? Columbia Festival of the Arts, 410-715-3044. The annual Columbia Festival of the Arts, founded in 1989, takes place each June. Musical artists as varied as Itzhak Perlman, Aretha Franklin, Dave Brubeck, Marcel Marceau and Emmylou Harris have performed at CFA, as well as dance troupes like Pilobolus, Alvin Ailey and Garth Fagan Dance. By featuring area artists alongside top-name talents, the festival has forged its own identity and established itself as one of the leading area summer celebrations of the arts.

Concert series

? Candlelight Concerts, 410-715-0034. Its sub-scription season regularly attracts top talents like Awadagin Pratt, the Tokyo String Quartet, the Billy Taylor Trio and pianist Richard Goode. It also offers a jazz and a children’s concert series.
? Sundays at Three, 410-381-5773. Chamber music series at Christ Episcopal Church in Columbia.

Musical groups

? Columbia Pro Cantare, 410-465-5744. This world-class volunteer choir presents an ambitious festival of rarely heard Czech music each fall in the nation’s capital, as well as programs of American standards and the area’s only full orchestral and choral performance of Handel’s “Messiah.”
? Columbia Orchestra, 410-381-2004, www.columbiaorchestra.org. In its 26th year, this ensemble of 80 musicians led by conductor Jason Love offers concerts with instrumental works ranging from classic to contemporary composers.
? Musicians and singers of all ages have a variety of outlets for their talents, ranging from the Maryland Children’ s Singers and the Howard County Children’s Chorus to the Heart of Maryland Chorus/Barbershop Harmony Society and the Elkridge-based Sweet Adelines chorus to the Maryland Youth Symphony and the
Greater Baltimore Youth Orchestra. Several
clubs and outdoor festivals offer regular “open mike” nights.

Dance

Local dance troupes present regular show-cases, drawing upon the best in area talent,
and a variety of commercial dance studios provide training for a new generation of terpsichorean talent. Dance companies include the following:
? Arabesque Dance Company, 410-381 -0017.
? b.Funk Dance Company, 410-313 -8199.
? Backstage Dance Company, 410-312 -0900.
? Ballet Royale Company, 410-997 -8443.
? Cindee Velle Dance Company, 410-730 -8113.
? Dance Dimension, 410-730-3987.
? Dance Foundations, 410-715-8764.
? Eva Anderson Dancers, 410-997 -3899.
? Howard County Ballet, 410-465 -8233.
? Kinetics Dance Theatre, 410-480 -1686.
? Patuxent Youth Ballet, 410-992-4084.

Theater

? Toby’s Dinner Theatre, 410 -730-8311. Specializes in Broadway-style musical fare, presented with a live band, professional costuming and inventive staging.
? Rep Stage Company, 410-772-4900. Based at Howard Community College, this is the county’s first Actors’ Equity troupe, featuring the area’s premier acting talent in challenging plays.
? Several community stages that welcome novice as well as experienced actors include Columbia Community Players, Columbia School for Theatrical Arts, Howard County Summer Theatre, Kittamaqundi Players, Drama Learning Center, Rep Stage’s Summer Actors Institute and Young Artists Theatre in Laurel.

Art centers and museums

? African Art Museum of Maryland, 410 -730-7106. Housed in the airy upstairs chambers of historic Oakland Manor near Lake Kittamaqundi, it offers a rare collection of African artifacts and
folk art.
? Columbia Art Center, 410-730-0075. Since 1987, the center in the village of Long Reach has provided resources for ceramic artists, photographers, calligraphers, woodworkers and others.
? Howard County Center for the Arts, 410 -313-ARTS. Houses some 30 artists and arts groups and is the seat of the Howard County Arts Council and three art galleries.
? Howard County Center of African American Culture, 410-715-1921. It houses African-American memorabilia and artifacts, an art gallery and library with more than 2,000 publications and exhibits. The center also sponsors a monthly book club called Book Ends.
? Local artists also exhibit at the Artists’ Gallery in the American City Building, Howard Community College Art Gallery, Slayton House Gallery in Wilde Lake Village, Margaret Smith Gallery in Ellicott City, Board of Education Professional Gallery, and more informal exhibit spaces at the Florence Bain Senior Center and elsewhere. Visual artists and craftspeople share a handsome and historic complex at Savage Mill.

Literary arts

? Howard County Poetry and Literature Society (HoCoPoLitSo), 410-772-4568, www.HoCoPoLitSo.org. Since 1974, HoCoPoLitSo has been bringing imaginative literary events, workshops and distinguished writers to student and adult audiences. Such first-rate authors and poets as the late Isaac Bashevis Singer, Saul Bellow, Edward Albee, Seamus Heaney and Grace Paley have given public readings under the auspices of HoCoPoLitSo.

Cinema

? Columbia Film Society, 410-730-7261. An annual subscription series that brings the latest in distinguished foreign films to Columbia.
? Marvelous Movies and More, 410-730 -3987. Classic and vintage film series at Columbia’s Slayton House. Includes some silent movies with live organ accompaniment as well as rare British and American gems.
? Jewish Film Series, 410-381-4809. This annual series offers about a half-dozen movies with Jewish themes, some in English, also in Hebrew and other foreign languages with subtitles.
? United Artists Theatres Snowden Square has 14 theaters. 410- 872-0670.
? AMC Columbia Mall 14 multiplex 14- screen cinema. 410-423-0520. ?