EVENT CATEGORIES
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ART
Wed., May 1, 6 p.m.
Benes and Beyond
The Czech Embassy in collaboration with the National Museum of the Czech Republic presents this reception honoring the late Czechoslovak President Edvard Benes and first lady Hana Benesova, during which time the National Museum will receive significant historical items from the first family that will be on the display at the embassy. The program also includes a presentation on the recently released book “Bohemia on Records: Early Czech Sound Recordings in the United States” by Filip Sir.
Embassy of the Czech Republic
May 3 to June 21
Korean Craft: Yesterday and Today
This exhibition pairs traditional and modern Korean craft arts to evoke both classical sensibilities and clean, contemporary style. Divided into three parts, “Korean Craft” sheds light on the distinct lines and colors embedded in a variety of Korean handicrafts. Complementary aesthetics emerge from bringing together these diverse forms, such as handmade wooden furniture, vibrant costumes and textiles, and elegant household ceramics. This unique exhibition brings together rare historical artifacts from the collection of the Sookmyung Women’s University Museum, including items used in the daily lives of the Sadaebu, the ruling elite class who dominated Korean political and cultural life during the evocative Joseon Dynasty period from the 15th to the 20th centuries, as well as reconstructed and reimagined works by modern craft artists.
Korean Cultural Center
Through May 3
On the Move
When people travel, their private and public spaces overlap. Paths cross and people with different destinations and motivations see their lives intertwined in ways clear as well as subtle, for times periods both extensive and brief. This exhibition explores the connective bonds between individual and collective experiences. Photographs by Juana Barreto Yampey, Helena Giestas and Olivia Vivanco invite visitors to reflect on the continuous movement of people from place to place, walking a blurred line where private and public spaces and experiences overlap.
OAS Art Museum of the Americas
Through May 19
PINK Ranchos and Other Ephemeral Zip Codes
Through this series of interconnected works, Colombian-American artist Carolina Mayorga invites the audience to enter a PINK-mented reality and experience her bicultural interpretations of those living inside ranchos, cambuches, shelters and other ephemeral zip codes. This site-specific multimedia project is the result of a year of artistic investigation on issues of home and homelessness and the artist’s fascination with the color pink. By applying the pigment to women and children (characters typically associated with home), memories of her native Colombia, 14 years of residency in D.C. and AMA’s permanent collection, she has created a pleasing environment to contrast the experiences of those living in exile, displacement, dislocation, relocation and eviction.
OAS Art Museum of the Americas
Through May 19
Zilia Sánchez: Soy Isla (I Am an Island)
The Phillips presents the first museum retrospective of Cuban artist Zilia Sánchez. This long-overdue exhibition examines the artist’s prolific yet largely unknown career that spans almost 70 years, featuring more than 60 works including paintings, works on paper, shaped canvases and sculptural pieces, alongside illustrations, design sketches and ephemera. Many of Sánchez’s works reference protagonists from ancient mythology (such as Trojans, Amazonians, and Antigone—all warriors and female heroines). Others have reoccurring motifs of lunar shapes, erotic topologies and tattoo drawings that map physical and psychological spaces.
The Phillips Collection
May 23 to July 28
Helen Zughaib: Migrations
Inspired by Jacob Lawrence’s 1941 seminal “Migration Series,” Lebanese-born artist Helen Zughaib’s “Syrian Migration Series” allows for an exploration of the contemporary consequences of the post-World War II peace through the lens of the current Syrian conflict and the mass migration it has triggered, focusing In particular on the experiences of refugee women and children. This exhibition is presented to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the 1919 Paris Peace Conference.
Woodrow Wilson House
Through May 26
Testament of the Spirit: Paintings by Eduardo Carrillo
This expansive exhibition of works by Eduardo Carrillo — a painter, teacher and social activist known for advancing recognition of Chicano art and culture in California — features more than 60 paintings and watercolors spanning nearly four decades of the artist’s production, from the late 1950s through the late 1990s. The work reflects on the artist’s relationship to his native California as well as to his Mexican heritage, his early religious upbringing, and the European tradition of art.
American University Museum
Through May 27
In Peak Bloom
Highlighting the fragile beauty and ephemeral nature of the cherry blossoms, “In Peak Bloom” features digital art installations by women artists and female-led art collectives. The works take their inspiration from both the cherry blossoms’ iconic form as well as its traditional symbolism and mythology, calling attention to the passing of time, momentary exchanges and the impermanence that characterizes all life on earth.
Artechouse
Through May 29
Underlying Borders
This exhibition brings together the work of five artists and their experiences of migration between Mexico and the United States. They work from perspectives that seek to reconfigure and blur borders and boundaries, in a game of tension between locations and relocations. The artists explore concepts related to institutionalized notions such as identity, gender or nationality. Through their work, they pretend that these limits or boundaries, manifested as geographic distances or through the act of inhabiting the body or memory, are understood as zones of transition.
Mexican Cultural Institute
Through May 31
Close to the Edge
A vehement insistence on leaving the frame and pushing the limits of the canvas runs through the works of Andrea Fried, Guigui Kohon and Luciana Levington. There is no specific plan, sketch or starting point here but rather an idea that courses through the canvas, overflowing at the margins. As a result, “Close to the Edge” leads us to reflect on this playful roaming and exploring of borders that serve as both a locus of beauty and of agitation.
Embassy of Argentina
Through June 9
A Gaze through the CINTAS Fellowship Program
This exhibition illustrates the efforts of the CINTAS Foundation in promoting the arts of Cubans and descendants of Cubans beyond the island for more than 55 years. It juxtaposes works from the foundation with those of the Art Museum of the Americas collection, showcases artists of the Cuban vanguard such as Hugo Consuegra and Mario Carreño, as well as artists who emerged later in the 20th century such as Andrés Serrano and Ana Mendieta.
OAS Art Museum of the Americas
Through June 20
National Geographic Photo Camp
World-class National Geographic photographers and magazine editors provide students with a personalized, immersive learning experience, inspiring the next generation of photojournalists. Then, through intimate presentations in their own communities and public exhibitions that reach millions of viewers, National Geographic Photo Camp showcases the students’ perspectives on issues that are important to all of us
Kennedy Center Hall of Nations
Through June 30
Siri Berg: Statements
Since the 1960s, Swedish painter and multimedia artist Siri Berg has worked with a geometric abstraction, one both strictly reduced and rich in variation and the visually unexpected. This retrospective provides an exclusive access to a selection of Berg’s vintage and new paintings, offering a different investigative look at the varied interests and aesthetic experimentations of Berg’s career. One exhibition gallery closes on May 12 while the other closes June 30. Part of the Swedish Embassy’s 2019 thematic programming “Smart Societies – Creative & Inclusive”; for information, visit www.swedenabroad.se/en/embassies/usa-washington/current/calendar/.
House of Sweden
Through July 7
Tintoretto: Artist of Renaissance Venice
In celebration of the 500th anniversary of the birth of Jacopo Tintoretto (1518/1519–1594), the National Gallery of Art and the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia presents this major exhibition on the Venetian master. As the first retrospective of the artist in North America, the exhibition will include many significant international loans traveling to the U.S. for the first time. The exhibition will feature nearly 50 paintings and more than a dozen works on paper spanning the artist’s entire career and ranging from regal portraits of Venetian aristocracy to religious and mythological narrative scenes. The exhibit is accompanied by “Drawing in Tintoretto’s Venice” focusing on his work as a draftsman (through June 9) and “Venetian Prints in the Time of Tintoretto” featuring some 40 prints from the second half of the 16th century (through June 9).
National Gallery of Art
Through July 21
The American Pre-Raphaelites: Radical Realists
In celebration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of John Ruskin (1819-1900), the most influential art critic of the Victorian era, the National Gallery will present more than 90 paintings, watercolors, and drawings created by American artists who were profoundly influenced by Ruskin’s call for a revolutionary change in the practice of art.
National Gallery of Art
Through July 28
Ursula von Rydingsvard: The Contour of Feeling
This major exhibition celebrating one of the most influential sculptors working today marks the most ambitious Ursula von Rydingsvard exhibition to date in the United States and her first solo exhibition in Washington, D.C. Featuring 30 sculptures, a wall installation and 10 works on paper, the exhibition focuses on the artist’s signature works — monumental, organic-shaped sculptures made from carved cedar wood — as well as other pieces that are on view in this project for the first time.
National Museum of Women in the Arts
Through Aug. 11
Forward Press: 21st-Century Printmaking
Ten innovative print artists from across the United States employ the finest examples of hand-printed and digital techniques, creating works that reinterpret centuries-old printmaking techniques in the digital age, exploring themes of culture, identity, religion, environment, memory, and art history.
American University Museum
Through Sept. 15
Oliver Lee Jackson: Recent Paintings
American painter, printmaker, and sculptor Oliver Lee Jackson (b. 1935) has created a complex body of work which masterfully weaves together visual influences ranging from the Renaissance to modernism with principles of rhythm and improvisation drawn from his study of African cultures and American jazz.
National Gallery of Art
Through Sept. 29
Good as Gold: Fashioning Senegalese Women
In the cities of the West African nation of Senegal, stylish women have often used jewelry as part of an overall strategy of exhibiting their elegance and prestige. Rooted in the Wolof concept of sañse (dressing up, looking and feeling good), “Good as Gold” examines the production, display, and circulation of gold in Senegal as it celebrates a significant gift of gold jewelry to the National Museum of African Art’s collection.
National Museum of African Art
Through Oct. 20
Striking Iron: The Art of African Blacksmiths
More than 225 works of art — including blades and currencies in myriad shapes and sizes, wood sculptures studded with iron, musical instruments and elaborate body adornments — reveal the histories of invention and technical sophistication that led African blacksmiths to transform one of Earth’s most fundamental natural resources into objects of life-changing utility, empowerment, prestige, artistry and spiritual potency.
National Museum of African Art
Through Oct. 27
Revolutionary Reflections: French Memories of the War for America
This exhibition explores how the French king’s officers understood the American Revolution and their role in the achievement of American independence, and how they remembered the war in the years that followed—years of revolutionary upheaval in France that included the execution of the king and many of their brothers-in-arms.
American Revolution Institute of the Society of the Cincinnati
Through Nov. 17
Portraits of the World: Korea
Pioneering feminist artist Yun Suknam (born 1939) uses portraiture to gain insights into the lives of women, past and present. A wood assemblage portrait of her mother is the centerpiece of this exhibition, which includes portraits of American artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Louise Nevelson, Marisol, Kiki Smith and Nancy Spero.
National Portrait Gallery
Through 2019
Urban Challenges
According to the U.N., 2.5 billion people are expected to live in cities by 2050. This will force cities to find new ways to handle the increased demands on natural resources, housing and infrastructure. This exhibition presents some of the social, economic and technological solutions proposed by Sweden to absorb the impact of our rapidly growing urban environment while leaving the environmental legacy next generations deserve. Come and find out more about Guerilla Crafts, Democratic Architecture and the mixed reality Block Builder application in large-scale environments. Part of the Swedish Embassy’s 2019 thematic programming “Smart Societies – Creative & Inclusive”; for information, visit www.swedenabroad.se/en/embassies/usa-washington/current/calendar/.
House of Sweden
Through Jan. 5, 2020
A Monument to Shakespeare
The Folger Shakespeare Library is throwing back the curtains on its origins and exciting future in an exhibition where visitors are invited to play, lounge, be curious and see more of the Folger Shakespeare Library than ever before. Among the treats: rummage through Henry Folger’s desk and read the correspondences that brought the Folger to the nation’s capital; explore large scale reproductions of Cret’s detailed architectural drawings, newly digitized for this exhibition; and visit the first complete edition of Shakespeare’s plays published in 1623.
Folger Shakespeare Library
DANCE
May 28 to June 2
Ballet Across America with Dance Theatre of Harlem and Miami City Ballet
The fifth “Ballet Across America” series returns, featuring full engagements from renowned companies Dance Theatre of Harlem and Miami City Ballet plus a spectacular shared celebration program. Tickets are $29 to $119.
Kennedy Center Opera House
DISCUSSIONS
Sat., May 4, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Art and Architecture in Medieval Siena: Reverence and Rivalry in the City of the Virgin
The Tuscan city of Siena was one of the most important in medieval Europe, as well as the main political, economic, and artistic rival of its neighboring city of Florence. Rocky Ruggiero, a specialist in the Early Renaissance, examines the religious and civic art and architecture in Siena in order to understand the city’s unique beauty and its competitive relationship with Florence. Tickets are $140; for information, visit www.smithsonianassociates.org.
S. Dillon Ripley Center
Mon., May 13, 6:45 p.m.
Hiking the Jordan Trail
Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed all walked parts of the same path, a zigzagging trail that meanders the full length of Jordan from Syria to Saudi Arabia. Packed with famous historical sites like the ruins of Petra and the preserved Roman works of Jerash, the path unveils timeless customs and dream-like scenes such as Bedouin herds and distant camel caravans. Explorer and author Andrew Evans is one of the first Americans to hike the complete new Jordan Trail. With video, vivid images and compelling personal stories, Evans shares the experience his 40-day walk across the country. Tickets are $45; for information, visit www.smithsonianassociates.org.
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Tue., May 14, 6:45 p.m.
Here It Comes: The Future Is Asian
If the 19th century featured the Europeanization of the world, and the 20th century its Americanization, then the 21st century is the time of Asianization. From investment portfolios to trade wars, Hollywood movies to holiday travels, the influence of Asia on our lives continues to grow. Asian economic and technological self-sufficiency is exploding. Drawing on his new book “The Future Is Asian: Commerce, Conflict and Culture in the 21st Century,” global strategy advisor Parag Khanna examines why the Asian century is a phenomenon larger than we thought. Tickets are $140; for information, visit www.smithsonianassociates.org.
Location TBA
FESTIVALS
May 1 to 31
Passport DC
This month-long journey around the world highlights D.C.’s thriving international diplomatic community and its lively and varied culture. Celebrated annually in May, which is International Cultural Awareness Month in Washington, Passport DC is 31 days of programming by 70 embassies and some of D.C.’s very best cultural institutions. In 2018, more than 250,000 people enjoyed the popular embassy open houses, street festivals, performances, exhibitions, workshops and more. Highlights include the Around the World Embassy Tour on May 4, Flower Mart at the Washington National Cathedral on May 3 and 4, and the Fiesta Asia! Street Festival on May 18. For information, visit www.culturaltourismdc.org/portal/passport-dc1.
Various locations
Sat., May 11, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
European Union Open House
In the popular annual open house, visitors will get a rare glimpse inside the embassies of the 28 EU member states where they can experience European national traditions and interact with diplomats. Visitors can pick up an EU “passport” and make their way across the city, receiving stamps at embassies while enjoying a vast array of European dance, song, culture, food and much more. This annual tradition is in celebration of Europe Day, which marks the founding of the European Union as we know it today. For information, visit www.euopenhouse.org.
Various locations
May 16 to Sept. 9
Fair Water: A Right of All
Inspired by the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Embassy of Spain – in collaboration with the Mexican Cultural Institute, the Water and Sanitation Cooperation Fund from the Spanish Cooperation, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade and other institutions – presents a series of events dedicated to the right to safe drinking water and sanitation in the fields of diplomacy, human rights, sustainable development, and arts and culture. The events will include panels regarding efforts by key partners striving to make the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation a reality for all, bringing together their different experiences in a variety of fields. The program will also focus on the relation between art, the right to water and sustainability issues featuring public installation art, film screenings, video art projections and art workshops. For information, visit www.spainculture.us/city/washington-dc/fair-water-a-right-of-all/.
Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain
GALAS
Fri., May 10
The Phillips Collection Annual Gala
The 2019 Phillips Collection Annual Gala, “Mexico: A Land of Beauty,” celebrates the art and culture of Mexico. This summer, the Phillips Collection will present “The Warmth of Other Suns: Stories of Global Displacement,” which features the work of 60 artists including many from Mexico. Following dinner at the museum, the Phillips will hosts its Contemporaries Bash, “Maravillas de México,” inspired by Mexico’s vibrancy and beauty. This sensational evening brings together the art and culture of Mexico, stunning in its unique diversity, in one night of creative cocktails, fantastic food, magnetizing music and dazzling dancing. All proceeds go to the Phillips Collection’s education and community engagement programs. For information, visit www.phillipscollection.org/support/annual-gala.
The Phillips Collection
Fri., May 10
The Washington Ballet Annual Gala
The Washington Ballet hosts its annual spring gala at The Anthem concert venue at The Wharf with the theme of “Illuminate and Ignite,” which will spotlight the talents of the company’s dancers. For ticket information, visit www.washingtonballet.org/events/ballet-gala/.
The Anthem
Sat., May 18, 6 p.m.
Christine Goerke, Soloman Howard & More: 2019 WNO Opera Gala Concert
Grammy-winning Christine Goerke, bass Soloman Howard and soprano Latonia Moore join this year’s grand finale to the Washington National Opera season with a spectacular concert celebrating WNO Trustee John J. Pohanka, hosted by Tony Award-winning actress Christine Ebersole. Tickets are $45 to $250.
Kennedy Center Opera House
MUSIC
Sat., May 4, 8 p.m.
The Philharmonix Golden Rule: Anything Goes, As Long As It’s Fun
The members of the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras will leave their tuxedos and all inhibitions behind when they take the Sixth & I stage as the Philharmonix — a rip-roaring, seriously swinging chamber ensemble with repertoire ranging from Satie to Sting, from Brahms’s “Hungarian Dances” to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” — with plenty of jazz, klezmer, Latin music and more mixed in for good measure. Tickets are $40.
Sixth & I
Sun., May 5, 4 p.m.
Silkroad Ensemble: Heroes Take Their Stands
“Heroes Take Their Stands” is an evening-length, multimedia work in five parts — a cycle of stories that spans time, space and human experience. Tickets are $25 to $75.
Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater
Wed., May 8, 7:30 p.m.
Czech Boys’ Choir Boni Peuri
Founded in 1982, the Czech boys’ choir Boni Pueri is one of Europe’s leading ensembles, carrying on the tradition of a choir that has been active in the Metropolitan Chapter of St. Vitus in Prague since 1252. The present choir, which has 200 members ranging in age from 4 to 19, has performed more than 3,000 concerts throughout the world. This concert includes Czech and Slovak folk songs, works by classical masters such as Antonin Dvorak and a Hollywood medley featuring music from such films as “Star Wars,” “The Mission” and “Skyfall.” Admission is free but registration is required and can be made at https://bonipuerichoir.eventbrite.com.
Washington D.C. Temple Visitor’s Center
Thu., May 9, 7:30 p.m.
Washington Performing Arts: Weilerstein, Barnatan, Khachatryan & Currie – Transfigured Nights
Four transcendent musicians — each an in-demand soloist on the international scene — explore a fascinating program anchored by works that have been “transfigured” through the act of transcription. Tickets are $65 to $75.
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater
Sun., May 12, 7:30 p.m.
Pan American Symphony Orchestra: Eternal Tango
The Pan American Symphony Orchestra presents its signature show, thrilling audiences with the seductive combination of passion and elegance of Argentine tango. Tickets are $55 to $65.
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater
Tue., May 14, 7 p.m.
Hanna Bachmann and Isabel Pfefferkorn
These two musicians from Austria will present “Desert Scream/Wüstenschrei,” which is Isabel Pfefferkorn’s own composition, and will highlight Austria’s new and contemporary music. The second music piece will be their interpretation of “Winter Journey/Winterreise” from well-known composer Franz Schubert. Admission is free but registration is required and can be made at http://acfdc.org.
Embassy of Austria
Sun., May 19, 5 p.m.
The Choral Arts Society of Washington: Gabriel Faure – Requiem
Be transported by Fauré’s transcendent Requiem performed alongside Psalm settings by Florent Schmitt and Lili Boulanger. Tickets are $15 to $69.
Kennedy Center Concert Hall
Tue., May 21, 7:30 p.m.
Unexpected Italy: Mario Bondi
With a trademark deep voice reminiscent of Barry White, Isaac Hayes and Lou Rawls, singer and composer Mario Biondi makes music passionately, while at the same time lighthearted and ironic. Biondi puts a new spin on jazz — his Italian heritage and love of soul music shaping his unique style. Tickets are $25.
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater
Thu., May 23, 7:30 p.m.
Fortas Chamber Music: Russian Renaissance
With classic Russian instruments, “Russian Renaissance” dexterously melds traditional folk music with an infusion of modernity. Their program reflects this diversity with its broad range of works by classical composers to jazz favorites. Tickets are $29
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater
Fri., May 24, 7 p.m.
I-Jung Huang, Violin
Taiwanese violinist I-Jung Huang is the top prizewinner of 2017 Ima Hogg Concerto Competition and 2016 Hudson Valley String Competition; the Laureate of the 2015 Michael Hill International Violin Competition; the top prizewinner of TSO “The Young Talent” competition; and was the youngest musician selected at the Young Artist Taiwan Bank in 2011. She performs a program of Vitali, Schubert and Franck, preceded by a lecture. Tickets are $90, including reception and valet parking; for information, visit www.embassyseries.org.
Anderson House
THEATER
May 1 to June 2
The Children
In their remote cottage on the British coast, a long-married pair of retired nuclear physicists live a modest life in the aftermath of a natural disaster, giving scrupulous care to energy rationing, their garden and their yoga practice. When former colleague Rose reappears after 38 years, her presence upends the couple’s equilibrium and trust. As the fallout from long-ago decisions comes hurtling into view, Rose unveils a proposal that threatens more than their marriage. Please call for ticket information.
Studio Theatre
May 7 to 9, 7:30 p.m.
The Chibok Girls: Our Story
The U.S. premiere of Wole Oguntokun and the Renegade Theatre’s searing work of testimonial theater chronicles the abduction of 276 girls from their school in the Nigerian town of Chibok by the Boko Haram in 2014, and the enduring reverberations of their story. Please visit https://globallab.georgetown.edu/crosscurrentsfestival/ for ticket information.
The Davis Performing Arts Center
May 9 to June 9
Fame the Musical
Based on the 1980 musical film of the same name, “Fame the Musical” follows the highs and lows of the final class of New York City’s illustrious High School for the Performing Arts from their freshman year to their graduation. Touching on complex issues such as racial prejudice, drug abuse and sexual exploitation, it tells the story of several of the students, depicting their struggles, triumphs and tempestuous relationships as they explore the realities of striving for a career in showbusiness (in English and Spanish). Tickets are $65.
GALA Hispanic Theatre
May 11 to 25
Washington National Opera: Tosca
Love gets political in Puccini’s striking drama set against 18th-century Rome. Passionate singer Tosca takes matters into her own hands when dreaded chief of police Scarpia hunts for her lover. But no one is guaranteed to get out alive. Tickets are $35 to $300.
Kennedy Center Opera House
Through May 15
Richard III
Highlighting the terrifying extremes made possible through the abuse of modern technology, the 14th installment in Paata Tsikurishvili’s Wordless Shakespeare Series will explore King Richard III’s rise to power in an all-new movement-driven, futuristic adaptation. Tickets start at $35.
Synetic Theater
Through May 19
Grand Hotel
It is 1928 and Berlin is at the center of a razzle-dazzle world between two wars. At the bustling Grand Hotel, a series of eclectic guests and staff, including a fading ballerina, a destitute baron, a wannabe-starlet typist and an ailing bookkeeper, collide in a non-stop musical toast to the high life. Please call for ticket information.
Signature Theatre
Through May 22
Into the Woods
In Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s imaginative, darkly comical remix of beloved fairytales, a baker and his wife set out to reverse a witch’s curse in hopes of having a child of their own. The couple’s quest takes them into the woods, where they encounter Little Red Ridinghood, Jack and his beanstalk, a cautious Cinderella, a sequestered Rapunzel and a couple of lovelorn princes. Tickets are $20 to $83.
Ford’s Theatre
Through May 26
The White Snake
Constellation Theatre presents this radiant retelling of one of China’s oldest and most beloved legends. Forsaking their lonely mountaintop for just one day, enlightened animal spirits White Snake and Green Snake magically transform into beautiful women to experience the human world. There, White Snake meets and falls passionately in love with the humble pharmacist’s assistant Xu Xian, but the secret of her true identity soon comes back to haunt her. Please call for ticket information.
Constellation Theatre Company
May 27 to June 23
Describe the Night
In 1920, Russian Jewish writer Isaac Babel starts a diary while wandering the countryside with the Red Cavalry. In 2010, after the crash of an aircraft carrying the Polish president, his diary is discovered among the wreckage. What did Babel write, and why does it matter so much to a low-level KGB agent who may or may not be Vladimir Putin? Please call for ticket information.
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
Through June 2
Ellen McLaughlin’s The Orchestra
Through 10 years of war, grief and rage, Queen Clytemnestra lies in wait for her husband Agamemnon’s return, determined to avenge one child, only to doom the others. The sole surviving trilogy in Greek tragedy, “The Oresteia” chronicles a deluge of violence that can only be stopped when society peers into its own soul and sees the depths of its complicity. Please call for ticket information.
Shakespeare Theatre Company
Through June 2
Jubilee
Inspired by the world-renowned Fisk Jubilee Singers, Tazewell Thompson’s inspirational a cappella new work chronicles the bold African American ensemble as they travel the world, captivating kings, queens and audiences with hymns and spiritual songs supported by their rich voices. Tickets are $41 to $95.
Arena Stage
Through June 9
Love’s Labor Lost
A young king and his three confidants renounce the company of women in favor of scholarly pursuits. Their pact is immediately jeopardized, however, when the Princess of France and her three companions arrive. Will the men stand resolute and keep their monastic vows — or surrender to the charms of the opposite sex? Tickets are $42 to $85.
Folger Theatre
