3 pm • Peter Jay Sharp Theatre at Symphony Space $22; Members $20; Five or more $19: Members Five or more $17

Tosca

Tosca was called a “shabby little shocker” by one English critic, but that’s an understatement: Tosca is a fiercely effective masterpiece of music-drama. Puccini had been interested in the Sardou’s play La Tosca for some time, but by 1895 the rights belonged to another composer, Alberto Franchetti. However, the publisher Ricordi and librettist Luigi Illica had no trouble persuading Franchetti to surrender the rights, telling him the subject matter – rape, murder, warring political factions – were far too vulgar for the Roman public’s taste. Soon after, Puccini was busy at work with the complete libretto in hand. Puccini approached the opera with his usual meticulousness – travelling to Rome to hear the tones of the bells in Castel Sant’Angelo, marking the exact pitch of the bell at St. Peter’s. Puccini also made two important changes to the libretto. He rejected an aria sung by Cavaradossi under torture, instead replacing it with the quartet; he felt that the static nature of the aria would slow the drama. Likewise, Puccini rejected both a poetic aria and transcendental love duet for the couple before Cavaradossi’s execution. Ricordi found the “acting lesson” scene too perfunctory, but Puccini insisted that Tosca would not waste her time on flowery language – and of course, the drama proves that he was right.

4 pm and 8:45 pm • Leonard Nimoy Thalia at Symphony Space $12; Members $8; Seniors $10 Get two tickets per film for an entire year for just $100 with a Thalia Film Pass! (Limit of one screening per film.)

Author Stieg Larsson, who died suddenly in 2004, left behind three unpublished novels, known as the ”Millennium” trilogy, which have become a global sensation, elevating Larsson to the world’s second best-selling author last year (behind “The Kite Runner”’s Khaled Hosseini). “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” is one of the decade’s major literary success stories, selling over 8,000,000 copies worldwide and the film adaptation is the highest grossing Swedish film in history and 2009’s highest-grossing European production. This is the second installment of the trilogy.

Sunday, Jan 30
ONE DAY ONLY - Millennium Trilogy Marathon!

1pm The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
4pm The Girl Who Played With Fire
6:30pm The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest

While you watch the film, enjoy a glass of wine and a light snack from our brand new Thalia Café!

6:30 pm • Leonard Nimoy Thalia at Symphony Space $12; Members $8; Seniors $10 Get two tickets per film for an entire year for just $100 with a Thalia Film Pass! (Limit of one screening per film.)

In his short career, Jean-Michel Basquiat was a phenomenon. He became notorious for his graffiti art under the moniker Samo in the late 1970s on the Lower East Side scene, sold his first painting to Deborah Harry for $200, and became best friends with Andy Warhol. Appreciated by both the art cognoscenti and the public, Basquiat was launched into international stardom. However, soon his cult status began to override the art that had made him famous in the first place.

A part of 

7 pm • Peter Jay Sharp Theatre at Symphony Space $22; Members $20; Five or more $19: Members Five or more $17

Aida is filled with political intrigue, love, betrayal, passion, and vengeance, and has captivated audiences for generations. This  stunningly visual version is set in the twenty-first century, at the base of a deconstructed Statue of Liberty at the lakeside Bregenz festival in Austria.