Jordan Wright September 2018 Photo credit: Jordan Wright
Mirabelle Wows with New Executive Chef Keith Bombaugh
The Dining Room ~ The classic absinthe fountain
Stop! Please put down your pencils (okay, that’s quaint), pick up your phone and make a reservation for Mirabelle DC. It has the most deliciously original, gorgeously presented, technique-heavy cuisine in town at this writing. If you consider yourself a gourmand (you know who you are) run don’t walk to this stylish sleekly modern restaurant where newly appointed Executive Chef, Keith Bombaugh, late of Meritage in Boston and the Michelin three-star restaurant Alinea in Chicago, has thrown down the proverbial gauntlet.
Mirabelle’s Executive Chef Keith Bombaugh
Bombaugh joins forces with “Tales of the Cocktail” award-winning Lead Bartender Zachary Faden, and Pastry Chef Zoe Ezrailson, most recently from DC’s Ellé. We enjoyed several unique drinks like the Earl Grey served in a teacup and made with the noted tea and tea liqueur. But it’s Jennifer Knowles, an advanced level sommelier of the Court of Master Sommeliers, that oversees both the restaurant and its wine cellar of 12,000+ bottles with over 2,600 labels on the wide-ranging list. Knowles, who partners up with Wine Director Karl Kuhn, arrived in style via Requin at The Wharf. Earlier in her storied career she had built the wine and spirits program at Plume at the Jefferson Hotel with a stint at Fiola Mare and four years at The Inn at Little Washington. You could well say, she’s wine royalty.
G & Tea cocktail served in a teacup
Knowles works with Faden to dream up fantastic cocktails like the Earl Grey-inspired G & Tea made with Bombay Sapphire Gin, Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto (an Italian liqueur made with bergamot the central flavor in Earl Grey tea), plus brewed Earl Grey tea, egg white foam and Marcona almonds, topped with lemon zest and served in a teacup. After dinner you’ll want to select from their well-curated collection of French, Swiss and American absinthes prepared in the classic way drip by drip through a proper absinthe fountain.
Overlooking the patio with an amuse bouche
But before you get too seduced (or drunk!) by the astonishing list of cocktails and spirits, let’s talk food. Bombaugh’s approach to ingredients is sheer genius. Think René Redzepi’s world famous Nomafor its wildcrafted ingredients – though Bombaugh’s not a forager himself. He rethinks everything familiar about a what a certain ingredient can do to a particular dish and then takes it outside its comfort zone. You will find yourself wondering how certain ingredients could go together so seamlessly… so brilliantly… so deliciously.
Pacific abalone
How you may ask, can Chinese lettuce root pair with abalone, sea beans and marinated myoga, a Japanese ginger. (He must have amazing suppliers for all these exotic ingredients!) To further enhance this dish, he adds a sauce of green curry “tapioca” as a tableside pour over and served in a glistening abalone seashell? Don’t ask. Trust, but verify.
Foie gras tacos
Naturellement, given Bombaugh’s French culinary training the restaurant also boasts such bistro classics as the requisite seafood tower. But adds steak tartare to the crustacea. Mon Dieu! Tarte flambée with smoked Viking sea salt and foie gras in a banana taco shell with preserved fruit on toasted pistachios makes it to the menu. Let me at it.
She Crab Soup
Take Maryland blue crab. We do. We love it in all its many iterations. Over the years we’ve dined on dozens of preparations of this regional favorite. But wait… imagine pairing the sweet she-crab and its roe with celtuce (a thick-stemmed lettuce originating from the Mediterranean) and pine nuts toasted with Old Bay seasoning. Then, using a molecular gastronomy technique, Bombaugh adds tiny spherical sherry pearls on top. Finally, a cashew butter-based sauce affords the dish its sumptuous texture while keeping each ingredient from losing its rightful singularity. It is sublime, as so many of his dishes are. Notwithstanding all the wonderful chefs and world class restaurants we have in this town, Mirabelle is a gamechanger. I am spoiled forever. La petite mort, if you know what I mean.
Lemon Honey Beehive
Pastry Chef Zoe Ezrailson takes a more fanciful approach to her desserts. One particular stunner playfully named, ‘Lemon Honey Beehive’, is akin to lemon meringue pie, but with lemon parfait and Meyer lemon curd encased in a torched bee skep-shaped honey meringue flecked with gold dust and surrounded by bits of honeycomb candy, Dulcery white chocolate pearls and raw honeycomb. It is a triumph.
Steps from the White House, Mirabelle DC is located at 900 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006. Valet parking is $8 from 5pm till closing. For reservations call 202.506.3833 or visit www.MirabelleDC.com.
In the time-tested tradition of portraying dysfunctional families as a device, playwright Tracy Letts gifts us with a slyly engrossing gem about the Weston family – their children and their spouses. Set in a country home in Osage County, Oklahoma, Violet Weston holds her extended family emotionally hostage… and it’s riveting. I mean, who doesn’t want to witness another family’s meltdowns? It’s the stuff Shakespeare (and soap operas!) are made of. Schadenfreude – the perfect prescription for diminishing our own problems.
Katarina Frustaci as Johnna Monevata, Fred C. Lash as Beverly Weston Photographer: Matt Liptak
Beverly Weston is a man of letters – published, pedantic and alcoholic – the poet patriarch of his large family. When he goes missing and family members arrive to help in the search, Violet is free to wreak havoc. Armed with a battery of opioids and anti-depressants, this pill-popping drama queen gleefully bullies and guilts her three daughters into disinheriting themselves. Divorce is a popular theme too. Within a mere three acts Letts throws every accusation and guilt trip on one and all. Expect a delectable bouillabaisse of toxicity in every caustic remark.
Gratefully, a superb cast subsumes our angst at their hair-raising conflicts delivering some of the funniest lines ever. I wanted desperately to memorize a few of these snarky barbs. You will too. They might come in handy at your next family gathering. In one particularly funny/crazy/menacing scene at the supper table, as all the members are gathered around bemoaning Beverly’s fate, Violet toys with her knife, twisting it gleefully while alternately threatening and accusing each one in turn. Think Nurse Ratched, Virginia Wolfe and Miss Hannigan rolled into one tyrannical villainess. Fun, right?
Frustaci as Johnna Monevata, Eric Kennedy as Steve Heidebrecht, Elizabeth Keith as Karen Weston, Gayle Nichols-Grimes as Mattie Fae Aiken, Michael Fisher as Bill Fordham, Diane Sams as Violet Weston, Tom Flatt as Charlie Aiken, Carlotta Capuano as Ivy Weston, Camille Neumann as Jean Fordham ~ Photographer: Matt Liptak
Balancing out the madness is Johnna Monevata (Katarina Frustaci), a soft-spoken Cheyenne girl, Beverly hired as housekeeper before he disappeared, and who proves to be the heroine of the whole psychologically damaged lot.
Director Susan Devine is skillful at extracting a wide range of conflicting emotions from her cast as their respective characters veer wildly out of control from love to hate to sympathy.
Carlotta Capuano as Ivy Weston, Nicky McDonnell as Barbara Fordham, Elizabeth Keith as Karen Weston ~ Photographer: Matt Liptak
Notable performances from Diane Sams as Violet, Gayle Nichols-Grimes as her bossy sister-in-law Mattie Fae Aiken, Tom Flatt as Charlie Aiken, Mattie’s browbeaten husband, and Nicky McDonnell as Barbara Fordham, one of Violet’s three daughters and a central character in the conflicts.
With Fred C. Lash as Beverly Weston, Carlotta Capuano as Ivy Weston, Michael Fisher as Bill Fordham, Camille Neumann as Jean Fordham, Paul Donahoe as Sheriff Deon Gilbeau, Elizabeth Keith as Karen Weston, Eric Kennedy as Steve Heidebrecht and Greg Wilczynski as Little Charlie Aiken.
Set Design by Dan Remmers, Lighting Design by Franklin Coleman, Sound Design by Alan Wray and Costume Design by Beverley Benda.
Highly recommended – especially for those with perfectly behaved families.
Through September 23rd at The Little Theatre of Alexandria, 600 Wolfe Street. For tickets and information call the box office at 703 683-0496 or visit www.thelittletheatre.com
The ghost of Nelson Mandela hovers over MetroStage with the area premiere of Athol Fugard’s most recent play, The Painted Rocks at Revolver Creek . This compelling drama set during South Africa’s apartheid period places us amid the racially-charged détente that existed between white Afrikaner farmers and black Africans. It was this lopsided political domination of the natives by a tiny percentage of Dutch and German settlers that resulted in the loss of property, enslavement and, ultimately, unspeakable violence. Fugard based his drama on the true story of a farm laborer, Nukain Mabuza, famed for his vivid paintings on boulders and stones of the region.
Doug Brown ~ Jeremiah Hasty Photo credit: Chris Banks
Nukain, called “Tata” by the orphan boy, Bokkie, has toiled in servitude to a bible-toting Christian, Elmarie Kleynhans, a Dutch farmer and her husband. Tata has walked the land of his ancestors looking for odd jobs and digging for gold for the white man for a scrap of bread and a place to lay his head. Eventually, he finds work as a handyman for Elmarie. While there, he gifts the child with the knowledge of the old ways – African chants and dances to strengthen his spirit. To strengthen his own spirit, he paints rocks with flowers and aboriginal memories and recounts tales of the land that once belonged to his ancestors.
Doug Brown Photo credit: Chris Banks
Act One is set in the small koppie on the farm at Vredewater. It is 1981 in the Revolver Creek area of the Mpumalanga Province outside of Johannesburg and the old man is agonizing over what to paint on the biggest rock in the garden. Elmarie orders him to paint large flower for her expected guests, but Tata wants to paint his life story in symbols. Bokkie gets angry that Tata won’t tell her his intentions. Cautioning the boy not to voice his opinions to the masters, he warns, “They have eyes, but they do not see us.”
Lighting Designer Alexander Keen and Set and projection Designer Patrick W. Lord, create an atmospheric backdrop in hues of red, blue, gold and green to evoke the dramatic South African landscape and the shifting moods of the characters.
Jeremy Keith Hunter ~Marni Penning Photo credit: Chris Banks
Act Two is set in 2003, after Mandela has been released from prison and the country has been liberated as the New South Africa. Now an educated man, Bokkie returns as Jonathan Sejake to face Elmarie and restore Tata’s legacy.
Director Thomas W. Jones has put together a powerful cast to bring to life this deeply transformative tale that reverberates with emotion as it guides us through the appalling legacy of racism in South Africa and, in the second act, the soul-lifting deliverance of redemption.
Jeremy Keith Hunter Photo credit: Chris Banks
Highly recommended. With outstanding performances by Doug Brown as Nukain (Tata), Jeremiah Hasty as the young Bokkie, Marni Penning as Elmarie Kleynhans, and Jeremy Keith Hunter as Jonathan Sejake (Please somebody cast this brilliant actor as Hamlet!). Sound Design by Gordon Nimmo-Smith with costumes by Michael Sharp.
Through September 30th at MetroStage, 1201 North Royal Street, Alexandria, 22314. For tickets and information visit www.metrostage.org.
Celebrating the start of their fourth season under the artistic direction of Ari Roth, Mosaic Theatre gifts us with a standout DC premiere of Marie and Rosetta, the story of a unique collaboration between Sister Rosetta Tharpe and her younger protégée, Marie Knight.
Ayana Reed (Marie) and Roz White (Rosetta) in ‘Marie and Rosetta.’ Photo by Stan Barouh.
The drama and hilarity focus on a period when Rosetta’s meteoric Gospel career had gone off track. After years of pioneering a Gospel sound with a strong back beat, she fell from the church’s good graces, and that of her fans, for straying outside the strict lines of Black Gospel music. Her hope is that Marie, a younger, prettier singer, can revive her earlier successes and challenge her rival, Mahalia Jackson, another Gospel singer of enormous fame.
Director Sandra L. Holloway brings out the extraordinary relationship between the two women which later developed into an abiding love. And Set Designer, Andrew R. Cohen places the scene in Mississippi amidst satin-lined coffins in the reception area of a funeral home – an incongruous place where many African Americans were forced to sleep and eat in the racially-divided Jim Crow South where Rosetta was often compelled to perform in front of a plantation backdrop in black face. Yes, shockingly, Blacks were often made to wear blackface too.
Marie is a prudish, preacher-raised girl who won’t abide by no hip-shakin’ or blasphemy. Raised to sing with a church quartet she is reluctant to be a featured performer with the likes of a woman who performs in warehouses and barns and sings with her whole body and soul rattling the rafters. “When they clamped down on my hips, they’d be stopping my metronome,” Rosetta admits. It takes all of Rosetta’s sly manipulations to loosen up Marie’s parochial notions, but when she does the duo tear the house down. “God don’t want the devil to have all the music!” she exults.
From left: Ayana Reed (Marie), Ronnette F. Harrison (Piano), Roz White (Rosetta), and Barbara Roy Gaskins (Guitar) in ‘Marie and Rosetta.’ Photo by Stan Barouh.
Roz White, a hugely successful and mesmerizing actor with a formidable, soul-shaking voice, plays Rosetta. White has been featured in numerous MetroStage productions Cool Papa’s Party, Ella Fitzgerald – First Lady of Song, Blackberry Daze, Gee’s Bend (Helen Hayes Award), Josephine Tonight and more. And if you’ve been following these reviews we have raved about her fierce talent for years. We discovered the joys of Ayana Reed (Marie) in the aforementioned Blackberry Daze and Master Class, both at MetroStage, as well as in The Gospel at Colonus at WSC Avant Bard.
Legendary singer and guitarist, Barbara Roy Gaskins, fills in for Rosetta’s guitar playing as it moves from Gospel into Rock and Roll – a genre Tharpe is credited with creating and which was later copied by Jimi Hendrix, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash and Ray Charles. The multi award-winning Blues and Gospel artist, Ronnette F. Harrison, plays the piano – and shows it a thing or two about a hip-shakin’ back beat.
Roz White (Rosetta) and Ayana Reed (Marie) in ‘Marie and Rosetta.’ Photo by Stan Barouh.
Filled with the sounds of Blues, Gospel, Boogie-woogie and Swing, with a little funky chicken thrown in for good measure (Rosetta worked with Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway at the Cotton Club), playwright George Brant’s feel-good, musical journey is a panacea for the soul as well as the spirit with unforgettable performances by both White and Reed.
Highly recommended.
Musical Direction by e’Marcus Harper-Short, Lighting Design by Jonathan Alexander, and Costume Design by Michael A. Murray.
Through September 30th at The Atlas Center for the Performing Arts – 1333 H Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002. For tickets and information call 202 399-7993 ext. 2 or visit www.MosaicTheater.org.
Weeks ago, I began to think about Natascia Diaz in the role of Fosca after I saw her perform one of the numbers from Passion at Signature’s Annual Open House. I wondered how this actress would inhabit a character not known to garner sympathy from female audiences. Having witnessed her in many different roles and seen how certain roles became her – others that would not allow her to shine as optimally as I know she can – I am thrilled to report that this is the role for both her superb acting as well as her beautifully controlled and emotionally riveting voice. It is a triumph for Diaz in a role she reportedly was not keen on taking.
Natascia Diaz (Fosca) and Claybourne Elder (Giorgio) Photo by Margot Schulman.
Stephen Sondheim’s Passion is certainly one of his finest efforts with a sing-through libretto more operetta than standard musical. Its story of a love triangle between Giorgio (Claybourne Elder in a peerless performance), Clara (Steffanie Leigh in a seemingly effortless portrayal) and the invalid Fosca. Set on a provincial military outpost near Milan, it is based on the 1869 novel Fosca by Ignio Ugo Tarchetti. In 1981 it was adapted into the film Passione d’Amore by Ettore Scola before opening on Broadway in 1994 with music & lyrics by Sondheim and book by James Lapine, the show’s original director.
Steffanie Leigh (Clara) and Claybourne Elder (Giorgio) Photo by Christopher Mueller
The opening scene between Giorgio and Clara affords us a scene of amorous coupling in Clara’s bed. There is nudity involved but it is sensuous and tasteful, and yes, passionate, as you would expect, as the rhapsodic lovers declare their undying adoration for each other. The story unfolds to reveal a complex and untenable power play between the three central characters.
Frail Fosca becomes the third wheel and supplicant to the handsome and dashing officer, Giorgio, who insists he is devoted to the beautiful (but married!) Clara. But Fosca is undaunted, “If you never have expectations, you never have disappointments,” Fosca insists as she calculatingly manipulates him with both threats to his career and callousness towards her frailties. This is where audiences audibly groan at her actions. Think Glenn Close’s character in the movie Fatal Attraction. But Giorgio challenges her affections, “Is this what you call love – your relentless pursuit?” On top of this corrosive behavior, he is further humiliated by his fellow officers who claim he is sucking up to Fosca’s cousin, Colonel Ricci, for a promotion. Imagine this as a modern-day romance. You want to stop the madness but cannot wait to see what unfolds.
Claybourne Elder (Giorgio) and Steffanie Leigh (Clara) Photo by Margot Schulman.
Visceral and uncompromising with compelling performances and flawless voices with music written around their exchange of letters. Highly recommended.
Skillfully directed by Matthew Gardiner with Music Direction by Jon Kalbfleisch with a 14-piece orchestra, Orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, Scenic Design by Lee Savage, 19th century Costume Designs by Robert Perdziola, Lighting Design by Colin K. Bills and Sound Design by Ryan Hickey.
Claybourne Elder (Giorgio) and John Leslie Wolfe (Doctor Tambourri) Photo by Margot Schulman
With Will Gartshore as Colonel Ricci, Ian McEuen as Lieutenant Torasso, Bobby Smith as Major Rizzolli and Fosca’s Father, Lawrence Redmond as Lieutenant Barri, John Leslie Wolfe as Doctor Tambourri, Gregory Maheu as Sergeant Lombardi and Ludovic, Christopher Mueller as Private Augenti, Rayanne Gonzales as Fosca’s Mother and Katie Mariko Murray as Mistress.
Through September 23rd in the MAX at Signature Theatre (Shirlington Village), 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206. For tickets and information call 703 820-9771 or visit www.sigtheatre.org.
Featuring Mian Pull Noodles, Cheers Cut, Gong Cha, Poki DC and Alpaca Dessert
August 19, 2018 Photo credit – Samantha Lee
The Spot
On July 7, 2018, Edward Wong of Akira Ramen & Izakaya and Urban Hot Pot, partnered with Vivian Zhu and Gary Ngo (founder of Poki District) to open The Spot, a 6,200-square foot Asian-fusion food hall near the Rockville Town Square. Wong envisioned The Spot as a destination for guests of all ages to hang out and enjoy an eclectic mix of Asian specialties.
Seating Area
Currently, there are five out of seven food stalls open for business but with limited offerings. Mian Pull Noodles serves hand-pulled noodles and savory dumplings at 10-pieces per order. Cheers Cut, with outlets in Boston, Philly and New York, serves huge cuts of Taiwanese fried chicken and seafood. Gong Cha serves Taiwanese bubble tea with various toppings including coconut jelly, pudding, grass jelly, pearl, ai-yu jelly, basil seed, red bean, white pearl, and milk foam. Poki DC serves made-to-order healthy, hearty, and fresh poke bowls. Alpaca Dessert is a dessert bar that serves Japanese ice cream in Hong Kong Style bubble waffle cones.
Assorted Beef Offal Pull Noodle Soup}
Mian Pull Noodles currently features Beef Pull Noodle Soup, Beef Flank Pull Noodle Soup, Assorted Beef Offal Pull Noodle Soup, Beef Tendon Pull Noodle Soup, Beef Tripe Pull Noodle Soup, and Spare Ribs Pull Noodle Soup. All soups offer a choice of flat or skinny hand-pulled Mandarin noodles. I enjoyed the Assorted Beef Offal Pull Noodle Soup, which consisted of hand-pulled thin noodles with beef flank, beef offal, beef tendon and beef tripe in a flavorful broth. Dumplings have recently been added to the menu and I did not get the opportunity to sample them on my visit.
At Cheers Cut – Fried Chicken and Seafood combination meals are not yet on this Taiwanese stall’s menu. Each item must be purchased individually. After waiting over 30 minutes for my order, I tasted the Samurai Crispy Chicken, which consisted of a sliced chicken cutlet on a bed of shrimp chips served with honey mustard. Unfortunately, it was decidedly not crispy, but sadly soggy, and definitely not worth the price or the wait.
Purple Sweet Potato with Fresh Milk Tea
At Gong Cha, a franchise with outlets throughout New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Texas, pick from the menu or create your own bubble tea. Additionally, there is an interesting selection of smoothies, coffees and an unusual milk foam tea series. Some of my favorites include the Mango Smoothie, Purple Sweet Potato with Fresh Milk Green Tea, Lemon Wintermelon with Basil Seeds and Lemon Ai-Yu Jelly with White Pearls. www.GongChaDMV.com
Poke Bowl
At Poki DC choose from dozens of fresh and tasty toppings to personalize your Hawaiian poke bowl. I enjoyed my choice made with sushi rice, zucchini noodles, spring mix, salmon, tuna, squid salad, cilantro, pineapple, mango, tangerine, and crabmeat salad drizzled with citrus mayo and eel sauce and topped with roasted seaweed. www.PokiDC.com
Alpaca Dessert
At the trendy Alpaca Dessert I enjoyed an Original Bubble Waffle with Vanilla Ice Cream, topped with KitKat’s, M&Ms and mochi with a pour over of condensed milk. The bubble waffle resembled the look and taste of those I have sampled in Asia. Choose from a variety of Japanese ice cream flavors – Vanilla, Chocolate, Matcha, Black Sesame, and Milk Tea.
The Spot is located at 255 North Washington Street, Rockville, MD 20850. Open daily from 11:00am to midnight. www.TheSpotDMV.com
The remaining two food stalls – The Spot Bar and The Spot Grill – will open soon. The Spot Bar will serve alcoholic beverages and feature live music. The Spot Grill plans Chinese barbecue street food.
