Category Archives: Entertainment

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Oh You Embassy Folk! You’re So Funny!

Photo courtesy of
‘The Last Lion’
courtesy of ‘LaTur’

As the USA v. England World Cup match up fast approaches, the American and British embassy folk have begun the typical trash talking/friendly betting that normally occurs when two nations/cities play each other.

The email stream between both ambassadors has leaked on to the internet exposing the wager and now the details of their little bet are fully known.  If the US wins, then the US Ambassador gets a pub dinner on the crown. If the English win, then the English Ambassador gets a steak dinner on the colonies.

Personally, I think the wager is somewhat of a win-win situation for the British Ambassador.  He gets either the win and a steak, or if he loses some “home-cooked” food from his favorite pub. Whereas, if the USA wins, our Ambassador merely gets some fish n’ chips, and if we lose, he has to fork out for a steak dinner, and you know the British Ambassador isn’t gonna settle for a Tasty Diner steak. We’re talking Charlie Palmer’s here.

Entertainment, Music, The Features
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We Love Music: Five Reasons To Check Out The Columbia Pike Blues Festival

Photo courtesy of
‘Guitar being played by Tom Walton: White Springs, Florida’
courtesy of ‘State Library and Archives of Florida’

The Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization is celebrating the Columbia Pike Blues Festival‘s 15th year on June 19. Jazz and music lovers alike are in for a hands-on, interactive, outdoor musical experience should they chose to embark upon the event. Here are a few reasons to not miss the 15th anniversary of Arlington’s famed CPBF.

1. There’s an instrument petting zoo

Sounds fun, no? Ever wanted to try and be big a rock superstar. Live large? Have a big house? Five cars? Well, whether or not you’ve ever wanted to shine bright in the limelight is of no consequence. Try something new or revisit the glory days of your musical youth by partaking in the instrument petting zoo. If anything else, how awesome would be to go into the office on Monday and say “What did I do this weekend? Oh nothing really, except rock out at an instrument petting zoo!” For those about to rock, We Love DC salutes your efforts should you choose to partake.

2. These folks are serious about music education

This year, the Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization is trying something new – a partnership with Guitars Not Guns. GNG is a non-profit specializing in guitar education. Their mission is to ensure that all children, no matter the circumstances, receive the opportunity to learn and play guitar. Which leads directly into reason #3. Continue reading →

Adventures, Entertainment, Food and Drink, Life in the Capital, The Daily Feed
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Burgers, Wings & Beer; Georgetown’s latest additions

Photo courtesy of
‘Ted’s spicy wings’
courtesy of ‘rick’

This week two new restaurants open along Georgetown’s posh M Street and hope to fill some of the gaps within the neighborhoods food scene.

Opening on Thursday, the long time M Street Italian staple, News Cafe, re-brands and revamps its menu as Thunder Burger & Bar. According to Vox Populi’s exclusive interview with Thunder Burger & Bar’s GM Ryan Clarke, the establishment will offer “a fully rounded-out menu, but 95% of the focus will be on the burger.” Clarke hopes to differentiate the eatery from the  plethora of DC burger places by bringing “quality burgers back to a sit-down restaurant with a sit-down experience.” Not quite sure this is a winning strategy, especially with all the other nearby restaurants that offer fantastic burgers (J. Paul’s, Clyde’s, Martin’s, Rugby, etc.) but it will definitely be an improvement from News Cafe.

Further down the road at 3291 M Street, Georgetown Wing Co. has a soft opening this week, which features (not surprisingly) wings. The restaurant has a fantastic beer selection, because what goes better with wings than beer, and they’ll feature $1.50 Miller Lites and $3 Sam Adams Seasonal and Sierra Nevada bottles. According to their twitter profile, for Friday’s World Cup kick off, they’ll be expanding their menu to include Crêpe bunch, mimosa & draft specials. Nom.

Entertainment, Fun & Games, Music, We Love Music
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The Winning Ticket: Blitzen Trapper

Blitzen Trapper

As a way to say thanks to our loyal readers, We Love DC will be giving away a pair of tickets to a 9:30 Club concert to one lucky reader each week. Check back here every Wednesday morning at 9am to find out what tickets we’re giving away and leave a comment for your chance to be the lucky winner!

For our first giveaway, we have a pair of tickets to Blitzen Trapper at the 9:30 Club. These experimental folk rockers will be playing the 9:30 Club on Monday, June 14th.

Blitzen Trapper are touring in support of their latest album “Destroyer of the Void”; a sprawling, electric-folk album that plays like the perfect soundtrack to an imagined Super-8, vacation film shot by a bored, sixteen year-old on a family road-trip across Kansas. It is an album that sonically hearkens back to late 60’s folk-rock while evoking classic mid-western imagery with an undercurrent of uneasy tension. It makes me think of grainy film images shot from the backseat of a moving station-wagon: leaning barns, tilted telephone poles, rows of corn, gravel roads, and weather-worn faces. Blitzen Trapper are currently a sextet of very serious looking men who I am sure will employ all manner of inventive instrumentation to recreate their imagination-inspiring music when they play the best sounding club in town next week.

For your chance to win these tickets simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address between 9am and 4pm today. Tickets for this show are also available through Ticketfly. If today doesn’t turn out to be your lucky day, check back here each Wednesday for a chance to win tickets to other great concerts.

For the rules of this giveaway…
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Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Othello

Roger Payano as Othello in Synetic Theater's production of "Othello." Photo credit: Graeme B. Shaw

Ambition. Envy. Lust.

This is the triple-headed monster that drives one of Shakespeare’s most explored villians, the manipulative yet seductive Iago whose knowledge of his rivals’ secrets and fears are the keys to a devious plot. His motivation being so multi-faceted and open to different interpretations, he tends to grasp control of a play that is, after all, named for another character. It’s an issue every production has to face – do you focus on the monster or the hero?

Now through July 3 you can witness how effectively Synetic Theater tackles this issue with their take on Othello. It’s their sixth wordless Shakespeare production – I thought they had reached the pinnacle with their last outing, Antony and Cleopatra, but clearly there’s no end to the brilliance of this company when it applies its physical theater style to the Bard. Hyperbole? Head to the Kennedy Center’s Family Theater and judge for yourself.

Here Othello’s polished veneer of self-control masks a deep wound into which Iago writhes like a parasite, whereas Iago’s wound is shown to us right from the start. As they are so entwined, they are equally the focus. This is a production marked by psychic pain so palpable it made me shake. It’s also fast, frenzied and exquisite. Continue reading →

Entertainment, Music, We Love Music
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We Love Music: The National @ DAR Constitution Hall 6/6/10

The National @ DAR Hall #2 6/6/10
“The National at DAR” courtesy of Samer Farha.

The National are blowing up huge in 2010. Of that there is no question. Their latest album “High Violet” debuted at number three on the Billboard Top 200 when it dropped last month. It has been nearly impossible to avoid their massive campaign of television and festival appearances, rave album reviews in print and online, and their inventive use of web-isodes and internet video exclusives. When a band gets pushed this hard it gives one pause. Do they have the chops to back it up or is this all a smoke screen to sell shoddy product? In the case of The National it is readily apparent to the listener of “High Violet” or the attendee at one of their concerts that this is a very talented band that has hit their stride.

“High Violet” is the fifth album by The National. Their style has evolved over the years from alt-country inflected pop albums to a darker and emotionally huge sound (that frankly suits the band better). “High Violet” rounds out a trilogy of excellently written and performed albums. It is preceded by “Boxer” and “Alligator“. Vocally all three albums have just the right balance of melancholy, introspection, and frustration to provide a wealth of emotion to the listener. Musically The National have become more and more interesting with each of these three albums. “Boxer” may represent a lush musical peak for the band, but it is on “High Violet” that they employ just the right measure of restraint to their large sound, lending real gravity to their lyrics.

The National performed to a sold out crowd at DAR Constitution Hall on Sunday night. Like their last three albums, their live show proved that The National are seriously talented and exciting performers. The show heavily mined “High Violet”, “Boxer”, and “Alligator”; perfectly blending great songs from all three to balance moments of emotional honesty, musical cacophony, and pop brilliance. For a band that features lyrics of such introspection and woe, The National provide a surprisingly powerful and energetic concert that more than once had me thinking of The Cure and U2. After experiencing The National live on Sunday night, I imagine, that much like those two long-running and massively successful bands, The National could have a long and successful future crafting ever-evolving emotional pop music.
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Entertainment, Music, We Love Music
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We Love Music: Fear Factory & Prong @ Jaxx 6/3/10

Fear Factory @ Jaxx 6/3/10
courtesy of Fear Factory.

Last week I took the trip out to Jaxx in Springfield to catch the industrial-metal, throw-back, double-bill of Prong and Fear Factory. Motivated mostly by nostalgia for two bands that I was a fan of in the 1990’s, I trekked out to suburban VA’s, heavy metal, bunker, Jaxx to head-bang and mosh with one of the most aggressive and devout crowds I have seen in a decade. The entire experience felt like I had tripped into a space-time continuum hiccup and teleported back to 1995.

In 2010, Heavy Metal is still a hugely popular genre but inside the beltway its fans trend toward a more intellectual appreciation of the heavy stuff. I would say that I fall into this camp as I greatly enjoy post-metal bands and the more experimental and envelope-pushing a Metal band gets the more interested I become. Unfortunately, DC is also home to an enclave of hipster Metal “fans” who listen to the older stuff with sly ironic grins; a position I loathe because it seems to be more about mocking the music than appreciating it. While I have been enjoying the Metal experimental frontier for years, I believe a true Metal fan’s love of the genre must be founded in the classics of the genre; loud as an air raid, heavy as a ton of bricks, and finger-bleeding fast.
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Entertainment, Music, We Love Music
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We Love Music: Mono @ 9:30 Club 6/2/10

Copyright 2010 Randolph A. Smith

I have been tossing around the word “epic” an awful lot in conversation lately when describing concerts that I have attended. I do that on occasion; get stuck on a word or phrase that is an easy descriptor. A verbal short-cut to get to the gist of what the listener missed by not attending a particularly good show. For a long time it was “rules!” and “kicked ass!”. I still fall back on those now and again. It annoys me when I catch myself repeating these things over and over again. It annoys me because it slightly devalues these phrases and robs them of their power when they are truly applicable in writing. Lately my word has been “epic” because I truly feel that I have been lucky enough to recently attend some epic events. Epic in either sound, significance, or both.

Wednesday night’s visit to the 9:30 Club by Japanese post-rockers Mono was EPIC. Note the use of all-capital letters. I use them because there is no other word to describe Mono’s first-ever concert at the 9:30 Club and I want you to really appreciate the magnitude of EPIC-ness I am talking about here. I use all-caps in an attempt to jump-start this word that I have been over-using of late, because I have no other word to describe how huge and impressive it was when Mono performed on Wednesday night.

In 2005, I saw Mono perform in a space no bigger than a living room on a patch of worn carpet as a stage. That show was my pick for best set in-and-around DC in 2005. It was an evening of true music nirvana. The intangible thing that I spend my life in search of. I was so shocked, enlightened, and blown away by that show I couldn’t even bring myself to write about it for months. I was speechless. I have seen Mono perform many times since and they have become one of my favorite bands of all time to watch in concert. However, none of their shows quite matched the greatness of that 2005 set – until now.
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Adventures, Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, History, Life in the Capital, Music, Night Life, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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2010 Ibero-American Guitar Festival

Photo courtesy of
‘2010:53’
courtesy of ‘::FiZ::’

This evening the 2010 Ibero-American Guitar Festival kicks off at the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian. The festival showcases classical guitarists from the Iberia peninsula, Latin America and South America. You can grab a little taste of what’s in store with the beautiful strumming of Berta Rojas.

Shopping for your first instrument should be the initial step in a lifelong journey of learning and inspiration. It can also be confusing because all musical instruments come in so many different makes and models. If you’re buying your first guitar, you’ll face choices like what size guitar to buy, deciding between an acoustic or electric, or whether to invest in a new or used instrument. While there are many variables that might affect your decision, the most important thing is to find a guitar that sounds good, looks good, and feels good to play, check the next online website, they did a great review of Yamaha c40.

This year’s festival is dedicated to Manuel M. Ponce, the Mexican composer who passed away in 1948, but whose guitar compositions continue to inspire the world of international guitar. Tonight, the Manuel M. Ponce Quartet will give a talk/performance illustrating the influence Ponce has had over three centuries of music and the artist’s relationship with the great Andalusian guitarist Andres Segovia. Saturday at 2pm Leonora Saavedora talks about Ponce’s effect on Mexican traditional song.

If you can’t make it out to the festival, there’s also a live webcast of the events/performance that’s definitely worth tuning into.

Entertainment, Essential DC, History, Life in the Capital, Music, News, People, Special Events, The District, We Love Music
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We Love Music: The 9:30 Club 30th Anniversary Concert

Bob Mould performing at the 9:30 Club 30th Anniversary concert
“Bob Mould” photo taken by author.

“The reason this is the best club in America is the people that work here. Trust me, most nightclubs are terrible places. You don’t want to go there.” – Neill Fallon of Clutch.

“I can not imagine a DC without the 9:30 Club. It is unimaginable. It’s just unimaginable” – Mark Noone of The Slickee Boys.

“I love the fact that I’m from DC!” – Henry Rollins

“Let’s kick on the way back machine and get this thing over with.” – Bob Mould.

One of the truly singular music events I have ever attended took place on Monday night at the 9:30 Club. It was a special free concert held in celebration of this legendary club’s 30th anniversary. The night was also a celebration of the people who work (and have worked) there, the icons who got their start there, and the wonderful music that has been played there over the last 30 years. The night was full of anecdotes and music from 13 bands and artists that have strong ties to both the old and new 9:30 Club locations. For some the evening was a living, breathing, crash course in DC music history; for others it was a fun and at times even emotional trip down memory lane.

The 9:30 Club (original location) is the nightclub I cut my teeth on when I moved here in 1993. Within a few days of arriving I was catching my first show there (British twee-band Heavenly); and in the months and years after many, many more shows followed. I once took a date there to see The Boredoms and she left with a black-eye. My little brother did his first stage dive when I took him there to see Helmet. I was completely enthralled with industrial music after hearing Einstruzende Neubauten on the PA before the melodramatic, dynamite-strapped Sheep on Drugs brought the house down with their industrial-dance mayhem. And I was seduced along with everyone else in the crowd by Toni Halliday and the sounds of Curve. The old club opened my mind to most of the music that I still passionately love today.

The V st. location is without a doubt the best club-venue in the country. I’ve been to concert halls all over the U.S.A. and it always comes back to the 9:30 Club’s awesome sound-system (which I have written/gushed about at length over the years). Seeing a concert at the 9:30 Club is a sublime experience for a die-hard music fan. Perhaps none more-so than the amazing show that club-owner Seth Hurwitz treated dedicated DC music fans to on Monday night.

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Entertainment, Music, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Jonas Brothers (Pop)Rock The Warner Theatre at 7 This Morning

JoBrosLiveDC Photo By Ashley Danchuck
Photo By Ashley Danchuk

Early yesterday afternoon hordes of teenage girls and entry level ladies lined-up outside Warner Theatre, according to the Washington Post, to receive free wristbands to a randomly announced Jonas Brothers show that took place this morning.

Getting into the show was an easy feat if you got in line early enough. Just stand outside the theater and wait for a wristband when the theater box office opened at 2 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. Sounds simple for the kiddies who are off of school, but what about those 20-somethings who have no shame in loving the adorable (yeah I went there, feel free to mock me, I can take it) pop trio?

24-year-old Ashley Danchuk, a self-proclaimed Jonas die-hard (she has a tattoo to prove it) and member of Team Jonas (The official Jonas Brothers Fan Club, who received word of the show on Monday night via e-mail), couldn’t skip out on her 9 to 5 to get the wristbands for the show so she had a friend go for her. It resulted in great success. Continue reading →

Adventures, Business and Money, Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, History, Life in the Capital, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Lax Bros/Gurls Are Taking Over

Photo courtesy of
‘Lax.com’
courtesy of ‘teamstickergiant’

This past weekend Maryland hosted both the Men’s and Women’s NCAA lacrosse semifinals and championships. The women’s Division I championship game at Towson University, saw Maryland take home the national title against Northwestern and, according to the Baltimore Sun, the match drew 9,782 people — the most ever to see a women’s lacrosse game in the US.

The mens’ games started on Saturday at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium, continued through Sunday and culminated with the DI Championship game between Notre Dame and Duke on a scorching Memorial Day. Although attendance for the final game was low, a mere 37,126, the entire weekend’s turnout was 116,289, up from last year’s 102,601 turnout at Foxborough, MA. The games stay in Baltimore for 2011, go to Foxborough for 2012, and 2013 and 2014 are up for grabs.

While the increases in attendance are good reasons to keep both championships in the MD area, in recent years lacrosse has begun to grow beyond its traditional East Coast/Prep School roots. The game’s popularity on the West Coast, Colorado and the South has  been growing like gangbusters, with many footballers taking up sport in the off-season for fitness maintenance. The same is true for female athletes who need to stay in shape for fall season sports like soccer and field hockey.

The sport is also seeing a growth in popularity among the non-prep schoolers, as demonstrated in “City Lax” playing Thursday at Silver Spring’s AFI Silver. This documentary follows a sixth grade, inner-city Colorado lax team as they learn how to play the Native American team sport and take on the prep school crowd.

Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, Life in the Capital, Music, Night Life, People, The Features, We Love Music
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We Love Music: June Music Preview

Photo courtesy of
‘Earth Day Concert Dancers’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

Memorial Day is over, we’re on to June, and that means outdoor concerts and music festivals galore! The District’s got them all this month: Jazz, Folk, Blues, Rock, Pop, Acoustic — even crafts, dance, and all the culture you can stomach in one day (or over the course of many).

Here’s a look at June’s top “tickets” to get your butt outside and reap the benefits of living in a city where the world’s cultures collide with a wide-variety of  well-established American traditions. Continue reading →

Entertainment, Fun & Games, Music, The Daily Feed
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Live Jazz All Weekend!

Photo courtesy of
‘Live Jazz’
courtesy of ‘Kevin H.’

I make it no secret that I believe Jazz is an underappreciated portion of American music history by the millennial generation. With that said, I shared with you one man’s love for the trombone and how he brought it to the forefront of band leadership. Now, I ask you to give something a try (if you’ve never done so before) … go see some live Jazz.

I leave you with two options for the weekend if you’ll be sticking around the District:

1) Doc Scantlin and the Imperial Palms Orchestra – Doc means business. His band is considered a Jazz institution in the area, having been around for a decade now. Their specialties include anything from the 1920’s, 30’s and 40’s. Their final performance at the Carlyle Club (where they play live every Friday unless their on break or on tour) until June 18 is tonight at 8 pm. Tickets are required but the Carlyle Club is a dinner club as well, so come and make an evening of it. I’ll be there! Ticket information is available on the Carlyle Club’s website.

2) The Kaleidoscope Orchestra – The Orchestra is just one of many acts performing at this year’s 33rd Annual City of Alexandria Memorial Day Jazz Festival on Monday. The entire event is from 1 to 7 and features some of the top Jazz acts in and around the area. They include: The Jazz Ambassadors Dixieland Band, the Joe Baione Trio, WAMMIE Award winner Al Williams, straight ahead jazz group and the Washington Area Music Association’s Best Jazz Group for 2009, the Larry Brown Quintet. Continue reading →

Entertainment, Music, The Features, We Love Music
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We Love Music: Big Sam’s Funky Nation

Photo courtesy of
‘BeachTrombone-7’
courtesy of ‘gas_station_sushi’

It’s rare in Jazz music to see a trombone player in the role of band leader. Some of the greatest and most remembered names in Jazz among the vast majority of Americans include: Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk. None of those players ever once led a band with trombone in hand.

While there are notable Jazz greats who played the slide trombone while commanding a room and conducting a band, it still remains common place to have a trumpet be the focal point. Big Sam leads on trombone.

Big Sam was always a big boy. In the 6th grade, he was 6 foot tall and 200 pounds while playing little league basketball. When the time came that he grew out of playing the sport – literally – Sam approached his school’s band leader and asked him what instrument they needed someone to play.

Sam’s band leader replied, “The trombone.”

“What’s that?” Sam said. That’s all it took to hook him.

Continue reading →

Adventures, Entertainment, Essential DC, Fun & Games, Life in the Capital, People, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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DC’s Best Highschool Baseball Players Hit Nationals Park

Photo courtesy of
‘Take me out to the Ballgame.’
courtesy of ‘Paul Frederiksen’

This Saturday’s Congressional Bank Classic brings out D.C.’s premier highschool baseball players and team in a day long celebration of America’s game at Nationals ballpark. Featured events include a St. Albans v. Maret School match up, the District of Columbia Interscholastic Athletic Association (DCIAA) Championship game between Wilson v. McKinley Tech, a citywide all-star game and the main Championship game between the two earlier game winners.

The event starts at 9:30am and goes until 8:30pm.  Admission and parking are free.

Entertainment, Essential DC, Music, We Love Music
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We Love The 9:30 Club

Photo courtesy of
courtesy of ‘phillsea’

It is no secret that I love seeing bands perform at the 9:30 Club. Their epic sound system can take a decent band from good to great and can elevate the cream-of-the-crop from great to legendary. I have seen hundreds of shows at the 9:30 Club (both old and new) and look forward to many more. I anxiously await bands I love playing the 9:30 Club for the first time. It is a great experience listening to them get their hands on that wonderful sound system and filling that massive high-ceiling room with sound. Case in point: Japanese, post-rockers Mono on June 2. I have seen them play on almost every tour in numerous venues and I guarantee that none of those shows will sound as good as their first time at 9:30 Club next week.

This year the 9:30 Club turns 30 years old. Between its original location (and namesake) at 930 F st. NW and its current super-venue at 815 V st. NW the club has been supplying Washington DC with underground music, emergent bands on the rise, and intimate performances by super-stars for three decades. To celebrate this anniversary the 9:30 Club will host two very special concerts this holiday weekend. The first is a unique performance by Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine on Sunday night. This dean of humorous lounged-up rock and rap cover songs will treat the audience to an evening full of his renditions of songs by bands integral to 9:30 Club’s long and impressive musical history. This concert is $40 and begins at 6:30pm on Sunday.

On Monday, the 9:30 Club will play host to a truly spectacular, free-event hosted by DC-favorite son Henry Rollins. The event will feature hand-picked acts that have played an important part in the club’s story and will best represent the club’s unique place in DC and alternative music history. “We wanted to do something really different, we want to be surrounded by people who have made this place special, and we found out from the Virgin Mobile FreeFest how much fun it is to give tickets away, so we combined it altogether for our 30TH Anniversary concert,” said I.M.P. Chairman and co-owner of the 9:30 Club Seth Hurwitz. I can think of no better way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of this grand concert hall that truly represents the musical soul of our fine city.

Details on the 30th Anniversary Concert (including a partial line-up) after the jump.
Continue reading →

Entertainment, News, The Daily Feed
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Screen On The Green Back For 2010 Season

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

It’s been settled — Screen on the Green will return to DC for the 2010 summer season, its 11th in the District!

The fun beings with a July 12 kick-off featuring the 1964 James Bond classic “Goldfinger” and continues with their free outdoor screenings on the National Mall between 4th and 7th Streets each Monday evening through August 2.

“We are honored to bring Screen on the Green back to fans this year with a great slate of films,” said David L. Cohen, Comcast Executive Vice President.

Check after the page jump for the full 2010 schedule. Continue reading →

Entertainment, The Daily Feed
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NoMa Summer Screen Presents “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure”

Photo courtesy of
‘Day 250/365 – Modern Day Drive-In’
courtesy of ‘Kevin H.’

Tonight’s installment of NoMa Summer Screen features “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure”.

So get into adventure mode, head on out to L Street between 2nd & 3rd NE (just two blocks South of the NY Ave Metro), cozy into a grassy spot (with a blanket of course!) and let your mind go numb from watching Keanu in his prime (I was never a big fan of The Matrix, sorry).

NoMa Summer Screen also has BBQ by Smokin’ Something, popcorn, Italian ice, and live music for those of you who need a distraction from the movie or something to do before it starts.

The fun begins at 7 p.m., move starts at 9 p.m., and … best of all … admission is free.

Entertainment, Music, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Sophisticated Ladies

Wynnona Smith, Janine DiVita, Maurice Hines, Marva Hicks and Karla Mosley in the Arena Stage production of Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (Photo by Scott Suchman)

As of last Thursday night, Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies has become the best selling show in Arena Stage’s history (that’s a record-breaker over six decades of distinguished theater). It’s been extended through June 6 at the Lincoln Theatre, and rightly so. Go see it.

(I could just leave it at that, but of course I won’t!)

On my way walking the few blocks from my house to the Lincoln Theatre, I made a point of passing the house where Duke Ellington lived on 13th Street. There’s now a placard on the fence outside proudly proclaiming that fact. It gave me a bit of a thrill, walking up that street, past the Whitelaw, and then over to the storied Lincoln Theatre, thinking of the young Duke maybe doing the same. I’ve always had a crush on Ellington since I was a little girl listening to my dad’s jazz records, so I had a special feeling going to this performance – and it did not disappoint.

Glitz, glamour, class and sass. An excess of talented singers and dancers. The Duke’s scintillating music performed by a slamming onstage orchestra. And a legend of tap graciously highlighting two extraordinary newcomers. That’s what you’ll get with Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies. Continue reading →