JUDITH HILL LIVE CONCERT IN BETHESDA JULY 14 AT BETHESDA BLUES & JAZZ

Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club has booked another big name of the moment for July 14:

Judith Hill (click here to buy tickets), who was a popular contestant on The Voice this season. Coached by Adam Levine, Hill was expected by many to win before becoming many media outlets' consensus choice for "most shocking elimination from The Voice."

Levine and the producers of the show weren't the first to hear something in Hill. She was chosen by Michael Jackson for his ill-fated This Is It tour in 2009, performing duets with him for the show, and solo at his funeral services. Jackson had probably the best ear in pop music, so you can't get a better endorsement than that.

Hill is also currently on the silver screen, as one of the vocalists profiled in the documentary, "20 Feet from Stardom."

With the limited seating at Bethesda Blues & Jazz, this show is almost sure to sell out, so use that link above to get tickets.

FLO ANITO LIVE SUMMER CONCERT AT VETERANS PARK, NOW UNTIL 8 PM (PHOTO)

Flo Anito is performing live in Veterans Park, at the corner of Norfolk and Woodmont Avenues in downtown Bethesda.

The concert will continue until 8 PM, and there are plenty of cold drinks and frozen desserts for sale nearby!

This summer concert series is sponsored by Bethesda Urban Partnership on Thursday evenings during the summer.

OLLY MURS OF X FACTOR UK TO APPEAR AT BETHESDA ROW FRIDAY

Olly Murs, the "easiest yes" Simon Cowell ever gave, is coming to Barnes and Noble at Bethesda Row this Friday, April 19, at 3:00 PM.

The UK X Factor runner-up - who impressed the judges, including Simon, in his audition - will perform live, and sign autographs.

Murs' newest release, Right Place, Right Time is available now. The singer has sold 4 million records worldwide.

Does Olly Murs have the X Factor? You'll find out Friday.

But, clearly, you have the X Factor, for being smart enough to read this blog every day.

MAGGIE ROSE BETHESDA CONCERT TICKETS NOW ON SALE

Bethesda Blues and Jazz Supper Club has posted its concert schedule, and the Maggie Rose dates (March 8-9) are now available for purchase.

MAGGIE ROSE TO PLAY 2 SHOWS AT BETHESDA BLUES AND JAZZ SUPPER CLUB MARCH 8-9!

Blockbuster news from the soon-to-open Bethesda Blues and Jazz Supper Club: one of the first artists to perform at the historic venue will be rising country star Maggie Rose.

A Potomac native who attended Our Lady of Mercy and Georgetown Visitation, Rose is now considered an "It" Girl in Nashville. Among the industry bigshots guiding her career is Tommy Mottola.

Her debut album, Cut to Impress, will be available March 26. But you'll have a chance to hear the material before everyone else at these two Bethesda shows.

Stay tuned for ticket information - I will post it when it is announced. The club is scheduled to open March 1, but show information will be released any time now.

This is going to be a fantastic start for the club.  If you are a longtime Bethesda resident, you know that downtown Bethesda has lacked a music venue that would draw a national recording artist (at least in my lifetime).  It's also very appropriate given that Washington DC was actually a country music town, back in the days of Jimmy Dean and Patsy Cline.

Though we've previously expected just blues and jazz from this club (and Rose's vocal style draws quite a bit from the former), maybe this won't be the last country show in downtown Bethesda.

WINTER WONDERLAND BETHESDA, SANTA CLAUS IN DOWNTOWN BETHESDA THIS WEEKEND

It will officially be December on Saturday, and that means Christmas and holiday events will be happening all around.

Saturday starts with pet photos with Santa at Bethesda Row from 2-4 PM.  That's right, pet photos. For $10, your pet can tell Santa what he or she wants for Christmas. The proceeds go to a familiar Bethesda Row charity, Canines for Veterans.  CFV rescues, trains and places service dogs with wounded veterans, who need their skills and companionship.

Santa will be back Sunday during the same hours, again on Bethesda Lane.

Saturday night at 8:00, enjoy a Christmas choral concert at Imagination Stage (4908 Auburn Avenue), $10 adult tickets, $5 for children under 12.  The concert is being produced by Bethesda Urban Partnership.

Bethesda UP is also behind the biggest event of the weekend: the arrival of Santa Claus himself in downtown Bethesda!

Hey, wait a minute - Santa Claus will be at Veterans Park from 2-4 PM.  That just happens to be the same time that Santa Claus will be posing for dog photos across town at Bethesda Row!

Ladies and gentlemen, we have an impostor on our hands!  Will the real St. Nicholas please stand up?  This is an outrage! An investigation is in order!  This could require a beard-pulling test to verify the veritable Kris Kringle.

Real or not, this Santa Claus will be just one part of the 1-4 PM show at Veterans Park (Norfolk and Woodmont Avenues) Sunday.  You can also witness live ice sculpting (as opposed to pre-recorded ice sculpting?), and concerts by Westbrook ES, Our Lady of Lourdes, Norwood, Garrett Park ES and Seneca Valley HS students.

As always, it might be advisable to fortify yourself with a hot chocolate or holiday coffee drink at Dunkin' Donuts on Bethesda Avenue.

DATE NIGHT WITH

"PASSION" AT THE

STRATHMORE TONIGHT

Did you take my date night advice last month, and attend the screening of Metropolis with live symphonic accompaniment?

If it worked out well, I have an encore for you tonight, right here in Bethesda at the Strathmore at 8 PM.

A screening of the 1928 silent classic, "The Passion of Joan of Arc," will be accompanied by a live performance of the acclaimed original score by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Marin Alsop.

Renee Falconetti's portrayal of Joan of Arc has only been named one of the top 100 cinematic performances of all time. No big deal, right?

There is also a FREE pre-screening lecture for you really intellectual cinephiles.

To reserve tickets, and for all the details, go to

http://www.bsomusic.org/explorations

Ah, but what about the dinner?

I would recommend Addies and Black Market Bistro, part of the same family-owned group as Black's Bar and Kitchen. Both are close to Strathmore.

Timpano's and Cheesecake Factory are nearby as well, and Matchbox on Rockville Pike a bit further yet.

REBECCA RACUSIN

RETURNS TO BETHESDA

Concert to Feature Mendelssohn,

Beethoven, and Rachmaninov

Violinist Rebecca Racusin returns to Bethesda Friday night at 8 PM for another concert at an intimate venue - a private home in West Bethesda.

Catch a rising star before you have to pay the big bucks for tickets that won't seat you anywhere near this close to the performance.

She will be joined by Jessica Sammis on cello and pianist Jessica Stitt for a program of Mendelssohn, Beethoven, and Rachmaninov.

For directions and to RSVP via email in order to attend, click here.

Can I give you a restaurant recommendation, if you want to make an evening of it?

French restaurant Praline and The Irish Inn at Glen Echo are nearby.