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Art
Sept. 5-29: The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards
This annual exhibition features pieces by finalists in The Trawick Prize competition, which awards $10,000 to the best in show. It’s open to artists from Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., working in any media. Among this year’s finalists is James Terrell’s “The Last Supper.” Past exhibitions have included large-scale sculptures, video installations and performance art, as well as paintings, drawings and photography. An opening reception is planned for Sept. 13 at Gallery B. bethesda.org
Sept. 12-Dec. 6: Faces of the Forest: Frontline of Resilience
Rock Creek Conservancy presents this exhibition of large-scale botanical fiber sculptures (pictured) and small drawings by artist Sophia McCrocklin at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda. An opening reception is planned for Sept. 12. A symposium, “If the Forest Could Talk, What Would it Say?,” with the artist and other panelists is scheduled for Oct. 3, and a discussion about the future of Rock Creek Park moderated by U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Dist. 8) is slated for Nov. 25. rockcreekconservancy.org
Oct. 2-23 Synchronicity
In one image by Olney photographer Kim Keller, a model in a picture on the side of a bus appears to nearly kick a bystander in the head. In another, a man wearing a Star Wars stormtrooper helmet casually crosses a city intersection along with tourists in shorts and T-shirts. Keller uses her camera to capture scenes like these that happen at random but seem to communicate something meaningful. Her street photography will be on display in an exhibition at Artists & Makers Studios in Rockville. An opening reception is planned for Oct. 4. artistsandmakersstudios.com
Literature
Sept. 28 F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Festival
Two-time National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward is the Fitzgerald Award honoree at this annual festival that celebrates F. Scott Fitzgerald and other prominent American authors with readings, author discussions, writing workshops, awards and book signings. Ward, the author of Salvage the Bones and Sing, Unburied, Sing among her four novels, and an English professor at Tulane University in New Orleans, will give a reading at the event. Other highlights include readings and remarks by keynote speaker David Ignatius, author and Washington Post foreign affairs columnist, and special guest Kiese Laymon, author of the novel Long Division and a professor of English and creative writing at Rice University in Houston. Events take place at the Rockville campus of Montgomery College. fitzgeraldfestival.com
Theater
Sept. 11-Oct. 6: Sojourners
Revolving around a love triangle among three young Nigerian immigrants in Texas in the 1970s, this show is the first in playwright Mfoniso Udofia’s projected nine-part multigenerational Ufot Cycle, which will examine the Nigerian American experience through the eyes of the Ufot family. In Sojourners, at Bethesda’s Round House Theatre, the characters must decide whether to return to Nigeria after finishing their education or stay in America and make a life for themselves. roundhousetheatre.org
Sept. 18-Oct. 27: Winnie the Pooh
A.A. Milne’s classic character is joined by Christopher Robin, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo, Rabbit and Owl in this gentle musical for children age 3 and older at Imagination Stage in Bethesda. Set during one busy day in the Hundred Acre Wood, there’s a Heffalump to catch, Eeyore’s tail to find and a misunderstanding between Rabbit and Kanga to sort out. imaginationstage.org
Sept. 27-Oct. 20 Eisenhower: This Piece of Ground
With the presidential election fast approaching, this one-man show at Olney Theatre Center looks back to a time in history, but also speaks to the present. Starring Tony Award winner John Rubinstein (pictured), it’s set in 1962 as President Dwight Eisenhower finds out he’s been ranked toward the bottom of a list of the best presidents in history. From his farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, he defends his life and career, pointing out the leadership a president must project and the responsibilities they must shoulder. olneytheatre.org
Oct. 4-Nov. 3: She Persisted
Based on the book by Chelsea Clinton, this time-traveling musical at Adventure Theatre MTC in Glen Echo follows fourth grader Naomi’s field trip to a women’s history museum where she encounters inspirational women—including Harriet Tubman, Virginia Apgar, Ruby Bridges, Sally Ride, Florence Griffith Joyner and Sonia Sotomayor—who overcame barriers and made waves throughout U.S. history. The show is recommended for all ages. adventuretheatre-mtc.org
Oct. 19-Nov. 3: Astro Boy and the God of Comics
The iconic manga character Astro Boy comes to the stage at the Silver Spring Black Box Theatre in this retro-futuristic production presented by Flying V Theatre. Puppets, illustrations and live actors will blend to tell a multimedia story of artist and cartoonist Osamu Tezuka and his creation through 10 “episodes.” The show is recommended for age 13 and older due to possible adult language and references to topics such as death and war. flyingvtheatre.com
Oct. 24-Jan. 5: Disney’s Frozen
Sure, you’ve seen the animated movie a million times. But if you think have an idea of what to expect from Olney Theatre Center’s production of the Disney hit, “let it go.” Starring two women of color including Anna (Alex De Bard), this production directed by Alan Muraoka of Sesame Street aims to please adults as well as kids. The theater’s website says the musical would probably receive a PG rating if it were a film. olneytheatre.org
Nov. 20-Dec. 22: A Hanukkah Carol, or Gelt Trip! The Musical
This world premiere at Round House Theatre in Bethesda puts a Hanukkah spin on A Christmas Carol. Millennial influencer Chava Kanipshin is visited by a series of ghosts who lead her through Hanukkahs past, present and future to reconnect with her spirit of generosity, Jewish identity and supporters in real life, not just online. roundhousetheatre.org
Dec. 6-Jan. 5: ’Twas the Night Before Christmas
Traditionally, not a creature stirs on Christmas Eve, not even a mouse. But that’s not the case in this tribute to the holiday season at Glen Echo’s Adventure Theatre MTC. After Santa missed his house last year, a mouse goes on a wild adventure with an elf and a spunky little girl. The show is appropriate for all ages. adventuretheatre-mtc.org
Dec. 11-March 7 Petite Rouge: A Cajun Red Riding Hood
It’s Little Red Riding Hood but with a Cajun twist in this update of the classic tale at Bethesda’s Imagination Stage. Petite Rouge, a red-robed duck, and her cat set off to bring Grand-mere some gumbo, but they encounter a Big Bad Gator who chases them through New Orleans. Expect Zydeco music and a chorus of swamp dwellers in this show that’s best for age 5 and older. imaginationstage.org
Comedy and Variety
Sept. 10: Mikey Day and Ego Nwodim
The two Saturday Night Live cast members are joined by Los Angeles-based writer and comedian Amy Silverberg at the Robert E. Parilla Performing Arts Center in Rockville for a night of stand-up comedy. Day started at SNL as a writer and went on to become a cast member, playing President Joe Biden in a 2023 Halloween sketch, and cracking up fellow cast member Heidi Gardner as the Butt-Head to guest host Ryan Gosling’s Beavis in a sketch earlier this year. He’s also the host of the show Is It Cake? on Netflix. In addition to SNL, Nwodim, a Baltimore native, has appeared in the movies Players, Spin Me Round and Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile.
montgomerycollege.edu/events
Nov. 7: Giancarlo Esposito
Known for his roles as terrifying drug kingpin Gus Fring in Breaking Bad and the dangerous Imperial leader Moff Gideon in The Mandalorian, Esposito comes to Rockville’s Robert E. Parilla Performing Arts Center for a moderated discussion on his nearly five-decade career as a film, television and stage actor, director and producer. He’ll discuss the hurdles people of color face in the industry and how he embraced his racial identity in his acting. montgomerycollege.edu/events
Dec. 4: A Swingin’ Little Christmas! Starring Jane Lynch
If you like your holidays flavored with some mid-century Christmas kitsch, head to The Music Center at Strathmore for a show that’s part cabaret and part comedy. Jane Lynch (center), the Emmy and Golden Globe winner known for her roles in Glee and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, is joined by Kate Flannery (right), from The Office, and Tim Davis (left), vocal arranger from Glee, in a send-up of holiday shows from the 1950s and ’60s. They will be backed by the Tony Guerrero Quintet. strathmore.org
Music
Sept. 13: BSO Fusion—And I Love Her: The Beatles Reimagined
In this concert at The Music Center at Strathmore, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, led by conductor Steve Hackman, performs a musical tribute to the Fab Four, the women who influenced them and the unforgettable characters they created in their songs. bsomusic.org
Sept. 22: Rosanne Cash
The American roots music icon and daughter of Johnny Cash comes to The Music Center at Strathmore for a concert marking the re-release of her album The Wheel and 30 years of stories and songs. A four-time Grammy Award winner, she’s also an author and the first female composer to win the MacDowell Medal, given to “artists who have made exceptional contributions to American culture.” strathmore.org
Oct. 5: Meshell Ndegeocello
The culmination of Strathmore’s series marking the 100th birthday of writer James Baldwin, this concert at The Music Center at Strathmore features the Grammy-winning singer, songwriter and instrumentalist, joined by her band and guest performers. Inspired by Baldwin’s use of writing to empower others, Ndegeocello utilizes her music, which draws on rock, hip-hop, R&B and spoken word, to engage with and pay tribute to his work. strathmore.org
Oct. 9 Neko Case
The singer-songwriter’s career has stretched over decades and musical genres, drawing from country, folk, indie rock, pop and punk. Known for her clear contralto voice and cryptic lyrics, she has released seven solo studio albums as well as collaborated with indie rock band The New Pornographers and with k.d. lang and Laura Veirs in their group Case/Lang/Veirs. With a career-spanning retrospective album released in 2022 and a memoir due out in January, she visits The Music Center at Strathmore on her tour this fall. strathmore.org
Oct. 12: Tori Kelly
The one-time American Idol contestant and Grammy Award winner stops by The Fillmore Silver Spring on her Purple Skies tour supporting her album TORI., which features pop music inspired by tunes from the late 1990s and early 2000s. In addition to releasing five albums, Kelly’s also known for voicing the elephant Meena in the animated movies Sing and Sing 2. fillmoresilverspring.com
Oct. 18: Judah & the Lion
Formed in 2011, the folk-rock group is made up of Judah Akers and Brian Macdonald, who met while attending college at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Their concert at The Fillmore Silver Spring is in support of their latest album, The Process, which is based on different stages of grief and was written after Akers faced a tough stretch in his life, including a divorce and the deaths of family members. fillmoresilverspring.com
Nov. 1: Judy Collins and Madeleine Peyroux
Collins (left), a folk legend, will perform her 1967 album Wildflowers in its entirety at The Music Center at Strathmore. Included on the album is her rendition of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now,” for which Collins won a Grammy. Sharing the bill, Peyroux (right), a jazz vocalist, will perform hits from her album Careless Love and other recent releases. strathmore.org
Nov. 9: Tyler Hubbard
One half of the country duo Florida Georgia Line, Hubbard is touring solo after the breakup of the pair in 2022. He swings by The Fillmore Silver Spring to promote his latest album, Strong, which is full of upbeat feel-good music. fillmoresilverspring.com
Nov. 15-16: Dru Hill
Before Sisqo was rapping about thongs, he was singing with Dru Hill, the R&B group from Baltimore that became famous in the 1990s for songs such as “In My Bed,” “Never Make a Promise” and “How Deep Is Your Love.” The group will perform two shows featuring original and newer members at the Bethesda Theater. bethesdatheater.com
Dance
Nov. 30: Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet
An international cast of dancers in lavish costumes stars onstage along with puppets and acrobats in this traditional take on the classic Tchaikovsky ballet at The Music Center at Strathmore. strathmore.org
Dec. 13: BSO: Cirque Nutcracker
Troupe Vertigo blends elements of circus acrobatics, dance and theater in this performance of The Nutcracker backed by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at The Music Center at Strathmore. bsomusic.org
Film
Sept. 19-Oct. 10: AFI Latin American Film Festival
Set to coincide with National Hispanic Heritage Month, which is observed Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 each year, the festival features movies from Latin American countries as well as Spain and Portugal at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring. Last year’s showcase offered more than 40 films. Some screenings include Q&As with filmmakers and embassy-sponsored receptions. afisilver.afi.com/silver/laff
Oct. 11-24: Noir City: DC
This festival at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring features a curated collection of films noir. This year, the festival presents a series of double features, pairing American and British noirs with thematically linked foreign-language movies. Eddie Muller, a writer, film historian and Turner Classic Movies host, will introduce select screenings. Muller is founder of the Film Noir Foundation, which restores and preserves movies from the genre. Proceeds from the festival go to the foundation. afisilver.afi.com
Dec. 4-22: AFI European Union Film Showcase
You don’t need a passport to see the best films from Europe this season; just head to Silver Spring. The annual AFI European Union Film Showcase, now in its 37th year, features the best movies from across the continent at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center. Last year’s films included Academy Award contenders and U.S. premieres. Select screenings include Q&A sessions with filmmakers. afisilver.afi.com