We reported last year that local arts venue Warehouse was forced to start closing down its 7th Street NW location due to skyrocketing property taxes. The bar and music venue closed last summer, but the rest of the space will continue to run through the Fringe Festival in July. In the meantime, they want to hear from you about how to improve their space when they finally move, and have set up a series of…

>> Blues Alley’s Christmas music extravaganza continues tonight with The Redd Brothers, a group led by vibraphonist Chuck Redd and pianist Robert Redd. Sets are at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Tickets are $18 + $12.50 surcharge/minimum. >> If smooth jazz is your thing, head down to the Birchmere tonight to hear Boney James play selections off his latest release, Christmas Present. Tickets to the 7:30 p.m. show are sold out, but that’s what Craigslist…

FRIDAY: >> Local comic book store Fantom Comics is celebrating the grand opening of their new Union Station store tonight with a party from 6 to 10:30 p.m. They’ll be serving up free pizza on the early side and the comedy stylings of the Geek Comedy Tour during the second half of the night. There will also be a trivia contest with $500 gift certificates up for grabs. The party is inside the Union…

>> This week’s arts pick goes to the Curator’s Office, who will be hosting performance artist Kathryn Cornelius in her first private gallery solo show, Common Ground. Cornelius, who has taken her wry performances around the world, will display two videos and two photograph series that show her searching for a kind of inner spirituality in an overconnected, digital world. Jeffry Cudlin writes in the exhibit brochure, “In these pieces, Cornelius appears silent, collected…

The Post’s Marc Fisher alerted us to some exciting news on Wednesday: the possibility of Chuck Brown and Duke Ellington meeting in D.C. No, smelling salts aren’t involved. Rather, Ward 1 Council member Jim Graham is proposing naming sections of T Street NW and 7th Street NW after the two local music legends in Shaw. The renaming would coincide with the expected reopening of the historic Howard Theatre in 2008, a place where both…

People always complain about tourists in D.C., wearing dumb clothes, standing on the left, clogging up the Hard Rock Cafe (actually, we’re fine with that). But it’s difficult to be in a new place and abide by the local customs. Back in the olden days, we heard that burping is polite in Korea, which sounds pretty awesome if you are an elementary schooler eating as much pizza and Coke as you can at Chuck E….

Since 2001, the Smithsonian American Art Museum has honored one artist annually with the $25,000 Lucelia Artist Award. In order to be eligible, artists must be under the age of 50 and either American or living in the United States. Each of the five distinguished jurors, including artists, critics, curators and scholars, nominate three artists in recognition of their contribution to the art scene in the U.S. and abroad. Following initial selection, the jurors examine…

His works are frequently found in museums all over the world, but right now you can get the first glimpse of ten new works by famed artist Chuck Close right here in D.C., at Adamson Gallery. Although the prices of these new works put them out of touch for most of the population, they are easy to be engulfed by. As always, Close’s thought-provoking work compels his viewers to pay “close” notice not only to…

2:11 p.m. OK, we should be about ready to get going here. We’ve been told there will only be about 15 minutes of debate on this before a vote takes place to prevent a filibuster — as you all know by now, we need 60 for the bill to move forward. I’ll be posting updates as things get going, and Martin may pop in with his two cents if he can, so stay with us…

FRIDAY: >> The city’s free concert series follows MC Hammer with a rare appearance by salsa legend Willie Colon, 7-9 p.m. at Woodrow Wilson Center. >> President Nixon’s White House counsel John Dean will be at Politics and Prose to discuss his book, Broken Government, which examines “the institutional damage he believes the Republican Party has inflicted on the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government during the Bush administration.” 7 p.m. He’ll also be…