THEY CALL themselves "Middle Eastern-psych-snap-gospel." The rest of the world just calls them "Yeasayer."
These guys don't sound like anyone else, and so of course the hipster elite jumped on them and crowned them kings of Brooklyn. In fact, this band got hyped so much that it was famous before its music was ready for the attention, but it's quickly catching up to its indie buzz.
» Sixth and I Historic Synagogue, 600 I St. NW; Wed., Dec. 3, 8 p.m., $16-$18; 202-397-7328. (Gallery Place)
Photo by Brie Abbe
IMAGINE — YOU'RE TREKKING through the wilderness, munching on granola, when an awe-inspiring view stops you in your tracks. It's sunset and the sky is a deep purple, the pines reach proudly to the coming stars, and the river laps at the bottom of the swirled red facade of a cliff. Luckily, you've come equipped with a camera to capture such pristine moments as these. You position the viewfinder around the scene as best you can, careful to accent the composition and the shadows and the intense coloring. You click the shutter, and look at the screen to see how accurate your depiction is.
Unfortunately, it's one you can't even send to Mom, because your finger's blocked out half of it. Just admit it: you're no Ansel Adams. But if you want to eventually master the art of landscape photography, maybe a good place to start is by watching PBS' documentary about him. Learn about his life and work when the film is shown at the Smithsonian American Art Museum on Wednesday, then embark on your photographic future. And don't forget to take the lens cap off.
» Smithsonian American Art Museum, 8th and F streets, NW; Wed., Nov. 12, 5:30 p.m., free; 202-633-1000. (Gallery Place)
Written by Kelsey Parrish/Express
Photo courtesy the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust
IT WAS ARGUABLY the most important step Amanda Schadegg would ever take in her new career as a hairdresser: giving her first paying customer a cut. The look? Victoria Beckham's shag 'do. The experience? Terrifying.
"I was so nervous," Schadegg, 24, recalls. "I had to stop and take a deep breath because I knew ... it would be a botched job if my hands were shaking."
In the end, that jittery first cut "turned out fantastic. The client loved it," says the Alexandria resident, who is currently in her fourth of 13 months in a cosmetology degree program at Paul Mitchell the School, Virginia, in Tysons Corner (8090-L Tysons Corner Center; 703-288-0008).
EASTERN PHILOSOPHY AND the state of flux inform the "performance-based drawing installation" that artist Nicole Lenzi says she'll be creating on the fly at Flashpoint Gallery.
Lenzi will use "common materials" such as tape, molding, tiles, line and light (those last two aren't exactly "materials," of course) to create art on the gallery floor.
» Gallery at Flashpoint, 916 G St. NW; Oct. 17-Nov. 15; 202-315-1310. (Gallery Place-Chinatown)
Photo courtesy of Nicole Lenzi
EVERYTHING IN SHAKESPEARE THEATRE COMPANY'S superlative take on "The Way of the World" is deliciously ornate: the costumes, the set, the staging and, best of all, the language. The high-wattage, highfalutin dialogue in William Congreve's relentlessly sexual comedy is a steady stream of sparks.
First performed in 1700, "The Way" exemplifies Restoration comedy, a class of British theater in which the upper classes seduce each other with vigor and poodle hair, lusting after bodies and fortunes.
These are frivolous, idle people — and this comedic feast about adultery and sucker-love is both a rare treat for bookworms and a substance-free farce for the headline-weary: "I could laugh immoderately" serves as a rejoinder, while the audience laughs immoderately at lines such as, "I'll be taken ... by surprise."
Continue Reading "Creative Loafing: Shakespeare Theatre Company's "The Way of the World"" »
CELINE DION is a legend. From "Beauty and the Beast" to "Titanic" to her takeover of Las Vegas, she has acquired millions of fans and mountains of adulation.
I mean, personally I'd rather have a lobotomy with an ice pick than hear "My Heart Will Go On" at a dance party, but if you love this overblown Canadian songstress, you're not alone. And you're lucky, cause you can go see her perform tonight!
» Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW; Mon., Sept. 8, 8 p.m., $49.50-$188; 202-397-7328. (Gallery Place)
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
YOU DIDN'T MISS an episode, so why would you miss seeing Elmo-like David Archuleta or the dreadlocked Jason Castro croon half-hearted covers when the American Idols Live! Tour comes to Verizon Center?
» Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW; Thu., 7 p.m., $42.50-$68.50, 202-628-3200. (Gallery Place-Chinatown)
Written by Express contributor Jason Koebler
Photo courtesy of Fox
AS THE FIRST female Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi has been a trailblazer. She's been a political presence in Washington for decades, breaking barriers all the while. And her new book, "Know Your Power: A Message to America's Daughters," chronicles her transformation from stay-at-home mom to one of the most influential people in our government. She'll be speaking about her history, politics and the role of gender in all of the above at the strong>Sixth and I Synagogue tonight. For less than $25, you can get two tickets to the lecture and a copy of her book. Yes, that's in your power.
» Sixth and I Historic Synagogue, 600 I St. NW; Wed., July 30, 7 p.m., $23.95 for two tickets and a copy of her new book; 202-408-3100. (Gallery Place)
Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images
CALLING ALL WANNABES! Did you see some stuff at the Capital Fringe Festival that you liked? Looking desperately for a career in oddball artforms? Well, tonight is your final opportunity to attend the Fringe Training Factory at Martin Luther King Library. You can take any of the following workshops:
» Intro to Beatboxing
» Simple Clarity in Performance — The Lecoq Approach
» The Art of Creating Political Theatre
» Curious Works/Curious Audiences
» Introduction to Acting through Physical Score
» Taking It and Dishing It Out: The Messy Art of Grand Guignol Stage Violence
» SpeedTease: Burlesque in a Nutshell
» Look Ma, No Pixels! Digital Media in Live Performance
Click here to check times for the workshop of your choice. Again, tonight's your last change. Get your SpeedTease on.
» Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G St. NW; Tue., July 22, $10; 202-737-7230. (Gallery Place-Chinatown)
Metro Installing Debris Collectors on Its Tracks
Map It:
Gallery Pl-Chinatown Judiciary Square Union Station
IF YOU'RE WAITING for a train at Union Station, Judiciary Square or Gallery Place-Chinatown, you might spot new small yellow contraptions on the track bed, like the one pictured here.
If you see a copy of the Examiner or City Paper — or, perhaps, Express — get pushed under the contraption by the magic forces of train-powered wind, the things are doing their job.
Metro today announced the deployment of debris collectors at select stations as part of a new program to try to reduce the number of track fires, often sparked by newspapers and similar items getting blown into tunnels and other problematic places.
If the program is successful, Metro says it could expand the use of the debris collectors to other parts of the rail system.
Photo courtesy Metro
Addison Road