The Greater Reston Arts Center (GRACE) revealed the line up of accomplished artists, unique aerial artistry, and engaging children’s activities for the 22nd Annual Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival taking place May 17-19 in Reston Town Center. The large, top-rated, annual juried fine arts Festival is produced by GRACE, a 501(c) 3 non-profit, whose mission is to enrich community life by promoting involvement and excellence in the visual arts. This destination style arts festival offers plenty to see, taste, hear and do – from hand crafted, one of a kind artwork, contemporary and original performances, artist demonstrations, acclaimed children’s activities, and live music.
Artists & Performing Arts Line-Up
The jurors reviewed close to 1,000 applications and selected 220 master artisans to participate representing 16 different categories, including Ceramics, Digital and Multi-Media Art, Drawing, Fiber/Textiles, Furniture, Glass, Jewelry, Leather, Metal, Mixed Media 2D, Mixed Media 3D, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, and Wood. Of those 220 artists 68 are from the DC Metro/Mid-Atlantic Area, with furthest traveling and/or international presence coming from California and Canada.
This year, the Reston Town Square Park will be transformed into a Family Art Park that will include the ever-popular Children’s Art Tent, a new Teen Art Tent, a Public Art project and a “Chill-Out” tent. Also new this year, face painting will be available during limited hours. Children of all ages will have fun creating art influenced by cultures from around the world. Kids of all ages can try out all the projects and fill their Art Passport. Schedule of children art activities are located here: http://
GRACE will kick off the weekend festivities with an upscale Opening Night Party on Friday, May 17 from 6:00-9:00PM. Held in the Reston Town Center Pavilion, the party is an opportunity to celebrate this annual event, while helping raise funds for GRACE’s educational programs. The party will be emceed by ABC 7 Good Morning Washington News Anchor, Scott Thuman and include live music by DC’s Blues Americana Rock showman Ted Garber, performances by Arachne Aerial Arts & In-Flight Theater, silent auction, signature cocktails, and local prominent business leaders and elected officials.
Event Details:
What: 22nd Annual Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival
Who: Contemporary artwork from over 200 artists in 16 categories
Where: Reston Town Center – 12001 Market Street, Reston, VA 20190
When:
Friday, May 17, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Saturday May 18, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Sunday, May 19, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Weather: Rain or Shine.
Opening Night Party: Friday, May 17, 6:00 p.m. – 9 p.m. Town Center Pavilion. Tickets required, and will be available for purchase online beginning, April 1, 2013.
Cost: Admission to the event is free, however for a voluntary donation of $10 to GRACE at the events ArtCarts, visitors will receive a $10 gift certificate to dine at participating Reston Town Center restaurants. Donations benefit year round educational and outreach programs produced by GRACE throughout the Northern Virginia area.
Contact: For additional information about GRACE, the Northern Virginia Arts Festival, sponsorship or volunteer opportunities visit www.RestonArts.org or www.
From the folks who brought us Capital Food Fight, look out May 19th for a local music festival with free tastes from 25 of DC’s best restaurants, all for a good cause. Sound Bites, D.C. Central Kitchen’s annual food and music fest, will take over the entire block outside of the 9:30 Club with food tastings and a mixology competition. Artists will play both inside the legendary 9:30 Club and will also entertain outside during the food fest. Tickets to Sound Bites are going fast. All proceeds benefit DC Central Kitchen, a national leader in using food as a tool for community empowerment.
| What: When:Where: Tickets: |
Sound Bites DC Central Kitchen’s Festival of Music, Food, and ChangeSunday, May 19th 1:00 pmAt the 9:30 Club, 815 V Street, N.W., Washington DC. $40 available online at www.soundbitesdc.org, ticketfly.com or the 9:30 Club and Merriweather Post Pavilion box offices. |
Music at this year’s event include Deathfix (Brendan Canty of Fugazi, Rich Morel, Devin Ocampo of Faraquet and Mark Cisneros of Medications), DJ Will Eastman, Kid Congo and his Kid Congo Power Hour, The Razz, Rich Morel’s Hot Sauce, and Batala. There will also be a cocktail competition involving DC’s hottest mixologists from The Gibson, Birch & Barley, Black Jack, and Bar Pilar. And of course, free food tastings from dozens of the area’s favorite food trucks and restaurants including:
|
|
A Prairie Home Companion
with Garrison Keillor
Special Guests: Aoife O’Donovan, Howard Levy, and more
in association with
Minnesota Public Radio & WAMU 88.5 FM
Wolftrap
Friday, May 24 at 8 pm
Saturday, May 25 at 5:45 pm
$25-$60
Grammy-winning storyteller, humorist, and host Garrison Keillor is back on the road with the nation’s premier live radio show, A Prairie Home Companion (APHC). Now in its 39thseason, APHC returns to the Filene Center where Keillor will lead an ensemble cast through comedy sketches and musical interludes, as well as perform his signature monologue, “The News from Lake Wobegon.”
This year’s special guests include Aoife O’Donovan, a folk singer/songwriter and lead singer of the bluegrass band Crooked Still, and harmonica genius Howard Levy, a Béla Fleck and the Flecktones founding member, among others. Since its inception in 1974, APHC has grown into a household radio variety program that is heard each week by more than 4 million listeners and broadcast in more than 576 public radio stations.
Honor America’s heroes with a program featuring live music from the US Air Force Symphony Orchestra
Expect to hear classics like John Williams’ “Summon the Heroes’
May 26
3 PM
FREE
Kennedy Center
2700 F Street NW
202.467.4600
kennedy-center.org
If dressing freaky, riding bikes, listening to bands and drinking beer are things you like, then don’t miss the most FUN fundraiser around…Tour de Fat is coming back to town! New Belgium Brewing, maker of Fat Tire Amber Ale and other award-winning beers, is bringing the 14th annual Tour de Fat toWashington, D.C. on Saturday, June 1 in Yards Park.
Gather up your friends, family and neighbors and come enjoy eclectic entertainment and stellar beer, all while helping local bicycle nonprofits raise funds. The event is free, yet all proceeds from beer and merchandise sales and donations from parade participants will help make Washington, D.C. a better place to ride a bike. Follow Tour de Fat’s 12-city adventure on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
To properly kick-start the festival, Tour de Fat begins with a giant bicycle parade that weaves through city streets. Each parade route is designed for people of all skill levels; everyone is welcome and colorful costumes are encouraged. For the rest of the afternoon, the stages heat up with world-class acts like Beats Antique and The Moth- True Stories Told Live and the park becomes a celebration unlike any other.
Kids of all ages can ride funky bikes, eat delicious fare, relax in the grass, and participate in games and activities such as a “Thousand Person Dance Contest”, which will determine the winner of a 2013 New Belgium Cruiser Bike. Everyone 21 and older can sample new and classic favorites from New Belgium, including the brewery’s flagship brew, Fat Tire, this summer’s seasonal, Rolle Bolle, and selections from the acclaimed Lips of Faith series.
“Tour De Fat is where everyone can enjoy the unexpected,” said Matt Kowal, New Belgium Brewing’s Tour de Fat Impresario. “It’s a festival for all ages and stages of life, from young bike lovers to seasoned beer lovers and everyone in between. We guarantee you’ll be inspired by interactive art, music and comedy performances for the year to come!”
In every Tour de Fat city, one brave role model will step on stage to trade in his or her car keys and pledge to live car-free for one year. Each swapper is awarded a stipend to buy their own commuter bike and receives rock star status when the crowd goes wild in support of their commitment. We’re now on the hunt for a swapper in Washington, D.C.! Car-for-Bike Swappers are chosen after submitting an application describing why they are ready to give up their vehicle for the gift of two wheels. To apply, visit: www.newbelgium.com/tour-de-fat
Tour de Fat seeks to leave as small an environmental imprint as possible. New Belgium partners with recycOil to use biofuels from recycled cooking oil to power the festival’s transportation, stages, sound, food trucks and more. The stage is decked out in recycled materials; attendees are encouraged to ride bikes or carpool; and recycle and compost receptacles are available throughout to help divert waste from landfills.
Parade Registration:
10:00 a.m.
Ride Times:
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Entertainment/Revivalation:
12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Headliners:
Beats Antique (http://beatsantique.com)
Experience how a marching band groove crashes into bluesy folk chords only to be accompanied by electronic beats and Middle Eastern melodies.
The Moth – True Stories Told Live (http://themoth.org)
A rare, midday, broad-daylight Moth show. Come gather ’round! The show will feature four stories told by prizewinning Moth storytellers brought from headquarters and two local stories told by…maybe you?
Also Performing:
Le Tigre Tent (http://www.littlebigfuntime.
Scot Nery (http://jugglegood.com) – Comedian, Juggler and Contortionist
Honeymoon Cabaret (http://www.daredevilchicken.
John Higby (http://www.johnhigby.com) – Yo-yo performing artist
Batala (http://www.batalawashington.
Benefitting:
Washington Area Bicyclist Association (http://www.waba.org)
Black Women Bike DC (http://blackwomenbikedc.
Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling (http://www.fabb-bikes.org)
Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (MORE) (http://www.more-mtb.org)
Price:
Admission – FREE!
Parade – Suggested donation of $5 or more
Beer – $5 for a 16 oz. pour
The Post-College Confusion Tour
Starring: Dan St. Germain (VH1’s Best Week Ever), Jermaine Fowler (MTV’s Guy Code), Jared Freid (MTV’s Failosphy), Sara Armour (Laughing Skull Festival), Brandon Wardell (SXSW)
The Post-College Confusion Tour returns to Sixth & I for a night of comedy featuring the funniest stand-up comics out of New York and DC. So take a break from your parent’s basement, come on out, have a drink, and laugh at graduating college and still having no clue.
7:30pm til 9:00pm, Sat Jun 1 @ Sixth & I – Downstairs, 600 I St NW, Washington, DC 20001
The Post-College Confusion Tour returns to Sixth & I for a night of comedy featuring the funniest stand-up comics out of New York and DC. So take a break from your parent’s basement, come on out, have a drink, and laugh at graduating college and still having no clue. Starring: Dan St. Germain (VH1’s Best Week Ever) Jermaine Fowler (MTV’s Guy Code) Jared Freid (MTV’s Failosphy) Sara Armour (Laughing Skull Festival) Brandon Wardell (SXSW)
price $12 – $18
contact info@tcpresents.com
An Evening with
Earth, Wind & Fire
Tuesday, June 4, 2013 at 8 pm
Soul-pop favorites Earth, Wind & Fire make their back-by-popular-demand return to the Filene Center, following their most recent appearance in the summer of 2011. The six-time GRAMMY-winning band brings their explosive, must-see live show, performing hits like “Shining Star” and “September,” as well as tracks from their 2012 album Now, Then & Forever. Earth, Wind & Fire is known for their eclectic mix of R&B, funk, jazz, and rock, which has earned acclaim from audiences and critics alike.
Widespread Panic
Wednesday, June 5, 2013 at 7:30 pm
$35-$48
Masters of rock improvisation Widespread Panic bring their Southern-inspired rock, jazz, and blues instrumental sound to Wolf Trap for the first time. They have attracted mainstream attention through a continuous touring schedule and by delivering electric live performances. Widespread Panic currently holds the record for the highest number of sold-out concerts at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado. Their 2012 album, Wood, chronicles the band’s first fully unplugged tour and features covers of famous hits such as “The Ballad of John and Yoko” and “Many Rivers to Cross.” The band also founded the Tunes for Tots program, which raises money to provide public schools with musical instruments and computer music labs.
Rock of Ages
Mature Content
Friday, June 7, 2013 at 8 pm
Saturday, June 8, 2013 at 8 pm
$25-$45
The hit jukebox musical Rock of Ages returns to the Filene Center for two rollicking nights of classic ’80s rock tunes and lighthearted comedy. The script follows the tubular exploits of a small town girl, a boy from South Detroit, and their feel-good love story. It features music by iconic rock bands, including Journey, Night Ranger, Styx, Pat Benatar, Bon Jovi, Poison, Whitesnake, and many more.
Based on a book by Chris D’Arienzo, the original musical premiered in Los Angeles in 2005. It has since become one of the longest running shows on Broadway and has been presented on tour all over the world. The Rock of Ages tour is directed by Kristin Hanggi, with choreography by Kelly Devine, and orchestrations and arrangements by Ethan Popp.
Billy Idol
Special Guest: Cat Power
Thursday, June 20, 2013 at 8 pm
Billy Idol, former Generation X member turned rock superstar, brings his trademark snarl and British charm to Wolf Trap for the first time. Long-time fans will sway to rock ’n’ roll anthems such as “Rebel Yell,” “Dancing with Myself,” and “White Wedding,” among many other hits. Indie-rock singer/songwriter Cat Power will draw her own devoted fan base as Idol’s special guest for the evening.
