The Kennedy Center

China National Traditional Orchestra’s ‘Rediscover Chinese Music’ at The Kennedy Center

Having just returned from China—where one of the highlights of the trip was hearing traditional music performed casually in teahouses and parks—I was curious to see how these simple melodies would...

NSO Pops: ‘The von Trapps and Stephanie J. Block Family Holiday’ at The Kennedy Center

With their annual holiday concert at The Kennedy Center on Thursday, December 10, 2016, the NSO Pops, joined by special guests Stephanie J. Block and The von Trapps, as well as the Washington Chorus,...

‘Declassified: In Motion featuring Ben Folds’ by The National Symphony Orchestra at The Kennedy Center

The National Symphony Orchestra/The Kennedy Center Declassified series, launched on Saturday with its performance of In Motion featuring Ben Folds, is a bold initiative to counter the fundamental...

Washington National Opera: American Opera Initiative: Three 20-Minute Operas

The fourth annual American Opera Initiative launched this month to sold out performances of three new works. It was a heartening look at the future of the art form – from the librettists and composers...

‘Elephant & Piggies We Are in A Play!’ at The Kennedy Center

I could not say for sure whether my 6 year-old son or I had the most fun watching The Kennedy Center’s production of Elephant & Piggies We Are in A Play! We laughed, we cheered, we wiggle-waggled, and...

Cellist Amit Peled and Pianist Noreen Polera with Washington Performing Arts at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

Cellist Amit Peled is one of those practitioners of “serious” music who brings a kind of pizzazz that’s probably needed in the 21st century world of what’s generically dubbed classical music. His...

Barbara Cook’s Spotlight: John Lloyd Young

John Lloyd Young, Tony-Award winner and musical wonder of the Broadway never-ending (and well-deserved to be!) musical hit Jersey Boys, enthralled the crowd at The Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater...

The National Symphony Orchestra with Guest Conductor Jiri Belohlavek and Pianist Igor Levit

The National Symphony Orchestra is doing one of its best guest conductors, Jiri Belohlavek, mostly proud this week with music from his Czech homeland. In the first of its three concerts this week, the...

Spine: ‘Appomattox’ Cracks the Color Line at The Kennedy Center

Appomattox, the world premiere opera now playing at The Kennedy Center Opera House in a new production by the Washington National Opera, tackles that most epic of America’s sins, “the color line.” And...

‘Appomattox’ at Washington National Opera by David Friscic (Review #1)

Oh, the tears, trauma and travail of the issues brought to the fore in the revised World Premiere of the opera Appomattox at the Kennedy Center Opera House Friday night. This challenging World...

Dorado Schmitt and the Django Festival All-Stars at The Kennedy Center

Dorado Schmitt and the Django Festival All-Stars came to The Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater last night. And for a beautiful 80 minutes, the terror of the day vanished, syncopated out of existence by...

Spine: JOY and Twyla Tharp’s 50th Anniversary Tour

Twyla Tharp’s 50th Anniversary Tour came to the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theatre last night. Four pieces: two short “Fanfares,” a Preludes and Fugues, and a Yowzie. And the stage was aflutter with...

Barbara Cook’s Spotlight: Michele Lee: ‘Nobody Does It Like Me, The Music of Cy Coleman’

Broadway, Television, Film and Concert artist Michele Lee beguiled at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater with a disarming and engaging set of songs written by the prolific Broadway composer Cy...

Barbara Cook’s Spotlight: Randy Graff at The Kennedy Center

Tony Award-winning (City of Angels) Broadway, concert, and cabaret artist Randy Graff dazzled the crowd Friday night at the Kennedy Center’s intimate Terrace Theater. Graff is utterly unique and...

Magic Time! The Women’s Voices Theater Festival: Darius & Twig’ at The Kennedy Center

I cannot help but think that if W.E.B. DuBois were alive, he would absolutely love Darius & Twig, the passionately purposeful play by Caleen Sinnette Jennings adapted from Walter Dean Myers’s popular...

The Suzanne Farrell Ballet: ‘Balanchine, Béjart, and the Bard’ at The Kennedy Center

Suzanne Farrell – still fairest of them all From the early 1960s until the late 1980s (except for a five-year escape to Belgium), Suzanne Farrell reigned as George Balanchine’s muse at the New York...

NSO Pops: ‘Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers’ at The Kennedy Center

It was an evening of American classics – from the pops program the National Symphony Orchestra played under the sure baton of Steve Reineke to the guest of honor himself, Steve Martin, winner of the...

‘Antigone’ at The Kennedy Center

Renowned Belgian director Ivo van Hove is famous for his radical re-imagining of classical works, and his rendition Sophocles’ Antigone is no different. Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche stars as...

Barbara Cook’s Spotlight: Terri White’s Farewell Performance at The Kennedy Center

The ebullient, sassy, brassy and joyously life-affirming Broadway and cabaret star Terri White (resplendent in a stylish, sharply-edged purple pantsuit) launched into her ninety minute show at The...

‘Latin Heat’ at The Washington Ballet

Latin Heat does what the Washington Ballet does best: spotlight its dancers’ strengths and individual personalities. However, Latin Heat also illumines the WSB unhinged and unrestrained. Never before...

‘Flowers Stink’ at The U.S. Botanical Garden

A middle school girl from the big city, named Liz, becomes frustrated when trying to write a poem about nature for school. But when she turns to technology to vent and tweets, “#natureisboring...

‘Beautiful-The Carole King Musical’ at The Kennedy Center

Beautiful–The Carole King Musical takes the audience on a ride through songs that in three minutes or so, framed and reflected many a life; especially of the Baby Boomer generation. As directed by...

‘Mariko’s Magical Mix: A Dance Adventure’ at The Kennedy Center’s Family Theater

Mariko’s Magical Mix: A Dance Adventure is an original piece by Sarah Fornace, Julia Miller, and Princess Grace Award –winner Robyn Mineko Williams, presented in this world premier Kennedy Center...

Magic Time!: An Interview with Playwright Stacy Jewell Lewis On ‘7 Layers Captive’: Her True Story of Being Sex Trafficked, Playing at The Kennedy Center on October 10th at 7 PM

Back in summer of 2014, I discovered an extraordinary play, playwright, and performer—7 Layers Captive, written and performed by Stacy Jewell Lewis based on her own true story of being abducted into...

NSO Pops: ‘Rajaton: Best of The Beatles’ at The Kennedy Center

I had never seen an a cappella group accompanied by a symphony orchestra before and I was thrilled to see that happen last night when the Finnish a cappella group Rajaton sang The Beatles hits backed...

Review: ‘Wagner, Max! Wagner’ a Song Cycle at The Kennedy Center

Even those familiar with the work of Stew and Heidi Rodewald, the duo behind Obie and Tony-award winning musical Passing Strange, might find a description of their newest song cycle Wagner, Max!...

‘Carmen’ at Washington National Opera (Cast #2-9/20/15)

Washington National Opera opens its 60th season with Georges Bizet’s iconic verismo opera, Carmen, directed by E. Loren Meeker. Arguably the most popular work in the operatic repertoire, Carmen is a...

‘Carmen’ at Washington National Opera (Cast 1-9/19/15)

The Washington National Opera launches their 60th season with a visually gorgeous and vocally stunning Carmen. Clémentine Margaine takes on the role of the gypsy seductress – a role that every mezzo...

‘An Easy to Read 2015 Page-to-Stage Festival’ Schedule for Saturday, September 5-Monday, September 7, 2015 at The Kennedy Center

This year’s 14th Annual Page-to-Stage Festival takes place: Saturday, September 5th from 10:30 a.m.–11 p.m. Sunday, September 6th from 6–7 p.m. Monday, September 7, from 11 a.m.–10:30 p.m. Venues...

‘2015 Page-to-Stage Festival’ Schedule for Saturday, September 5-Monday, September 7, 2015 at The Kennedy Center

This year’s 14th Annual Page-to-Stage Festival takes place: Saturday, September 5th from 10:30 a.m.–11 p.m. Sunday, September 6th from 6–7 p.m. Monday, September 7, from 11 a.m.–10:30 p.m. Venues...

Whoopi Goldberg at The Kennedy Center

Nothing is off limits to the irascible, irreverently funny Whoopi Goldberg. She warned us from the start, however, that she loves the use of language– very colorful language– as she whooped it up with...

‘Once’ at The Kennedy Center

Brilliantly blending theatricality and intimacy, the 2012 Tony Award-winning best musical Once officially opened last night at The Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater, championing the awe-inspiring...

Polish National Ballet at The Kennedy Center

Grey, almost nondescript costumes, would not seem powerful. A lightly lit modern painting, blue, then back to grey, would not seem striking. Eight dancers, re-entering in lines from upstage to...

Comedy at the Kennedy Center: Kathy Griffin at The Kennedy Center

Guinness World Record-setter (with 23 stand-up specials), two-time Emmy and Grammy Award–winning comedian Kathy Griffin officially kicked off her 80-city tour last night at The Kennedy Center’s...

‘The Book of Mormon’ at The Kennedy Center

Two years ago I saw the touring production of The Book of Mormon at The Kennedy Center and was utterly blown away. I wrote a column at the time about the profound content of The Book of Mormon,...

The Royal Ballet’s ‘Don Quixote’ at The Kennedy Center

Carlos Acosta’s Don Quixote is a Royal treat Sometimes balletomanes can only distinguish between a truly great dance concert and a very fine one by noting how many goose bumps pop up on their arms....

Ardani Artists Presents: Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg: ‘Rodin’ at The Kennedy Center

Boris Eifman is a choreographer critics love to hate and audiences simply love. In fact, in his 2011 opus, Rodin, detailing the loves of the great French sculptor who chiseled the art form into the...

‘Tour-de-Force: Serenade’ at The Washington Ballet at The Kennedy Center

The dancers, dusted in long, white tulle, reflect—shells on a dark beach. It is an opening, a closing, a commencement, an ending. Arms raise. Hands flex. Heads turn, diagonally, toward a common...

‘Cinderella’ (‘La Cenerentola’) at Washington National Opera #2 (Tara Erraught)

“The best laid plans of mice and men, often go awry.” In this case, to the great enjoyment of all in the Washington National Opera’s dazzling, fun production of Gioachino Rossini’s Cinderella (La...

‘Cinderella’ (‘La Cenerentola’) at Washington National Opera #1 (Isabel Leonard)

Every spring, the Washington National Opera launches a family friendly show in time for their M&M’S® Opera in the Outfield, and this year they tackle Rossini’s wickedly funny Cinderella. I love what...

ALICE (in wonderland) at The Washington Ballet at The Kennedy Center

The Washington Ballet‘s performance of ALICE (in wonderland) is delightful for someone like me who is not a connosseur of ballet. Here, sets and costumes change frequently, the performances are...

National Symphony Orchestra, ‘Mahler Explored’ With Christoph Eschenbach, Conductor and Leonidas Kavakos, Violin

Last night at The Kennedy Center Concert Hall marked a special evening for all – conductor, players, and audience alike. The audience, foremost, was treated to the special talents of violin virtuoso...

2015 Kennedy Center Spring Gala: ‘It Don’t Mean a Thing… A Celebration of Swing’ at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts rolled out the red carpet on Sunday evening with a star-studded salute to the swing era of the 1930s and ‘40s. Under the direction of Grammy-winning...

The Washington Ballet’s ‘Swan Lake’ at The Kennedy Center

Swooning over the first ‘Swan’ Step aside, Baryshnikov. There’s a new kid on the block and he’s taking the dance world by storm. The Washington Ballet’s Brooklyn Mack took his royal place last night...

New York City Ballet: Program B: 21st-Century Choreographers’ at The Kennedy Center

Principal dancer Teresa Reichlen unwraps her leg into a développé, a blade curling a bow, then—suspends—playfully, before hiding it away. Her partner, principal Zachary Catazaro, approaches with a...

Jay Leno at The Kennedy Center

A magnificent stage usually filled with a full orchestra and a hundred-person chorus might feel empty with just a stool, a microphone, and a lone person, but not when Jay Leno is in control. With the...

New York City Ballet at The Kennedy Center-Program A: 20th Century Classics

There’s no company like the New York City Ballet, performing the old, new, and, especially, Serenade. Last night was one of those magical evenings of ballet and beauty. First it was a smooth ride to...

The Philadelphia Orchestra with Washington Performing Arts at the Kennedy Center

Subtext abounded as the Philadelphia Orchestra arrived at The Kennedy Center Tuesday night. In Washington, rising politicians are “mentioned for president.” In classical music, rising conductors are...

‘Being Leonardo da Vinci (An Impossible Interview)’ at The Kennedy Center

Italian director and actor Massimiliano Finazzer Flory brought his latest project, Being Leonardo da Vinci (An Impossible Interview), to The Kennedy Center on April 2, 2015, for a single engagement....

‘Do You Hear the People Sing?’ With The National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center

For more than 30 years, the music of Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg has uplifted, inspired, and invoked passion in audiences and artists alike. Under the baton of conductor Steven Reineke,...