I just heard that local beatboxer Shodekeh will be performing at the Corcoran on March 13th. He'll be collaborating with Corcoran College of Art & Design students and dancer Krysia Bock.

If you go, be sure to also check out Pump Me Up, the Corcoran's exhibition on D.C. subculture curated by Roger Gastman. It includes work by Globe Poster, the Baltimore-based company that designed and printed posters for D.C. go-go legends like Chuck Brown and Trouble Funk.

And Embody, Shodekeh's series of vocal music showcases and collaborations, continues at Metro Gallery next Wednesday. 

[photo: David Colwell]

The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton 1965-2010 will appeal to anyone with a love, or even a fondness, for the written word. Clifton, a national treasure and former poet laureate of Maryland, wrote about everyday life with an economy of words and an abundance of spirit. Her humanity pulses on every page. But before you dive into these engrossing poems, be sure to read Toni Morrison’s insightful foreward.

My favorite biography of the year was D.T. Max’s take on David Foster Wallace’s brilliant and troubled life. Every Love Story Is a Ghost Story is a straightforward and moving account of the now-iconic writer’s rise through the ranks of contemporary literature and academia, while struggling with the mental illness that led him to take his life. Along the way, Max notes how John Barth played a key role in Wallace’s...

My two favorite art shows this year couldn’t have been more different: Open Walls Baltimore, an exhibition of street art around Station North, and Revealing the African Presence in Renaissance Europe, an illuminating show at the Walters. Organized by local street artist Gaia, Open Walls features the work of nearly two-dozen artists (from Baltimore and beyond) on walls around the Station North arts district. The pieces vary greatly, from New Orleans artist Momo’s abstract piece at 440 E. Oliver Street to the towering portrait by Arizona artist Jetsonorama at 1803 Barclay Street. I haven’t tired of walking or driving past the walls, which are a startling and welcome addition to the arts district.

The Walters show embodies the best qualities of the museum during the Gary Vikan era. Revealing the African Presence highlights fabulous objects from the museum’s collections and recontextualizes them with...

Dan Deacon makes his national TV debut tonight on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! (show starts at 1130 pm). Deacon and his ensemble will play "True Thrush" off his latest album, America, and audience members will use a new Deacon smartphone app to become part of the light show. It should be a hoot.