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Arlington’s 55+ Programs are offering a busy schedule of classes, performances, presentations and day trips from Jan. 22 through Feb. 7. Most activities take place in person at 55+ Centers, though several are virtual.
Participation requires a 55+ Pass, with annual fees starting at $20. Registration is available at registration.arlingtonva.us or by calling 703-228-4747.
Jan. 22-25
Volunteer George Cecchetti will introduce Giuseppe Verdi’s “Rigoletto,” explaining the opera’s plot and the composer’s background, at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 22, at Lubber Run 55+ Center. Registration number: 912300-04.
A Jan. 22 shopping trip will stop at Walmart in Sterling for essentials before continuing to Dulles Town Center for additional shopping and dining. The cost is $15 for Arlington residents and $17 for nonresidents. Registration number: 902401-07.
Aurora Hills 55+ Center will screen “The World’s Fastest Indian” at 12:30 p.m. Jan. 22. Registration number: 912804-05.
Ashley Gomez, director of Lubber Run 55+ Center, will lead a program about Arlington’s history at 1:30 p.m. Jan. 22. Monthly topics are available by emailing agomez@arlingtonva.us. Registration number: 912402-07.
A two-part advance-care-planning series begins at 11 a.m. Jan. 22 at Langston-Brown 55+ Center with guidance on preparing a health care advance directive. The second session, at 11 a.m. Jan. 29, will give participants an opportunity to meet individually with a certified volunteer. Attendance at the first session is required to join the second. Registration number: 912404-03.
Peter North, an outreach specialist at the Library of Virginia in Richmond, will present a virtual program about Virginia after the Civil War at 3 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 23. Registration number: 912400-18.
Gomez will also deliver a virtual presentation about Peru at 1 p.m. Jan. 23 as part of a series described as covering Central American countries. Registration number: 912400-39.
Musicians of every skill level can bring a banjo, guitar, fiddle, mandolin or dulcimer to an old-time and string-band jam at 5 p.m. Jan. 23 at Lubber Run. The session will be led by volunteer Fred Winter, co-founder of New York City’s Old Time Music Project. Registration number: 912304-19.
Cecchetti, a former Kennedy Space Center employee, will trace NASA’s space shuttle program from its beginning through its conclusion at 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 24, at Langston-Brown. Registration number: 912400-33.
On Saturday, Jan. 25, the travel group will visit the National Law Enforcement Museum in Washington, which covers 300 years of history through interactive displays and 25,000 artifacts. Participants may bring lunch or purchase a snack at the museum café. The trip costs $36 for Arlington residents and $40 for nonresidents. Registration number: 902401-08.
Feb. 3-5
A Monday, Feb. 3, trip will take participants to the National Gallery of Art for “The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography.” The cost is $11 for Arlington residents and $13 for nonresidents. Registration number: 902502-01.
Arlington first responders and 55+ staff will discuss keeping emergency information current at 11 a.m. Feb. 3 at Walter Reed 55+ Center. Registration number: 912400-07.
Community Arts Programmer Jennifer Droblyen will examine the distinctive—and sometimes secretive—methods used by famous artists during a virtual program at 10:30 a.m. Feb. 3. Registration number: 912302-05.
Bill Browning, an Arlington Regional Master Naturalist, will discuss influential ecological thinkers and their views of nature in a virtual presentation at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4. Registration number: 912400-21.
Long Branch Nature Center naturalist Bobbi Farley will explain how Arlington’s native animals survive in an urban setting at 11 a.m. Feb. 4 at Arlington Mill 55+ Center. Registration number: 912400-23.
Cecchetti returns to Lubber Run at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5, for an opera-appreciation program on Richard Wagner’s “Die Walküre,” the second work in the Ring Cycle. Registration number: 912300-05.
Pianist Ken Schellenberg and singers Judy Lewis and Jane Petkovsky will perform selections from the Sondheim songbook at 2:30 p.m. Feb. 5 at Aurora Hills. Registration number: 912301-09.
Volunteers with Arlington Regional Master Naturalists will discuss birds that spend the winter in Arlington and ways to support migratory species at 5 p.m. Feb. 5 at Arlington Mill. Registration number: 912400-26.
The travel group will also tour the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington on Feb. 5. The cost is $11 for Arlington residents and $13 for nonresidents. The supplied registration number is incomplete.
Feb. 6-7
Local history expert John McNair will present a virtual Black History Month program about the 107th U.S. Colored Troops in Arlington at 3 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6. Registration number: 912400-09.
Opher Heymann, a student at the U.S. Army War College, will discuss strategic competition in Africa and U.S. efforts to advance democracy and peace by integrating elements of national power. The virtual presentation begins at 2:30 p.m. Feb. 6. Registration number: 912400-35.
Schellenberg and singers Judy Lewis and Jane Petrovsky will perform music by Stephen Sondheim at 1 p.m. Feb. 6 at Walter Reed. Registration number: 912301-10.
Droblyen and fellow Community Arts Programmer Jim Halloran will lead a virtual paint-along inspired by artwork displayed in area museums at 10 a.m. Feb. 6. Registration number: 912303-09.
Winter will host another open jam at 5 p.m. Feb. 6 at Lubber Run, featuring Appalachian old-time, pre-bluegrass and string-band music. Players of all abilities may bring a banjo, guitar, fiddle, mandolin or dulcimer. Registration number: 912304-20.
A Friday, Feb. 7, travel outing will combine Maryland Live! Casino in Hanover with a visit to Arundel Mills outlets. The cost is $13 for Arlington residents and $15 for nonresidents. Registration number: 902502-03.
To mark Black History Month, 55+ Operations Supervisor Cory Cox will discuss African American women inventors at 2 p.m. Feb. 7 at Aurora Hills. Registration number: 912400-10.