Bowen McCauley Dance (BMD) will return to The John F. Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater on Friday, April 5 and Saturday, April 6, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. with two world-premiere works, all live musical accompaniment, and two newly commissioned scores. BMD is known for a commitment to live music and collaboration – this special anniversary concert will embrace both as artistic director and choreographer, Lucy Bowen McCauley, brings together world-class artistic partners Alan Paul, Tony Cisek, Martha Mountain, Gaetano DiBacco, The Witkowski Piano Duo, Maryland Youth Ballet, and a host of talented musicians.
In Before the Fall, BMD Music Director, Larry Alan Smith, performs his new piano score that was written to accompany a dance prequel to the tale of Humpty Dumpty. Smith and McCauley present their vision of how Humpty came to be on “The Wall”. The dance will be performed by exceptional students from The Maryland Youth Ballet.
Fire and Air, a theatrical reimagining of the final act of Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra features a rare performance by Lucy Bowen McCauley, and is directed by The Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Associate Director, Alan Paul. On the selection of this project, Paul offers, “Cleopatra’s death is like none other in Shakespeare’s work. She famously says “I am fire and air; my other elements I give to baser life”. Now if that line doesn’t deserve a dance, I don’t know what does!” Patrick Soluri has been commissioned to create an epic score that propels the dance to its dramatic closure. McCauley and Paul first connected through the Urban Arias where they found a rich partnership. “Lucy and I are on the same wavelength—emotionally, stylistically—there is no other way to put it,” as Paul comments.
Tableau de Province, is a new ensemble five-part dance inspired by the music of French composer Paule Maurice, which will be played by world-class Italian saxophonists Gaetano DiBacco and concert pianist Marguerita Oundjian Smith. DiBacco and Smith will preview the piece with BMD at the Italian Embassy on April 3 at 7pm.
The concert concludes with McCauley’s tribute to the centennial of Stravinsky’s groundbreaking work, Le Sacre du Printemps (Rite of Spring). McCauley’s version of Sacre is set to the lesser known four-hand piano version of the score, which will be played by The Witkowski Piano Duo. BMD honors the milestone with an interpretation The Washington Post called, McCauley’s “strongest work to date…muscular, theatrically arresting.”
The piece has been considered the staple of modern dance — angular and abstract — with a score full of harmonic dissonance and syncopated rhythms. “I want people to relate to the full emotional range of the work and the unfolding of events in a less obvious way,” she says. She adds elements of surprise for those familiar with the 1913 masterpiece. “I’m honored to choreograph to an incredible piece of music that has been a major artistic influence on me for more than half of my life,” McCauley says.
The work features set and costume design by award-winning designer Tony Cisek.
The Saturday, April 6 concert will be followed by a Soiree event at The Rooftop Terrace Restaurant where guests will enjoy a post-performance reception with the artists including DJ and dancing. The event is a benefit to support BMD arts and education programs.
The 2013 Opera Ball will be hosted by the Ambassador of Italy to the United States Claudio Bisogniero and his wife Laura Denise Bisogniero at their official residence Villa Firenze. Opera Ball will be held on Saturday, April 6, 2013 and is a highlight of the city’s cultural, philanthropic, and social season.
Constance Milstein de La Haye St. Hilaire will be the Chair of this year’s Opera Ball. Ms. Milstein is a longtime patron of Washington National Opera and is a member of its board of trustees. She is also a member of the Kennedy Center International Committee on the Arts, among her many other charitable endeavors.
Natalia Cobo de Bulgheroni of Argentina will serve as International Chair. Adrienne Arsht, who chaired last year’s Opera Ball, will serve as Honorary Chair.
“As we mark the beginning of the Year of Italian Culture and the 200th anniversary of the birth of Giuseppe Verdi, we are very proud to host the 2013 Opera Ball,” said Claudio Bisogniero, the Ambassador of Italy to the United States. “Opera is a vital part of Italy’s national identity, and we are happy to celebrate this beautiful part of our culture with our close friends at Washington National Opera.”
As in previous years, the elegant black-tie event will include intimate dinners hosted by many ambassadors at their embassies throughout the city. Following these private dinners, guests will gather at Villa Firenze for a festive evening of dancing, dessert, and music. Guests can look
forward to a special toast to Giuseppe Verdi’s 200th birthday and to performances of popular arias from Italian operas by members of WNO’s Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program.
Opera Ball is WNO’s largest fundraiser and one of Washington’s most anticipated events of the year. One hundred percent of the proceeds from the Opera Ball support the Opera’s awardwinning artistic, educational, and outreach programs. Recent Opera Balls have been hosted at the
embassies of the United Arab Emirates (2012), the People’s Republic of China (2011), the Russian Federation (2010), Germany (2009), and France (2008). Italy last hosted the Opera Ball in 2006.
Meaning Making. Fragmented Imaginary of Twelve Cantabrian Artists
Organized by the Government of Cantabria and SPAIN arts & culture.
Curated by Mónica Álvarez Careaga
Visiting hours: Monday-Thursday, from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm, and Friday, from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm.
- This exhibition brings together important creators from Cantabria (Spain) to showcase their work and highlight the region’s art history and cultural roots.
- The Department ofEducation, Culture and Sport of the Government of Cantabria (Spain) is putting new internationalisation initiatives into action in order to increase awareness of the creative potential of the region through a coherent series of promotion and publicity activities in the United States and Europe.
- The program includes this exhibition of contemporary art curated by Mónica Álvarez Careaga —Meaning Making. Fragmented imagery from twelve artists from Cantabria— which bring together important artists characterized by an expressive narrative that incorporate references to the history of art and their own experiences, as well as reinterpretations and assemblies of diverse images.
- The exhibition opens on Thursday, April 11 at 6:30 PM at the Embassy of Spain in Washington and will run until May 8.
- Artists include Víctor Alba, Luis Bezeta, Alfonso Borragán, Cristina del Campo, Antonio Díaz Grande, Álvaro González, Raúl Hevia, Javier Lamela, Gorka Mohamed, Cuca Nelles, Gloria Pereda and Álvaro Trugeda.
If we take contemporary art as a way of exploring the infinite complexity of the world and a way of understanding and communicating it, we can interpret the work of the twelve artists from the Spanish region of Cantabria featured at this exhibition as a mapping of new imagery, new awareness and world views.
What Víctor Alba, Luis Bezeta, Alfonso Borragán, Cristina del Campo, Antonio Díaz Grande, Álvaro González, Raúl Hevia, Javier Lamela, Gorka Mohamed, Cuca Nelles, Gloria Pereda and Álvaro Trugeda have in common is that they divide up their works by including various materials: references to history of the arts, documents related to their experience of life or reinterpretations and assemblies of images from a variety of backgrounds.
They are creators who operate with a mechanism for integrating fragments in broader contexts of significance. These fragments (drawings, photos, texts or films) accumulate, overlap, and even contradict each other by reflecting the diversity and the richness of the experience of life. They are, in short, constructors of meanings, private and individual most of the time.
This set of images and narratives constitutes, in the end, a fragmented and heterogeneous fresco of the concerns and interests of a generation of active Cantabrian artists at the beginning of their creative maturity. They do not share any common theoretical program, but with their works they advocate the autonomy of art and prepare ironic messages which are distanced from subjects which include a commentary and anything biographical.
The Westside Club of Georgetown and Caron Treatment Centers present “Drunk with Hope in Chicago. Tara Handron’s poignant and humorous one-woman play portrays a woman named Hope and many other female alcoholics (some sober, some not so sober) of various ages, ethnicities, and socio-economic backgrounds.
Tara Handron, the playwright and sole actor of this 60-minute play, discards clichéd depictions of recovery and relies on stories with depth, poignancy and humor to expose the raw emotions and experiences so many alcoholic women face.
“I wrote Drunk with Hope in Chicago to bring awareness to the reality that women face as recovering alcoholics” said Handron. “The stories from the play are relatable to so many women and can help those in recovery feel less alone and feel that there is hope and joy to be found.”
The play evolved out of her master’s thesis research of female recovering alcoholics and the comparison of their experiences in traditional face-to-face 12 Step recovery meetings to online meetings. The play is a fictional compilation of many women’s stories along with Handron’s observations, experiences, and imagination.
After premiering at Georgetown University in April 2008, Handron later produced her play at H St Playhouse in Washington, DC. Since then, the play has been featured in recovery-related events, conferences, and at treatment centers. Drunk with Hope in Chicago has also been performed by Handron in the Capital Fringe Theater Festival (DC), Chicago Fringe Theater Festival, the United Solo Festival in NYC, and the Hollywood Fringe Festival
Art for Sale at New ArtJamz Studio
Washington DC’s most curiously non-curated art gallery and exhibition is back – the next ArtJamz Artz Bazaar is Sunday, April 14th from noon to 4PM. It’s free, open to the public, there is a bar … and did we mention lots of affordable art?
12:00pm til 4:00pm, Sun Apr 14 @ ArtJamz, 1728 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20009
A typical DC Art Gallery is quiet with lots of white walls. When ArtJamz turns its Dupont Studion into our Artz Bazaar it is anything but that. Indeed , the Artz Bazaar is an opportunity to discover and collect an assortment of local and affordable art, all while enjoying the upbeat public art studio and lounge at ArtJamz. The best part is that all works are from local artists, and they are priced between $35 and $500. That’s right, no outrageous art fees, because, well, we make our living off painting and drinking, and don’t need to sell $50,000 art. The bi-monthly Artz Bazaar is dedicated to providing original artwork to DC area residents so they can start, or add to, their collections without having to go to Sotheby’s or draw on napkins to get it done. This is the perfect opportunity to support your local artists and expand your art collection, and have a few drinks in the process. Don’t worry, we will still be hosting ArtJamz sessions and listening to great music – we have two floors now! ArtJamz Artz Bazaar April 14th Noon-4:00PM Free and open to public 1728 Connecticut Ave NW Washington DC 20002 artzbazaar@artjamzdc.com Want to showcase your work in the Artz Bazaar? Email artzbazaar@artjamzdc.com Please title your email Artz Bazaar. April 14th bazaar submissions due April 1st. Submissions for the June 16th Artz Bazaar due by May 1st. Include artist statement, cv and portfolio. Or attach five work low rez samples. We’ll send you more information about the business side of things when we get your query. The ArtJamz Artz Bazaar started in 2012 as a way to encourage the Washington DC metro area to collect more local art. During our past Artz Bazaars we have sold a number of pieces and helped expose a wide range of our culturally curious artjammers to local art.
price free
58th Annual Corcoran Ball
Friday, April 19, 7 p.m.
The Women’s Committee of the Corcoran Gallery of Art and College of Art + Design hosts the 58th Annual Corcoran Ball, a highlight of Washington, D.C.’s philanthropic spring season. Since its inception in 1956, the event has gathered state, federal, and city legislators
and members of Washington’s diplomatic, business, and philanthropic communities together in support of art education.
Ball proceeds provide scholarships for the College, underwrite the Corcoran’s award-winning community outreach program, ArtReach, and fuel
education programs throughout the metropolitan area while supporting the Corcoran’s long tradition of bringing outstanding artists and their work to the Gallery. Visit http://www.corcoran.org/ball.
Club Corcoran
10 p.m.–1 a.m.
Before April 12: $95 individual, $150 couple; after April 13: $125 individual, $200 couple
Club Corcoran is the late-night portion of the 58th Annual Corcoran Ball, and a way to experience the grandeur of the
Ball at a lower price point. Guests enjoy a late-night party experience among the uniquely decorated galleries, plus a
late-night buffet, refreshments, music, and dancing.
*The Corcoran Ball is sponsored by the Corcoran Women’s Committee
Washington Project for the Arts will host the first poolside soiree of the season! The WPA SLEEPOUT pajama-jam will warm-up WPA’s new home at the Capitol Skyline Hotel, 10 I (Eye) Street SW, on Saturday, April 20 from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m.
SLEEPOUT will feature slumber party-themed performances, music, movies, art, and other participatory happenings.
“Bring a tent or sleeping bag, sport some stylish loungewear, and party under the stars with WPA,” said Executive Director Lisa Gold. “Come for part of the night or stay through breakfast the next morning…either way, we can’t wait to connect with the community in our new home.”
Tickets to SLEEPOUT include two drink tickets, in addition to s’mores and storytelling, late-night movie-screenings, nighttime traditions such as
karaoke with Jeremy Flick. DJ’s Patrick White and Sean Peoples of Fatback will spin funk and soul to get the party started, and artist Megan Blafas will set the slumber scene.
Washington Project for the Arts ● Capitol Skyline Hotel 10 I (eye) St. SW, Washington, DC 20024 ● Tel: 202-234-7103 ● Fax: 202-234-7106 ● www.wpadc.org
*In February, WPA took up temporary residence in a suite on the fourth floor of the Capitol Skyline Hotel for the next year as the organization finalizes plans for securing a long-term location to house both administrative and exhibition space.
A photo safari that lets you see the sun come up behind the Capitol and the Potomac River shoreline come alive with activity: runners along Rock Creek Parkway and shell and kayak enthusiasts digging their oars into the river in the early morning mist. And it all makes a great picture, especially with a full moon setting slowly behind Rosslyn and the Key Bridge!
5:45am til 8:15am, Fri Apr 26 @ Thompson’s Boat House, 2900 Virginia Ave NW, Washington, DC 20037
Our Photo Safari, timed to coincide with the rising sun and the setting of a full moon, is led by architectural photographer and Washington Photo Safari director E. David Luria. It starts at Thompson’s Boat House right below the Kennedy Center, where we catch the boaters shouldering their long scullls and, in one coordinated motion, easing them into the Potomac. Then we photograph their colorful boats silhouetted against the morning sun as they make their way along the river, with the backdrop of Roosevelt Bridge and Key Bridge and the Rosslyn skyline. Next we capture the magnificent Swedish Embassy in the early morning light, and the colorful Washington Harbour complex before moving along Rock Creek Parkway up to the beautiful Arlington Memorial Bridge, with the sun shining through its arches. Great photo subjects , in color OR black and white! Mr. Luria begins the safari with general tips on low-light photography, F stops, shutter speeds, white balance and ISO settings and composition and works individually with each client on any camera issues. Now, with the weather in this town we cannot guarantee mist or a visible sunrise or moonset, sorry! But, whatever the weather, bring a tripod, a neutral density filter and a circular polarizing filter and we will help you make all the rush hour traffic on the bridge and on Rock Creek Parkway DISAPPEAR! How cool is THAT? And, on weekday sessions, the safari ends early enough so that you can get back to your office, if you must!
2013 Spring Gala
Lighting the Way: Celebrating the Brilliance of Women Artists
Join co-chairs Diane Casey-Landry and Sharon Stark for the National Museum of Women in the Arts’ annual Spring Gala.
On Friday, April 26, the 2013 Spring Gala, “”Lighting the Way: Celebrating the Brilliance of Women in the Arts,” will include cocktails, a silent auction, seated dinner, and dancing.
This gala is inspired by NMWA’s exhibition, A World Apart: Anna Ancher and the Skagen Art Colony.
RESERVATIONS:
Required. Tickets start at $650 for individuals.
