Dec. 15-17: DC Weekend Happenings

Looking for fun things to do this weekend?  Check out the listings below.  Top picks for this weekend: Nordic Voices at the National Gallery of Art, Kwanzaa Celebration at Coyaba Dance Theater, Holiday Market in Downtown & at the Reeves Center & Midnight My Love (Thai film) at the Freer Gallery. 

Have you heard about anything else interesting going on this weekend?  Comment below and let everyone know.

FEATURED RESOURCE
Check out Washington Post’s "Weekend Now," a weekly discussion about its feature stories and weekly entertainment information.

FEATURED ARTICLE
- Explore DC in a Weekend
- Warm Escape from Winter Blues
- Discovering Treasures at Eastern Market
- Exhibit: Listening to Our Ancestors
- Exhibits: Meet Joseph & Josephine
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+ MILLENIUM STAGE, KENNEDY CENTER

Free Performances Every Day, No Tickets Required
Performance Time: 6 p.m. Eastern, unless otherwise noted

Friday, December 15, 2006
The Duke Ellington School of the Arts Music Department 
Duke Ellington School of the Arts Concert Choir, under the direction of Samuel L. E. Bonds, sings traditional choral music of the season with pianist Alma Costello.

Saturday, December 16, 2006
Last Train Home 
A favorite of the D.C. roots-rock scene, Last Train Home delivers original holiday tunes and interpretations of yuletide classics from its CD, Holiday Limited.

Sunday, December 17, 2006
Prelude 
Formed in 1978 by trumpeter Dave Detwiler, the group presents “Christmastime in Washington,” a program featuring straight-ahead and smooth jazz arrangements of holiday classics.
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+ CULTURAL TOURISM

Brookland's 11th Annual Holiday Celebration of Lights
Friday, December 15, 2006 - Sunday, December 17, 2006
Location: Brookland
Brookland celebrates the holiday season with three days of shopping and reveling, sponsored by the Brookland Community Development Corporation and its Historic Brookland Main Street Program as well as by the merchants of Brookland.

African American Christmas Stories and Candlelight Tours
Saturday, December 16, 2006
5:30 PM
Location: Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site
Join the National Park Service at the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site for a festive evening of African American Christmas stories and candlelight tours.

Dance: Kwanzaa Celebration with Coyaba Dance Theater
Saturday, December 16, 2006 - Sunday, December 17, 2006
Location: Dance Place
In this special holiday celebration Dance Place resident company, Coyaba Dance Theater, “warms the heart with their singing, dancing, and drumming” (Washington Post). The concert also features the students of Dance Place’s adult and children’s African dance classes, storytelling, and more.

Music: Maja Ratkje and POING
Sunday, December 17, 2006
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Location: National Museum of Women in the Arts
The National Museum of Women in the Arts welcomes Norwegian composer, performer, and vocalist Maja S. K. Ratkje back to the museum for a special performance with the trio POING.

Music - Gallery Concerts: Nordic Voices
Sunday, December 17, 2006
6:30 PM
Location: National Gallery of Art
Featuring Nordic Voices performing Christmas music from Norway and other countries. Presented in cooperation with the Royal Norwegian Embassy and in connection with the Norwegian Christmas Festival.
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+ WHAT'S DOING

CHRISTMAS AT MOUNT VERNON Daily 9 to 4 through Jan. 6, tour the first president's last home, decorated for the holidays. $13, ages 11 and younger $6, younger free. At Mount Vernon, at the southern end of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, about eight miles south of Alexandria. 703-780-2000.

"A NORWEGIAN CHRISTMAS" Exhibits and model train displays open daily during station hours through Jan. 7. Union Station, 50 Massachusetts Ave. NE. 202-289-1908.

CHRISTMAS AT OATLANDS Tour the 19th-century Greek revival mansion decorated for the holidays, open weekdays and Saturdays 10 to 4 and Sundays 1 to 4, through Dec. 30 (closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day). $10, seniors $9, ages 6 to 16 $7, younger free. Evening tours, Friday and Saturday 5 to 8; $12, ages 6 to 16 $8. Oatlands Plantation, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg. 703-777-3174.

BENEFIT SHOW HOUSE Open Friday 10 to 3, Saturday 10 to 5, Sunday noon to 5. $20 in advance, $25 at door, for National Multiple Sclerosis Society. At 2003 Rockingham St., McLean; park at Chesterbrook Swimming & Tennis Club, 1812 Kirby Rd., McLean. 703-241-4544.

CHRISTMAS PAGEANT OF PEACE See the National Christmas Tree and decorated trees for every state and territory. Open daily through Jan. 1 from 11 to 11. Concerts by local bands and choruses nightly at 6, 7 and 8 through Dec. 23. On the Ellipse, south of the White House. 202-208-1631.

HOLIDAY MANSION TOURS Open daily noon to 4, through Dec. 31. Tour the 1815 mansion decorated for the holidays. $3, seniors and students $2. Beall-Dawson House, 103 W. Montgomery Ave., Rockville. 301-340-2825.

GEM AND JEWELRY SHOW Friday noon to 6, Saturday 10 to 6, Sunday 11 to 5. Vendor sales of jewelry, gemstones, beads, minerals and related goods. $7. Dulles Expo Center, Willard Road off Route 28, Chantilly. 703-378-0910.

HOLIDAY MARKET Open daily noon to 7, through Dec. 22. About 40 vendors sell crafts and gifts. Outdoors on F Street NW between Seventh and Eighth streets. 202-638-3232.

SPORTS CARD, NONSPORTS CARD AND COMIC BOOK SHOW Saturday 9:30 to 3. $3. Tysons Corner Holiday Inn, 1960 Chain Bridge Rd., McLean. 301-990-4929.

BLACK DOLL SHOW AND SALE Saturday and Sunday 10 to 5. Vendors offer dolls, accessories and related goods. $5, ages 12 and younger free. Montgomery County Fairgrounds, Route 355 and Perry Parkway, Gaithersburg. 301-649-1915.

HOLIDAY MARKETPLACE Saturday and Sunday 11 to 7. About 70 vendors. Sponsored by the African American Holiday Association at Reeves Center, 14th and U NW. 202-667-2577.

BENEFIT DINNER DANCE Tue sday at 7, with music by the Glenn Miller Orchestra. $120. Sponsored by the Art Deco Society of Washington at the Sequoia Restaurant, 3000 K St. NW. 703-864-7070.

Holiday Light Shows

"WINTER FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS" A 2.5-mile drive through holiday figures created with more than 1 million lights. Open nightly 5 to 9:30 through Jan. 1. $5 per car or van (free on Dec. 25). Watkins Regional Park, 301 Watkins Park Dr., Upper Marlboro. 301-699-2456.

"BULL RUN FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS" A 2.5-mile drive through illuminated displays. Open nightly 5 to 9:30 through Jan. 7. $15 per car or van. Bull Run Regional Park, 7700 Bull Run Dr., at I-66 Exit 52, Centreville. 703-352-5900.

"LIGHTS ON THE BAY" A two-mile drive through more than 70 scenes. Open nightly 5 to 10 through Jan. 1. $12 per vehicle. A benefit for the Anne Arundel Medical Center. Sandy Point State Park, 1100 E. College Pkwy., off U.S. 50 Exit 32 outside Annapolis. 443-481-3161.

"GARDEN OF LIGHTS" A half-mile stroll past a kaleidoscope caterpillar, a flying cardinal, a Loch Ness monster and other illuminated creatures. Open Friday-Thursday 5:30 to 9 (last entry at 8:30). Schedule varies weekly through Jan. 7. $15 per car or van. No pedestrian access. Brookside Gardens, 1800 Glenallan Ave., Wheaton. 301-962-1453.

"WINTER LIGHTS FESTIVAL" Tour nearly 400 displays with an enchante d-forest theme along a 3.5-mile drive. Open Friday-Saturday 6 to 10 and Sunday-Thursday 6 to 9 through Dec. 31 (closed Dec. 25). $12 per car Fridays and Saturdays, $10 other nights. Proceeds benefit Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, Hospice Caring Inc. and other charities. Seneca Creek State Park, 11950 Clopper Rd., Gaithersburg. 301-258-6350.

"SYMPHONY OF LIGHTS" A 1.4-mile drive through more than 75 light sculptures. Open Friday and Saturday 6 to 11 and Sunday-Thursday 6 to 10 through Jan. 7. $15 per car. A benefit for Howard County General Hospital. In Symphony Woods, Columbia, on Broken Land Parkway adjacent to Merriweather Post Pavilion. 410-740-7666.
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+ FILMS - REPERTORY THEATERS

Freer Gallery of Art
Jefferson Drive at 12th St. SW
(202) 233-4880
discoveries 2006
Midnight My Love
(NR) -
Fri. 7:00

National Gallery of Art
East Building Auditorium
4th St. & Constitution Ave. NW
(202) 842-6799
victor sjostrom: Swedish original
The Girl From Stormy Croft
(1917) -
Sat. 2:00
The Outlaw and His Wife
(1917) -
Sun. 4:00
The Scarlet Letter
(1926) -
Sat. 4:00
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