Galleries
1. “Anne Truitt: Perception and Reflection”: Baltimore-born, Washington-based sculptor Anne Truitt spent four decades in pursuit of “a relationship between shape and color which feels to me like my experience.” The Hirshhorn offers the first major exhibit of her work in 35 years, highlighting her masterful use of scale, form, proportion and color.
Where: Through Jan. 3, 2010
When: Hirshorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, Seventh Street and Independence Avenue SW
Info: Free; 202-633-4674; hmsg.si.edu
2. “Yolanda Frederikse: Water, Wings, and Wildflowers”: A placid new series extolling the beauty of the C & O Canal and the Potomac River in monotypes — plein-air watercolors painted on lithographic plates, then printed through an etching press in Frederikse’s studio.
Where: Washington Printmakers, 1732 Connecticut Ave. NW
When: Through Oct. 25
Info: Free; 202-332-7757; washingtonprintmakers.com
3. “The Robert and Jane Meyerhoff Collection: Selected Works”: The story of postwar American art is retold through this collection of 126 paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints, with a concentration on the work of six masters: Jasper Johns, Ellsworth Kelly, Roy Lichtenstein, Brice Marsden, Robert Rauschenberg and Frank Stella.
Where: National Gallery of Art, Fourth Street and Constitution Avenue NW
When: Through May 2, 2010
Info: Free; 202-737-4215; nga.gov
4. “Beacon Puritanus”: Jon Bobby Benjamin’s haunting installation crossbreeds imagery of the first Puritan settlements in New England, late-20th-century suburban sprawl, and post-industrial erosion and decline.
Where: Hamiltonian Gallery, 1353 U St. NW
When: Through Oct. 31
Info: Free; 202-332-1116; hamiltoniangallery.com/
5. “Flora: Growing Inspirations”: This juried show of stylized plant-inspired sculptures just happens to be nestled in one of the District’s most beautiful environs. It’s even more breathtaking in the fall than in the summer.
Where: The United States Botanic Garden, 100 Maryland Ave. SW
When: CLOSING MONDAY
Info: Free; 703-225-8333; usbg.gov
Gatherings
1.“759: Boy Scouts of Harlem”: D.C. premiere of a documentary film, which follows Boy Scout Troop 759, a troop located in Harlem, N.Y., and 11-year-old Scout Keith Dozier who takes his first trip to a Scout summer camp. The film shows how geography, age, race and economics are transcended as practical skills and character are taught.Sponsored by Sens. Jeff Sessions and Ben Nelson and Reps. Ike Skelton and W. Todd Akin. The sponsors, members of Troop 759 and local and national scouting representatives will be present.
Where: Capitol Hill Visitors Center, Congressional Auditorium — CVC 200, enter on First Street and East Capitol Street
When: 5:30 p.m. Oct. 8
Info: Free, but reservation required: [email protected]; 917-355-9895; allow time to clear security.
2. The Koomei-Taiko Ensemble: Mongolian, Japanese and American artists come together for a fascinating collaboration, highlighting the popular Mongolian art of khoomei (throat singing) with the driving rhythms of Japanese taiko (drums).
Where: Millennium Stage, Kennedy Center, 2700 F St., NW
When: 6 p.m. Oct. 9
Info: Free; 202-467-4600; kennedy-center.org
3. Dana Tai Soon Burgess and Company: The company premieres “Island,” a multimedia production concerning Asian immigrants traveling through Angel Island, Calif., in the early 20th century. The company will also present “Hyphen.”
Where: Dance Place, 3225 Eighth St. NE
When: 8 p.m. Oct. 9 and 10; 7 p.m. Oct. 11
Info: $8 to $22; 202-269-1600; danceplace.org
4. “Experimental Video: Selections from the Rubell Family Collection”: The third of a series of art events sponsored by the Rubell family and Conner Contemporary Art. Exhibiting works by Fiona Tan, Paul Pfeiffer, Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba, Aeronut Mik, Dara Friedman
Rineke Dijkstra, Sven Pahlsson, Simon Martin and Francis Alys.
Where: Capitol Skyline Hotel, 10 I St. SW
When: 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 11; 5 p.m. Mera Rubell in conversation with curator Brandon Morse.
Info: Free; reservations required; 202-588-8750; connercontemporary.com
5. American Brass Quintet: Celebrating 50 amazing years of performance, the American Brass Quintet continues its role as one of America’s most celebrated groups, with a program that includes music written for them by Joan Tower.
Where: Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW
When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 6
Info: $32; 202-467-4600; kennedy-center.org
Music
1. Washington National Opera: Alan Opie makes his company debut as Verdi’s drunken rascal, “Falstaff,” who gets his comeuppance from the merry wives of Windsor and their husbands. Also starring Elizabeth Bishop, Ji Young Lee and Tamara Wilson.
Where: Kennedy Center Opera House
When: 7 p.m. Oct. 10, 12 and 17; 7:30 p.m. Oct. 21, 27 and 30; 2 p.m. Oct. 25
Info: $25 to $300; 202-295-2400; de-opera.org.
2. Tom Paxton: Everybody’s favorite singer/songwriter/philosopher, recipient of a 2009 Lifetime Achievement award during the 51st Grammy Awards in February and an honorary doctorate of music last week from Washington College in Chestertown, Md., is joined by the Kennedys for an evening of wonder, imagination, melody and common sense.
Where: The Birchmere
When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 10
Info: $35; birchmere.com.
3. National Symphony Orchestra: Ludovic Morlot conducts works by Tchaikovsky, Martinu and Brahms “Piano Concerto No. 1” performed by Nelson Freire.
Where: Kennedy Center Concert Hall
When: 7 p.m. Oct. 8; 8 p.m. Oct. 10; 1:30 p.m. Oct. 11
Info: $20 to $85; kennedy-center.org
4. Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble: Direct from London, the musicians perform works by Brahms, Mendelssohn and Shostakovich with talk back and meet and greet after the performance.
Where: Dekelboum Concert Hall, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, University of Maryland
When: 8 p.m. Oct. 9
Info: $42; 301-405-2787
5. California Guitar Trio: From Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” to “Classical Gas,” there’s a surprise a minute with a world music repertoire that encompasses rock, blues, bluegrass and surf music.
Where: The Barns at Wolf Trap
When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 10
Info: $22; 877-965-3872; wolftrap.org
Also worth noting:
6. Nancy Griffith: The Grammy winner is on the road again with “The Loving Kind,” her latest original album inspired by social injustices and newsworthy topics. Eric Brace & Peter Cooper open with Mike Auldridge.
Where: The Birchmere
When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 8-9
Info: $39.50; birchmere.com
7. The Left Bank Concert Society: Transylvanian Odyssey includes Bartok’s “String Quartet No. 1,” von Dohnanyi’s “Piano Quintet,” Kurtag’s “Signs, Games and Messages” and Koston’s revised “For Solo Violin: Homage to Bela Bartok” written for Sally McLain.
Where: Smithsonian American Art Museum Steinway Series, McEvoy Auditorium
When: 3 p.m. Oct. 11
Info: Free, distributed in the G Street Lobby beginning at 2 p.m. on day of performance; 703-536-0222; leftbankconcertsociety.org.
Theater
1. “The Alchemist”: Considered Ben Jonson’s best comedy, “The Alchemist” was written in 1610. A farce designed to focus on what happens when one human being seeks advantage over another, it satirizes the vanity and vices of mankind, particularly human gullibility. Jonson made fun of all social classes and all sorts of men and women were the victims of his ruthless wit. The main characters are three con artists who set up headquarters in the home of a gentleman who has fled England to avoid the plague. They then set about conning their fellow Londoners.
Where: The Shakespeare Theatre, Lansburgh Theatre, 450 Seventh St. NW
When: See Web site for details; through Nov. 22
Info: $36 to $82; some $10 tickets Tuesday morning if available; 202-547-1122; shakespearetheatre.org
2. “Fuddy Meers”: George Mason University’s Department of Theater and GMU Players present David Lindsay-Abaire’s critically acclaimed postmodern, absurdist comedy. Claire, a “memory challenged” woman, wakes one morning to find herself in an unknown bedroom, where a lisping, half-blind, half-dead man in a ski mask, claiming to be her brother, steals her away to their mother.
Where: Black Box Theatre, Performing Arts Building, George Mason University, 4400 University Drive, Fairfax
When: 8 p.m. Oct. 8, 9, 10; 2 p.m. Oct. 10 and 11
Info: $6; $3 students/seniors/GMU staff; tickets.com
3. “The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later”: On the 10th anniversary of “The Laramie Project,” Tectonic Theater decided to revisit the town of Laramie. The epilogue focuses on the long-term effect of the murder of Matthew Shepard, exploring how the town has changed in the intervening years since that vicious hate crime.
Where: Arena Stage, 1800 S. Bell St., Crystal City
When: 8 p.m. Oct. 12
Info: Free; 202-488-3300; arenastage.org
4. “A Flea In Her Ear”: Fourteen hilarious characters share an ardent appetite for affection as the spinning vortex of comedy fuels a delicious romp around a revolving bed. This brilliant French farce is enlivened by the clever wit of comic playwright David Ives.
Where: Constellation Theatre, Source Theatre, 1835 14th St., NW
When: 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday; 8 p.m. Nov. 2; through Nov. 8
Info: $10 to $30; sourcedc.org
5. “Hysteria”: Sigmund Freud’s final days battling cancer are interrupted by Salvador Dali and an attractive young student in this rollicking farce that bares Freud’s own troubled psyche.
Where: Rep Stage, 10901 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; through Nov. 1
Info: $12 to $30; 410-772-4900; .repstage.org
