Eric Fergus McKinzie Erickson
@ Dupont Circle
Q:If your dog was a celebrity, who would it be?
A:"Lindsay Lohan. My dog is popular for no good reason. "
THE MAIN ATTRACTION on the Fourth of July is the most obvious one: Saturday night's fireworks on the Mall. You knew about those; they're hard to miss.
The snapping, crackling and popping usually starts at around 9:15 p.m., so make sure you're someplace — on the Mall, on a roof deck, plopped down in front of the tube — where you can ooh and aah to your heart's content.
But while pulse-pounding 'splosions might satisfy your inner Michael Bay for an evening, they don't provide an entire three-day weekend's worth of entertainment. So here are a few events and destinations that'll help spangle your stars.
FRIDAY NIGHT:
The Blisspop Summer Extravaganza at the 9:30 Club — at which you can be yoked by the tyrannical beats of Tittsworth, Will Eastman, Dmerit and more — is the only place to be. Read more about the show here.
If a more low-key experience is more your speed, go for Jazz in the Sculpture Garden at 5 p.m. or go see a free outdoor screening of "Top Gun" at Gateway Park in Rosslyn. Maverick, Goose and the gang take off at dusk.
Continue Reading "Independent Movements: Fourth of July Events" »
THIS WEEK: Folks will call it the "Dark Continent" no more if the National Museum of African Art has anything to say about it. The exhibition "Artful Animals" looks to correct misunderstandings and educate museum-goers about Africa and contemporary African life. Although the exhibit's aim may be serious, expect entertaining displays of animal sculptures and figures, particularly fun for children.
» National Museum of African Art, 950 Independence Ave. SW; through Feb. 21, free; 202-633-4600, africa.si.edu. (Smithsonian)
Photo courtesy National Museum of African Art
FRIDAY: If fireworks, American flags and some watermelon isn't the trick for a Fourth of July evening, then how about a van full of seemingly parentless and sexually-conflicted teenagers who occasionally solve a mystery or two? Finishing its run on July 3 and 4 is "Spooky Dog and the Teenage-Gang Mysteries" at the D.C. Arts Center.
The show is an amalgam of Saturday morning cartoon parodies and particularly follows an all-too-familiar crew of crime-solving do-gooders on an adventure that is a bit of a departure from their campy '70s hijinks. Though the name may imply that the well-loved gang is back up to its old shenanigans, the show is strictly for adults. There's singing, laughter and a confirmation for any sneaking suspicions as to why a grown man is constantly eating puppy snacks.
» DCAC, 2438 18th St. NW; Fri. and Sat., July 3 and 4, 7:30 p.m.,$18; 202-462-7833.
Written by Express' Topher Forhecz
Photo courtesy Landless Theatre
SUNDAY: Want some Flying V guitar riffs, unruly hair and headbanging to finish off your week? Man, the universe was looking out for you.
With simple lyrics and a Ramones-inspired breakneck drive, Jay Reatard brings sweaty garage punk back to D.C. in just the right way — loud, fast and hard. Just listen to his hit "See Saw" off of "Matador Singles '08." Honestly, it's nothing you haven't heard before from the kids down the street, but it's still a rush.
His latest album, "Watch Me Fall" is due out August 18, his first actual album release since 2006's "Blood Visions." You can download the first single off of his lastest, "It Ain't Gonna Save Me," off of his Web site.
» Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW; with TV Smith, Sun., July 5, 9 p.m., $12; 202-667-4490. (U St.-Cardozo)
Written by Express' Nicole Ocran
Photo courtesy Jay Reatard
MONDAY: Vandaveer is taking over the music scene with leading man Mark Charles Heidinger's plan, "Divide and Conquer," also the title of the band's upcoming album. The sophomore record ("Grace and Speed" was released on Gypsy Eyes in 2007) boasts of polished vignettes that wander into a quieter, more melodic sound that has fans flocking.
» Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW; Mon., July 6, 8 pm, $12; 202-667-4490, blackcatdc.com. (U St.-Cardozo)
Photo courtesy Shervin Lainez
SATURDAY: Jimmy Smits hosts a night spent on the nation's front lawn at this year's Capitol Fourth celebration, the climax of which is, of course, a sky full of fireworks. Grab a spot on the Mall, and prepare to get cozy with many, many of your fellow citizens as acts including Aretha Franklin, Natasha Bedingfield, the cast of "Jersey Boys" and others entertain.
» The National Mall between the U.S. Capitol & the Lincoln Memorial; Sat., July 4, 8-9:30 p.m., free; 202-619-7222. (Smithsonian)
Photo courtesy City of Alexandria
FRIDAY: Forget the fact that North Korea might be attacking Hawaii this weekend. It's time to dance, and the Blisspop Summer Extravaganza is just the thing.
Washington, D.C., party thrower/DJ stalwart Will Eastman is combining his popular Blisspop party with renowned DJ tag team Nadastrom and international dance-floor titan Tittsworth.
Eastman himself will helm the DJ booth along with District up-and-comers Dmerit, Ken Lezee and Bobby Jae. Bliss parties are wild enough, but combined with some of the hottest disc spinners in the country and the Fourth of July looming the day after it almost seems like gilding the party lily.
» 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW; Fri., July 3, 9 p.m., $10; 202-265-0930. (U St.-Cardozo)
Written Express' Brian Austin
Photo courtesy The Washington Post
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORERS-in-Residence Dereck and Beverly Joubert have spent nearly three decades researching and documenting the lives of lions and leopards in Africa, and their colorful photographs and videos are on display at the National Geographic Museum in "Lions and Leopards: The Work of Dereck & Beverly Joubert." The couple were in D.C. recently, and chatted about their work and passion for conservation in Africa.
» EXPRESS: What drew you to working in Botswana?
» BEVERLY: We're from South Africa, and 28 years ago we left and went to Botswana for an adventure. We fell in love with the wilderness of Botswana and decided that was where we wanted to live and work.
» DERECK: I think we both had the desire to leave the city and go out and do something extraordinary. We had a passion not only for each other, but for life, for nature, to do things outdoors.
» EXPRESS: What about working with wildlife and the environment is so fulfilling?
» DERECK: We use our work as conversation, as a way to talk to people about the things we care deeply about. Right now, we're giving the majority of stress to big cats, and the books, films, everything we do at the moment is about getting the message out that big cats are endangered.
» BEVERLY: Our workplace changes, so we never get bored like in an office. We move from one area to the next, and each area is different — one is a desert, one a semi-desert, one a delta. So we are constantly stimulated by landscape changes, and the animals interact in a different way in each area. And the more we have climactic change, the more we are going to see the animals forced into situations that perhaps no one has seen before.
Continue Reading "Where the Wild Things Are: Dereck and Beverly Joubert" »
WHAT DOES A chef do when he's left a restaurant and cooks so much that he fills his house with sauces and jams? For Stefano Frigerio, who used to be in the kitchen at Mio and the now-closed Maestro, the answer was to start the Copper Pot Food Company and sell his products at area farmers markets.
"Basically, after I left Mio, I was at home with my kids with nothing to do," he says. "We would go to farmers markets to buy food and keep myself busy, and my sons loved it."
As a result of those visits to the market, Frigerio acquired lots of fruits and vegetables and started using them in sauces and jams.
"I use local farms, mostly from farmers markets," he says. "There's a stand in Dupont Circle where we go for our shopping, and because we developed a relationship with them, they know we use their stuff and they call when fruits and vegetables are ready, and we come pick them up."
Continue Reading "Condiments to the Chef: Copper Pot Food Company" »
THERE'S NO EASY way to categorize street art. Or exhibit it, for that matter. But despite the vagueness of the term, it can be defined in part by its intention: It allows artists to use the city and its streets as their canvas.
Washington is loaded with its own examples, such as the Shepard Fairey mural with his famed Obama image on 14th Street NW. Now, there's another street-art destination, located in an alley off P Street NW, behind Irvine Contemporary.
The outdoor installation is part of "Street/Studio," which includes street-art biggies such as Fairey, with his Soviet Socialist Realist-style graphics, and Swoon, with her lyrical, silhouetted portraits. But what sets this show apart is that it offers both sides of the street art practice.
Continue Reading "Irvine Paints the Town: 'Street/Studio'" »
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