Your Update on News and Upcoming Events*

Earth Day is next Thursday. We are so excited about it, that we are starting the celebration early with an event this Saturday. If you haven't already, there is still time to register to participate in this unique, environmental action event. We hope to see you there!

9 a.m.–noon

Free admission; preregistration recommended.

Register here: 2001.321

This drive-through, outdoor, environmental action event provides a convenient way for McLean residents to better the planet. Several local community businesses and organizations will provide four key facets of environmental health in the spirit of shredding, reusing, recycling and planting.

Earth-friendly opportunities include (please see website for details/limits):

• Paper shredding provided by ShredInstead

• Paint recycling provided by Yuck Old Paint

• Bulk/Household Items accepted by College Hunks Hauling Junk.

• Compost by Veteran Compost

• Bike donations collected by Wheels to Africa

• Tree saplings donated by Bartlett Tree Experts

• Art Alchemy, an innovative recycled art installation by Brooksfield School.

Music Together is an internationally recognized mixed-age music and movement class. In our socially-distanced outdoor "tailgate" version, families will gather near or in their cars at the McLean Community Center's upper parking lot for interactive music-making—singing, chanting, small movement and simple dancing led by early childhood music specialist Patti Papworth. Program includes a take home CD, songbook and digital download code of the semester’s songs, as well as a set of musical instruments for families to use each week in class. Participants will be asked to complete a COVID-19 questionnaire daily.

8 lessons @ 45 mins, $192/$160 MCC district residents. Class fee includes payment for one child and one adult. Required Supplemental Fee: $40, make payable to Little Steps Music, LLC, or by PayPal or Venmo at [email protected]. Fee is due on the first day of class to the instructor. One supplemental fee per family. One Infant nine months or younger can attend FREE with a registered sibling.

1517.321     M, 4/19-6/14     11:15 a.m.-Noon

This basic obedience course is for dogs over the age of six months who have no prior obedience training. Topics of instruction will include heeling on leash, come/recall command, down, sit and stay command. Situational training as related to real life situations will be encompassed in this training. Behavior related problem-solving methods will be addressed, as well. Classes will be held outdoors. Please do not bring your dog to the first class, it is only for pet "parents." Instructor: Kevin Healy, Police K-9 Unit (Retired).

7 lessons @ 1 hr, $145/$120 MCC district residents

1453.321     Mon, 4/19-6/7     7-8 p.m.

MCC has certified 13 Dranesville Small District 1A residents, five adults and eight teens, to run for seats on the MCC Governing Board.

Open Voting is underway. Residents may vote in-person or by mail. To request a ballot for your household, you may fill out an online form, phone 703-744-9348 or email [email protected].

Three adult positions and two youth positions are open this year. The adult candidates who receive the three-highest vote counts will serve three-year (3) terms. Youth candidates, one from the McLean High School boundary area and one from the Langley High School boundary area, will serve one-year (1) terms. Youth candidates do not have to attend these schools to serve on the board.

Free admission.

Join us for (the) Unruly Theatre Project’s virtual spring improv shows from the comfort of your couch! All performances begin at 7 p.m. and last approximately one hour. You can register for one show or as many as you like, but participants need to register at least two hours in advance of a show to see it. A Zoom link and password for the show will be emailed to registrants.

$10/$5 MCC tax district residents. One ticket per bingo card. Tickets will not be available after 9 p.m. on Wednesday, April 14. Zoom link and bingo cards will be emailed separately.

Fluffy Soufflé takes you back to the '80s! Part bingo, part drag show, your music bingo card is made up of songs, and instead of calling out numbers, Fluffy plays music clips! Singing along and '80s-themed costumes encouraged.

Activity No. 4728.321

$5 per family (per Zoom invite). Registration is required.

Gather the whole family around the computer or tablet and get ready for some socially distant trivia. Prizes for winning teams!

Register by clicking on the Activity No. or by calling OFC at 703-448-TEEN (8336).

Free to participate.

Here's how to work up to a great McLean Day! Answer local trivia questions, complete fun missions and support McLean’s businesses and organizations by signing up for Mission: McLean!

Download the free secure Goosechase app and complete the virtual and in-person missions on your own schedule! Participants who complete the missions will be automatically enrolled in a random drawing to receive great prizes. A smartphone is required to participate.

Register here

Final Performance:

Saturday, July 17, 10 a.m.

Note: If this session is unable to meet in-person due to the coronavirus pandemic, it will switch to a virtual session: this decision will be made 30 days prior to the session start date.

Young players will investigate how Shakespeare guides actors through text and will exercise the actor's toolkit to explore multiple characters in an ensemble performance. Under the guidance of theater professionals from the Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC), participants unravel his plays with text analysis; transform into Shakespeare’s characters through voice, movement and improvisation work; wage battles against mortal enemies with stage combat; and develop fundamental acting skills using classical theater techniques. To culminate the session, participants stage a performance for friends and family in the Alden Theatre.

Free; registration is required.

Activity No. 1600.321

Interested in reading some of your favorite books or diving into new genres? Come be a part of the McLean Community Center book club. This great program will allow you to discuss books monthly in a group setting. Expand your knowledge. Meet great people. Make great memories.

Help us decide which books to read by filling out this short survey.

Activity No. 4501.321

$25 per participant/$15 MCC district residents. Each participant must register separately.

For all ages. Join MCC for a socially distanced, outdoor, Father-Daughter Silent Disco Dance with DJ BigCourt. We will transform the MCC parking lot into a dance floor with each father-daughter group having its own space.

Price includes the use of headphones with the option of one of three family friendly music genres, snack bags and glow products to add to the fun. Get outside, get moving and spend some time with your little princess!

Spring is here --and so is the start of MPA's Spring Art Class lineup. MPA's spring class offerings include some of our long-time favorites, as well as exciting new options, including a fun, NEW virtual Teen Painting class with Pamela Saunders that starts this Friday, a NEW virtual digital photography class with Rula Jones (a smartphone camera can be used for this class), and of course for the youngest budding artists, our Saturday Abrakadoodle classes! Classes will take place online and in our DuVal Studio and start soon! See our website for a complete list of offerings and registration information.

Registration is filling fast for MPA's popular Summer Art Camps! We have camps for all ages, including In-Studio and Virtual MPA Summer Art Camps, for students ages 6-12; our Abrakadoodle Camps (ages 3-6); Vosler Young Artists' Studio for teens, and our CIT program.

Please note: The safety of our campers, staff, and community is at the forefront of our minds as we redesign our in-studio camps in this new environment. Please review our MPA Summer Camp Policies & Procedures.

MPA's two new spring exhibitions are now open. Initium Novum: Humanity's End as a New Beginning features artist Yuriko Yamaguchi and writer Mineke Schipper (Emerson Gallery) and Navigating Climate Change, Extended, features work by Alonzo Davis (Atrium Gallery). Both exhibitions were underwritten by Donna and Bruce Berlage and are available for viewing in person and online.

The Atrium Gallery is available for visitors during McLean Community Center opening hours. The Emerson Gallery is open for visitors with timed reservations on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Visit our website to reserve your timed pass. Both exhibitions continue through June 10, 2021.

The winners of the AAUW McLean Branch 2021 STEM Essay Contest sponsored by the McLean Area Branch have been announced. The contest was open to 7th and 8th grade students (girls and boys) at local public and private schools. The students were asked to discover and publicize women who made a difference in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields, but who did not receive recognition for their contributions while alive and whose contributions are not well known even today. Each essay described one woman’s contribution and its impact, as well as why the student selected the woman.

This year’s winners are:

1st Place: Zoe Robell, Longfellow Middle School (7th Grade)

2nd Place: Michelle Liu, Longfellow Middle School (7th Grade)

Honorable Mention: Carter Kunz, The Langley School (7th Grade)

Honorable Mention: Brendan Li, Cooper Middle School (7th Grade)

Congratulations to Hayden (no last name given), the winner of this month's Community Quiz. Hayden won an MCC custom mug by being the first person to correctly answer the following question.

Answer: Marina Qu.