6 months, 10 must do's
By Bob Heisler
The Journal News
(Original Publication: January 5, 2007)

The new year will be wonderful, even though January movies generally stink, TV series are marking time until May sweeps and, face it, once the holiday bills are paid, who has money for theater or concert tickets?
I know something will turn up. Maybe "The Apprentice" crashes and burns. Bebe Neuwirth returns to "Chicago" with an new hip and stops the show. Oprah lifts a first novel from the dung heap to set it a place at the table of classic literature.
 
If not, there's always YouTube to bathe your eyeballs in the tepid water of what passes for digital creativity.
Still, I am looking forward to some cultural tent poles in the first half of 2007:

1.
"The Sopranos" returns some time in April, shakes up years of smug speculation about the TV crime family we love and goes away. Forever? Depends. If Barry Zito gets $126 million to pitch in San Francisco, what can James Gandolfini ask to stay in the business? Of course, he could also be completely and sincerely dead by the finale. Remove him in the penultimate episode and the series wins a lifetime of loyalty. More likely, by the time we say buona notte, AJ sleeps with the fishes, Carmela disappears to a new name in Arizona and we last see a despondent Tony turning on the bath and placing a knife on the sink.
2.
Harry Potter gets his this year, too. We don't know when. J. K. Rowling hasn't finished the seventh and final adventure of the boy wizard-in-training. We do know the title: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." We also know it will be publishing's biggest event of the year and spur dozens of wannabe successors. Could it be that Harry Potter is the last hero your boy children read about in a book printed on paper? "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," the movie based on book five, arrives July 13 - confusing camp and vacation schedules. Let that be your guide to the approximate pub date.
3.
Two old friends return this month on Fox, the calendar-challenged network. "24" rolls out its two-dozen slices starting Sunday - yes, it's a crowded TV evening, but you can wait for the DVD set if you don't TIVO the season. You'll be hooked from the opening, but remember, Jack Bauer's mission usually changes about after six or seven hours on the job. And who doesn't react to the next "American Idol" quest with all the anticipation of the 1040 forms arriving at a mailbox near you? I actually like the early episodes, starting Jan. 16, when we brutally crush the dreams of kids whose mothers lied to them about their musical talent. And you thought you were the best pop singer in America because...? For me, things get boring when the final 16 start doing their weekly variety show. Look for the judges to find a couple of really damaged performers to shake up the action. Cynical? Perhaps.
4.
I'm looking forward to "Spider-Man 3" because its May 4 opening marks the start of summer movies. Feel free to get out the flip-flops. Eventually, summer movies (the action blockbusters) will start right after the Oscars and holiday movies (the non-action blockbusters) will arrive as soon as the kids start school. I know it's confusing, but that's the price you pay for living in a democracy. And give the Spidey crew credit for not adding a subtitle. It's "Spider-Man 3." What you see is what you get.
5.
"Lost" will jump the shark this spring. That's the phrase TV insiders use when a formerly beloved series loses its mind and pleads for palliative care. Is Pam Ewing dreaming it all? Are the Others really executives from CBS? Never has so much mythology been poured down the tube in the service of so little. So far. They might still pull it out. If not there's always time travel. New episodes begin Feb. 7 and we'll all tune in. Will we still be together in April?
6.
The Blueberry Pond Theatre Ensemble in Ossining is a terrific resource in LoHud land. It's a small-batch distillery, developing the raw material of writer and actor into meaningful and sometimes moving theater.

And they let you see the process along the way. For example: They're doing a public reading of Kathy Kafer's "A Mother's Prayer" on Jan. 23. Cynthia Granville, Blueberry Pond's artistic director, says the play concerns two women who each have the "perfect child" for each other. Try to see their next play sampler - scenes from several works in progress. If you feel like giving notes to the director, that's OK.
7.
Anyone can look forward to the Academy Awards on Feb. 25. If you've been forced to watch the Super Bowl extravaganza - or eat your way through it - the ritual of movie moguls praising other movie moguls washes away that heartburn. But Oscar night should be a communal celebration, too, and that's where the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville comes in. Perhaps you have seen a nominee or two at the theater, in which case, the Burns' viewing party is your last chance to sound intelligent before the voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences makes fools of us all. Feel free to dress up. There's a red carpet, contests, snacks and a theater full of film fans to complain to about how Drew Barrymore was robbed again.
8.
Just when you need it, the Caramoor International Music Festival's schedule is released next month. Like a seed catalog, the announcement is a confirmation that the summer will, in fact, occur again this year. But here's a sample: The festival opens June 23 with pianist Helene Grimaud and the Orchestra of St. Luke's conducted by Peter Oundjin. Among the gardens, open-air theaters and courtyards on the former estate of Walter and Lucie Rosen, you'll find opera, jazz, bluegrass, cabaret, klezmer and a special emphasis this year on Latino music. I'm still trying to find a way to move into the Katonah estate for the duration. If you see me tending the roses, say hello.
9.
Every Broadway season has one or two don't-miss productions. In addition to planning a 12-hour commitment to see Tom Stoppard's "The Coast of Utopia" trilogy in one very long day, I'm also looking forward to Doug Hughes directing Christopher Plummer and Brian Dennehy in "Inherit the Wind."

10.
Speaking of national treasures, Wynton Marsalis brings his quintet to the Paramount Center for the Arts in Peekskill Jan. 27 for a benefit concert. I've heard him often at his Jazz @ Lincoln Center home base, where he is artistic director. An evening of his music swings you out the door with new understanding about American culture and creativity. How I want to be in that number when Marsalis marches in.