For Noches de Arte, on the second Friday of the month, nontraditional spaces like middle schools and community centers convert to exhibition spaces in a community full of so much art and so few galleries. Painters and poets belong together along with salseros, so don't miss the after-party. --MA

Best New Local Artistic Residents

Big-name talent has been traveling to Philly to tap the city's vast creative recording well for decades. But this year it's a virtual migration, as New York MC J-Live, France's Les Nubians and Ohio DJ and instrumental specialist RJD2 have all planted their musical roots here. Welcome home. --AAD

Best Little Theater That Could

Biggest Welcome Back

Pennsylvania Ballet's happy to have James Ady back and so are we. Last year Ady left PAB's corps to join the gazillion-member American Ballet Theater corps up in New York City. Everyone was sorry to see him go, but recognized he was talented -- and these things happen. But, voilá, Ady is back at PAB one year later, promoted up the ranks to soloist. Anyone who saw his terrific performance in the recent Fancy Free knows exactly why this is great dance news. Welcome back! --JA

Worst Locally Filmed TV Show

Cold Case is such a perfect name for such a chilly TV show. From its lipless lead actors to its grainy ice-blue cinematography, this Jerry Bruckheimer-produced fiasco actually manages to portray Philly landmarks way worse than Hack does (to say nothing of the tedious scripts). Now that’s an insult. --ADA

Best Cable-Access Show to Watch With a Buzz

I'd like to think I can dance. (Others would rightfully disagree.) Still, I certainly couldn't pull off soul line dances like the Mitchellville, Marvin Gaye Walk or the Goodfoot (neither the Philly nor Baltimore variety). All of which brings me back to cable television, a couch and a dulled mind. No, nothing's as giddily entertaining as Soul Line TV (Wednesdays, 8 p.m., WMCN, DT-44). The audio? A little off. The cameras? Ain't the best. Regardless, there's nothing quite as mesmerizing as watching dozens of fly ladies and pimped-out gentlemen grooving in unison for an hour. No frills. Just dancing. And all you have to do is watch. --BH

Best Upstart Show Bookers

Rock 'n' roll tends to be a boys' club. So how refreshing is Plain Parade? The little booking company run by local music grande dames Sara Sherr and Maria Tessa Sciarrino has been filling the upstairs stage at Doc Watson's with edgy, adventuresome acts since November 2002. And since Plain Parade was born of the ongoing showcase Sugar Town (where women rock the house without cleaning it), Sherr and Sciarrino ensure that ladies get to play, too. --BHo

Worst Loss to the Philly Hip-Hop Scene

After six long and strong years holding down Monday nights at Fluid with pure hip-hop, DJ Cosmo's The Remedy made a final exit. Last year the night was awarded Best Intimate Soiree in music magazine URB. When Cosmo retired The Remedy on May 12, the house was packed and the music bumped a little sadder. --AAD

Best New Dance Space

Consultants recently concluded that dancers, poor dears, just don't have a head for business. Did they notice that Melanie Stewart, dancer, choreographer and performance artist, managed to get the Arts Bank in shape to host a bunch of Fringe dance performances? The space looked great, plus it had all the amenities, snacks and parking. Maybe the fancy consultants who think dancers can't handle business decisions should talk with Stewart, who continues to contribute a hundredfold to the city. --JA

Best Eclectic Record Store

While other record stores may have bigger or more specialized selections, you just can't beat South Street's Spaceboy Music for sheer breadth. From the dirtiest punk to the freshest local releases to the most abstract electronica and underground hip-hop, Spaceboy prides itself on carrying the latest and the weirdest. The Spaceboy staff knows its stuff, with a recommendation at the ready for just about any genre. We can't go there without spending three times what we'd planned. --BHo

Best Place to Find Southeast Asian Garage Rock

Sidestepping the usual contingent of South Street record stores, A.K.A. Records has become a definitive stop for both music connoisseurs and those on a budget. Few seem to put as much emphasis on stocking such an eclectic range of well-known and obscure music. No matter if it's the Split Enz, William Hooker or some long-lost, garage-rock classic, A.K.A. has it (or can easily find it). For those who can't afford the Joy Division box set, A.K.A. has a vast and ever-changing used section filled with hidden gems and favorites. --PBu

Best Local Encounter with Hedwig

Visit the lovely upstairs bar at Beau Monde, L'Etage, on a Thursday night, and you will be treated to the unique entertainment of Jeffrey Marsh, a loveable, witty androgen in a dress and goatee singing showtunes and Dusty Springfield accompanied by Rick Sorkin's acoustic guitar. In between the witty banter and a Newspaper Roundup (a sort of performed version of the NYT Week in Review section with sass and bite) is a lineup of impressive local talent. --EL

Best Example of Keeping Up the Family Legacy

Shawn Murray's Twenty-Two Gallery Café on Rittenhouse Square is a triple play. First, it's a quiet, comfortable coffee and pastry shop. Second, it's a space for local and international visual artists to show their work and a music venue on select nights. Primarily, though, Murray thinks of it as a permanent outpost for the work of his grandfather, sports photographer Bruce Murray. The elder Murray worked for The Public Ledger and The Evening Bulletin -- shooting some of the top baseball players of his time at historic moments, many of which are on view at the shop. Murray's fulfilled three dreams at once with one cozy little spot. --LH

Best Club to Hear the Club Owner Rock the Crowd as a DJ

For years, the fish tank-laden, cobalt-blue mini-spot out yonder known as Aqua Lounge has been schooling Philly on the deep, soulful side of house music. The legendary Pure Fridays weekly hosted a string of rotating DJs over the years. But when a club owner has a specific vibe in mind, it might be tough to find the model DJ who'll supply the desired mood. Aqua Lounge's owner adopted the do-it-yourself approach, when Carlos Sanchez recently appointed himself as the resident DJ for Fridays, dishing out the exact sound he always had in mind -- vocal, soulful, sexy and oh-so-deep. --SO

Best New Radio Personality Additions

After 16 years on Power 99 FM, air personality Colby Colb departed, making a pit stop in N.Y. before storming back as program director at rival station, 103.9 The Beat, in November. Double whammy: In came the Big Apple's Tarsha Jones, a.k.a. Jonesy, to deliver a weekly ratings beatdown of Power's obnoxious Dream Team morning show. --AAD

Best Use of Window Space in the Off-Season

No one wants to peer longingly into a gallery space left empty for the summer months. So Rebecca Murtaugh's Post-it note installation in the windows of Pentimenti Gallery this August was the perfect we'll be back soon sign. The day-glo squares stuck all over the front windows, with their peephole-like spiraling Os, were a nice alternative to drab venetian blinds or, worse, nothing at all. And in the process, Murtaugh reminded us of Pentimenti's year-round clever approach to art display. --LH

Best Club Night That Not Enough People Know About

With all the worldwide hype around DJs like Sasha, Digweed and Dave Seaman, you would think there'd be somewhere in Philly to dive into the euphoric sounds of deep progressive house. And indeed there is. Mat Leutwyler's DJ weekly at Tribecca, Cirque Wednesdays, is Philly's answer to the Global Underground sound, offering the more sophisticated, U.K.-style side of progressive house. While Philly legend DJ Dozia busts out house, classics and hip-hop downstairs, Leutwyler and guests like Ben Camp and Joshua Ryan unleash the big-room elegance in the main room until 3:30 a.m. Leutwyler hopes to invite international guests once attendance improves. --SO

Most Welcome Cross-Continental Romance

You know how those end-of-the-summer romances decline: You don't call, they choose not to write. But this year, we met Rrose Selavy, glamorous creation of Marcel Duchamp, as imagined by New Paradise Laboratories. And, hell, she called -- from Paris. Before you knew it, the historical and stylistic lines connecting and delineating Paris and Philadelphia had blurred, the company ensemble had created a physically ambitious world mirrored by playfully deceptive images by live-feed video -- and we had lost our heads. In the first part of NPL's bravely conceived trilogy examining civic life, the company bestowed on us a view of the city we inhabit that made us glad they are tangibly part of it. --JF

Best Resurrection of a Lost Genius

When Todd Kimmell came into possession of a couple dozen images from the 1930s to '50s that imagined the look and technology of our current times (mailmen with jetpacks, houses floating in midair), he knew it'd be a hit. So he mounted a show of illustrator Art Radebaugh's work at Lost Highways Archive in March, which included the retro-futurist's work for magazines and a comic strip that guessed at the designs of the future. (The exhibit is still available at www.losthighways.org and Kimmell and his Lost Highways colleague, Jared Rosenbaum, are taking the show to France in November.) Kimmell and co. are moving house out of Old City, but there're plans aplenty, including a new gallery space, called The Willing Mind, to open in Burlington, N.J. (348 High St., 609-386-8786), with exhibits and more. --LH

Best Source for Believable Conspiracy Theories

When they're not playing sweet indie hip-hop videos, Drexel's DUTV is usually bombarding our left brains with the evidence we need to back up our hate for the Republican Party (and big business and the justice system and sometimes all governments, laws and religions). --PR

Most Oppressive Theater Moment

The scene was meticulously crafted: Send an audience, in an elevator, up to the penthouse suite of the Warwick hotel, where they are plunged into a monologic analysis of cultural self-satisfaction and the oppression it engenders. Never mind the plush surroundings: Brat Productions' The Fever, by Wallace Shawn, was the greatest scare of the year; Peter Pryor’s coiled-spring performance, as a man who sits in a hotel room in a country torn by political upheaval while questioning his liberal preconceptions, was insulated by the well-padded surroundings, which started out as sumptuous and ended up seeming claustrophobic. We left carrying the weight of the world with us -- and as much as we feverishly explained the play’s resonance to one another, we realized we weren’t meant to feel cathartic. Quite the opposite. --JF

Best Grassroots Powerhouse

Last March Ladyfest Philly, the four-day festival of independent music, dance, theater, political activism and skill-sharing, had us running around the city and believing in positive energy again. Plus they got Tsunami back together for a day. --PR

Best Radio DJ Voice After a Long Monday

Dig jazz? If so, we probably don't need to tell you. If not, do yourself a favor and tune in to Bob Perkins (6-9 p.m., Monday through Thursday) on WRTI 90.1 FM. You don't need to be a jazz lover to appreciate the deep mellow vibe he supplies with his downright awesome voice. It just elevates the jazz experience. Think Harry Kalas and baseball. --MR

Best Jedi Mind Trick

The folks at the Fabric Workshop pulled a fast one on us this summer. The exhibit On the Wall: Wallpaper and Tableau challenged us to look not at what's hanging on the wall, but the wall itself. Turns out there was a lot to see. Gorgeous patterning, luscious textures and a dynamite installation by Marion Boulton Stroud with bold juxtapositions of artistic styles (from Revolutionary War-era wallpaper to Virgil Marti's psychedelic designs) all made for a thoroughly satisfying visit to FWM. I got lost in the '70s-den mural of Adam Cvijanovic's Backyard; I checked into Nicole Eisenman's comic book-styled, bad-girl-themed Gray Bar Hotel. They had to kick me out at the end of the day. --LH

Most Unlikely Chill-Out Room

No dozy club lounge here: Frankie Martin brought the freshest approach to gallery nightlife this September, opening her shiny and new igloo installation, Freezy Freakout, at Project Room. Inviting all comers to channel their inner Eskimos and dance in handmade Inuit outfits, while dazzling snowflake shapes danced on the walls, Martin let us give ourselves over to the delight of twinkly winter, a glossy, unreal idea as larkishly appealing as simply staring at the igloo ceiling, dancing in circles on the spot and then imagining the world spinning dizzily fast. --JF

Best City Venue for Moments of Unscripted Transcendence

Maybe it's just the smallness of the place. Or it could be the fact that many show-goers (and some performers, too) have just feasted downstairs at Serrano (a tasty move that lands one a reserved table upstairs). Whatever the reason, the Tin Angel's intimate setting evokes a deep connection between musician and fan. From Liv Taylor inviting a stunned audience member to harmonize with him on City Lights to Ellis Paul's pied piper-like snake-between-the-tables routine (complete with band in tow), it seems there's more than just great acoustics giving the Angel its oh-so-heavenly vibe. --NP

Best Farm Team for the Metropolitan Opera

Our own Academy of Vocal Arts keeps shipping 'em off to the Met, the world's epicenter of opera. This season, 10 AVA singers are on the roster at the Met, including superstars James Morris and Ruth Ann Swenson. Some are recruited while still in school, and each and every season you get to hear them here first. --PB

Best New Music Series

Bravo to the Kimmel Center for bravely launching Fresh Ink at the heart of the old establishment. Smart programming for Fresh Ink presents music that is not only vibrant and intriguing but a lot of fun, too. Starting at 7:30 p.m. and running 90 minutes without an intermission is a snappy idea. A reception with the musicians follows each concert. --PB

Best Venue Worth Crossing City Line Avenue For

They call it a listening room, but it's more like a living room. With sofas, dim lighting, great acoustics and an ultra-relaxed (albeit respectful) atmosphere, The Point has become a favorite spot for local faves like 4 Way Street, and for local debuts (like Norah Jones, who played there in 2002). Troubadour Alexi Murdoch took the coziness to new levels recently with some strategically placed candles and a sing-along session with the typically multigenerational crowd. The Point's also great for meeting musicians after the show, and the reasonably priced Sunday brunch rarely includes a cover charge but always includes live music. --NP

Best Idea to Bring Long-Hair Music to the Masses

For the Philadelphia Orchestra's community concerts, our great band leaves Broad and Spruce several times a year and heads for the 'hoods. Last season's closer was in the heart of cheesesteak land at Ninth and Wharton and was a hoot. The crowd, including little old Italian men in lawn chairs, new Asian immigrants, yuppies and kids, showed off the glorious microcosm of humanity that is South Philadelphia, all drinking in the musical pride of the city. --PB

Best Use of Superfluous Nudity

In the first five minutes of 1812 Productions' version of David Foster Wallace's Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, Tony Lawton and Scott Greer appeared naked in the spotlight, just for a moment, as the music -- Talking Heads, Elvis Costello, etc. -- rose to a crescendo. While their nudity may not have been strictly necessary for the play to make an impact, it was a nice touch. Enough said. --NA

Best Free Music Lessons From Famous Musicians

At Temple's Rock Hall, open-to-the-public master classes on tap for this season include Pamela Frank (violin), Benita Valente (soprano), Russell Sherman, Edward Aldwell and John O'Conor (pianists), The Muir and Emerson String Quartets and jazz from Cyrus Chestnut and Christian McBride. This is a dazzling lineup. Look for similar programs from Curtis and the Philadelphia Orchestra. --PB

Best Big Guy/Littler Guy Partnership

The Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia represents most of the smaller theaters trying to make it here in Philly. When it was built, many feared the Kimmel Center would be the arts monster that would eat up all of the business for TAGP's smaller members. So it was great to see Kimmel Center CEO Janice Price reading off the nominations for the Barrymore Awards, TAGP's annual celebration of Philly theater. It seemed like one small but significant step toward unity between arts lovers large and small. Bonus kudos go to Fringe and the Kimmel for having their first collaboration: One spotlight show in this year's festival, Deluxejoypilot, took place in the Innovation Studio. --DA

Coolest Classical Music Venue

The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society runs a series in the sanctuary at Fleisher Art Memorial, a magical amalgam of rustic, rural European church styles and a warmly intimate and acoustically delicious ambience in which to hear chamber music. PCMS has assembled a thoughtful series of core repertoire programs played by fantastic musicians. Bargain pricing, too. --PB

Best Use of a Cigarette Machine

At first, it seems odd to see an old-fashioned cigarette machine sitting in the entryway of Whole Foods. Are the purveyors of all things healthy peddling smokes out of their front door? Nope, turns out it's an "Artomat," part of a national program to turn cig machines into art dispensers. Put in your $3 to $5 and get a tiny piece of original art that probably won't give you cancer. --DA