Thursday, October 29, 2026
Baltimore's Vibes, 7 Days a Week

Halloween's two days out and Baltimore's already half in costume. Tonight the Hippodrome drops SIX — the pop-opera about six queens who refuse to be a footnote — while Hawthorne Heights turns twenty years of "If Only You Were Lonely" into an anniversary blowout down at Soundstage. Laurel Park swings its gates open for a special Thursday card, the 8x10 keeps proving its comeback is real, and there's enough Halloween-adjacent family programming out there to make the weekend jealous. Thirty picks below — let's go.

Beet Vol. 66 w/ Infinity Knives, Quelle Chris, Moo & Mfundishi @ 20 N. Howard St

Four deep on the bill and every one of them digging into real underground rap. 7:30 PM, five bucks at the door — the kind of show you brag about catching before anyone else did.

👉 CTA: https://www.tumblr.com/baltshowplace

Javier Nero's 18-Piece Jazz Orchestra @ An die Musik Live

A full big band in a room built for exactly this. 7:30 PM, horns wall to wall, no excuses needed.

👉 CTA: https://andiemusiklive.com/live-events/

Hawthorne Heights: 20th Anniversary of "If Only You Were Lonely" (w/ letlive., Creeper) @ Baltimore Soundstage

Twenty years since the album that soundtracked a thousand bad breakups, played start to finish with letlive. and Creeper along for the ride. Doors 6 PM, show 7 PM. Bring the eyeliner.

👉 CTA: https://www.baltimoresoundstage.com/events/hawthorne-heights-20th-anniversary-of-if-only-you-were-lonely/

The Snowflakes @ Cat's Eye Pub

Free live music in Fells Point on a Thursday — the Cat's Eye formula, undefeated. Sets run 8 PM to midnight, no cover.

👉 CTA: https://catseyepub.com/event/the-snowflakes-2/

Kendall Street Company (w/ Mallow Hill) @ The 8x10

Federal Hill's jam-band home base is back from the dead under new ownership, and it's throwing real shows again. Doors 7, music 8, string-and-groove all night.

👉 CTA: https://www.tixr.com/groups/the8x10/events/kendall-street-company-201081

Pangelica, Moth Broth & Albert Bagman @ Current Space

DIY art-space triple bill, 6 PM start, $12-15 at the door. Come early — the gallery's worth the trip on its own.

👉 CTA: https://pools.events/event/fY1oe3uG/pangelica-moth-broth-albert-bagman/

ZO! & Tall Black Guy feat. Deborah Bond @ Keystone Korner

Soul and neo-jazz royalty in Baltimore's best listening room. 7-8:30 PM, $35-45 — treat yourself.

👉 CTA: https://baltimore.org/event/zo-tall-black-guy-featuring-deborah-bond/

Spookey Ruben (w/ Fetcher, Monkey) @ Metro Baltimore

Cult power-pop weirdo Spookey Ruben, in a room that fits the vibe. Doors 7, show 8, $15.

👉 CTA: https://www.jambase.com/show/spookey-ruben-metro-baltimore-20261029

Halloween Emo Karaoke Night @ Mona's Super Noodle

Scream the bridge of your angstiest 2006 anthem in costume, free, starting 8 PM. This is the whole reason karaoke exists.

👉 CTA: https://www.meetup.com/rock-pop-punk-emo-affinity-group/events/316957949/

Sound Exchange w/ DJ SDOT (Upstairs @ the Ottobar)

Upstairs at the O turns into a dance floor, 9 PM start, no genre rules.

👉 CTA: https://theottobar.com/event/sound-exchange-w-dj-sdot-4/upstairs-ottobar/baltimore-maryland/

Reggae Night @ Peabody Heights Brewery

Free reggae and good beer in Remington, 6 PM start. Low-key, high-reward Thursday.

👉 CTA: https://www.tumblr.com/baltshowplace

Indie Hour → Conservatory Night → Conservatory Conclusion Jam @ Baltimore Improv Group

BIG's Thursday is a full improv triple feature: Indie Hour at 7 (Big Worm + Filipino American History Month), Conservatory Night at 8 (Antique Birding Society & First Date), and the free Conservatory Conclusion Jam closing it out at 9. Show up for one, stay for all three.

👉 CTA: https://www.bigimprov.org

Discover the Magic of Improv: A Community Improv Jam @ Highwire Improv

No experience required — just a willingness to look ridiculous in public. 7 PM, free.

👉 CTA: https://highwireimprov.com/

Jason Salmon @ Magooby's Joke House

A night of stand-up from a road comic who's earned his stripes, at Baltimore's longest-running comedy club. 7:30 PM.

👉 CTA: https://www.magoobysjokehouse.com/events/131808

The Open Mic @ The Port Comedy Club

Ten o'clock, free, and anybody's game — the open mic where tomorrow's headliners bomb tonight.

👉 CTA: https://wl.seetickets.us/event/The-Open-Mic/704232?afflky=ThePortComedyClub

BMA Violet Hour: Lawrence Burney and Ellis Marsalis III @ Baltimore Museum of Art

Film screening and conversation, free, 6:30-7:45 PM. The BMA's after-hours series keeps being one of the city's best-kept secrets.

👉 CTA: https://artbma.org/event/bma-violet-hour-lawrence-burney-and-ellis-marsalis-iii-t-p-luce/

SIX @ The Hippodrome Theatre

The six wives of Henry VIII take the mic and the crown back, in the touring pop-concert musical that's been selling out everywhere it lands. 7:30 PM — full writeup in Our Bonus Pick below.

👉 CTA: https://baltimore.broadway.com/shows/six/

The Rocky Horror Show @ Iron Crow Theatre

Live, loud, and unapologetically queer — Iron Crow's stage version of the cult classic, running now through November 7. 7:30 PM.

👉 CTA: https://www.ironcrowtheatre.org/rockyhorror

Marvin: The Marvin Gaye Musical @ The Lyric

Je'Caryous Johnson's touring tribute to the Motown legend, in from out of town for one night. 8 PM.

👉 CTA: https://www.lyricbaltimore.com/events/detail/marvin-gaye-musical

Express & Explore Tour: Death and the Afterlife @ The Walters Art Museum

A free, guided deep-dive into how different cultures have pictured what comes next — perfectly timed for the week. 6 PM.

👉 CTA: https://thewalters.org/event/eetour-afterlife/

Possession — One Night Only @ The Charles Theatre

Andrzej Żuławski's unhinged body-horror divorce drama, back on the big screen for exactly one night. 9 PM.

👉 CTA: https://thecharles.com/movies/

You Can See Everything @ The Senator Theatre

New release, three showtimes to pick from: 12 PM, 3:35 PM, and 7:10 PM. $14 general, $11 matinee.

👉 CTA: https://thesenatortheatre.com/movies/showtimes/

The Rocky Horror Picture Show Screening @ M&T Bank Exchange

The original, on a real screen, with all the chaos that implies. 7:30 PM, $36.

👉 CTA: https://www.tumblr.com/baltshowplace

Special Live Thoroughbred Racing @ Laurel Park

The Orioles are done for the year and the Ravens are off this week, so Laurel Park carries the section — and it earns it. First post 12 PM on a special Thursday card.

👉 CTA: https://www.laurelpark.com

Morgan State Football vs. South Carolina State University @ Morgan State University

MEAC football under the lights in Northeast Baltimore. 7 PM kickoff.

👉 CTA: https://morganstatebears.com/calendar

Trick-or-Treat Through the Square @ Belvedere Square Market

The market's merchants hand out candy up and down the stalls, 5-8 PM. Costumes optional, candy mandatory.

👉 CTA: https://belvederesquare.com/event/trick-or-treat-through-the-square/

Firefly Crankie Collective Presents: Scary Stories in the Dark @ Blue Pitt BBQ

Hand-cranked panorama storytelling — an old Appalachian folk-art form — turned loose on ghost stories, with barbecue on standby. 7-9 PM.

👉 CTA: https://baltimore.org/event/firefly-crankie-collective-presents-scary-stories-in-the-dark/

Craft and Cinema Night: "The Craft" @ Creative Alliance

Make something with your hands, then watch the '90s witch classic on the big screen. 7:30 PM, $13-18.

👉 CTA: https://creativealliance.org/event/craft-and-cinema-night-the-craft/

Good Folks Happy Hour — Halloween Edition @ R. House

Free happy hour, costumes encouraged, Remington's favorite food hall doing what it does best. 5 PM.

👉 CTA: https://www.instagram.com/p/DeAvsKrgNIF/

Carve & Create: Pumpkin Carving Workshop w/ Mike & Joanne Bare @ Manor Mill

A guided pumpkin-carving session out in Monkton's converted grist mill — bring the kids, bring the cider. 6-8 PM.

👉 CTA: https://baltimore.org/event/carve-create-an-artistic-pumpkin-carving-workshop-with-mike-and-joanne-bare/

SIX @ The Hippodrome Theatre

7:30 PM · The Hippodrome Theatre at the France-Merrick PAC · tickets via the box office

Henry VIII had six wives, and history gave five of them a single sentence each. SIX hands the mic back: a pop-concert musical where Catherine, Anne, Jane, Anne, Catherine, and Catherine out-sing, out-dance, and out-sass four centuries of bad press. It's funny, it's loud, it's over in 80 minutes, and it is exactly the kind of big-swing touring show that doesn't sit still in Baltimore for long. If you're doing one expensive thing this week, do this.

👉 CTA: https://baltimore.broadway.com/shows/six/

That's thirty ways to spend your Thursday, Baltimore — Halloween's two days out, so go get weird before the costume closet closes for another year. Tomorrow we're back with Friday's edition. Until then: yodel it from the rooftops. 🗣️⛰️