By Doug Rule on April 26, 2018 @ruleonwriting
Arthur Miller’s opus on the Salem witch trials remains as timely and cautionary as ever: a reminder of what can happen when fear runs amok and truth is bent to political convenience. Eleanor Holdridge directs a 19-member cast led by Chris Genebach as John Proctor and also including Rachel Zampelli as Elizabeth Proctor, Michael Russotto as Reverend Parris, Dani Stoller as Abigail Williams, and Lilian Oben as Tituba. To May 20. Mainstage, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, Md. Call 301-924-3400 or visit olneytheatre.org.
Now in its 32nd year, the Washington, DC International Film Festival enters its second weekend with a variety of highlights (all screening at Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW, unless otherwise noted). The drama A Man of Integrity was shot clandestinely in northern Iran by Mohammad Rasoulof. It screens on Saturday, April 28, at 3:35 p.m. at AMC Mazza Gallerie (5300 Wisconsin Ave. NW). Outside In, a drama by Lynn Shelton, stars Edie Falco as the potential lover of a parolee (Jay Duplass). It screens Thursday, April 26, at 8:30 p.m., and Saturday, April 28, at 4 p.m. Jon Garano’s Giant is a strange tale, in Spanish and Basque, about a 19th-century man billed as “the tallest man in the world” and distinguished by meticulous lighting and cinematography creating the experience of an Old Master painting moving and changing. It plays Friday, April 27, at 6 p.m., and Saturday, April 28, at 8:30 p.m. (at AMC Mazza Gallerie). Boom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat is Sara Driver’s look at the late artist’s formative years as a homeless teenager in New York. It plays Friday, April 27, at 6:30 p.m. Finally Just To Be Sure, Carine Tardieu’s perceptive French comedy, closes the festival, with screenings at 3 and 7 p.m. o Sunday, April 29, at the French Embassy, 4101 Reservoir Rd. NW. Call 202-234-FILM or visit filmfestdc.org for a full schedule and more information.
Stan Engebretson conducts a program of a cappella singing and mystical New Age music, from Rachmaninoff’s Vespers to several energetic works by Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo, including the composition that gives the program its title. Gjeilo will join as a guest pianist for the concert also featuring a world premiere by the Philharmonic’s young composer-in-residence Alistair Coleman (pictured). I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud features the National Philharmonic Chorale. The Montgomery County Chorus and the Strathmore Children’s Chorus will add further vocal power. Saturday, April 28, at 8 p.m. Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda. Tickets are $30 to $76. Call 301-581-5100 or visit strathmore.org.
Touted as the most prestigious juried show and sale of American contemporary fine craft, this annual event, now in its 36th year, features 120 of the field’s leading artists from 33 states, nearly a third of whom are new to the show this year — selected by a three-judge panel from over 1,000 applicants. All facets of contemporary design and jewelry are represented, including wearable art, basketry, furniture, glass, leather, and mixed media. This year’s show highlights the Asian cultural influence on American crafts, and includes a first-of-its-kind temporary organic pine sculpture created by Foon Sham and incorporated into the fountain in the National Building Museum Atrium, plus Taiwanese craft demonstrations and a special exhibition of craft art supported by Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture with the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office. Proceeds from sales go toward funding research at the Smithsonian’s 28 institutions, from its museums on the mall to the National Zoo. Thursday, April 26, from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., ending with a Friends Night Out shopping and cocktail reception. Also Friday, April 27, through Saturday, April 28, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Sunday, April 30, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. Daily admission is $20, or $17 purchased online in advance; a two-day pass is $30; Friends Night Out is $25 with signature cocktail. Call 202-272-2448 or visit smithsoniancraftshow.org.
When Phillip Goodman (Andy Nyman), who debunks psychics on his popular TV show, is challenged to explain three chilling, inexplicable cases, he comes face-to-face with some horrifying truths. Nyman co-wrote and co-directed the highly anticipated, critically acclaimed (83% on Rotten Tomatoes) scary movie with Jeremy Dyson. With Paul Whitehouse, Alex Lawther (Black Mirror, Freak Show), and Martin Freeman (Black Panther). Opens Friday, April 27. Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. Call 202-452-7672 or visit landmarktheatres.com.
Jim Henson’s visionary 1986 fairy tale would become the last feature film The Muppets creator would direct. David Bowie, one of the few humans in the film, plays a Goblin King who kidnaps the Jennifer Connelly’s little brother, and forces her to traverse an otherworldly maze in order to save the boy from being transformed into a goblin. The Fathom Events screenings include introductions by Henson’s son, Brian, and Connelly, plus an excerpt from and discussion about Henson’s fantasy TV series, The Storyteller. Sunday, April 29, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Tuesday, May 1, and Wednesday, May 2, at 7 p.m. Area theaters including Regal Gallery Place (701 7th St. NW), Potomac Yards Stadium (3575 Jefferson Davis Highway), and Majestic Stadium (900 Ellsworth Dr., Silver Spring). Visit fathomevents.com.
IN THE TIME OF THE BUTTERFLIES
Caridad Svich’s play, based on the novel by Julia Alvarez, focuses on the courageous Mirabal sisters of the Dominican Republic. They were elegant, wealthy, and inspired resistance cells against a dictatorial regime until their murder. The cast is led by Cuban actors Broselianda Hernández as older Dedé, Catherine Núñez as young Dedé, and Alina Robert as Minerva. José Zayas directs. In Spanish with English surtitles. To May 13. GALA Theatre at Tivoli Square, 3333 14th St. NW. Call 202-234-7174 or visit galatheatre.org.
WITCH
Stephen Gregory Smith and Matt Conner debut their fourth musical developed as part of the Bold New Works for Intimate Stages series for Virginia theater company Creative Cauldron. With a book and lyrics by Smith set to music by Conner, the insightful, provocative Witch channels the current #MeToo zeitgeist while also examining the roots of misogyny and inequality across centuries and cultures. Well-regarded local actors Florence Lacey and Iyona Blake lead an all-female cast also featuring Susan Derry and Catherine Purcell, plus student actors. To May 6. ArtSpace Falls Church, 410 South Maple Ave. in Falls Church. Tickets are $20 to $30. Call 703-436-9948 or visit creativecauldron.org.
JODY WATLEY
Responsible for the ’80s-minted spunky dance-soul hits “Looking for a New Love,” “Don’t You Want Me,” “Still A Thrill,” and “Friends,” the Grammy-winning Watley got her start as a lead dancer on Soul Train and as a member of the R&B group Shalamar. Over the past couple of decades, the artist has shown herself to be an outspoken gay rights and marriage equality activist. One of Billboard‘s best-charting dance artists returns for another performance with support from members of her original group aka Shalamar Reloaded, touring in support of new singles “The Mood” and “O.R.I.G.in.A.L.” Thursday, May 3, at 8 p.m. Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club, 7719 Wisconsin Ave. Tickets are $59.50, plus $10 minimum purchase per person; or $68 including a Meet & Greet. Call 240-330-4500 or visit bethesdabluesjazz.com.
GEORGETOWN FRENCH MARKET
More than 40 boutique shops, antique stores, restaurants, salons and galleries in Georgetown’s Book Hill area participate in the 15th annual open-air market and sidewalk sale. The Georgetown Business Improvement District (BID) presents the affair, intended to evoke the outdoor markets of Paris. The culinary offerings alone go well beyond the standard French fare of, say, Cafe Bonaparte and Patisserie Poupon, however, with the Bean Counter, Dolcezza, Georgetown Olive Oil Co., Jaco Juice & Taco Bar, Pho Viet Grille, Via Umbria and Zannchi all represented. And all throughout you’ll find whimsical street performers, face painters and live French music and gypsy jazz. Friday, April 27, and Saturday, April 28, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, April 29, from 12 to 5 p.m. Wisconsin Avenue between O Street and Reservoir Road. Visit georgetownfrenchmarketdc.com.
By Randy Shulman on December 8, 2024 @RandyShulman
The National Museum of Asian Art is showcasing elegant works by Japanese print artists who "broke from existing traditions in Japanese printmaking" in the mid-twentieth century. The sōsaku hanga -- creative print -- movement resulted in works from artists who departed from the norm of the times and leaned into their own unique abilities.
According to the Smithsonian, "these artists sought international recognition for works that captured their individualism and self-expression amid a changing world," and the works displayed here "challenged the dominant narrative of what it meant to be an artist in twentieth-century Japan."
By Doug Rule on December 19, 2024 @ruleonwriting
READ THIS STORY IN THE MAGAZINE
We've hit peak holiday season, with just a few more days to go until Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. So we've made a list, and checked it twice, with the following deemed suitable for all, whether you're naughty or nice. Partake in our mix of holiday-themed stage shows, music concerts, and outdoor pop-up parties and markets. Consider this your last call for all things 2024. This time next week, we'll guide you to ideas for ringing in 2025.
MADELINE'S CHRISTMAS -- Creative Cauldron presents a staged entertainment that also offers a transporting escape, suitable for all ages, to a romanticized depiction of Paris. That, in essence, is the appeal of Madeline's Christmas, the holiday musical that, over the past decade, has become a recurring seasonal hit for the Northern Virginia company. Based on the classic illustrated book Madeline, the focus is on a precocious Parisian girl and her teacher Miss Clavel at an all-girls boarding school. Adapted for the stage by Jennifer Kirkeby and Shirley Mier, the holiday-themed adventure finds everyone at the boarding school sick in bed on Christmas Eve and unable to go home for the holiday. But Madeline saves the day by taking her friends on "a Christmas journey they will never forget" with the help of a "magical rug merchant." As Miss Clavel, Shaina Kuhn is one of several adult actors in a cast featuring 21 children, elementary- and middle-school-aged students, all part of Creative Cauldron's Musical Theater Ensemble educational program. To Dec. 22. Creative Cauldron, 410 South Maple Ave., Falls Church. Tickets are $20 to $30, or $75 for a Family 4-Pack. Call 703-436-9948 or visit www.creativecauldron.org.
By John Riley on December 18, 2024 @JRileyMW
"SigMa was always hand to mouth as far as finances. And the pandemic really just killed it."
Peter Delate, a former board member of SigMa DC, the all-volunteer D.C.-based male BDSM, kink, and fetish organization, is explaining why, after a nearly 40-year run, the organization is dissolving.
There's no single cause for the organization's decline. Several factors -- lack of cash flow, sparse attendance, lack of new leadership -- all played a role.
"SigMa has always been paycheck to paycheck," Delate says. "It wasn't hugely viable as far as finance is concerned, except for a small period in the early nineties where we had a positive cash flow."
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