Weekly Arts Round Up, December 17, 2020
By • December 17, 2020 0 1367
Art is on view and on sale at Washington Printmakers Gallery and Glen Echo Park. Streaming this weekend: virtual Christmas concerts by the Washington Chorus and the Cathedral Choral Society. To find out more, click on the headings below.
Washington Printmakers Gallery: Exhibition
The group exhibition “Sea Change” is at Washington Printmakers Gallery, 1641 Wisconsin Ave. NW, through Jan. 3. Named for the term Shakespeare coined in Ariel’s song in “The Tempest” — “Nothing of him that doth fade/But doth suffer a sea-change/Into something rich and strange” — the show of prints and photographs by more than 20 gallery members and guest artists focuses on climate change and the present environment, whether political or sociological. The Book Hill gallery is open by appointment on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. To make an appointment, call 202-288-8074. The works may also be viewed and purchased online HERE.
Glen Echo Park: Holiday Art Show
The Holiday Art Show & Sale at Glen Echo Park, the former Chautauqua retreat and amusement park at 7300 MacArthur Boulevard in Glen Echo, Maryland, continues through Jan. 3 in the site’s Popcorn Gallery and Stone Tower Gallery. The show features glass and ceramic objects, jewelry, paintings, sculptures, photographs and holiday ornaments made by Glen Echo instructors and resident and guest artists. Hours are Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. Face coverings are required and the number of visitors in the galleries at any one time is limited.
Lincoln’s Cottage: Self-Guided Tours, Exhibition
Visitors to President Lincoln’s Cottage at the Soldiers’ Home, 140 Rock Creek Church Road NW, can explore Lincoln’s seasonal home and the new long-term exhibition “Reflections on Grief & Child Loss” at their own pace. Hours are Wednesday to Monday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Timed-entry tickets are $15, $12 for military, $5 for ages 6 to 12 and free for visitors under age 6.
Arena Stage: Online Conversation
On Dec. 17 at 7 p.m., as part of the free Molly’s Salon series of online conversations, Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith will virtually sit down with Kris Brown, president of the gun violence prevention group Brady; actor Meg Gillentine, who played Sally Bowles in “Cabaret” and Lola in “Damn Yankees” at Arena; and singer, writer, actor and activist KOA, formerly known as Daniel Beaty, whose one-man show “The Tallest Tree in the Forest” came to Arena in 2014.
Theater J: Live-Streamed Play Reading
Also on Dec. 17 at 7 p.m., Theater J will live-stream a workshop reading of Nicole Cox’s “Abomination,” the inaugural winner of the Theater J Patty Abramson Jewish Play Prize, directed by José Carrasquillo. In the play, based on a true story, queer yeshiva graduates take to the courts to hold a conversion-therapy organization accountable for decades of abuse. Artistic Director Adam Immerwahr will interview Cox after the free reading, which can also be streamed on demand from Dec. 18 to 20.
The Washington Chorus: Virtual Concert
The Washington Chorus has reimagined “A Candlelight Christmas” as a socially distanced chamber chorus concert with a virtual carol sing-along. Under the direction of Washington Chorus Artistic Director Eugene Rogers, the concert — to be streamed on Dec. 18 at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 19 at 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 20 at 3 p.m. — was recorded live at the Music Center at Strathmore with additional virtual performances by Washington Chorus singers, other singers from around the world and the Duke Ellington School for the Arts chorus led by Dr. Monique Holmes-Spells. Tickets are $15.
Cathedral Choral Society: Virtual Concert
On Dec. 20 at 3 p.m., the Cathedral Choral Society — the 130-voice symphonic chorus in residence at Washington National Cathedral, led by Music Director Steven Fox — will present a virtual production of “Joy of Christmas,” filmed at the cathedral. The program offers new takes on traditional tunes alongside favorite carols. Featured artists include the cathedral’s assistant organist George Fergus and carillonneur Edward Nassor; Seraph Brass, winners of the 2019 American Prize in Chamber Music; Joy Schreier, the society’s pianist and vocal coach; soprano Nola Richardson; mezzo-soprano Hannah Baslee; tenor Oliver Mercer; and baritone Scott Dispensa. Tickets are free, but an RSVP is required.
In partnership with WAMU 88.5 FM, Ford’s Theatre is making a one-hour radio-play version of Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol,” featuring Craig Wallace as Ebenezer Scrooge, available without charge on the Ford’s website through Jan. 1. Also, a souvenir program with photos and holiday-themed content can be downloaded from the site. (WAMU will broadcast the play on Dec. 25 at noon.) The show is recommended for listeners age 5 and older.
Keegan Theatre: On-Demand Play
The original cast of the Keegan Theatre’s “An Irish Carol” has returned for the 10th anniversary production of this Hibernian homage to Charles Dickens’s classic tale. Written by Matthew J. Keenan and directed by Keegan founder and Producing Artistic Director Mark A. Rhea, the play follows one evening — Christmas Eve — in the life of a wealthy Dublin pub owner who has lost touch with his own humanity. The 90-minute show, appropriate for viewers age 16 and up, can be streamed on demand from Dec. 24 to 31. Tickets are $30 per household.
James Madison’s Montpelier: Online Author Talk
On Dec. 20 at 5 p.m., James Madison’s Montpelier, the lifelong Virginia home of the fourth president, now a museum, will present “‘Great as the Evil Is’: James Madison, Slavery and the Constitution,” an online talk by historian, political scientist and author Quentin Taylor. A professor at Rogers State University in Oklahoma, Taylor will discuss how, for Madison, the toleration of slavery was preferable to disunion, even as it threatened to destroy everything the master theorist of republican government had worked for. Taylor’s forthcoming book is a collection of articles titled “James Madison’s Constitution.” Tickets are $25.
