November picks

It’s November already, eek!! Here are some Widening the I picks for the upcoming weeks.

The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center at University of Maryland is presenting Dan Hurlin’s bunraku puppet performance piece that focuses on the life of American photographer and hermit Mike Disfarmer. The always-astute Claudia LaRocco had this praise for the work: “Dan Hurlin’s puppet-theater meditation on the remarkable portrait photographer Mike Disfarmer was one of the most satisfying shows I’ve seen in a long time, and one of the best commentaries on the slow, maddening drip of artistic creation I can remember seeing.” So you have banjo music, puppetry, and a solid endorsement from Claudia. Sounds like a sure-fire ticket. Buy yourself one or two here.

If you weren’t able to make it up to Philadelphia to see local talent Kelly Bond earlier this fall, now is your chance to catch her in DC. Fall Fringe November features three favorite former Fringe performers doing their thing to keep the Fringe alive all year long. Kelly will be doing six performances so there’s bound to be at least one that fits your schedule. Mississippi color guard mixes with European avant-garde. See what comes out of the mixture.

Aysha Upchurch and her Life, Rhythm, Move Project come to Dance Place on November 7 and 8. Dance Place says, “Retrofuturistic is a play on time travel and science fiction, all while examining the theme of ‘men are from Mars and women are from Venus.’ It is has all the fun, entertaining appeal of hip hop dance, but also raises some questions about what we are doing to our planet, environmentally and socially.” Their performance at the DC Metro Dance Awards looked pretty tight, and a whole evening of the group should be a treat. Plus it’s at Dance Place, where the positive community vibe could keep you warm all winter long.