Katie Tobin
@ Tattoo
Q:How do you keep your life clean?
A:"I don't own any cars and I do almost all my shopping from farmers markets."
MONDAY: If you're feeling miserable about our struggling economy and various national crises, you need some Irish poetry. And no one elucidates miserable like the bards of the Emerald Isle.
Check out Eamonn Grennan, an accomplished poet who's reading at the Folger Theatre tonight. His work is heartbreakingly open without being simplistic or ringing false. After the reading, you can meet the author.
» Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol St. SE; Mon., May 18, 7:30 p.m., $12; 202-544-7077. (Capitol South)
Photo by Neal Greig
YES, HOT ON the heels of Cinco de Mayo and the Kentucky Derby, America celebrates another holiday so soaked in alcohol that it should avoid open flames. World Cocktail Week is upon us — OK, it's been upon us for a few days now, but you can still catch the end of it.
D.C.'s classiest bars and most creative bartenders spend this week one-upping each other, dishing out new and exciting spring cocktails. Even though you've missed some of the happy hours on offer, don't skip the last few. And remember, these are cocktail events for suave city-types. The first sign of a sombrero, and the whole thing is off.
Tonight's event, held at Proof, might be too rich for anyone's blood in this economy — $145 buys you a five-course dinner accompanied by five specialty cocktails, preceded by a party at which you can try five more specialty cocktails and munch hors d'oeuvres. First, you should ask yourself if you want to pay $145 for one night. Second, do you really want to be 10 cocktails deep on a Monday?
Continue Reading "Find Your Signature Drink: World Cocktail Week" »
THIS WEEK: Does your brain recoil in horror at seeing that the Folger is producing a play written after 1904? Calm down. It's written by Tom Stoppard, which means it's as intellectually demanding as any work penned since Shakespeare kicked the bucket.
"Arcadia" tells the story of two geniuses over two centuries. The first is Thomasina, a young girl with unorthodox ideas about math trying to come to terms with the adult world around her. The other is Hannah, a modern-day researcher mired in the details that make academia seem so useless to outsiders.
The play is long and talky — like everything Tom Stoppard ever wrote — but you'll be glad you stayed till the end to see the various strands of plot and time converge.
» Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol St. SE; through June 14, $25-$55; 202-544-7077. (Capitol South)
Photo from Folger.edu
SUNDAY: Gentles, do not reprehend — instead, take a trip back to the 16th century to celebrate one of the greatest literary masters of all time. Join the court jesters and the Mistress of the Revels at the Folger Shakespeare Library and enjoy performances and readings throughout the day.
Take a peek into Shakespeare's Closet and find bumrolls, farthingales and pumpkin pants to try on. Elizabethan fashion is the highlight of this year's festival, so make sure to visit the Costumes Through the Ages exhibit and see the different theatrical interpretations of "Romeo and Juliet" that have been imagined since Shakespeare's day. You can even participate in the Renaissance Runway if you come dressed as your favorite character from one of the bard's plays.
» Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 East Capitol St. SE; Sun., April 26, 12-4 p.m., free; 202-544-7077. (Capitol South)
Written by Express' Nicole Ocran
Photo courtesy Folger Shakespeare Library
BARACK OBAMA'S INAUGURATION may be over, but Abraham Lincoln's lives on at the Capitol Visitor Center.
On permanent display is a table used during his second inauguration. Also housed at the center is an assortment of fundamental Lincoln documents, including telegrams sent during the Civil War, his 1862 State of the Union and the draft of legislation to abolish slavery in the District.
The National Museum of Health and Medicine opened "Abraham Lincoln: The Final Casualty of the War," a collection that contains the bullet that ended the president's life, shards from Lincoln's skull and locks of his hair.
Continue Reading "Lincoln Drives America: Honest Abe Exhibits" »
THIS WEEK: The Library of Congress has had nearly 150 years to accumulate Lincoln memorabilia, and they've trotted it all out for "With Malice Toward None," a new exhibit of documents that belonged to Lincoln.
The man was a master of rhetoric, and the speeches on display (some of which include his original edits) are fascinating even to non-scholars. There's a reason Barack Obama idolizes Lincoln: our 16th president's writing was peerless.
» Library of Congress, 101 Independence Ave. SE; through May 9, free; 202-707-4604. (Capitol South)
Photo by Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images
MONDAY: You're barely awake, aren't you? Were those same old dreams of being chased or flying or marrying Leonardo DiCaprio keeping you from sleeping soundly? And what do all of those mental wanderings mean, anyway?
You might find some answers at "To Sleep, Perchance to Dream," a new exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library that examines early perceptions of sleeping and dreaming. You'll probably want to keep quiet about that DiCaprio thing, though.
» Folger Shakespeare Library , 201 East Capitol St. SE; through May 23, free, 202-544-4600. (Capitol South/ Union Station)
Written by Express' Tahirah Hairston
Photo courtesy Folger Shakespeare Library
FRIDAY: Calvin Trillin is probably most famous for his work as a political poet. He's published several volumes of rhymed political commentary — and yes, that's awesome.
He's been a novelist and a journalist for decades, and he knows from humor. It's not entirely clear what he has to do with Shakespeare, but nobody should make a fuss because Calvin Trillin is wonderful, and any venue that chooses to bring him to D.C. has our full support.
» Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol St. SE; Fri., Feb. 20, 8 p.m., $15; 202-544-4600. (Capitol South)
Photo by Michael Williamson/The Washington Post
FRIDAY: If you're trying to woo an English major, take her to hear Marjorie Garber's lecture on Shakespeare and modernity. Garber's a Harvard professor and the author of several books on the Bard, so she's a worthy addition to this season's Folger lecture series.
Her book, "Shakespeare After All," is extraordinarily user-friendly considering the norms of academe, so if you're worried about looking stupid, you can browse through it in the bookstore and pick up some facts before you attend.
» Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 East Capitol St. SE; Fri., Feb. 13, 7:30 p.m., $12; 202-675-0344. (Capitol South)
Photo courtesy Harvard University
IN A TOWN with two theaters devoted to the works of Shakespeare, you can't do "Macbeth" every time. The man wrote only 38 (or so) plays, and even those of lesser merit are going to get an airing. In an effort to make sense of one of these forgotten works, the Folger Theatre produces the relative rarity "A Winter's Tale." It's a schizophrenic work; a sad, dark romance in the first act and a peppy, slapstick pastiche in the second.
Daniel Stewart (son of Shakespearean titan Patrick Stewart) stars as Leontes, happily married king of Sicilia. For no apparent reason — except to move the plot along — Leontes becomes convinced that his pregnant wife (Connan Morrissey) and his best friend (David Whalen) are having an affair, and will stop at nothing to prove himself right. Stewart has a difficult job to do here, and he pulls it off. As jealousy overtakes him completely, he writhes, muttering, in corners. His transformation from king to Gollum is, against all odds, believable.
Like most of Shakespeare plays, "Winter's Tale" has a few tried and true moments that make the play worth watching. Some of them — including the much-quoted stage direction, "Exit, pursued by a bear" — work as they are meant to, some fall flat. Theatrical powerhouse Naomi Jacobson makes the most of one of Shakespeare's greatest female roles, the fearless Paulina, and Lawrence Redmond (Antiginous/Father) makes a confusing dual role quite comprehensible.
Continue Reading "Unearthed Bard: Shakespeare's 'A Winter's Tale'" »
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