Celebrate city life”City Life Alive,” a monthlong…

Celebrate city life

“City Life Alive,” a monthlong celebration of city life and the opening of the Morton K. Blaustein City Life Exhibition Center, begins 9 a.m. Saturday with the City Life Stroll, a public procession from the Inner Harbor to the new museum at 33 S. Front St. The Blaustein Center is the latest addition to the Baltimore City Life Museums, which consist of seven historic sites in and around downtown Baltimore. Other center activities planned for this weekend include the City Life Festival from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and a lecture on Baltimore’s history at 2 p.m. Sunday. Call (410) 396-4391. The Mencken Society has assembled a panel of H. L. Mencken scholars from all over the country for a two-hour discussion, “The Relevance of H. L. Mencken in the 1996 election year. What he might have said about Clinton, Dole, Buchanan, Alexander, Forbes, Gingrich and Hillary.” The discussion will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Bibelot, 1819 Reisterstown Road. Panel members include Mencken authors Charles Fetcher and Edward A. Martin; Vincent Fitzpatrick, curator of the Mencken room; and Terry Teachout of the New York Times. Former Baltimore Sun editor Harold Williams will serve as moderator. For more information, contact Bibelot at (410) 653-6933. The 1996 Tour of World Figure Skating Champions glides into the Baltimore Arena for a one-night-only show at 8 p.m. tomorrow. Rudy Galindo (pictured), the new men’s figure skating champion, joins such superstars as Brian Boitano, Nancy Kerrigan, Michelle Kwan and Elvis Stojko in a dazzling performance at the Baltimore Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St. The athletes of this year’s show hold 18 Olympic and 53 world medals between them, as well as 150 national and international titles. Tickets are $30 and $45 and can be bought at the Baltimore Arena box office and all area TicketMaster locations. To charge by phone, call (410) 481-SEAT. The University of Maryland at College Park will kick off its African American Arts Festival this weekend. Through performances, exhibits, workshops, lectures and discussions, the festival will celebrate the richness and diversity of African-American artistic endeavor. Scheduled events include a blues concert featuring Cephas & Wiggins and the Holmes Brothers (pictured) tomorrow, an exhibit of rare historic photographs of African-Americans Saturday, and a workshop on percussion techniques by Jon Metzger on Monday. The festival concludes April 21. For more information, call (301) 405-0278. Music Director David Zinman and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra will perform the world premiere of William Bolcom’s “Gaea” at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall — with a slight program change — tonight, tomorrow and Saturday at 8: 15 p.m., featuring internationally renowned pianists Leon Fleisher (pictured, foreground) and Gary Graffman (background). “Gaea” is not one work, but three, and Mr. Zinman and the pianists have decided to perform all three concertos each night instead of on successive evenings, the better to show the evolution of the work. There will be two concertos performed (one with each pianist and half the orchestra), followed by a double piano concerto with full orchestra. Also on the program will be Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3. Tickets are $18 to $51 and can be bought through the BSO ticket office, located in the lobby of the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall at Cathedral and Preston streets. For more information, call (410) 783-8000. The Ballet Theatre of Annapolis is presenting a mixed repertoire of classical and contemporary ballet at 8 p.m. tomorrow at the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, 801 Chase St. in Annapolis. The two featured pieces are “The Three Faces of Eve” and “The Four Ancient Elements,” both choreographed in a bold, dramatic style by artistic director Edward Stewart. The company also will perform “Classical Variations” and the Adage from Aram Khachaturian’s “Spartacus.” Tickets are $16 for adults, $10 for children. For tickets or more information, call the BTA Box Office at (410) 263-2909. Downtown Baltimore will be the site of many fun events this weekend as the Downtown Partnership presents the “Really Big Show” of 1996. More than 100 free events and activities will take place in downtown neighborhoods, shopping districts and cultural areas. Some of this year’s highlights include:

The Really Big Balloon Launch: 10 hot-air balloons will be launched from Rash Field with Baltimore’s skyline as the backdrop at 5: 30 p.m. tomorrow, and at 7 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.

The Jelly Jam After Work Party: You can enjoy Caribbean music, food, spirits and fun at the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the Chart House Aloha Deck tomorrow from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Admission to the aquarium’s latest exhibit, “Jellies: Phantoms of the Deep,” will be reduced.

15th Annual Harborplace Street Performer Auditions: Watch jugglers, musicians, mimes and other talents compete to earn a spot on the Harborplace’s summer roster at the Harborplace amphitheater from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday.

South of the Harbor Spring Fling: Enjoy “A Taste of Federal Hill” at the South Baltimore merchants’ annual block party on Cross Street. You’ll enjoy live music and food from local Federal Hill restaurants from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.

For information about the Really Big Show, call (410) 342-SHOW. A program of events can be picked up at area Subway sandwich shops, Harborplace and the Gallery, Lexington Market and other participating stores and restaurants.

Pub Date: 4/11/96