Do you feel as if there are only a dozen people qualified to be members of your board in your area and that they are all “taken”? Do you recruit people who you think will be wonderful board members just to have them fizzle out and contribute little? Has getting the corporate/business representation you would like on your board been a challenge? Are you having trouble achieving the diversity necessary to be a representative board? Join us as we share innovative ways to find fresh prospects with the expertise you need and a desire to serve. We’ll review tools and strategies

for successful board member engagement. This program is most appropriate for board members. It is strongly encouraged that at least two board members from the organization attend to maximize its impact. Executive directors are welcome, but will benefit most if accompanied by a board member.

Experience Level: All

Class Fee: $100 (Maryland Assoc.of Nonprofits Member Discounted Rate: $50)

Location: Southern Maryland Child Care Resource Center, Charlotte Hall

Date and Time: 12/04/08, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organization's Fall Training Programs for the Nonprofit Sector

CSM Presents “Frosty the Snowman.” Dec. 5, 7:30 p.m., College of Southern Maryland, Fine Arts Center, La Plata Campus, 8730 Mitchell Road, La Plata. CSM’S Theatre Company presents “Frosty the Snowman.” Celebrate the season with the classic tale of the snowman that comes to life. $5. 301-934-7828, 240-725-5499, 443-550-6199, 301-870-2309, Ext. 7828 or BxOffc@csmd.edu. www.csmd.edu/FineArts.

Pre-school Stories with Pat Harris at CSM. Dec. 11, 9:45 a.m., College of Southern Maryland, Fine Arts Center, La Plata Campus, 8730 Mitchell Road, La Plata. Local Storyteller Pat Harris is sure to put a smile on the face of children of all ages as she pulls out her can of magical stories. $5. 301-934-7828, 240-725-5499, 443-550-6199, 301-870-2309, Ext. 7828 or BxOffc@csmd.edu. www.csmd.edu/FineArts.

CSM Latin Ensemble. Dec. 12, 8 p.m., College of Southern Maryland, Fine Arts Center, La Plata Campus, 8730 Mitchell Road, La Plata. CSM’s Latin Ensemble will perform its winter concert under the direction of CSM Professor Stephen Johnson. $5. 301-934-7828, 240-725-5499, 443-550-6199, 301-870-2309, Ext. 7828 or BxOffc@csmd.edu. www.csmd.edu/FineArts.

CSM Choirs’ Winter Concert. Dec. 13, 8 p.m., College of Southern Maryland, Fine Arts Center, La Plata Campus, 8730 Mitchell Road, La Plata. CSM’s Chamber Singers and Concert Choir will perform its winter concert under the direction of Leroy Pressley. $5. 301-934-7828, 240-725-5499, 443-550-6199, 301-870-2309, Ext. 7828 or BxOffc@csmd.edu. www.csmd.edu/FineArts.

Port Tobacco Players presents:

"Disney's Beauty and the Beast" (November 21 - December 14, 2008)

Music by: Alan Menken
Lyrics by: Richard Ashman and Tim Rice
Book by: Linda Woolverton

MUSICAL: Certain stories carry on from generation to generation and earn the designation "timeless" for good reason. Disney's Beauty and the Beast is one such story. This classic tells the tale of an enchanted prince in the shape of a hideous beast and the intelligent woman who enters his life and must learn to love him if the curse is ever to be broken. Disney's Beauty and the Beast has been charming Broadway audiences for more than 10 years, and every year a whole new generation discovers the magic behind the castle walls. Belle, a young woman in a small, provincial town, meets the Beast, who in reality is a young prince whose lack of compassion has trapped him in a spell placed by the enchantress. If the Beast can learn to love and to be loved, the spell will be broken and he will be transformed back into his former self. Be our guest for a storybook theatrical experience your whole family will love.

Ticket Info: www.ptplayers.com

Dancin' on Broadway
A Song & Dance Revue
(Christmas Edition)

TWO PERFORMANCES:
Saturday, December 6, 2008 at 4:00 and 8:00 pm

Black Box Theater in the Indian Head Center for the Arts

Dancin' Unlimited is booked for its first Southern Maryland appearance. This professional jazz dance troupe from Northern Virginia will present an original Broadway Review style Christmas show written just for the Black Box. Find out more...

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, an event for all ages, will be presented at two FREE performances at South Potomac Church on Saturday, December 13 at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday, December 14 at 3:00 p.m. This hilarious play, based on the book of the same name, tells the tale of the year the Herdmans, a rough and tumble family of rude bullies, decide to play the key roles in the annual pageant. Will it spell disaster?

A wonderful time for the whole family to share, donations of canned foods or a free will offering are invited. South Potomac Church is located on Route 301 South in White Plains, Maryland, just 5 minutes south of St. Charles Mall. Sign language interpretation on Saturday evening. For more information, call 301 753-4075.

Enjoy concerts and other activities along the way!

Charles County Arts Alliance Sponsors FREE "Interactive" Paint Party

On Saturday, December 6, 2008, the Charles County Arts Alliance, in partnership with the Corner Studio, will offer two (2) FREE opportunities for teens and adults to come play with paint! The first session will be held from 10:00 am - 12:30 pm and the second session will take place from 1:00 pm - 3:30 pm. The purpose of these parties is to introduce painters to an acrylic paint that doesn't dry as quickly as traditional acrylic paints.

"Unlike traditional acrylics, all 75 of these "interactive" colors do not suddenly form a skin. Interactive changes the painting process, giving you plenty of time to blend and rework and giving you more creative freedom. The patent-pending formulation allows even touch-dry paint to be reworked or ragged-off to blend or reveal layers. Archival quality and lightfast, the intense colors dry to a satin-like finish without a plastic look or feel and minimal color shift." (www.chromaonline.com)

Whether you are a seasoned artist or a novice, these paint parties are designed for you. Just bring brushes and a surface on which to paint (ie. canvas or watercolor paper) and join in the fun. Simply call or email the Charles County Arts Alliance (301-392-5900; info@charlescountyarts.org) to register for either Session I or II. Directions to the Corner Studio will be made available to each participant at time of registration. Each workshop is limited to a maximum of 15 participants, so don't delay... join the party today!

“HANSEL AND GRETEL” MATCH WITS WITH THE WITCH ON STAGES IN SOUTHERN MARYLAND

THE LIGHT OPERA COMPANY OF SOUTHERN MARYLAND, the region’s first and only professional opera company, is proud to announce the second annual production of the family opera, “Hansel and Gretel”, by the German composer Engelbert Humperdinck. As last year, the company will give two free performances for students from area schools. Performances for the general public will be at the Three Notch Theatre in Lexington Park, on December 5 at 7 p.m. and December 6 at 4 p.m. “Hansel and Gretel” is a co-production with the Newtowne Players. New this year will be an additional performance at the Port Tobacco Players in La Plata on Sunday Dec. 21 at 4 p.m.

“Hansel and Gretel” is based on the familiar fairy tale of two children lost in the forest, the magic gingerbread house they find, and the witch who bakes children into cookies. Humperdinck’s sister, Adelheid Wette, asked her brother to compose an opera for her children that would omit the grimmer details of the original tale, and include comic intervals and a happy ending. She undertook to rewrite the story in verse suitable for singing, and her brother wrote the music in grand opera style. The opera had its premiere in 1893 and became an instant favorite.

For its production, the Light Opera Company invites a local school chorus to sing the part of the Gingerbread Children, includes young aspiring high school and college students to participate as soloists, and engages rising young opera stars as well as experienced professionals to complete the cast. This year students from the Plum Point Middle School Chorus under the direction of Lori Pellock will sing the Gingerbread Children. Brandi Wightman, in the eighth grade at Calvert Middle school, will sing the role of Sandman, and Jacquelin Horn from Lusby, a voice major at Catholic University, will reprise her performance as the Dew Fairy. In the role of Hansel is Maria Dolan Barnes performing her fourth solo role with the Light Opera Company. The rising young soprano Megan O’Connor will sing Gretel; she is from Arlington, Virginia and is currently studying for her Master of Music at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.

Alicia Cordelle, a professional soprano from La Plata, will sing the Mother; she was recently seen as Katisha in the Light Opera Company’s “The Mikado” in Prince Frederick this past summer. The Peruvian baritone Jose Sacin, presently living and performing in Washington, D.C., will be the Father, a role he has sung with the Annapolis Opera. Last but definitely not least is another Light Opera Company member, Ellynne Bryce Davis from Leonardtown, as the Witch. This will be Ms. Davis’s third solo appearance in a Light Opera production. Dr. Sandra Jarrett will be the Stage Director; Music Director and Pianist for the production will be Angela Garvey.

The Light Opera Company is the brainchild of Dr. Jarrett, herself a professional opera singer with extensive experience in Europe and Scandinavia. She wanted to provide performance opportunities for the large number of talented local professional singers and musicians. Furthermore a local opera company would enliven the cultural landscape of southern Maryland and foster interest in opera in children and young adults through free performances for the schools. This production of “Hansel and Gretel” fulfills these goals.

Tickets are $20 for general admission and $15 for seniors, students and military. For tickets to the Dec. 5 and 6 performances please call Three Notch Theatre at 301-737-5447. For tickets to the Dec. 21 performance please contact Port Tobacco Players Box Office at 301-932-6819 or online at www.ptplayers.com.