Weekend Round Up February 7, 2019
By February 7, 2019 0 735
•Were you born in 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983 or 1995? Then the Year of the Pig is your year! The Chinatown parade is this Sunday. Celebrations on Saturday: Crêpe Day at Hillwood, the Chocolate Festival at the National Museum of the American Indian and Leon Fleisher’s 90th birthday at the Kennedy Center. All month: register for $1 tours of Tudor Place, 1644 31st St. NW, during Washington Dollar Days at tudorplace.org. For more February events, visit The Georgetowner’s online calendar.
High Tea at L’Occitane Georgetown
Today, Thursday, Feb. 7, through Sunday, Feb. 10, L’Occitane en Provence, 3106 M St. NW, in collaboration with Rifle Paper Co., is offering store visitors a “Galentine’s Day” high tea shopping experience with fresh tea, sweets and a special-edition gift with a $45 or $75 purchase, while supplies last. For details, call 202-337-6001.
Opening Reception: ‘Open’
There will be a free opening reception for “Open,” an installation of lights and projections by video artist Robin Bell, on Thursday, Feb. 7, at 6 p.m. at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, 500 17th St. NW. Reflecting on the cancellation of the Robert Mapplethorpe exhibition at the Corcoran 30 years ago, “Open” is meant to serve a counterpoint to decisions regarding censorship, erasure and closure. For details, visit calendar.gwu.edu.
‘Love Songs of the Great Entertainers’
On Friday, Feb. 8, at 7:30 p.m. at the Embassy of France, 4101 Reservoir Road NW, the Russian Chamber Art Society will present “Sorrow of Love, Joy of Love: Love Songs of the Great Entertainers,” a performance by Kazakh American tenor Timur, pianist Genadi Zagor and guitarist Anna Kusner paying tribute to 20th-century Russian stars of opera, concert hall and cabaret. Tickets (including a reception) are $35. For details, visit thercas.com.
Chinese New Year Family Day
The Kennedy Center welcomes all ages to a free family day on Saturday, Feb. 9, starting at 10 a.m. (last entry: 3:30 p.m.), part of three days of Lunar New Year festivities. The arts and culture of China’s Guangdong Province will be showcased through calligraphy, medallion painting and traditional music demonstrations; red lantern making; marionette, Lingnan puppet and contortionist shows; a Cantonese opera exhibit and photo booth; and lion dancers. There will be a tour in Mandarin at 11 a.m. For details, visit kennedy-center.org or call 202-467-4600.
Museum of the American Indian Chocolate Festival
The annual Chocolate Festival at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SW, introduces indigenous symbols and images representing cacao. This year’s festival, on Saturday, Feb. 9, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., will also feature tastings, demonstrations, Guatemalan music and an art activity. For details, visit americanindian.si.edu.
La Chandeleur at Hillwood
On Saturday, Feb. 9, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, 4155 Linnean Ave. NW, will host its annual celebration of la Chandeleur, also known as Crêpe Day. Families in France mark the halfway point between winter and spring by eating crêpes. The event includes storytelling, gallery talks, art activities and a treasure hunt. Tickets are $18, $15 for seniors, $10 for students, $5 for ages 3 to 18 and free for children under 3 (includes two crêpes). For details, visit hillwoodmuseum.org or call 202-686-5807.
Anniversary Dinner at i Ricchi
Christianne and Francesco Ricchi of Ristorante i Ricchi, 1220 19th St. NW, are celebrating “Trent’Anni” since they came to D.C. by creating a six-course Tuscan extravaganza — a communal feast of Ricchi family favorites of rustic Italian cooking — on Saturday, Feb. 9, at 7 p.m. Tickets are $130. For details, visit iricchidc.com or call 202-835-0459.
Pianist Leon Fleisher’s 90th Birthday
Also on Saturday, Feb. 9, at 7:30 p.m., Washington Performing Arts will celebrate the 90th birthday of legendary pianist Leon Fleisher (actually last July 23) in the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater with performances by pianist Jonathan Biss, the Dover Quartet and bassist Rachel Calin; video appearances by surprise guests; and a Q&A with Anne Midgette, Washington Post critic and co-author of Fleisher memoir “My Nine Lives.” Tickets are $65. For details, visit kennedy-center.org or call 202-467-4600.
Alexandria Symphony Concerts
The Alexandria Symphony will present an exploration of the Classical-era symphony on Friday, Feb. 9, at 8 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 10, at 3 p.m. at the George Washington Masonic Memorial, 101 Callahan Drive in Alexandria, Virginia. The program features Mozart’s Symphony No. 38, “Prague”; Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 1, “Classical”; Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 and Stravinsky’s “Dumbarton Oaks.” Tickets are $5 to $80. For details, visit alexsym.org or call 703-548-0885.
Whittle School Open House
On Sunday, Feb. 10, from 1 to 3:30 p.m., Whittle School & Studios will hold an open house at the school’s information center at Mazza Gallerie, 5300 Wisconsin Ave. NW, 2nd level. The event will include presentations about the curriculum by school leaders and faculty, activities for students and families and refreshments. For details, visit whittleschool.org or call 202-417-3615.
Lunar New Year Parade in Chinatown
D.C.’s Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association will ring in 4717, the Year of the Pig, with a Lunar New Year Parade that steps off at 6th and I Streets NW in Chinatown on Sunday, Feb. 10, at 2 p.m. The parade will include lion and dragon dances, Kung Fu demonstrations, firecrackers, live music, marching bands, beauty pageant winners and VIPs. For details, visit dcparade.com.
Chamber Dance Project: ‘Valentines in Strings’
On Monday, Feb. 11, at 6:30 p.m., Chamber Dance Project musicians Chaerim and Derek Smith will give a pre-Valentine’s performance at Scotch Lounge, 700 12th St NW, Suite 700. The couple — violinist and violist — will play several works, “deconstruct” one of them to help audience members hear and understand the music in greater depth and give several audience members a short lesson on the violin. Tickets are $20. For details, visit chamberdance.org.