Six Must-See Arts & Entertainment Events in October

Photo via Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com

Superstar

The name Charo may conjure up images of sequined, bell-bottomed body suits and ’70s TV variety shows, but it turns out that the actress (real name: María Rosario Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza) is also a pretty hot flamenco guitarist. She’s been making instrumental albums for the past two decades, even earning an award from the Billboard International Latin Music Conference. Now she comes to Scullers for two nights, where she’ll be doing the malagueña and other sensual strums. 10/25–10/26

Fine Arts

Along with Fort Point and Somerville, Roxbury boasts one of the area’s most vibrant communities of artists and artisans. This year Roxbury Open Studios welcomes the public into home workspaces throughout the district, as well as venues such as Hibernian Hall and the Dillaway-Thomas House. Check out stunning paintings, photographs, metal sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, and much more. 10/4–10/6 

Books

Six months after the marathon bombings, Back Bay publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is releasing an anthology called Our Boston. Though it begins with the Globe columnist Kevin Cullen’s memoir of the attack, the book is not fixated on tragedy. Instead, it’s a sharp and poignant celebration of the city by the writers who know it best: Dennis Lehane, Susan Orlean, Leslie Epstein, Pagan Kennedy, Charlie Pierce, and Leigh Montville, among many others. Five dollars from each sale will be donated to the One Fund. $16, Out 10/15 

Classical Music

After a protracted search, the Boston Symphony Orchestra finally anointed Andris Nelsons as its new musical director in the spring. Nelsons was scheduled to appear at the BSO’s Tanglewood venue over the summer, but a freak head injury waylaid him. So this month he’ll be conducting the BSO for the first time since his appointment (he takes over full time in 2014), leading the orchestra through a trio of works by Wagner, Mozart, and Brahms—just the kinds of Teutonic titans he cites as his major inspirations. 10/17–10/19

Dance

Dancer/choreographer Karole Armitage has twirled with Baryshnikov, worked with Madonna and Cirque du Soleil, and recently earned a Tony nomination for the Hair revival directed by the American Repertory Theater’s Diane Paulus. At the ICA, the Armitage Gone! Dance troupe will stage two pieces: “Rave,” featuring Chinese martial arts, voguing, and 18 students from the Boston Conservatory; and “Ligeti Essays,” a dance tribute to the great modernist composer György Ligeti. 10/18–10/20 

Market

The SoWa Open Market closes the coffin lid on another season with its final expo of the year, the annual Market of the Living Dead. Cash awards will be handed out to winners of the costume contests, and live music and pumpkin carving will accompany the usual artisanal goodies galore. 10/27