The Source Festival is to playwrights as Chicago’s Second City is to comedians. Now in its fifth year since its 2008 revival, the summertime festival has become a reliable wellspring of new plays in D.C. But getting there isn’t easy: An open call for 10-minute plays yielded nearly 700 submissions, all of which had to be read, graded, and whittled down by a massive team of volunteers. In sum, Source will unveil 24 brand-new pieces, including three artistic blind dates and three full-length plays helmed by established local directors. It all kicks off today with a set of 10-minute plays centered on “Redeeming Demons,” one of three themes in this year’s festival (alongside “Rites of Passage” and “Ethereal Encounters”). Next week, the first full-length work on view will be Gabriel Dean’s The Qualities of Starlight, about a cosmologist who finds out his parents are hooked on meth; June 14 brings the opening of Norman Allen’s The House Halfway, based on a group of people working in a euthanasia center in the Caribbean. For a dose of the contemporary, try F2F, Jennifer Barclay’s shorty about the impact of a sext on a group of teens, which debuts June 10. But Source Festival, despite its penchant for darkness, is a life-giving force: This year it introduces a new mentorship program that pairs new artists with experienced directors, providing an opportunity “to strengthen everybody’s product,” says producer Jenny McConnell Frederick, and “plant the seed for later collaboration.” The Source Festival runs June 8 to July 1 at Source Theatre, 1835 14th St. NW. Tickets $10–$20. Passes available. sourcefestival.org. 202-315-1305. (Stephanie Haven)
Truckeroo is back. Twenty food trucks—from BBQ Bus to Pepe to Hula Girl—will be pulling up to the Fairgrounds next to Nationals Stadium today from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Oh, and there will be live music and beer, too. Free admission. D.C. Fairgrounds, Half and M streets SE; truckeroodc.com. (Jessica Sidman)
A new venue in Kensington, soccer, Capital Pride Parade, a craft fair in Mt. Pleasant, and even more after the jump.
This is a huge weekend for fans of football—-the non-American version, that is. The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, aka Euro 2012, kicks off today with Poland vs. Greece and Russia vs. Czech Republic. If you’re fortunate enough to have off work, check into Lucky Bar to watch the first two matches, and stick around for the World Cup qualifier game between the USA and Antigua and Barbuda at 7 p.m. If Lucky Bar gets too crammed, watch the games at Marx Cafe, Duffy’s (on Saturday and Sunday with $3 PBR tallboys), Biergartenhaus, The Pug (also offering specials), Fado, Boundary Stone, The Dubliner, or Ventnor Sports Cafe. Sunday, all three Jaleo locations in Penn Quarter, Bethesda, and Crystal City will show the Spain vs. Italy game upon request, and count on the Goethe-Institut for any German games.
SATURDAY
There are a couple of bright spots in Kensington, Md., but nothing as youthful as Foundation, a new gallery, music venue, and event space situated in the area’s Antique Row. On Saturday, Foundation will celebrate its opening with a party taking place across two stages, featuring games, food, and all the rest. Come for the novelty, but stay for Astra Via, a collaboration between D.C. music-scene veterans Olivia Mancini (Washington Social Club, Olivia Mancini and The Housemates), pictured, and Jarrett Nicolay (Virginia Coalition). For Astra Via, Nicolay dispenses with the Dave Matthews Band-esque banjo that drives his other music, while Mancini’s vocals slip into Sheryl Crow territory on the group’s uplifting single, “Be Where You Are.” Dave Matthews Band and Sheryl Crow? That’s right. It’s pop, and friendly stuff at that—and it works. The Young Rapids, The Sea Life, Miles Midnight, and others round out Foundation’s ticket. “Rock the Block” takes place from noon to 8 p.m. at Foundation Gallery and Liveroom, 3762 Howard Ave., Kensington. Free. fndtnarts.com. (Kriston Capps)
If you live in the Dupont or Logan Circle neighborhoods, you won’t have to stray too far from your home to have a good time on Saturday: This weekend brings the annual Capital Pride Parade, one big porta-party that will be snaking its way through the post-gentrified neighborhoods beginning at 4:30 p.m. You know how people advise you to “take one thing off” before you leave the house? For Pride parade, add three things, and remove your pants. See the parade map here.
Also on Saturday: Artomatic Zombie Prom! Ceremony at St. Stephen Church!
SUNDAY
Today, in a parking lot best known for street harassment, the Mount Pleasant Business Association is hosting its very first craft fair. Though it’s half the size of Craft Mafia’s Spring Thing—and one-tenth the size of Crafty Bastards—Make it Mount Pleasant promises plenty of earth-friendly, locally made products. (Full disclosure: Washington City Paper is a sponsor of both Crafty Bastards and Make It Mount Pleasant.) Are you a cat owner with an earthy streak? Consider an organic catnip pouch made of recycled plastic bottles ($5). Is there a Peace Corps alum in your life? Try cufflinks made from vintage maps ($40), pictured. Though the fair is loose with its definition of “craft”—does lavender sugar-cookie toilet-bowl cleaner qualify?—it’ll be a boon for the well-traveled NGO staffers who populate the neighborhood’s group houses. “Make it Mount Pleasant” runs from noon to 6 p.m. in the McCormick Paints parking lot at Mount Pleasant and Kenyon streets NW. Free. mtpleasantdc.com. (Sadie Dingfelder)
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