Winter break is known for being the hardest break from which to come back. It’s a tease for what summer break will bring, and for many students, school is the last thing on their minds.

It’s a good thing the next five months are full of concerts in the Tampa Bay area to keep up students’ spirits.

January is the month with the most options. Jesse Jackson comes to the Sun Dome on Jan. 18 at 7 p.m., and the Monday Night Jazz Series starts back up Jan. 29. The Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center brings back All The Great Books (abridged), presented by the Jobsite Theater on Friday. TBPAC also welcomes the highly anticipated standup of Jon Stewart on Jan. 20, as well as the comedic Monty Python’s Spamalot on Jan. 23 through Feb. 4. The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Gnarls Barkley come to the St. Pete Times Forum on the 28th.

USF students and staff can share their frustrations through poetry at Third Thursday in the Library Starbucks on Feb. 15. The Real Fighting Championships (RFC) makes its second appearance at the Sun Dome on Feb. 24, and the USF School of Performing Arts presents the Trisha Brown Dance Company in Theater 1 on Feb. 28. Less Than Jake makes an appearance at State Theater on Feb. 9 and 10. TBPAC welcomes back Jon Stewart for his second appearance Feb. 16. The St. Pete Times Forum brings sexy back to Tampa with Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveShow on Feb. 22. The next night, break-out band Hinder comes to Jannus Landing at 7.

The rest of the semester is relatively quiet. Nevertheless, most of the events are on campus, cheap and worth getting out of bed for. The USF Bone Band with special guest Matt Niess comes to FAH 101 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on March 28 and is free to the public. Opera USF makes its spring debut on March 30 and is only $6 for students. A stage adaptation of Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon will take place in Theater 1 on April 5 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. and is also only $6 for students. Finally, Christina Aguilera’s Back to Basics tour with special guests Danity Kane and the Pussycat Dolls is coming to the St. Pete Times Forum on May 4.

Other events include the Harlem Globetrotters on March 7 at the St. Pete Times Forum; Blue October at Jannus Landing on Jan. 20; Jeff Foxworthy on March 10 at Ruth Eckerd Hall; Reel Big Fish on Feb. 8 at the Florida State Fairgrounds and Wicked at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center on Feb. 24.

Tickets and more information about these and other events can be found at ticketmaster.com and in the events calendar on USF.edu.