THE GAZETTE
Wednesday, April 9, 2014 s
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Everything shipshape at Port City Brewing Since 2011, Alexandria brewery has expanded capacity each year to meet growing demand
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Port City Brewing was the first bottling brewery to open in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area since the close
BREWS BROTHERS STEVEN FRANK AND ARNOLD MELTZER of Old Dominion Brewing. The brewery’s name derives from Alexandria’s origins as an important colonial seaport, which later became a major brewing center. Owner Bill Butcher recognized that Washington was the only large metropolitan area without a production brewery and decided to fill that vacuum, opening in February 2011. Jonathan Reeves, a brewer with 17 years experience, was Butcher’s first hire. Reeves helped design and install the brewery and develops the beer recipes. Since its opening, brewing at Port City has increased from 3000 barrels the first year to about 9000 barrels in its third year of operation. Port City has expanded its capacity each year
SECRETS
Continued from Page B-6 a memoir and not the novel they were expecting.” The daughter, Brooke, has written a memoir focusing on a pivotal event in the family’s history, according to Muehlberger. “We watch as the family reacts to this event,” Muehlberger said. “… Everyone sees there’s a different perception of this event and we watch and empathize with the family as they struggle to reconcile these differences.” Other than Brooke, the family consists of her parents, Polly and Lyman, who are both Republicans, and Polly’s liberal sister, Silda, who is fresh out of rehab. Polly and Silda have spent time in the entertainment business, as they both wrote a number of MGM comedies in the 1960s. All of this leads to Brooke trying to find her identity in
CINDERELLA
Continued from Page B-6 Jam — Hip-Hop Hollywood’s equivalent to a ball at the castle — Cinderella disguises herself as a boy to get a shot at pursuing her dream of becoming a DJ. “In this version, Cinderella learns she doesn’t need to lean on a prince to rise above her station and live out her dreams,” said Katy Carkuff, who plays Cinderella’s best friend, Chin Chilla. “She finds the strength and the talent within herself.” “Cinderella: The Remix” is the final production in The Hip-Hop Children’s Trilogy, a trio of shows written and directed by playwright Psalmayene 24 that explores the past, present and future of hip-hop culture. The first play, “Zomo the Rabbit: A Hip-Hop Creation Myth,” is a fictional account of how hip-hop got its start. The second, “P.Nokio: A Hip-Hop Musical,” is a hiphop adaptation of Pinocchio,
FESTIVAL
Continued from Page B-6 appearing for the first time to returning festival veterans from across the country. By pairing speakers up for events based on shared backgrounds or topics, the festival organizers create a forum to discuss not only what’s similar between two authors, but also what makes them different. The “Ripped From the Headlines” discussion at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Residency Inn Bethesda puts Stephen Jimenez, author of “The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard,” together with “Murder in the Yoga Store: The True Story of the Lululemon Killings,” by author Pe-
to meet this growing demand and now is able to produce 14,000 barrels at its Alexandria industrial area location. The facility has a tap room with between 8 and 14 different beers on draft for visitors, which average about 800 to 1000 each week. The brewery is open for visitors and tours Thursday through Sunday with hours posted on its website (portcitybrewing.com). The tapping area provides a tasting glass and six samples for $9. About 40 percent of Port City’s beer is bottled with the remainder distributed in kegs and sold in growlers at the brewery. Port City’s distribution includes the metro area, South Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, New York City and Quebec, Canada.. Port City brews five beers on a year around basis: Essential Pale Ale, Monumental IPA, Porter, Optimal Wit and Downright Pilsner. Periodically, the brewery makes an oyster stout using 3000 locally grown oysters and oyster shells per batch with part of the proceeds going to an oyster recovery program for the Chesapeake Bay. Seasonals include Tartan Ale (Scottish Ale) in the Spring, an American-style Bitter for the summer, Oktoberfest in the Fall and a spiced Tidings Ale, using Maryland wildflower honey as its holiday
DANCES
BREWS BROTHERS
Port City is the Washington, D.C. metro area’s first production brewing facility since the closing of Old Dominion. offering. Optimal Wit, a bottle conditioned beer and the brewery’s best seller, won a gold medal at the 2013 Great American Beer Festival. The brewery also took four other medals. Porter (7.2 percent alcohol by volume, ABV) has an alluring aroma of roast, coffee and dark fruit which leads into a front showing muted roast, a splash of dark fruit and a soupcon of chocolate. The roast increases a tad in middle while adding both a nuanced vinous quality and a tempered bitterness. The roast and coffee grow to medium in the finish with restrained dark fruit emerging.
All blend into the aftertaste with roast and dark fruit continuing and a subtle chocolate appearing. Ratings: 8/8. Monumental IPA (6.3 percent ABV) has a bitter hop, fruit and citric bouquet. The slight bitter and sweet malt front continues into the middle with the malt coming to the front. In the finish the bitter hops battle back with some added floral hops to see-saw with the sweetness of the malt. Both last through the aftertaste and linger in this balanced IPA. Ratings: 8.5/9. For additional ratings, visit gazette.net.
this family. “Brooke is really a smart, tortured soul,” said Andrea Spitz, who plays Brooke. “She grew up in a family that didn’t really fit her. Because of this enormous secret the family has kept for all these years, she never really got to negotiate the family waters on her own terms because there was so much she didn’t understand.” Brooke does love and care for her family, Spitz said, but she knows the only way to make a name for herself is with her memoir. “At the end of the day, she feels like she has this book and it’s her story about her childhood and her life,” Spitz said. “She feels like the only way she can be seen or heard in this world is to publish the book and finally tell her side of the story.” One of the reasons Spitz decided to audition for the show is the strength of the script, she said. Baitz’s play was a finalist
for a 2012 Pulitzer Prize. “As soon as I read it last year, I thought this was the kind of thing I’d really like to sink my teeth into,” Spitz said. “The dialogue is witty and the characters are all equal parts pigheaded and compassion. It’s a really compelling story, but it also has a lot of moments of nice levity.” Muehlberger said the fact the play was a finalist for the Pulitzer was no surprise. Baitz, she said, has a way of writing specifically for his characters and they’re all extremely well drawn. “[Baitz] is able to show us their differences as well as show us the bond that they have as a family,” Muehlberger said. “They love each other deeply. They don’t always like each other, or like what each other has done, but there’s a central core of love amongst the whole family, no matter the sparring that happens between them.”
For Spitz, it’s all about the family. Even though they might not get along — whether its politics or personal events — the family dynamic is there. “The family bond still ties them together and makes them overlook those differences,” Spitz said. Muehlberger hopes audiences will walk away from the show not only thinking about what they had just seen, but also debating the events in the show with their own lives. “We hope at the end … the audience continues to talk about it,” Muehlberger said. “‘What would I have done?’ ‘What would we have done in our family?’ ‘Could you have published this story without the permission?’ ‘Would you have waited until a different time to publish?’ We’re just hoping the audience asks those same kinds of questions.”
but this time the puppet is a video game character who also aspires to become a “real boy.” “Cinderella” explores Psalmayene 24’s vision for the future of hip-hop. He believes that a stronger presence of girls and women participating in hip-hop music would encourage a positive and healthy future for hip-hop culture. “Right now the numbers are pretty sad in terms of boys to girls and men to women in hip-hop,” Psalmayene 24 said. “If we have more girls involved we would just get a wider breadth in terms of subject matter, and I feel like that would help the culture grow in ways that I don’t think are really possible without women being involved.” “Cinderella: The Remix” is not a traditional musical — hip-hop beats will be mixed during the show and instead of singing, the actors will be rapping, Psalmayene 24 said. The show was written for young children, so Psalmayene 24 knows he’ll also have parents and grandparents in the audi-
ence who may have preconceptions about hip-hop music. “What is gratifying is actually having the opportunity to use hip-hop music in a way that people haven’t heard it articulated before,” Psalmayene 24 said. “It’s sort of like a hip-hop appreciation class for people who are not in the culture because they get a chance to hear it with new ears.” Psalmayene 24 said a confident, diverse cast is essential to conveying the message of empowerment to young girls. “They’ll see women on stage who are not only excellent actors but who also have a great facility for hip-hop performance,” Psalmayene 24 said. “I think oftentimes you don’t see people who look like you or are the same gender or color as you or from the same background as you. I want girls to feel like they have the ability to enter this culture of hip-hop and not second-guess themselves or think, ‘It’s not for me.’” This is especially important for Paige Hernandez, who
plays Cinderella. She said she was exposed to the arts as a child but did not see people on stage “that looked like me or talked like me.” “What I enjoy most about performing for young children is the seeds I’m able to plant in their very impressionable minds,” Hernandez said. “Being an adult artist and bringing this all to the stage is important to me.” Hernandez said she hopes her performance will show young girls that there is always a time to be yourself and that individuality makes you beautiful. “I think this is a fantastic fairy tale to re-imagine, especially with the way Psalm has done it because it’s not a romantic story at all. It’s about empowerment and that’s what hip-hop is all about — empowering the community and blurring the lines,” Hernandez said. “Even if you feel like you’re fronting and putting up a facade, there’s nothing wrong with being yourself and having your own perfect ending.”
ter Ross Range. A Washington, D.C., resident who frequently visits Bethesda Row, Range was on his way to Strosneider’s Hardware the morning victim Jayna Murray was discovered. His interest in the unfolding drama led him to write an Amazon Kindle Single about the local murder. “It struck home for so many people to have this kind of murder occur in a place like Bethesda Row, which is where people with their kids might be out shopping,” said Range. “You can imagine your own daughter being the person in that store. With the sheer horror of the brutality, people couldn’t not read that and follow that story, and it seemed to affect a lot of people’s lives around here.” In contrast to the local au-
IN THE ARTS
wfranklin@gazette.net
thor with a narrative based within the area, Georgetownalum Jiminez is a Brooklyn reporter and producer bringing his debut book about the murder of University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard in 1998 and how the case developed over the following years. The festival panel pairs the Lululemon case with Shepard’s murder as a way for the two journalists to discuss how the story is altered over time as new information comes out months, even years, later. “The stories involving crimes often are told by the media initially in a kind of shorthand,” Jimenez said. “It really takes time to process and digest what these stories are really about in terms of specific details, the facts. These are two cases where
perception changes over time as you gather information.” Jimenez and Range’s panel is focused on a certain topic, like Saturday’s “Lincoln Literature” with William Martin and David O. Stewart. However, the literary festival also hosts events with author themes, including “Noteworthy Non-Fiction” featuring Michael Sokolove and Honest Tea co-founder Seth Goldman and “Remarkable Writers” with Steve Vogel and Henry Weincek. Mary Kay Zuravleff of Washington, D.C., and Sujata Massey of Baltimore will team up for “Wonderful Women Writers” at 12:30 p.m. Sunday at the Hyatt Regency Bethesda. The two writers hope to make their presentation more of a conversation than a set of speeches. “I love having an author’s
Carpe Diem Contra Dance, April 10, Nor’Easter from New England, Will Mentor, caller, 7-7:30 p.m. contradance workshops, 7:30-10 p.m. Contras & Squares, second Thursdays, Great Hall, Silver Spring Civics Center, One Veterans Plaza, Silver Spring, $10 for general admission, $8 for members, $5 for students and those without income, www.carpediemarts.org. Hollywood Ballroom, April 9, “step of the evening” mini-lesson at 8:15 p.m., Social Ballroom Dance at 8:30 p.m. ($16); April 10, 17, Tea Dance from 12:30-3:30 p.m. ($6); April 11, drop-in lessons from 7:30-9 p.m., West Coast Swing Dancing with Dance Jam Productions at 9 p.m. ($15); April 12, Latin Night with Mr. Mambo, workshops from 8-10 p.m., dance from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. ($18 for workshop and dance, $15 for dance only); April 13, free Waltz lesson at 7 p.m., Social Ballroom Dance at 8 p.m. ($16); April 16, “step of the evening” mini-lesson at 8:15 p.m., Social Ballroom Dance at 8:30 p.m. ($16), 2126 Industrial Highway, Silver Spring, 301-326-1181, www.hollywoodballroomdc.com Scottish Country Dancing, 8-10 p.m. Mondays, steps and formations taught. No experience, partner necessary, T-39 Building on NIH campus, Wisconsin Avenue and South Drive, Bethesda, 240505-0339. Glen Echo Park is at 7300 MacArthur Blvd. Blues, Capital Blues: Thurs-
days, 8:15 p.m. beginner lesson, 9-11:30 p.m. dancing to DJs, Glen Echo Park’s Spanish Ballroom Annex, $8, www.capitalblues.org. Contra, April 11, Ridge Kennedy with Glen Echo Open Band, 7:30 p.m. lesson, 8:30 p.m. dance, Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $10, www.fridaynightdance.org. Contra & Square, April 13, April Blum with Hot Point String Band, 7:30 p.m., Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $12 for general, $9 for members, $5 for students, www.fsgw.org. English Country, April 9, Caller: Rich Galloway; April 16, Carol Marsh, 8 p.m., Glen Echo Town Hall (upstairs), www.fsgw.org. Swing, April 12, Radio King Orchestra, lesson at 8 p.m., dancing at 9 p.m., Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $15, www.flyingfeet. org. Waltz, April 20, Destino da Rosa, 2:45-3:30 p.m. lesson, 3:30-6 p.m., dance, $10, www.waltztimedances.org.
MUSIC & DANCE Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club, Lyndsey Highlander, 7:30 p.m.
April 9; Next Best Thing Presents: LIVE AT THE FILLMORE - Tribute to the Allman Brothers Band, 8 p.m. April 10; Chopteeth Afrofunk Big Band, 8:30 p.m. April 11; Dr. Hook featuring Ray Sawyer, 8 p.m. April 12; The Gospel Persuaders, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. April 13; Frank McComb, 7:30 p.m. April 13; JazzFunk United, 7:30 p.m. April 16, call for prices, 7719 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda. 240330-4500, www.bethesdabluesjazz. com. BlackRock Center for the Arts, Peter Mayer, 7:30 p.m. April 10; United in Anger: A History of ACT UP, 7:30 p.m. April 10; TreeHouse Shakers–Hatched, 10 a.m. April 12; Grace Kelly, 8 p.m. April 12, 12901 Town Commons Drive, Germantown. 301-528-2260, www.blackrockcenter.org. Fillmore Silver Spring, Brother Ali with Rhapsody and Self Devine, 8 p.m. April 12; The Decibel Magazine Tour featuring Carcass The Black Dahlia Murder & More, 6:20 p.m. April 13; University Of Maryland Hip-Hop Conference French Montana Ty Dolla $ign, 8 p.m. April 17, 8656 Colesville Road, Silver Spring. www.fillmoresilverspring.com.
Institute of Musical Traditions — Rockville, Old Buck, 7:30 p.m.
April 21, Saint Mark Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Road, Rockville, call for prices, www.imtfolk.org.
voice in my head, so we will each read a bit, but it’s also fun to watch two authors yip yap,” Zuravleff said. “And it also makes people feel really comfortable to ask whatever they want. Sometimes there’s that awkward silence until people feel invited, and if they’ve already seen the authors interview each other then they feel more welcome.” While Zuravleff’s latest book, “Man Alive!,” takes place in Bethesda, Massey’s work may be a bit harder for attendees to immediately place themselves in; her most recent novel, “The Sleeping Dictionary,” is set in 1930s-’40s India, and her prior mystery novels are set in Japan. Massey believes learning about the past helps others gain a deeper understanding of the present, and she hopes attend-
Institute of Musical Traditions — Takoma, Harpeth Rising, 7:30
p.m. April 12, Seekers Church, 276 Carroll St. NW, Washington, call for prices, www.imtfolk.org. Strathmore, Afternoon Tea, 1 p.m. April 9, 15-16; AIR: Piotr Pakhomkin, classical guitar, 7:30 p.m. April 9; Cirque Ziva, 8 p.m. April 9; BSO: Itzhak Perlman, 8 p.m. April 10; Atomic Yacht Fax, 9 p.m. April 11; National Philharmonic: Bach Mass in B minor, 8 p.m. April 12, 3 p.m. April 13; AIR Education Workshop with Piotr Pakhomkin: Classical Guitar Technique in Modern Rock Music, 7:30 p.m. April 16; Gabriel Kahane & Rob Moose Duo, 7:30 p.m. April 17, call for venue, Locations: Mansion, 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda; Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, 301-581-5100, www.strathmore.org.
ON STAGE Adventure Theatre, “The Jungle Book,” to May 25, call for prices, times, Adventure Theatre MTC, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo, 301-634-2270, www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org. Arts Barn, “Great American Trailer Park Musical,” to April 20, 311 Kent Square Road, Gaithersburg. www.r-m-t.org, www.gaithersburgmd.gov. Imagination Stage, “Cinderella: The Remix:” April 9 to May 25, call for prices, times, Imagination Stage, 4908 Auburn Ave., Bethesda, www.imaginationstage. org. Olney Theatre Center, “Once On This Island,” April 9 to May 4, call for prices, times, 2001 OlneySandy Spring Road, Olney, 301924-3400, www.olneytheatre.org. The Puppet Co., “Hansel and Gretel,” to April 27; Tiny Tots @ 10, select Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, call for shows and show times, Puppet Co. Playhouse, Glen Echo Park’s North Arcade Building, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., $5, 301-634-5380, www. thepuppetco.org. Round House Theatre, Bethesda, “Two Trains Running,” to May 4, 4545 East-West Highway, Bethesda. 240-644-1100, www.roundhousetheatre.org. Round House Theatre, Silver Spring, “Snow Angel,” to April 12, call for show times, 8641 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, $15 for general admission, $10 for subscribers, patrons 30 and younger and seniors, 244-644-1100, www. roundhousetheatre.org. Silver Spring Stage, “Other Desert Cities,” to April 27, Woodmoor Shopping Center, 10145 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, see website for show times, www. ssstage.org. The Writer’s Center, Joanna Chen and Zein El-Amine, 7:30 p.m. April 10; Bethesda Literary Festival, 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. April 11; Selby McPhee and Natasha Saje, 2 p.m. April 13, 4508 Walsh Street, Bethesda, 301-654-8664, www.writer.org.
VISUAL ART Adah Rose Gallery, “An Allegory of Algorithms and Aesthetics,” Jessica Drenk, April 12 to May 12, opening reception from 6:30-8:30 p.m. April 12 with music by The Blackberry Blonde, 3766 Howard Ave., Kensington, 301-922-0162, www.adahrosegallery.com Gallery B, Group Exhibition, to April 26, gallery hours are noon to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, 7700 Wisconsin Ave., Suite E. www.bethesda.org. Glenview Mansion, National Capital Art Glass Guild, to April 25, Rockville Civic Center Park, 503 Edmonston Drive, Rockville. www.rockvillemd.gov. Marin-Price Galleries, “The Way of the Horse,” to April 18, 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, 7022 Wisconsin Ave., 301-718-0622. VisArts, Xiaosheng Bi, “Garden of My Mind,” to April 20, Common Ground Gallery, 155 Gibbs St., Rockville, 301-315-8200, www. visartsatrockville.org.
ees discover how relevant historical fiction can be. By showcasing a broad range of talent from different styles, backgrounds and corners of the country, the Bethesda Literary Festival is designed to reintroduce reading literature to a community increasingly tuned in to technology, as well as hopefully inspire would-be authors to get out there and become a potential future literary festival panelist. “A lot of people would like to try writing, and I hope our presentation will encourage people to follow their dreams,” Massey said. “Whether or not their writing gets published, I think it’s a healthy way for people to find out more about themselves and the world they live in.” kgroff@gazette.net