EVENT CATEGORIES

ART 

Opening Dec. 3

Indian Ocean Experience

This installation of 20 works is part of the museum’s “Connecting the Gems of the Indian Ocean: From Oman to East Africa” project made possible through the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center in Washington, D.C. The selection of works gives a hint of the diverse artistic materials and techniques found throughout the Indian Ocean region, from the skill of Omani smiths to the beauty of Indian patterns, the ingenuity of Swahili coast artisans and the creativity that emerged through commercial and cultural trade among these and other groups.

National Museum of African Art

Through Jan. 2

Peacock Room Remix: Darren Waterston’s Filthy Lucre

“Peacock Room REMIX” centers on “Filthy Lucre,” an immersive interior by painter Darren Waterston who reinterprets James McNeill Whistler’s famed Peacock Room as a resplendent ruin, an aesthetic space that is literally overburdened by its own excesses — of materials, history, and creativity. Like “Filthy Lucre” and the original Peacock Room, this exhibition invites viewers to consider the complex relationships among art, money and the passage of time.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Through Jan. 3

Age of Lawyers: The Roots of American Law in Shakespeare’s Britain

In the 800th anniversary year of the Magna Carta, “Age of Lawyers” offers a close-up look at the rapid increase of lawyers and legal actions in Shakespeare’s Britain, from the law’s impact on daily life to major political and legal disputes — some invoking the Magna Carta — that still influence American politics and government.

Folger Shakespeare Library

Through Jan. 3

Bold and Beautiful: Rinpa in Japanese Art

The modern term Rinpa (Rimpa) describes a remarkable group of Japanese artists who created striking images for paintings, ceramics, textiles and lacquerware.

Freer Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 3

Enigmas: The Art of Bada Shanren (1626-1705)

Born a prince of the Ming imperial house, Bada Shanren (1626–1705) lived a storied life, remaking himself as a secluded Buddhist monk and, later, as a professional painter and calligrapher. Featured in this exhibition are examples of his most daring and idiosyncratic works, demonstrating his unique visual vocabulary.

Freer Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 3

Le Onde: Waves of Italian Influence (1914-1971)

This exhibition of nearly 20 works from the museum’s collection follows Italian contributions to the transnational evolution of abstraction, through movements and tendencies such as futurism, spatialism, op art and kinetic art.

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

Through Jan. 10

Gauguin to Picasso: Masterworks from Switzerland, The Staechelin and Im Obersteg Collections

This exhibition pays tribute to two pioneering supporters of the arts, Rudolf Staechelin (1881-1946) and Karl Im Obersteg (1883-1969), both from Basel, who championed the work of impressionist, post-impressionist and School of Paris artists, providing a platform to distinguish collecting philosophies and situate them within the history and reception of modern art. The exhibition features more than 60 celebrated paintings — masterpieces created during the mid-19th and 20th centuries by 22 world-famous artists.

The Phillips Collection

Jan. 16 to May 30

The Lost Symphony: Whistler and the Perfection of Art

As part of “Peacock Room REMIX,” this exhibition reconstructs how Whistler’s unrealized quest for “the perfection of art” intersected with less-rarified concerns about patronage, payment, and professional reputation.

Freer Gallery of Art

Through Jan. 17

Esther Bubley Up Front

Esther Bubley (1921-98) was a photojournalist renowned for her revealing profiles of the United States and its people in the 1940s, ’50s, and ’60s. Bubley’s talent for creating probing and gently humorous images of Americans contributed to her success in photojournalism.

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Jan. 20 to March 27

Shakespeare, Life of an Icon

We will never have a photograph of William Shakespeare or a recording of his voice, but we can catch glimpses of the man in this stunning array of documents from his own lifetime. “Shakespeare, Life of an Icon” brings together some of the most important manuscripts and printed books related to Shakespeare’s life and career, giving us a firsthand look at the most famous author in the world.

Folger Shakespeare Library

Jan. 29 to May 22

Salon Style: French Portraits from the Collection

Presenting works at the salon — an exhibition sponsored by the Royal Academy of Art in Paris — marked success for artists in 18th-century France. The famed artist Élisabeth Louise Vigée-LeBrun was among the first women to exhibit at the event, yet she was by no means the only one. Drawn from the museum’s rich collection, this focus exhibition visualizes the world of the art salon and reveals how French women artists inspired each other as well as male artists who noted their great success.

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Through Jan. 31

Sōtatsu: Making Waves

Tawaraya Sōtatsu (act. ca. 1600–40), a fountainhead of Japanese painting and design, is one of the most influential yet elusive figures in Japanese culture. Sōtatsu’s work is instantly recognized by its bold, abstracted style, lavish swaths of gold and silver and rich jewel tones. Much of the artist’s life, however, remains a mystery. How a working-class owner of a Kyoto fan shop transformed into a sophisticated designer with a network of aristocratic collaborators is still an enigma — and the focus of this in-depth examination of masterpieces.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Through Jan. 31

Streams of Being

Drawn from the permanent collection of the Art Museum of the Americas, “Streams of Beings” brings to light a multiplicity of ideas and identities emerging within contemporary Latin American art. Featuring 22 artists from 12 countries across the Americas, this exhibition explores the permeable boundaries and dimensions of life through interrelated themes of scale and place, human and animal bodies. Throughout four intersecting “streams” — Bestiary, Cosmos, Topologies and Bodies in Exile — the display stages movement and displacement, dwelling on crossings both serendipitous and transgressive.

OAS Art Museum of the Americas

Through Feb. 3

Hidden Identities: Paintings and Drawings by Jorge Tacla

With the earliest works in the series dating to 2005, “Hidden Identities” by Chilean artist Jorge Tacla is composed of a rich series of paintings and drawings that explore central themes of mutability of identity, collective memory, the physical and psychological fallout of trauma, and the omnipresent yet latent potential for change. The inspiration for this body of work comes from the social, political and historical events of the artist’s life during the chaos of the Chilean coup d’état.

OAS Art Museum of the Americas

Through Feb. 28

Designing America: Spain’s Imprint in the U.S.

Through a mix of historic documents, text narration, images and audio-visual elements, this exhibit examines the important contributions that Spain made to the construction of U.S. territory, landscape and cities, starting with the first settlements to the present day. This cross-sectional survey enlightens the historical, political and cultural events that have marked the course of 500 years of common history between the United States and Spain.

Former Spanish Residence

Through Feb. 28

Pathmakers: Women in Art, Craft, and Design, Midcentury and Today

This exhibition presents dynamic women designers and artists from the mid-20th century and today making groundbreaking commercial and industrial designs, maintaining craft traditions and incorporating new aesthetics into fine art.

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Through March 13

Celebrating Photography at the National Gallery of Art: Recent Gifts

Marking the culmination of a year-long celebration of photography at the museum, this installation brings together an exquisite group of gifts, ranging from innovative photographs made in the earliest years of the medium’s history to key works by important 20th-century artists and contemporary pieces that examine the ways in which photography continues to shape our experience of the modern world.

National Gallery of Art

Through March 20

Power and Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World

Some 50 bronze sculptures and related works survey the development of Hellenistic art as it spread from Greece throughout the Mediterranean between the fourth and first centuries B.C. Through the medium of bronze, artists were able to capture the dynamic realism, expression, and detail that characterized the new artistic goals of the period.

National Gallery of Art

Through April 24

Postwar Germanic Expressions: Gifts from Michael Werner

The Phillips presents recently acquired gifts of German and Danish art to the museum’s permanent collection, generously given by art collector Michael Werner. A selection from the 46 works are on view, painting, sculpture and works on paper by Georg Baselitz, Jörg Immendorff, Per Kirkeby, Markus Lüpertz and A. R. Penck.

The Phillips Collection

Through May 15

Louise Bourgeois: No Exit

Louise Bourgeois’s ties to surrealism and existentialism will be explored through 17 works on paper and four sculptures.

National Gallery of Art

Through June 5

Perspectives: Lara Baladi

Egyptian-Lebanese artist Lara Baladi experiments with the photographic medium, investigating its history and its role in shaping perceptions of the Middle East, particularly Egypt, where she is based.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

DANCE

Jan. 19 to 24

The National Ballet of Canada: Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale

The National Ballet of Canada brings another fabulous international success story from British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and his acclaimed creative team: the U.S. premiere of a dazzling new ballet based on Shakespeare’s classic play. Tickets are $39 to $125.

Kennedy Center Opera House

Jan. 27 to 31

American Ballet Theatre: Ratmansky’s The Sleeping Beauty

The beloved story of the princess Aurora — cursed to sleep for 100 years by an evil sorceress until awakened by a prince’s kiss — is certain to cast a spell with the D.C. premiere of Alexei Ratmansky’s monumental new staging. Tickets are $49 to $195.

Kennedy Center Opera House

MUSIC

Sun., Jan. 3, 3 p.m.

Salute to Vienna

When great singers, ballet and ballroom dancers join 50 orchestral musicians to celebrate the New Year, the result is nothing short of magic. Praised by the Chicago Tribune as being “like whipped cream in a cup of good Viennese coffee,” the Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert has been bringing the very best of Viennese culture to cities across the United States and Canada for over 20 years. Viennese conductor Matthias Fletzberger conducts the Strauss Symphony of America, with Viennese soprano Natalia Ushakova and New York-based tenor Brian Cheney joining for heartfelt renditions of operetta melodies. Meanwhile, the gorgeously costumed members of the Europaballett St.Pölten and the International Champion Ballroom dancers twirl through the Strauss waltzes that Vienna is known for. Tickets start at $49.

Music Center at Strathmore

Jan. 14 to 16

National Symphony Orchestra: Neeme Järvi, Conductor

Neeme Järvi conducts Prokofiev’s “Violin Concerto No. 1,” featuring the National Symphony Orchestra debut of violinist Baiba Skride. The program also includes Sibelius’s “Symphony No. 2” and the first NSO performances of Eller’s “Five Pieces for String Orchestra.” Tickets are $15 to $89.

Kennedy Center Concert Hall

Fri., Jan. 15, 8 p.m.

Falu’s Bollywood Orchestra

Fronted by one of India’s most influential musicians — who’s collaborated with masterminds including Yo-Yo Ma and A.R. Rahman — this ethereal ensemble combines the timeless elegance of Bollywood’s musical golden age with an inventive modern style. Tickets are $22 to $27

Wolf Trap

Sat., Jan. 23, 2 and 8 p.m.

The Band of the Royal Marines: Featuring the Pipes, Drums, and Highland Dancers of the Scots Guards

Two of Great Britain’s most respected military musical institutions take the stage in full regalia, bringing to life the magnificent pageantry of British tradition and history. Tickets are $31 to $52.

George Mason University Center for the Arts

Sat., Jan. 30, 2 p.m.

Washington Performing Arts Presents Behzod Abduraimov, Piano

The grand prize winner of the 2009 London International Piano Competition, Behzod Abduraimov has awed listeners worldwide in concert and on two acclaimed Decca releases, balancing youthful fireworks with shimmering lyricism. In his Washington Performing Arts debut, he presents Chopin’s bravura “Four Ballades” and Mussorgsky’s masterwork, “Pictures at an Exhibition.” Tickets are $60.

Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

THEATER

Through Jan. 3

Kiss Me, Kate

As they try to stage a musical version of Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew,” sparks fly on and off stage between the show’s director and his leading lady — and ex-wife. Add to the mix passionate young lovers, plus a few musically inclined gangsters’ heavies, and the result is a sharp and witty night with some of Cole Porter’s most immortal songs. Tickets are $20 to $118.

Shakespeare Theatre Company

Sidney Harman Hall

Through Jan. 3

Oliver!

Charles Dickens’s unforgettable characters burst to life in the Tony Award-winning musical that blends the chaotic worlds of Victorian London with 2015 London to infuse a modern edge to the classic story about an innocent orphan living amongst double-dealing thieves and conmen. Please call for ticket information.

Arena Stage

Through Jan. 3

Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind

Returning to the Woolly stage, the Neo-Futurists race against the clock to perform 30 miniature plays in just 60 minutes — with new plays added every night. Audiences choose the order, so every performance is a unique experience in this eccentric mini-play showcase that’s become a staple of Chicago’s underground theater scene for more than 25 years. Tickets start at $35.

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

Jan. 5 to Feb. 14

The Critic & The Real Inspector Hound

Experience a madcap night of life in the theater with two classic behind-the-scenes comedies, “The Critic” and “The Real Inspector Hound.” First, playwright and adaptor Jeffrey Hatcher returns with a fresh take on Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s 18th-century romp “The Critic,” a whirlwind comedy about bad theater, worse playwrights and, worst of all, the critics. The laughs continue with Tom Stoppard’s absurdist tour-de-farce “The Real Inspector Hound,” an ingenious play-within-a-play in which two critics find themselves caught up as unsuspecting suspects while they watch a classic 1950s-style whodunit in the style of Agatha Christie. Please call for ticket information.

The Shakespeare Theatre

Through Jan. 10

Bright Star

From Grammy and Emmy winner Steve Martin and Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Edie Brickell comes a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and ’40s. Tickets are $45 to $175.

Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

Through Jan. 10

Matilda The Musical

Based on the beloved novel by Roald Dahl, “Matilda The Musical” is the story of an extraordinary girl who, armed with a vivid imagination and a sharp mind, dares to take a stand and change her own destiny. Tickets are $30 to $204.

Kennedy Center Opera House

Jan. 13 to 30

A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder

This Tony-winning musical comedy tells the uproarious story of Monty Navarro, a distant heir to a family fortune who sets out to jump the line of succession by — you guessed it — eliminating the eight pesky relatives who stand in his way. Tickets are $64 to $199.

Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

Jan. 15 to Feb. 21

Sweat

A group of close friends shares everything: drinks, secrets and laughs. But when rumors of layoffs shake up the local steel mill, the fragile bonds of their community begin to fray and a horrific crime sends shock waves across two generations in this play based on America’s industrial decline at the turn of the millennium. Tickets are $40 to $90.

Arena Stage

Through Jan. 17

As You Like It

All the world’s a stage for Synetic’s 12th silent Shakespeare adaptation. The witty and resourceful Rosalind, along with her devoted cousin Celia, are forced to flee their lives of luxury for an unfamiliar world: the bleak streets of a rusted urban wasteland. Their grim exile is transformed once Rosalind encounters the lovelorn Orlando, who fails to recognize the object of his affections in disguise. Synetic’s purely physical interpretation promises to be a thought-provoking exploration of the nature of traditional gender roles, societal class and love with visual imagery and original music that speaks for itself. Tickets start at $35.

Synetic Theater

Jan. 26 to March 6

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

It is easy to lose yourself in the enchanted woods of Shakespeare’s timeless romantic tale. This magical comedy of tangled lovers, mischievous fairies — and a band of players to boot — is given a fresh, new staging by Aaron Posner, with D.C. favorites Holly Twyford as Bottom and Erin Weaver as Puck. Tickets are $35 to $75.

Folger Theatre

Jan. 29 to March 6

The City of Conversation

Georgetown hostess Hester Ferris runs in an elite circle, opening her home for political foes to lay down arms and raise a glass. When her son’s formidable, conservative wife comes on the scene, the parlor pleasantries of D.C.’s past descend into entrenched posturing and an ultimatum that could implode the family. Please call for ticket information.

Arena Stage

Jan. 30 to Feb. 21

OLIVERio: A Brazilian Twist

A spunky girl on the streets of Rio masquerades as a boy to look for her mother, only to discover a new kind of family, in this world premiere musical inspired by Charles Dickens’s classic novel and featuring original songs and music. Tickets are $20.

Kennedy Center Family Theater