After an extended break following the winter holidays, 1st Stage Theatre in Tysons is returning next week with “The Phlebotomist,” its first show of 2022.

Described as a “dark, gripping science-fiction romance,” the play will launch at the theater’s auditorium at 1524 Spring Hill Road on Feb. 17 and run through March 6 at the following times:

• Thursdays: 7:30 p.m.
• Fridays: 8 p.m.
• Saturdays: 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
• Sundays: 2 p.m.

This will be 1st Stage’s second indoor, in-person production during the COVID-19 pandemic after the theater reopened for the play “Secret Things” in November.

Prior to that, the group had staged some outdoor performances at The Boro, including for the Logan Festival of Solo Performances that kicked off its 2021-2022 season.

The theater continues to require that patrons wear face masks and present proof of full vaccination, with no option to provide a negative Covid test result as a substitute. All of its staff and volunteers are fully vaccinated.

The stage debut of playwright Ella Road, “The Phlebotomist” premiered with a sold-out run at Hampstead Theatre’s Downstairs studio in London, England, in 2018. 1st Stage’s production will be the play’s first in the D.C. region, according to a press release:

In a sci-fi-inspired world where genomics is the norm, every person gets assigned a “rating” at birth based on their genetic map. Bea, a phlebotomist, finds herself being pulled deeper and deeper into the dark side of the genetic testing underworld even as she falls in love with Aaron, a man she met by accident who has a near-perfect rating that far exceeds her own. The play was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement and had a sold-out run at the UK’s Hampstead Theater. “…a racy dystopian thriller that is part Black Mirror and part Brave New World.” – The Guardian. The Phlebotomist is written by Ella Road, and directed by 1st Stage Artistic Director, Alex Levy.

The cast features Josh Adams (The Cripple of Inishmaan), Anne Bowles (Hero’s Welcome), Sasha Olinick (Fly By Night, Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Ensemble), and Lynette Rathnam, in her 1st Stage debut.

The show will feature scene design by Kathryn Kawecki, sound design by Sarah O’Halloran, projection design by Patrick Lord, costume design by Moyenda Kulemeka, and lighting design by Helen Garcia-Alton.

General admission tickets cost $50, except on Thursday evenings, when the cost is $35. There are also $15 tickets available for students, educators, and military personnel, and the first 20 tickets sold for each show are just $20.

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve searched the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean, and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Tuesday, Jan. 18

• Baby Lapsit Storytime — 10:30-11 a.m. at Tysons-Pimmit Regional Library (7584 Leesburg Pike) — Enjoy books, songs and bounces for children up to 18 months old.

Wednesday, Jan. 19

• “Traveling While Black” — noon-8 p.m. at the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — A virtual reality movie shows participants’ part in the struggle for racial justice. One-hour appointments are available for the exhibit, which runs through Feb. 12.

Thursday, Jan. 20

• “Ballerina Boys” — 1 p.m. at The Alden (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — A film shows a glimpse of an iconoclastic group, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, also known as The Trocks, a diverse all-male ballet company based in New York. Free, but registration is required.

Friday, Jan. 21

• “The Dinner Party” — 8-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry St. Southeast) — The Vienna Theatre Company presents playwright Neil Simon’s one-act play, a comedy about marriage and divorce that centers around strangers gathering for an unorthodox dinner party. Tickets are $15. There are additional performances through Feb. 6.

Saturday, Jan. 22

• Albert Lee — 8 p.m. at Jammin Java (227 Maple Ave. East) — The British guitar legend behind “Country Boy” and part of Grammy Award-winning group performances with “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” and “Cluster Pick” comes to Vienna with his full band. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets start at $20.

Sunday, Jan. 23

• D’DAT — 4 p.m. at McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — A combination hip-hop and jazz group featured by NPR and TEDxABQ performs. Cost starts at $10 for McLean residents.

Updated at 6:35 p.m. on 12/16/2021 — All performances of “A Child’s Christmas in Wales” have been canceled due to illness, per the Town of Vienna.

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve searched the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean, and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Monday, Dec. 13

• Sweet Yonder and guests — 7:30 p.m. at Jammin Java (227 Maple Ave. East) — An all-women bluegrass band brings Southern sounds with speed and flare. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets are $20.

Tuesday, Dec. 14

• Simple Lines — 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at The McLean Textile Gallery (6819 Elm St.) — A new exhibit tied to the nonprofit Studio Art Quilt Associates features fiber art. It runs through Jan. 14.

Wednesday, Dec. 15

• Falls Church Santamobile — 6:30-9:30 p.m. throughout December (Dec. 15-19, with weather rescheduling if necessary from Dec. 20-23) — Track the Santamobile each night on the Falls Church Volunteer Fire Department’s Facebook page. Elves will distribute candy canes.
• Street Corner Symphony —  7:30 p.m. at Jammin Java (227 Maple Ave. East) — An acapella group brings the holiday spirit following its NBC debut on the second season of “The Sing-Off” in 2010. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets are $22.

Thursday, Dec. 16

• “Traveling While Black” — noon-8 p.m. at the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — A virtual reality movie shows participants’ part in the struggle for racial justice. One-hour appointments are available for the exhibit, which runs through Feb. 12.

Friday, Dec. 17

• Red Cross Blood Drive — 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the McLean Community Center — The American Red Cross Heart of Gold Foundation is seeking donors of all ethnicities to give blood. All donors will receive a $10 Amazon gift card.
• “A Child’s Christmas in Wales” — 7 p.m. at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry St. SE) — Performances continue throughout December for this holiday musical from the Vienna Theatre Company, based on a story by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. Cost is $15, but shortened, kid-friendly matinees on Saturdays and Sundays are $10.
• Family Trivia Night — 7-9 p.m. at the Old Firehouse (1440 Chain Bridge Road) — Enjoy unlimited popcorn and test your trivia skills. Preregistration is recommended. Cost is $5 for a family of four.

Saturday, Dec. 18

• Holiday Movie Pajama Party — 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at ShowPlace ICON Theatre (1667 Silver Hill Drive) — Grab your pajamas and enjoyed holiday-themed music, goodie bags, a photo booth, and more, part of a movie marathon at The Boro’s movie theater. Cost is $8.
• Winter Village — noon to 5 p.m. at The PARC at Tysons (8508 Leesburg Pike) — A new community space is transformed into a winter wonderland, featuring a local holiday market and activities. Free.
• NVMR Holiday Open House — 1-5 p.m. at the Historic Vienna Depot (231 Dominion Rd. NE) — Take a look around Vienna’s historic train depot at the Northern Virginia Model Railroaders’ last open house of the year. Masks are required for everyone 2 and older, but social distancing can’t be guaranteed due to the building’s size.

Sunday, Dec. 19

• Santa at Neiman Marcus — noon to 7 p.m. at Neiman Marcus Tysons Corner (1961 Chain Bridge Road) — After featuring white Santas since its opening in 1988, the Tysons Corner Center department store will have its first Black Santa this weekend. A second event was added from 2-8 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 18), but photo reservations have been filling up fast.

Photo via Falls Church Volunteer Fire Department/Facebook

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

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve searched the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean, and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Monday, Nov. 29

• Church Street Holiday Stroll — 6-8:30 p.m. at Historic Church Street in Vienna — Check out local businesses in this annual event, which will feature live music and a tree lighting led by Vienna Mayor Linda Colbert.
• Celebrate the Lighting of the Trees — 6-7 p.m. at Mr. Brown’s Park (100 block of West Broad Street) in Falls Church — The City of Falls Church kicks off the holiday season with this annual tradition.

Tuesday, Nov. 30

• Meadowlark’s Winter Walk of Lights — 5:30-10 p.m. at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens (9750 Meadowlark Gardens Court) in Wolf Trap — Enjoy lights and holiday scenes in this annual transformation, which will stick around through Jan. 2. For those ages 2 and over, cost starts at $16.

Wednesday, Dec. 1

• “Joy to the World: A Christmas Musical Journey” — 7 p.m. at The Alden at the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — Enjoy twists on Christmas favorites with composer Damien Sneed, who has worked with late Aretha Franklin, Wynton Marsalis, Stevie Wonder, and more. Tickets are $30 and discounted to $20 for MCC district residents.

Thursday, Dec. 2

• An Acoustic Christmas with Over the Rhine — 8 p.m. at The Barns (1635 Trap Road) at Wolf Trap — Married duo Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist come together for Americana and holiday tunes. Tickets start at $27, and availability is expected to be limited. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 3

• McLean Holiday Art & Crafts Festival — 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday at the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — Dozens of artisans participate in this juried show with items ranging from pottery to artisanal foods and more. Cost is $5 for the the entire three-day event.
• “A Child’s Christmas in Wales” — 7-8:30 p.m. at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry St. Southeast) with performances throughout December — Based on the story by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, this musical from the Vienna Theatre Company will prepare you for the holiday season. Cost is $15, but shortened, kids-friendly matinees on Saturdays and Sundays are $10.

Saturday, Dec. 4

• ReinDog Parade — 8-9:30 a.m. at the Langley Shopping Center (1378 Chain Bridge Road) in McLean — Compete in and observe a quirky parade showcasing dogs dressed as reindeer. The annual event also features food and entertainment.
• Holiday Gift and Craft Show — 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday at the Falls Church Community Center (223 Little Falls St.) — Over 50 crafters and merchants will sell baked goods, handmade items, and more. Entertainment and raffles will occur on both days, with a Children’s Holiday Shoppe on Saturday. Admission is $1, covering both days.
• Holiday Gifting Event — 1-4 p.m. at Neiman Marcus in Tysons Galleria (2255 International Dr.) — The clothing department store kicks off its in-store holiday gifting season with a live DJ, a hot chocolate bar, an ornament and gift painter, and “passed bites” from its Epicure holiday sections.

Sunday, Dec. 5

• Journey from Afghanistan — 4-5:30 p.m. on Zoom — Tysons Interfaith continues its “Oneness” series with three Afghani women who advocate for peace, development, and women’s rights. They will discuss their journey to the U.S. and their work. Free.

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve searched the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean, and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Monday, Nov. 22

• Meadowlark’s Winter Walk of Lights— 5:30-10 p.m. at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens (9750 Meadowlark Gardens Court) in Wolf Trap — Enjoy lights and holiday scenes in this annual transformation, which will stick around through Jan. 2. For those ages 2 and over, cost is $16 plus fees or $20 for an onsite ticket.

Tuesday, Nov. 23

• “Let’s Get Loud” — 7:30 p.m. at Jammin Java (227 Maple Ave. East) in Vienna — Up-and-coming guitarist and singer Zach Person shows off his unique brand of bluesy rock after an opening by D.C. experimental band Tired All The Time. Tickets start at $12 plus fees. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test from the previous 72 hours is required.

Wednesday, Nov. 24

• History of Broadway — 1 p.m. at the McLean Community Center’s Alden Theatre (1234 Ingleside Ave.) — A six-part documentary continues with an episode about the history of the Broadway musical. Registration required.

Thursday, Nov. 25

• Virtual Thanksgiving Family Storytime (Online) — 11-11:30 a.m. — Public facilities and most businesses will be closed for the holiday, but for families with young kids in need of entertainment, the Kingstowne Library staff is here to help, with half an hour of books and songs. Register a day in advance to receive the Zoom link.

Friday, Nov. 26

• Holiday Tree Lighting + Santa Firetruck Parade — 7-9 p.m. at Strawberry Park at the Mosaic District (2910 District Ave.) — Santa and firetrucks come to the Mosaic shopping area for a tree lighting. Kris Kringle will also meet with visitors at the Target lobby afterward, and a showing of “Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas” will start at 7:30 p.m. at the park.
• “Secret Things” — 8 p.m. at 1st Stage Theatre (1524 Spring Hill Road) — A journalist investigates mysterious tips in her hometown involving Mexican-Americans and Judaism. Tickets are $50 with steep discounts available. Following the debut performance, the show runs through Dec. 12.

Saturday, Nov. 27

• A Very Victorian Christmas Open House — 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cherry Hill Farmhouse (312 Park Ave.) in Falls Church — Enjoy period decorations with costume-wearing reenactors and learn how former owners of the property, the Blaisdell family, celebrated the holiday in the 1860s. Free.

Sunday, Nov. 28

• “The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Musical” — 3 p.m. at Capital One Hall (7750 Capital One Tower Road) in Tysons — From original songs to choreographed dancing, start the Christmas season with this heartfelt two-act musical. Tickets start at $32.95 plus fees.

Election Day Is Here — “Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin were campaigning in many of the same, highly competitive parts of Virginia on Monday, trying to secure last minute support in a governor’s race that has captured national attention as a major referendum on Joe Biden’s presidency.” [Associated Press/WTOP]

County Leaf Collection Season Begins — “Leaf Season begins today Nov. 1. Fairfax County provides vacuum collection of leaves from the curb three times each season to a portion of the residences located in Fairfax County Solid Waste Collection Areas.” [Supervisor Dalia Palchik/Twitter]

Vienna Could Resume In-Person Meetings Soon — The Town of Vienna’s emergency ordinance allowing council, board, and commission members to participate in public meetings remotely due to COVID-19 concerns is currently set to expire on Dec. 7. It can be extended to Dec. 31 at the latest, but Town Attorney Steven Briglia expects the “broader methods of public participation” introduced during the pandemic will continue to be encouraged. [Sun Gazette]

Marshall HS Drama Plans In-Person Return — “Live theatre is back at Marshall High School after nearly two years. Statesmen Theatre will present William Shakespeare’s comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream from Nov. 11 to 13…Masks will be required for admissions, and concessions will not be available.” [Patch]

(Updated at 1:20 p.m.) The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve searched the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean, and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Tuesday (Oct. 26)

• “Blankets to Bust Breast Cancer” — 6-7 p.m. at The Plaza at Tysons Corner Center (7901 Tysons One Place) — AR Workshop Alexandria and Barrel & Bushel present a Summerfest Crafty Hour fundraising event. No knitting experience is necessary. Participants will receive yarn and instruction. Cost is $10, and proceeds go to the Tigerlily Foundation, a national breast cancer foundation.

Wednesday (Oct. 27)

• Halloween Parade — 7-8:30 p.m. on Maple Avenue in Vienna — Enjoy costumes and floats, marching bands, and performances. Families and children can join the parade, too.

Thursday (Oct. 28)

• Fair Housing Public Forum — 6:30-8 p.m. online — Fairfax County is inviting people to attend a community forum to participate in the Regional Fair Housing Plan and provide input on local housing issues. The forum is free, but registration is required.

Friday (Oct. 29)

• “Waitress” — 8 p.m. at Capital One Hall (7750 Capital One Tower Road) — A Broadway musical comes to Tysons’ new performing arts venue. The story unfolds with a baking contest offering a wife escape from her small town. Tickets start at $44.50 plus fees. There are additional performances on Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday (Oct. 30)

• Second Somewhat Annual Craft Fair — 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry St. SE) — Check out crafts, talents, and more, from hand-spun dyed yarns to alcohol ink art, involving artists connected with the nonprofit Wildlife Rescue League.
• Halloween Carnival — 1-3 p.m. and 3:30-5:30 p.m. at Cherry Hill Park (312 Park Ave.) in Falls Church — The City of Falls Church offers games, inflatables, music, and snacks aimed at kids ages 2 to 11. Cost is $1 per person, cash only.
• Halloween Best in Show — 1-3 p.m. at The Boro Park (8350 Broad Street) in Tysons — The Boro celebrates Halloween with its first-ever dog costume contest, which will also feature a live DJ, a photo booth, crafts, trick-or-treating, and lawn games. Competitors can register themselves and their pet online in advance, though walk-in registrations will be welcome.
• Laura Benanti at Wolf Trap — 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. at The Barns (1635 Trap Road) — Join the Tony Award-winning Broadway performer for songs and stories from her career. Tickets start at $42 plus fees.
• OFC’s House of Terror and Family Trunk or Treat — 5-10 p.m. at The Old Firehouse (1440 Chain Bridge Road) — Treat yourself to scares and non-scary alternatives with walk-through experiences and other activities. The House of Terror, which costs $5 for entry, will have no jumps, scares, or fears from 5-7 p.m., but that will switch starting at 7:30 p.m.

Sunday (Oct. 31)

• Mosaic Halloween Spooktacular — Mosaic District in Merrifield — Enjoy Halloween activities such as face painting from noon to 6 p.m. in Strawberry Park, where “The Addams Family” will show at 6 p.m.
• Pathways out of Poverty in Northern Virginia (Online) — 3:30-5 p.m. — Lewinsville Presbyterian Church and Lutheran Church of the Redeemer are holding a series about escaping poverty. The first event is focused on affordable housing.

Photo via Town of Vienna/Facebook

As the COVID-19 pandemic drags on, The Alden hopes to bring a drop of golden sun with the upcoming launch of its fall season, which will bring audiences back into the theater for the first time since the McLean Community Center (1234 Ingleside Avenue) closed in March 2020.

Kicking off on Oct. 16, the lineup features four musical acts and a performance by the dance company Pilobolus, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary starting in October.

In a statement, MCC Executive Director Daniel Singh says he and the center’s performing arts staff, led by director Sarah Schallern Treff, designed the season around themes of recovery, reimagining, and reconnecting — all of them linked by the prefix and musical note “re,” which he says suggests a transition as the last step in the solfege scale.

“‘Re’ embodies the tension of our times — the venturing out into the world away from home base, the uncertainty of the future and the pull between the two,” Singh said. “Keeping this framework in mind, this fall, we are offering several programs that are familiar and comforting, but we also have new directions for our patrons to explore with us. We hope you find both old and new communities at McLean Community Center.”

Face masks will be mandatory inside The Alden, as they are in the rest of the community center, and to enable proper social distancing, every other row in the auditorium will be blocked off, with at least two empty seats between each party, according to the theater’s website.

All employees, artists, and volunteers will be required to show proof of a COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test from within the past week, and theater workers will undergo regular health screenings.

The Alden is also relaxing its refund policy, allowing patrons to get their money back for a show until curtain time, so that people will feel free to stay home if they feel sick.

Here is the full lineup of performances for this fall from MCC’s news release, issued Tuesday (Sept. 28):

The Okee Dokee Brothers
Saturday & Sunday, Oct. 16-17, 1 p.m. & 4 p.m.
$20/$15 MCC district residents
As the GRAMMY-winning Okee Dokee Brothers, Justin Lansing and Joe Mailander, have built a plaid-shirted national following with their outdoor adventure-themed albums, “Through The Woods,” “Can You Canoe?” and “Winterland.” But whether it’s indoors or out, the Okee Dokee Brothers believe that as long as folks are singing together there’s a glimpse of hope for our world.

The Borisevich Duo
Sunday, Oct. 24, 2 p.m.
$10/$5 MCC district residents
The Borisevich Duo, featuring pianist Margarita Loukachkina and violinist Nikita Borisevich, is an internationally acclaimed violin and piano duet, frequently performing across the United States and Europe.

Native American Fusion Music with D’DAT (Virtual Workshop)
Wednesday, Nov. 3, 7 p.m.
Free Admission. Registration is required.
Learn more about the composition process and culture before D’DAT’s performance in The Alden this January. D’DAT’s music mixes three American art forms–jazz, native southwest and hip-hop styles–to create a sound that is uniquely theirs. This is a great opportunity for musicians of all ages to learn directly from the artists and ask questions.

“Joy to the World: A Christmas Musical Journey” with Damien Sneed
Wednesday, Dec. 1, 7 p.m.
$30/$20 MCC district residents
Award-winning, multi-genre recording artist and instrumentalist Damien Sneed is a pianist, vocalist, organist, composer, conductor, arranger, producer and arts educator whose work spans multiple genres. “Joy to the World” takes the listener through Damien Sneed’s original arrangements of gospel, jazz and classical favorites.

A Klezmer Hanukkah with Alexandria Kleztet
Saturday, Dec. 11, 7 p.m.
$20/$15 MCC district residents
Hanukkah comes early this year, but the Alexandria Kleztet keeps the party going with festive Klezmer tunes and a little jazz thrown in. Chag Sameach!

Pilobolus “Come to Your Senses”
Sunday, Nov. 7, 7:30 p.m.
$40/$30 MCC district residents
Pilobolus invites you to “Come to Your Senses!” Engage with childlike wonder in the miracle of your senses through both classic and brand-new repertory that begins by examining our biology and ends by utilizing the senses in a refreshing immersion in the biosphere.

Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased online or by contacting Alden Patron Services Manager Evelyn Hill at [email protected] or 571-296-8385.

While the auditorium has been closed, The Alden hasn’t been entirely out of commission during the pandemic. The theater staged two “Drive-Thru Drama” productions last summer, where audiences watched actors perform from their vehicles like they would for a drive-in movie screening.

The Alden has also hosted some online and smaller in-person events, including yesterday’s “123 Andres” performance.

MCC says The Alden will continue its new season with additional performances “centered on recovery, re-imagining, reaffirming, and reconnecting with each other” in the coming winter and spring.

Two Tysons arts organizations are among the five honorees selected by ArtsFairfax for its 2021 Arts Awards, an annual celebration of Fairfax County’s arts community.

ArtsFairfax, a nonprofit that has been designated as the county’s arts agency, announced the winners of this year’s awards on Tuesday (July 27).

“For ten years, our annual Arts Awards has recognized the creative visionaries who inspire us, engage us, and create transformational change in our communities,” ArtsFairfax President and CEO Linda S. Sullivan said in a press release. “This year’s honorees exemplify the impact that artists, arts and cultural organizations, and those that support them are making to the future of Fairfax County.”

In addition to marking their 10th anniversary, this year’s Arts Awards herald a return for both the awards themselves after they were canceled last year and local arts groups, which are tentatively starting to reemerge from the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic.

1st Stage Theatre is this year’s recipient of the Arts Impact Award, which “recognizes an arts organization, program, or activity that has provided a significant opportunity or impact through their transformational programs and individuals served,” according to ArtsFairfax.

The only professional theater company in Tysons, 1st Stage “serves as a cultural hub” and has proven skilled at adapting to the “community’s changing needs and challenges” with accessible performances, ArtsFairfax says.

The nonprofit highlights the virtual Community Conversations program that 1st Stage developed to kept audiences engaged when the theater was shut down during the pandemic.

1st Stage could not be reached for comment. The theater will reopen its doors at 1524 Spring Hill Road in November after kicking off its 2021-2022 season with the Logan Festival of Solo Performances at The Boro.

The Traveling Players Ensemble will receive the Arts Education Award, which goes to “an arts organization or individual arts educator that has provided superlative arts education opportunities, experiences, or training in the arts for youth, adults, and artists,” according to ArtsFairfax.

Operating out of a Tysons Corner Center studio, the Traveling Players provides camps, classes, and other opportunities for youths to gain theatrical skills and experience. The company adapted its summer camp program to a virtual world last year, putting on a one-act play festival via Zoom in December.

“Traveling Players is honored to be the recipient of the Arts Education Award,” said Jeanne Harrison, founder and producing artistic director of the Traveling Players. “As an educational theatre company, teaching and training is our organization’s sole focus and mission.” 

Traveling Players will celebrate the award at their summer performances, including shows on the Plaza at Tysons Corner Center on Aug. 4 and 5.

This year’s other honorees are:

• Jinx Hazel Award: National Museum of the United States Army
• Arts Philanthropy Award: Reston Town Center Association with the Arts Philanthropy Award
• Arts Education Award: artist Kelli Schollard-Sincock, who volunteers as an art class teacher at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center

The 2021 ArtsFairfax Awards will hold a reception on Oct. 15 in The Atrium at Capital One Hall (7750 Capital One Tower Road), which will open for its inaugural season that month. Tickets are now available for purchase.