Traveling Players has big plans for its first in-person, public performances in the COVID-19 era.
After staging 15 plays on Zoom during the pandemic, the educational theater nonprofit reopened its studio at Tysons Corner Center to students this fall, and it has been able to provide in-person classes and programming to students from 4th through 12th grade, thanks to the recent expansion of vaccine eligibility to younger age groups.
“[H]aving the vaccine be an option for those younger kids has been great, and we’re actually right next door to the mass vaccination center, so they can go next door and get vaccinated,” said Jeanne Harrison, producing artistic director for the theater company. “A lot of them are in the process of being vaccinated because they’re just newly eligible, but we’re thrilled to have them with us.”
All of the company’s students will present their work to the public with a free, family-friendly showcase at the studio, located on the first floor of the mall, on Saturday, Dec. 11.
The 36 kids in the showcase will perform improv sketches, monologues, and theatrical scenes at 3:30 p.m. with advanced performances at 5:15 p.m.
Traveling Players is asking audience members to be vaccinated and wear masks. Performers — nearly all of whom are vaccinated or are in the process of getting the vaccine — will have the option to remove masks while on stage.
While most of its fall classes started in October, Traveling Players initially had to cancel those for its youngest performers, who were not vaccine-eligible at the time. Harrison told Tysons Reporter that they originally lacked the numbers needed to hold those classes.
That changed with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s announcement on Nov. 2 that some 28 million children could get vaccinated against COVID-19. Traveling Players resumed the elementary student class in November.
During the pandemic, the theater company had been making costumes and creating props and sets at its studio and delivering them to kids’ houses, where they created home studios and performed in front of their computers.
Traveling Players took its first steps toward offering in-person programming again this past summer, reorganizing its typical summer camps as “residential sleepaway camps” that took place outdoors with students staying overnight.
“What we decided was that we could be in person as long as we had a big space and that we controlled the space. We were able to bubble and really control who was in there,” Harrison said.
As schools relied on remote learning for much of the past two years, the isolation took a toll on kids’ emotional and mental well-being, health researchers have noted. Harrison says Traveling Players has been an antidote to that stress.
“We’re community based, and the kids, they’re making friends,” she said. “They’re being reunited with their old friends; they’re creating art; they’re expressing themselves; they’re laughing again. Yeah, their sparkle is coming back. It’s beautiful to see.”
After the showcase, Traveling Players will hold tryouts for an upcoming Dionysian festival on Sunday, Dec. 12, followed the next week by auditions for its summer camps, which will be overnight and outdoors again.
Coupled with additional programming like Greek trivia nights, the Dionysian Play Festival will have rehearsals from January through March, culminating with performances of “Ariadne’s Thread,” “The Odyssey,” and “Hecuba” at the mall from March 12-20 next year.
David Taube contributed to this report
Nothing in Between Studio wants its customers to relax.
The nail salon opened the doors of its Tysons location on May 28, becoming one of the first retail tenants to take up residence in the Capital One Center development emerging near I-495 and the McLean Metro station.
Ongoing construction isn’t especially conducive to a stress-free environment, but Nothing in Between believes its emphasis on non-toxic products and wellness will prove enticing to the young professionals who populate the Tysons area.
“I really do think the aesthetic and experience and quality that we offer is very different, and we’re really excited to be able to offer that to the Tysons community,” Nothing in Between brand manager Amanda Vega told Tysons Reporter.
Nothing in Between opened its first location at 6410 Arlington Boulevard in Falls Church in November 2018.
A South Korean immigrant who worked in fashion before moving to Falls Church in 2014, founder Jade Kim Trusso wanted to offer an eco-friendly, cruelty-free option for nail care, avoiding the use of plastics, toxins, chemicals, and animal-based products like leather, according to Arlington Magazine.
Capital One Center then offered the business space for an expansion, according to Vega.
The studio’s reputation and mission made it an appealing addition to the development, Capital One Center Manager of Marketing and Community Affairs Meghan Trossen says.
“Nothing in Between’s great brand reputation in the Northern Virginia market and commitment to organic, non-toxic products stood out to our team,” Trossen said by email. “This zen oasis complements the dynamic environment at Capital One Center and has been a wonderful amenity to our mixed-use development.”
When Nothing in Between arrived in May, it was one of just two retailers operating at Capital One Center after Wegmans opened its 80,000 square-foot grocery store on Nov. 4, 2020.
The development previously had a City Works Eatery and Pour House, but the restaurant permanently shuttered last summer. The Starbucks at Capital One’s headquarters is also gone for good.
Since Nothing in Between opened, Capital One Center has add two dining options: Starr Hill Biergarten on The Perch and the Japanese restaurant Wren in The Watermark Hotel.
Vega says the development has been “very supportive” in helping market Nothing in Between and ensuring its success, even as Capital One’s return-to-office plans remain on hold.
While business was initially slow, it has picked up as more people have become aware of the new location, according to Vega.
“That Falls Church location, we do really well,” she said. “We’ve had clients come over that usually go to Falls Church, and they’ve come and tried Tysons.”
While the locations share a health-focused philosophy, massage services are only available at the Tysons site, which features four massage rooms as part of the team’s plan to ultimately expand beyond nail care to offer a wider range of wellness services.
The Tysons salon also aims for a more sophisticated atmosphere. Inspired by Japanese American artist Isamu Noguchi, it has oak wood flooring, a tea bar, and paper lantern lighting.
The studio offers manicures, pedicures, and massages from 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Saturdays. It is closed on Sundays.
Vega says walk-in customers are accepted, but she recommends making an appointment, since space is limited.
Nothing in Between doesn’t have any additional locations in the works, though some customers have asked about getting a salon in D.C. or the Ashburn area of Loudoun County, Vega says.
“We’re definitely open to the possibility if the opportunity is right,” Vega said. “But for right now, we’re focusing on two locations and continuing to build up our clientele.”
After lying dormant for more than half a decade, a plan to convert retail space in a McLean apartment building into more residences has gained new life.
Located at 1350 Beverly Road, The Ashby at McLean sits in the heart of the Community Business Center (CBC), and like the downtown area as a whole, it has been struggling to attract viable commercial tenants, property owner WashREIT says in a statement of justification submitted to Fairfax County in June.
As a result, WashREIT is now looking to rezone the property so that it can convert the majority of its commercial space — 23,855 out of 28,067 square feet — into 18 new, multifamily residential units.
“These applications request a simple conversion of underperforming commercial space to usable residential units, revitalizing this property without any significant impacts to the area,” WashREIT said in the statement.
Constructed in 1982, The Ashby is 12 stories tall and has 256 residential units. It also has retail and office space on its first and second floors, including The UPS Store, a beauty salon, and two computer consulting stores.
Those tenants all appear to be located on the building’s first floor. The conversion will involve “significantly underperforming commercial space” on the second floor, the application says.
WashREIT, which acquired the apartment building in 1996, first proposed converting the office space to residences on Oct. 5, 2012, according to Fairfax County’s zoning records.
However, the rezoning request languished in the county’s zoning process, and on Aug. 29, 2019, the Department of Planning and Development notified McGuireWoods — the law firm representing WashREIT — that staff intended to dismiss the application because it had been inactive since Sept. 18, 2014.
McGuireWoods Senior Land Use Planner Lori Greenlief responded in October 2019 with a request that the county keep the application active, as the property owner was awaiting the outcome of the then-ongoing McLean CBC Study.
“Washington REIT has been following the study closely and, in fact, has two representatives on the task force,” Greenlief wrote.
Now that the county’s plan to revitalize downtown McLean has been approved, WashREIT has evidently decided that it’s time to revive its plan for The Ashby.
McGuireWoods requested that the rezoning application be reactivated and submitted revised materials on June 23 — one day after the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted to adopt the comprehensive plan amendment that came out of the CBC study.
While no physical changes to the site are being proposed, the reduction in retail will shift all but 19 of the building’s 331 parking spaces to residential uses, which will go from 210 spaces for 256 units to 312 spaces for 274 units, improving existing conditions, according to WashREIT.
A parking reduction study by the consulting firm Gorove Slade found that the existing parking supply exceeds demand, and nearby Metro and Fairfax Connector bus stops justify continuing to provide fewer spaces than what the county’s zoning ordinance requires.
“A parking reduction would not adversely affect the surrounding areas,” the study said.
WashREIT’s proposal is scheduled to go before the Fairfax County Planning Commission on Jan. 26, followed by a Board of Supervisors public hearing on Feb. 8.
Photo via Google Maps
New Milestone Reached in Silver Line Phase 2 Project — Construction work on a new rail yard and maintenance facility at Dulles International Airport has been substantially completed, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority announced. The milestone will enable the project team to start testing the operational readiness of the Metrorail extension, bringing it closer to the long-anticipated handoff to Metro. [MWAA]
Afghan Refugees Build Community in Fairfax Hotel — “As the morning sunlight pours into her hotel room in Fairfax, Virginia, [Taban Ibraz] plans out her day: Attend an online English course, work on her asylum case and the stack of humanitarian parole applications for her family, look for an apartment, or simply stay in her room to read or write in her journal.” [DCist]
Vienna Kicks Off Holiday Season — “It took an extra year to reach the milestone, courtesy of the pandemic, but Vienna finally got to celebrate the 25th in-person Church Street Holiday Stroll Nov. 29. Santa arrived on the Vienna Volunteer Fire Department’s antique red fire engine, then lighted the town’s holiday tree with Vienna Mayor Linda Colbert and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” [Sun Gazette]
Merrifield Company Honored for Park Philanthropy — The Merrifield-based aerospace and defense company Northrop Grumman received a distinguished public service award from the Fairfax County Park Foundation, which raises funds for the Fairfax County Park Authority. The company has donated more than $169,000 to support environmental education in the county’s parks since 2001. [FCPA]
Updated at 5:30 p.m. — Georgetown Pike has been reopened, according to Fairfax Alerts.
Earlier: Georgetown Pike is currently closed at Turkey Run Road in McLean after a vehicle crash from earlier this afternoon.
According to the Fairfax County Police Department, officers responded to Georgetown Pike and Langley Lane before 3 p.m. for a single vehicle crash.
A notice from the county’s Fairfax Alerts system stated that delays should be expected for an “unknown duration.”
“Please follow officer direction in the area,” the police department said.
While police say no injuries were reported in this incident, Georgetown Pike and Langley Lane was the site of another vehicular crash on Nov. 13 that ultimately killed 65-year-old Andre Newman. Newman’s family and community members held a vigil for him at Langley High School, just one-tenth of a mile up the road.
Fairfax County residents looking for a new Christmas tree should still be able to find an evergreen for the holiday — for now.
Four Seasons Flower Market (6808 Elm Street) in McLean is just one of the local vendors where people can get holiday trees. Its lot was filled with trees as of yesterday (Tuesday), but a worker there expected them to sell out by mid-December.
Sellers across the country say interest in live trees has been high during another Christmas amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Anyone who wants one this holiday should make plans to purchase one very soon,” Michael Wallace, director of communications for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, said in an email.
The National Christmas Tree Association reported that last year, tree buyers tended to be younger than usual, urban areas saw an increase in purchases, and sales occurred earlier than they typically did.
While news outlets have reported a tree shortage, suggesting supply-chain issues are at play, one horticulture expert calls a “Christmas tree apocalypse” unlikely.
“Unlike toilet paper in the spring of 2020, real Christmas trees will not disappear,” Michigan State University horticulture professor Bert Cregg wrote.
The total number of Christmas trees cut has declined from 17.4 million in 2007 to less than 15.1 million in 2017, according to Census of Agriculture data, which was last released in 2019. The U.S. Department of Agriculture survey attributes the drop to fewer farms being in the business, with less acreage overall devoted to growing Christmas trees.
Industry statistics indicate that artificial tree sales have gone up in recent years, providing competition.
Beyond Four Seasons, the Tysons area and Fairfax County in general have several options for buying Christmas trees, including Merrifield Garden Center, DePaul’s Urban Farm in Vienna, and Meadows Farms, which has a nursery in Seven Corners.
The Optimist Club of Greater Vienna opened a tree sale lot in the Giant Foods shopping center on Maple Avenue on Saturday (Nov. 27), and Trinity United Methodist Church (1205 Dolley Madison Blvd.) in McLean will use proceeds from its tree sales to support its Scouts and youth programs.
Starbucks will not reopen at the Capital One headquarters in Tysons.
The coffee shop at 1610 Capital One Drive North has been closed for much of the past year during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the exact timing of the decision to keep it closed isn’t entirely clear.
After the location reopened in the second half of 2020, an anonymous tipster alerted Tysons Reporter on June 20 that it had closed again.
“Due to limited office occupancy during the COVID pandemic, Starbucks has temporarily closed this location but plans to re-open this location in the near future,” a spokesperson for Capital One Center, the surrounding mixed-use development, told Tysons Reporter at that time.
However, in an emailed statement, the Starbucks media relations team now tells Tysons Reporter that the company’s last day at Capital One was back on March 23:
As part of Starbucks standard course of business, we continually evaluate our business to ensure a healthy store portfolio. After careful consideration, we determined it was best to close the store at 1610 Capital One Drive North in McLean, VA. Our last day at this location was March 23, 2021.
As difficult as this was, we must make the right business decisions for the sake of Starbucks long-term growth. All Starbucks partners (employees) working at that store had the opportunity to transfer to one of our nearby locations.
We look forward to continuing to serve the McLean community and encourage our customers to visit us at our other stores in the area.
Starbucks opened at the Capital One building in March 2019, quickly becoming a regular haunt for the financial corporation’s employees.
The location is still listed as open on Yelp, where reviewers compliment the staff for their friendliness and level of service.
The Starbucks store locator includes a shop at 1680 Capital One Drive that also appears on Google Maps, but the listed phone number has been disconnected.
Tysons East still has a Starbucks in the Safeway on Colshire Drive, and there are seven other locations in Tysons overall, though one of the two shops in Tysons Corner Center remains temporarily closed.
A task force of nearly 30 people has recommended renaming two highways in Fairfax County, following concerns that their invocation of the Confederacy runs counter to the county’s goal of creating an inclusive environment.
After months of meetings and debate, the Confederate Names Task Force voted 20-6 yesterday (Tuesday) in favor of a change for Lee Highway (also known as Route 29) and 19-6 for Lee-Jackson Memorial Highway (Route 50), with at-large member Tim Thompson abstaining.
The recommendation is just one step in the renaming process. It came after the task force gathered public input with a series of listening sessions and an online survey.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and state’s Commonwealth Transportation Board would have to sign off on any name changes.
Some committee members argued that renaming the highways would “erase history.” Jenee Lindner, one of four Springfield District representatives, said doing so was wrong.
“If we’re going to move forward, let’s eradicate that term, ‘erasing history.’ It’s not true. Personally, we’re erasing stupidity and injustice and immorality,” Pastor Paul Sheppard from Providence District countered.
Dranesville District representative Barbara Glakas, a retired teacher from Fairfax County Public Schools, said if Confederate leaders had their way, the U.S. might look more like Europe, with fragmented countries, and slavery might have continued for much longer.
The task force’s votes diverged from the results of the public survey, where 23,500 respondents said they support keeping the names as they are, and 16,265 called for changing them.
“We can’t just ignore that opinion, whether you agree with it or not,” said Braddock District’s Robert Floyd, who voted against the recommendations and was one of a handful of people who tuned into the meeting remotely.
The survey was more designed to be a pulse check than as a poll that met scientific sampling standards and could be representative of the entire population. It had a mechanism to prevent people from taking it repeatedly, but it only blocked Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, meaning people could still participate multiple times, skewing results.
For respondents who wanted the highways to be renamed, many people proposed using Route 29 and Route 50, which are already used on maps.
Sully District committee member Marvin Powell said society renames things all the time and the county needs to think of the citizens of today and tomorrow.
The committee also discussed how families’ properties were taken by eminent domain for the roads in question. Sheppard said his family was affected and joked one road could have originally been named after his family.
The Board of Supervisors appointed the task force in July after the Fairfax County History Commission compiled an inventory of streets, monuments, and public places with names tied to the Confederacy. It found “approximately 157 assets, including parks, within the County that bear confirmed Confederate associated names,” the December 2020 report said.
Michael Champness, an at-large member of the Confederate Names Task Force, said before the votes that changing the two highway names sends an important message, but the county doesn’t necessarily need to rename all of those landmarks.
“We might be in a good position to maybe call a truce after this,” he said, before voting “yes” on each motion. “I think it’s very important to change these names because it’s important to be heard. It’s important for action to take place…but I don’t think we need to try and change every street name.”
The task force is scheduled to vote on Dec. 13 on alternative names to recommend to the Board of Supervisors, which could schedule a public hearing and act on the recommendations in early 2022.
Five people were displaced yesterday (Tuesday) after a cooking-related fire partially destroyed their home in West Falls Church.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department units responded to a reported house fire in the 3200 block of Nealon Drive around 9:20 a.m. The Arlington County and City of Fairfax fire departments also got involved in the response.
In a blog post released this morning (Wednesday), the FCFRD says it determined that the fire was started by cooking oil in an unattended pan on the house’s stovetop:
Units arrived on the scene of a one-story, single-family home with fire showing from the roof. Crews quickly located the fire and extinguished it. There were no reported civilian or firefighter injuries.
Two occupants were home at the time of the fire. Both occupants were alerted to the fire by a neighbor who saw smoke coming from the attic. Both occupants self-evacuated and called 9-1-1. Smoke alarms were present but were not working due to a lack of batteries.
Fire Investigators determined that the fire was accidental in nature and started in the kitchen. The cause of the fire was the ignition of cooking oil from an unattended pan left on the stovetop.
The fire resulted in approximately $162,500 in property damages, according to FCFRD.
(Updated at 9:05 a.m.) Inova Comes to McLean for Blood Drive — The McLean Volunteer Fire Department has teamed up with Inova Blood Donor Services for a blood drive in its lower parking lot at 1455 Laughlin Avenue. Staff will set up the bloodmobile before noon, and the drive will officially run from 1-5:30 p.m. [McLean VFD/Facebook]
FCPS Leads Public School Student Exodus — “For the second straight year, enrollment in Virginia public schools has dropped, with 46,000 fewer students enrolled since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to data from the Virginia Department of Education, the largest school district in the commonwealth, Fairfax County, saw the largest enrollment dip — more than 10,000 students, or a 5.4% difference between fall 2019 and fall 2021.” [WTOP]
Merrifield Wendy’s to Give Away Free Food — “The first 100 customers at the newly remodeled Wendy’s restaurant in Gate House Plaza in Merrifield on Dec. 4 will get a chance to win free food for a year. Wend American Group…is in the final stages of completing the remodeling of its Wendy’s restaurant at 3040 Gate House Plaza, near the intersection of Gallows Road and Route 50.” [Patch]
FCPS Appoints New Chief Equity Officer — Dr. Nardos King will take over as Fairfax County Public Schools’ interim chief equity officer on Dec. 6, replacing Dr. Lisa Williams until a new superintendent makes a permanent hire. Williams, who has overseen the division’s equity and diversity work since July 2019, is leaving for personal reasons not related to work, FCPS told Tysons Reporter. [FCPS]
Vienna Police Doubles Fundraising Goal for Prostate Cancer Awareness — “The last picture of the no shave November! 30 days ago our officers put down their razors until we reach our $3K goal. Today we can happily report that their efforts generated $6,594 in donations for @ZEROCancer THANK YOU to everyone that donate! Time to shave!” [Vienna Police Department/Twitter]
