Article Text

The Falls Church area is heading into a busy three-day weekend, with Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the inauguration of the 47th president both falling on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025.

From civil rights programs and ballet to exhibitions, concerts, skating and swing dancing, events are scheduled throughout Falls Church and the Washington region.

Honoring Martin Luther King Jr.

The Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation invited the community to celebrate MLK Day in Falls Church on Saturday, Jan. 18. Founder Edwin Henderson II, a Falls Church civil rights pioneer, planned to share his perspective on King’s legacy and the meaning of the holiday.

At the McLean Center for the Arts, Collage Dance Collective will present “Rise” at 7 p.m. Saturday. Choreographed by company co-founder and artistic director Kevin Thomas, the all-ages ballet draws inspiration from King’s final speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop,” delivered in Memphis on April 3, 1968. The production reflects on progress since King’s death and imagines the work still ahead.

The Kennedy Center will hold its free, ticketed “Let Freedom Ring Celebration” at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 19. Taye Diggs will host the musical tribute, featuring Tony-nominated performer Christopher Jackson and Grammy winner esperanza spalding.

Exhibitions, History and Education

Two exhibitions at McLean Project for the Arts explore quilting, sculpture and the ways fragments can form a larger story.

“Pieced Together We Are Whole” features artists using quilting in unconventional ways to examine personal, political and universal themes. “Playing with Shadows” presents Liz Lescault’s biomorphic sculptures, made primarily from extruded filaments and, in some cases, found objects. Their shadows become part of the work and evoke the remnants scientists use to understand objects and histories.

Both exhibitions are at the McLean Community Center’s Emerson and Atrium galleries, which are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. An opening reception is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, followed by an artist talk at 11 a.m. Jan. 25 and a Tea & Talk program at 11 a.m. Feb. 11.

The Library of Congress will mark the centennial of writer, poet, illustrator and set designer Edward Gorey with “100 Years of Edward Gorey.” The Jan. 16 display, open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the Great Hall’s South Gallery, includes selections from the Glen Emil Gorey Collection and Edward Bradford Gorey Collection.

Beginners can learn American Sign Language during a class from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 19, at Mary Riley Styles Public Library, 120 N. Virginia Ave. Members of the Meridian High School ASL Honor Society will teach the all-ages session, part of a four-class series. Registration is open.

At the Fairfax Museum and Visitor Center, “Reimagining America: The Maps of Lewis and Clark” remains on display through Jan. 22 in the Gano Gallery. The traveling exhibition uses enlarged historic maps, photographs and explanatory material to show how the explorers helped reshape the country’s understanding of the American landscape.

Dance and Classical Music

Glen Echo’s Spanish Ballroom will host a swing dance with the David Chappell Band from 8 to 11:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18. Admission includes a beginner lesson with Tom and Debra at 8 p.m., followed by social dancing at 9 p.m. No partner is required, and all ages are welcome. Tickets cost $30 at the door or $20 in advance.

The Kennedy Center’s weekend classical schedule begins with a free performance by National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellows at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, on the Millennium Stage and via livestream.

Carlos Miguel Prieto will then conduct the National Symphony Orchestra in Rachmaninoff’s “Symphonic Dances,” with pianist Jorge Federico Osorio performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3. Concerts are scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, 11:30 a.m. Friday and 8 p.m. Saturday in the Concert Hall.

The Kennedy Center Chamber Players will give their winter concert at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 19, in the Terrace Theater.

Native Languages Meet Electropop

Artist, singer and electronic composer Elisa Harkins will make her Washington-area performance debut from 7 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17, at American University’s Katzen Arts Center.

Presented with MoCA Arlington and the university’s Studio Art MFA Program, “Wampum / ᎠᏕᎳ ᏗᎦᎫᏗ” combines original electropop music, Native fashion and lyrics in English, Cherokee and Muscogee. The performance draws from Indigenous musical traditions while incorporating techno, disco and other contemporary styles.

Elsewhere in Washington, Grammy-nominated electronic artist Tycho will bring Scott Hansen’s mix of ambient sound, dance music and audiovisual performance to the 9:30 Club. Tycho’s live band includes Hansen, Zac Brown, Rory O’Connor and multi-instrumentalist Billy Kim.

Capitals Fans Take Over the Wharf

The Wharf’s seasonal Capitals celebration continues through February with team decorations, a Caps Cantina Bar on Transit Pier and a Capitals-themed ice resurfacer at the rink.

A “Rock the Rink” event will run from 6 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, featuring a DJ and Capitals merchandise giveaways. The team’s away game against the Ottawa Senators will be shown on an 85-inch screen at 7 p.m. Fans wearing Capitals gear can receive $5 off rink admission that day.

Falls Church Music and Comedy

Creative Cauldron’s 14th annual Passport Music Festival continues through Feb. 1 at 410 S. Maple Ave. The series presents Latin, jazz, blues, folk and world music in a small club-style setting.

At the State Theatre, the nine-piece Jimmy Buffett tribute group Captain Mike & The Shipwrecked will perform Friday, Jan. 17. Doors open at 7 p.m., with the show starting at 8:30 p.m. The venue will follow that performance with a $5 comedy night featuring DMV comedians on Saturday, Jan. 18. Guests must be at least 18 unless accompanied by a parent, and valid identification is required.

Clare & Don’s Beach Shack will host Dan & Chuck at 5:30 p.m. Friday. WAMMIE-nominated independent country performers Michelle and Jason Hannan will take the stage at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

JV’s Music Room, 6666 Arlington Blvd., has a packed weekend schedule:

• The Dave Chappell Band at 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16.
• The Shartel and Hume Band at 4 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17.
• The Honky Tonk Cassanovas at 8:30 p.m. Friday.
• Big Giant Trio at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18.
• Smylin’ Jack at 8:30 p.m. Saturday.
• Jumpin’ Jupiter at 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 19.
• The Bobby Thompson Band’s Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute, with Lou Ann Barton, at 8:30 p.m. Sunday.

Solace Outpost, 444 W. Broad St., will feature The Non Essentialz at 8 p.m. Friday and The Walkaways at 8 p.m. Saturday.

Settle Down Easy Brewing, 2822 Fallfax Drive, will present Brandon Lane at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16. The show is free.

More Music in Fairfax

Earp’s Ordinary will host three nights of music beginning with the Loving Paupers on Friday, Jan. 17. Doors open at 4 p.m., and the performance starts at 8 p.m.

Northern Virginia favorites The Nighthawks will appear with the Rich Russman Band on Saturday. Doors open at 4 p.m., with music beginning at 7:30 p.m. The Soul Crackers will close the weekend with Motown and soul music at 6 p.m. Sunday, after doors open at 4 p.m.

Restaurant Week Is Next

Beyond the holiday weekend, Falls Church is preparing for its second annual Restaurant Week from Jan. 31 through Feb. 9. The 10-day event will spotlight restaurants and culinary offerings across the Little City.