined by pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s new music director, Jonathon Heyward, marks his official arrival with a program of America-themed pieces by James Lee III, George Gershwin, and Antonin Dvořák. The program will culminate with a performance of Dvořák’s beloved “New World” Symphony. Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St.

To Sept. 29: AMELIA TOELKE: GRAB BAG
At this Baltimore Jewelry Center exhibition, the New York-based artist pairs wearable objects with works made from paper. Toelke’s art explores the elements that fuse glittering objects of adornment with expressions of personal and cultural identity. Baltimore Jewelry Center, 10 E. North Ave., Ste. 130.

Oct. 1-Jan. 7, 2024: MAKING HER MARK: A HISTORY OF WOMEN ARTISTS IN EUROPE, 1400-1800
Challenging the idea that European women artists were not as talented as their male counterparts, this new Baltimore Museum of Art exhibition highlights women-made objects from the 15th to 18th centuries, from portraits and sculptures to metalwork and furniture. Baltimore Museum of Art, 10 Art Museum Dr.

Oct. 7-8: INTERNATIONAL EDGAR ALLAN POE FESTIVAL & AWARDS
Celebrating the macabre writer who lived and died in Baltimore, the annual fest features Poethemed performances, readings, art, vendors, food, and tours. Though the two-day event is free, there are paid extras, including “death weekend” bus tours. Poe would be pleased. The Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum, 203 N. Amity St.

Oct. 20-22: LOCALLY GROWN FESTIVAL
At Center Stage, this inaugural festival celebrates Baltimore’s “brilliant, eccentric, and thriving arts ecology.” Artists, performers, and makers from around the region will take over the Maryland’s state theater’s stages, rehearsal halls, and lobbies throughout the weekend. Baltimore Center Stage, 700 N. Calvert St.

Oct. 20-Nov. 19: THE CHINESE LADY
Everyman Theatre presents Lloyd Suh’s critically acclaimed play, inspired by the true story of Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman to set foot in America, in 1834. Directed by Nana Dakin, the play follows her to New York, where she becomes a living curiosity in a museum, and struggles to hang onto her identity. Everyman Theatre, 315 W. Fayette St.

Oct. 24-29: FUNNY GIRL
Jules Stein and Bob Merrill’s iconic musical, Funny Girl, gets a revival at the Hippodrome. The story of vaudeville performer Fanny Brice that Barbra Streisand immortalized in film returns to the stage, with hits such as “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” The Hippodrome Theatre, 12 N. Eutaw St.

Nov. 5: HUMAN REQUIEM
The Baltimore Choral Arts Society launches its 58th season with “Seven Last Words of the Unarmed,” by Atlanta-based composer Joel Thompson, and Johannes Brahms’ stirring Ein Deutsches Requiem. The music will be illustrated with projection design by Camilla Tassi to create a unique audio-visual experience. Shriver Hall Auditorium, 3400 N. Charles St.

Nov. 12-April 2024: EYEWINKERS, TUMBLETURDS, AND CANDLEBUGS: THE ART OF ELIZABETH TALFORD SCOTT
The new exhibition at the Baltimore Museum of Art preserves the artist’s legacy, while highlighting her innovative use of fiber. Talford Scott’s creations, which incorporate found objects like bones, buttons, shells, and sequins, each possess symbolic narratives. Baltimore Museum of Art, 10 Art Museum Drive.

Nov. 18-19: AND STILL, WE DREAM
Full Circle Dance Company’s latest production addresses experiences tied to dreams, from repressed fantasies to aspirations to daydreams. A new work choreographed by the company’s artistic director, Donna L. Jacobs, is inspired by the poems of Maryland’s beloved late Poet Laureate, Lucille Clifton. Baltimore Theater Project, 45 W. Preston St.

Nov. 24: ABDU ALI
A child of Baltimore, the multi-instrumentalist and DIY scene trailblazer Abdu Ali is headed to the Ottobar. The no-frills concert space and dive in Station North seems fitting for Ali, whose songs embody connectivity and unabashed joy. Ottobar, 2549 N. Howard St.

Dec. 3-March 3, 2024: ETHIOPIA AT THE CROSSROADS
The first major art exhibition in America to examine Ethiopian art in a global context, it features more than 225 objects from The Walters Art Museum’s extensive collection, one of the largest outside Ethiopia, plus art on loan including both historical and contemporary works. The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St.

Dec. 3: KALEIDOSCOPE CHAMBER COLLECTIVE
With its U.S. debut, the ensemble of young chamber musicians will perform major quintets from American composers Florence Price and Amy Beach. Comprising a flexible roster of musicians, Kaleidoscope began in 2017 and broadcasts regularly on BBC Radio. Shriver Hall Auditorium, 3400 N. Charles St.

To Dec. 30: THE JIM HENSON EXHIBITION: IMAGINATION UNLIMITED
Courtesy of the Museum of Moving Image, this multi-media exhibition at the Maryland Center for History and Culture honors Hyattsville-raised puppeteer Jim Henson. Among artifacts of Henson’s career sit such childhood buddies as Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. Maryland Center for History and Culture, 610 Park Ave.

The fall marks the beginning of the artistic year. As a result, the creative calendar is literally bursting with concerts, exhibits, and theatrical events. These are a few of our favorites.

Iron Crow Theatre presents The Cradle Will Rock
TO OCT. 8: Marc Blitzstein’s 1937 play is so unabashedly anti-capitalist that it was the first musical ever shut down by the U.S. government. The Cradle Will Rock attacks wealth and the political power it unjustly wields, and pays homage to those fighting to survive. Best of Baltimore-winning Iron Crow gives this historic work a highly stylized, modern restaging that sounds like a perfect fit for these turbulent political times. Baltimore Theatre Project, 45 W. Preston St. 410-539-3091

The Christians
TO OCT. 8: This play ponders the age-old question: What happens when we lose faith in our leaders? It turns the lens specifically on the American megachurch, examining what results when people of the same religion hold different beliefs and begin questioning the infallibility of pastors. As an added bonus, this production features multiple choirs from area churches to get you into that old-time religion spirit. Center Stage, 700 N. Calvert St. 410-332-0033

Altered Realities
TO NOV. 4: Sometimes all you need is a little shift in perspective. This exhibition aims to provide just that, using works from a variety of mediums—from painting to virtual reality—to focus on uncanny interpretations of everyday experiences. This show includes many exceptional Baltimore-area talents, such as photographer and videographer Johnathan Baker, Best of Baltimore winner Phaan Howng, and Scott Cawood, who uses scrap steel to examine transformation. Maryland Art Place, 218 W. Saratoga St. 410-962-8565.

Arts of Asia
OCT. 1: The Walters’ Asian Art collection has been under lock and key for years, awaiting a splendid restoration. Now, the collection, which highlights the artistic traditions of countries that span the world’s largest continent, from India to Japan, and is considered one of the most exceptional in North America, has been brought back to life. Marvel at these antiquities in their beautiful new home, especially the John and Berthe Ford Gallery, which features the art of India, Nepal, and Tibet. The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St. 410-547-9000

Helen Glazer: Antarctica Project
Oct. 18-Dec. 8: Art and environmental activism are a perfect pairing. Once you’ve viewed stunning works depicting the beauty of our world, how can you deny that it should be saved? Artist Helen Glazer is inspired by the complex physical forces that shape the natural world, and uses rarely visited places—in this case, Antarctica—as her subject matter. This exhibit centers on photographs she made in 2015, when she was a grantee of the National Science Foundation Antarctic Artists and Writers Program—the only person from Baltimore ever to have won this competition. There, she was given access to protected areas where she photographed ice formations and geological structures at remote locations and scientific field camps. Rosenberg Gallery, Goucher College, 1021 Dulaney Valley Rd., Towson. 410-337-6477. 

Baltimore Voices at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Nov.1-3: Yes, this fusion of music and spoken word is technically geared toward high school students, and yes, it’s in the morning during the middle of the week­­—but it’s too good of a concept for us not to recommend. Baltimore Voices focuses on the people who live in Baltimore, including city school students, who were interviewed by the co-founders of WYPR’s documentary series Out of the Blocks. Add in beatboxer Shodekeh as emcee, remix samples from the beat wizards at the Baltimore Boom Bap Society, and the BSO playing Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, and you’ll have quite an interesting morning. Nov.1-3. Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St. 410-783-8000. 

Necessity of Tomorrow(s)—Mark Bradford: Making a Path
NOV. 11: This fall, The Baltimore Museum of Art will hold three events that invite nationally and internationally recognized artists and thinkers to consider key ideas at the intersection of aesthetics, race, and social justice. (The series borrows its title from an essay by science-fiction author Samuel Delaney that argues for the role of creative speculation in making a more just future.) The first of these gatherings features Mark Bradford, whose work is showcased at the BMA-organized U.S. Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. He will join BMA director Christopher Bedford to discuss his artistic practice and community-based work, followed by a conversation around issues of access, plus a live musical performance. Union Baptist Church, 1201 Druid Hill Ave. 410-523-6880.

André Watts plays Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor
NOV. 17, 19: Peabody Institute alum André Watts (who shot to fame when Leonard Bernstein chose him to make his debut with the New York Philharmonic) returns to the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra to play the explosive, grandiose piano work that is known as the most popular of Rachmaninoff’s piano concertos. Also on the program, Christopher Theofanidis, one of the most performed living composers, honors fellow composer Stephen Paulus in a new work. Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St. 410-783-8000

The Revolutionists
DEC. 6–JAN. 7, 2018: Playwright Lauren Gunderson took a page from A Tale of Two Cities and set her new play during the French Revolution. But, unlike Dickens, she has focused solely on the women——and has given her work a comedic touch. In this play, which is making its East Coast debut, former queen Marie Antoinette, assassin Charlotte Corday, playwright Olympe de Gouges, and Caribbean spy Marianne Angelle find themselves alone together in a room. France’s fight for equality and freedom finds modern parallels in this play, which explores feminism, legacy and standing up for one’s beliefs. Everyman Theatre, 315 Fayette St. 410-752-2208