Social Scene

Georgetowner • May 11, 2015

America’s Promise Alliance held its “Promise of America” Awards at the Howard Theatre April 15 to honor who fulfill the Five Promises for children and youth in their communities and in our nation: “Caring Adults, Safe Places, a Healthy Start, an Effective Education, and Opportunities to Give Back.” Honorees included Randall Stephenson of AT&T, Inc., Sen. Lamar Alexander, Wes Moore, founder of BridgeEdU, and Anthony and Beatrice Welters, co-founders of AnBryce Foundation. [gallery ids="102060,134538,134536,134534,134532,134530,134528,134524,134526,134539" nav="thumbs"]

Neshan Naltchayan •

The Washington Home and Community Hospices waved “the Magic of Montmartre” for its annual benefit April 11 at the Embassy of France with can can girls, singer Robin Phillips and violinist Rafael Javadov. [gallery ids="102061,134520,134523,134522" nav="thumbs"]

Mary Bird •

Dana Tai Soon Burgess and his eponymous dance company culminated their three-month residence program March 26 at the Kreeger Museum in collaboration with the Embassy of Spain with a premiere of “Picasso Dances,” inspired by four of the artist’s paintings in the museum’s collection. Burgess said that he felt “exposure to art adds to the creative process.” The choreographer traveled the world as an American Cultural Ambassador for the State Department. He dedicated the performance to Picasso and composer Manual de Falla as well as to the memory of his late father. [gallery ids="102064,134475,134474" nav="thumbs"]

Gary Tischler •

It was a close-to-the-end of April weekend in Washington, spring trying to keep its foothold amid an unseasonable windy chill, and Washington being “This Town” as opposed to “Our Town,” it appeared to be a noticeably more busy weekend than usual.

It’s just a perception, of course. The things that quicken heartbeats in this town are not necessarily the things that can wound hearts, or steady hearts, or make them burst with sudden affection.

In short, it’s the differences between, say, the White House Correspondents Dinner and all of its increasing number of events on the noisy social peripherals of after and before parties and brunches, and the more prosaic annual festivals or celebrations, and routines that add a different sort of more modest jewelry to our daily lives in this, our town.

There is a difference among these occasions—all of them are of course specific to the city we live in, but they offer up different forms of pleasures, excitements and opportunities for reflection.

Let’s be the first to admit that if someone had brought me and dragged me to the WHCD, I would have gone gladly and rented a tux, to boot, and informed everyone I knew about my presence there. That being said, without any sentimentality, going on the Georgetown House Tour, taking in the French Market on Book Hill, picking up the best crab cakes in town at the Dupont Circle farmer’s market on Sunday, the guilty television pleasures “Outlander,” “Madame Secretary” and “Game of Thrones” and watching a beheading on the latter made the weekend fulfilling enough. It did not soften the news and alarms of the weekend news, but it gave them perspective.

I hadn’t been to a house tour in a couple of years or so but I was, step by step, cobble stone by cobble stone, amid all the wandering people, children, dogs and shop keepers and artists and docents and home’s facades, none of them homely, struck by what I missed.

It’s fair to say that Georgetown is unique, or that it is not East of the River, Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan or Petworth, or the Navy Yard. The point is that however affluent or historic, Georgetown, which may be a village, is also a Washington neighborhood, with neighbors. To its residents, and to its many visitors, it is a special place. But then, people who live in Adams Morgan like to think it’s a special place, and it is, in spite of the rapid changes that are coming down and the pop ups that are popping up.

We walked around for about three hours—not non-stop—saw four or five houses along N Street, Prospect Street and P Street, wound our way up and down the 1600 block of Book Hill and the French Market, tasted strong coffee, looked at the expanses of new (to me) stores, noted the changes along antique row with new and impressive art galleries, noted the absence of the Georgetown Restaurant, where 1980s late-night revelers ate breakfast at two in the morning. We ran into old acquaintances not forgotten and were greeted, here and there by readers.

We saw the house were Senator Pell once lived on Prospect Street, with its music room, a piano, a harp standing up, and an inviting kitchen which merged liveably with other functions. We saw the splendid house(s) on N Street where their owners had artfully, and carefully collected paintings, rugs and furniture. A Biedemeier was mentioned at one point. There was a John Marin in one house, and a reading room with a fireplace (working) and a John Grisham book draped over a chair’s arm in another.

It reminded me of tours from the past, the weather then and now—windy, but brightly lit at times—and how once on an afternoon in a house full of Asian statuary, a retired diplomat sipping a cocktail told tales of fireflies gathering on a porch in Bangkok.
We stopped by for the tea at St. John’s Episcopal Church, met the new rector, talked with people from the Senior Center and thought of people long gone and others vibrantly here. We ate one too many cupcakes and then went home, satisfied, past the Ritz Carlton not yet a frozen traffic jam.

I will say that I watched both the President’s speech and “Saturday Night Live” star Cecily Strong’s protracted, equally-opportunity diss of everyone there. I watched it on my computer, not C-Span (meow). The president—who appears to be in his milieu here—killed it—zinging the terrible billionaires for their campaign spending, well, a billion. “I did a little fund raising in my time,” he said. “But I mean my middle name is Hussein.”

Strong, who has that preternatural did-I-say-something-nasty look on her face, did say something nasty, and often. But after a while, between her own reactions, and reaction shots of targets in the crowd, it all seemed like what it was: a kind of familial gathering from opposing families merging into a bigger family. This is “Under The Dome,” Washington-style, featuring not disagreeable townfolk, but politicians and elected officials as celebrities, and celebrities paying to breathe the same air in the room.

How these occasions reference themselves against the urgent dramas of international, national, local and even more familial news and events makes for an interesting contrast.

You would think that a roomful of newsmakers and news reporters would somehow at least be reflective of news. But the great tragedy of Nepal and its natural disaster and the churning rallies, protest and some violence in Baltimore seemed to resonate more in homes and on the street. Surely, that was not the time for the police and race joke by Strong, referencing the president’s abundance of white hair.

The news from the great and/or near world resonates as part of the prosaic and sweet moments, the regularity of regular events made all the more sweeter by the larger world.

Nepal made the front page, the White House Correspondents Dinner got five (page four and a little pages in the Style section with 20 pictures from Saturday night on a Monday pape)r. This Town, maybe not Our Town. [gallery ids="102067,134466,134471,134468,134470" nav="thumbs"]

Gary Tischler •

This year’s Washington Performing Arts Gala & Auction—Saturday, May 2, at the Marriott Marquis—will have an international theme as Washington Performing Arts focuses on the 40th anniversary  of its Embassy Adoption Program and its planned expansion.
           
The Embassy Adoption Program is a partnership between Washington Performing Arts and the District of Columbia Public Schools, which pairs 50 embassies with 50 fifth and sixth grade classes for a year’s worth of cross-cultural learning, projects, and enrichment activities.

“There is no city, no place in the country which has a program like this,” said Jenny Bilfield, Washington Performing Arts President and CEO. “We are fortunate to have this and be able to do this.”
           
This year, DCPS Chancellor Kaya Henderson will receive Washington Performing Art’s first Leadership in Arts Education Award at the gala. Henderson is receiving the award as the representative of DCPS, which is partnering on the Embassy Adoption Program, along with taking part in  and collaborating with Washington Performing Arts on a host of programs, including Concerts in  Schools, Capital Dance, Capital Jazz, Capital Strings and Capital Voices.  
           
According to Washington Performing Arts, the award has no fixed timing: it will be given based on arts-education merit alone, and not time-elapsed criteria.
           
“The Embassy Adoption Program has benefited thousands of students over the years,” Bilfield said. “Our students in this city live in a world that’s not always recognized by others—they are surrounded by a hotbed of international culture.  To be able to connect in such a programmatic way with the international community here is one of our proudest achievements.”
           
The focus of gala comes on a day which also kicks off the annual Passport D.C. festivities, a month-long  explosion of international culture in which the city’s embassies open their doors to the public for a variety of activities, exhibitions, and events.
           
This year’s gala is chaired by Reginald Van Lee. The Embassy Adoption Program is chaired by Jake Jones, Daimler.  EAP committee co-chairs are David Marventano, Fluor; Rachel Pearson, Pearson & Associates; Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan, former Mexican Ambassador to the United States and Veronica Valencia-Sarukhan. 
           
The gala kicks off at 6 p.m. with a Kentucky Derby Watch Party.  Cocktails and Silent auction begin at 6:30 p.m. with dinner and program at 8 p.m.
           
Performers will include the Washington Performing Arts Children of the Gospel Choir and the New York-based hot jazz ensemble, The Hot Sardines, who are—did we say?—hot.
           
The Embassy Adoption Program is described as an arts-integrated  academic program in which fifth and sixth grade teachers apply to participate.  Each class is paired with a single embassy, and together they embark on a school year-long journey, exploring the adopted country’s history, culture, government, arts, food and geography. 
           
Some 50,000 students have been able to participate in the program over the years, from all eight wards of the city, partnering with some 100 embassies.
           
The program culminates in a presentation about the countries which the classes have partnered with and a mini-United Nations event in May.
           
The gala comes at a time when Bilfield is completing her second year at the helm of Washington Performing Arts and her first season which bears her programming mark, including new programs, such as “The Art of the Orchestra,” “Mapping Our Silk Road: Creative Intersections” and “Wynton Marsalis x 3: a 30-year Friendship Deepens.”
           
The gala also comes days after Washington Performing Arts’ 2015-2016 season announcement, the first of two seasons in anticipation of 2016’s 50th anniversary  celebrating.
   

Mary Bird •

Pen/Faulkner Founding Friends’ luncheon hosted by Tony Podesta on Aprill 22 featured the Factory insider Bob Colacello, who spoke on the re-release of his book, “Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close Up.” The current work includes a new introduction reflecting the magnitude of the artist’s acclaim since its 1990 publication. A very young Colacello became the editor of Warhol’s Interview magazine, where he stayed for 13 years. Colacello said he at first felt “like Lana Turner getting the call from MGM.” He spoke of the late Ina Ginsburg’s bringing a certain gravitas to the publication through her vast Washington connections. [gallery ids="102077,134334,134335" nav="thumbs"]

Mary Bird •

Levine alumni Zak Sander, who has performed on Broadway, and Alyson Cambridge with the Metropolitan Opera headlined the program at the 2015 Levine Gala held at the National Geographic Society on April 29. Founded 40 years to bring the best music education through scholarships to children who could not afford it, today Levine has four campuses and offers instruction in 22 instruments and voice. Gala co-chairs Craig Benson and Robert Crawford thanked supporters for their commitment to the children of Washington and their dreams. [gallery ids="102078,134333,134332" nav="thumbs"]

Georgetowner •

While most of us knew (or even were on) the reception lists, we were reminded that the weekend was indeed about freedom of the press and White House correspondents. Speakers made a point to ask the audience not to forget imprisoned (and killed) journalists. While Canadian Ambassador Gary Doer advised party-goers, “Don’t peak too early,” President Barack Obama told those at the big dinner to keep martyred journalist James Foley and others in their thoughts. Yes, reporting the news can be hazardous to one’s health, as made more evident this year. Nevertheless, there is a time for some fun, and this was that weekend.

On Thursday, April 23, Story Partners hosted its second annual “Welcome to Washington: A Salute to Women in Journalism” at the home of Gloria Story Dittus. The United Nations Foundation hosted “The Global Beat,” a cocktail reception “celebrating journalism around the world.” Rock the Vote hosted a party with Fusion and Twitter at the Blind Whino.

On Friday, April 24, People and Time magazines held their annual reception at the St. Regis Hotel. Voto Latino’s sixth annual “Our Voices: Celebrating Diversity in Media” was again at the Hay Adams Hotel. Capitol File was the British Embassy again with comedienne Cecily Strong along the likes of cast members from “The Walking Dead” along with Valerie Jarrett and Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. Party-goers made leather bracelets, too. The Hill newspaper, the Canadian Embassy and Extra co-hosted an energized party at the embassy on Pennsylvania Avenue. The New Yorker held its an annual reception at the W Hotel Rooftop. The New Media Party returned to bring together the next generation of media, entrepreneurs, policy makers and tech leaders at the Carnegie Library.

On Saturday, April 25, the annual Garden Brunch on R Street in Georgetown benefited Dog Tag Bakery and Blue Star Families. Pre-parties included the Washington Post, CBS News and Atlantic Media as well as U.S. Today. Then came the main event: the White House Correspondent’s Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton with President Barack Obama in attendance and comedian Cecily Strong telling jokes, too. After parties included the packed MSNBC after party at the U.S. Institute of Peace, the bright-white Reuters after party and the Bloomberg-Vanity Fair at the French ambassador’s house.

On Sunday, April 26, brunches included Politico at the Allbrittons’ house on Q Street in Georgetown, CNN in an alley off Connecticut Avenue and the classic Reuters get-together at the Hay Adams, overlooking Lafayette Square and the White House. Plus ca change . . .
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Georgetowner •

Two bastions of luxurious living came together on April 20 as chef Patrick O’Connell launched his newest book “The Inn at Little Washington: A Magnificent Obsession” at Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. Joyce Conwy Evans, the British “fairy godmother” and interior designer of the inn, was the guest of honor. One guest quipped that Evans had only two clients: O’Connell and the queen. “Too much is just right,” said O’Connell, who thanked Ellen MacNeille Charles, Hillwood board president emerita, and Hillwood President Nancy Appleby. (Charles is the granddaughter of Marjorie Merriweather Post, who bought Hillwood in 1955 and then turned it into a museum.) The Inn at Little Washington’s legendary cuisine was well represented with lobster and caviar.
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Mary Bird •

On April 24, Aniko Gaal Schott and Nash Schott elegantly hosted their friend of long standing, Princess Michael of Kent, at their home on the occasion of her visit to Washington to launch the first two volumes of her Anjou trilogy. The princess lectures on historical topics and regaled the guests with the story of Yolande of Aragon, a powerful and complex woman of her time. Several days later, Hungarian Ambassador Dr. Réka Szemerkényi bestowed the Order of Merit of Hungary, Officer’s Cross, on Aniko Gaal Schott for her outstanding achievements in promoting Hungarian-American relations. A tearful Schott rejoined, “I carry Hungary in my heart.” [gallery ids="102079,134330,134331" nav="thumbs"]