Arts Festival

Faced with a standing-room-only crowd of about 100 supporters of the arts and nonprofits organizations, the board of the Columbia Association voted unanimously to give the Columbia Festival of the Arts its full funding allotment of $95,000 for this year's event. The board also voted unanimously to fund a total of $234,000 for community grants and nonprofits instead of a lower amount approved in a straw vote Monday night. The actions -- which are tentative and await final approval -- reverse votes the board took Monday night to cut funding for grants to $200,000.

Theater and dance students in Prince George's County public schools can attend workshops in March that also offer the opportunity to perform. The second annual Theatre Arts Festival for county drama students will be held Tuesday, March 27 at 7 p.m. at the Bowie Center for the Performing Arts, 15200 Annapolis Road, Bowie. Drama students from Prince George's County public middle schools and high schools will participate in monologue competitions and workshops with professional artists, and the day will end with student performances at 6 p.m. The 15th annual Dance Showcase, on Thursday, March 29 at Dr. Henry A. Wise, Jr. High School, 12650 Brooke Lane, Upper Marlboro, provides county dance students an opportunity to work with professional choreographers and receive instruction in various dance genres.

The Columbia Association board has voted preliminarily to cut funds to the Columbia Festival of the Arts, which organizers say might force them to cancel the popular June event. On Monday, the CA board tentatively voted against annual community grants, including a $95,000 contribution to the arts festival. A final decision on the proposed $59.3 million operating budget is scheduled for Wednesday. Other cuts included $6,000 for a July Fourth fireworks display that is mostly paid for by county government.

Common Ground on the Hill is branching out from its roots in Westminster and launching a concert series in Baltimore. The 18-year-old music and arts organization, founded at McDaniel College in Carroll County when the school was still called Western Maryland College, will be "Breaking Up Christmas" on Friday with music that has echoed through the hills of Appalachia for generations. The evening's festivities at Brown Memorial Woodbrook Presbyterian Church on North Charles Street will hark back to an era when people in mountain villages celebrated the season with house parties.

The Bellevederes performing last Saturday at the Ottobar as part of the Baltimore Independent Music and Arts Festival, which apparently did not cancel any shows because of Hurricane Irene . The photo was taken by Flickr user @fwredelius . To see your nightlife and music photos on Midnight Sun, join our flickr pool or e-mail me directly.

Nope, Toto, we sure weren't in Kansas anymore. But the tent pitched in front of Towson University's Stephens Hall held some Kansas-like scenery along with that from a certain mythical land, as 265 guests circulated around props from the Maryland Arts Festival's stage production of "The Wizard of Oz." While there was no "man behind the curtain," the man in front of it was Dr. Hoke Smith, Towson University president and host of the opening night gala. Trees from the musical's Enchanted Forest arched over the carving station, Emerald City towers glistened above fresh fruit tart, and, with no witches around to destroy, the only melting seemed to be the ice cubes in partygoers' drinks.

In Sunday's Arts section, the first day of the Columbia Arts Festival was incorrectly listed. The festival is scheduled to begin June 14. For information, call (410) 715-3044.The Sun regrets the error.The Columbia Festival of Arts, scheduled July 14-23, has announced its 1996 program.Featured in the festival, held at nine venues in and around Columbia, are: legendary jazz pianist Dave Brubeck; Grammy-winning clarinetist Richard Stoltzman; blues singer Joe Williams; veteran actor William Windom; and vocal quartet the Foremen.

Arts festivals pop up in Maryland as prolifically - and predictably - as daffodils in the spring. Now, there's a bright new blossom in the patch. The first Bethesda Fine Arts Festival, a two-day juried event that will showcase 150 top practitioners nationwide in the fine and applied arts, will be held May 15-16 in the Woodmount Triangle along Norfolk and Auburn avenues in downtown Bethesda. The show will include artists working in painting, sculpture, photography, jewelry, furniture and other media.

Next year's Columbia City Fair will have a new name, twice as many arts and crafts vendors but no carnival rides or business booths, thanks to a merger of the fair and the Columbia Festival of the Arts."

The Bellevederes performing last Saturday at the Ottobar as part of the Baltimore Independent Music and Arts Festival, which apparently did not cancel any shows because of Hurricane Irene . The photo was taken by Flickr user @fwredelius . To see your nightlife and music photos on Midnight Sun, join our flickr pool or e-mail me directly.

It's a crowded week. There are two music festivals (Silopanna and the Baltimore Independent Music), and several concerts with two headliners on the bill: Maroon 5 and Train; Sheryl Crow and Kid Rock; Dan Deacon and Future Islands. Elsewhere: Chuck Brown celebrates his 75th, Journey, and the Out of Your Head collective. On Monday , The Get Down, 701 South Bond Street, hosts its wweekly party Happy Mondays! $2 domestics all night. 8 p.m. Free. Also: Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow, one of those concert duos we're seeing this summer, performs at Jiffy Lube Live . 7 p.m. Tickets start at $31.50 On Tuesday , the Out Of Your Head Collective performs at their Tuesday gig at the Windup Space, 12 W. North Ave. 9:30 p.m. Free.

With flavors like Raspberry Truffle, Cotton Candy and Burgundy Cherry, Storm Bros. Ice Cream Factory has never had a problem luring walk-in customers to its perch near City Dock in downtown Annapolis. The 35-year-old shop's location in one of Maryland's most heavily visited tourist areas has mostly been a blessing, says owner Svienn C. Storm — a line of eager patrons often snakes along the sidewalk outside the shop on a sunny afternoon. But lately, he said, the downtown spot has had a significant downside.

7th annual Easton Plein Air Competition and Arts Festival What : Fifty-eight artists will compete in the seventh annual Easton Plein-Air competition. The weeklong event is one of the largest of its kind and features a competition, art exhibit and sale, and a "quick draw" event highlighting emerging artists. The arts festival includes other fine art exhibits, workshops, lectures, theater and music. Plein air translates roughly to "in the open air," but the essential element is that the artist paints from direct observation of the subject.

He was shielded from the afternoon sun by the awning that covered his booth, but the bright mood emanating from Larry Stevens was hard to miss. An artist who grew up in Baltimore, Stevens was so busy selling prints of his colorful cityscapes he barely had time to talk Sunday — until it came time to discuss the bustling SoWeBo Arts and Music Festival that was unfolding all around him, the 26th in a row to be held in the Hollins Market neighborhood on...

Pillowy cumulus clouds and temperatures around 80 degrees delighted the thousands of visitors and hundreds of vendors during the 38th annual Arbutus Arts Festival on May 15. The warm spring weather stayed with the event, which started at 10 a.m., until it closed at 5 p.m. About 90 minutes later, the skies opened. "The weather's been a great surprise," said Susan-Marie Stedman, as she showed off some of the inventory of Rainbow Moon Tie-Dye, a company that sells bags, shirts and other psychedelic items.

Originally designed to lure in waterfowl, these Chesapeake icons will attract more people than birds at the Havre de Grace Decoy and Wildlife Art Festival. In its 30th year, the festival promises to deliver a sense of heritage to the region. Over a 140 artists will exhibit and sell their original work, while attendees enjoy retriever dog demonstrations, decoy carving competitions, live and silent auctions and children's activities. The plan: Festival guests can come and go as they please with a free shuttle service to all venues.

The area around the "Highway to Nowhere" will be the site of a new arts and music festival this June, organizers announced Tuesday. Roots Fest 2011, scheduled to start June 22, will have three days of workshops and community meetings followed by a free two-day outdoor festival that is expected to include performances by go-go music singer Chuck Brown and rap duo Rising Appalachia. The festival is organized by the Atlanta-based non-profit Alternate Roots, which improves neighborhoods through visual arts.