EVENT CATEGORIES

ART 

Through Dec. 4

The Early Days: Hip-Hop Culture in the German Democratic Republic

As hip-hop spread around the globe in the early 1980s — and even behind the Iron Curtain — it also excited youth in the German Democratic Republic whose new passion not only challenged the People’s Police (Volkspolizei) and the Stasi, but also the socialist youth organizations whose plans did not allow for youth subcultures.

German Historical Institute

Dec. 5 to April 12

Picturing Mary: Woman, Mother, Idea

For millennia, Mary has been one of the most popular subjects in the history of Western art. This landmark exhibition of more than 60 beautiful depictions of the Virgin Mary explores the concept of womanhood represented by Mary and the power her image has exerted through time.

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Through Dec. 12

Divinités noires

The French Cultural Service in partnership with FotoWeekDC presents this stunning photography exhibition by Dany Leriche and Jean Michel Fickinger. Unveiling a collection of large-scale photographs printed on canvas and tarpaulin, these portraits were taken by the French artists in Togo and Benin on the occasion of ritual ceremonies. Contrary to the ethnographic use of photography, the models used here become active subjects rather than mere objects of observation.

Embassy of France

Dec. 13 to June 14

Zen, Tea, and Chinese Art in Medieval Japan

Zen Buddhism, tea and ink painting — well-known expressions of Japanese culture — have their roots in Chinese arts and ideas brought to medieval Japan from the late 12th to the 16th century. Chinese and Japanese paintings, lacquer ware and ceramics illuminate this remarkable period of cultural contact and synthesis.

Freer Gallery of Art

Dec. 14 and 15

ReUse, ReTouch, ReDutch

The Dutch Embassy and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines showcase the best in sustainable design with the pop-up exhibition that includes clothes that generate energy, baskets made out of used flip-flops and chairs from used refrigerators. “ReUse, ReTouch, ReDutch” highlights more than 50 examples of sustainable and social Dutch design that can be seen in everyday life. “ReUse, ReTouch, ReDutch” is part of Holland on the Hill, a joint program of the Netherlands Embassy, the Dutch Caucus, corporate partners and the Netherland America Foundation to strengthen the ties between the Netherlands and the United States. For information, visit http://dc.the-netherlands.org.

Royal Netherlands Embassy

Through Dec. 15

The Wall in Our Heads: American Artists and the Berlin Wall

To mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, an exhibition of American artists’ reflections on the Berlin Wall and an outdoor installation of photos by German artist Kai Wiedenhöfer form the visual framework for more than a dozen events at the Goethe-Institut around the commemoration of the fall of the Berlin Wall and critical observation about the many new walls that have been put up since then.

Goethe-Institut

Through Dec. 18

Iter: Photo Exhibit by Renato D’Agostin

In Renato D’Agostin’s photographs, location immediately looses its identity, as images from around the world focus on the city, the one we all want to escape from but which sticks to us like an occasionally painful shell.

Embassy of Italy

Through Dec. 19

A Different View of Vienna

Barbara Zeidler has set out to discover museums in Vienna that are open to the public but off the beaten track, away from any Museum Mile or Art Quarter. Some of her discoveries are not even mentioned in guidebooks. This unique display offers a fuller picture of Vienna, a city steeped in culture and museums.

Embassy of Austria

Through Dec. 31

Cartier: Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Dazzling Gems

One of Cartier’s most important and enduring clients, Marjorie Merriweather Post commissioned some of the most exquisite jewelry sets, fashionable accessories and finely crafted jeweled frames of any American collector.

Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens

Through Dec. 31

Imagine Art in Nature

At Wanås, with its white castle and beautiful park, international artists create new site- specific sculptures and installations for the garden, the art gallery and various indoor spaces on the grounds. Now it’s your chance to see a selection of the actual site-specific pieces rendered by Swedish and American artists, together with films, models, photos and sketches.

House of Sweden

Through Dec. 31

Titian’s Danaë from the Capodimonte Museum, Naples

One of the most sensual paintings of the Italian Renaissance, Titian’s “Danaë” from the Capodimonte Museum in Naples will be on view to celebrate the commencement of Italy’s presidency of the Council of the European Union.

National Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 1

Celebrating 25 Years on Pennsylvania Avenue

To mark the Canadian Embassy’s 25th anniversary, this exhibit of photos, commentary, historical records and objects traces the evolution of Canada’s diplomatic presence in D.C., the history of the embassy at 501 Pennsylvania Avenue, and the many ways in which the embassy reflects and continues to shape the friendship between Canada and the United States.

Embassy of Canada

Through Jan. 4

Captain Linnaeus Tripe: Photographer of India and Burma, 1852-1860

In the first major traveling exhibition of photographs by Captain Linnaeus Tripe (1822-1902), some 60 works will include early pictures he took in England as well as the outstanding body of work he produced in India and Burma (now Myanmar) in the 1850s.

National Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 4

En Pie de Foto: Terrorism – A Crime Against Humanity

The Foundation for Victims of Terrorism, in collaboration the Permanent Observer Mission of Spain to the OAS, presents the visual and literally exhibition that denounces terrorism as a mass violation of human rights, while at the same time honoring victims by promoting the global effort toward a more just world of freedom from violence.

Art Museum of the Americas

Through Jan. 4

One Nation With News for All

Ethnic newspapers, radio, television and online publications have helped millions of immigrants to America become part of their new country while preserving their ties to their native lands. This exhibit tells the dramatic story of how immigrants and minorities used the power of the press to fight for their rights and shape the American experience.

Newseum

Through Jan. 4

A Tribute to Anita Reiner

The Phillips Collection hosts a tribute exhibition in memory of Anita Reiner — one of D.C.’s most active art collectors and a longtime friend of the Phillips who passed away Aug. 15, 2013 — with 13 works in a variety of media from Reiner’s wide-ranging and highly personal collection of contemporary art.

The Phillips Collection

Through Jan. 9

What We Have Within

Possibilities to externalize and communicate essential aspects of our psyche, beliefs, affiliations or sexual orientations are increasing in modern societies, where freedom of expression is a fundamental right. The artists in this exhibition promote this right, breaking with convention and reinforcing the desire for free and genuine expression.

Art Museum of the Americas

Through Jan. 11

Degas’s Little Dancer

“Little Dancer Aged Fourteen” (1878–81), Edgar Degas’s groundbreaking statuette of a young ballerina that caused a sensation at the 1881 impressionist exhibition, takes center stage in an exploration of Degas’s fascination with ballet and his experimental, modern approach to his work.

National Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 11

Neo-Impressionism and the Dream of Realities: Painting, Poetry, Music

With more than 70 paintings and works on paper, this exhibition demonstrates how the neo-impressionists employed stylization and a deliberate orchestration of color to create landscapes and figures that went far beyond observed nature to accentuate subjectivity and an inner world of experience.

The Phillips Collection

Through Jan. 11

Salvatore Scarpitta: Traveler

A fascinating and singular figure in postwar art, Salvatore Scarpitta (1919-2007) created a powerful body of work that ranges from nonobjective abstraction to radical realism.

Hirshhorn Museum

Through Jan. 19

Magna Carta: Muse and Mentor

“Magna Carta: Muse and Mentor,” which features the Lincoln Cathedral Magna Carta, the great charter of rights and liberties, one of only four surviving copies of the original issue in 1215, celebrates the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, telling the story of the charter’s creation in England, reinterpretation through the centuries and emergence as an enduring document of constitutional law in the United States.

Library of Congress

Thomas Jefferson Building

Through Jan. 25

From the Library: The Book Illustrations by Romeyn de Hooghe

Artistically gifted and socially well connected, Romeyn de Hooghe (1645–1708) can help us to unravel the complexities of the late Dutch Golden Age, particularly through his vast and varied oeuvre of book illustrations.

National Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 31

Contemporary Identities/Invisible Gestures

Showcasing the immense cultural diversity of Iberoamerica through the art of photography, this exhibit features work from artists from 18 different countries of Latin America, Portugal and Spain, centering on the relationship between identity and the self in a digital world.

Mexican Cultural Institute

Through Feb. 1

From Neoclassicism to Futurism: Italian Prints and Drawings, 1800–1925

The visual arts in Italy between the first stirrings of nationalistic sentiment and its corruption into Fascism — the long development of the modern Italian state — remained extraordinarily diverse and vital. The National Gallery of Art has in recent years begun to develop a collection of Italian prints and drawings of this period that is surpassed only by the holdings of Italy’s principal museums.

National Gallery of Art

Through Feb. 1

Modern American Prints and Drawings from the Kainen Collection

The final in a series of three exhibitions celebrating the generous bequest of Ruth Cole Kainen, this show explores the first seven decades of 20th-century American art.

National Gallery of Art

Through Feb. 1

Modern and Contemporary Art in the Dominican Republic: Works from the Customs Office Collection

This scenic view and historic sketch of 30 artworks showcases the consistency, quality and diversity of the Collection of the Directorate General of Customs, which stands as one of the more important creative spaces in the region.

Art Museum of the Americas

Through Feb. 6

War from the Victims’ Perspective: Photographs by Jean Mohr

In partnership with the Swiss Embassy, Geneva-born photographer Jean Mohr presents images of war, from young refugees to destroyed buildings, to mark the 150th anniversaries of the International Committee of the Red Cross and the 1864 Geneva Convention.

Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars

Through Feb. 16

El Greco in the National Gallery of Art and Washington-Area Collections: A 400th Anniversary Celebration

On the 400th anniversary of El Greco’s death, the National Gallery of Art — with one of the largest number of the artist’s works in the United States — presents a commemorative exhibition of El Greco’s paintings.

National Gallery of Art

Through Feb. 26

Decoding the Renaissance

During the Renaissance, the art and science of cryptography came into its own. The advent of printing, development of diplomacy and creation of postal systems created an obsession with encryption that produced some of the period’s most brilliant inventions, most beautiful books and most enduring legacies. This exhibition features the best collection ever assembled of early works on codes and ciphers.

Folger Shakespeare Library

Through March 22

Nasta’liq: The Genius of Persian Calligraphy

More than 20 works ranging in date from 1400 to 1600 form the first exhibition of its kind to focus on nasta‛liq, a calligraphic script that developed in the 14th century in Iran and remains one of the most expressive forms of aesthetic refinement in Persian culture to this day.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Through April 12

Days of Endless Time

This exhibit presents 14 installations that offer prismatic vantage points into the suspension and attenuation of time or that create a sense of timelessness, with themes such as escape, solitude, enchantment and the thrall of nature.

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

Through May 31

Style in Chinese Landscape Painting: The Yuan Legacy

Landscape painting is one of the most outstanding achievements of Chinese culture. Key styles in this genre emerged during the Yuan dynasty (1279–1368) and are still followed today.

Freer Gallery of Art

Through May 31

The Traveler’s Eye: Scenes of Asia

Featuring more than 100 works created over the past five centuries, “The Traveler’s Eye: Scenes of Asia” provides glimpses of travels across the Asian continent, from pilgrimages and research trips to expeditions for trade and tourism.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Through June 7

Perspectives: Chiharu Shiota

Performance and installation artist Chiharu Shiota, Japan’s representative at the 56th Venice Biennale in 2015, will recreate a monumental yet intimate work in the Sackler pavilion that amasses personal memories through an accumulation of nearly 400 individual shoes, each with a note from the donor describing lost individuals and past moments.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Through June 7

Unearthing Arabia: The Archaeological Adventures of Wendell Phillips

Wendell Phillips, a young paleontologist and geologist, headed one of the largest archaeological expeditions to remote South Arabia (present-day Yemen) from 1949 to 1951. Through a selection of unearthed objects as well as film and photography shot by the expedition team, the exhibition highlights Phillips’s key finds, recreates his adventures (and misadventures), and conveys the thrill of discovery on this important great archaeological frontier.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Through Sept. 13

Chief S.O. Alonge: Photographer to the Royal Court of Benin, Nigeria

This retrospective showcases the work of noted Nigerian photographer Chief S.O. Alonge, the first indigenous photographer of the Royal Court of Benin, in conjunction with royal arts from the Benin kingdom. The collection of historic photographs was captured on Kodak glass-plate negatives and documents more than 50 years of the ritual, pageantry and regalia of the obas (kings), their wives and retainers.

National Museum of African Art

DANCE

Dec. 4 to 28

The Nutcracker

On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of his highly acclaimed production, Septime Webre is planning some special surprises for his celebrated all-American “Nutcracker,” a gorgeous production set in 1882 Georgetown that showcases the grandeur of the Washington Ballet’s international roster of dancers and majesty of Tchaikovsky’s music. Please call for ticket information.

The Warner Theatre

MUSIC

Wed., Dec. 3, 7:30 p.m.

Andrea Eckert Performing ‘Lotte and Great, Two Ladies from Vienna’

Lotte Lenya and Greta Keller, two extraordinary performers, whose lives were bifurcated by war, are at the heart of this program. Singing in German, English and French, the renowned Austrian actress and singer Andrea Eckert takes us on a thrilling journey through the lives, loves and losses of these two remarkable performers. Admission is free but registration is required; for information, visit http://acfdc.org.

Embassy of Austria

Wed., Dec. 3, 6:30 p.m.

Ricardo Cobo, Colombia

In this concert homage to Gabriel García Márquez (1927-2014), renowned Colombian guitarist Ricardo Cobo performs works from the region where García Márquez was raised. The program will also include Caribbean composers from Cuba and Venezuela, and a world debut of a musical piece inspired by García Márquez called “Romanzas de Rioacha,” by the Chilean composer Javier Farías as part of his “Seis Miradas por Latinoamérica” honoring the six Nobel Prize winners from Latin America.

Inter-American Development Bank Cultural Center

Enrique V. Iglesias Auditorium

Fri., Dec. 5, 7:30 p.m.

Kariné Poghosyan, Piano

Kariné Poghosyan has performed in recitals at Carnegie’s Well Recital Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, Steinway Hall, the Young Artists International Peninsula Festival in California and many other venues. She performs a program of Komitas, Khachaturian, Beethoven and more. Tickets are $80, including Armenian buffet; for information, visit www.embassyseries.org.

Embassy of Armenia

Tue., Dec. 9, 7:30 p.m.

Sex, Drugs and Serafin

Daniel Serafin takes the audience on a rollicking journey to the edge of the underworld, spanning two continents and three languages. Serafin, a native of Vienna, interprets music from the ’20s, ’30s, and ’40s. Admission is free but registration is required; for information, visit http://acfdc.org.

Embassy of Austria

Fri., Dec. 12, 7:30 p.m.

Remembering the Battle of the Bulge

Cabaret artist Karen Kohler, tenor Joshua Glassman, pianist George Peachey, and MC Robin Philips perform cabaret and World War I and II songs with a connection to the Battle of the Bulge, a decisive event in the war that marks its 70th anniversary this month. Tickets are $150, including buffet and wine; for information, visit www.embassyseries.org.

Embassy of Luxembourg

Sun., Dec. 14, 7:30 p.m.

Pro Musica Hebraica: Zion’s Muse: Three Generations of Israeli Composers

In this 2014 Hanukkah-timed concert, Pro Musica Hebraica presents the young Israeli virtuosos of the Ariel Quartet to trace the arc of modern Israeli music. Tickets are $44.

Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

Dec. 14 to 22

The Washington Chorus: A Candlelight Christmas

With brass, organ, percussion, harp, and the 200-voice chorus, this beloved holiday event features Christmas classics, sing-alongs, theatrical lighting and the glorious candlelight processional. Tickets are $15 to $70.

Kennedy Center Concert Hall

Dec. 15 to 24

The Choral Arts Society of Washington: A Capital Christmas

Hear the Choral Arts Chorus perform your holiday favorites, enjoy carols from Argentina, this year’s embassy partner, and experience the versatility of Jeff “Skunk” Baxter on his guitars, which will showcase sounds that range from warm and rich to almost like the sounds of a harp or the singing voice. Tickets are $15 to $75.

Kennedy Center Concert Hall

Dec. 18 to 21

National Symphony Orchestra: Handel’s Messiah

Get in the holiday spirit with Handel’s epic masterpiece, performed each year with a fresh perspective by the NSO and acclaimed guest artists. This year, Nicholas McGegan conducts four gifted singers and the Washington Chorus in this NSO tradition. Tickets are $10 to $85.

Kennedy Center Concert Hall

Sat., Dec. 20, 8 p.m.,

Sun., Dec. 21, 4 p.m.

Vienna Boys Choir: Christmas in Vienna

Few experiences capture the wonder and magic of the holiday season quite like these remarkable Austrian youngsters in their annual Christmas concert. Their spirited performance features everything from ancient hymns and traditional Christmas carols to popular holiday favorites and songs from across the globe. Tickets are $30 to $50

George Mason University Center for the Arts

THEATER

Dec. 2 to Jan. 11

The Tempest

Trickery and magic, romance and revenge set the stage for one of Shakespeare’s late masterpieces, in which sprites, goddesses and fools hold court. Please call for ticket prices.

The Shakespeare Theatre

Through Dec. 7

Julius Caeser

Folger Theatre launches its 2014-15 season in Rome with Shakespeare’s enduring political tragedy and epic portrayal of the battle between ambition and honor, conspiracy and loyalty. Tickets are $40 to $75.

Folger Shakespeare Library

Dec. 9 to Jan. 25

Diner

Christmas, Baltimore, 1959: A circle of childhood friends reunite for the upcoming wedding of one of them. From the comfort of their all-night diner, the men, now in their early-twenties, confront the realities of adulthood: marriage, careers, money and the ever-mysterious opposite sex. Please call for ticket prices.

Signature Theatre

Through Dec. 14

As You Like It

All the world’s a stage in “As You Like It,” one of Shakespeare’s fullest comedies, where poetry, mistaken identities and true love lost and found abound. Please call for ticket prices.

The Shakespeare Theatre

Dec. 16 to Jan. 4

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Democrat

Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical about the trials and triumphs of Israel’s favorite son features Broadway stars and “American Idol” sensations, husband-and-wife duo Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young. Tickets are $25 to $155.

Kennedy Center Opera House

Through Dec. 21

Bad Jews

The night after their grandfather’s funeral, three cousins engage in a verbal battle royale over a family heirloom. In one corner is “Super Jew” Daphna: volatile, self-assured and unbending. In the other, Liam: secular, entitled and just as stubborn. And in the middle, Liam’s brother Jonah tries to stay out of the fray. Tickets are $44 to $88.

Studio Theatre

Through Dec. 28

Five Guys Named Moe

Dance the blues away as big band meets boy band in this dynamic, dazzling musical revue featuring classics have been remixed in this explosive tribute to “King of the Jukebox” Louis Jordan. Please call for ticket information.

Arena Stage

Through Jan. 1

A Christmas Carol

Acclaimed Washington stage actor Edward Gero returns for the sixth year to play Ebenezer Scrooge in the production the Washington Post hailed as “musically high-spirited” and “infectiously jolly.” Tickets are $22 to $95.

Ford’s Theatre

Through Jan. 4

Fiddler on the Roof

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of an American musical classic with this new, in-the-round production of the joyful tale of family, community and life’s unexpected miracles. Tickets are $50 to $99.

Arena Stage