Artisphere

Rosslyn to Light Up for the Holidays Tomorrow Night

By ARLnow.com

Rosslyn is holding its annual Light Up ceremony tomorrow night to celebrate the start of the holiday season.

At 6:31 p.m., TBD-TV anchor Morris Jones will throw a giant switch, turning on the rooftop LED lights that give the Rosslyn skyline a festive glow this time of year. Rosslyn building owners started decorating their rooftops for the inaugural Light Up Rosslyn event in 1993.

Before the switch is thrown, there will be free food, drinks and music for anyone who wants to stop by. Santa Fe Cafe is providing chili and hot cocoa, while Monday Properties is providing cookies and hot cider. The Potomac Harmony Chorus and Beltway Brass will perform.

There ceremony will also feature a winter clothing drive for the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network (A-SPAN).

The festivities start at 5:00 tomorrow under the WJLA Jumbotron at the corner of Wilson Boulevard and North Lynn Street.

Artisphere will be hosting a free open house after the ceremony.

Photo courtesy Steve Uzzell/Rosslyn BID

Artisphere to Host Gay and Lesbian Holiday “Kiss-In”

By ARLnow.com

Artisphere is hosting an event called Holiday Hugs & Kisses next month “to demonstrate broad community and regional support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) people.”

The event, being held on Saturday, Dec. 4 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., will feature arts and cultural performances, culminating in “a large public display of affection by people from all walks of life.”

“We expect 300-500 people to attend, including many straight allies,” the event’s Facebook invitation reads. “A YouTube video will be produced from live footage recorded at the event… Our video will be premiered at the Artisphere Dome Theatre on December 20th along with an opening reception and will then be posted on YouTube.”

Cookies and hot chocolate will be served between video shoots.

The event is sponsored by the Arlington Gay and Lesbian Alliance.

Flickr pool photo by Afagen

Saturday: Red Baraat Brings the Indian Funk to Artisphere

By ARLnow.com

Artisphere’s PR department says Red Baraat is the only dhol ‘n’ brass band in the U.S.

How there is only one domestic band that combines North Indian Bhangra and brass band funk is beyond us, especially considering the infectious energy that the culture-melding band brings to their shows.

New York-based Red Baraat features a rapping sousaphone player, three percussionists (counting the guy on cow bell), and a band leader whose collaborations have included performing with rapper Q-Tip and a fitness instructor known as “the Indian Jane Fonda.” That, combined with a five-piece horn section, produces a group that, in the words of the PR department, “plays fresh originals and Bollywood classics with an explosive stage performance and presence.”

Red Baraat is performing at Artisphere’s weekly Saturday night dance party this weekend. The performance will begin at 11:01 p.m. in the Artisphere ballroom. Tickets are $18 at the door, with sales starting one hour before showtime.

“Fag Life” Comedy Show Coming to Artisphere

By ARLnow.com

How do you deal with a homophobe like Fred Phelps, founder of the Westboro Baptist Church. How do you cope with the raw hatred of someone whose minions hold signs that say “God Hates Fags” and “Thank God for Dead Soldiers”?

For one 25-year-old New Yorker, the solution is comedy.

Brent Sullivan will be bringing his unique one-man comedy show, Brent Sullivan’s Fag Life: A Conversation with Fred Phelps, to Artisphere this weekend.

The show is described as an “innovative approach to revealing bigotry and hatred in America by having a discussion with a fanatic.”

“The show is a celebration of gay culture, while very critical of certain aspects of the LGBT community that are outdated, stereotypical and offensive,” a press release says. Sullivan’s comedy is “a straight friendly approach to being gay… without the stereotypical attitude that plagues most gay comedians.”

Though Sullivan is alone on stage, he’s joined in spirit by Phelps, whose whose zany sound bites are played intermittently for comedic effect and as a way to introduce new topics of conversation for Sullivan. (See a video clip here)

The show will be performed at the Dome theater at Artisphere at 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $20.

Artisphere Now Open After Raucous Opening Party

By ARLnow.com

On the eve of its VIP ribbon-cutting ceremony, hundreds of twenty-somethings packed into Artisphere, the county’s new $6.7 million cultural center, to drink, dance, party and enjoy some art.

Sponsored by the web site Brightest Young Things and Pink Line Project, an arts advocacy organization, Burst @ Artisphere was billed as the hipper, cheaper counterpart to Friday’s $250 per ticket opening gala. True to the billing, the evening attracted a hipster-heavy crowd that looked a bit out of place in stodgy, corporate Rosslyn. Organizers helped lure party-goers from their safe, comfortable DC environs with regular shuttle bus service from Dupont Circle and with the promise of free beer and wine (after the $20 cover).

Once inside, Artisphere’s two-floor Wi-Fi Cafe was filled to the brim with beautiful and/or interesting people, all conversing loudly. Pabst Blue Ribbon and Beringer flowed freely.

The artist Katie Laibstain (a.k.a. Katie Balloons) held court near the stairs on the second level, wearing an elaborate balloon costume that allowed her to occasionally pose as an inanimate object, only to pop up and scare unsuspecting hipsters. Ms. Balloons would later make her way to the ballroom, where a crowd energized by the beats of DJ Chris Burns proceeded to rip apart her costume, wearing Laibstain’s former balloon arms and balloon headgear as a primitive hunter might wear a slain animal’s pelt. The sounds of popping balloons were ever-present for the rest of the night, as parts of the costume were passed from person to person.

Aside from Lord of the Flies-esque balloon destruction, the ballroom was also the scene of at least one breakdancing competition, as well as numerous make-out sessions.

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Weekend Event Roundup

By ARLnow.com

If you’re staying in town for Columbus Day weekend, consider yourself lucky. The forecast calls for perfect warm and sunny weather, and there’s plenty of events around town to keep one busy.

Tonight, we already told you about the Capitals Rock the Red Season Opening Party at The Front Page in Ballston.

Tomorrow, you already know about the Burst @ Artisphere event, presented by Pink Line Project and Brightest Young Things.

You may not know about the Arlington History Bike Tour, a “leisurely” 23-mile ride past some of the notable historic points in Arlington.

Two notable events taking place just outside Arlington on Saturday may be of interest. Rustico in Alexandria will be holding its annual Oktobeerfest from noon to 6:00 p.m. — which may of interest to Ballston residents who are waiting with bated breath for Rustico Ballston to open (as soon as Oct. 25, we’re told).

On Saturday night, the Friends of the David M. Brown Planetarium will be holding a benefit concert at the State Theater in Falls Church. Cobra Collective will headline the show.

Finally, on Sunday, Artisphere will hold its grand opening. The ribbon-cutting ceremony will be followed by a free open house featuring music performances and art installations. An open house will also be held on Monday.

Happy Columbus Day!

Compose a Haiku About Artisphere, Drink for Free

By ARLnow.com

It seems that we made yesterday’s contest for free Burst @ Artisphere tickets a bit too esoteric. Turns out, no one was able to find unintentional art around Arlington.

So we’ll make this easier.

Compose a haiku about Artisphere and put it in the comments section. We’ll pick the one we like the best tomorrow afternoon. The winner gets their name on the list for free entry to Saturday’s open-bar-and-music extravaganza at Artisphere.

Thank you to our friends at Brightest Young Things for supplying the tickets.

Update at 3:40 p.m. — Congrats to Evan, who wins the two free tickets (a $40 value!) for the following Artisphere haiku:

Newseum no more
But its legacy remains
Spell check confounded

Thank you to all our participants!

Ticket Contest for Saturday’s Artisphere Opening Bash

By ARLnow.com

Do you like viewing art and drinking PBR? Are you high on creativity but low on cash? Well ARLnow.com and our friends at Brightest Young Things want to hook one lucky reader up with a pair of free tickets to the Burst! @ Artisphere pre-opening event Saturday night.

Held at the not-yet-open-to-the-public Artisphere, Burst will feature DJs, elaborate balloon sculptures, a camera crew from TLC following around the creator of the aforementioned balloon sculptures, and UNLIMITED FREE BEER AND WINE (until the bartender cuts you off).

Since we only have one set of tickets (normally $20 apiece) to give away, we’ll do this contest-style.

Here’s the challenge: find an example of “unintentional art” somewhere in Arlington. Photograph it. Email it to arlnowcontest[at]gmail.com by Thursday night. Include your real name, how you want to be identified on the site, the neighborhood you live in, and a Twitter-sized description of the “art” and where you found it.

We’ll show some of the entries and arbitrarily pick a winner on Friday. Good luck!

County, Rosslyn Show Off Soon-to-Open Artisphere

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County and the Rosslyn Business Improvement District held a press conference today to show off Arlington’s nearly-completed cultural center, Artisphere. The venue is a centerpiece of the effort to revitalize the workaday Rosslyn business district.

The $6.7 million, 62,000 square foot facility will open to the public on Sunday — 10/10/10 — at 10:10 a.m. A ritzy opening gala ($250 per ticket) will be held Friday night, while a hipper, cheaper “second opening” sponsored by Pink Line Project and Brightest Young Things will be held Saturday night.

Within Artisphere are three theaters, three formal exhibit spaces, a multi-use ballroom, an expansive outdoor terrace, a bar/restaurant (which is currently lacking a tenant), a two-level Wi-Fi lounge, and a retails crafts store.

The theaters include the 350-seat Dome Theater, a repurposed Imax venue; a 200-seat black box theater that will be the new home of the Washington Shakespeare Company; and the existing, adjacent 367-seat Spectrum theater.

The ballroom will be used for events, regular weekday dance lessons, and weekly late-night concerts that will be held on Saturdays and feature contemporary rock, punk and fusion acts.

The terrace will be used for openings and for private events, especially during the warmer weather months. The Wi-Fi lounge will be open to anyone who wants to hang out, get work done or get food or drinks from the restaurant. (We’re told the bidders looking to manage the restaurant space include several well-known local restaurateurs.)

If you must drive, parking garages under Artisphere and the Spectrum theater offer about 300 spaces that will be free after 6:00 p.m. weekdays and all day on weekends.

Those who crave the limelight take note: a reality show camera crew from TLC will reportedly be at Saturday’s opening event. They’re following a balloon artist who will have three elaborate exhibits on display.

More photos after the jump.

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Artisphere Will Be a Dance Venue

By ARLnow.com

Arlington officials took select members of the media (read: not us) on a hard hat tour of the still under-construction Artisphere last night.

In her write-up of the tour, the Washington Post’s Jacqueline Trescott is skeptical of the county’s ability to finish the project in time for its scheduled October 10 opening.

Trescott then describes Artisphere’s effort to attract a younger demographic. Among the plans for getting 20-to-45-year-olds to participate in the arts: dancing.

Built into the programming, [Arlington cultural affairs chief Norma] Kaplan said, will be opportunities for interaction with the artists. “We are trying to attract audiences that normally don’t come into a cultural center,” she said. One idea is to have late-night dances, with regional bands, on the weekends.

The ballroom will have regular nights for salsa, swing and social dance, and Kaplan said she expected it to draw a crowd. “There will be live music 90 percent of the time. Dance is very popular in this area, but there aren’t a lot of ballrooms,” she said, describing the retractable bandstand as a “Murphy bed stage” in what is believed to be the second-largest dance floor in the area after Glen Echo Park.

Read more from the Washington Post.