Feb
27
Wed
The Washington Ballet presents The Sleeping Beauty @ Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theatre
Feb 27 @ 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM
8 p.m. Eisenhower Theater

The Washington Ballet presents The Sleeping Beauty

The romantic and timeless tale of a magical kiss and the beloved story of Princess Aurora, her handsome prince and the evil Carabosse.  A quintessential classical ballet inspired by the fairy tale of true love’s kiss and the triumph of good over evil.

Tickets: $25–160

Mar
5
Tue
Turn Up the Heat culinary experience @ The Anthem
Mar 5 @ 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
On Tuesday, March 5, the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA) will shake off the chill of winter with its annual “Turn Up the Heat” culinary experience at The Anthem (901 Wharf Street SW).
The highly anticipated event, emceed by ovarian cancer survivor Elle Simone Scott of America’s Test Kitchen on PBS, honors D.C.’s best female chefs, restaurateurs and mixologists and this year will tip its hat to Chef Seng Luangrath of Thip Khao, the Laotian sensation that has quickly become a local must-visit.
With her 2019 “Chef on Fire” OCRA honor, Thip Khao head chef and owner Seng Luangrath joins illustrious company, including past honorees Marjorie Meek-Bradley (St. Anselm) and James Beard Award nominee Amy Brandwein (Centrolina). And, the list of “Turn Up the Heat” participating restaurants and food industry pros providing the evening’s outstanding food and drinks for more than 400 guests reads like a who’s who of Washington’s female culinary visionaries, among them:
OCRA is the largest investor in ovarian cancer outside of the U.S. government and “Turn Up the Heat” is the organization’s hallmark fundraiser, raising critical funds for research and serving ovarian cancer survivors and their families.
“We’re thrilled to be hosting our annual ‘Turn Up the Heat’ event in support of all women who have been touched by ovarian cancer,” says OCRA President and CEO Audra Moran. “Having the top female chefs in Washington, D.C., supporting our cause sends a powerful message to all those affected by the disease, while also creating a fantastic evening of food, cocktails and fun.”
 
“Everything I do is to honor my late mother, she would’ve loved to see me at this year’s ‘Turn Up the Heat’ event as the Chef on Fire,” says Thip Khao head chef and owner Seng Luangrath. “Just recently, a friend of mine passed away from ovarian cancer and I’m dedicating my participation in OCRA’s largest fundraising event to her. Cancer touches all of us in one way or another – I hope everyone can join us at this thoughtful event for an incredible cause.
General admission for “Turn Up the Heat” begins at 6:30pm, with early entry at 6pm for VIP ticket holders who will mingle in the Teal Lounge, proudly sponsored by United Airlines.
For more information about OCRA and “Turn Up the Heat” and to purchase tickets, please visit: www.turnuptheheatdc.org
Mar
8
Fri
Super Art Fight @ Black Cat
Mar 8 @ 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM

On Friday Night, March 8, 2019, the “Greatest Live Art Competition in the Known Universe”, Super Art Fight, returns to the Nation’s Capital for an evening of live art entertainment unlike any other.

Returning live to the Black Cat for the first time in nearly two years, Super Art Fight will present their trademark “art fights”, a mixture of live art competition a’la Pictionary, combined with the bravado, character work, and (of course) tight pants of Professional Wrestling!

Founded in 2008, Super Art Fight has performed all across the United States, and even into Canada, and on March 8th, they bring a brand new event to the Black Cat stage – the GOLDEN GAUNTLET, a 5 artist, 4 match competition. Two artists will start, the winner stays on, and the battle continues until the last artist is eliminated in this crazy and unpredictable matchup.

To the winner will go the spoils, a ‘Golden Opportunity’ Marker, allowing the victor a Super Art Fight Championship opportunity at the show of their choosing.

The Super Art Fight roster is made up of average work-a-day artists, graphic designers, painters, illustrators and tattoo artists, who each have created crazy rock-star-esq personas, such as the anime-themed magical girl Shoujo-A-Go-Go, the European fashionista Baron Von Sexyful, the face painted dictator General Stormsketch, or the punk rock brawler, Killer Colleen. The audience is encouraged to cheer their favorites to victory – in fact, it’s necessary, as the artist with the most cheers at the end of each booth picks the winner.

Come see for yourself, live and in person what Super Art Fight is all about.

WHAT: Super Art Fight – Live at the Black Cat

WHERE: Black Cat, 1811 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20009

WHEN: March 8, 2019, Doors at 8pm, Show at 9pm

WHO: All Ages Event

HOW: Tickets are $15, Available in Advance at Ticketfly.com or at the door.

FOR MORE DETAILS: Head to SuperArtFight.com

Mar
9
Sat
Chance for Life 2019 @ MGM National Harbor Grand Ballroom
Mar 9 @ 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM

   Chance for Life was created in 2005 in honor of Kennedy Snyder, who was diagnosed with an aggressive spinal cord tumor at age two. What began as a small get-together has become an established 501(c)3 non-profit that holds one of metropolitan Washington’s top charity events. The annual fundraiser features a Texas Hold ’Em style poker tournament, top chef taste experience, and a glamorous Vegas-style after party. Its 14th annual celebration is presented by The Boeing Company, hosted by MGM National Harbor, and powered by RedPeg, providing 100% of net proceeds to help fund vital pediatric cancer research at Children’s National Health System and through Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation.

 

The Charity Poker Tournament is a Texas Hold ’Em style tournament with over 700 participating amateur players. Prizes are awarded for the top 30 winners with a grand prize of a $10,000 seat at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas. The event features a top-shelf open bar, sprawling buffet, silent auction, celebrities, and more throughout the day. Poker players also have complimentary access to the Taste Experience.

 

The Taste Experience features uniquely curated food from renowned chefs who cook throughout metropolitan Washington. Dance the night away with an incredible line up of live performances, capped off with a surprise celebrity headliner. The night continues with a vibrant after party featuring VIP lounges, a top DJ and even more entertainment.

 

WHEN:                 Saturday, March 9, 2019

                                Charity Poker Tournament | 11:30am

Poker registration opens – 10am

                                Poker doors open – 11am

                                Taste Experience & Party | 6:30pm

                               

WHERE:               MGM National Harbor

MGM Grand Ballroom

                                101 MGM National Avenue

                                Oxon Hill, MD 20745

 

TICKETS:               Individual tickets and sponsorships for both events now available at https://e.givesmart.com/events/buX/.

About Chance for Life

Less than 4% of the federal government’s total funding for cancer research is dedicated to childhood cancers each year. Chance for Life takes direct aim to fill this gap, providing 100% of net proceeds to help fund vital pediatric cancer research at Children’s National Health System and through Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. The non-profit’s major charity poker tournament and taste experience has historically raised over $4.2 million to directly support those on the forefront of local cancer research and care. For more information, please visit chanceforlife.net or follow the 501(c)(3) on Facebook and Twitter.

Mar
11
Mon
Early Music Seminar: Tastes of the Mediterranean @ Folger Haskell Center
Mar 11 @ 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Early Music Seminar: Tastes of the Mediterranean

Led by Robert Eisenstein, this lively seminar offers a sneak peek at the upcoming concert Tastes of the Mediterranean: Music of 16th-Century Spain and Italy. Wine reception included.

Location: Folger Haskell Center

Hours: 6pm

Tickets: $20

Info: www.folger.edu/events or (202) 544-7077

Vinegar and Char: Verse from the Southern Foodways Alliance @ Folger Shakespeare Library
Mar 11 @ 7:30 PM – 9:30 PM

O.B. HARDISON POETRY

Vinegar and Char: Verse from the Southern Foodways Alliance

Three poets from this culinary anthology, Sandra Beasley, Sean Hill, and Atsuro Riley, read work that delves into the shaping influence of history, culture, and identity—and celebrates the glory of food itself. This evening is in conjunction with Before ‘Farm to Table’: Early Modern Foodways and Cultures, a Mellon initiative in collaborative research at the Folger. Reception and book-signing to follow the reading.

Hours: 7:30pm

Tickets: $15

Info: www.folger.edu/poetry or (202) 544-7077

Michael Khan & Friends: Off the Record @ STC Lansburgh Theatre
Mar 11 @ 8:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Artistic Director Michael Kahn invites theatre-lovers to a series of intimate conversations about life in the D.C. theatre scene as he prepares to retire from the STC stage. Open, unrehearsed, and off the record, invited speakers will swap anecdotes and share memories about Michael Kahn’s 33-years at Shakespeare Theatre Company. Following his career trajectory, the discussions will focus on three distinct eras in STC’s history by mapping D.C.’s changing theatre scene. The first Michael Kahn and Friends: Off the Record will focus on the formation of The Shakespeare Theatre Company in its first location: Folger Theatre (1986-1992).

On March 11, audiences are invited to join Michael and STC Affiliated Artists Edward Gero, Stacy Keach, Derek Smith, and Franchelle Stewart Dorn as they discuss their favorite performances onstage, backstage antics, and offstage tales. In 1986, shortly after The Shakespeare Theatre at the Folger was formed as a newly incorporated, not-for-profit institution separate from the Folger Shakespeare Library, Kahn became Artistic Director and guided the theatre into national prominence. The first three seasons included several landmark productions and garnered many Helen Hayes nominations. STC changed the cultural landscape of the nation’s capital with its first Free For All in 1991. More than 2,500 theatregoers watched each performance of The Merry Wives of Windsor under the stars at Carter Barron Amphitheatre. This annual tradition of free Shakespeare continues to this day and over 630,000 people have attended a performance during Free For All.

Future Michael Kahn and Friends: Off the Record events will focus on the Lansburgh Years (May 15) and the Harman Years (June 5). More details will be released soon.

Mar
14
Thu
Story Time Gala @ Cleveland Park Library
Mar 14 @ 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM

The DC Public Library Foundation invites you to the 4th Annual Story Time Gala Reception, celebrating libraries and learning.

Mar
30
Sat
Washington Performing Arts 2019 Annual Gala & Auction @ National Building Museum
Mar 30 @ 6:30 PM – 10:30 PM

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.org.

Mar
31
Sun
Rock It Grill’s 30th Anniversary Fundraiser @ Rock It Grill
Mar 31 @ 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM

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.