As milder weather boosts moods and blossoms brighten spirits, springtime events abound in Alexandria, Virginia, located minutes from Washington, D.C., on the Potomac River and recognized by Travel + Leisure among the Best Cities in the U.S. 2023 and a Condé Nast Traveler Best Small City in the U.S. 2023. Spring brings fresh happenings including a time-honored favorite, George Washington’s Mount Vernon Spring Wine Festival & Sunset Tour. For more spring events and activities in Alexandria, see the listings below and learn more at VisitAlexandria.com/Spring. Temporary Waterfront Public Art Installation: Interstellar Influencer (Make an Impact) Spring to November 2024 Admission: Free Waterfront Park 1A Prince Street visitalexandriava.com/public-art Coming this spring, Interstellar Influencer (Make an Impact) will be unveiled as the sixth annual temporary public art installation at Waterfront Park, on display until November 2024 as part of the City of Alexandria’s Site See: New Views in Old Town series. Created by Brooklyn-based, award-winning artist/architect duo Jason Klimoski and Lesley Chang of STUDIOKCA, the installation explores the impact of an asteroid that hit the earth 35 million years ago near what is now Alexandria. Interstellar Influencer uses metal, water and light to create a 1:1000 scale representation of the asteroid and the 85-kilometer wide, 1.5-kilometer-deep crater it left behind, that shaped the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed and the flow of water through its rivers and tributaries. May 18th 8th Annual Well Ray Festival 10 am – 2 pm Admission: Free Mount Vernon & Bellefonte Avenues The 8th annual Well Ray Festival showcases the wide variety of health and wellness opportunities in Alexandria’s Del R ay neighborhood. The outdoor event — featuring free fitness and dance classes for all ages, health demonstrations, 40+ vendors, and more — is free and open to all. For more information, including a full schedule of events and class registration information, visit www.wellraydelray.com. 17th – 19th George Washington’s Mount Vernon Spring…
By Mark Edelman Summer is on its way. Before it gets too hot in the DMV, buy your tickets (and air-conditioned comfort) to these plays and musicals around town. Through May 12th AMM(I)GONE Woolly Mammoth Theatre Creator and performer Adil Mansoor invites his Pakistani mother to translate Antigone into Urdu as a means of exploring the tensions between family and faith in this eighty-minute piece. Should he hide his true self from his devout Muslim mother? Through Greek tragedy, teachings from the Quran, and audio conversations with his mother, Mansoor creates a compelling personal story about locating love across faith and sexuality. Tickets at http://www.woollymammoth.net Through May 18th LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS Ford’s Theatre Roger Corman’s trashy B movie about a man-eating plant and the boy who loved it becomes a Broadway musical favorite thanks to a Tony® Award winning score by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. Tickets at http://www.fords.org Through May 26th SING DOWN THE MOON Adventure Theatre MTC Four traditional “Appalachian Wonder Tales” weave their magic and original mountain music into a keepsake quilt of hill country lore and downhome wisdom for the whole family. For young audiences and their families. Tickets at http://www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org Through June 16th BEAUTY & THE BEAST Toby’s Dinner Theatre Menken and Ashman knock it out of the park again with Disney’s first Broadway hit, a tale as old as time for the whole family to enjoy. Tickets at http://www.tobysdinnertheatre.com Through July 7th HAIR Signature Theatre The dawning of the Age of Aquarius and then some as America’s tribal love-rock musical returns in all its psychedelic glory. Tickets at http://www.sigtheatre.org 3rd – June 2nd REEFER MADNESS Next Stop Theatre Decadence and mayhem descend on this Herndon, VA venue– a stoned-throw from Dulles– when a wholesome set of American teens fall victim…
moth·er /ˈməT͟Hər/ The female parent of a human being; a woman in relation to a child or children to whom she has given birth; (also, in extended use) a woman who undertakes the responsibilities of a parent towards a child, esp. a stepmother. – Oxford English Dictionary What makes good mothers? It is a pertinent question whose answer cannot be contained within a few words. Mothers are comprised of a bundle of emotions that sometimes defy reason. So this goes out to all the mothers who have kept awake all night with their sick toddlers in their arms, constantly uttering those compassionate words, “It’s OK honey, Mommy’s here.” For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies and sew Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who don’t. For those who show up at work with milk stains on their dress and diapers in their handbags. For those mothers who cannot restrain tears from trickling down their cheeks when they hold their babies for the first time in their arms; and for the mothers who give birth to babies they’ll never see. For the mothers who gave homes to babies and gifted them a family. For the mothers who yell at their kids who clamor for ice cream before dinner. For the mothers who defy all odds just to watch her kid perform and repeat to themselves, “That’s my child!!” For all the mothers who read “Goodnight, Moon” twice a night for a year, and then read it again. “Just one more time.” For the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces even before they started going to school. For the mothers who incontinently turn their heads when they hear the word “Mom” even though they know that their kids are nowhere around. For the mothers who silently shed tears…
Compiled by Lani Gering In Flanders Fields By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918) Canadian Army In Flanders Fields the poppies blow Between the crosses row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields. Each year around Memorial Day, Veterans of Foreign Wars members and American Legion Auxiliary volunteers distribute millions of bright red poppies in exchange for contributions to assist disabled and hospitalized veterans. The program provides multiple benefits to the veterans and to the community. The hospitalized veterans who make the flowers are able to earn a small wage, which helps to supplement their incomes and makes them feel more self-sufficient. The physical and mental activity provides many therapeutic benefits as well. Donations are used exclusively to assist and support veterans and their families. The poppy also reminds the community of the past sacrifices and continuing needs of our veterans. The poppy has become a nationally known and recognized symbol of sacrifice and is worn to honor the men and women who served and died for their country in all wars. The poppy movement was inspired by the poem “In Flanders Fields” written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae of the Canadian forces in 1915 before the United States entered World War I. By 1918 the poem was well known throughout the allied world. Moina Michael, an American woman,…
By Miriam Kramer FROM THE VAULT: In April 2016 I reviewed the book about writer Truman Capote and his high-society female friends, The Swans of Fifth Avenue. Last year Laurence Leamer released his book Capote’s Women: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, and a Swan Song for an Era, a comprehensive view of Truman Capote’s relationship with this elite coterie of international socialites he called his swans. Subsequently FX released its dishy second season of the TV series Feud. Titled Capote vs. The Swans, this glitzy drama was based on Leamer’s book. It brought writer Truman Capote to life for a new audience, further camping up the story of an unusually flamboyant gay man in high society and his elegant friends while detailing the bitchy, heated betrayals and backbiting that caused their relationships to fall apart. His close circle included Babe Paley, Slim Keith, Gloria Guinness, Marella Agnelli, Lee Radziwill, and C.Z. Guest, among others. In Leamer’s book I perused specific chapters on his swans’ lives, which I found fascinating but often depressing. In the mid-twentieth century they grew up to marry well and present a glamorous image. Trying to escape the gilded cages they were raised to inhabit, many moved from one wealthy, distinguished man to another, succumbing to the superficial values and shifting allegiances that surrounded them. Both Leamer’s book and the TV series portray Capote’s capacity to be vicious, sozzled, and showy without revealing his depth, education, childhood, and early life. Gerald Clarke presents the writer fully in Capote: A Biography. I highly recommend the latter if you want to see a well-rounded, engaging, and often compassionate picture. Capote’s acute eye, captivating persona, beautiful writing, and unusual sensitivity helped make him one of the most prominent American men of letters from the 1940s to 1980s. The Swans…
By Ron Powers On Cash Cabin Sessions, Vol. 3 Todd Snider employs the great forms of Folk, Blues, and Country to frame his views on life, love, and politics. Using bare-bone arrangements, Snider continues in the centuries-old tradition of American Roots music and brings us a collection of picture-perfect songs. The first thing that struck me about Cash Cabin was its parallels to Bob Dylan’s second studio album The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. At times, Snider’s vocal is strikingly similar to Dylan’s. Snider also has a wit and charm which bears a resemblance. These similarities feel much less like mimicry though. It’s more a case of being cut from the same cloth. Cash Cabin begins with a tune called “Working on a Song”. Here, Snider poetically expresses the often heartbreaking experience of chasing a dream. This song’s emotional impact is largely expressed through the way Snider sings it. There’s a touching vulnerability to his delivery. You almost hear tears welling up as he sings the lines. Next, we hear a more playful song called “Talking Reality Television Blues”. This is one of my favorites off the LP. Here, Snider takes us on an abbreviated journey through the history of Television and makes a thought-provoking connection between it and the current state of American politics. It’s songs like these that put Todd Snider in the rare class of musicians who actually have something to say. Cash Cabin isn’t just a quaint collection of well written tunes. At times it’s as if nature herself is possessing Snider, breathing a message to the world. This is most evident on songs like “A Timeless Response to Current Events”. Here we get a glimpse into the historic knowledge, and social/political insight Snider has. Whether you agree with him or not, you have to hand it to…
By F. Lennox Campello By now you must be sick and tired of hearing me discussing what a great and unique art event ARTOMATIC is, but it deserves that and more! Last month I reviewed the 5th and 8th floors and selected my faves from those floors – in this column I will review the 7th and 6th floors. The 7th floor proved again singular ability of ARTOMATIC to deliver a visual orgy on a scale that it is impossible to deliver in any other model but this one! The mind-overwhelming variety of subjects, skill levels, ideas, room-changing work, and presentation forms is simply impossible to replicate unless the hive workforce and leadership of this kind of show is there – Geoge Koch and the hundreds of ARTOMATIC leaders and volunteers over the years deserve a special recognition from the city leaders! First impression from the 7th floor? There is a lot of artists in love with black light on this floor and also many whose presentations include a wall assembly of a multitude of small, well-crafted and presented work! And there is a LOT of affordable art on this floor! Almost immediately I fell in love and lust with the work of Jenny Kanzler in room 7031. I am always seduced by artists who are able through their work marry the subject with the unusual and unexpected, and this very talented artist delivers all of that and more with gusto and skill. She has really expanded her horizon of subjects and technical skill to produce work that is both attractive and quiz the mind at the same time. In room 7006, Greg Skrtic offers the viewer an impressive array of large and technically-gifted paintings which can best be described as brilliant rediscovery and modernizing of the traditional. In these…
By Mark Edelman April showers may come your way, along with the tail end of those lovely cherry blossoms. Meantime, these plays are blooming in the coming months all over theaters in the DMV: AT THE WEDDING Studio Theatre Now thru April 20 There’s an elephant in the room at Studio Theatre—more like six elephants—in Bryna Turner’s new play, well-acted by an ensemble cast featuring Dina Thomas under Tom Story’s sure-handed direction. When Carlo (Thomas) shows up at Eva’s wedding to try to win her back, you can bet that trouble, copious amounts of alcohol and a modicum of truth-telling will ensue. Everybody’s got a secret (you thought the elephants were Republicans?), punctured by Carlo’s determination to get to the truth, no matter how painful or embarrassing, Welcome back to every wedding cliché you’ve ever suffered through, artfully spun together by Turner and these talented actors. The set, props, costumes, lighting and sound are all first rate, impressive for a theater company that doesn’t have the budget of Arena Stage or Signature. If you’ve ever wondered who the bride slept with while the groom was out “with the boys,” you’ll have a fine time at this seventy-five minute romp. Tickets at http://www.studiotheatre.org MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS Alexandria Little Theatre Now thru Apr 13 DC’s own Ken Ludwig adapted Agatha Christie’s potboiler about a wealthy American businessman discovered dead on the eponymous and opulent Continental sleeper train. If “whodunit?” is a question you enjoy pondering, this plot-twisting masterpiece should be just the thrill ride for you. Tickets at http://www.thelittletheatre.com PENELOPE Signature Theater Now thru April 21 Mrs. Odysseus is fed up and has some things she wants to say about those twenty years waiting back in Ithaca while hubby got all the ink in Homer’s Odyssey. This world premier musical…
By Miriam R. Kramer Despite weighing in at a walloping 716 pages, Don Winslow’s The Border explodes off the mark like a doped-up Olympic sprinter. The final installment in a trilogy covering the United States’ War on Drugs, The Border picks up where The Cartel and The Power of the Dog leave off and brings the story to an electric conclusion. Winslow’s twenty years of research into the illegal drug trade between the United States and Mexico make him uniquely qualified as a novelist to bring its dizzying highs and lows to light. Art “Arturo” Keller, the American son of a Mexican mother and an absentee American father, is a former CIA agent turned DEA after Vietnam. Having spent more of his career living in Mexico than the United States, Art has seen everything from the burning of Mexican poppy fields in the mid-1970s to the vicious battles between cartels seeking to mark territory in the early 2010s in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, across the Rio Grande from El Paso, Texas. Obsessed with bringing down Sinaloa cartel leader Adán Barrera, who murdered his partner, Ernie Hidalgo, Keller uses almost any resource possible, even other cartels, to find a way to destroy his bête noire. In The Power of the Dog and The Cartel, Winslow brings to life complex interactions between drug cartels; Mexican armed forces, police, and security agencies; ordinary and upper-class Mexicans; and Mexican journalists. In The Border, Winslow continues the gritty stories of his mesmerizing characters while turning his attention more towards the United States’ role. After staggering out of a firefight involving Adán Barrera and a competing cartel at the beginning of The Border, Keller has been tapped to become the head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, placing him in the position to take his decades-long worm’s-eye view…
By Ron Powers The other day I was listening to the radio and Whitney Houston’s big hit “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” came through the airwaves. It had been a long time since I heard it and I have to tell you it knocked my socks off. This song puts the legendary power of Houston’s voice on full display and is a testament to the long-lasting impact of the singer’s contribution to music. With the attention span shrinking effect that the streaming era has had on music, full bodied pop songs like this have become increasingly rare. It’s incredible how high a song can be lifted by a great middle eight, key change, or outro bridge. Thankfully the artform has been preserved through great artists like Whitney Houston and songs like “I Wanna Dance with Somebody”. To get things started, highly polished synthetic claps and bass drum combined to create a snappy rhythm. This is quickly accompanied by a wobbly synth bass that emits a fun and toe tapping feeling. Additionally, we hear Houston’s silky smooth voice deliver an ad libbed melody just before the music swoops into high gear. As the intro music progresses, zipping synth horns and booming drums fill the speakers, lifting the sound to a full-fledged pop hit. Percussive metallic elements are also sprinkled in to enhance the rhythm section as the music winds toward the first verse. Musical elements are pared down for the verse section and rely centrally on bass and drums. We also hear bursts of synthesizer and percussive elements decorating the verse. All of the instrumentation works together to give plenty of space for Houston’s stellar voice to shine bright. As the verse makes its way to the chorus Whitney sings the lines, “I’ve done alright up ’till now / It’s the…
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