EXPRESS NIGHT OUT is hosting two happy hours tonight at 6 p.m. to help you wind down from whatever exciting election shenanigans you got up to yesterday.
There's free beer (while it lasts) and cheap food. Democrats can throw back Blue Moon, and for Republicans we'll be providing Killian's Red.
Victorious Barack Obama supporters should head to Top of the Hill. If you backed John McCain, 18th Amendment's your bar.
RSVP here to let us know you're coming.
» Top of the Hill, 319 Pennsylvania Ave. SE; 202-546-1001. (Capitol South)
» 18th Amendment, 613 Pennsylvania Ave. SE; 202-543-3622. (Capitol South)
THE HARD-DRINKING, hard-partying scion of an all-important political family is forced to choose between his rough-hewn frat-boy companions and the service to his country he's been groomed for all his life.
No, this is not Oliver Stone's new movie. It's "Henry IV, Part 1," William Shakespeare's third-most-beloved history play, and it's at the Folger Theatre.
In the past, Henry's story has been used as pro- and anti-war propaganda, so we'll see where this one falls on the ideological spectrum. Ah, for the days when succession was decided by blood relationships and not by these silly elections.
» Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol St. SE; through Nov. 16, $25-$55; 202-544-7077. (Capitol South)
Photo courtesy The Shakespeare Theatre
FACT: Viewers love tension. The Democratic Convention crackled with the possibility that at any moment the Clintons might decide not to endorse Obama, that Joe Biden might stumble over his (or someone else's) words, that the very fabric of the Democratic Party might be shredded in the industrial fan of egos and stress and red, white and blue streamers.
The tension at the Republican convention has a similarly primal, but less controllable, source: Hurricane Gustav, which raked the Gulf Coast on Monday. How much of a convention there will be and what form it will take is still up in the air. And the storm's similarity to Hurricane Katrina has meant that many voters have their eyes trained on New Orleans rather than the convention site in St. Paul.
But we're Washingtonians. When John McCain, Sarah Palin and the rest of the GOP team take to the cameras, we'll be poised to listen. Here are some spots where you can convention-watch with company.
Continue Reading "Grand Old Party Down: Where to Watch the GOP Convention" »
POP QUIZ: The Treaty of Paris
A) marked Hitler's conquest of France
B) required Americans to be disdainful of the French forevermore or
C) ended the American Revolution.
For those who answered C), isn't it fun to Google on your iPhone? Anyway, yes, the Treaty of Paris is one of the most important documents in American history, and, as of Friday, it will be on display at the National Archives. George Washington had to fight a war for it, but you can see it for free.
» National Archives, 9th Street & Constitution Avenue NW; opens Fri., through Sept. 3; 202-357-5000. (Archives-Navy Memorial)
ALL SUMMER, the National Park Service has kept the Washington Monument open till 10 p.m., allowing people to see the city at night from 500 feet in the air.
You can get tickets earlier in the day from the Monument Lodge, then return at night to see Washington laid out at your feet and all lit up like a postcard. The extended hours end on Labor Day.
What are you waiting for? It's free. It's a great spot for a date — but make sure to ascertain whether your inamorato has acrophobia first. Otherwise, well, you might look back and laugh on your fifth anniversary, but no promises on that.
» Washington Monument, 15th Street and Constitution Avenue NW; through Monday, free, 202-426-6841. (Smithsonian)
Photo by Jill Karnicki/The Washington Post
AWESOME, DUDE! Surfing culture is both welcome and painful during the D.C. summer, because it reminds us that the ocean exists and at the same time how far away it is. And how we need to be at the office anyway. And how we'd probably fall off a surfboard if we ever tried to ride waves like that.
But admit it, deep in your heart you just want to surf, don't you? Well, if you're in the mood, the Library of Congress is showing "Riding Giants," the 2004 documentary about surfers. It's gonna be tubular. Literally, in some cases.
» Library of Congress, Mary Pickford Theatre, 101 Independence Avenue, SE; Tue., Aug 12, 7 p.m., free; 202-707-5677. (Capitol South)
Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images
YES, THE PICTURE is of Peter O'Toole in "Lawrence of Arabia." Is the Library of Congress showing "Lawrence of Arabia"? We don't know! But it's just as likely as any other movie, since this Thursday they're having a surprise screening: show up, sit down, and THEN find out what the movie is.
That's more whimsical than the Library of Congress normally cares to be, but to whomever is slipping psilocybin mushrooms into their morning omelets, we'd like to say thanks!
» Library of Congress, Mary Pickford Theatre, 101 Independence Avenue, SE; Thu., Aug 7, 7 p.m., free; 202-707-5677. (Capitol South)
Photo courtesy AFI
RICHARD SIMMONS is smart as a whip.
Oh, the diminutive fitness guru knows what you're thinking. "I'm a clown; I'm a court jester," he says in his trademark superexcited voice during an extremely entertaining telephone interview with Express. "But this is serious. We're going to re-shape America." And he has all the facts, stats and stories at his fingertips and miles of enthusiasm in his arsenal.
Simmons will present this plan when he testifies before the House Education and Labor Committee's hearing on improving physical education in America's schools on Thursday. The fact that it's the federal government hosting this shindig holds no small irony for Simmons, who became interested in the subject after numerous e-mails to his Web site complained that the provisions of the No Child Left Behind act were gutting physical education programs in public schools. Kids were getting fatter, slower and lazier.
Richard Simmons to the rescue.
Continue Reading "Live Free and Diet: Richard Simmons Hits Capitol Hill" »
Photo of visitors lining up to the south of the Capitol in April by Greg Barber/Express
BELIEVE IT OR NOT, the Capitol Visitor Center — the shrine to all things congressional that was once laughably expected to be ready for the presidential inauguration in January 2005 — now has a debut date: Dec. 2.
Really.
The 580,000-square-foot project took eight years and more than $600,000 to complete, The Post's Ben Pershing reports.
Says a press statement from Sharon Gang of the Architect of the Capitol's office:
As the largest expansion of the U.S. Capitol, the Visitor Center will provide numerous amenities to visitors. It features two large orientation movie theatres and an Exhibition Hall that will include rarely-seen documents and artifacts from the National Archives and the Library of Congress that relate specifically to the duties and responsibilities of Congress. The Visitor Center is located on the east side of the Capitol and was constructed underground so as not to detract from the appearance of the Capitol or its grounds. The planting of nearly 100 new trees, the restoration of historic fountains, lanterns, and seat walls, and the addition of several water features across the East Front Plaza will serve to revitalize the historic landscape designed in 1874 by Frederick Law Olmsted.
TRASH CANS are readily available — and sometimes even used — on District streets, so why not recycling bins? That's the question a pilot project by the D.C. government seeks to answer, according to NBC4.
The city has dispatched six bins on Capitol Hill for the effort, which began today, the station reports. Another 30 will dot downtown later this summer.
Does this mean there's hope for our planet yet?
» "D.C. Launches Street Recycling Project" [NBC4]
Addison Road