Music
March 8: Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Founded in the 1960s, the South African a
cappella group brought its distinctive Zulu harmonies to the world stage. The artists’ collaboration with Paul Simon on his 1986 album Graceland made them international stars. See the five-time Grammy-winning group at The Music Center at Strathmore. strathmore.org
March 18: Rhiannon Giddens
A founding member of Black folk music revival acts Carolina Chocolate Drops and Our Native Daughters, the two-time Grammy-winning musician is also a MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient and 2023 Pulitzer Prize winner. Last summer she released You’re the One, her first album of all original songs. This spring, see the singer and player of multiple stringed instruments, including the fiddle, viola and banjo, at The Music Center at Strathmore. strathmore.org
March 22: Buckwheat Zydeco Jr.
Growing up, Sir Reginald M. Dural played and toured with his father, the late Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural Jr., and his Buckwheat Zydeco band. After his father’s death in 2016, Dural stepped into his shoes as Buckwheat Zydeco Jr., keeping his dad’s music and legacy alive with the Ils Sont Partis Band, which includes longtime members of Buckwheat Zydeco. They’ll bring the sound of Creole jazz from Louisiana to Germantown’s BlackRock Center for the Arts. blackrockcenter.org
March 30: Keiko Matsui
A Tokyo native, the keyboard player and composer blends Asian and Western music into a mix of new age, jazz, pop and R&B. She performs at the Bethesda Theater to promote Euphoria, her latest album. bethesdatheater.com
April 8: Busta Rhymes
With an unmistakable flow and style, the “Woo-Hah!! Got You All in Check” rapper is one of a kind. His tour, promoting his latest album, Blockbusta, comes to The Fillmore Silver Spring. livenation.com
Theater
April 10-May 5: A Jumping Off Point
This drama about the confrontation between a Black writer who just landed a deal with HBO and the white man from her grad school cohort who accuses her of plagiarizing his work has its world premiere at Round House Theatre as part of the National Capital New Play Festival. roundhousetheatre.org
April 11-28: Islander
With a bare-bones set and cast, this musical at Olney Theatre Center uses live looping and mixing to create dramatic sonic landscapes evoking the mythical Scottish island where it takes place. The story centers on two girls—among the island’s last inhabitants—who form a friendship after they discover a beached baby whale. olneytheatre.org
Comedy/Variety
March 22: Fairytales on Ice
Peter Pan, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, the Little Mermaid and other fairy tale characters sing and glide on synthetic “ice” during this performance at the Montgomery College Cultural Arts Center in Silver Spring. The show, which sold out last year, combines professional ice skating with elements of magic, circus arts and a modern soundtrack. mcblogs.montgomerycollege.edu/cac/event/foi-2024/
April 12: Alan Cumming
Whether you know him as Nightcrawler in X2 (the X-Men sequel), Eli Gold on The Good Wife, or from one of his many other roles onstage, in films and on television, you can see the Scottish actor when he comes to the Robert E. Parilla Performing Arts Center on the Rockville campus of Montgomery College. Cumming will discuss his life and Emmy- and Tony-winning career with Olney Theatre Center Artistic Director Jason Loewith. montgomerycollege.edu
April 13: David Sedaris
The satirist and author of more than a dozen books of stories and personal essays, including Me Talk Pretty One Day, Barrel Fever and his latest, Happy-Go-Lucky, comes to The Music Center at Strathmore to regale audiences with humorous readings and recollections.
strathmore.org
Art
March 7-31: Celebrate the Feminine
This solo exhibition at Bethesda’s Gallery B features paintings, sculptures and drawings depicting women by Deborah CC LaCroix. The Washington, D.C., resident got her start in art in her 40s and in 2009 retired from a 30-year law career to pursue her passion full time. bethesda.org
Film
March 15-17: Community Stories Film Festival
Started in 2010, this free festival features documentaries made by DMV filmmakers, and all the topics are about people, places or events from our region. The festivities at the Silver Spring headquarters of Docs in Progress include in-person and virtual screenings and live Q&As with filmmakers. docsinprogress.org
April 5-6: Bethesda Film Fest
All the movies are short—just five to 30 minutes—at this annual showcase for local documentary filmmakers, but the subjects are wide-ranging. After the screening at Landmark Bethesda Row Cinema, stick around for a discussion and Q&A session with the filmmakers. bethesda.org/bethesda/bethesda-film-fest
Community Events
March 16: St. Patrick’s Day Parade
Celtic dancers and bagpipe bands star in this procession, along with school groups, equestrian units, fire trucks and community organizations. Find a spot on the route along Rio Boulevard and Grand Corner Avenue at Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg for best viewing. gaithersburgmd.gov/recreation/special-events/st-patrick-s-day-parade
April 21: Kensington Day of the Book Festival
Meet authors, poets and members of literary and community organizations at this annual book festival in the heart of Kensington’s historic district. The event also includes poetry readings, cookbook demos, guest speakers, children’s programs and live musical performances. dayofthebook.com
April 26-28: Olney Days
Three days packed with events celebrate the Olney community. Highlights include an outdoor movie night, a Rec Regatta in which teams of two race homemade cardboard boats across the pool at Olney Swim Center, an outdoor festival with live music, games, inflatables and fireworks, and, of course, a parade. olneycivicfund.org
April 27: Carousel Day
Glen Echo Park’s 103-year-old carousel opens for the season with a celebration that includes free musical performances, hands-on arts and crafts activities, and open artist studios and galleries. glenechopark.org/carouselday
This story appears in the March/April issue of Bethesda Magazine.