Alexandria will host its first-ever State of the Arts ALX event this month at the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus (3625 Potomac Avenue).
The city’s Department of Recreation, Parks, and Cultural Activities — Office of Arts is hosting the free event on Oct. 15 at 8:30 a.m. Speakers discussing the local art scene and artistic accomplishments in Alexandria include Poet Laureate Maria Cristina Donoso and Jen Goold, executive director of the Neighborhood Design Center.
Several Alexandria businesses are offering discounts and freebies to federal employees affected by the government shutdown.
Made in ALX (415 King Street) is offering discounts on workshops, has items on sale, and is putting out one of their artists’ 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzles for anyone to work on during regular business hours. “I’m in a federal family, and have gone through several shutdowns in the past,” Beth Lawton, a cofounder of Made In ALX, told us. “I know firsthand how stressful it is, and if we can make things easier on people affected this year, we’re happy to do that.”
Want to judge a pie-eating contest? A popular art festival coming to Del Ray next month is seeking volunteers and donations.
The 30th annual Art on the Avenue is coming to Mount Vernon Avenue on Saturday, Oct. 4, and the event brings thousands to the city’s Del Ray neighborhood. The event features sellable art from hundreds of artists, live music, family-friendly events, and more. The Del Ray Business Association hosts it.
Here’s a rundown of our top stories.
Our top story this week is on the Thursday, Sept. 11, announcement that Systems Planning and Analysis (SPA) will expand its Alexandria headquarters and create 1,200 new jobs over the next five years as part of a $46.9 million investment across Northern Virginia. The defense contractor bought, and will renovate, a 239,000-square-foot office building at 2001 N. Beauregard Street. Attendees at the announcement included Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins and Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay.
A Del Ray musician will premiere his latest musical next month in Bethesda, Maryland.
Neal Learner’s “French Cupcakes” will be performed Oct 10-12 and 17-19 at the Bethesda Writers’ Center (4508 Walsh Street). The Bethesda Little Theater is producing the play, which features a cast of 15 actors who tell the story of a legendary cafe similar to one in Learner’s college town of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Bah! Humbug! The Little Theatre of Alexandria will be holding auditions for its upcoming performances of A Christmas Carol.
The play will be performed at the venue (600 Wolfe Street) from Dec. 6 to 20, and auditions will be held next month. Young actors ages 8 to 16, and adults aged 35+ are asked to apply, as are men 55 years old and older to play the cold-hearted Ebenezer Scrooge.
The Alexandria City Council, on Saturday (Sept. 14), will consider loosening its citywide mural requirements.
Following the Planning Commission’s unanimous approval on Sept. 4, the City Council will conduct a public hearing on whether to allow entire walls to be taken up by murals, provided that “distracting elements” such as “any text, numbers, symbols, logos, or trademarks” are limited to one per multi-unit property.
After years in development, The Art League will celebrate the opening of two new locations for art classes in Old Town North with a block party.
The free, family-friendly event will be held at the new Slaters Lane Annex (800 Slaters Lane) at 5 p.m. on Saturday, September 6, featuring art demonstrations, food, and ice cream bowls created by local artists, among other activities.
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held next month for the construction of a memorial recognizing slave laborers who built Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS).
Black slave laborers built the seminary in the early 19th century, and for the last five years, the VTS Reparations Program has awarded millions to direct descendants of those workers. At 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 5, VTS will host a free gala at Coffield Refectory (3720 Bishop Walker Circle) celebrating the descendants with dinner, dancing, and a display of genealogical research compiled to date. The memorial groundbreaking ceremony will be held the following day, Sept. 6, at 12:30 p.m.
Trash, treasure, or art? Recycled materials will be featured at Del Ray Artisans (2704 Mount Vernon Avenue) next month.
The Second Time Around exhibit will open with a complimentary reception on Friday, Sept. 5, from 7 to 9 p.m. and will run until Saturday, Sept. 27.
Get your tickets now, because the Alexandria Choral Society just announced its 2025-26 season.
It’s the 55th season for the ACS, and the five performances in this year’s program are being held at venues across the city. Season tickets cost $125, and individual event tickets are suggested $30 apiece.
