June 2009 Archives

American Idol Fantasia Barrino reprises the role of Celie for the D.C. engagement of this musical, launching its North American tour at the Kennedy Center. The show, nominated for 11 Tony Awards, is based on Alice Walker’s Pultizer Prize-winning novel and subsequent film by Steven Spielberg, and features a libretto by Marsha Norman, music and lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray and choreography by Donald Byrd. Gary Griffin also reprises his role here as the show’s director, as does Oprah Winfrey as the show’s lead producer. Opening Tuesday, June 30, at 7:30 p.m. Through Aug. 2. Kennedy Center Opera House. Tickets are $25 to $95. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

The final reading in Ganymede Arts' “Stonewall: 40 Years of Landmark GLBT Plays” series is this 2006 Terence McNally play, featuring vignettes from the past 50 years of GLBT history. Tonight, Monday, June 29, at 7 p.m. at HRC’s National Headquarters, 1640 Rhode Island Ave. NW. Tickets are pay-what-you-can. Call 202-390-1502 or visit www.ganymedearts.org.

The United Kingdom’s famed ballet company will perform Kenneth MacMillan’s three-act narrative ballet Manon, which follows a young woman whose plan to run away with a handsome student ultimately turns disastrous. Friday, June 26, and Saturday, June 27, at 7:30 p.m. Also Saturday, June 27, and Sunday, June 28, at 1:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Opera House. Tickets are $35 to $135. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

In glitzy jackets, glittering gloves and ’80s regalia, Who's Bad: The Ultimate Michael Jackson Tribute Band, founded in North Carolina in 2004, is an infectious party production that takes audiences on a musical expedition spanning three decades of the King of Pop’s chart-topping music – as well as recreating his precise synchronized dance routines. Considering the events of yesterday, with the sudden passing of the King of Pop, tonight's party takes on a whole new resonance. One might even consider it a wake of sorts. Tonight, Friday, June 26. Doors at 8 p.m. Nightclub 9:30, 815 V St. NW. Tickets are $15. Call 202-265-0930 or visit www.930.com.

Sundays at the M Street Bar & Grill are becoming an institution, where table-service brunch and endless mimosas/Bloody Marys are the rule. Yvonne Johnson's jazz accompaniment is the perfect aural digestif with brunch or Thursday dinner. All menus offer solidly American fare with hints of the Middle East and soul cooking at the edges. The two-course dinner for two for $40 makes for a great date -- especially so considering the rooms and suites of the St. Gregory Hotel fill the floors above the restaurant, for those wishing to add their own spice. Located at 2033 M St. NW in Washington, D.C. Call 202-530-3621.

Grilled Tuna Nicoise photographed for Metro Weekly by Todd Franson

Her multiple-Emmy-winning show My Life On The D-List is now back on Bravo and as funny as ever. But it's been months since the episodes we're seeing now were taped, which is an eternity in Kathy Griffin's world. She's sure to have lots of fresh celebrity jabs and gabs to share here. Thursday, June 25. Doors at 6:30 p.m. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia, Md. Tickets are $35 to $75. Call 800-551-SEAT or visit www.ticketmaster.com.

Washington-area cabaret singer Barbara Papendorp sings from the gay great Cole Porter songbook in what is the presenter Black Box Theater Company calls ''an intimate evening of naughty sophistication.'' Amy Conley provides accompaniment. Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. Playbill Cafe, 1409 14th St. NW. Tickets are $20. Call 202-265-3055 or visit www.boxofficetickets.com.

Ever notice how white male contestants with rich, soulful voices on American Idol – from Taylor Hicks to Danny Gokey – are often likened to McDonald? Well, the original Doobie Brother is at Wolf Trap next week alongside Scaggs, the artist whose music spans various genres, from blues to jazz to rock. Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 8 p.m. Wolf Trap, 1645 Trap Road, Vienna. Tickets are $25 to $42. Call 703-255-1900 or visit www.wolf-trap.org.

The next reading in Ganymede Arts “Stonewall: 40 Years of Landmark GLBT Plays” series is Harvey Fierstein's masterpiece, Torch Song Trilogy. Monday, June 22, at 7 p.m. at Miss Pixie’s Backroom Palace, 1626 14th St. NW. Tickets are pay-what-you-can. Call 202-390-1502 or visit www.ganymedearts.org.

Works from artists Janathel Shaw, Michael Platt, Donna Coleman and Malia Kai are featured in this gallery's new show "Unapologetic," which explores the images and themes evoked by both the intimate and the broader society, including isolation, imprisonment, genocide and community pride. Now through July 4. Touchstone Gallery, 406 Seventh St. NW. Call 202-347-2787 or visit www.touchstonegallery.com.

Moscow's legendary dance company performs the exclusive North American performances of its re-staging of Petipa's full-length Le Corsaire, called "grand" and "luscious" by London's Independent. Saturday, June 20, at 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 21, at 1:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Opera House. Tickets are $47 to $135. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

Now in its fifth year, this D.C.-based ensemble of young singers makes its debut at the Kennedy Center with its spring program, Haunted, a reflection on the music and moments that linger in the soul. The diverse program aims to make choral music fun and accessible to wider audiences. Saturday, June 20, at 7:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. Tickets are $10 to $18. Call 202-467-4600 or visit www.kennedy-center.org.

With lines like “ab-crunching jackass” and “go suck a hot cock,” you know you have a winner on your hands. However, when that’s just a spot made to promote the film and not actual footage from the film, it could be cause for concern. But no need for cold feet, because while much less rude, The Proposal lives up to the expectation set by the pre-release hype. Judging by the invitation, The Proposal is your run-of-the-mill romantic comedy: a mismatched couple pretend to be in love until things blow up in their faces and it makes them realize their sham isn’t a sham after all. In this version, Andrew (Ryan Reynolds) is the assistant to ice princess Margaret (Sandra Bullock), who is about to be deported back to her chilly home in Canada. She bullies him into an engagement more awkward than when Jack and Rosario tied the knot on Will & Grace. However, when the two end up at his family’s home in Alaska to celebrate the birthday of Grandma (Betty White), their hearts melt faster than a polar icecap.When it’s clear what’s going to happen in a film before the opening credits even begin, all you can hope for are some good performances and funny one-liners. The Proposal is a great marriage of the two. Director Anne Fletcher (27 Dresses) guides the cast through Peter Chiarelli’s sometimes hysterical script with just enough speed to keep from wallowing in the absurd plot. Bullock and Reynolds don’t really hit their groove until Margaret is out of her element and Andrew grows a backbone, but White is golden every second she’s on screen. She alone would be reason enough to see the film, but fortunately she’s not the only one in the wedding party. THREE AND ONE-HALF STARS. Rated PG-13. 107 minutes. Area theaters. (Tim Plant)

The Jewish lesbian comic Judy Gold returns to the area to make you laugh like only she can. Thursday, June 18, at 7:30 p.m. The Birchmere, 3701 Mt. Vernon Ave., Alexandria. Tickets are $29.50. Call 703-549-7500 or visit www.birchmere.com.

Read our cover story interview with Judy Gold from January 2008.

“Three Part Harmony: A Show in Three Acts” is how this show from the Chicago-based quintet is being dubbed, since it will be a three-parter, with a rock segment, an acoustic segment and a medley of fan favorites to close. Wednesday, June 17. Doors at 5:30 p.m. Nightclub 9:30, 815 V St. NW. Tickets are $18. Call 202-265-0930 or visit www.930.com.

The next reading in Ganymede Arts “Stonewall: 40 Years of Landmark GLBT Plays” series is this, Martin Sherman’s 1979 play (and later, a 1997 film), which was ahead of its time in raising awareness about its subject matter: the persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany. Bowie State University theater professor Bob Bartlett directs. Monday, June 15, at 7 p.m. Miss Pixie’s Backroom Palace, 1626 14th St. NW. Tickets are pay-what-you-can. Call 202-390-1502 or visit www.ganymedearts.org.

With the distinction of being voted D.C.'s best parade by readers of Washington City Paper this year and last -- even edging out the 2009 Inauguration Parade, which took second place -- the Capital Pride Parade is obviously a beloved institution. Marking its 28th year, the parade should continue its steps in the right direction with Valerie Harper of Rhoda fame, currently in town channeling Tallulah Bankhead in Looped serving as grand marshal. The parade steps off at 6:30 p.m. today, Saturday, June 13, rain or shine.

Come Sunday, June 14, the action loses mobility while remaining animated along Pennsylvania Avenue, between Third and Seventh Streets NW. The Capital Pride Festival, in its 34th year, is the city's largest. In addition to three performance stages, this year's festival includes a family area and two "beverage gardens," with the rocking Mainstage garden hosted by Nellie's Sports Bar. As ever, what's not called for are dogs, whose poor paws are no match for broiling blacktop. And while admission is free, a $2 to $5 donation is suggested as you enter on Seventh Street.

For more information visit www.capitalpride.org, or call 202-719-5304. Or pick up a complimentary copy of the Official Pride Guide, available wherever you pick up Metro Weekly and in bulk outside of Lambda Rising Bookstore, 1625 Connecticut Ave. NW.

Here’s your chance to get a one-night-only sneak peek of a new show that won’t actually be fully staged at Woolly Mammoth until January. Journalist Mike Daisey’s monologue, directed by Jean-Michele Gregory, shares what he discovered from his journey to a distant, tiny, South Pacific island, with tales of erupting volcanoes, feral pigs, mind-altering drugs and macroeconomics. Monday, June 15, at 7 p.m. Woolly Mammoth, 641 D St. NW. Tickets are $15. Call 202-393-3939 or visit www.woollymammoth.net.

Nellie’s Sports Bar becomes a Music Bar a couple times a month on Thursdays, and next Thursday, June 11, all its regular performers will appear for a special Pride bash. With Tom Goss, Michelle Raymond, Ben Lerman and Thomasina and the Jam, it should make for a jamming joint. And, as always, it’s free – so you’ve got no excuse not to be there to identify your new favorite GLBT folk-rocker. Thursday, June 11, at 8 p.m. Nellie’s Sports Bar, 900 U St. NW. Free. Call 202-332-6355 or visit www.nelliessportsbar.com.

One In Ten, Hillwood Estate and Metro Weekly offer up their second “Divas Outdoors” film screening of the season this Friday, this time a Marilyn Monroe classic. Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall also star in this 1953 comedy, in which Monroe famously chooses love or money. Guests are welcome to bring picnics, blankets and chairs for lounging, though meals will be available for purchase too. Friday, June 12, 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Screening starts at sundown. Lunar Lawn at Hillwood Estate and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Ave. NW. Tickets are $15. Call 202-686-5807 or visit www.HillwoodMuseum.org.

Presenting “Haunted,” a show featuring the work of Mary Chiaramonte, who makes painted snapshots of people, absent their faces, including many beautiful men. Chiaramonte aims to draw out the emotion in the “headless” human form. Through June 13. Long View Gallery, 1302 Ninth St. NW. Call 202-232-4788 or visit www.longviewgallery.com.

This is quite a double-billing – actually, it’s a triple threat, with Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine and Boots Riley of The Coup performing as well, together as the rap/rock collective Street Sweeper Social Club. The ‘90s alt-rock band Jane’s Addiction is out touring with its recently reunited original lineup, while industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails is on its last tour before a hiatus. Tuesday, June 9, at 7 p.m. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia, Md. Tickets are $40 to $75. Call 800-551-SEAT or visit www.ticketmaster.com.

The Triangle Artists Group presents Queering Sound, an annual event of experimental sound, spoken word, music and digital arts from predominantly GLBT artists. This year’s festival includes selections from Nick Lopata, the Blowoff video master, two performances featuring Bev Stanton – solo, in her one-woman-electronica band Arthur Loves Plastic, and then as part of the five-piece punk band The Window Shoppers – and poet Danielle Evennou, currently board president of D.C.’s spoken word entity mothertongue. Saturday, June 6, and Sunday, June 7, at 7 p.m. Pyramid Atlantic, 8230 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring. Tickets are $5 each night. Visit www.tagdc.org for more details and performance times.

Dealers from 25 states will offer antiques and collectibles “at affordable prices” from over 600 booths. Yep, sounds like it’ll live up to its name. Saturday, June 6, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, June 7, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dulles Expo Center, 4368 Chantilly Shopping Center. Chantilly, Va. Tickets are $8. Call 757-430-4735 or visit www.damorepromotions.com.