Style and Scent in the 18th Century
Thursday, March 28, 2019, 5:30-8 p.m.
Rebecca Tilles, curator of Perfume & Seduction, and Dr. Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell, independent scholar, will examine the French bathing ritual known as la toilette during the 1700s.
Please note: This is the first program in the Perfume & Seduction lecture series.
4155 Linnean Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20008
SMITHSONIAN at 8, in collaboration with Francophonie DC and La Maison Francaise at the French Embassy, presents La Grande Fête, the closing celebration of the 2019 DC Francophonie Cultural Festival.
WHEN: Friday, March 29, 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
WHERE: La Maison Francaise at the Embassy of France, 4101 Reservoir Road, Washington, DC
Get ready for a spectacular party with a French accent. The annual Francophonie Cultural Festival spotlights the music, art, literature, film, cuisine, and customs of French-speaking countries and regions from across the globe. Its closing celebration, La Grande Fete, is always magnifique, and this year’s bash is no exception.
Beginning at 7 p.m., launch into a world tour of francophone cultures. Sample food and drink from more than 30 embassies as you explore each nation’s unique attractions and traditions.
Guinean singer/songwriter Natu Camara performs live with an energy that keeps you on your feet. Natu’s dynamic and mesmerizing voice is a fusion of soul, Afro-Rock, folk and pop. Combined with unique and joyful stage presence, she is sure to make for a memorable addition to this year’s La Grande Fete. Les the DJ will spin music from Africa, the Caribbean, Europe and plenty of destinations in between. Don’t miss this chance to experience the best of the French-speaking world—all without leaving home.
General admission $40
Tickets must be purchased in advance (no sales at the door).
For tickets and further information the public may call 202-633-3030 or visit www.SMITHSONIANat8.org.
Cellist Amanda Gookin takes a major step forward in her mission to make classical music an active force for political good with her Forward Music Project on March 29 at 9:00 p.m. inside Dupont Underground. Praised for “Gookin’s focus and ferocity—coupled with expert technical work” (The Strad), Forward Music Project is presented by National Sawdust Projects—the producing arm of National Sawdust. As part of DIRECT CURRENT’s initiative to take Kennedy Center artists and programming out into the world beyond the traditional concert hall, Forward Music Project reaches new Washington-area audiences at Dupont Underground, a reclaimed 75,000-square-foot art exhibition and performance space built inside the only underground station in D.C.’s old streetcar system.
Forward Music Project commissions seven original multimedia works for cello by some of today’s most forward-thinking composers: Leila Adu, Angélica Negrón,Amanda Feery, Allison Loggins-Hull, Nathalie Joachim, Jessica Meyer, andMorgan Krauss. Pushing the boundaries of traditional writing for cello, Gookin’s performance incorporates singing, chanting, staging effects, and projection art in collaboration with video and projections designer S. Katy Tucker (NSO Pops: West Side Story, the Ring Cycle). The stylistically contrasting compositions focus on the first-person perspectives of women, highlighting issues from the LGBTQ+ community and reproductive rights to harassment and human trafficking.
Ticket Information
Amanda Gookin’s Forward Music Project will be performed on Friday, March 29 at 9 p.m. at Dupont Underground. Tickets ($20) are available at the Kennedy Center Box Office, on the Kennedy Center website, and via phone through Instant Charge, (202) 467-4700; toll-free at (800) 444-1324. For all other ticket-related customer service inquires, call the Advance Sales Box Office at (202) 416-8540
Washington Performing Arts hosts its 2019 annual Gala & Auction on March 30, 2019 at the National Building Museum (401 F St. NW). Tickets begin at $750; Young Sponsor tickets (for guests 40 and under) start at $200. Tables start at $15,000.
This year’s Gala, “Sizzle & Swing,” is a grand celebration of the art of jazz, from the classic big-band era to today’s up-to-the-minute expressions, fitting perfectly with Washington Performing Arts’ stellar spring lineup of jazz programming from Chucho Valdés and Cécile McLorin Salvant to an all-star tribute to Glenn Miller.
Gala performers include:
- Vocalists Veronica Swift (familiar to Washington Performing Arts audiences through her work with Chris Botti and Wynton Marsalis) and Stephen Scott Wormley (an alumnus of the Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir, recently seen in the D.C. area as one of the stars of Signature Theatre’s The Scottsboro Boys);
- Mars Urban Arts Initiative Ensemble-in-Residence DuPont Brass;
- The Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir under the direction of Michele Fowlin; and
- The Sizzle & Swing Band
Gala guests will also be treated to a special preview of a newly commissioned transcription of a big band chart by Hazel Scott, the luminary American pianist, cultural icon, and civil rights advocate. This premiere anticipates Washington Performing Arts’ commemoration of Scott’s 100th birthday in 2020.
The Gala kicks off at 6:30 pm with cocktails and the Silent Auction, sponsored by Urban Winery, with the dinner and performance program starting at 8:00 pm. Stage, television, and film actress Tamara Tunie serves as the Master of Ceremonies for the evening. The Afterparty Speakeasy with DJ Dimmy is co-sponsored by Daimler and the Washington Performing Arts Junior Board.
“Washington Performing Arts has a long legacy of presenting both emerging and leading jazz musicians and amplifying jazz as a vital American art form,” said Washington Performing Arts President and CEO Jenny Bilfield. “Whether it is through our Capital Jazz program in partnership with D.C. Public Schools, master classes with artists like Cécile McLorin Salvant, or commissions by Wynton Marsalis and now this new arrangement of a Hazel Scott chart, Washington Performing Arts remains committed to spotlighting this vibrant genre in every dimension of our programs, onstage and off.”
All proceeds raised at the Annual Gala and Auction will support Washington Performing Arts’ arts education initiatives. These include Capital Arts Partnerships and the Embassy Adoption Program (both in partnership with the DC Public Schools); In-School Artist Residencies; the Washington Performing Arts Men, Women, and Children of the Gospel Choirs; master classes and lectures; and stipends for professional development teachers and Washington Performing Arts teaching artists.
The 2019 Gala Co-Chairs are Lyn & Barry Chasen and Tom Gallagher & Barbara Myers. The Junior Board Gala Chairs are Rebecca Allen, Cassidy Grunninger, and Wesley Thomas. The Washington Performing Arts Women’s Committee Gala Chair is Denise Rollins, and the Women’s Committee Silent Auction Chair is Njambi. The Gala Committee comprises Paul Ashe, C. Wallace DeWitt, Adam Farra, Jay and Robin Hammer, Susan Hepner, Jordan Hepner and Nina Damato, Margaret Hurwitz, Angela C.Y. King, Grace Lin, Christina Co Mather and Gary Mather, Haley Morrison, Michelle Nelson, Ami Scott and Lucius Outlaw, Jan and Marike Paulsson, Kerrien Suarez, Ebony Thomas, Lindsey Woody, and The Washington Performing Arts Women’s Committee.
For more information about Washington Performing Arts and the Annual Gala and Auction, visit www.washingtonperformingarts.
In celebration of Women’s History Month, City Tap Dupont invites guests to a Bad & Boozy Brunch on Sunday, March 31, from 11am to 3pm. Brunchers are invited to raise a glass in honor of the phenomenal women of the world with bottles of bubbly and mixers for build-your-own mimosas ($20), as well as the usual $18 bottomless mimosas, beermosas, and build-your-own bloody marys. From 11:30am – 2:30pm DJ Ducky Dynamo will have powerful female artists playing throughout the restaurant for guests to dance and sing along with while enjoying brunch favorites such as strawberry sundae pancakes, shrimp & grits, and woodfired pizzas. To make a reservation at City Tap Dupont, visit https://www.citytap.com/location/dupont/.
On Sunday, March 31 at 1pm, the Rock-It Grill will be hosting an event to celebrate its 30-year anniversary and also to raise money for Guiding Eyes for the Blind, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing guide dogs to the blind and visually impaired.
“We are excited to be hosting this event, not only to celebrate 30 years as an Old Town staple, but also to give back to the community,” said Laura Seiss, owner of the Rock-It. “Additionally, we wouldn’t be here without the tremendous support from our patrons. We’re thrilled to celebrate them the way they have celebrated us for the last 30 years.”
The event will include:
- 50/50 raffle
- Gift basket raffle
- Karaoke for kids
- Photo ops with Guiding Eyes pups in training (small donation suggested)
Visitors are welcome to stop in for food and drinks, socialize with Guiding Eyes pups and their puppy raisers, and participate in karaoke, which will begin at 1pm and will run throughout the afternoon into the regularly scheduled karaoke time, ending around 1:30am.
About Rock-It Grill (www.rockit-grill.com):
The Rock-It Grill, located on King St. in Old Town Alexandria, has been a neighborhood fixture since 1989. The bar was founded by Gary Wayne Miller, originally as GW’s, and became the Rock-It Grill in 1997. They are best known for their diverse food and drink menu, relaxed environment and karaoke 7 nights a week. The Rock-It has supported its local community with events like Karaoke with Cops every summer, raising funds for our police and K9 units. Rock-It is located at 1319 King St. and is a short walk from the King Street Metro with ample street parking.
About Guiding Eyes for the Blind (www.guidingeyes.org):
In 1954, Guiding Eyes for the Blind was founded to enrich the lives of blind and visually impaired men and women. Since that time, Guiding Eyes has become one of the foremost guide dog schools in the world, graduating more than 7,000 guide dog teams. Guiding Eyes for the Blind is a not-for-profit 501 (c) (3) organization. It provides professionally trained Guiding Eyes dogs, training and lifetime support services to students free of charge with funds raised solely through the generosity of individuals, corporations, foundations and civic organizations. Guiding Eyes for the Blind’s Headquarters and Training Center is located in Yorktown Heights, New York and its Canine Development Center is located in Patterson, New York.
Washington’s only playwrights’ collective devoted exclusively to developing and producing new plays—will host its annual fundraiser, The Joint–on Sunday, March 31, at Rhizome DC.
The Joint will take over the rooms of the Rhizome art space, familiar to some as the setting of the 2017 environmental hit Hello, My Name Is… by Deb Sivigny. Throughout the house, installations, intimate performances, and interactive projects will delight attendees as they rewind to remember the past and fast forward to the future.
There will be opportunities to celebrate the current generation of the Welders as they offer the in-process work by the last two playwrights in the second round of Welders leadership. At the end of 2019, the current roster of Producing Playwrights will be turning the company over to a new group of artists: The Welders 3.0.
The soon-to-be-announced third generation of The Welders will be in attendance at The Joint along with the past and present generations. The evening will be a fun opportunity for theater fans to engage with the generative artists taking the production of their work into their own hands.
Don’t miss this spectacular art-house-party filled with connection, sneak peeks, and a celebration of three generations “passing it on.” Plus, the event will feature a fire pit, silent auction, tasty food, and punch from Drink Company, home to the 2017 Spirited Award winning “Best American Cocktail Bar” Columbia Room.
Tickets are available at: https://thejoint2019.
Washington Bach Consort will continue to offer their original Downtown Cantata Series at the Church of the Epiphany on the first Tuesday of each month during their season.
Monday, April 1, 12:10pm
Washington Bach Consort will continue to offer their original Downtown Cantata Series at the Church of the Epiphany on the first Tuesday of each month during their season.
