Category Archives: The Features

These are our features. They come back either weekly, bi-weekly or monthly.

Entertainment, The Features
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Meet Noah Baron From “Adams Morgan: The Movie”

Photo Courtesy of Noah Baron

Now that DC’s got her own movie BY her people ABOUT her people FOR her people, it only makes sense to get to know one of the people who made this film possible. John Sales (played by Noah Baron) has high expectations for life but a low self-esteem, making him a glass  half empty kind of guy. But who’s the man behind the John Sales? There’s more to the character than Paul DeVeaux’s script.

Noah Baron took a few moments to chat and tell us a little about himself, his experiences on-set with the cast and crew of Adams Morgan: The Movie and about his character John Scales. Here are the highlights of that conversation:

Tell us a little bit about yourself: Where are you from? How long have you been acting? What made you start?

Well, I was born in raised in Cambridge, MA (a die-hard Red Sox fan). I’ve been acting for about 15 years now. One of my friends was in the Boston Children’s Opera in Belmont, MA. I had always wanted to perform, so my mother signed me up on the waiting list (there were no auditions). I still remember the exact second I was cast in my first role. I was 9 years old and sitting at my mothers computer in her room. The phone rang. My mother came upstairs to tell me that a role at Boston Children’s Opera had opened up and that I was going to be playing Professor Van Helsing in Dracula. One of the happiest days of my life. I continued working with Boston Children’s Opera for about four years and took part in thirteen shows. I was hooked. However, I had no idea that I would turn this into a profession. I ended up graduating from American University with a dual BA in Theater and Broadcast Journalism. I have just moved out to Los Angeles to further my career. So far, I’m loving every second of it.

How did you get involved with “Adams Morgan: The Movie”?

I really lucked out. Paul gave me a call after seeing me at a mass audition in Baltimore, MD. He told me that he enjoyed my work and was interested in having me come in to read for a role in “Adams Morgan: The Movie.” I went in to read for the character of John Sales. He shot me an email about a week later offering me the role. I called him from Spain (I was traveling with my family at the time) and accepted.

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The Features, Where We Live
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Where We Live: Chevy Chase

Photo courtesy of

‘Chevy Chase Trolley Turnaround’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

Welcome to another installment of Where We Live.  As we’re wrapping up the District’s neighborhoods (if there’s one I haven’t yet covered that you’d like to see, speak now!) before moving onto Maryland and Virginia, this week’s feature tackles a town that sits in both the District and Maryland: Chevy Chase. This neighborhood has a charming residential character, and beautiful tree-lined streets, and it’s tucked away from the hustle and bustle of downtown.

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Entertainment, History, Special Events, The Features, We Love Arts
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Celebrate Lincoln’s Birthday at Ford’s Theatre

Robert Parsons as Abraham Lincoln, Rick Foucheux as Stephen Douglas and Sarah Zimmerman as Adele Douglas in the Ford’s Theatre Society production of Norman Corwin’s The Rivalry, directed by Mark Ramont. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.

Robert Parsons as Abraham Lincoln, Rick Foucheux as Stephen Douglas and Sarah Zimmerman as Adele Douglas in the Ford’s Theatre Society production of Norman Corwin’s The Rivalry, directed by Mark Ramont. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.

Ford’s Theatre Society and the National Park Service celebrates Abraham Lincoln’s birthday with special February programming. On February 5th, 12th, and 19th, Washington-area youth will present a selection of Lincoln’s greatest speeches as part of the Target Oratory Festival. On February 12th at 8:45 a.m., National Park Service Park Rangers will commemorate President Lincoln’s birthday with a Wreath-laying Ceremony on the historic steps of Ford’s Theatre. On February 13th, 15th, and 20th, visitors are invited to explore the many legends surrounding Abraham Lincoln’s life in Tales of the Lincoln with storyteller Jon Spelman.

Visitors can tour the recently renovated Ford’s Theatre Museum and experience an interpretive program about the events that led up to and include the assassination of President Lincoln. Visitors can also visit the Petersen House (the “House Where Lincoln Died”), dependent upon schedule. Through February 14th, check out a performance of “The Rivalry,” which explores the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates. And to further enhance the visitor experience, park rangers and volunteers will be dressed in Civil War-era period clothing throughout the month of February.

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News, Talkin' Transit, The Daily Feed, WMATA
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Metro Board Votes to Raise Fares $0.10

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘mollie emm’

The Metro Board voted early this afternoon to use fare hikes, and not rail service cuts, to cover a $40M budget gap for the rest of FY 2010, which ends in June. The fare increase will go into effect on 1 March 2010, raising the minimum fare on Metro to $1.75 during rush, and $1.45 during offpeak. The move is just one of a group of measures that will cover the budget gap, and was said by GM John Catoe to potentially raise $9-11M in extra fares.

Also included the measures adopted by the Metro Board were staff cutbacks at the transit agency (mostly open positions) and other measures, but significantly absent from them was a transfer from the capital budget to operating funds, which could have jeopardized future purchasing for Metro.

In addition to the fare hike, the council also elected Peter Benjamin from Maryland to the chairman’s position, replacing Ward One councilman Jim Graham who is cycling off the chairmanship.

We Love Weekends
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We Love Weekends, January 30-31

Photo courtesy of
‘Eastern Market’
courtesy of ‘ep_jhu’

Kirkles: I’mma be taking some friends that recently moved to the area around to a few of my favorite haunts on U St., which means the Saloon, Gibson, and Ben’s Chili Bowl.  I might try to convince them that we need to go to Wisdom, as I’ve never been and have been meaning to get over there for some time.  On Saturday, provided we’re not snowed in, I’m going to Mr. P’s Ribs and Fish in Brentwood, for some good, southern BBQ out of the back of an old school bus.  Supposedly, the ribs are to die for.  Sunday will be my recovery day, but I plan on going to the Eden Center for some sweet, sweet Vietnamese food.

Rachel: Friday night is going to be AWESOME! Why? Back to the Future is playing at E Street Cinema as part of their Midnight Madness series (which, in case you couldn’t figure out, means that they’re rolling the movie at the stroke of midnight). Saturday I’m making my first trip to Cedar to meet up with some of the folks from Leopold Brothers distillery to sample a whiskey I hadn’t heard of until this week — New York APPLE Whiskey — and then wrapping out the night rehearsing for my upcoming gig at Chief Ike’s Mambo Room. Sunday I’ll be spending some quality time with Madeleine Albright at the Newseum hearing all about her new book “Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat’s Jewel Box.” Then MAYBE I’ll grab a few winks and Z’s … but that’s a giant maybe. Continue reading →

News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Leonsis Offer for Wizards May Be In Trouble

Photo courtesy of
‘DC Chamber of Commerce Gala oct 17 2009’
courtesy of ‘ShashiBellamkonda’

…but it’s not a fault of the offer or the team, it seems. The threat to the peaceful transfer of the Wizards is coming from Washington Sports & Entertainment, who insist they should have the right to accept outside public offers for the Wizards as part of the sale. Negotiations have been (publicly) civil between Leonsis and the Pollin family, who’ve both retained investment banks to assist in the valuation of the Wizards franchise (right now? I’d give ’em a nickel.) and the Verizon Center.

What had previously been released was that Leonsis, and his company Lincoln Holdings, had an exclusive period in which to make an offer for the team and the Verizon Center, after which things could be opened to the public. The President of WS&E, though, believes that not to be the case, and he’s gone public with a memo sent to the Pollin estate and Leonsis.

What had been a peaceful process just got a whole lot of potential to get ugly. Thanks, jackass.

Sports Fix, The Features
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Where to Watch the Super Bowl

Photo courtesy of
‘Acadiana Restaurant’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

One of the great things about DC is that, unlike many cities, there’s a place for just about every sports team in the US here. You want Steelers football? The Pour House on Capitol Hill. You want Red Sox baseball? Rhino Bar. You want Penguins Hockey? …Okay, maybe not every sports team in the US. But, DC has some really great spots to watch the Colts take on the Saints next weekend, and we reached out to some of our favorites to get all the details for Super Sunday.

Why are we telling you now? Well, this weekend’s the Pro Bowl (yeah, I know, it’s weird to see it before the Super Bowl) and you might as well go out and try some of the places out this weekend to find just the right spot for the big day. So click on through and see what DC’s got to offer for Super Sunday. These are just a couple options for the dedicated fan that don’t involve the traditional sportsbar. Where are you watching the game?
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Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Caps Clip Ducks 5-1

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_0371’
courtesy of ‘jsmjr’

Settling into one’s seat last night at the Verizon Center, one would wonder what roller coaster the Washington Capitals had planned next? Visiting the seven-game-streaking Caps were the Anaheim Ducks on a six game road trip. The Caps, fresh off a 7-2 blowout of the New York Islanders on Tuesday where seemingly everyone grabbed a point except captain Alex Ovechkin, were looking to lengthen their 19 point lead in the Southeast Conference and remain atop the East as the NHL drove towards the Olympic break.

Ovie had to have felt left out of the fun on Long Island and let it show early by burying the puck only 36 seconds into the game. A solid twelve minute run through the first period saw the Caps dominating in the Duck’s zone, racking up a 13-3 shots on goal advantage before Anaheim’s offense settled down. The Caps ended the period with a season-high matching 19 shots on goal, peppering Jean-Sebastien Giguere in spurts during his first game back in over two weeks.

The game settled down in the second; both Giguere and Michal Neuvirth had some terrific saves as both teams hammered into the zones. Dan Sexton managed to finally get one past Neuvirth and it looked as if the game would settle into a classic low-scoring goalie duel. But everything flipped in the span of less than three minutes as the third period unfolded.

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News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Gilbert Arenas Suspended for Rest of 2010 Season

Photo courtesy of
‘Introducing Gilbert Arenas’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

The news has just about come down from NBA Commissioner David Stern, Gilbert Arenas has been suspended for the rest of the season after pleading guilty to felony firearms charges. The official word from the Wizards isn’t expected for a while yet, but David Stern expected to face the press soon.

Here’s hoping the Wizards cut this joker loose.

Capital Chefs, Food and Drink, The Features
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Capital Chefs: Jon Mathieson of Inox (Part II)

Photo courtesy of
‘INOX #46’
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

As you read earlier in Katie’s Capital Chefs Part I, we trekked out to Tyson’s corner (on a Saturday) to catch some peace, quiet and scallops with Inox Restaurant’s co-owner Chef Jon Mathieson. After ooo-ing and ahh-ing over his adorable two little kids playing tag and harmlessly tackling each other around the empty restaurant, Katie and I were not disappointed by the no-nonsense cooking style of Chef Mathieson, who had clearly spent some time in the kitchen with his other two (actual) children.

“Which one of you cooks?” I raised my hand. “Alright, then if you’re making this at home, you can start practicing now.” And we were off to a running start. “Stand over here. See this cabbage? See this color? Here, here’s a towel for you to hold the pot handle. Stir it. Now pull it off the heat.” Chef Mathieson coaxed me through the process of emulsifying the butter sauce while perfectly coating and braising the cabbage.

He made it seem so easy. He showed me, in multiple ways, where it could all go wrong, and the lesson was over in half an hour. Could it really be that easy?

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Capital Chefs, Food and Drink, The Features
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Capital Chefs: Jon Mathieson of Inox (Part I)

Photo courtesy of
‘INOX #173’
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

Inox is the best restaurant you’ve never heard of. Located in (what most would consider) the foreign land known as Tysons Corner, it is one of my very favorite restaurants. Impeccable food, in an incredibly upscale-chic interior, Inox is the brain child of two guys named John. Chef Jon Mathieson met Chef Jonathan Krinn when the pair took over as Chef de Cuisine and Executive Chef (respectively) of 2941 Restaurant in Falls Church, Virginia. When the time came for them to open a place of their own, they knew it would be with each other. They picked a spot in Tyson’s, and Inox was born.

Last Saturday, Cathy and I took a trip out to the ‘burbs to learn how to make a scallop dish and get to know Jon #1, Chef Jon Mathieson. The first thing I noticed about Inox’s kitchen was how clean it was. It was the CLEANEST kitchen Cathy and I have been in yet – and that’s absolutley not to say the others were dirty, this one was just squeaky-spotless. Coincidentally, the name Inox comes from the French word for stainless steel. “About fifteen years ago, I was prepping a soup in the kitchen. I set my spoon down on the steel countertop and noticed the word Inox on the back of the spoon. I loved the word and researched it to find out that it meant steel. Steel is solid, and has been a prevalent material in every kitchen in which I have worked. I love being in the kitchen, and Inox, or steel reminds me of being at home in a kitchen,” says Mathieson. Continue reading →

Comedy in DC
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Comedy in DC

Photo courtesy of
‘Jason Saenz Stand-up 4’
courtesy of ‘Aaron Webb’

It’s the grossest part of the winter. You need a laugh. The DC Improv is sold out all weekend already (no, really, they are). What will you do? Fortunately, the local (and not so local) comedy is plentiful.

If sketch/improv is what you’re after, the Upright Citizens Brigade Touring Company will be at the Harman Center for the Arts Friday and Saturday nights. (Disclosure: UCBTC is a We Love DC advertiser.) Ordinarily I don’t mention non-locals because touring headliners can do their own publicity, but this event isn’t getting the publicity national headliners get. It’s touring on the strength of the UCB name, but without any of the individual names that made UCB famous. It seems like a strong statement of confidence in the up-and-comers, and not at all crass like “Dane Cook’s Tourgasm (not actually featuring Dane Cook)” was. (You could make a convincing argument that the Tourgasm was improved by Cook’s absence. but I digress.) Continue reading →

The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Three Sisters

ThreeSistersAct4

Nanna Ingvarsson, Amy Quiggins and Catherine Deadman in Constellation Theatre Company's "Three Sisters." Photo credit: Daniel Schwartz

It’s been over 100 years since Russian playwright Anton Chekhov’s death. We’re still struggling against a traditional view of how to perform, and indeed experience, a genius that straddled two very different centuries. Last year, Theater J attacked some sacred cows with a lively production of The Seagull. I expected a young company like Constellation Theatre to be able to blow away some of the same cobwebs with their take on Three Sisters. I certainly loved the gusto with which they attacked Feydeau’s A Flea in Her Ear.

However, this is a very respectful production, full of talented actors making safe choices. The love of the play is evident, but with a few notable exceptions, no one seems willing to break their established view of how Chekhov should be done. If you’re new to Chekhov’s work, then this is a fine place to start. But if you’re looking for any risk-taking, you won’t really find it here. There’s just too much reverence for that.

Director Allison Arkell Stockman makes two great choices from the start. She uses the Lanford Wilson translation, nicely accessible while retaining some lovely poetic phrases. She also has the play performed in the round, which gives the illusion of our eavesdropping on the lives of the Prozorov family – three sisters Olga, Masha and Irina and their brother Andrei. Her direction highlights the trap closing around the family as one by one their dreams of a meaningful, rewarding life are trampled on. Pretty depressing stuff, thankfully lightened by humor (Chekhov billed it as a comedy, after all).

The plot is a journey through several years with the Prozorov family, who live in a provincial garrison town with their daily routines enlivened by the soldiers. All they have is a dream of moving to Moscow and finding meaningful work (both metaphors would be humorous to an audience at the time, now they are symbols for any childhood dream held dear). Little by little, they lose their illusions, and become adults in a drab world. Continue reading →

Featured Photo
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Featured Photo


This is not Oklahoma by katyray

All day long, tourists wear down the stone of our monuments a few microns at a time with each step, each touch, huffing and puffing as they climb the stairs.  As a parent or school teacher you have to keep an eye on your flock to make sure they don’t take candy from strangers or fall into the bushes.  As a kid you wonder how you can get your hands on some candy or just how long you can hide in the bushes before you are found.  After a while spent mulling around, possibly reading the first sentence or two of the engraved president’s speech, postcards are purchased and this site gets checked off the list by capturing a bad camera phone trophy.  Come on kids, let’s head to the Hard Rock Cafe for a burger or a nice pig sandwich.

The night guard flips the sign from “open” to “closed”, radios to his buddies that quadrant four is secure, and soon Operation Foxtrot Charlie Delta (five card draw) commences in the bowels of the monument.  Honest Abe breathes a sigh of relief that he’s made it through another day.  He notices that he’s starting to get dirty, no thanks to the pigeons perched on his shoulders and the smog that saturates the air.  What was once a deafening scene of chaos is now peaceful, serene, and calm.  It’s his favorite time of the day.

Suddenly, far away in the darkness of night, Katy Ray’s camera makes a clicking noise that pierces the air, capturing this beautifully simple, grainy image on her Kodak T-MAX 3200 film.  The guards pause in silence, staring at each other, listening for more clicks.  Honest Abe lifts an eyebrow and scans the grounds for any signs of horseplay.  But after a few minutes, the card game resumes and the photographer slinks away into the pitch black as the scene comes to an end, only to be repeated again tomorrow.  And the day after that.

Talkin' Transit, The Daily Feed
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Dear Metro, Please Stop Trying to Drift Race the Subway Cars

multitrack.jpeg

Mashup Graphic Courtesy of Paulo

Today’s Metro kerfuffle involved a train coming slightly off the track near Silver Spring on the Red Line, which has caused single tracking around the incident. Of course, never to miss a good meme, Paulo points out that the train may well be attempting a sweet multi-track drifting technique only possible in manga books.

Either way, avoid the Red Line near Silver Spring til they figure this out.

The DC 100
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DC Omnivore 100: #90, Criollo Chocolate

Bars, beans and pods

Bars, beans and pods

It’s time for another item on the DC Omnivore 100 list of the top one hundred foods every good omnivore should try at least once in their lives.

Finding that the Omnivore 100 contained a chocolate I’d not met was a cause for celebration. After all, most any chocolate is good, right?

A quick search revealed that Criollo is a prized bean said by some to make the very best chocolate. It differs from its cousins Forastero, the most common bean from which the majority of the world’s chocolate is made, and Trinitario, a hybrid of the two.

Criollo is described as being aromatic, delicate, slightly astringent, slightly bitter, complex, noble, and comparable to the Arabica coffee bean. It’s also rare, making up approximately 5 percent of all cocoa beans grown, because the trees on which it’s grown have delicate constitutions themselves.

It sounded like something well worth trying — the crème de la crème of chocolate, perhaps — but tracking it down was the first order of business.
Continue reading →

Talkin' Transit, The Daily Feed
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Metro To Seat Two of Four New Federal Members

Photo courtesy of
‘Unknown Trains to Mysteryville’
courtesy of ‘Kevin H.’

At the darkest hour of Metro’s current crisis footing, four new members are coming to the Metro Board, all from the Federal sector. Metro will seat the first two before this week’s board meeting to determine budget direction and to help provide guidance before the budget gap is closed. Those two members are Mortimer L. Downey and Marcel C. Costa.

Why are they just coming onboard now? In response to the disaster this summer, and the increased funding coming from the Department of Transportation, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Fairfax) said, “If the federal government is going to be kicking in $150 million a year, it deserves voting representation on the board,” which is a pretty solid point to make. The four members (two directors, two alternates) will join the board without the veto power that each of the twelve jurisdictional members possess.

The money quote, though, comes from Downey, a transportation consultant who served as a deputy secretary of transportation in the Clinton Administration: “The federal government would like its employees to arrive at work on time, fundamentally alive.”

Yep, I think that’s a bare minimum to demand from our transportation system right now.

Fun & Games, News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Caps 4, Coyotes 2: the Streak Continues

Photo courtesy of
‘Ovechkin Tosses First Star Puck to Crowd’
courtesy of ‘clydeorama’

Perhaps this is a silly prejudice, but I feel like hockey teams from warm places have something to prove.  I know, I know, hockey teams don’t recruit from their localities and, like every other professional athlete, hockey players go to where the money is, but it doesn’t change the fact that I expect less from a hockey team from Arizona.  If the Phoenix Coyotes did have anything to prove, they’re certainly doing it this year.  With an impressive record, they came to DC, last night, as a very real threat to the Capitals five game winning streak.

The Capitals, with their aforementioned win streak and Ovechkin’s impressive scoring record, were definitely the team to beat and the Coyotes were determined to cut them down to size. The game opened with Phoenix playing aggressively and keeping the puck near the Capitals goal for most of the 1st period.  The Caps looked a bit tentative, early on, but managed to take advantage of their first power play, with Brooks Laich to scoring in the opening minutes.  The Coyotes answered in the 13th minute of the period, tying game. Continue reading →

The Features
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Geeks Without Borders: Live From Inside DC’s Crisis Camp

Photo courtesy of
‘CrisisWiki team at crisiscamp dc #ccHaiti’
courtesy of ‘andycarvin’

Special to WeLoveDC by contributor Dave Levy

Volunteering to assist Haiti has taken many forms in the past few weeks. For example, last weekend, groups of laptop-wielding volunteers tried to help out in cities far from the disaster-stricken country. In six cities around the hemisphere – including Washington –data mappers, researchers and other technological gurus brainstormed and created offerings that could be implemented from afar.

Today, volunteers are back at it in D.C., as well as 12 other cities across the United States, UK, Canada and Colombia. The scene inside NPR’s Massachusetts Avenue office this Saturday morning showed over 200 local techies using their powers for good. The great news is that this unofficial effort of “Geeks without Borders” isn’t limited to technical ninjas. As David Hale put together in this fantastic document, there are ways that even the least tech-savvy can contribute, and there is an open invite for interested parties to offer any tools they can.

The group really has accomplished a lot in the eight days since the first meetings, as noted on the Haiti Crisis Camp blog, dataphiles and coders have leveraged their skills to already complete tools that are offering unique results for the country:

Two projects are already live: 

Tradui: As Brady Forrest wrote at O’Reilly, this free offline dictionary converts Creole to English and vice-versa. “The data came from the HaitiSurf Creole to English Dictionary. It was built by Intridea and came out of Crisis Camp DC. It was released to the Android market on 1/19.”

WeHaveWeNeed.org – this is a “craigslist” for exchanges of tech, services or other needs for NGOs. “It’s a place where relief organizations can quickly post their most urgent needs and have them matched by generous donors during a time of crisis.” If you’d like to participate in the program, please let them know.