Fun-A-Day DC exists to help you embrace your creativity, make fun a part of your daily routine, and grow something beautiful in the dead of winter.  Everyone is welcome and encouraged to join at any time in January. Participation is always free, non-juried, and all ages.

Here's the idea: Pick a project or activity, do it every day(ish) in January, and (only if you want) you can show or describe your work in the Fun-A-Day Showcase in February! If you choose to participate and don't want to show your work, please join us for the Showcase! We'd love to meet you.

Your project could be creative (work on a painting all month or take photographs every day/few days.)
It could be learning a new skill (creative, musical, physical etc.) Or it could be something from your personal to-do list (making time for things that bring you joy like reading, writing, exploring, stretching, etc.) Use Fun-A-Day as an excuse to explore creatively with no pressure.

Sign-up form HERE.

Exhibition runs from January 12 - February 2 * open during all events and by appointment (email info@rhizomedc.org )

Opening Reception: Sunday, January 12 - 4-6pm

Echoes by local artist Aphra Adkins explores the idea of repetition through a series of paintings and monoprints. The focal pieces, a series of "Useless Quilts", play off of traditional fabric quilts and the comfort we derive not from the physical warmth of the blankets but from the repetitive nature of their patterns and the imperfections that are inherent in handmade objects.

Exhibition runs from January 12 - February 2 * open during all events and by appointment (email info@rhizomedc.org )

Opening Reception: Sunday, January 12 - 4-6pm

Bettina Ammann: With my body of work, I want to provoke feelings and questions centering around human discomfort. The reflection of discomfort and my own humanity, the world I live in, the people and society I‘m surrounded by is my motivation and inspiration. I am interested in the feelings that are unpleasant that we try to hide, or we often turn away from. I work primary in clay as I create shapes in porcelain that have a smooth appearance and are visually appealing with an invitation to the sensory quality of touch. My sculptures are residing somewhere between beauty and awkwardness. I use simple, minimal form and color to reduce my intention to its essence. These hand-built forms are made in a repetitive and meditative way. The slow process helps to rethink my inspiration and the feelings that I want to create. I highlight the intimate, conflicting, personal human qualities.

Exhibition runs from January 12 - February 2 * open during all events and by appointment (email info@rhizomedc.org )

Opening Reception: Sunday, January 12 - 4-6pm

Dirt bikers in Bed-Stuy, BMX legends, familiar faces, some not so familiar faces, and things I love. An entry of the past year on 8x10 prints. My work mainly focuses on duality, love, and the subtleties of human existence.

Friday January 17 * doors at 7, show at 8 * Free / donations * TICKETS

Drag Nite is an open stage drag show celebrating new and upcoming drag artists in the DMV area. Join us for drag performances that celebrate queerness, artistry, and community while supporting local drag! 

For more information on how to sign up for the open stage, message @mo.tart on instagram or email mst0028@outlook.com.

Saturday January 18 * 3:30pm * Sliding Scale / $35 Suggested * REGISTER

Have you ever looked at an old shirt and thought, "I bet I could make something new and cool out of this..." Well now you can! Join Annie and Apryle from Fairy Ring Fibers for a workshop on basic sewing and crochet stitches that you can use to mend and upcycle old, hand-me-down, or thrifted clothes. Bring a pair of socks, an old T-shirt, or other clothes that you want to practice with, and we will teach you how to make and sew patches, crochet borders, and more. Sewing supplies will be provided, but feel free to bring your own if you have it. Payment for the class is pay what you can (recommended 35$ / 2 hours). Nobody will be turned away for lack of payment or supplies. Hope to see you there! 

Fairy Ring Fibers is a collaboration between fiber artist and jack-of-all-trades, Apryle B, and environmental scientist and multimedia artist, Annie O. We create handmade clothing and accessories that we would wear, and share them with the world! For more info on Fairy Ring Fibers, visit us on Instagram at @fairyringfibers. Our DM's are open for collaboration and commission requests.

Saturday January 18 * doors at 7:30 * $20 * TICKETS

Electric Cowbell and Secret Planet DC Present:

Yeison Landero, from San Jacinto in Colombia’s Montes de María province near Cartagena, is called “el heredero de la cumbia” – the heir to cumbia, the inheritor of cumbia. He’s from the birthplace of that style of music, a style that’s now enormously popular all across Latin America and increasingly in the USA as well. Yeison is the grandson of Andrés Landero, the man who arguably invented what we know today as cumbia when he translated the indigenous melodies of San Jacinto’s gaitas (flutes) to the accordion, hitched them to propulsive African-derived rhythms played on a trio of percussion instruments, added electric bass to fill out the bottom, and wrote and sang lyrics that championed the lives of rural Native and Black campesinos. This mix of musical and cultural elements spread like wildfire across Latin America starting in the 1960s and continuing until today. Andrés Landero is known throughout Latin America as “el rey de la cumbia” (the king of cumbia); his grandson began studying with him when Yeison was 7 years old. Today Yeison Landero and his band are keeping the classic cumbia sound alive, updating it for 21st century listeners and dancers, and bringing it to the world through their performances and recordings.

Victor Arce is a Washington DC-based artist that performs a warped & industrial interpretation of cumbia music. Drawing from his Bolivian roots, Arce takes the most inspiration from chicha; a psychedelic faction of the cumbia scene from the 60s & 70s.

every other Sunday * 10am-noon * Free / donations * REGISTER

Rhizome is pleased to announce our Youth Electronic Music Lab, for young people ages 11-18. We meet regularly to share space together while working and to give and receive feedback in a positive and encouraging environment. Our group at this point consists of some beginners and others who have experience making electronic music and are able to work independently on it. We plan to invite guest musicians periodically to share tips, talk music theory / composition, offer feedback, etc. Please bring a laptop and headphones if possible. Bring some of your own music you’re working on or would like to share.

Sunday January 19 * 1pm * MASKS REQUIRED * $35-45 * REGISTER

Dye sessions act as an interactive introduction to natural dye. Every dye session is uniquely tailored to each group and may change seasonally due to the availability of natural dye materials. Each participant will work with cotton bandanas to learn and practice a variety of dye techniques.

Fatima Janneh is a Gambian American fiber and textiles artist. Based in DC, she works primarily with natural dye and is an avid knitter. Currently teaching dye workshops and selling at markets around the city.

Scholarships are available - please reach out via email to info@rhizomedc.org

Sunday January 19 * 7:30-10pm * $5-10 * TICKETS

Jam nights are an opportunity for people to show up and create art together. Bring a guitar, sticks, sketch pad, didgeridoo, or your dancing shoes and come vibe. Amps, speakers, drum set, and microphones are provided. Featured artist: Babs New @newdmodel

Monday January 20 * 7pm * $15-25 * TICKETS

J. D. PARRAN - bass saxophone, alto clarinet, soprano saxophone, flute
ANDREW DRURY - drum set, gongs, pots, mussel shells

J. D. PARRAN has been a valued collaborator with Oliver Lake, Julius Hemphill, Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor, Amir Elsaffar, Anthony Davis, and others. Parran has collaborated and appeared on recordings with leading musical practitioners including Andrew Hill, Marty Ehrlich, Hamiett Bluiett, Douglas Ewart, James Jabbo Ware, Robert Dick, Ned Rothenberg, Jimmy Owens, George E. Lewis, Don Byron, Muhal Richard Abrams, Henry Threadgill, Wadada Leo Smith, Leroy Jenkins, Stevie Wonder, Lena Horne, John Lennon, and Yoko Ono.

ANDREW DRURY has performed and recorded with Jason Kao Hwang, The Forest (with JD Parran and Warren Smith), Myra Melford, Wadada Leo Smith, Frank Lacy, Annea Lockwood, Ingrid Laubrock, Satoko Fujii, Roswell Rudd, Miya Masaoka, Michel Doneda, Agustí Fernandez, Peter Evans, Wayne Horvitz, John Tchicai, James Brandon Lewis, Tomeka Reid, Mark Dresser, to name a few. Venues include Lincoln Center, Globalquerque, Vision Festival, Copenhagen Jazz Festival, N.O. Jazz Festival (Zagreb), Jazztopad (Poland), Jazzin Tondela (Portugal), Edgefest (Ann Arbor), Vancouver Jazz Festival, and many more. Drury has produced over 200 Soup & Sound concerts, is an educator who has led over 1,500 workshops in communities and in 20 universities across three continents. He is also an organizer and activist behind the scenes supporting many other artists in a variety of ways through the non-profit organization he runs, Continuum Culture & Arts. The Jazz Journalists Association gave him the 2023 Brooklyn Jazz Hero Award.

Tuesday January 21 * 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Pond and McDonnell are a duet dedicated to the harmonic and emotional vulnerable aspects of free improvisation. Their music is irruptive, transfixing, and highly volatile. Both are members of the band Inverse and Obverse  and the Philadelphia based community-organization People's Music Supply. Pond is known for his band BORBS! and his countless collaborations with musicians like Toshi Makihara, Dan Blacksberg, and Melinda Rice. McDonnell releases solo music as Only Every Today and in electronics pop duo- Pretty Puttanesca. Aaron Pond- Horn, Voice, Flutes, Melodica, Percussion; Matteo McDonnell- Accordion, Voice, Flutes, Percussion

LMB is an improvised duo from Washington, D.C. consisting of Abe Mamet (French horn and effects) and Jamie Sandel (violin and effects). The duo formed in 2018 in a performance at Rhizome DC, and has played many venues off- and on-line. With all their music, the duo tries to use practiced improvisation to seek beauty and peace within the spaces they play and communities they play with. As well, both Jamie and Abe use the platform to dive deeper into the worlds of their instruments, seeking new sounds, modes, and relationships with music-making devices.

Amy K Bormet is a pianist, vocalist, composer, and co-owner of Strange Woman Records. As creator, producer and performer for the Washington Women in Jazz Festival, now in its 15th year, she has collaborated with Fay Victor, Mary Halvorson, Allison Miller, and more than 75 women and non-binary musicians from around the globe. She enjoys writing sci-fi songs, improvising with her eyes closed, and  eating Scandinavian licorice.

Thursday January 23 * 7pm * $20 * TICKETS

David Grubbs (Brooklyn, NY) has released fifteen solo albums and appeared on more than 200 commercial releases. His ongoing collaborations include projects with visual artists Anthony McCall and Angela Bulloch and poet Susan Howe. Grubbs was a member of the groups Gastr del Sol, Bastro, and Squirrel Bait, and has performed with many others. He is a recipient of the Berlin Prize and a Grants to Artists award from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts, and directs the Blue Chopsticks record label.

One of the world’s premiere exponents of her instrument, Susan Alcorn has taken the pedal steel guitar far beyond its traditional role in country music. Though known for her solo work, she has collaborated with numerous artists including Pauline Oliveros, Chris Cutler, the London Improvisors Orchestra, the Glasgow Improvisors Orchestra, Joe McPhee, and Ken Vandermark, among others.

The Caribbean (Washington, DC) "They're taking Brill Building songs and writing them in invisible ink, turning jazz standards into Twilight Zone episodes, turning folk songs into clouds of fog." - PopMatters

Saturday January 25 * 10:30am * $35-85 sliding scale * PLEASE PRE-REGISTER

Need a reason to get outdoors this winter? Are you wondering what trees do in the cold? This class will explore the botany and identification of trees in winter. Every time I teach this class people tell me "I didn't know there was so much to see" and "I can't believe I never noticed buds before." Join me to learn about common DC trees. Class is divided into two sections: 10:30am to noon we will learn about the characteristics that are useful for winter tree ID. We'll look at samples and photographs during this portion, then move outdoors to apply the skills to wild and cultivated trees from 1 to 3. The focus will be on trees that are common in the DC area, with the hope that participants will later be able to identify some of the same trees around the city and watch them transition into spring.

Saturday January 25 * 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Aditi Machado's third volume of poetry, Material Witness, is forthcoming from Nightboat Books in October 2024. Her other works include the poetry collections Emporium (Nightboat, 2020) and Some Beheadings (Nightboat, 2017), a translation from the French of Farid Tali’s novel Prosopopoeia (Action, 2016), the essay pamphlet The End (Ugly Duckling, 2020); and several poetry chapbooks. Machado’s writing appears in journals like BOMB, The Brooklyn Rail, Chicago Review, Lana Turner, Volt, Western Humanities Review, and Jacket2, among others.

Bianca Rae Messinger is a poet and translator living and working in Buffalo, NY. She is the author of the chapbooks “The Love of God” (Inpatient Press, 2016) and “parallel bars” (Center for Book Arts, 2021) and translator of “In the Jungle There is Much to DO” [comunidad del sur [mauricio gatti], Berlin Biennale, 2020] among others. Her book pleasureis amiracle is out in January 2025 from Nightboat.

Christopher Kondrich is a poet and writer whose third book, Tread Upon, is forthcoming from Copper Canyon Press in 2026. He is the author of Valuing (University of Georgia Press, 2019), selected by Jericho Brown as a winner of the National Poetry Series, Library Journal as a Best Poetry Book of 2019, and as a finalist for The Believer Book Award, as well as Contrapuntal (Parlor Press, 2013). He is also the co-editor of Creature Needs: Writers Respond to the Science of Animal Conservation (University of Minnesota Press, forthcoming January 2025). His poetry and essays appear widely in such venues as the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, AGNI, The Believer, The Kenyon Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, New England Review, The New York Review of Books, The Paris Review, Ploughshares, TriQuarterly, and The Yale Review.

Sunday January 26 * 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Dublin-raised Baltimore-based Cal Folger Day brings a three-piece band (harp / keys / bass) sharing new work connected to an upcoming online video series, "Gráinne." "[Piece-dye] is a time-traveling, avant-pop marvel... She packs so much detail and character in the album’s 28 minutes that it becomes part documentary on top of everything else. It’s one-of-a-kind." Foxy Digitalis

Benthic Zone - improvised music from Luke Reddick and friends.

Forgetter believes it is a human right to be able to mourn memories you once valued but are no longer with you. He plays short, heartfelt and unusual songs on the piano. Sometimes he plays by himself and sometimes he plays with friends.

Myles Manley is an Irish singer/songwriter whose music is an idiosyncratic mélange of witty folk storytelling, art rock, and pop sensibility. Early releases Greatest Hits 2012-13 (Album, 2013), More Songs (EP, 2015) and singles Relax; Enjoy Your Night Upon The Town (2017) and i'm in love w myself (2018) established a strong critical reputation in Ireland, with fantastical music videos situating Myles Manley as an enigmatic DIY popstar.

Monday January 27 * doors at 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Monday Night Alt-Art-Comedy-Music Extravaganza!

Featuring:
Kevin Tit
Cured By Pain
Katie Magician
Andrew Bucket
Crumbledethump
The Three Brained Robot

Tuesday January 28 * doors at 7 music at 8 * $12 * TICKETS

Delta 8 (Athens, GA)
https://delta888.bandcamp.com/album/greased-lightning

Muscle (Baltimore, MD)
https://muscleisking.bandcamp.com/album/born-to-be-alive

Sad Roach (DC)
https://sadroach.bandcamp.com/

Wednesday January 29 * 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Broommaker (DC, folk) began as Teething Veils in 2006 in Washington, DC, playing occasional live shows at places such as the Montgomery College Planetarium and their own living room at 611 Florida Ave, becoming more active about six years later. They have released five LPs and a 7” single through the artist-run DC-and-Santa-Fe-based collective Etxe Records. They have played live for audiences in 48 US states and the District of Columbia, and two Canadian provinces.

Jason Anderon (Canada, folk) is an award-winning indie/folk artist based in eastern Canada. He has collaborated with Mount Eerie, toured with Joyce Manor, and worked with a number of seminal independent labels including K Records and Salinas. His evocative lyrics, anthemic melodies, and cathartic live performances have taken him around the world, making friends and fans one electrifying concert at a time. Personal, passionate, poetic, Anderson's music crackles with life.

Hotel Sewing Kit (DC, singer-songwriter)
https://www.instagram.com/hotelsewingkit/

Friday January 31 * 7pm * $15-25 * TICKETS

Brandon Seabrook is a NYC-based guitarist and banjoist. His music fuses a wide range of traditions: punk rock, jazz, pop, and metal. As a guitarist his work feeds off tactile sensations; rapid tremolo picking, contorted clusters, and extreme physicality. He has released nine albums of original material and has performed throughout the U.S., Europe, and South America.

Janel & Anthony - Hugely influential and appearing nearly everywhere within Washington D.C.'s contemporary music scene as bandleaders and contributing artistic voices, cellist and vocalist Janel Leppin and guitarist Anthony Pirog have long been creative partners as well as life partners. Their Cuneiform Records debut Where is Home (2012) is considered a crucial modern recording from the region. New Moon in the Evil Age (2024, Cuneiform) is their long-awaited follow up to Where is Home and will have immediate appeal to fans of beyond jazz, modern composition and improvisation, indie rock, and of D.C musical culture.

Saturday, February 1 * 7:30pm * $15-25 * TICKETS

Michael Jones presents two new works for percussion by composers Matt Sargent and Scott Wollschleger. They explore through percussion the concepts of touch, resonance, time, and, more broadly, the enchanted currents of material objects.

Specializing in contemporary music and the music of J.S. Bach, Zach Wilson blends the sonic boundary between old and new by juxtaposing works written hundreds of years apart. These unlikely pairings are tied together through the sound of vibraphone.

Wesley Hornpetrie performs various tunes for cello and fixed media while also inviting the audience into the music making process with various (optional!) audience participation elements built into the works. This set explores themes of winter and the stillness & reflection present during this special time of the year.

Sunday February 2 * 1pm * $5 suggested * RSVP

Who says creativity has to be a solo activity? Parallel play is a behavior regularly observed in children — that is, children sit next to or near each other, while engaged and focused on their own play. For adults, this is a form of quality time and can cultivate a motivating environment for creative play.

In the spirit of Parallel Play, pack and play your craft of choice during these open hours at Rhizome. Bring whatever supplies you need for your creative activity and tinker away alongside others doing the same. Folks are welcome to chit chat while they get their art on or have the freedom to focus in and get down to (creative) business.

This is a co-created space for art exploration. Parallel players will be asked to assist with setting up tables and chairs as needed. If your art form involves music, please bring supplies that you can work on with a headset or at lower volumes, as to provide space for others needing a more quiet environment. Bring snacks, water, noise cancelling headphones -- whatever you feel you need to get into your creative zone.

Parallel play will be offered on Sunday/Monday evenings 1-2 times a month, as space and organizers are available. During the winter months, we will be indoors; mask use is welcomed.

Sunday February 2 * 4-6pm * $20 * TICKETS

TPSS Co-op is hosting a Community Bake Sale at Rhizome to raise funds for two organizations who continually give and feed our community, Food not Bombs DC and SSTP Mutual Aid. A ticket to this event purchases you entry and access to all the treats brought to the space. We ask that if you purchase a ticket, please bring at least one home-baked treat! You can also just come and snack, too, but consider bringing something along. All treats should come with a label describing what they are, but we can help you with that once you get to the space. The Co-op will also provide fresh fruit and refreshments. Let's raise some money for our community. We were inspired to do this by Bold Fork Books work with the DC Abortion Fund, consider donating to DCAF!

Tuesday February 4 * 7pm * $15 * TICKETS

Ethan WL is a musician and filmmaker from Gloucester, MA. His solo repertoire is in the American Primitive Guitar style, made popular by past players such as John Fahey, Robbie Basho, and Jack Rose. In 2024 he released the album "Blood Farm" on Carbon Records.

Raven Bauer Durham is an experimental guitar-based performer from Virginia, incorporating electric and acoustic ambient textures, voice, and song layers. Previously a member of the improvisational group Phoenix Auto Group.

Songwriter J.M. Hart, after previously collaborating with other performing artists, began recording his own material in 2020. Since then, he has taken up solo performance and released four albums of original songs. Record Crates United notes that his work walks the line between “country-tinged singer-songwriter fare and cosmic Americana.”

Thursday February 6 * 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Presenting short video works by students from American University's film program. The filmmakers will be in attendance for a Q&A following the screening. Films by: Lila Delaronde, Lilia Mitchell, E. Taemin Kim, Sarah Ebsworth, Tristan Au, Cody McLeod Rogers, Sara El Moustakim, Clare Miller & Will Gounaris, Shu-Tong Murray.

Saturday February 8 * doors at 7pm * $10-15 * TICKETS

Joy Viver; a name whose ancient origins and proper pronunciation can only be guessed, only remembered through story. When you combine something that you love to do with people that you love to be around you may well have discovered Joy Viver. In search of the mystical teachings of Joy Viver each member of the band had long ago embarked on separate quests along dusty roads, through tangled forests, upon snowy mountains. They ended up in the place where so many quests resolve, at the beginning…in a basement…writing songs of chivalry and courtly love. On your journey should you encounter these troubadours, allow your weary bones to take comfort in the healing notes of their trill.

The Crowd Scene - Melancholic pop that acknowledges life’s oblique obstacles and simple wonders.

Devin Ocampo is a Washington DC-based multi-instrumentalist, composer, and singer. Perhaps best known as the founder and singer/guitarist of a succession of fiery rock trios (Faraquet, Medications, and The Effects), he was also a member of the Mary Timony Band and is an active musician/arranger in the band Beauty Pill. Ocampo’s current main focus is his experimental, textural, contemplative solo work, which sharply departs from the noted aesthetic he cultivated as a practitioner of the rock trio form.

Sunday February 9 * 2-5pm * $5 suggested * RSVP

Showcase exhibit will remain open through February 28. Open during all events, or email us to make an appointment.

Come celebrate creativity, productivity, and community in the new year with 2025's Fun-A-Day DC Showcase. Fun-A-Day was started in 2004 by the Artclash Collective in Philly with the aim to create a fun, inclusive, and participatory art community. DC's Fun-A-Day chapter was started in 2011 with the same aim and format: Pick a project, do it every day in January, and show your work in the Fun-A-Day Showcase in February!

The FADDC Showcase is our chance to share participants' work, and we welcome the public to join us in our celebration. We hope to inspire folks to embrace their creativity, to make fun a part of their routine, and to grow something beautiful in the dead of winter. So please join us this year for the showcase, and join us in the project-making next year too!

Monday February 10 * 7pm * Free / donations * RSVP

United Nations, 1960: the Global South ignites a political earthquake, jazz musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach crash the Security Council, Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe, and the U.S. State Department swings into action, sending jazz ambassador Louis Armstrong to Congo to deflect attention from the CIA-backed coup. Director Johan Grimonprez captures the moment when African politics and American jazz collided in this magnificent essay film, a riveting historical rollercoaster that illuminates the political machinations behind the 1961 assassination of Congo’s leader Patrice Lumumba. Richly illustrated by eyewitness accounts, official government memos, testimonies from mercenaries and CIA operatives, speeches from Lumumba himself, and a veritable canon of jazz icons, Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat interrogates colonial history to tell an urgent and timely story of precedent that resonates more than ever in today’s geopolitical climate.

Saturday February 15 * 7pm * $20-25 * TICKETS

Transparent Productions welcomes the William Hooker Trio with William Hooker (drums), Ras Moshe (saxophone and flute) and Hans Tammen (guitar, electronics) for a night of incendiary music at Rhizome DC. William’s latest recording is “Jubilation” on Org Music.

William Hooker (drummer, composer and poet) has created works that range from jazz and "new" music to experimental genres. Ras Moshe Burnett is a composer, multi-instrumentalist specializing in saxophone and flute, musicologist, and educator. Hans Tammen uses textures, timbre and dynamics as primary elements, his music is continuously shifting, with different layers floating into the foreground while others disappear.

Saturday February 15 * 7pm * AT TONAL PARK * $40 * TICKETS

Born in Lima, Peru and based in NYC, Maria Chávez is best known as an abstract turntablist, sound artist and DJ. Coincidence, chance and failures are themes that unite her work across mediums, including improvised performance, sound and marble sculpture, visual art, and book objects. Her approach is rooted in Deep Listening, a form of embodied listening developed by her late mentor Pauline Oliveros. Maria is the only abstract turntablist in the world who performs with a rare needle known as the RAKE Double Needle. This special device contains two needles on one head, allowing it to read two different segments of a single record at the same time. Paired with her inimitable ability to create unforgettable sonic experiences from shards of broken records, each performance is truly unique.

Niki Afsar - ‘my art and politics are shaped by questions of identity and liberation. i am in the process of developing my artistic practice as a site for reimagination and world-building, with the goal of creating performance and artistic spaces that are collaborative and collective while also specific and personal. my work explores not only longing but also the lack that persists in my relationships to language and mythologies of identity. these liminal spaces of void are where desire lives. they are essential for change and reinvention. i employ a number of mediums including devised movement and performance; poetry and text; live singing and recording using a vocal loop machine; sound collaging; and more recently, mirror work.'

Sunday February 16 * 12:30-2:30pm * $15-25 / NOTAFLOF * REGISTER

Abstract Turntablism workshops are hands-on workshops using turntables and vinyl records as an instrument. All participants will receive a free .PDF of Maria’s book, Of Technique: Chance Procedures on Turntable and learn 3 basic abstract turntablism techniques, break a record and perform using pieces of those broken records.

There will be records provided for breaking thanks to Red Onion Records (https://www.redonionrecords.com). Participants are also invited to bring their own records.

Space limited to 15 participants (for financial assistance in participating in this workshop please contact info@rhizomedc.org)

Sunday February 16 * 3-5pm * RSVP

Death Cafes are opportunities for people to enjoy refreshments together and discuss the topic of death. The objective is to “increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives.” There are Death Cafes all over the country. What's on your mind about death and dying? Contact Death Cafe Facilitators Margaret Branch at margaret603@gmail.com or Monica Lynch at mlynch19@comcast.net.. Death Cafes are NOT therapy, grief support, or counseling sessions. Cost: Free (small donation for the space encouraged)

Thursday February 20th * 7pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Rebecca Berlin (DC singer-songwriter) Her musical style, “folk with a twist”-blends the narrative quality of traditional folk with elements of jazz and musical theater, and she is known for unique melodies and song structures, vulnerable storytelling and a voice that cuts through the noise.

Leo DiSanto (Lancaster, PA folk) A song and story man, a compulsive adventurer, a rural Pennsylvania yokel with a restless curiosity and a passion for street performance, Leo DiSanto has hauled his wanderlust wagon and his guitar case everywhere from Transylvania to monasteries in the high Himalaya to the boulevards of New Orleans to the wild interior of Alaska.

My Gay Banjo (Philadelphia country) is Owen Taylor and Julia Steele Allen on guitar, banjo, uke and vocals. Singing homespun gay-themed duets and occasional queered-up mash-ups. Celebrating the release of their 5th album, Another World is in the Air.

Broommaker (DC singer-songwriter) began as Teething Veils in 2006 in Washington, DC, playing occasional live shows at places such as the Montgomery College Planetarium and their own living room at 611 Florida Ave, becoming more active about six years later. They have released five LPs (Velorio, 2013; Constellations, 2014; Sea and Sun, 2017; Canopy of Crimson, 2020; and To Have and to Hold, 2022) and a 7” single (Dinner Date, 2015) through the artist-run DC-and-Santa-Fe-based collective Etxe Records.

Friday February 21 * doors at 7:30pm * $10-20 * TICKETS

Alma Laprida's creative pursuits encompass composition, improvisation, performance, installation, and radiophonic pieces. Armed with unconventional instruments and objects such as the tromba marina, field recordings, synthesizers, megaphones and the lyre, her explorations traverse diverse realms in the pursuit of creating captivating sonic experiences. Besides her solo work, she’s part of Hypnotized Chickens and the Bureau of Sensory Affairs.

Stephen Santillan

Crying/Laughing - featuring Christian Best and Jen Kirby of Smoke Bellow, Steve Strohmeier of Midnight Sun, Rose Burt of The Compositions/Bedlam Brass, and Marc Miller of OXES/Microkingdom. “Moondog’s Dog Walkers.”

Saturday February 22 * 9am-6pm * $75-100 * REGISTER

Calling all writers who need time and space and no distractions! Whether you are just starting a project, thick in the middle of it, or needing to finish it, come spend one full day with other writers at RhizomeDC. You will have your own table and space to throw papers and books on the floor, and lots of quiet. Space will be shared but not tight (if you’ve been to Rhizome, imagine two people in each room, each with their own table). Coffee, tea, snacks, lunch, provided. Wine or beer at the end of the day. Phones will be squirreled away by Rhizome’s own squirrels. For an extra fee, we won’t give you the wifi password. (Just kidding; we won’t give it to you for free.) Featuring:
-an inspiring space (old house, big windows, beautiful art)
-delicious vittles you don’t have to plan yourself
-enforced quiet with designated talking times
-one whole day of focused work!

The Rhizome Writers Collective knows how hard it is to enter that writerly trance/get sh*t done. We’re here to facilitate the magic!

Wednesday February 26 * 7pm * $15-25 * TICKETS

Washington DC-based ¡FIASCO! was first assembled in 2016 building a unique repertoire of sounds and materials rooted in droning folk songs, jittery hip-hop grooves, grunge, and punk rock. ¡FIASCO! was signed to Unit Records in 2023 and released their Unit debut Anger Artist in January 2024. Throughout years of club gigs, experimentation with original and re-imagined repertoire, and growing sophistication with electronics and effects, combining a jazz form with rock aesthetics and attitude, ¡FIASCO! built a following and a sound uniquely their own. 

Throwaway is acclaimed guitarist Kirsten Carey's post-punk band that acrobatically leaps around virtuosic riffs and unexpected rhythms. Throwaway’s electric energy is “absolutely brilliant” (Soundsphere), with “aerodynamic rock-grit flavors of the likes of Primus or Deerhoof” (eCurrent). In 2019, Throwaway released their debut album, WHAT?, to widespread acclaim, snagging spots on international year-end lists from the likes of Ghettoblaster Magazine, Tinnitist, and Organ Thing.

ZĀM is the guitar-bass-drums trio of Anthony Pirog, Andrew Colwell, and Dan Sharnoff. The trio has been playing music together since they first met in public school in Vienna, Virgina 25 years ago. Rooted in structured improvisation and stretching the boundaries of genre ZĀM plays 'hard ambient music' navigating through noise, rock, ambient, new age, glitch, drone, hardcore, sludge, psychedelic, electronica and free music.

Friday February 28 * doors at 7, music 730 * $10 * TICKETS

Witch’s Mirror (DC) - They play brooding, charred doom metal infused with grunge, experimental, and hardcore influences. Their debut EP is out now.

Stygian Mind (MD) - The new wave of Maryland heavy metal. Single for the new song “Iconoclast” is streaming now. This date will be the band’s first show!

Drugs of Faith (VA) - The band plays grind ‘n’ roll. This is the first time DOF is playing Rhizome. The new full-length album Asymmetrical is coming out the week before and the band will be playing a few songs from it. 

Thursday March 6 * doors at 7, music at 730 * $10-20 * TICKETS

The music of Philadelphia-based Hour cuts a broad pathway, and remains hard to classify or compare. Perhaps most at home beside work from Bill Frisell, Eiko Ishibashi, ECM Records, or the Louisville experimental chamber group Rachel’s. Subminiature, their new live album, comes fresh off the heels of 2024’s ‘Ease the Work’ and provides a capstone for the band’s oeuvre to date.

Adelyn Strei is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist based in Brooklyn via Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Alone on stage with clarinet, voice and guitar, her live compositions demonstrate a fluid, melodically intuitive and improvisational arc.

Candyweather is a DC-based project comprised of songwriter Katie Pindell on vocals and guitar, Sebastian Rodriguez on synth, Ben Melrod on bass and percussion, and Dan Hockstein on pedal steel guitar. The group collaborates on layered and atmospheric arrangements to complement Pindell's melody and lyrics.

Wednesday March 19th * 7PM * $20-$25 * TICKETS

Join Transparent Productions at Rhizome DC for a performance by this amazing trio led by bassist Max Johnson with Neta Raanan on tenor saxophone and Connor Parks on drums. They are touring in support of their new release “I'll See You Again” on Adhyâropa Records.

Described as “an intrepid composer, architect of sound and beast of the bass…” (Brad Cohan, NYC Jazz Record) composer, bassist, and improviser Max Johnson is one of the most prolific music makers in the jazz, bluegrass, improvised music, and contemporary classical worlds. "Multi-faceted bassist Max Johnson helms a terrific trio... Here and elsewhere, evidence of Johnson's composer's ear surfaces in how cannily he extracts maximum impact from the three voices." - John Sharpe, The New York City Jazz Record.

Neta Raanan is a saxophonist and composer raised in New Jersey. In her youth, Neta was drawn to the mysterious black and white photos of Thelonious Monk and Lester Young perched on the walls of the record stores in New York.

Connor Parks is from Orlando, FL, where he began studying drums & percussion with Beth and Danny Gottlieb. He performed often in the Jazz and Improvised Music community, being mentored by local hero Benoit Glazer.

Friday April 4 * 7pm * $15-25 * TICKETS

Dave Rempis (sax) / Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello) / PNL (drums, Norway).

This free-wheeling trio first came together at a closed session in 2009, and as any fan of improvised music can imagine, the band hit hard from the first note and hasn’t looked back since. The unabashed energy of Rempis and PNL, coupled with the electrified cello antics of Lonberg-Holm, make for a powerful listening experience that combines driving grooves with noisy textures and occasional melodic interjections. These sliding and overlapping rhythms often give the music a feeling as if a rug is slowly being pulled out from underneath the listener while the music still maintains a strong forward momentum. Reference points include the Julius Hemphill groups of the 70's and 80's featuring Abdul Wadud, Ornette Coleman's Prime Time, and the early-70's explorations of Miles Davis' electric bands.