Yearly Archives: 2010

Entertainment, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Fringe 2010: The Rave Scenes

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘erin m’

Imagine a group of friends (and some hangers-on) sitting around one night talking about the club scene they used to frequent. No matter the particular scene, if you were a crazy clubkid you’ve had the post-scene breakdown, the nostalgia and the arguments about what it really meant. AWoL Productions’ The Rave Scenes is exactly like one of those nights, except the friends have an audience they are trying to educate about the scene long gone.

All the usual suspects are represented (the dealer, the dancer, the wannabe) and are helpfully nametagged as if it’s a support group meeting. In a way it is. Each personality (they aren’t really characters) is dealing with the loss of the scene and what it meant to them. Each one tries to convince the audience their version is the authentic version, and most want you to discount the drug element, which became the media and political bugbear that eventually brought the original scene down.  Continue reading →

The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Avenue Q at the Lansburgh Theatre


AVENUE Q National Tour 2009, Kerri Brackin, Nicky, Rod, Brent Michael DiRoma © John Daughtry 2009

Lately I’ve been afflicted with strong bouts of nostalgia. Thinking back to my time in college, wishing I had done things differently, the sort of typical mid-twenties angst. For those of us who may still be unsure of what we want to do with our lives, Avenue Q is a musical that will hit home. It will also strongly remind you of a bygone era—the early 2000s. It is also the only musical with fully nude puppets having sex on stage. It has been called Sesame Street for grown-ups, which is a accurate description. Avenue Q opened at the Lansburgh Theatre last week, and is unique and entertaining look at angst-filled life in the big city. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Big Bear Cafe with Booze? Not in my backyard, says ANC 5C

Photo courtesy of
‘DC Food For All launch party @ Big Bear Cafe’
courtesy of ‘stereogab’

Last night’s hearing at ANC 5C ended the way that we feared it might: with Big Bear Cafe getting screwed by small groups of dedicated NIMBYs. The Bloomingdale hub coffee shop, and host of the Farmers’ Market on Sunday, was denied their opportunity to proceed to ABRA with the support of their ANC. The issues are frustrating, the participants stilted cartoonish caricatures, and the end result entirely typical for the process.

Sorry you got screwed by the NIMBYs, Big Bear. Next time, be sure to bribe the right ANC reps and it’ll just sail through. Or, so I’m told.

Arlington, Crime & Punishment, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Say Cheese and Pay Up

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

Remember those red light cameras that Arlington installed for your safety, last month?  Well, today is the day of reckoning. Arlington PD will start issuing $50 infractions to drivers the cameras catch blowing red lights.  To be fair, this is a significantly lighter fine than would be issue by a cop catching you doing the same, and you won’t get any points on your license.  Remember, citizens, these cameras are there for your safety, and are in no way a revenue generator for the city’s budget.

And, in case you’re wondering, the cameras are at the intersections of Lee Highway – Fort Myer Dr, and  Lee Highway – North Lynn St.

The Daily Feed
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Vote for We Love DC at WTOP!

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King of DC Radio stations WTOP has put up their Best Local Blog of 2010 contest, and we’re one of the nominees!  Thanks to all our awesome readers for helping get us on the list!  Now it’s time to vote!  I’m sure you don’t want a hockey blog claiming that slot, or worse, a Fairfax blog, so get on over to WTOP and, as they say in Chicago: Vote Early, Vote Often. We appreciate all you wonderful readers!

Entertainment, Fun & Games, Music, We Love Music
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The Winning Ticket: Seu Jorge and Almaz

As a way to say thanks to our loyal readers, We Love DC will be giving away a pair of tickets to a 9:30 Club concert to one lucky reader each week. Check back here every Wednesday morning at 9am to find out what tickets we’re giving away and leave a comment for your chance to be the lucky winner!

This week’s prize is a pair of tickets to see Seu Jorge & Almaz on July 27th at the 9:30 Club. (Please note this is an early show: 6pm doors).

Seu Jorge is well known as a brilliant, Brazilian singer-songwriter and solo performer. His soulful, samba-infused songs sparked a revival of Brazilian music and influence in popular music in the early 00’s. In 2010 Seu Jorge is once again catching the world’s attention with his new band Alamaz; featuring Seu Jorge on vocals, drummer Pupillo, guitarist Lucio Maia, with bassist Antonio Pinto. Their self-titled debut album drops in the U.S. on the same day as their show at the 9:30 Club. I wouldn’t be too surprised if they treat the DC crowd to an extra special performance to celebrate the arrival of their new long-player.

For your chance to win these tickets simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address between 9am and 4pm today. One entry per email address, please. Tickets for this show are also available through Ticketfly. If today doesn’t turn out to be your lucky day, check back here each Wednesday for a chance to win tickets to other great concerts.

For the rules of this giveaway…
Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Have A Classy Friday Night For Once

Photo courtesy of
‘Hirshhorn After Hours #51’
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

There are only a few things that could improve Hirshhorn After Hours. One is unicorns. The other is drag queens. Guess which idea the museum decided to go with? This Friday, Hirshhorn After Hours returns with special guest host Summer Camp, everyone’s favorite neighborhood drag queen. In addition to Ms. Camp, the museum’s summertime soirée will also include performances by Karl Marks, Brandon Joseph Neukam and Sunrize Highway, as well as the DJ stylings of Matt Bailer and Bil Todd.

As usual, cocktails will flow, socialites will dance, and world-class art will be appreciated. Make sure to get there early if you want a full museum tour: though the party runs from 8pm to 12pm, exhibits close at 10pm. Don’t forget, it’s one of your last chances to see the Black Box exhibit before it ends on August 1st.

Tickets are $18, and can be ordered by phone, online, or in person at IMAX® box offices. They are not available at the door, so use the next two days to plan ahead before the event sells out.

The Daily Feed
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Site of Robert Wone murder for sale

Photo courtesy of
‘2009 05 09 – 5794 – Washington DC – Swann St’
courtesy of ‘thisisbossi’

Via NBCWashington, I note that 1509 Swann St. NW, the house where Robert Wone was murdered in 2006, is now for sale. The listing makes no mention of the Wone killing, and since DC does not require that sellers disclose that someone died in the house, there’s no reason for it to. And if you were the realtor with the unhappy task of getting $1.6 million for the scene of a notorious unsolved murder, would you mention it?

Since there is no open house scheduled that gawkers can take advantage of—which is exactly why there is no open house—take a look at the online virtual house tour.* Having recently spent countless hours of my life poring over listings and photos of anonymous houses for sale, it’s a little surreal to look at the listing while knowing the strange and twisted story that goes with the photos. Like, “hey, so that’s the carport the intruder was supposed to have vaulted into…”

*Any cracks I make about parallels between staging a house and staging a crime scene are potentially libelous, so you’re on your own there.

Edited to add: While editing this post the first time, I cut out the link to WhoMurderedRobertWone.com, who of course noticed this listing before anybody. My apologies for the oversight.

Downtown, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Cheap Beer Alert!

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘muohace_dc’

To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.  A time to spend $10 on a six pack of craft beer, and a time to kick back with a cheap all-American brew.  A time to savor the complexity of a well made drink, and a time to cool off with an ice cold blue collar type beer. Fortunately, Againn is facilitating the latter of these times with their 99 cent beer special.  When you purchase one of Againn’s four happy hour appetizers, you get two Yueglings for less than a buck.  Surely that’s worth coming off of your beer snob high horse for.

Food and Drink, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Happy Birthday Stephen Strasburg, I Ate A Burger For Ya!

We Love DC would like to wish Stephen Strasburg a happy birthday today. The Nationals phenom pitcher and San Diego native turns 22. Today he’s probably spending the day preparing for his start against the Cincinnati Reds tomorrow but I think he should relax, have some fun, and perhaps celebrate the way I did- by eating one of the many burgers in his namesake.

After a whole adventure on Twitter my fellow co-worker Laura Murphy and I got BGR: The Burger Joint to bring back their Strasburger: a cheeseburger topped with a hot-dog, cheese, and 14 pickles. Today we achieved the lifelong dream of eating the Strasburger and as Laura tweeted: it’s was exactly what a 2.03 ERA tastes like.

So Happy Birthday Stephen, may your future starts be victorious, strikeouts come a-plenty, and Strasbugers taste delicious.

The Daily Feed
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Summer Restaurant Week Announced

Photo courtesy of
‘To eat steak rare………….’
courtesy of ‘LaTur’
Hear ye, hear ye! The August Restaurant Week dates and locations have been announced. Get your Opentable-clicking finger ready.

This summer’s Restaurant Week will run from August 16th to August 22nd, with a three course lunch running you $20.10 and a three course dinner ringing up at $35.10. As usual, beverages, gratuity and tax are not included.

For those cave dwellers not familiar with the concept of Restaurant Week, it is a great opportunity to try out some new restaurants in town (such as Agora, Lyon Hall or Againn) or those usually outside the realm of financial possibilities (ahem…Bourbon Steak, J&G Steakhouse, 2941 Restaurant).

If the list of over 200 restaurants participating seems a bit overwhelming, have a look at Bethesda-Chevy Chase Restaurant Week (July 26th-August 1st) or Alexandria Restaurant Week (August 20th-August 29th).

Food and Drink, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Have Lunch with Stan Kasten at Morton’s

Photo courtesy of
‘PRE_1199’
courtesy of ‘MissChatter’

Want to have lunch with Washington Nationals President Stan Kasten? Well now you can thanks to the next installment of the “legend” series at Morton’s Steakhouse.

The lunch-in is hosted by Morton’s with a baseball-based conversation with Kasten led by DC’s own ESPN radio hosts Thom Loverro and Kevin Sheehan.

The $40 menu includes a Caesar Salad, choice of Broiled Salmon Fillet/Chicken Christopher/Single Cut Filet Mignon, Mashed Potatoes, Sautéed Garlic Green Beans and New York Cheesecake from Morton’s private boardroom.

Lunch goes from 12-2 with an 11:30 patio reception and includes a cash bar.

Can’t make it? You can listen to the entire talk on ESPN 980 AM.

Call Kate Scafidi at 202-955-5997 to make a reservation or for more information. You can also e-mail any questions to Morton’s directly.

News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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What will McEnroe do this time?

Photo courtesy of
‘The Serve’
courtesy of ‘maxedaperture’

Tonight, the Kastles play host to the New York Sportimes in World Team Tennis at the Kastles tennis court over at 11th and H Street. Last time John McEnroe came down to DC, there was a huge kerfuffle between McEnroe and Kastles’ star Leander Paes, focused around an errant tennis ball’s final resting place. The ensuing bench-clearing incident included McEnroe’s teammate Robert Kendrick calling Kastles’ player Olga Puchkova a bitch. Yeah, it’s an intense time at World Team Tennis.

Anyhow, tonight brings the controversial McEnroe back to DC to face the Kastles. The Kastles need every point they can get at this crucial moment in the season. The team is second in the East, just half a match ahead of the third place Boston Lobsters in a fight for the second playoff spot in the division. A victory tonight would put them within a half match of the Sportimes with just two matches to go, nearly assuring them of post-season action. Tickets are available at the door for tonight’s match, which starts at 7pm. Your guess is as good as ours as to what will happen when McEnroe takes the court tonight. What’s the craziest that could happen?

The Daily Feed
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Screen on the Green Has a Rough Night

Photo courtesy of
‘Cartoon <3’
courtesy of ‘Kevin H.’

The overbearing heat and swamp like humidity are expected when hanging out on the Mall in late July. It’s part of DC’s charm. The sudden downpours that send hundreds scrambling for partial cover are also par for the DC weather course. But when you wrangle up your good friends, pack up a little picnic dinner, grab a big blanket to spread out on and bring along your favorite adult beverage hidden in an ambiguous plastic container that could possibly (and hopefully) be mistaken for a water bottle by Park Police, you tend to get your hopes up about a glorious night under the stars watching a classic film from the past on the super-jumbo screen. Unfortunately, last night was not the Screen on the Green’s finest moment.

Continue reading →

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: One Man Lord of the Rings

Charles Ross in "one Man Lord of the Rings" Photo credit: Chris Mueller

Take three films totalling 11 hours and 23 minutes with some 42 characters, elaborate sound effects and music. Now compact all those elements into 65 minutes – performed by one man. Yes, One Man Lord of the Rings is exactly as titled. Written and performed by Charles Ross as a homage to the Peter Jackson films, it’s a manic mixture of both geek cred and skillful stage presence.

Ross is a Canadian actor and playwright also responsible for the wildly popular One-Man Star Wars Trilogy, which he first performed in DC as part of the 2006 Capital Fringe Festival. While at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in the winter of 2007 for a return engagement, he mentioned to Managing Director Jeffrey Herrmann that he was working on an adaptation of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Herrmann, a fellow Tolkien fan, jumped at the chance to host him when next on tour. One Man Lord of the Rings is at Woolly now through August 1.

Certainly there’s no arguing that this is a riveting display of talent – guided by the direction of longtime collaborator TJ Dawe, Ross goes through a rapid array of transformations both vocal and physical. But is a knowledge of the films necessary to enjoy it? Has too much time passed since the films’ worldwide success? Ross asked those questions himself at the end of the performance I attended, with humble self-deprecation. The response, however, was overwhelmingly positive from both the hardcore LOTR fans and those who had managed to never see them or even read the books. It was a hypnotic and hilarious evening.

Continue reading →

Entertainment, Music, Night Life, The Daily Feed
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Blurt Magazine’s “Best Kept Secret”: D.C.’s The Public Good

Photo courtesy of The Public Good
Photo courtesy of The Public Good.

“One of Rock’s Best Kept Secrets,” according to Blurt Magazine, is D.C.’s very own The Public Good.

The quartet featuring the one-time nucleus of the North Carolina band The Popes rocks hard while writing songs with wit and empathy regarding the highs and lows of everyday life as a big kid aka being an adult.

The Public Good will be gracing D.C. with their stage presence on July 29 for an early 8:30 p.m. show opening for North Carolina’s Saint Solitude with fellow D.C. band Sweet Interference and indie band Spouse rounding out the Thursday night bill at The Velvet Lounge.

Doors open at 7:30. Show starts at 9 and is 21+ with an $8 cover charge.

Mythbusting DC, The Features
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DC Mythbusting: Stand to the Right!

Photo courtesy of
‘Stand on the right?’
courtesy of ‘karthikkito’

It’s probably the number one gripe about tourists: they stand on both sides of the escalators on Metro, blocking the left side that is generally understood to be for walking.  We Washingtonians understand that you stand to the right and walk on the left– there are even Facebook groups and t-shirts supporting the concept— but there are no formal signs on or near the escalators that say so.  Why not?  Rumors range from the theory that having people walk on one side and stand on the other leads to an unequal balance of weight and causes escalators to break down more frequently, or the theory that Metro doesn’t want to formally endorse a ‘stand right/walk left’ policy for liability and safety reasons.  But what’s the real reason there aren’t signs telling tourists to stand to the right?

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Black Box Exhibit Ending

“Block B,” (2008). Chris Chong Chan Fui. Image Courtesy of the Hirshhorn Museum.

The Hirshhorn‘s exhibit Black Box: Chris Chong Chan Fui is closing on August 1st after a three-month run.  As the first Malaysian artist to present work at the Hirshhorn, Chong shows a static work of art that details “night and day dramas unfold on the various floors of a massive apartment complex in Malaysia”. 

“Block B,” (2008) brings architecture and the art of daily life together, while also highlighting issues related to its context. 

You have only a week and half left to head over to the Hirshhorn to see this fascinating exhibit by a truly forward thinking artist! 

Black Box: Chris Chong Chan Fui is on exhibit at the Hirshhorn from April 19th to August 1st.

Adventures, All Politics is Local, Entertainment, Fun & Games, Life in the Capital, News, People, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Michelle Obama To Throw Out First Pitch At Tonight’s O’s Game

Photo courtesy of
‘It’s Michelle!’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

If you’ve got tickets to tonight’s Baltimore Orioles game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at Camden yards, be sure to get their on time because Michelle Obama will not only be bringing the heat as she fires out the first pitch, but also increased levels of security.

Mrs. Obama will be escorted to the mound by kids from the RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) program and the Boys and Girls Club. The RBI program started John Young, a former Major League Baseball player and scout, provides disadvantaged youth with the opportunity to learn and enjoy the game of baseball. Originally a local program for boys in South Central Los Angeles, the program, now in its 21st year, has grow to more than 200 cities and as many as 120,000 male and female participants a year.