Category Archives: Special Events

Downtown, Special Events, The Features, We Love Arts
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Kent Monkman Emerges at NMAI

Photo courtesy Kent Monkman and NMAI

In his first performance in the United States, acclaimed Canadian artist Kent Monkman (Cree) will present a new work featuring his alter ego, Miss Chief, at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. Monkman’s large-scale paintings, faux-antique photographs, silent films, and performance works subvert official histories of Manifest Destiny and “noble savages.”

In the lavishly staged satire “Miss Chief: Justice of the Piece,” Miss Chief—the glamorous, powerful, mythical alter ego of artist Kent Monkman—as well as a host of other performers, illuminate policies that determine Native American identity. Unlike other populations in North America, Indians are defined not solely by self-designation, but by laws (some originating from archaic notions of biological race such as blood quantum) that measure one’s heredity by percentages. Miss Chief has decided to take the ultimate political stand against these laws and create her own nation and is looking for members. But, as is common with Miss Chief, her invitation is a grand event. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Ticket Giveaway: Doron Petersan of Sticky Fingers at Sixth & I

Photo courtesy of m hoek
sticky fingers bakery
courtesy of m hoek

Today the food team has a pair of tickets to giveaway to one lucky reader to attend the Sixth & I event with Sticky Fingers Bakery owner Doron Petersan. Petersan, who is a two-time Food Network Cupcake Wars winner, just released her first cookbook, “Sticky Fingers’ Sweets! 100 Super-Secret Vegan Recipes.”

She’ll be speaking at the Historic Synagogue on Thursday, March 1st at 7 PM, and doing a book signing afterwards. Petersan is known for her vegan recipes and determination to show that baked goods don’t need butter or eggs to taste good.

Here’s how the giveaway works:

For the chance to win the tickets, leave a comments on this post using a valid e-mail address between 9 AM and 5 PM today. One entry per e-mail address. We’ll close the comments section at 5 PM and a winner will be randomly selected and notified by e-mail. If you’re chosen as the winner, you must respond to the e-mail within 24 hours or you will forfeit the tickets and we’ll select another winner. The winner will be able to pick up the tickets under their name at will call at the Sixth & I synagogue.

Good luck and happy (vegan) eating!

Food and Drink, Special Events
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LUPEC Launches with DC BRAS!

Our cocktail culture has come a long way, baby. The art of crafting drinks is increasingly seen as just that – an art – and national recognition for DC’s bartenders and sommeliers has been catching up to what locals already know: we’re lucky to have some serious libation talent in our city.

As an avid lover of craft cocktails and our local bar scene, it’s an honor for me to serve on the inaugural board of DC’s chapter of the quaintly named Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails (LUPEC). We’re a women’s society dedicated to elevating the reputation of the cocktail craft by investigating the history, recipes and traditions of that uniquely American invention. LUPEC DC joins an illustrious list of other chapters including Pittsburgh, New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle and Portland. And yes, while we’re committed to raising the bar to its highest level of quality, we’ll have a bit of irreverent fun along the way.

In the spirit of that mix of fun and dedication, please join us for our first event: DC BRAS! Sunday, March 4 from 4-7pm, the ladies of LUPEC will be at The Passenger for a special fundraiser to benefit breast cancer research, sponsored by D.C. Brau and Macchu Pisco. With drinks on special and D.C. Brau beer on tap, prepare to watch the ladies mix up a 6.6 gallon Pisco Sour to celebrate the end of Pisco month with Macchu Pisco. Oh, and bra decorating. I said irreverent, didn’t I? Continue reading →

Adventures, Downtown, Special Events, The Features, The Hill, We Love Arts
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Come for the Murder, Stay for the Masquerade

This Sunday, Labyrinth Games is bring some Louisiana charm liberally mixed with a masquerade, murder, and mystery to the DC area. Kathleen Donahue, the store’s owner, is throwing the doors open to area residents and inviting everyone to join in the fun of a good old-fashioned murder mystery party. The event is this Sunday at The Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital in Southeast from 5 to 8 pm. Just make sure you have a ticket to get in!

“This will be a mix & mingle event with all attendees receiving minor character roles and clues to share with other attendees,” said Donahue. “It will be like live-action Clue! Festival carnival garb (and Mardi Gras masks) are encouraged but not required.” Several area actors will play the roles of the major characters for the evening; just because they’re major doesn’t mean they’re not exempt from being a suspect, either. Continue reading →

Adventures, Downtown, Entertainment, Interviews, Special Events, We Love Arts
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Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner: Scaling the World

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner; Photo courtesy National Geographic

Tonight, Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner takes the stage at the National Geographic Museum. A prolific mountaineer, Ms. Kaltenbrunner is best known for being the first woman to summit all 14 8,000 meter peaks without supplemental oxygen or porters. She was nominated as one of NatGeo’s Adventurers of the Year for 2012.

She’ll be talking tonight about her daring climb of K2 in August 2011. Ms. Kaltenbrunner took a moment to answer a few questions for WeLoveDC before tonight’s event. Continue reading →

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Celebrate Valentine’s Day Tonight with Romantic Cocktails

Photo courtesy of needlessspaces
RR WTC building
courtesy of needlessspaces

Valentine’s may be the most divisive of holidays. So many people seem to dread all the hearts-and-flowers and even those who want to celebrate with their partner can get overwhelmed by the hoopla and pressure of the actual day. To this, a possible solution: Take your dearest to to Aria Pizzeria tonight for “Cupid’s Not Stupid: Cocktails to Fall For.”

This cocktail event at 7:00 tonight will feature six notable local mixologists, including Gina Chersevani formerly of PS7s, Rachel Sergi of Jack Rose, and Dan Searing, who will be presenting his book, The Punch Bowl: 75 Recipes Spaning Four Centuries of Wanton Revelry. Attendees will get to sample all the entrants in the friendly competition, as well as beer, wine, and some light food.

So, surprise your date with a spontaneous early Valentine and taste some delicious drinks – and consider coming back to the Reagan Building over the weekend to check out the rest of the International Wine & Food Festival.

Adams Morgan, Food and Drink, Special Events, The Features
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We Love Food: Speak Easy at L’Enfant Cafe

Photo courtesy of M.V. Jantzen
Le Soir courtesy of M.V. Jantzen

The French get it. At least when it comes to food and romance. Mix Paris with a little New York and you have yourself a seriously original duo. Enter L’Enfant Cafe, a tiny bistro in Adams Morgan, and you see that America à la France at its greatest. It boasts only 16 tables, but dishes out some serious french fare that transport you to a cafe in the center of Le Marais. On a weekend, it is a great spot to find a croque madame and espresso, and on a weeknight, a perfect date spot for intimate conversation and glasses of rouge. This place is just as one imagines a Parisian bistro to be: effortlessly fabulous.

But that’s just the half of it. L’Enfant is so much more than just a restaurant. Co-owned by Christopher Lynch and Jim Ball, two New Yorkers who wanted to bring the art-y to Party, L’Enfant has turned into an institution of fun fare. Known for their yearly Bastille Day French Maid Relay Race, as well as their infamous Saturday Le Boum brunches, these guys keep it coming. Now, they are making Sunday the new Funday with a one of a kind dining experience. What does that entail? One word: Cabaret.

Continue reading →

Special Events
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Thornwillow and One Kings Lane Host DC Event

Photo courtesy of mosley.brian
We Love DC – Thornwillow – 01-26-12 06
courtesy of mosley.brian

The sophisticated home decor flash-sale site One Kings Lane hosted its first event in Washington, DC last week – a party celebrating their “Tastemaker Tag Sale” collaboration with Thornwillow Press. Guests were invited to Thornwillow’s stationery salon in the lobby of the historic and lovely St Regis Hotel to preview the vintage and exclusive items curated by Thornwillow founder, Luke Ives Pontifell.
Continue reading →

Downtown, Entertainment, Special Events, The Features, We Love Arts
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National Geographic Live: February 2012

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner; Photo courtesy National Geographic

As spring looms on the horizon, so does National Geographic Live’s new season. For the third year in a row, the National Geographic Museum is offering WeLoveDC readers a monthly chance to enjoy one of their premier events. We’re giving away two pairs of tickets to readers and entering is simple. Look through the great programs coming up in February and pick two you’d like to attend. Then in the comment field, simply enter your choices. (Make sure you use your first name and a valid email address!) Winners for February will be chosen at random in the afternoon on Tuesday, January 31.

All programs (unless otherwise noted) will take place in Grosvenor Auditorium at 1600 M Street, NW.

Tickets may be purchased online at www.nglive.org, via telephone at (202) 857-7700, or in person at the National Geographic ticket office between 9 am and 5 pm. Free parking is available in the National Geographic underground garage for all programs that begin after 6 pm.

Uncovering Hidden World ($20)
Tuesday, Feb. 7; 7:30 pm

As a staff photographer with National Geographic, Jodi Cobb has worked in more than 60 countries—celebrating the best of the human spirit and spotlighting some of its worst abuses.

She is best known for lifting the curtain on worlds closed to outsiders, such as Japan’s geisha, Saudi Arabian women, the grim underworld of human trafficking. Experience a retrospective of her most important work as she also shares images and stories from her most recent assignment, a story on twins for the January 2012 issue of National Geographic. Continue reading →

Special Events, The Daily Feed
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NPR’s Terry Gross Comes to Strathmore

Photo courtesy of Finsthwait
Terry Gross of “Fresh Air”
courtesy of Finsthwait

Every day on her acclaimed NPR talk show Fresh Air, over four million listeners tune in to hear hostess Terry Gross interview prominent figures in politics, culture, and the arts in an intimate, long-form format that is too rarely heard in the mainstream media. On February 3, the microphone will be flipped around on Ms. Gross for a special event at the Music Center at Strathmore. Head up to Bethesda for an evening with the famed journalist and hear her “behind the mic” stories of her decades on the air and the fascinating brains she has had the unique opportunity to pick.

Special Events, We Love Arts
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Discount Theater for the Price of Silly

Photo courtesy of
‘Ready to take flight (IMG_2633a)’
courtesy of ‘Alaskan Dude’

Alternate title: Audience Participation Has Gone Too Far

Arena Stage has apparently been dipping into the Thanksgiving cooking sherry; Previews for their new show You, Nero are starting on Saturday and they’ve decided to encourage you to get into the spirit – they’re running pay what you can deals… provided you show up in a toga.

You’ll get to dull the pain of embarrassment – or perhaps just the chill – with $2 PBR as well. I has no idea Pabst was Roman and that’s about $3 more than a PBR is worth as far as I’m concerned, but hey, cheap beer.

The only really obnoxious part of this light-hearted promotion is that they’ll sell two tickets to each person in a toga, allowing one of you to look like a normal human. Well, a normal human accompanied by some dweeb in a bedsheet.

If you’ve never gone out and tried theater during pay what you can previews this would be a fun Thanksgiving weekend outing for you; PWYC tends to be full of all the other theater folk from town and they’re very enthusiastic. For a show obviously going for the fun angle – to the point where they’re letting you bring your booze into the theater itself – that should make for a good energy.

Previews and PWYC will continue through 12/4 so if you can’t get your turkey-stuffed keester off the couch this weekend you’ll still have a little time. Confirm showtimes and dates at the at the Arena link above.

Dupont Circle, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Capital City Ball

Photo courtesy of
‘Focus’
courtesy of ‘theqspeaks’

Since moving to DC, I’ve been wanting to play a socialite a la Real Housewives, but every time the opportunity arises my limo’s in the shop and my bank account is empty. Sigh.

If you face the same problem, why not check out the Capital City Ball this Saturday night? For $150 you get an open bar, heavy hors d’oeuvres, and a dance floor for the evening at The Washington Club. Not a bad deal.

Continue reading →

Downtown, Penn Quarter, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Stalin’s Spies: an ISM Event

Photo courtesy of
‘The Secret’
courtesy of ‘bhrome’

This Friday at 4:30 pm, the International Spy Museum, in cooperation with the Association for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies, is hosting an event on Stalin-era espionage. The free event includes the opportunity to view unique artifacts from the life of one of the Soviet Union’s most famous spies, Dmitri Bystrolyotov, as well as a chance to interact with the Museum’s historians and several panel experts.

Dmitri was the Soviet Union’s real life James Bond, earning a reputation as one of the greatest Soviet Spies of all time. He was a sailor, doctor, lawyer and artist recruited by Stalin for his dashing good looks and ease with languages to seduce secrets from willing targets during the 1920s and 30s. However, after falling out of Stalin’s favor, Dmitri was sentenced to the Gulag for 16 years.

Continue reading →

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Haidar Karoum of Proof/Estadio Wins DCCK’s Capital Food Fight

Photo courtesy of
‘Capital Food Fight Winner, Chef Haidar Karoum’
courtesy of ‘bonappetitfoodie’

Last night the battle between some of DC’s best chefs raged on for DC Central Kitchen’s 8th annual Capital Food Fight. In the final round, chefs Haidar Karoum of Proof and Estadio and Todd Gray of Equinox and Watershed worked with the secret ingredient: lamb. At the end, judges Ming Tsai, Joan Nathan and Ted Allen named Haidar as the champion (he’s the man with the boxing gloves in the above photo).

Chefs Brian McBride and Jeff Black also competed as featured DC chefs. One of the highlights of the night included a surprise battle round with former Top Chef contestants Mike Isabella, Carla Hall, Spike Mendelsohn and Jennifer Carroll working with Idaho russett potatoes as the secret ingredient.

The sold-out food fight raised $550,000 for DCCK’s programs, according to their website. You can check out more photos from last night’s Capital Food Fight here.

Adventures, Business and Money, Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, Life in the Capital, Special Events, Technology, The Daily Feed
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ESPN Zone Arcade Game Auction

Photo courtesy of
‘ESPN Zone’
courtesy of ‘darkensiva’

Via Thrillist this morning, the now-closed ESPN Zone is auctioning off pretty much all of their arcade games and the going prices aren’t bad. Knowing the WeLoveDC audience, I figured there would be some of you out there interested in getting your gaming hands on some of these classics. Aside from the games, the auction includes lighting, furniture and industrial kitchen equipment from the Zone, so if you’re in need of an ice cream machine or a heavy duty deep fryer this is your auction.

If I lived in a group house, I would totally be ALL over my housemates to chip in and buy one of these beauties. Personally, I’m partial to the Trophy Hunting (Bear & Moose) and the Super Shot games, but I’m sure the Slapshot Hockey and Washington Redskins Football Throwing game will be big fan favorites as well.

Special Events
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FotoWeek DC Returns This Week

FotoWeek DC--See you next year!
FotoWeek DC by Hoffmann

FotoWeek DC will return to the District this week for a series of exhibits celebrating the art of photography. The festival features over 150 photography-related workshops, lectures and exhibitions, as well as portfolio reviews by a specialized panel at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. It all starts with a launch party scheduled for this Friday, and a schedule of events can be found below. The festivities run from November 5th – 12th. Continue reading →

Downtown, History, Special Events, The Features, We Love Arts
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NMAI: Hear the Song of the Horse Nation

Photo courtesy of
‘DSC_0006’
courtesy of ‘bhrome’

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian opened its doors this past weekend to a new exhibition, “A Song for the Horse Nation.” The exhibition, nestled on the third floor of the museum, tells the epic tale of the how the return of the horse to the Americas changed Native culture, from lifestyle to war to art and beyond. “For some Native peoples, the horse still is an essential part of daily life,” said exhibit curator Emil Her Many Horses (Ogala Lakota). “For others, the horse will always remain an element of our identity and our history. The Horse Nation continues to inspire, and Native artists continue to celebrate the horse in our songs, our stories, and our works of art.”

To walk the exhibit’s path is to walk side by side with the conjoined path of Native and horse. Though horses were introduced to the Native Americans relatively late in North American history—the early 1700s saw the initial widespread explosion of the horse from captured Spanish mounts in the southwest—the image of Indians astride these graceful animals is one that is common to modern Americans. The “Horse Nation” quickly entwined themselves with Native communities, forever altering tribal culture and the Indian way of life.

The Smithsonian’s exhibit seeks to give us a view into that not-so-distant past. But it’s more than just a simply history lesson: subtly but surely, “A Song for the Horse Nation” reveals how interwoven both horse and man became among 38 tribal communities from the Plains and Western United States. The horse was more than a beast of burden or a tool; the animal became a part of Native culture that still resonates among the people today. Continue reading →

Adventures, Entertainment, Essential DC, Food and Drink, Life in the Capital, News, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Ginormous Cupcake Spotted At Georgetown Waterfront

Photo courtesy of
‘The Cupcakes For The Humans ~ Yummy’
courtesy of ‘Dan Dan The Binary Man’

Georgetown Cupcake has unveiled the world’s largest cupcake for the Guinness Book of World Records at the Washington Harbour.  Post record keeping/awarding administration, the 1000 lb cupcake will be sliced up, so head on down there for a taste of the world’s largest cupcake while it lasts.

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed, We Love Food
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Second Annual “The Vices that Made Virginia”

Photo courtesy of
‘Hazy Morning’
courtesy of ‘Vileinist’

Ah, Virginia–home to part of the Blue Ridge mountains, the Virginia ham, and of course, the land for lovers. So to celebrate the greatness of Old Dominion, Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture and Woodlawn, a National Trust Historic Site, are hosting the second annual “The Vices That Made Virginia.”

From 4 to 8 PM on November 5th, you can indulge in bourbon, oysters on the half shell, cigar rolling, as well as other “vices” from the state. In addition to specialty drinks from local distilleries, brewers and winemakers, chefs Nathan Anda, Kyle Bailey, Bertrand Chemel, Tiffany MacIsaac, Steve Mannino and Rob Weland will be serving up a scrumptious autumn spread. Dishes include local lamb, corn spoon bread with leeks and cheddar, spiced apple-oatmeal crumble and much more. Some of the local purveyors showcasing their ingredients in the chefs’ dishes include New Frontier Farms, Kilmer’s Farm & Orchard, Meadow Creek Dairy and Rappahannock Oysters.

Get ready to get your vices on at the farm next weekend, fellow Washingtonians. Tickets are $125 per person and all proceeds from the evening go to support Arcadia and Woodlawn.

Downtown, Education, History, Special Events, The District, The Features, The Mall, We Love Arts
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The Song of Emil Her Many Horses

Photo courtesy of
‘DSC_0027’
courtesy of ‘bhrome’

out of the earth / I sing for them
A Horse nation / I sing for them
out of the earth / I sing for them,
the animals / I sing for them.
~a song by the Teton Sioux

Emil Her Many Horses is, by first appearance, a quiet, unassuming gentleman. A museum specialist in the office of Museum Programs at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), he is responsible for the facility’s latest exhibition “A Song for the Horse Nation.” A member of the Ogala Lakota nation of South Dakota, his expertise on the Northern and Southern Plains cultures is well served and seen in the exhibit that opens to the public tomorrow.

NMAI’s latest offering is a touching and brilliant display of how the horse has deeply impacted and affected Native cultures since their introduction to the Americas in the 17th century. “The exhibit tells the history of the horse; that they were here once before, migrated to Europe, and returned as the horse we know today,” explained Her Many Horses. “They changed Native culture. The horse had a major impact on hunting, warfare, travel, spirituality. These were big changes.” Changes that extend beyond the European vision of the animal.

Seen as a beast of burden, a tool, a weapon, the horse was brought and used by European explorers and colonists early in America’s “New World” history. And their introduction, according to many Natives, was probably one of the biggest positive changes brought about by the white man.

Continue reading →