Sights and sounds, 12/2/11

The deadline for listings is noon, Dec. 13 for the Dec. 16 issue. Send listings to [email protected]. Note: 617 should be dialed before numbers below, unless another area code is given.

Special Events

JP Holiday Stroll, craft sales, performances on Centre & South streets, meet Santa Claus and his reindeer. 1:45pm: Mayor’s Office Trolley tour with Santa and tree lighting at the Monument. 2pm: Rick Berlin and the Nickel and Dime Band. 2:30pm: Mayor’s Office Trolley tour with Santa and tree lighting in Hyde Square. Dec. 3, 11am-6pm. Info: jpcentresouthmainstreets.org/635-3485.

Egleston Square holiday event and tree-lighting, including caroling, music, dance performances and the announcement of the local business window display contest winner. Sat., Dec. 10, 2-4pm, Egleston Square Peace Garden, 3133 Washington St.

JP DIY Craft Fair, local, creative, upcycled, eco-friendly crafts. Sun., Dec. 11, 12-4pm, Spontaneous Celebrations, 45 Danforth St. Info: jpdiycraftfestival.weebly.com.

Craft Fair, sponsored by UForge Gallery & Eliot Hall. Sat., Dec. 17 & Sun., Dec. 18, 11am-5pm, at the Footlight Club. 7a Eliot St. Info: [email protected].

Annual Jamaica Pond Winter Solstice celebration, Sun., Dec. 18, 1pm: Haiku and nature poetry open reading featuring the Jamaica Pond Poets Dorothy Derifield, Carolyn Gregory, Susanna Kittredge, Jim LaFond Lewis and Sandra Storey plus guest poet Jeffrey Chasin. 2pm: Winter Solstice bird walk with Frederick Law Olmsted (Gerry Wright). Info: 524-7070/[email protected].

Music

JP Concerts: Sat., Dec. 3, 4pm: pianist and composer Linda Kernohan, performing A Book of Hours, a cycle of piano works based on the writings of Thomas Merton. Sat., Dec. 10, 4pm: Sing Messiah!, featuring soprano Claire Raphaelson, contralto Elizabeth Anker, keyboardist Emma Gavenda, baritone James Dargan, and tenor Peter Terry. Proceeds will be donated to Healing Hands for Haiti. Sat., Dec. 17, 4pm: A Christmas Concert for the Community, with Erin Holmes, Soprano; D’Anna Fortunato, Mezzo-soprano; Michael Calmès, Tenor; Philip Lima, Baritone; Carl Wrubel, Baritone; William Merrill, Piano. St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1 Roanoke Avenue, $10, 4pm. Info: jpconcerts.org.

Brookline Community Band performance in honor of Pearl Harbor Day and the upcoming holidays. Wed., Dec. 7, 7pm, Mount Pleasant Home, 301 S. Huntington Ave. Info: 522-7600.

2nd Annual Charity for Youth Concert, with The Macrotones, Kina Zoré and Uhuru Africa, fundraising for Roxbury Youthworks and Sociedad Latina. Fri., Dec. 9, The Milky Way, 284 Amory St. Info: brownpapertickets.com/event/208366.

The Old Edison and Time and Place split CD release party. Sat., Dec. 10, Midway Cafe, 3496 Washington St. Info: midwaycafe.com.

Greenough House Parlor Concert Series, Sun. Dec. 4, 3pm: Adam Levin, guitar, and William Knuth, violin. Sun., Dec. 18, 3pm: Harpsichordist Judith Conrad with the Delight Consort (Paul Ukleja, Cornett, Recorder, Irish Tinwhistle Otto Guzman, Cello, Cornett and Recorder Frank Fitzpatrick, Recorder, Sackbut). $15, Loring-Greenough House, 12 South St. Info: 524-3158.

Exhibits

“Streetscape Moments: Photographs of Jamaica Plain,” photographs by Robin Radin. On view through Sun., Dec. 11., UForge Gallery, 767 Centre St. Info: uforgegallery.com.

Color prints by Jannine Fonte, through Mon., Dec. 5. James’s Gate, 5 McBride St. Info: 683-1760.

Trees and Gardens, black-and-white photography of Boston area parks and natural areas by Joseph Flack Weiler. Through Dec. 18. Hunnewell Visitor Center, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway. Info: arboretum.harvard.edu, 384-5209.

Photographs by Mark Saperstein, highlighting one youth, alum, or person who makes Hyde Square Task Force amazing. The exhibit invites the community to learn more about the impact we make on the lives of youth. Through Sat., Dec. 31. Bella Luna, 284 Amory St.

Dance

Milky Way Lounge and Bella Luna, Mondays, 8pm: game night with stump trivia. Tuesdays, 7pm: Dirty Water Saloon, country-western and line dancing. Saturdays: Mango’s Latin Dance Night, 10pm, $10. 21+. At the Brewery Complex, 284 Amory St. Info: milkywayjp.com.

Gender-Free/English Country Dance, beginners welcome and encouraged. 2nd and 4th Tuesdays (5th Tuesdays: experienced) of the month, 7:30-11:30pm, First Church of JP, Unitarian Universalist, Centre and Eliot Streets. Info: www.lcfd.org/bgfe//512-5554.

Literary

Chapter and Verse literary reading series, Fri., Dec. 2, 7:30pm: Peter Bates, Joe Bergin, Marcia Karp. Loring-Greenough House, 12 South St. Info: jamaicapondpoets.com.

Book launch party for Sue Murad’s “Ruth,” a collage book assembled from one Vanity Fair magazine. Sun., Dec. 11, 3-5pm, Tres Gatos, 470 Centre Street. Info: tresgatosjp.com

Performance

MassMouth, Sunday spoken word themed story slams. Dec. 11: Gifts. Jan. 8: Resolution. Feb. 12: Cupid. March 11: semi-finals. $8 ahead/$10 at the door. Doyle’s Café, 3484 Washington St. Info: [email protected].

Culinary

Self Esteem Boston coffee tasting, to benefit Self Esteem Boston’s weekly programs for women in shelters in the Boston Region. Sat. Dec. 3, 10am-3pm, Eastern Bank Community Room, 687 Centre St.

Youth/Families

Connolly Branch Library: Mon., Dec. 12, 6:30pm: Winter Holiday Stories & crafts. Mon., Dec. 19, 6:30pm: Winter Holiday party & sing-a-long. Wednesdays, 10:30am: Children’s Films. Mondays-Thursdays, 3:30-5:30pm: homework assistance, Mondays, 4-6pm: homework assistance. 433 Centre St. Info: 522-1960.

Egleston Sq. Library: Mondays, 10:30am: Preschool films. Tuesdays, 10:30am: preschool storytime, featuring puppets, songs games and fingerplays. Wednesdays, 5pm: Game night. Thursdays, 10:30am: Reading Readiness. Noon: Throw Back Thursdays, showing films from the ‘50s through the early ‘80s. 2044 Columbus Ave. Info: 445-4340.

Jamaica Plain Library: Thurs., Dec 8: Winter Holiday Party. 6pm: holiday crafts for children. 1pm: performance by the Boston Typewriter Orchestra. Tuesdays 10:30am: Toddler/preschool storytime. 3pm: Creative Drama Children. Wednesdays, 10:30am, baby and books. Mondays-Fridays, 3:30-5:30pm: homework assistance. 12 Sedgwick St., Info: 524-2053.

Kids Christmas Movie, Boylston Church, 207 Amory St., Fri., Dec. 16, 5-7pm. Info: [email protected].

Swim League, Boston Center For Youth and Families seeks youth participants ages 6-17 for a competitive swim league. Experience not necessary, but participants must be able to swim one length of the swimming pool, Hennigan Community Center, 200 Heath Street. Info: Bladimil Pujols, 635-5198/[email protected].

Art, Woodworking and Sewing, Bookbinding and more at the Eliot School, classes start throughout the year. Days, evenings, weekends. The Eliot School of fine and Applied Arts, 24 Eliot St. info/course listings: www.eliotschool.org.

Learn to stiltwalk with Spontaneous Celebrations, 45 Danforth St. Sundays, 11am-1pm, $5. Info: 857-498-2438.

Toddler Drum Circle, a weekly gathering of toddlers 1-5 and parents to play, dance and drum, coordinated by Cornell “Sugarfoot” Coley, Saturdays, 9:30am-10:30am, Spontaneous Celebrations, 45 Danforth St., $5 fee. Info: 617/298-1790/[email protected].

After-School Teen Welding and Teen Jewelry Workshops now available from 3-5pm on Mondays and Wednesdays at Stonybrook Fine Arts. Info: stonybrookfinearts.com.

The Peace Drum Project, offering teens 14-19 after-school arts programming and leadership training. Teens must be enrolled in a Boston Public high school to apply. Participants receive a stipend at the end of the project and are eligible for additional leadership awards. Info: Susan Porter at 524-6378/ tribal-rhythms.org/teen_application.html.

Tours and Talks

Lectures at the Arboretum: Deadly Nightshades: From Potatoes to Poisons, lecture by Gregory J. Anderson, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut. Wed., Dec. 7, 7-8:30pm, $15, Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway. Ginkgo: A Fresh Look at a Living Fossil, lecture by Peter Del Tredici, Senior Research Scientist. Tues., Dec. 13, 7-8:30pm, Weld Hill Research Building, Arnold Arboretum, 1300 Centre Street. Registration required. The Evolution of Big, lecture by Arboretum Director Ned Friedman. Fri., Jan. 9, 7pm. Hunnewell Building. Advance registration is requested. 125 Arborway. Info: my.arboretum.harvard.edu/384-5277.

Meet-Ups

Knitting Group, Thursdays, 6-8pm, JP Branch Library, 12 Sedgwick St. Info: 524-2053.

Holiday open house, food, music & holiday cheer. Sun. Dec. 4, 2-4:30pm, Mount Pleasant Home, 301 S. Huntington Ave. Info: 522-7600.

Flock Together, Holiday celebration for social change strategy center smartMeme. Live jazz, dinner and drinks. Donations encouraged. 45 Danforth St. Wed., Dec. 7, 7-9 PM. Info: smartmeme.eventbrite.com.

Classes

Workshops at Akasha Yoga Studio: Sun. Dec. 4, 2-4pm: hands-on assist with Mary Thomas. Sun., Dec. 11, 4-6pm: Fall Pranayama Workshop with Jean Stawarz. 7:15-8:30pm: Mindfulness and Parenting: Practice, Not Perfection. Info: Akashastudiojp.com.

Winter Photography Workshops, receive clues weekly via email and on the Boston Parks’ social media accounts.  Participants will capture the landmark the clues have led them to on camera and submit their photos for a chance to be selected for a four-week photography exhibit beginning Feb. 20 in Boston City Hall. Sun., Dec. 18, Jamaica Pond Boathouse. Info: [email protected]/961-3051.

Psychodrama, Drama Therapy, and Jungian Psychology workshops, Jan. 10, 17, 24, 31, Feb. 7, 7-9:30pm, Omega Theater Studio, 41 Greenough Ave. Early bird registration by Dec. 23, $100 (25/per session). Commitment required for first five sessions.Info: omegatheater.org/522-8300.

Children’s Theater Project offers year-round theater classes for children ages 5-7. Tuesday afternoons, 4-5pm for fifteen weeks during fall and winter/spring terms. 7a Eliot St., Info: Carol Gallagher, 913-8951.

Intro to Photography class, taught by Ali Farhoodi. Sat., Dec. 3, noon-3pm. $125-$250, Boston Neighborhood Network, 3025 Washington St. Info: bnntv.org.

Buddhist meditation classes, Thursdays, 7-8:30pm, Dec. 1-15; Sat., Dec. 10, 10am-1pm. $10. St. John’s Episcopal Church, 7 Revere St. Info: meditationinmass.org/508-979-8277.

Call to Artists

Freedom Trail on Trial, a public art project and work opportunity for Boston-area public high school students. Mondays and Wednesdays, 4-6:30pm, through Dec. 7. Info: urbanoproject.org/artistsProjects.php.