Arlington Drafthouse

Carlos Mencia, Chris Kattan Highlight Drafthouse’s Upcoming Comedy Lineup

By Alex Koma

The Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse is closing out the winter with a full lineup of popular comedians.

The Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) will boast a fair number of familiar faces over the course of the next month.

Performers include:

  • Ricky Velez, of “The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore” and “Master of None,” tonight and Saturday (Feb. 16)
  • Carlos Mencia, of “Mind of Mencia,” Feb. 21-23
  • Hal Sparks, of “Talk Soup” and “Queer as Folk,” March 1-2
  • Brian Posehn, of new Netflix special “The Fartist,” March 7-9
  • Chris Kattan, of “Saturday Night Live” and “Night at the Roxbury,” March 15-16
  • Ahmed Ahmed, of “Sullivan and Sons” and “Swingers,” March 22-23
  • London Brown, of “Ballers,” March 29-30

The Drafthouse will also hold another edition of its regular “Spoons, Toons & Booze” series on Feb. 23-24, offering select episodes of popular Saturday morning cartoon series along with boozy beverages and an all-you-can-eat cereal bar.

The DC Film Society also plans to host its 27th annual “And The Winner Is…” Oscar watch party at the Drafthouse, starting at 8 p.m. on Feb. 24.

File photo

Comedy Lineup, Holiday Events Fill Arlington Drafthouse Schedule

By Catherine Douglas Moran

Comedians from hit TV shows and movies are coming to Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) over the next month.

Aasif Mandvi from The Daily Show is set to perform mid-December. He joins a lineup of comedians featuring Darrell Hammond, one of the longest running cast members on Saturday Night Live, and Bobby Lee from Chelsea Lately. 

The Drafthouse schedule includes:

  • Natasha Leggero of Comedy Central and He’s Just Not That Into You (Nov. 16-17)
  • Alonzo Bodden of Last Comic Standing and Scary Movie 4 (Nov. 23-24)
  • Bobby Lee of Chelsea Lately and The Dictator (Nov. 29-Dec. 1)
  • Darrell Hammond of Saturday Night Live and Law & Order: SVU (Dec. 7-8)
  • Aasif Mandvi of The Daily Show and A Series of Unfortunate Events (Dec. 14-15)

In addition to the stellar comedy lineup, the Drafthouse is holding a holiday-themed cartoon viewing event for grown-ups. The “Spoons, Toons & Booze Christmas Special” will offer holiday-themed episodes of popular Saturday morning cartoon series along with boozy beverages and an all-you-can-eat cereal bar.

Audience members are encouraged to dress in their “ugliest holiday sweater or coziest PJs” for photos with Santa Claus. They also can compete in contests to choose what to watch from the selection of more than 100 cartoon series from the 1940s to early 2000s. The event is scheduled for noon Dec. 8-9. Tickets are $15.

For even more Christmas cheer, an all-day movie festival on Dec. 16 will show half of a dozen holiday favorites.

The list of movies features:

  • The Polar Express
  • How The Grinch Stole Christmas
  • Miracle on 34th Street
  • National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
  • Elf 
  • Bad Santa

Tickets are $10.

Photo via Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse

Mediterranean Restaurant Replaces Mazagan on Columbia Pike

By Catherine Douglas Moran
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Mediterranean-themed restaurant Caspi is replacing the Moroccan eatery and hookah bar, Mazagan Restaurant, next to the Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse.

Located at 2901 Columbia Pike location, Mazagan Restaurant was purchased last week and will be replaced with a restaurant featuring a menu of Mediterranean and European cuisine, one of the owners told ARLnow. He added that the restaurant is aiming for a soft opening this coming weekend, followed by a grand opening in late November.

A peek inside the windows reveals a torn apart inside with construction tools and signs of major renovation. A Virginia liquor license application from Huseynov and Sam LLC is posted in the window facing Columbia Pike.

Mazagan Restaurant opened at the spot in May 8, 2014 after replacing the quirky electronics store Venus Stereos & TVs. The website for the Moroccan eatery says “closed” and “under construction.”

Found Footage Show ‘After Dark’ Coming to Arlington Drafthouse

By Vernon Miles

The Found Footage Festival is coming to Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) with a new “After Dark” show.

The festival is a touring showcase of VHS footage, from the strange to the hilarious. Many are found in garage sales, thrift stores and dumpsters across North America, then curated by The Onion and The Colbert Report veterans Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher.

The After Dark show compiles 25 years of footage collections into a show that includes live commentary and where-are-they-now updates.

The show at the Drafthouse is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 18 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $14.

Highlights of “After Dark” include:

  • The intro video for a hunky tag team wrestling duo from Memphis called The Fabulous One
  • A fitness program featuring Angela Lansbury in a bubble bath
  • The foul-mouthed outtakes of Winnebago pitch man Jack Rebney
  • A young Arnold Schwarzenegger seductively feeding a woman a carrot in a 1984 travel video for Rio de Janeiro

Photo via Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse

‘Saturday Night Live’ Veterans Highlight Drafthouse’s New Lineup

By Alex Koma

There’s good news for lovers of laughter — Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse is rolling out its lineup of comedians for the fall and winter.

The Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) has confirmed performances from a variety of well-known stand-ups over the coming months.

Darrell Hammond, a staple of “Saturday Night Live” with a famous impression of President Donald Trump, will swing by from Dec. 7-8.

The venue will also play host to Natasha Leggero from Nov. 16-17. She’s the creator and star of Comedy Central’s “Another Period,” and recently co-starred in the Showtime series “DICE.”

Earlier that month, SNL veteran and longtime TV actor Jay Mohr will appear at the Drafthouse. He’s slated to perform from Nov. 1-2.

Yvonne Orji, co-star of the HBO comedy “Insecure,” will perform from Oct. 5-7. Alex Moffat, a current SNL cast member, will appear tonight (Aug. 24) and Saturday (Aug. 25).

The Drafthouse has its full lineup of events available on its website.

Comedians T.J. Miller, David Alan Grier Coming to Drafthouse

By ARLnow.com

The Arlington Cinema Drafthouse’s marquee may be gone with the wind, at least temporarily, but that likely will not diminish the boldfaced comedy names coming to the theater over the next couple of weeks.

Next week, on Friday and Saturday (March 16-17), T.J. Miller will perform. The Silicon Valley and Deadpool star, who has been in the news recently for the wrong reasons, will bring his brand of “absurdist observational stand-up” to the Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike).

The following Friday and Saturday (March 23-24), actor and comedian David Alan Grier, of In Living Color fame, will perform.

Tickets for each range from $25-35.

The Drafthouse is in the midst of a weekly comedy lineup that includes comedian Josh Blue, slated to perform this weekend, and Carlos Mencia, who will perform March 29-31.

Columbia Pike Partially Blocked Due to Drafthouse Damage

By ARLnow.com

The westbound lanes of Columbia Pike are temporarily closed due to damage to the outside of the Arlington Cinema Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike).

On traffic cameras, the front panel of the Drafthouse’s marquee sign, which announces upcoming acts, could be seen dangling precariously in the wind. Firefighters are currently working to secure it and reopen the roadway ahead of rush hour.

While traffic is being diverted, there is another road hazard nearby. According to scanner reports, a large tree has fallen across 8th Street S. near the intersection with S. Walter Reed Drive.

More views of the dangling Drafthouse sign:

Update at 3:20 p.m. — All lanes of Columbia Pike have reopened. A photo of the tree down on 8th Street S. is below.

https://twitter.com/smugclimber/status/969668095349547009

Drafthouse to Show ‘The Princess Bride’ on Valentine’s Day

By Anna Merod

Next week the Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse will be hosting an alternative to the traditional Valentine’s Day sit-down dinner: stand-up comedy and a showing of “The Princess Bride”

There will be two showings of both on Wednesday, Feb. 14. Doors will first open at 6 p.m., with the stand-up starting at 7 p.m. and the movie beginning at 7:30 p.m. For the second showing, doors will open at 9:30 p.m., the stand-up will start at 9:45 p.m. and the screening will begin at 10:15 p.m.

Tickets are value-priced, according to the Drafthouse’s website.

“Only $10 — inconceivable!” the website says.

Letter to the Editor: Thank You to the Drafthouse

By ARLnow.com

The following Letter to the Editor was submitted by Douglas Park resident Dan Hauser.

I wanted to thank Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse for a really lovely gesture.

I took my four-year-old son to see the Last Jedi on December 30. (If any of the staff at the Drafthouse happen to see this, he was the kid wearing the army clothes and army helmet… it looked like he was going to the premiere of Saving Private Ryan.)

He was so excited! He was sitting on the edge of his seat, eating popcorn and drinking lemonade, and giggling all throughout the movie.

When the movie ended and the credits started to roll, Pete, the manager, asked my son if he might like something from Star Wars. He walked us across the stage and into a little office. He then gave my son a lightsaber and a bag that contained the original Star Wars trilogy on Blu-ray, a Star Wars puzzle, a Star Wars book, and four free movie tickets for the Drafthouse!

My son was over the moon, and I was really touched. We’ve read the book twice and have had some epic lightsaber battles.

My family loves going to see movies at ACDH. In fact, this was the second time I’d seen the Last Jedi here. The Drafthouse was a huge draw for us when we were looking for a neighborhood to buy a house. We’ve had so many nice memories laughing, having snacks, drinking some beers (well, my wife and me), and watching movies.

The Drafthouse is a verifiable Columbia Pike institution. Maybe one day my son will take his children here.

ARLnow.com occasionally publishes thoughtful letters to the editor about issues of local interest. To submit a letter to the editor for consideration, please email it to [email protected]. Letters may be edited for content and brevity.

Flickr pool photo by TheBeltWalk

Drafthouse Announces Lineup for Christmas Movie Festival

By Chris Teale

The Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) is expanding its Christmas Movie Festival for the first time this year.

The festival usually takes place on one day, but instead will last for three weeks, starting on Friday, November 24 with showings of Elf and It’s a Wonderful Life. It wraps up on December 13 with Gremlins.

Paying for one $10 ticket will get attendees unlimited admission to all the scheduled festival movies across all three weeks, depending on space.

Dates for each movie screening are as follows:

Flickr pool photo by Bekah Richards

Drafthouse to Show New Star Wars Movie Next Month

By Chris Teale

The Arlington Cinema & Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) will show the new Star Wars movie next month in what is being described as a first for the theater.

The iconic local business will show “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” from December 14 until January 11. Customers are being asked to buy tickets in advance due to high anticipated demand.

Due to what organizers called the “special screening nature” of the film, tickets cost $10 in the evening and $8 for matinees.

It comes as part of the Drafthouse’s decision to shift to playing movies on a first-run basis, meaning it has quicker access to films.

Owner Greg Godbout has said that the rise of video on-demand services has hurt its previous business model of showing mainstream movies several months after the initial release.

Income from the movie could be small for the Drafthouse, however, as like all movie theaters it reportedly must turn over at least 65 percent of revenue generated by ticket sales to Disney, which owns the Star Wars franchise.

The Drafthouse is making the most of its Star Wars deal, holding dozens of screenings and even offering the chance to host Star Wars-themed parties for businesses. Via a Drafthouse email forwarded to ARLnow.com:

Host a STAR WARS PARTY!!!  Is your company looking for a fun alternative holiday party? The Drafthouse can accommodate your group with our restaurant style seating, giant screen, no hassle buffet style catering options as well as our FULL BAR!! Give your employee’s the gift of a private screening.

Availability: Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm.  December 15th – January 11th.

Contact us: [email protected] for a full offering of catering, bar and rental options.

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