Photo by M.V. JantzenFRIDAY:
>> The big art event of the weekend is Luck of the Draw: An Art & Music Experience, which takes place Friday, Saturday and Sunday in the Capitol Riverfront Neighborhood in various locations. The event is a collaboration between The Pink Line Project, Artomatic and the Capitol Riverfront BID. Look for RED: St. Valentine Bled For Us, curated by Sondra Arkin and Ellyn Weiss, and a show curated by Ten Miles Square, DCist Heather’s photography venture. Hours are Friday and Saturday from 6-10 p.m. and Sunday from 2-6 p.m. Start at the tent on Half Street, between L and K Streets, SE.
>> At 6 p.m., Pulitzer prize winning WaPo journalist and author Anthony Shadid will be at the 14th Street Busboys to “take us beyond the statistics and the politics offering a multi-dimensional understanding of the effect of war on ordinary human beings,” and sign his book Night Draws Near: Iraq’s People in the Shadow of America’s War.
>> Don’t neglect to consult our film picks of the week, including a screening of Orson Welles’s Black Magic tonight at 7 p.m. at Films on the Hill. $5.
>> Several Three Stars acts will be at the Rock and Roll Hotel. The hard charging New Rock Church of Fire will join the percussion-heavy loops of Imperial China, plus The Sentiment and A Born Idler. 9 p.m., $10.
SATURDAY:
>> Campaign junkies should head to Politics and Prose for a 1 p.m. lecture with NBC News political director Chuck Todd and NBC News elections director Sheldon Gawiser on How Barack Obama Won: A State-By-State Guide to the Historic 2008 Presidential Election.
>> Art, politics and baked goods converge during the Presidential Cupcakes Demonstration at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. From 12-5 p.m., artist and baker Zilly Rosen will be crafting a double portrait of Presidents Obama and Lincoln out of cupcakes. She’ll be using over 5,000 of them, and after 5 p.m. you can help “de-install” the portrait by eating the cupcakes. The event is part the Presidential Family Fun Day at the museum.
>> The tiny Curator’s Office gallery is closing its latest show, Lucid Dreaming: Simon Gouverneur, Jason Hughes, Paul Laffoley, with a gallery talk at 5:30 p.m. about how art can induce a mesmerized state, and a reception from 5-6:30 p.m. Curator’s Office artist Kathryn Cornelius will be whipping up Cupid’s Curse cocktails and other refreshments will be served as well.
>> Want to take in a little jazz with your valentine? We’re recommending heading to Twins Jazz, which will be hosting a show featuring up-and-coming vocalist Andrea Wood. Tickets to the 9 and 11 p.m. sets are $20. Check out This Week in Jazz for other ideas.
>> Cellist Janel Leppin and former Three Stars subject Anthony Pirog play together as Janel & Anthony. Steel pedal player Susan Alcorn and experimental New York artist Andrea Parkins round out the bill. They’ll be creating weirdly beautiful music all night at the Velvet Lounge. 18+, 10 p.m., $10.
>> Crooked Beat hosts a free show by Benjy Ferree at 7 p.m.
>> Fort Fringe has My Comic Valentine: A Comic Book for the Stage, co-presented by Rotogravure Entertainment and banished? productions. The show is a piece of theater designed as a “living comic book” based on actual comic book stories from the 1950s, including the ads and letters. Tickets are $15, $12 with Fringe button discount, 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., including a post-show Valentine’s Day toast after the 10 p.m. show.
>> Black Cat bartender Chad America is hosting his 10th annual Valentine’s Day Rock and Roll Dance Party in the backstage. The Ambitions and The Electricutions are both slated to perform, plus a whole host of DJs (including Chad himself) spinning classic R&B and blues. 8 p.m., $8 for the bands, but no cover for post-show dancing only.
SUNDAY:
>> Concerts First will presents “The Next Big Thing,” a sprawling event featuring over 20 local alternative and punk acts at the 9:30 Club, Rock and Roll Hotel, Town and DC9. Starts at 11 a.m., $15.
>> The ninth annual Flamenco Festival features performances this weekend at The George Washington University Lisner Auditorium. Saturday and Sunday The Antonio Gades Company presents Carmen. And here’s a free ham and cheese tasting at 7 p.m. on Sunday courtesy of Jaleo. Visit Ticketmaster for pricing and tickets.
>> The latest program from the Kennedy Center Chamber Players is a two-concert extravaganza featuring two of its strongest musicians, cellist David Hardy and pianist Lambert Orkis (both principals in the National Symphony Orchestra), performing all of Beethoven’s music for cello and piano. Both parts are scheduled for Sunday, February 15, at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. in the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater. Tickets: $35.
