Concerts and theater in the fall

[ilai]

This morning, I picked up the Metro and turned my attention to the eleven-page "Fall Arts Preview" section. You'd think that being in a city full of concert halls and theaters that it'd be hard not to attend at least a few shows. Yet the only non-MIT show I've been to in Boston is the Blue Man Group (barring any holes in my feeble memory).

So I've decided I should at least try to attend a few concerts and shows this fall. I've listed below a few from the Metro that have inspired me (along with select quotes):

• Yo-Yo Ma, playing Sept 25 at the Symphony Hall (301 Mass. Ave.).
  
  
• "Hairspray", playing Oct 4-16 at the Opera House (539 Washington St.).
  
  
• "Cybersonic Adventures", playing Oct 7 at Tsai Performance Center at BU (685 Comm. Ave.) by Boston Musica Viva.
  
  "The latest from Boston Musica Viva combines digital samples -- both aural, like a surreal piano, and visual, like flying laser hieroglyphs -- with live performers."
  
  
• "Dido and Aeneas", playing Oct 14-16 at the Cutler Majestic Theatre (219 Tremont St.) by the Handel and Haydn Society.
  
  "Seven years after the Trojan war, warrior Aeneas strolls into Carthage and into the arms of Queen Dido... who soon leaves, smothered by her love. Suicide follows. It'd make a great opera, and Purcell agreed."
  
  
• "700 Sundays", playing Oct 18-29 at the Opera House, featuring Billy Crystal.
  
  
• "Celtic Woman", playing Nov 10 at the Opera House.
  
  
• "Boston Ballet's Nutcracker", playing Nov 25-Dec 30 at the Opera House.
  
  "The holiday staple finds a new home, which means Mikko Nissinen has redone the choreography, which means maybe this holiday chestnut's been dusted off." And the fun caption: "Who knew 'Nutcracker' was so freakin' sexy? Why has nobody told us?"
  
  
• And get this -- two "Messiah"s! One playing Nov 27, Dec 2, and Dec 4 at Symphony Hall by the Handle and Haydn Society, and the other Dec 16-17 at Jordal Hall (30 Gainsborough St.) by Boston Baroque. According to the Metro, the latter is "Grammy-nominated".