The Comedy Spot

What to do on a Friday night?

You could go to a bar and get drunk on obscenely priced cocktails.  (Nah.)

You could go to a movie.  (Eh, there's nothing good out.)

Or you could go to a comedy show. (Go on...)

There are several traditional stand-up and improv places out there, including DC Improv, The Capitol Steps (political humor),  Riot Act, and The Comedy Zone. It is important to note, however, that these places have a two drink/item minimum.  Which means that you'll be paying for your ticket as well as two ridiculously overpriced drinks per person.  Sometimes these places will be on the coupon sites.

There is a place, however, that does improv but has no minimum.  It is called The Comedy Spot in Ballston, Virginia.  They have two shows: Comedy Sportz (family friendly) and the Blue Show (not... family friendly).

 

The show is similar to the TV show "Whose Line Is It Anyway?", with actors on stage getting suggestions and guidance from the audience to shape the skits.  

Tickets are only $15, and buy-one-get-one-free for college students.  A little more than a movie ticket (though really not by much), and you get a live show!

How to get there: 

Driving- It is in the Ballston Mall, so park in the garage (it'll only be a couple dollars) and go to the top floor by the movie theater.

Metro- It is off of the Ballston metro stop on the orange line.  After you walk up the escalator keep walking through the glass doors.  Go up a skinny escalator. Keep walking straight.  You'll go over a couple covered walkways.  Seriously just keep going straight/look for signs to the mall.  You'll get there.  Once in the mall go up the escalator one more floor, do a U-ie and you're right there.

The Blue Show starts after most of the mall has closed, but there are still a few restaurants open on the bottom floor.  And Cold Stone Creamery.

George Washington Masonic Memorial

This next spot took me about three years before I went there.  It's not even out of the way or expensive or anything.  It was one of those things that every time you passed it you thought, "I should really check that out".  So one day I did and recommend it to anyone in the area.

It is the George Washington Masonic Memorial.  Right off of the King Street metro station, it is a tribute to George Washington and Masonry (the whole be-a-better-man idea).  

You can tour the bottom floor for free, or (and what I recommend) you can pay $5 and take a guided tour.  The guided tour will stop on 3 or 4 other levels and then finally at the top where from the observation deck you can see far and wide.

They close at 4pm, so this best done on a weekend or during the day on a weekday.  Pair this with a trip to Old Town Alexandria (this will probably be a post later) and you have yourself an afternoon!

Hope you had a happy holiday!

Santa Einstein certainly does.

Non-Free Museums

DC has a lot of museums.  And a lot of them are free.  But some are not, so if you are going to pay for one, here is my recommendation for that.

1.  The Spy Museum.  There are two parts to this one: the museum itself and an interactive experience.  I did both when I went.  For the spy experience you (and the rest of your group) are given small spy tests and get to hunt down clues to catch the bad guy and all that.  The actual museum was quite lacking, in my opinion.  It was more geared towards the history of spying, so there was a lot of old stuff in there, not so much new stuff.  Although that may be the nature of the topic, as you can't really put in a lot of the stuff that spies are actually using.

If you go, I'd suggest just doing one of the Spy Experiences, not the museum.

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2.  Instead of going to the Spy Museum museum, go to the National Museum of Crime and Punishment.   This museum has a lot of history too, but it was more interesting than the Spy Museum.  It has some interactive stuff, some exhibits (forensics and whatnot), as well as America's Most Wanted television set. Currently there is a Unabomber exhibit, among other things.  I swear it's more interesting that this sounds as I'm writing about it!

 

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3.  The Newseum.  It's a museum- about news!  This is another very, very good museum.  I don't have too much to talk about- you just have to go see it!  Here is an overview of the museum, which can be done in two hours.  It's around ~$22, but I would recommend it.

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All three of these museums around geographically very close to one another. The Crime and Punishment Museum and Spy Museum are about a block or two off of the Chinatown Metro (yellow, green and red lines).  The Newseum is a little farther south toward the National Archives (yellow, green), Judiciary Square (Red), and Federal Triangle (blue, orange) stations.

The Kennedy Center

The John F. Kennedy Center regularly hosts the National Symphony Orchestra, Washington National Opera, the Ballet, traveling Broadway performance as well as other shows in the DC.  However, if you are looking for a more cost effective way to see a show at the Kennedy Center, here are two options.

1. Every day at 6pm there is a free performance of some sort on the Millennium Stage.  They bring in small bands or youth choirs or bands.  For example, a few days ago they had the Positive Vibrations Youth Steel Orchestra.  As you may surmise, the stage is on the smaller side, and there are maybe a couple hundred seats.  But the performances are generally pretty good.  They are also archived and you can watch them on the Kennedy Center website.
2. Another continuing show is Shear Madness- it has been running for 20 years.  Also in somewhat of an intimate theater setting, the show starts off in a beauty salon with a fairly scripted scene.  And then- a *murder*. After that, the overhead lights come on and the rest of the performance is improvised with audience participation to solve the crime.  This show is kind of pricey at $45 a ticket, but if you get the Entertainment book or the online version there is a coupon for Buy One Get One Free.  You can also just get the trial version of Entertainment Online, where you can print 3 coupons (though those coupons may have a short expiration date, so don't buy too soon).

Or you could go to both!

Getting there: There is a parking garage for $20.  If you are using public transportation, take the metro to the Foggy Bottom station (blue and orange lines).  There is a free shuttle that picks up right at the top of that station that will take you to the Kennedy Center.

50% off tickets to ICE!

There are deals out there!

There are some limitations to this one. You can't use it between 12/23 and 1/1, or on Saturdays. And the thing ends 1/8/12.

But it's 50% off!

Livingsocial deal to ICE!

Union Station and the Postal Museum

Let's say you are standing by the capitol building admiring the beautiful architecture when someone on a Segway tour whizzes by and makes you spill your coffee all over yourself.  What to do?? Well my friend, you can just go north a couple of blocks to Union Station.  

"Union Station?" you may ask.  "I don't want to leave the city!"

I like your attitude.

Indeed, Union Station is the hub of all things transportation: bus, subway and rail.  And has gorgeous architecture. But it also is kind of a mini mall, with an Express, Victoria's Secret, Ann Taylor, Jos. A. Bank, Barnes and Noble, FYE (man, that chain is still in business?) as well as souvenir shops and much more. These stores tend to be quite expensive, but window shopping is still free!

There are also sometimes art displays (of sorts) in the main room.  In the fall of 2009 there was an exhibit of artists that made sculptures out of Red Bull cans. It looks like currently they have model trains on display.

There are sit down restaurants on the main and upper levels, but in the basement there is also a food court.

After you are done browsing through Union Station hop over to the National Postal Museum (really hop, it's right across the street) and learn about the history of the postal service! Very worthwhile museum.  And free!

And since you're right there anyway, if it's warm out visit the Japanese American Memorial.  It looks like the rocks are floating in water! (The water is drained during the winter.)

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You can get to Union Station a variety of ways.  You can use the subway, bus, the Virginia Rail Express (rail), the MARC train (rail), or Amtrak.  If you drive there is no parking close, so you will have to hunt for a space and will have to walk a little bit.