MCCXXIII, a club whose name I type differently every time I write it, has closed, reports the Going-Out Gurus. Rents just got too high downtown. I wonder if that’s true everywhere. Now that President Obama has taken office and started filling jobs with the people who helped him get there Clinton people, Stetson’s on U Street has been restored to the glory it enjoyed during its heyday in the 90s. It might feel as though…

‘Tis the season for D.C.’s galleries to hold their annual group shows, hoping to entice holiday shoppers with a variety of artwork at affordable prices. Until December 30, U Street’s Nevin Kelly Gallery is hosting its third annual Attainable Art exhibit, with all work priced under $1500, and many pieces in the $200-600 range. Even if you don’t have many art lovers in your shopping queue this year, group exhibits like this one give visitors…

As we mentioned in the Morning Roundup, the murder count in D.C. for 2007 stands at 169 as of today, which is the same number of total murders the city saw in 2006. The Post is reporting further that the 169th murder occurred over the weekend, and its victim was 25 year-old Timothy Spicer, a short-order cook at legendary U Street eatery Ben’s Chili Bowl. Spicer’s murder looks to be the result of a carjacking…

The overwhelming consensus so far at today’s D.C. Council hearing on the recent theft of what looks to be $30 million-plus from the District’s tax coffers? The scandal has damaged the reputation of the city government, and the council members are pissed. While most statements have clung to the nasty tidbits of information we already know (the enormity of the crime, that an auditor’s warnings may have been ignored) and palliative cliches, council members provided…

The folks over at Dulles Metro extension are breaking out the construction tools … and the credit cards. $900 million of the $2.83 billion price tag of the initial 11.6-mile leg is in that Transportation Department spending bill tied up in Congress and under threat of veto by President Bush. But with or without the money, officials plan to start work, reports The Examiner. Is it just us, or does this violate everything you ever…

The Mancuso-Suzda Project, an adventurous local avant-garde jazz duo, is currently serving as artist-in-residence at Strathmore. The program selects a different local performer each month and provides educational and performance opportunities in order to cultivate local talent in the fine arts. Previous artists-in-residence include Laura Burhenn of Georgie James, jazz harmonicist Frédéric Yonnet, jazz percussionist Kush Abadey, singer/songwriter LEA, and Celtic harp player Lily Neill. Like so many groups these days, the Mancuso-Suzda Project came…

As usual, you said a lot of funny and thought-provoking stuff last week. But like LeVar Burton, don’t take our word for it, and read on for Georgetown protests, monkeyrotica running a museum, and GMU fraternities, among other things. —— monkeyrotica would be an awesome director of the National Museum of Health and Medicine: The disorganized state of the Army Medical Museum is an example of vicious circle funding: hardly anybody visits the place because…

This post from DCist Contributor Liz Lawson Mahogany Restaurant presents itself as a place representing the smooth side of the U Street revitalization; one that requires a certain attire for its patrons, like another that was the source of a bit of controversy when it emerged a few years ago. Recently reopened after renovations, Mahogany sits on the street-level floor of Bohemian Caverns, which hosts local jazz nearly every night of the week in a…

The Smithsonian announced yesterday that they’ve officially formed the committee to find the replacement for Olga Viso as the new Director of the Hirshhorn. The group of eight includes local art collectors and Hirshhorn trustees, a couple Smithsonian officers, and the Director of SFMoMA, though we can think of at least one more loud voice that might want in on the decision. We’ll be interested to hear who they come up with before Viso leaves…

Today is National Coming Out Day, a day when gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people are encouraged to be open about who they are. The annual observance began on October 11, 1988, exactly one year after the Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. (The first one was held October 14, 1979.) While there aren’t usually major events to commemorate the day, there are a couple of local events that coincide with…