Pitiable…arresting…bad-ass…shrew? Charlayne Woodard’s portrayal of the infamous Kate in Shakespeare Theatre’s The Taming of the Shrew defies one-word description. She’s an integral part of what’s so appealing about Rebecca Bayla Taichman’s take on the show, a production which almost manages to overcome the sexist undercurrents of the work itself. For those who missed English class that day (or have never seen Kiss Me Kate, or Ten Things I Hate About You, or that “Moonlighting” episode…),…

The new face of crimeThere’s a new threat stalking the metropolitan area. No, not MySpace predators, tainted pet food or exploding manhole covers. It’s far worse than that: it’s cheerleaders. Specifically, scam-artist cheerleaders. NBC4 provides the details. Apparently 19 year-old Tasha Mitchell is in the habit of going door to door pretending to be the lead cheerleader for a local high school. She uses the ruse to solicit checks from credulous residents. There’s no…

Spring appears to have, er, sprung, at least temporarily, in most of the Ist-A-Verse, so naturally, we’re all feeling pretty good. (Yes, we know that spring doesn’t officially start till later this month. Just let us enjoy our weather!) And that makes us that much more eager to share all of the nifty things we’re up to… Over at Sampaist, spring has more than sprung: it’s sweltering! But, as everyone knows, museums are an ideal…

Well, the swim may have been cancelled due to the nastiness in the Potomac River, but otherwise the inaugural Nation’s Triathlon went off without a hitch. Well, spare the road closures that snared Saturday morning traffic by the National Mall, that is. And what they say is true — Adrian Fenty really does run triathlons, and he’s good. Gandhi to Keep Job: Phew! Natwar Gandhi, the District’s Chief Financial Officer, must be breathing a…

Fenty Plans Transition: Fresh from his trouncing of rival Linda Cropp, mayor-to-be Adrian Fenty has started planning for an ambitious transition, reports the Post. As part of his move to the Executive Office in the John Wilson Building, Fenty has announced that he will examine city agencies and start enacting programs over the next few months, working cooperatively with D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams to shape the $7 billion 2008 budget. He also reveled in…

Yes, you read correctly — early this morning, there was a small fire on the Orange Line tracks between the East Falls Church and Ballston Metro stations. Trains were stopped for 10 to 15 minutes as firefighters got the fire under control. The Orange Line is now back to running on schedule. No mention, yet, as to what caused the morning pyrotechnics. Montgomery County Police Restricted from Message Board: WJLA is reporting that Montgomery County…