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Top Picks: 'The Adventures of Tintin,' Philip Glass's opera 'Satyagraha,' and more

Bruce Springsteen mixes genres on a new album, Cooking Light reveals the 41 most common cooking mistakes, Matthew Bourne's 'Swan Lake' offers a more male-based cast, and more top picks.

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Amy Sancetta/AP/File
In this Feb. 26 file photo, Esperanza Spalding arrives before the 84th Academy Awards in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles.
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Hugo Glendinning/NC Fathom

Power swans

If you like ballet but wish there were simply a few more men on stage, check out another modern classic, Matthew Bourne's re-interpretation of the iconic Swan Lake, best known for replacing the traditional female corps de ballet with a menacing all-male cohort. This will come via satellite to theaters around the world on March 20. Check fathomevents.com for locations.

How to cook smart

Cooking Light magazine has written a list of the top 41 cooking mistakes even the most seasoned veterans make in the kitchen, with tips on how to correct them. The most frequent? Not tasting as you go. (Baking chocolate-chip cookies just got a lot better.) See the list at cookinglight.com/cooking-101/.

Rock 'N' economics

On Wrecking Ball, Bruce Springsteen does something he hasn’t done before – combines rock, gospel, folk, and country sounds to create a powerful, foot-tapping mix. He’s used these genres before, but never all on one record. As always, he is the voice of the 99 percent, singing about the distance between the American dream and reality. The album has a different cast of musicians and doesn’t feature the E Street Band, although some members participated. Characteristically, he leaves us with a sense of hope, not despair.  

Belgium's boy wonder

With his tuft of orangey hair and his doggedness, Tintin (Jamie Bell) and his terrier Snowy circle the globe in pursuit of buried treasure in Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of Tintin – now out on DVD. Along for the ride – which entails airplanes, frigates, and motorcycles – is Captain Haddock (Andy Serkis).

Nonviolent opera

PBS presents the sweeping Satyagraha, the opera by composer Philip Glass. Based on the life of Mohandas Gandhi, the shimmering modern classic airs March 25 on "Great Performances at the Met."

Esperanza's radio

Lighter than a butterfly and just as elusive, young bassist/singer/songwriter Esperanza Spalding continues to delight and surprise. Her new album, Radio Music Society (out March 20), follows the 2010 "Chamber Music Society," and though it's much less structured than your normal radio fare, it is inventive, jazzy, and totally unique. Channeling the spirits of Stevie Wonder and other jazz and pop singers, the end result is all Esperanza, all the time. The first empowering single, "Black Gold," makes no concessions to popular radio tastes, and therefore deserves to be a smash.

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