Over the summer, Wolf Trap celebrated the 50th anniversary of its signature venue the Filene Center, named in honor of the organization’s founder and chief benefactor Catherine Filene Shouse. Notably, the series of concerts presented in the 7,000-seat outdoor amphitheater were also the first after nearly 18 months of the pandemic.
With the advent of fall, the focus shifts to another venue in a different section of the lush, 100-acre property known as America’s National Park for the Performing Arts. And this season, The Barns at Wolf Trap is celebrating a milestone of its own: It’s now been 40 years since two adjoining 18th-century barns were retrofitted and opened as a charming, intimate, and acoustically rich venue with seating for just under four hundred.
Among the highlights over the next month are cabarets by two longtime leading ladies of musical theater. First up is Linda Eder, who got her start in the late 1980s on Star Search. Eder is best known for her many collaborations with composer (and ex-husband) Frank Wildhorn — starring in the original Broadway production of Jekyll & Hyde. She’s touring in support of last year’s Retro-Volume Two, the prolific artist’s 19th studio album, which features new interpretations of songs from other Wildhorn shows including The Scarlet Pimpernel and Tears of Heaven and more (10/14).
Laura Benanti — Photo: Jenny Anderson
The last Saturday of October brings two shows from Laura Benanti, who has been making quite a splash all over TV recently — from her recurring uproarious impersonation of former First Lady Melania Trump on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, to her guest turns on TVLand’s Younger and HBO Max’s Gossip Girl reboot. Yet the five-times-nominated Tony-winning triple threat (Gypsy, My Fair Lady) has a dedicated local following chiefly due to her performances with the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington. So you can expect a sizable gay presence at her shows, which comes a year after the release of her full-length pop debut, a delightful assortment ranging from Paul Simon, Rufus Wainwright, the Jonas Brothers, and Selena Gomez, all covered in stunningly realized fashion (10/30).
Other notable performers coming to the Barns include veteran singer-songwriter Karla Bonoff (10/8), Virginia rockers the Pat McGee Band (10/22-23), pop-rock mainstay John Waite (11/3), and the Broadway-style multimedia show “Harlem 100,” a jazzy celebration of the Harlem Renaissance led by the large ensemble Mwenso & The Shakes (11/4).
The Barns at Wolf Trap is at 1635 Trap Road, Vienna. Ticket prices vary. COVID restrictions apply. Call 877-WOLFTRAP or visit www.wolftrap.org for more information.
Little by little, year after year, from one season to the next, there have been some subtle yet certain shifts in programming among local classical music organizations -- in both good and not-so-good ways, depending on whether you like, say, holiday sing-alongs come Christmastime. If you do, well, good for you, but boo hoo for the rest of us, because that's definitely on the uptick this season, as in previous years. Similarly, if Halloween is more your jam, you're also in luck, because there's also been a slight increase in the number of eerily inspired, scary-themed shows.
There's also more diversity all around, and in multiple senses of the term -- from slightly more female composers with works being performed around town, to more genre- and boundary-pushing works and programs overall, to seemingly more out, LGBTQ-identified people in this particular genre.
If you need relief from these stressful and angst-ridden times, you're sure to find something to salve your soul in this section. If you crave a good laugh attack, for starters, look to the "Because They're Funny Comedy Festival," or seek out specific comedians and eccentrics known to get the job done, be it John Waters or Paula Poundstone (both coming to the Birchmere), or Jessica Kirson or Margaret Cho (coming to the Warner), or Leslie Jones, who will be at The Clarice later this winter. To name only five.
Of course, if you'd prefer to get serious and really contemplate and converse about our woeful state of affairs, you'll find plenty of ways to do that, as well. Start by consulting the lineup of noted authors coming to local bookstores and even a certain historic synagogue.
The fall looks primed to be a strong season of concerts by -- and appealing to -- the LGBTQ community. Among the highlights in the category of the well-known, consider Andy Bell (Lincoln), Jane Lynch (Strathmore), Renee Rapp (Merriweather), DOECHII (Anthem), and of course All Things Go (Merriweather). In the category of merely appealing, not gay per se, consider The Queens (Capital One Arena), Deborah Cox (Bethesda Theater), and Judith Hill (The Hamilton).
That barely scratches the surface. There's a lot of new -- or perhaps new to you -- queer artists out there, just waiting for you get into them including Katie Pruitt (Union Station, Rams Head), Rio Romeo (Songbyrd), Aaron Lee Tasjan (Jammin Java), Dixon Dallas (Union Stage).
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