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Category Archives: Culture

In The News …

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Preview: 2011 Capital Fringe Festival (DCist): “The Capital Fringe Festival starts its sixth year this Thursday with over one hundred productions being performed at venues all over the city. Fringe is an opportunity for actors and production companies to get a moment in the limelight — whether they’re unknowns or big players doing some experimenting — and for arts-goers to see lots of theater for relatively little money.” Not sure where to start with your arts-going? Capital Fringe’s website has a great tool for searching all shows by location, date, time, and genre. (Among others, Catalogue-nonprofits CHAW and Woolly Mammoth are serving as Fringe venues these next few weeks!)

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Around Town: June 24-26

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Just one more weekend in June! So what strikes your fancy?

Nature …

Ever wanted to swim at National Harbor? This is your chance! An open water Seaport Swim this Sunday from 7:00 AM-1:00 PM will benefit the Alexandria Seaport Foundation. And starting at 9:00 AM on Sunday, you can join the Potomac Conservancy for an annual medicinal plant walk along the C & O Canal.

Theater …

Bootycandy, the kaleidoscope of sassy lessons in sex education, continues its wild run at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company this coming Friday-Sunday (two shows on Saturday!). And at 10:00 PM on Friday and Saturday, you can swing by the District of Columbia Arts Center in Adams Morgan for Shawn Mikael’s Theater: improv and stand-up comedy from DC’s both established and newer talents.

and Dance!

Ever wanted to be part of a dancing flash mob? Seriously, who hasn’t? Check out the video and instruction here and then go to the Central Library in Arlington at 3:00 PM on Saturday; Bowen McCauley Dance will review the dance and lead the mob. You can also catch BMDC on Sunday in the Source Festival’s Artistic Blind Dates. Plus, on Saturday at 8:00 PM, the Choreographers Collaboration Project comes to Dance Place, engaging modern dance featuring a wide range of choreographic visions.

7 Questions – Doug Yeuell (Joy of Motion Dance Center)

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Welcome to “7 Questions” … Doug Yeuell, Executive/Artistic Director of Joy of Motion Dance Center. Embracing a wide range of dance from Middle Eastern to flamenco, hip hop to ballet, West African to tap and welcoming first-times and professional dancers, JOMDC always strives to make dance accessible regardless of financial means.

1. What was your most interesting recent project, initiative, partnership, or event?

I must say it was our recent gala fundraiser. Galas can be many things. Ours was simply a dance party and simply fun. A good time was had by all — and good money was raised. DJ spinning tunes and many, many people finding their dance on the dance floor. What could be better? It’s nice when you spend all your days focusing on dance training, curriculum, and educational programming to just let it all loose with co-workers, students, and all those that support what you do. Dance truly is for everyone, and I now have the pictures to prove it.

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The Amazing (Theatrical) Race

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Looking to combine volunteering, fundraising, and community outreach in one event? Draw some inspiration from The Theatre Lab’s newest venture!

By Jeff Scott, Marketing & Events Manager at The Theatre Lab:

On Saturday, June 18, The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts hosted its first-ever Amazing Race. The one-day event featured teams of volunteers approaching local businesses to solicit donations which could then be auctioned off at The Theatre Lab’s annual benefit in the fall (which helps to fund education and community outreach programs). The volunteer group included current and past students of The Theatre Lab along with their friends and colleagues.

The racers were divided into teams and each team was assigned a specific area of town to target, which included Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, and Georgetown. Armed with packets of information on The Theatre Lab’s education and community outreach programs, and dressed in matching fire engine red t-shirts, the volunteers set off into the unknown.

Prior to the event, certain stores had prearranged donations with The Theatre Lab. The volunteers were given clues by Theatre Lab staff members to direct them to these stores to add a scavenger hunt element to the activities. Theatre Lab alum Tina Ghandchilar recounted her team’s experiences:

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Around Town: June 17-19

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Of an artistic mind? In the mood to groove? (See what I did there?) Then we have some great opportunities coming up at our non-profits this weekend …

District of Columbia Arts Center: 2438 18th Street NW

Always plenty going on here! Including “Something Other Than The Present,” presented by Sparkplug, in the gallery, and The B Team, presented by Landless Theatre Company, in the blackbox from Friday through Sunday.

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company: 641 D Street NW

Four chances (Friday through Sunday) to see Robert O’Hara’s Bootycandy, a kaleidoscope of sassy lessons in sex education, which speak the truth about growing up gay and African American.

Perry School Community Services Center: at Bikram Yoga, 1635 Connecticut Avenue NW

Attention Yogis! Drop by the Friday 8:00 PM class at Bikram Yoga today and, thanks to their partnership with the Perry School, the class proceeds will benefit Perry’s programs. Continue reading →

Quotes for the Day

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“The camera is a remarkable instrument. Saturate yourself with your subject, and the camera will all but take you by the hand and point the way.”

“We are in a privileged and sometimes happy position. We see a great deal of the world. Our obligation is to pass it on to others.”

— Margaret Bourke-White,

American photojournalist, born today in 1904

(And in her spirit, do check out this recent coverage in the Post and on DCist of Catalogue nonprofit Critical Exposure — which, in linking arts and advocacy, teaches kids about their singular power behind the camera.)

Around Town: June 11-12

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Whoa. I am pretty sure that summer has arrived. We have a bundle of great events this weekend both inside (stay cool!) and outside (remember your sunscreen!).

Looking for some theater?

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company‘s Bootycandy has opened to stellar reviews, and you have three chances this weekend to see this kaleidoscope of sassy lessons in sex education. And for an immense array of theater and visual art, spend an evening at the District of Columbia Arts Center in Adams Morgan.

To be wowed by young acting talent, head to Jack and the Magic Beans (a delightful take on a classic tale) at Encore Stage & Studio on either day — and to see some new talent, check out Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard at Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts on Saturday evening.

Looking to be outdoors?

Join the Coalition for Smarter Growth for a walking tour of St. Elizabeth’s East Campus, one of DC’s hidden historic landmarks, on Saturday at 10:00 AM. And starting at 4:00 PM on Saturday, Potomac Conservancy will host a Picnic on the Potomac, including games and music.

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In The News …

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BREAKING NEWS!

The Catalogue for Philanthropy Class of 2011-2012 has been selected! Check out our 70 new and re-listed charities, as well as those who have been “re-certified” to remain on the web. (Several of whom have grown so much in the past few years that their budget renders them too large for the print catalogue!) Check them out right here. Congratulations!

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Welcome to Wednesday! Here comes a sample of non-profit news …

Reactions to the demise of the Kansas Arts Commission — As you likely have read, Gov. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) vetoed funding for the Kansas Arts Commission over Memorial Days weekend. An override was unsuccessful. But Create Equity does find something of a silver lining: “this controversy has revealed genuine, broad-based public support for funding the arts … the dogfight over the Arts Commission was the top story on the Topeka Capital-Journal’s website. I don’t mean it was on the front page, I mean it was the #1 story in all of Kansas.” In other words, arts have real political power. Maybe more than imagined.

The Giving Pledge Goes Hollywood — Inspired by Bill & Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett, “Laurence Fishburne, Kim Kardashian, Richard Gere, Ricky Martin, and Justin Bieber, have joined dozens of other entertainers and sports figures … to use their fame to promote their favorite charities and encourage their fans to donate time and money.” While celebrities directing their star power towards charitable causes certainly deserves acclaim, will interest in the cause or the celebrity be the driving force behind donations from fans? Interesting discussion topic …

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Quotes for Today

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A few choice words from post-Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin, who was born today in 1848:

“Go on working, freely and furiously, and you will make progress.”

“Poetry seems to come of itself, without effort, and I need only let myself dream a little while painting to suggest it.”

“Art: a mad search for individualism.”

In that spirit, take a moment today to learn more about our visual arts non-profits — who recognize how color, creation, and canvas indeed spark progress, personal and societal.

Around Town: June 4-5

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Welcome to the first weekend of June! Where would you like to spend it?

… at the theatre?

Encore Stage & Studio’s final production of the season, Jack and the Magic Beans, begins this weekend and you can expect another awesome all-kids cast. The dark comedy The B-Team returns to the District of Columbia Arts Center for a second weekend … with a a crew of second-string terrorists from Buffalo, NY. And last but not least … don’t miss the world premiere of Bootcandy (“a kaleidoscope of sassy lessons in sex education”) at Woolly Mammoth!

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