theater

Congratulations to Our Arlington Holiday Poem Contest Winner

By ARLnow.com

It was hard to pick just one winner for our Arlington holiday poem contest, but in the end we went with an entry that tackled one of the most controversial issues in Arlington in 2010: towing.

Our winner, Rich, came up with a humorous and topical take on a towing story we reported on earlier this month, setting it to the tune of a classic Christmas song.

Sung to Oh Holy Night

Oh towing guy!
I found the perfect spot,
It is the night I need to drop off a package!
Though I may sin and error by parking here
I’ll only be a minute.
A thrill to know that I only blocked a few cars
For yonder breaks to beat the towin’.

I fall on my knees
Oh to see you lay the hook
Oh why are you towing my car
Oh night 3 days before Christ was born
Oh bye my car
Oh ATM here I come

Rich wins a two tickets to Synetic Theater’s performance of The Nutcracker in Crystal City.

Thank you to all the wordsmiths and songwriters who entertained us with their contest entries. Happy holidays!

Announcing the 24 Hour Holiday Poem Contest

By ARLnow.com

Update on 12/23 — We have a winner.

When Synetic Theater offered us two free tickets to their family-friendly performance of The Nutcracker — playing in Crystal City through Jan. 16 — we immediately realized that this was a perfect opportunity for a holiday-themed contest.

Since haiku and ugly holiday sweater contests are old hat, here’s what we’re going to do instead:

Compose a poem about Arlington, in the style of a classic holiday song or story. For instance, you might work brown flip flops into Twas the Night Before Christmas.

Submit your masterpiece in the comments section, and be sure to use your real email address so we can tell you how to claim your Nutcracker tickets if you’re the winner.

Please keep your poem short and lighthearted. Mean-spirited or obscene submissions will be removed.

We’ll pick our favorite and announce the champion around this time tomorrow.

Photo courtesy Synetic Theater

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Shirlington Oktoberfest Draws a Crowd — Lines that nearly stretched around the block didn’t deter thousands from enjoying a sunny afternoon of beer samples, German food and oompah music. See more photos here and here.

Savannah Wants Michael Brown Back — Now that Michael Brown has “resigned” as Arlington’s county manager, editorial writers are beckoning him back to his former job as city manager of Savannah, Ga. However, Savannah’s city council doesn’t seem too enthusiastic about his potential return.

Possible Measles Exposure at DCA — In an abundance of caution, Arlington’s health department is warning anybody who was in Reagan National Airport’s Terminal C from 8:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Sept. 23 that they may have come in contact with an individual who had the measles.

Arena Stage’s Crystal City Era Coming to a Close — Say goodbye to Arena Stage, which is leaving the Crystal City Underground for a newly-renovated, $135 million theater just across the river in southwest DC. But the Crystal City theater won’t be dark for long. Synetic Theater is moving in. More from Connection Newspapers.

Photo courtesy Jason Peschau

Lots of Events This Weekend

By ARLnow.com

We’ve talked a lot about Clarendon Day, but there are a bunch of other fun and interesting events happening around Arlington this weekend.

Among them: the Arlington Kids Stuff Sale, the Great American Bake Sale to benefit Share Our Strength, An Evening of Shakespeare in Klingon starring George Takei, the AMEN 35th anniversary celebration and WalkArlington’s Yorktown Walkabout.

See our events calendar for more details.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

ACDC Kicks Off Campaign Season — Last night, the Arlington County Democratic Committee officially launched its campaign to maintain electoral dominance in the county. But looking forward to November contests that include a challenge to incumbent county board member Chris Zimmerman, Democrats aren’t counting their chickens quite yet. “We are not going to take anything for granted [this] fall,” ACDC chair Mike Lieberman tells ARLnow.com. The Democrats’ campaign season will kick into high gear on Monday at the party’s annual Labor Day Chili Cookoff.

Dems, GOPers Swipe Each Other’s Swag — Stop us if this starts sounding like symbolism. In an effort to appease their respective constituencies, the local political parties decided to start stealing from one another. The petty political thievery took place at the recent Arlington County Fair. The Sun Gazette has the details.

Another Week of Chess — Shirlington’s Signature Theater has extended the rock musical Chess for an additional week. The show will now run through October 3. Tickets for the bonus week will go on sale Tuesday, according to Playbill.

The Pit of Hell Burger — Workers have dug up part of the parking lot in front of Ray’s Hell Burger in Rosslyn, but don’t worry, President Obama — your favorite diplomatic lunch spot is still open during the construction. Other affected businesses include Guallijo, Greenberry’s Coffee, and a Virginia ABC store. More from TBD.

Flickr pool photo by Chris Rief.

Busy Weekend for Bargain Hunters

By ARLnow.com

It’s going to be an especially busy Saturday for bargain-hunters. Here’s a chronology of where to get good deals and score some free stuff.

7:00 a.m. — The weekly Arlington Civitan flea market starts the morning bright and early. About 150 vendors will be selling their wares until 1:30 p.m. in the parking garage between I-66 and Washington-Lee High School.

8:00 a.m. — The Arlington Farmer’s Market will take place, as it does every Saturday, in the parking lot across from the county courthouse from 8:00 to noon. Affordable fresh food and free samples abound.

9:00 a.m. — Hunt for hidden gems at the Aurora Hills Senior Center Trash ‘n’ Treasure Sale. One person’s old, unwanted piece of junk may be another’s cherished antique. The Aurora Hills Branch Library will also take part, selling books and music CDs as part of their ongoing Friends Sale.

10:00 a.m. — Boutique pet store Wylie Wagg is holding a grand opening celebration for its new Clarendon store. Located in the former a.k.a. spot storefront at 2509 Franklin Road, next to the Java Shack,  Wagg will be offering a 10 percent store-wide discount and a chance to win a $200 shopping spree. There will also be free doggie “smoothies” while supplies last, from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

11:00 a.m. — Clarendon’s new frozen yogurt mecca, Red Mango, will also be celebrating its grand opening on Saturday. The store (at 2831 Clarendon Boulevard) will be giving away free froyo from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. There will also be free t-shirts for the first 100 customers.

2:00 p.m. — Join the Washington Shakespeare Company for a “pay-what-you-can” showing of “Every Young Woman’s Desire.” You decide how much you want to pay to see the show, a psychological thriller that examines the brutality of unchecked power. Presented at the Clark Street Playhouse (601 S. Clark Street).

See our events calendar for more details and for more things to do this weekend.

Flickr pool photo by Pseudo-Melancholy.

Synetic Theater Coming to Crystal City

By ARLnow.com

Synetic Theater, which has been performing “non-realistic” physical theater in venues like the Rosslyn Spectrum and the Kennedy Center, has found a permanent home in Crystal City’s underground theater.

The announcement was made Monday night. It comes as Arena Stage, which has been temporarily occupying the Crystal City theater (1800 South Bell Street), is preparing to move to the currently under-construction Mead Center for American Theater in Southwest Washington in the fall.

The heads of Synetic and the Crystal City Business Improvement District were both thrilled by their new partnership.

“We are thrilled to bring our unique brand of theater to Crystal City,” said Paata Tsikurishvili, CEO of Synetic Theater, in a statement. “I am confident that this strong partnership… will create new opportunities for Synetic, enabling us to further grow artistically and ensuring that Crystal City remains a destination for the arts.”

“We could not be more thrilled to welcome Synetic Theater to Crystal City,” said Angela Fox, president of Crystal City BID. “The amazing creativity of their work and the uniqueness of their brand echoes the powerful transformation that we are promulgating in Crystal City.”

Synetic’s first Crystal City performance is scheduled for September. The company will continue its relationships with the Kennedy Center and the Shakespeare Theatre Company.

To Do This Weekend: Lots of Things

By ARLnow.com

There is flat-out a ton of things to do this weekend in Arlington. There’s plenty of live music, live theater and live comedy to experience this weekend. If that’s not enough, there’s also a charity shopping event and a charity bar sports competition, as well as a Wii tournament and a rockin’ party at an art exhibit.

For a full listing of things to do around town, see our events calendar.