Weekend Buzz: Nov. 26, 2025
Thanksgiving tomorrow brings all sorts of seasonal activities, including a chance to help others on Small Business Friday and Giving Tuesday. We have ways to support local nonprofits, restaurants, and businesses as you recover from feasting. Cherry Hill Farmhouse has a Victorian Christmas, Mary Riley Styles has a book group discussion, Meadowlark Gardens has a Critter Corner, and you can savor a Mount Vernon by Candlelight evening. Plus all the latest in local film, comedy, dance, music, theater, and visual arts. Enjoy!
Support Local Nonprofits and Small Businesses!
On Giving Tuesday, Support Comunidad's 'Plates with Purpose'!
Comunidad is as community development nonprofit working alongside predominantly immigrant families in socio-economically distressed areas of Falls Church. Their vision is to "see individuals and their communities thrive," and, their mission to "equip and engage locally-rooted community leaders."
Last Thanksgiving, we profiled their Founder and CEO Maralee Gutierrez Cruz here:
Christopher Jones
Comunidad will be holding a Dec. 2, fundraiser for Giving Tuesday called Plates with Purpose and are seeking your support!
Below are the 10 restaurants participating in the fundraiser:
- Borek-G: (TBD).
- Cafe Kindred: 20% of every Avocado Toast sold will go to Comunidad.
- Clare & Don's: (TBD).
- Harvey's: $2.00 of every Comunidad Hot Toddy sold will go to Comunidad.
- Ireland's Four Provinces: $1 of every Fish & Chips sold will go to Comunidad.
- Lazy Mike’s: (TBD).
- Northside Social: $1 of every breakfast sandwich sold will go to Comunidad.
- Preservation Biscuit: $1 of every PBC sandwich sold will go to Comunidad.
- Sweet Rice Thai: $1 of every pad thai sold will go to Comunidad.
- Westover Taco: 20% of selected dish will go to Comunidad.
For more info go here.
On Small Business Saturday, Support One More Page Books!
Christopher Jones
"Hi All – Once again as part of Small Business Saturday, One More Page Books and 20+ other small businesses and restaurants in North Arlington and Falls Church are taking part in our Small Business Weekend Passport Program to introduce residents to hidden gems and familiar favorites. Below is information about the Passport Program as well as the list of participating businesses and their website addresses," Founder and Owner of One More Page Books Eileen McGervey wrote.
It’s been a tough year for many small businesses and this kicks off our busiest time of year. We appreciate your help in getting the word out!
Celebrate Small Business Saturday 2025 in Arlington and Falls Church
Weekend Passport Offers Residents Chances to Win Prizes, Discover Unique Shops and Restaurants, and Support Local Businesses
November 29 is Small Business Saturday 2025, a day to celebrate and support small, local businesses! It also kicks off the Arlington / Falls Church Small Business Passport Program. Since one day is not enough to visit all the wonderful stores and restaurants that are part of the Passport, it's Small Business Weekend (Saturday AND Sunday)!
At One More Page, we look forward to celebrating Small Business Saturday with tables full of free books in front of the store, an in-store scavenger hunt, hourly raffles, snacks and, of course, being part of the Small Business Passport Program! This is an important day for our store and we love finding ways to make it special for our customers.
Over 20 Arlington and Falls Church businesses will participate in this year’s Small Business Weekend Passport Program. Led by One More Page Books, the Passport enables shoppers who are looking to #shoplocal and #shopsmall easily discover unique small businesses near them, all while keeping their shopping dollars local. The passport includes a mix of shopping and food establishments so folks can take a break from shopping to enjoy a rejuvenating coffee, snack, cider or meal. “We have several fun new additions to the Passport this year which we’re looking forward to visiting ourselves! Small Business Saturday is a really important day for all local businesses and it’s fun to promote it together,” said One More Page Books owner, Eileen McGervey.
Customers can pick up the Passport at any of the participating businesses. To be eligible to win one of Grand Prize Baskets, customers need to collect “stamps” from at least eight of the participating businesses on Small Business Weekend. Once completed, the Passports can be dropped off at One More Page Books or at the last store visited that weekend. Winners of the baskets will be randomly drawn from all completed Passports on Wednesday, Dec. 4 at 3:00 p.m. at One More Page Books. The community is invited to attend the drawing.
In 2011, the Senate unanimously passed a resolution in support of Small Business Saturday and by 2012 officials in all 50 states began to participate– and they have every year since. The day has grown into an annual holiday shopping tradition. Research shows that 68% of dollars spent at local stores remains in the local economy; that’s $68 out of every $100.
More information about the Passport program, participating businesses, and a Google Map of the participating stores can be found here.
Businesses participating in the Arlington / Falls Church Small Business Weekend Passport Program:
Stores of all types:
Ayers Variety & Hardware - Arlington/Westover.
Blossom & Buds - Arlington/Westover.
Botanologica - Falls Church/Broad Street.
Covet - Arlington/Wilson Blvd - co-located with Urban Farmhouse.
Doodlehopper 4 Kids - Falls Church/Broad Street.
Entangled, Local Yarn Shop – Falls Church/Rowell Ct.
Lemon Lane Consignment - Falls Church/Broad Street.
One More Page Books & More – Arlington/N. Westmoreland Street.
Prologue Theatre – Arlington/Williamsburg Circle.
Stylish Patina - Falls Church/Broad Street.
Talk Tiles to Me Mahjong Studio - Falls Church/Rowell Ct.
TINT - Falls Church/Broad Street.
Trade Roots - Arlington/Westover.
Two the Moon - Arlington/Williamsburg Circle.
Urban Farmhouse - Arlington/Wilson Blvd – co-located with Covet.
Victory Comics - Falls Church/Washington Street.
Coffee, Restaurants and more!
Audacious Aleworks - Falls Church/East Fairfax Street – and our Boozy Book Fair partner!
Cafe Kindred - Falls Church – right up the street from OMP.
Lil City Creamery - Falls Church/Broad Street.
Preservation Biscuit - Falls Church/East Fairfax Street – and our Boozy Book Fair partner!
Rare Bird Coffee Roasters - Falls Church/Broad Street.
Yayla Bistro – Arlington/N. Westmoreland Street, right across from OMP/
About One More Page Books: Founded in January 2011, One More Page Books, a woman-owned independent bookstore in North Arlington, is a place of welcome and discovery where a love of reading is cultivated alongside friendship, acceptance, and connection. We strive to be a gathering place for the community and nurturing environment for diverse authors and readers. One More Page curates a wide selection of books, puzzles, chocolate, wine, and more, to make our store a place of exploration and delight.
Address: 2200 N. Westmoreland St., Arlington.
Store hours: 11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Tues./Sat./Sun. and 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Wed./Thurs./Fri.
Website: www.onemorepagebooks.com. Instagram: @onemorepagebooks. Facebook: One More Page Books & More. Bluesky: onemorepagebooks.bsky.social.
Support the Meridian Choir Bake Sale!
Saturday, Nov. 29, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Stop by the Bake Sale table outside the Community Center on Saturday, Nov. 29 to pick up some homemade goodies. All proceeds will help fund the high school choir's spring trip. Thank you for supporting our singers!
Dine Out and Support the MEHMS GIVE DAY!
Support MEHMS GIVE Day Dine Out at Panera on Tuesday, Dec. 2, from 4-8:00 p.m. at the 450 West Broad St. location and 30 percent of sales goes toward the GIVE DAY Meal Packing Event!
Use code: FUND4U at panerabread.com, in the App or at the Kiosk. Order online at panerabread.com and use code FUND4U.
Support the Welcoming Falls Church Winter Coat Drive!
The Welcoming Falls Church Club is collecting winter coats for men, women and children, new and gently used. Coats will be distributed through the Adult and Family Literacy Center. Please drop off coats at Meridian High School, Oak Street Elementary School or the Community Center between December 1- 8. Thank you!
The Center for Youth and Family Advocacy presents: Cheers to Community!
Solace Outpost, 444 W. Broad St., Monday, Dec. 1, 2025, All Day
10% of all sales support CYFA's programs that help youth and families thrive in safe and healthy communities. Bring menstrual and personal hygiene items for CYFA's Dignity for All campaign to enter our holiday raffle.
Live music from FCCPS choral and band student performers.
Travel Back to Christmases Past!
A Victorian Christmas
Cherry Hill Farmhouse, 312 Park Ave., Saturday, Nov. 29, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Free, no registration required.
Start your holiday season off with a visit to the Farmhouse to see how Christmas was celebrated in the 1860s. In collaboration with the Victorian Society of Falls Church, costumed interpreters will welcome friends and neighbors who gather for some holiday cheer! The festivities will include decorations, music, holiday stories, and children’s activities. No registration required.
For more info go here.
Enjoy a Local Book Club Discussion!
Tuesday Morning Book Club: Northanger Abbey
Mary Riley Styles Public Library, 120 N. Virginia Ave., Main Level Conference Room, Tuesday, Dec. 22, 10:30 - 11:30 a.m. Adults (Ages 18+)
For December we will be discussing Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen.
If you'd like to receive a reminder email as well as some additional information about the book, please email phawkins@fallschurchva.gov.
Tuesday Morning Book Club
The Tuesday Morning Book Club was established at the Mary Riley Styles Public Library in 1987, and has been meeting to enjoy discussing books ever since! The club reads fiction and nonfiction titles, both classic and contemporary, selected by the group. No club membership is required; the book club is open to anyone interested in discussing the book.
Meeting Information
- The club meets bimonthly on the first Tuesday of the month at 10:30 a.m. in the Upper Level Conference Room of the library.
- No registration necessary.
Need a copy of the book? Please search our online catalog or our Overdrive ebook/audiobook collection to check the availability of this book. Special book group copies are also set aside several weeks before the discussion and can be requested on a first-come, first-served basis by emailing circ@fallschurchva.gov.
LOCAL FILM
Honor Native American Heritage Month!
Native Cinema Showcase: Shorts 2025
National Museum of the American Indian, National Mall, Fourth St. & Independence Ave. SW, Nov. 21-28.
November is Native American Heritage Month. So, here's a chance to honor indigenous narratives and perspectives.
The National Museum of the American Indian’s Native Cinema Showcase is an annual celebration of the best in Native film. This year, the museum highlights an array of film shorts featuring a diverse range of Indigenous stories and perspectives.
All shorts are available to stream free: Stream Shorts.
For more info go here.
WINHANGANHA
National Gallery of Art, East Bldg. Auditorium, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2:00 - 3:15 p.m.
Introduced virtually by filmmaker Jazz Money.
WINHANGANHA (Wiradjuri language: Remember, know, think) is a lyrical journey of archival footage and sound, poetry and original composition. As described by the filmmaker, the film is "centered upon the belief that it is our own bodies that are the truest archive of our experience, and that First Nations bodies tell a powerful story of sovereignty and resistance.” Commissioned by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), the work examines how archives and the legacies of collection affect First Nations people and wider Australia, told through the lens of acclaimed Wiradjuri artist Jazz Money. (2023, DCP, 65 minutes).
Presented in conjunction with the exhibition The Stars We Do Not See: Australian Indigenous Art. Presented by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia in partnership with the National Gallery of Art.
About the Filmmaker
Jazz Money is a Wiradjuri poet and artist whose practice is centered in poetics to produce works that encompass installation, performance, film, and print. Their multi-award-winning writing and art has been presented, performed, and published nationally and internationally. Money’s first poetry collection, the best-selling how to make a basket, was the 2020 winner of the David Unaipon Award. Their recently released second collection mark the dawn was the 2024 recipient of the UQP Quentin Bryce Award.
To register go here.
Emily: I Am Kam
National Gallery of Art, East Building Auditorium, Sunday, Nov. 30, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Part of Star-like Cinema: Films by Indigenous Australians
Emily: I Am Kam is a revelatory portrait of the trailblazing artist Emily Kam Kngwarray. From the Utopia community in the Northern Territory of Australia, Kngwarray’s work reshaped the international contemporary art world and is included in the exhibition The Stars We Do Not See: Australian Indigenous Art. One of Australia’s most celebrated figures, she is the highest-selling woman artist in the country’s history. Known for her wit and radiant presence, the Anmatyerr Elder found global fame in the late ’80s with large-scale paintings deeply rooted in her connection to Country, culture and community. This biography follows the preparations for the National Gallery of Australia’s major 2023 Kngwarray retrospective, while rare archival materials let the artist, who passed away in 1996, speak in her own words. (Danielle MacLean, Warumungu/Luritja, 2025, DCP, 60 minutes).
Presented in conjunction with the exhibition The Stars We Do Not See: Australian Indigenous Art, National Gallery of Art.
GALA FILM FEST: Latin American Innovation
Opens Wednesday! ~ GALA Hispanic Theatre, 3333 14th Street, NW.
December | Diciembre 3 - 7, 2025
All films in Spanish with English subtitles | Todos los filmes en español con subtítulos en inglés
Curator | Curador: Carlos Gutiérrez, Cinema Tropical (New York).
This year’s festival will feature six contemporary films by emerging directors and a classic from the Mexican Golden Age. Join us for exclusive talkbacks with producers, artists, directors, and experts, and receptions after the screenings.
Este año, el festival incluye seis películas contemporáneas de jóvenes cineastas y un clásico de la Época Dorada del cine mexicano. Disfruta coloquios después de las proyecciones, recepciones y más.
Individual tickets | Boletos individuales: $10 per film | por película.
Watch all seven movies for only $35! | ¡Disfruta las 7 películas por solo $35! GET FILM FEST PASS | COMPRAR PASE DE FESTIVAL
All films are DC premieres, but Luis Buñuel's ÉL | Todos los filmes son estrenos en DC, excepto ÉL de Luis Buñuel
All films will be screened in Spanish with English subtitles, unless otherwise noted, and most are appropriate for ages 13 and up, except those with a different age recommendation noted. | Todos los filmes son en español con subtítulos en inglés, a menos que se indique lo contrario, y la mayoría son apropiados para personas a partir de 13 años, excepto las películas que indican una recomendación de edad distinta.
LINEUP & SCHEDULE | PELÍCULAS Y HORARIOS
CHILE: Wednesday, December 3 at 7:00 p.m.
OASIS
Tamara Uribe and Felipe Morgado, Chile, 2024, 80 min. - DOCUMENTARY
Reception courtesy of the Embassy of Chile to the U.S.
“Chile is known as South America’s blooming oasis, at once marked by neo-liberalism and high economic growth, but also by poverty, social inequality and the legacy of the Pinochet military dictatorship. In October 2019, shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, proposed fare increases for public transport led to protests in the capital, which spread like wildfire across most of the country and grew into a varied movement for constitutional and economic reform. Over a period of three years, extending to the failure of the Constitutional Convention in 2022 and the political backlash that followed, Tamara Uribe and Felipe Morgado capture the events and their topography in sequences presented without commentary, giving the activist forces a face without siding against any of the protagonists: whether Indigenous, feminist, militant, anarchist or conservative, they find a place for everyone in this formally daring portrait of the era, which functions at the same time as a snapshot. Anyone who joins this journey through a society in the process of awakening will be rewarded with insights into democratic processes, mass protests and their socio-political dynamics.” ~ Berlin Film Festival
“Chile es conocido con el naciente de Suramérica, marcado por el neoliberalismo y un gran crecimiento económico, pero también por la pobreza, la inequidad social y el legado de la dictadura militar de Pinochet. En octubre de 2019, poco antes de la pandemia por COVID-19, los aumentos propuestos a la tarifa de transporte público generaron protestas en la capital, que se expandieron a gran parte del país, y dieron origen a un movimiento que pedía reforma constitucional y económica. Durante tres años, hasta el fracaso de la Convención Constitucional de 2022 y la retaliación política que siguió, Tamara Uribe y Felipe Morgado captaron los eventos en secuencias sin opinar, dándole a los activistas voz, sin tomar posición contra alguno de los protagonistas. Los pueblos indígenas, feministas, militantes, anarquistas o conservadores tienen un lugar en este retador retrato de una época, que sirve también como resumen. Todo el que se una a este viaje a través de una sociedad en un proceso de despertar será premiado con conocimiento sobre procesos democráticos, protestas masivas y sus dinámicas socio-políticas”. – Festival de Cine de Berlín.
For more info go here.
LOCAL COMEDY
Derrick Knopsnyder
with Jared Stern & Christopher Lawrence
Capital One Hall, The Vault, Saturday, Nov. 29. Doors Open: 7:00 p.m.
Headliner Derrick Knopsnyder is a high-energy, quick-witted comedian who has been entertaining people his whole life. He has performed on the Oddball Comedy Fest, toured with many great comedians, including Bo Burnham, Dave Coulier, and Josh Wolf, and has earned several awards along the way, including “Highest Rated Comedians” by Campus Activities Magazine.
When he’s not on the road doing shows, you can see him hosting his new show “Comedians In Carts Making Bogeys” on the PGA Tour Entertainment Channels, or you can check out his new Amazon Prime Special “Everywhere But Famous”!
Jared Stern is now a three-time and back-to-back winner of the Best Comedian in Washington Award. His new album, Live on Broadway, is available on Prime Video, Apple TV+, and other streaming platforms.
Christopher Lawrence is a Baltimore-area comedian who has been entertaining crowds off and on for 20 years. He has performed at clubs and venues all over the country.
Chris can be seen on Amazon Prime's Debate Night: A Quarantine Comedy, portraying Senators Bernie Sanders and Lindsay Graham. He has been a regular performer at the Baltimore Comedy Festival and is a Director for the Annual Ellicott Silly Comedy Festival based in Ellicott City, Maryland.
He has shared the stage with modern comedy legend Brian Regan as well as Chris Distefano, Dom Irera, Jimmy Walker, Chris Franjola, Steve Rannazzisi, Angel Salazar, and the late Dustin Diamond.
For ticket info go here.
LOCAL DANCE
Ravel Dance Company pres. The Nutcracker
Capital One Hall, Main Theater, 7750 Capital One Tower Rd., Tysons, Saturday, Nov. 29, 1:00 p.m.
The Nutcracker ballet is an enchanting holiday tradition. Join us for a magical journey through a winter wonderland filled with enchanting dance, luxurious costumes, and timeless music. This family-friendly performance is perfect for ballet enthusiasts of all ages. This year, we are offering an opportunity for families to enjoy a Nutcracker Tea following the performance.
About Ravel Dance Studio
The Ravel Performing Company, a non-profit organization, was founded in 1990 by its artistic director Janet Hall. Hall wanted to enrich the cultural lives of children by introducing them to dance as a performing art. These young dancers have the good fortune of working with varied and exceptional choreography that challenges their abilities. These performers are comprised of upper level dance students selected for their talent and dedication to the art of dance. The criterion for gaining acceptance into the Performing Company is through an audition process and a demonstration of commitment to dance throughout the year. Each year the Company performs a unique and original work.
For ticket info go here.
NUTCRACKER! Magical Christmas Ballet
Capital One Hall, Main Theater, 7750 Capital One Tower Rd., Tysons, Sunday, Nov. 30, 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Doors Open: One hour before showtime.
Give the gift of NUTCRACKER! Magical Christmas Ballet to the whole family. Celebrate America’s favorite Christmas tradition with an international all-star cast that blends world-class ballet with whimsical puppets, lavish costumes, and stunning acrobatics! Share the tradition of pure Holiday magic and Tchaikovsky’s timeless score with friends and family of all ages. Don’t miss this chance to create memories of a lifetime.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
The Washington Ballet's Nutcracker
Warner Theatre, 513 13th St. NW, Saturday, Nov. 29, 7:00 p.m. Doors Open: 6:00 p.m. Show: 7:00 p.m.
A D.C.-Holiday Tradition for Over 60 Years!
Experience the magic of the holidays with The Washington Ballet's The Nutcracker, a cherished D.C. tradition featuring over 380 talented dancers! From our dedicated students to our professional company, witness a spectacular performance set in historic Georgetown. Enjoy the familiar story with unique local touches, including George Washington as the Nutcracker and a springtime cherry blossom scene. This visual feast offers holiday joy for all ages. Don't miss this special production that showcases the vibrant talent of the entire Washington Ballet team. Treat yourself and your family this holiday season.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
LOCAL MUSIC
The Nighthawks & The Soul Crackers
The State Theatre, 220 N. Washington St., Friday, Nov. 28. Doors open: 7:00 p.m. Showtime: 8:00 p.m. Tickets: $20 in advance. $25 on day of show.
The Nighthawks legendary blues and roots rock music!
The Nighthawks was an idea in Mark Wenner's brain long before he was able to implement it. The musical product of pre-1958 radio in Washington, D.C., he did not know there were rules against mixing blues, R&B, honky-tonk country, doo-wop, gospel and rockabilly into one delicious stew.
The Soul Cracker's music encompasses Memphis & Motown soul, and features timeless songs by artists like Otis Redding, Average White Band, Martha & The Vandellas & Stevie Wonder among many others. This is the music that brings all ages and personalities together to a dance party. The SOUL CRACKERS grew up with this music and honor it with the legitimacy of a crackerjack soul horn band from the 60's.
You must be 18 or over to enter unless accompanied by your parent. Valid ID required.
Save some money! There's only a $1 fee when you buy your ticket in person at the box office.
For ticket info go here.
Gil Shaham, violin, and Akira Eguchi, piano
Limited Tickets Available! ~ The Barns at Wolf Trap, 1635 Trap Road Vienna, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 7:30 p.m. Doors Open: 6:00 p.m.
In this landmark performance, acclaimed violinist Gil Shaham and pianist Akira Eguchi commemorate 300 years of Wolf Trap’s German Barn, the centerpiece of The Barns and one of its two historic structures. Together Shaham and Eguchi will present a remarkable program of timeless music from Leclair and Vivaldi to Beethoven and Fauré, works from the years the barn was originally constructed. This special concert will be followed by an elegant dinner supporting Wolf Trap’s arts and education programs.
Program:
Leclair: Sonata in D Major, Op. 9, No. 3.
“Tombeau” Vivaldi: “Winter” from The Four Seasons.
Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 4 in A minor, Op. 23.
Fauré: Violin Sonata in A major, Op. 13.
For ticket info and more about the artists go here.
Chanticleer
GMU Center for the Performing Arts, 4373 Mason Pond Dr., Fairfax, Saturday, Nov. 29 at 8 p.m.
A Chanticleer Christmas
The holidays shine brighter when Grammy Award-winning Chanticleer returns to the Center for the Arts with A Chanticleer Christmas. Welcome the “world’s reigning male chorus” (New Yorker) back in this rich and varied program of both early works and holiday wonders, including traditional carols as well as gospel numbers. Since 1978, Chanticleer has amassed a huge following — selling more than one million albums and performing thousands of live concerts. With 12 expressive voices ranging from countertenor to bass blended with precision, clarity, and breathtaking beauty, “it’s impossible to resist the voices of Chanticleer” (San Francisco Chronicle).
This performance is appropriate for all ages and will be sign-interpreted.
Tickets: $71, $60, $45; half-price for youth through Grade 12. Prices include fees. Learn More.
Run time: approximately 110 minutes, including a 20-minute intermission
Program is subject to change.
For ticket info go here.
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER CHRISTMAS by Chip Davis
The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, Friday, Nov. 28, Matinee Performance, 4:00 p.m. Tickets: $28 – $128.
The holiday tradition continues!
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER CHRISTMAS by Chip Davis has been America’s favorite holiday tradition for 40 years! Grammy Award-winner Chip Davis has created a show that features Mannheim Steamroller Christmas classics in the distinctive Mannheim sound. The program includes 15 musicians playing more than 20 instruments against a backdrop of dazzling multimedia effects — capturing the spirit of the season in an immersive yet intimate setting.
Please note that this is a matinee performance and will begin at 4:00 p.m.
This performance will use stage effects including fog and strobe lights.
Dine with Us!
Bypass the Allegro Kitchen line and go straight to the buffet when you preorder your meal. Learn more about buffet dining at Strathmore.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
A Swingin' Little Christmas!
Starring Jane Lynch
featuring Kate Flannery & Tim Davis with The Tony Guerrero Quintet
The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, Saturday, Nov. 29, 7:00 p.m. Tickets: $28 – $88.
One part cabaret, one part comedy, and a dash of Christmas kitsch, A Swingin’ Little Christmas is unapologetically sentimental, recalling classic holiday albums and TV specials of the 1950s and ‘60s. Emmy and Golden Globe winner Jane Lynch (Glee, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) stars alongside Kate Flannery (The Office), Tim Davis (Glee's vocal arranger), and The Tony Guerrero Quintet in this hilarious and heartfelt extravaganza. The show features a mix of classic carols and original songs, with tight vocal harmonies and clever jazz arrangements. Blending playful humor with emotional musical moments, the performance celebrates the season with good humor, warmth, and a touch of nostalgia.
Open Captioning: This performance will feature open captions. Please email access@strathmore.org for the promo code to unlock caption seating. To reserve seats with the best view, please select the seats marked with a yellow "C" in the orchestra, or call the Ticket Office at 301.581.5100 for assistance.
For ticket info go here.
LOCAL THEATER
Birthday Candles
Opens Next Thursday! ~ 1st STAGE, 1524 Spring Hill Road, Tysons. Runs Dec. 4-21.
Written by Noah Haidle. Directed by Alex Levy.
Ernestine Ashworth spends her 17th birthday agonizing over her insignificance in the universe. Soon enough, it’s her 18th birthday. Even sooner, her 41st. Her 70th. Her 101st. This poignant and funny play takes its audience through the highlights, heartbreaks and extraordinary moments that make up one woman’s ordinary life.
“For my money, Birthday Candles is precisely why people go to the theater.” ~ Chicago Tribune
Presented with generous support from Wilma Probst Levy, in honor of Louis Levy.
Birthday Candles runs about 90 minutes with no intermission.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show
Capital One Hall, Main Theater, 7750 Capital One Tower Rd., Tysons, Monday, Dec. 1. Doors Open: 6:00 p.m. Show starts: 7:00 p.m.
The greatest holiday show south of the North Pole is back with another brand spankin’ new wintertide wonder!
Award-winning comedy icons, writers, actors, and drag queen powerhouses BenDeLaCreme & Jinkx Monsoon are coming back to town with the wildly successful, internationally acclaimed, "The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show." Throughout the show’s 8-year history Jinkx and DeLa have met sentient Christmas treats, twisted space-time with Dickensian Ghosts, escaped the meta clutches of their own holiday traditions, and led a harrowing rescue mission in the Nutcracker's Land of Sweets – You never know what wild and unexpected sleigh ride these queens have in store.
Whatever the twists and turns, fans can expect another year of over-the-top camp spectacle, side-splitting gags, brand new songs, heartfelt storytelling, thrilling dance numbers, and iconic costumes. Hailed by Entertainment Weekly as "the reigning queens of Christmas," this show is not only a moment of respite, but a celebration of community, at a time when we need it most of all.
For VIP add-ons, please visit JinkxAndDeLa.com.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
Some Like It Hot
Broadway at the National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Through Dec. 7.
“A super-sized all out song-and-dance spectacular!” ~ The New York Times
Winner of 4 Tony Awards, including Best Choreography and Best Costumes, and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, SOME LIKE IT HOT is “A Super-Sized, All-Out Song-And-Dance Spectacular!” ~ The New York Times
Set in Chicago when Prohibition has everyone thirsty for a little excitement, SOME LIKE IT HOT is the “glorious, big, high-kicking” (Associated Press) story of two musicians forced to flee the Windy City after witnessing a mob hit. With gangsters hot on their heels, they catch a cross-country train for the life-chasing, life-changing trip of a lifetime.
And what a trip it is! With its irresistible combination of heart and laughs, song and dance, SOME LIKE IT HOT won more theater awards than any show in its season, and was named Best Musical by the Drama Desk, The Drama League, and the Outer Critics Circle. No wonder Deadline calls it “a tap-dancing, razzle-dazzling embrace of everything you love about musical theater.”
Join Some Like It Hot and Broadway at The National for PRIDE NIGHT on Sunday, November 30 at 7:30 pm! Enjoy pride-themed photo ops, specialty drinks for purchase, and more before the show. Plus! DC’s Different Drummers, an LGBTQ+ community music organization, will fill The National’s lobby with free jazz music beginning at 6:30 p.m.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
Guys and Dolls
Opens this Tuesday! ~ Shakespeare Theatre Company, Harman Hall, 610 F Street NW, Runs: Dec. 2 - Jan 4.
Based on a Story and Characters of Damon Runyon. Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser. Book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. Choreographed by Joshua Bergasse. Directed by Francesca Zambello.
The oldest established permanent floating crap game in New York just got busted and Nathan Detroit needs cold hard cash to get it up and running again. Enter high-roller Sky Masterson, who Nathan wagers can’t get a date with the straight- laced Sarah Brown, a Save-A-Soul missionary trying to rescue them all from sin.
Directed by Washington National Opera Artistic Director Francesca Zambello and choreographed by Joshua Bergasse (Smash, Bull Durham), dance the night away to “Luck Be a Lady,” “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat,” “A Bushel and a Peck,” and more classic tunes in the must-see show of the holiday season.
Runtime: Approximately two hours and 30 minutes with one 15 minute intermission.
THIS WEEK ONLY, no fees for any performance of Guys and Dolls with code THANKS. *Enter code prior to selecting your seats. Code THANKS subject to availability. Cannot be combined with other offers or applied to previously purchased tickets. Valid on all seats and performances on sale now, and 3- and 4-Play Packages. Limit 4. Offer expires Sunday, NOV. 30 at 11:59 p.m. Note: The Box Office will be closed NOV. 27–28. Order online to guarantee your seats.
For ticket info and showtimes go here.
Sylvia
Nova Nightsky Theatre, Falls Church Presbyterian Church, Memorial Hall, 225 E. Broad St. Through Feb. 6.
When Greg brings home a stray dog named Sylvia, his marriage takes an unexpected turn. A witty, heartwarming comedy about love, loyalty, and the messy joy of rediscovering connection — in marriage and in life.
For ticket info go here.
A Christmas Carol
Just Opened! ~ Ford’s Theatre, 511 Tenth Street, NW. Through Dec. 31.
Join the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future as they lead the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge on a journey of transformation and redemption. Originally conceived by Michael Baron, this music-infused production captures the magic and joy of Dickens’s Yuletide classic, with familiar characters, ghosts and a children’s ensemble in the spirit of the holidays. Acclaimed actor Craig Wallace returns to play Ebenezer Scrooge in Ford’s annual tradition heralded as a “rich visual and vocal treat” (TheaterMania) and “infectiously jolly” (The Washington Post).
Duration: two hours including one intermission. Recommended for ages 5 and older.
Accessible:
Audio-Described Performances: Dec. 4, at 7:00 p.m. and Dec. 13 at 2:00 p.m.
ASL-Interpreted Performance: Dec.4, at 7:00 p.m. and Dec. 13, at 2:00 p.m.
Sensory Friendly: November 23, 2025 at 2 p.m.
For ticket info go here.
Fiddler on the Roof
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington. Through Jan. 26.
The iconic musical gorgeously staged in-the-round in Signature’s intimate setting and directed by Joe Calarco (Jesus Christ Superstar, Gypsy).
Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman, his family and their tight-knit community honor tradition but must contend with a changing world and a rise in antisemitism at their home in Czarist Russia.
The glorious score with songs “Sunrise, Sunset,” “If I Were a Rich Man,” and “Matchmaker,” unite with exquisite dance in this classic of the musical theater canon filled with humor, heart – and life.
“One of the most glowing creations in the history of musical theater” ~ The New York Times
- Running time: approximately 2 hours, 50 minutes, including one 15-minute intermission.
- Show will use flashing lighting effects, loud noises and theatrical haze.
- Show explores social and political issues including religious intolerance/threats, and has one scene depicting antisemitic violence.
- Recommended for ages 13+. Signature does not admit anyone under 6.
For more info go here.
ho ho ho ha ha ha ha
Woolly Mammoth Theatre, 641 D ST. NW. Runs: Nov. 13 - Dec. 21.
Last time she was at Woolly, she sold out the house, earned Helen Hayes Award nominations, and left D.C. audiences roaring (and maybe questioning what just happened). Now, award-winning Estonian clown Julia Masli returns to Woolly with a holiday remix of her international hit ho ho ho ha ha ha ha.
In ho ho ho ha ha ha ha, Julia once again sets out to solve problems in her own off beat style — only this time, they’re holiday problems. From family meltdowns to gift-related despair, she’ll tackle it all with no script, no plan, no guarantees.
It’s bold. It’s warm. It’s wildly unpredictable. And it might just be the most uplifting chaos you’ll experience all season.
“★★★★★” ~ Brian Logan, The Guardian
“★★★★★ A strange and beautiful masterpiece” ~ Tim Harding, The Telegraph“
★★★★★” ~ Georgia Evans, Time Out
“…hilarious and deeply affecting…” ~ DC Theater Arts“… funny and, at times, downright hilarious as well as warm and hopeful.” ~ MD Theatre Guide
ASL INTERPRETED PERFORMANCES: Friday, Dec. 12, 8:00 p.m.
OPEN CAPTIONED PERFORMANCES: Sunday, Nov. 23, 5:00 p.m.
Audio Described PERFORMANCES: Saturday, Dec. 6, 5:00 p.m.
MASK REQUIRED PERFORMANCE: Tuesday, Nov. 25, 8:00 p.m.
Childcare Matinee: Sunday, Dec. 7, 5:00 p.m.
For more info go here.
A CASE FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
Mosaic Theatre, 1333 H St. NE. Runs: Nov. 13 - Dec. 7.
A moving story of fatherhood, friendship, and finding hope where you least expect it.
By SAMUEL D. HUNTER. DIRECTED BY DANILO GAMBINI.
MacArthur “Genius” grant recipient Samuel D. Hunter’s intimate, powerful play is a thoughtful meditation on human resilience. Inside a small office in southern Idaho, two men struggle to understand the confounding terms of a mortgage loan while connecting over the joy and pain of fatherhood. The pair form an unlikely friendship, using humor to find hope in the face of heartbreak.
Hailed as a New York Times Critic’s Pick, this moving new play is a testament to the power of finding one’s own community in the face of loneliness.
“…at times tense and tenuous, at others mutually affirmative…“A Case for the Existence of God” is …touchingly resonant.” ~ The Washington Post
For more info go here.
Lizzie the Musical
Final Weekend! ~ The Keegan Theatre, 1742 Church St. NW. Through Nov. 30.
Ripping the Lid Off the Legend of Lizzie Borden!
Get ready to rock… and bleed! On October 31, Keegan unleashed LIZZIE, the ferocious punk-rock musical that rips the lid off the legend of Lizzie Borden.
Fueled by rage, retribution, and a blistering all-female rock score, LIZZIE reimagines the infamous 1892 axe murder in a show that’s equal parts gothic horror, riot grrrl rebellion, and rock concert. LIZZIE is a visceral, unapologetic thrill ride. Blood will spill. Guitars will wail. Justice will scream.
Writers: Steven Cheslik-deMeyer, Tim Maner, and Alan Stevens Hewitt. Director & Choreographer: Jennifer J. Hopkins. Music Director: Marika Countouris.
“The most authentically kick-ass rock musical score since HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH” ~ Orlando Weekly
For more info go here.
Hello, Dolly!
Olney Theater, Roberts Main Stage, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, Md. Through Jan. 4.
"Some people paint, some sew ... I meddle!"
Dolly Gallagher Levi is a woman on the make. And what’s she making? Whatever you need. A husband? A wife? Dance lessons? Pierced ears? There’s never been a more indefatigable figure in American musical theatre, and perhaps that’s why the role has served as a vehicle for some of our greatest stars, from Carol Channing and Pearl Bailey, to Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler.
Now, the DMV’s reigning musical superstar, Nova Y. Payton (World Goes 'Round), takes on the title role of a musical that churns out laughs, songs, and over-the-top antics as fast as humanly possible… and then goes a little faster. Audiences of all ages are guaranteed a great time at this classic musical about love, second chances, and the magic of an adventure to the big city!
Tickets: $42 - $133 (service fees inclusive).
Age Guidance: If this were a film, it would be rated PG.
For ticket info go here.
Fremont Ave.
Extended! ~ Arena Stage, Kreeger Theatre, 1101 6th St. SW. Through Dec. 7.
All the Cards are on the Table.
A soulful new dramatic-comedy about love, legacy, and, of course, a cutthroat game of Spades.
Written by Reggie D. White and directed by Lili-Anne Brown, Fremont Ave. is a raw, electric world premiere that moves across decades with the force of memory and the rhythm of Spades. From young love and big dreams to buried resentment and unmet expectations, three generations of Black men face off at the card table and come face-to-face with each other. At the center of it all is the family’s formidable matriarch: beloved, feared, and never forgotten. What begins as a game becomes a reckoning with masculinity, identity, and the weight of silence passed down. Fremont Ave. lays every card on the table and dares you to do the same.
By: Reggie D. White. Directed by: Lili-Anne Brown. A Co-Production with South Coast Repertory.
- Running Time: Approx. 2 hours, 25 minutes, including one 15-minute intermission.
- Advisories: Contains mature language and sexually suggestive content.
Fremont Ave. is the recipient of an Edgerton Foundation New Play Award.
For ticket info go here.
LOCAL VISUAL ARTS
Kinship
Falls Church Arts, 700-B West Broad St. Through Jan. 4.
Check out Falls Church Arts's new all-media show, "Kinship," featuring "works that reference the bonds between or among communities, families, cultures, or other groups."
Meet the Artists Reception: 7:00-9:00 pm, Saturday, Nov. 22.
Juror: Glen Kessler
Location: Falls Church Arts Gallery and online.
Grandma Moses: A Good Day’s Work
Just Openend! ~ Smithsonian American Art Museum, 8th and F Streets NW. Through July 12. Free admission. Open Daily: 11:30 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Free admission.
Grandma Moses: A Good Day’s Work sheds new light on a beloved body of work by Anna Mary Robertson “Grandma” Moses (1860 – 1961). Grandma Moses used creativity, hope, and togetherness as tools for shaping a life that she metaphorically likened to “a good day’s work.” The artist’s fame made her a polarizing figure — beloved by the popular press and American public but belittled by the art world and critical press. This exhibition introduces the artist to new generations and examines her legacy in the context of America today.
Grandma Moses: A Good Day’s Work repositions Anna Mary Robertson “Grandma” Moses (1860–1961) as a multidimensional force in American art, whose beloved painted recollections of rural life earned her a distinctive place in the cultural imagination of the postwar era. Drawing its name from Moses’ reflection on her own life as a “good day’s work,” the exhibition reveals how Moses’ art fused creativity, labor, and memories from a century-long life.
Moses began painting in earnest in her late 70s and was 80 when gallerist Otto Kallir introduced her to the American public with her first solo exhibition in 1940. In her artworks, Moses melded direct observation of nature and personal memories, resulting in idiosyncratic, yet engaging, stories of America. “Grandma Moses” as the press would indelibly dub her, quickly became a media sensation, achieving a controversial celebrity status that surpassed the female artists of her day and remains compelling today.
The exhibition is the culmination of a special collection initiative at the museum that began in 2016 and is anchored by 33 artworks from SAAM’s collection, including many of Moses’ most celebrated paintings. It is organized by Leslie Umberger, senior curator of folk and self-taught art, and Randall R. Griffey, former head curator, with support from Maria R. Eipert, curatorial assistant.
A richly illustrated catalogue, published in association with Princeton University Press, is available for purchase ($60) in the museum's store and online.
For more info go here.
Colorburst
Stacy C. Sherwood Center, 3740 Blenheim Blvd., Fairfax, Through December 19.
Colorburst showcases artistic creations across all genres, unified by their emphasis on bold and vibrant colors as the primary thematic element. Carefully curated by The Rogue Art Project, this exhibition features powerful interpretation of color realized through a diverse array of materials, spanning the spectrum from realism to abstraction. EnChroma eyewear available. Open during business hours.
For more info go here.
Material Acts of Resistance: Michèle Colburn
Founders Gallery at Mason Square, Van Metre Hall Lobby, Mason Square Campus, 3351 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington. Open daily, 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Through Feb. 6.
Material Acts of Resistance: Michèle Colburn brings together a selection of mixed-media works that transform the materials of conflict into meditations on endurance, vulnerability, and dissent. Through the use of gunpowder, wire, thread, and burnt paper, Colburn reconfigures symbols of violence into gestures of reflection and renewal. Her practice explores how the act of making can itself become a form of resistance, translating the volatile into the contemplative, and the destructive into the poetic.
Courtesy Arlington Arts.
For more info go here.
Out of Many: Reframing an American Art Collection
The Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St., NW. Through: Feb. 15.
Special Exhibition
Coinciding with the 250th anniversary of the United States, Out of Many: Reframing an American Art Collection is a celebration and examination of the beauty and complexity of this nation’s history. Presenting artists well-known and understudied from the permanent collection, Out of Many builds a dynamic story about how, from the early 20th century to the present, various artists have imagined and depicted the people, cultures, landscapes, and histories of the United States. To tell a more diverse constellation of stories, the exhibition includes artworks from the historic collections of African American art at Howard University Gallery of Art and The David C. Driskell Center at the University of Maryland, among other institutions.
For more info go here.
Hiromi Isobe: Can I See?
Final Weekend! ~ Museum of Contemporary Art, Arlington, 3550 Wilson Blvd., Arlington. Through Nov. 30.
MoCA Arlington is pleased to present Can I See?, a solo exhibition by MFA Candidate Hiromi Isobe, on view in the Jenkins Community Gallery.
In Can I See?, artist Hiromi Isobe works across media including painting, mixed media, fiber and sculpture to give form to the invisible systems that shape our world. Charting Isobe’s interest in scientific study, spirituality and existential queries, Can I See? is both a question and a practice: an ongoing search for understanding that offers answers through the act of creation.
Isobe’s work embraces uncertainty as a space for discovery. Rather than seeking clear answers, Isobe approaches art-making as an inquiry, guided by her innate sense of wonder and sensitivity. Using the recurring motif of the circle, layered and highly tactile materials, and fancifully imagined characters, Isobe poetically visualizes emotional states and the threads that connect individuals to the cosmos.
A key sculptural element of the exhibition, My World, features hand-crafted characters and forms that inhabit a fictional realm. There, Isobe’s characters enact an allegorical narrative about interconnectedness and individuality. By weaving together whimsical figures with organic structures, My World combines playfulness and complexity, exploring ideas about belonging, memory, and the ways we construct meaning.
In its quest to express the ineffable, Can I See? is both a question and an invitation: to pause, reflect, and imagine what lies beyond the visible.
For more info go here.
“Bernard (Bernie) Boston Retrospective: A Photojournalist, Social Justice Advocate, and Family Man”
McLean Project for the Arts, 1234 Ingleside Ave., McLean. Open: 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Through Feb. 24, 2026.
McLean Project for the Arts (MPA) will open its next Atrium Gallery exhibition, Bernard (Bernie) Boston Retrospective: A Photojournalist, Social Justice Advocate, and Family Man, on Thursday, November 6, 2025, with an Opening Exhibition Reception from 4-6:00 pm.
An award-winning photo journalist, Bernie Boston made history by becoming the first African American member of the White House press corps, covering every president from Truman through Clinton. Boston was a long-time McLean resident, and former Chairman of the McLean Community Center Governing Board (1977-1979). The Atrium Gallery exhibit will feature framed photographs from his fascinating, decades-long career.
Phoebe Mills Farris, Ph.D. (Powhatan-Pamunkey) — a retired Purdue University professor emerita, photographer, and freelance art critic — curated the exhibition.
‘We’re very excited about the exhibit. It’s something new for us, as we usually only work with living artists, and Bernie was more of a journalistic photographer than a strictly artistic one. We are delighted to have the opportunity to collaborate and build community with Historic Pleasant Grove Church,” said Nancy Sausser, MPA Artistic Director.
The exhibit is a collaboration between MPA and the Friends of Historic Pleasant Grove Church in McLean and will be held concurrently in MPA’s Atrium Gallery and at the Historic Pleasant Grove Church. An opening reception for the Pleasant Grove Church exhibition will be held Saturday, November 8, 2025, from 3-5:00 p.m., and will include light refreshments. Visit www.historicpleasantgrove.org to RSVP.
The MPA Atrium Gallery is available for viewing during McLean Community Center operating hours. The Historic Pleasant Grove exhibition is available for viewing December 7 and 21, from 2-4:00 p.m.; January 11 and 25, from 2-4:00 p.m.; and February 8 and 22, from 2-4:00 p.m.
Bernard (Bernie) Boston Retrospective: A Photojournalist, Social Justice Advocate, and Family Man runs through February 24, 2026. The McLean Project for the Arts Emerson Gallery Visit www.mpaart.org for exhibition information. To learn more about Bernie Boston, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernie_Boston.
For more info go here.
Imagining Together:
Share Your Memories and Dreams
Mosaic Arts, The PARC Gallery at Tysons, 8508 Leesburg Pike, Tysons. Through Dec. 13.
MosaicARTs Gallery is proud to partner with Celebrate Fairfax to present Imagining Together: Share Your Memories and Dreams — a community art show that brings together artists of all ages from across the DMV. This special exhibition features work by young artists (ages 7–17) as well as emerging and established adult artists (18+). Through painting, drawing, mixed-media, and more, participants share personal memories and dreams, creating a heartfelt and inspiring collection of stories told through art.
Imagining Together celebrates creativity, connection, and imagination across generations. It’s a space where different voices come together to explore what unites us — and what makes each of us unique. Join us as we celebrate the power of art to bring people together.
For more info go here.
Wild Spaces by Lisa Green
Rare Bird Coffee Roasters, 230 W. Broad St. Free and open to the public. Through Jan. 11.
Local landscape artist Lisa Green will present her new solo exhibition, Wild Spaces, at Rare Bird Coffee Roasters in Falls Church from October 13 through Jan. 11.
Wild Spaces invites visitors to step away from the daily rush and reconnect with the rhythms of the natural world. Through her paintings, Green explores meadows, mountains, and coastlines where shifting light, rich textures, and open space create a sense of presence and wonder.
“Noticing wild spaces, whether they’re vast landscapes or a patch of meadow by the roadside, is essential to my everyday life,” says Green. “When we pay attention to the beauty around us, we build a sense of connection and responsibility. I hope these paintings encourage people to see and value the natural world so that it can be protected and enjoyed by others for years to come.”
The collection includes a range of colorful oil paintings and black and white ink wash paintings, from intimate 8x10 pieces to larger works up to 36x36 inches. All pieces are available for purchase through Green’s website, with QR codes onsite linking directly to the online shop.
Lisa Green is a Herndon–based artist whose work reflects her deep connection to the landscape. Her paintings are collected nationwide and recognized for their luminous color and sense of place.
The exhibition is free and open to the public during Rare Bird’s regular business hours.
For more info go to: www.lisagreenfineart.com.
Rik Freeman: Wade in the Waters
The Phillips Collection, Phillips@THEARC Exhibition, 1801 Mississippi Ave., SE. Free and in-person. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, 12-5:00 p.m., and second and third Wednesdays open until 8:30 p.m. Through Feb. 19.
Pioneering D.C. artist Rik Freeman has been creating paintings and murals that focus on the African diaspora for over three decades. Wade in the Waters features artworks that engage themes of history, community, resilience, joy, and faith. The power and rhythm of water flows through the paintings — from the beaches of Bahia to the Anacostia River — sharing stories of both survival and triumph. Through a kaleidoscope of narratives, the exhibition draws from several of Freeman’s series, exploring waterways and their connection to the diaspora over generations.
About Rik Freeman
A native of Athens, Georgia, Rik Freeman began his professional career as an artist in Washington, D.C. in 1989, painting numerous murals throughout the metropolitan area. Some of his most notable commissions are “Ode to Barry Farms” (2016), Barry Farms Recreation Center; “KNOWLEDGE” (2011), Dorothy I. Height Library, “Learn From Your Past” (2011), H.D. Woodson High School, “Shaw Rhythms” (2003), Washington Convention Center; “ARL@200” (2002), Arlington County Courthouse; and “A Libertade de Maria Felipe” (2012), library in Itaparica, Brazil.
Freeman has widely exhibited his works on canvas, including at the Honfleur Gallery, Hill Center, and the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum. From 2008-11, Freeman’s critically acclaimed series “The Chittlin’ Circuit Review,” based on the early history of Blues music, toured seven venues in seven states. Currently he's working on his series “Black Beaches During Segregation,” which began in 2022 with the support of the Honfleur Artist-in Residence fellowship and award. He is also continuing his series “BAHIA!,” about the African contribution to Brazil’s history and culture and based in part on his two residencies at Instituto Sacatar in Itaparica (2011 and 2015).
For more info go here.
Material Witness
Rubell Museum DC, 65 i Street SW. Through Fall, 2026.
Material Witness presents 30 of today’s most compelling and innovative artists employing non-traditional materials and processes. Squid ink, Coca-Cola, ostrich eggs, anointing oil, lipstick, discarded metal, and animal hides are several of the preformed, natural, and unnatural mediums incorporated into three-dimensional works that expand upon the storied legacy of assemblage — a critical approach to artmaking that was first formalized in the 1961 exhibition The Art of Assemblage at New York’s Museum of Modern Art.
With echoes of land art, Arte Povera, abject art, and readymades these artists employ industrial waste, organic detritus, and mass-produced commodities to explore formal, environmental, political, and social concerns. Found objects in various entropic states provide the backbone for many of these works, illuminating cycles of consumption, decay, and renewal.
Material Witness spans 23 galleries across the museum’s three floors and presents individual artist rooms as well as group presentations connecting artists who share similar materials and motives. For many of these artists, Material Witness represents their first exhibition in our nation’s capital or at the Rubell Museum.
For more info go here.
Basil Kincaid: Spirit in the Gift
Rubell Museum DC, 65 I Street SW. Through Fall, 2026.
Basil Kincaid: Spirit in the Gift marks the first solo museum exhibition in Washington D.C. for Kincaid (b. 1986, St. Louis, Missouri). Four large-scale quilted artworks created during the artist’s residency at the Rubell Museum in Miami in 2023 will be presented in the D.C. museum’s largest gallery. Kincaid’s work pays homage to the long history of quilt-making while exploring the relationships between identity, ancestry, and place. Some themes are deeply personal and autobiographical, others are more universal, but all evoke the joy inherent in the artist’s love for and nurturing of community. The entailed and labor-intensive process of creating these monumental works is balanced by an improvisational, spontaneous, and fluid quality that runs throughout them. The result is as indebted to freehand drawing and jazz music as it is to patchwork quilt making and embroidery.
For more info go here.
A Land and 河/River
Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art, 12001 Market St., #103, Reston. Through Dec. 20.
Kimberly M. Becoat & Hong Hong
A Land and 河/River explores the powerful and intricate relationship between place, our histories, and imaginings of self. Artist Kimberly M. Becoat uses acrylic paint, sumi ink, and watercolor as well as tar paper, candy wrappers, and other detritus to investigate the idea of urban displacement. Her series, Seneca Village – Everywhere explores the idea of Seneca Village; a 19th Century free-black community of landowners in New York City that was removed for the construction of Central Park. Learn more about Seneca Village here.
Hong Hong’s work 河/River is her first thematic, research-based project that considers her personal relationship with water. The paper-based installation imagines and presents water as a long-form poem, documenting the river as meteorological occurrences, the artists’ birth, her family’s immigration process, and texts she and her mother both love. Hong Hong (whose last name means flood) makes no distinction between our symbolic understanding of water, its nurturing properties, or its ability to destroy or divide.
For more info go here.
Fairfax Art League's New Fall Show
Light Up at the National Zoo!
Zoo Lights
Opens Tonight! ~ Smithsonian's National Zoo, 3001 Connecticut Ave., NW, Nov. 21 - Jan. 3, 5:00 - 9:30 p.m., Mondays - Saturdays.; 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Sundays. Last entry 30 minutes before end of event.
Celebrate the holidays at ZooLights! Enjoy twinkling lights and a festive atmosphere as this beloved winter classic returns to the Smithsonian's National Zoo. Journey through magical displays of glowing animal lanterns, watch live musical performances, sip hot cocoa and other festive treats, and explore the Zoo under the dazzling glow of one million environmentally-friendly LED lights.
ZooLights is a family-friendly, conservation-minded holiday tradition — each visit helps support the Zoo’s mission to save species and protect habitats worldwide.
General Admission: $9 per guest (ages 2 and up).
Member Night (Dec. 9–11): Free for members (limit 6 tickets per membership).
Adults-Only Date Night (Dec. 17): $19 per person.
Parking: $30 per vehicle.
For ticket info go here.
Attend a Holiday Art Show & Sale
Glen Echo Holiday Art Show & Sale
Glen Echo, Partnership Galleries, Through Jan. 4. For hours, see below. (Hours may vary.)
With so many unique gifts, the Holiday Art Show & Sale is a great place to shop for everyone on your holiday list! The show features the Park's resident artists and instructors, as well as other invited guests with works in:
Glass | Ceramics | Photography | Painting | Jewelry | Holiday Ornaments | and more!
The Park's major resident visual arts organizations are represented, including the Art Glass Center, Glen Echo Glassworks, Glen Echo Pottery, SilverWorks, Photoworks, the Sculpture Studio, the Stone Tower Studio, and the Yellow Barn Studio.
Hours: Holiday Hours and Gallery Closures listed on the Holiday Art Show & Sale Page.
Popcorn Gallery & Stone Tower Gallery: Thursdays & Fridays, 12:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays, 12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Park View Gallery: Monday - Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Location: Partnership Galleries.
Admission: FREE
For more info go here.
LOCAL HISTORY
Founding Frenemies
Fairfax Museum & Visitor Center, 10209 Main St., Fairfax. Open: 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Through Dec. 8.
Virginians were among Alexander Hamilton's most influential allies and his worst enemies. Hamilton’s relationships with these Virginians helped shape the character of the United States, its founding institutions, and patterns of civil discourse still felt today.
This traveling exhibit will be located at the Fairfax Museum & Visitor Center from October 29 - December 8. The museum is closed on Tuesdays.
For more info go here.
Check Out the Critter Corner at the Winter Walk of Lights!
Winter Walk of Lights: Critter Corner
Meadowlark Gardens, 9750 Meadowlark Gardens Ct., Vienna, Monday, Dec. 1, 5:30 - 10:00 p.m.
Stop by the Critter Corner near the Visitor Center fireplace to meet some fascinating live animals from Potomac Overlook Regional Park’s Nature Center! NOVA Parks' Roving Naturalist will bring some surprise guests like an owl, a turtle, and maybe a snake. Visit before or after exploring the Winter Walk of Lights to see and learn about some interesting critters!
Learn more about Meadowlark's Winter Walk of Lights, taking place Nov. 7 through Jan. 4.
For more info go here.
Enjoy Mount Vernon by Candlelight!
Mount Vernon, 3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway, Mount Vernon, Nov. 28, 29 at 5:00 p.m.
Join us for a candlelit guided tour and hear about holiday traditions in 18th-century Virginia. Learn about the build-up to the American Revolution as we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the year 1775.
The first and second floors of George Washington's Mansion will be open during this event.
Step back in time through history with Mount Vernon on a 45-minute candlelit tour of the estate as we celebrate the build-up to the 250th anniversary of American Independence.
Learn about holiday traditions of 18th-century Virginia, and hear stories of Christmases past from costumed character interpreters portraying Washington’s family, friends, and enslaved or hired staff.
Arrive at the Ford Orientation Center up to 15 minutes before your ticket time to view themed Christmas trees and warm up with light concessions.
Tour the Reopened First & Second Floors of Washington's Mansion
Explore the lantern-lit historic area, stopping at the enslaved people's quarters, outbuildings, and inside Washington’s Mansion.
Step inside George Washington’s home and experience the newly restored first and second floors illuminated in the evening. The Washingtons’ Bedchamber has been transformed with new wallpaper, reproduction furniture, and linens.
For ticket info go here.
Compiled by Christopher Jones
Member discussion