November in the Neighborhood: “Mambo Italiano” at JRHS, early and local holiday shopping, and more

A few of the cultural and community neighborhood happenings in November:

See a play: Mambo Italiano is a Jackson-Reed High School theater production, and any show with characters described as “a raging restaurateuer” and “a chaotic contessa” must be a delight. We’re publishing this article a few hours ahead of its debut, but you don’t have to rush to Jackson-Reed’s Blackbox theater to catch the show. The performers will also take the stage on November 2nd, 7th, 8th and 9th. The showtime each night is 7 p.m. Purchase tickets here and enjoy.

Start your local holiday shopping: Your choices of shopping venue include small brick-and-mortar businesses and Van Ness Main Street’s Second Saturday pop-up market on Saturday, November 9th. Used book and music seller Carpe Librum continues to anchor the market, and will be joined by nearly a dozen local artisans and makers. They’ll be at 4340 Connecticut Avenue from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Forest Hills Connection is an editorially independent program of Van Ness Main Street.

Visit the national park in our backyard: Rock Creek Park’s November calendar includes fall foliage pop-up information tables, and guided hikes that are also history lectures. This one, at Peirce Mill on November 17th, caught our eye.

Learn at a Levine Music lecture: Levine’s 2024-25 lecture series is called “Musical Pairings.” The November 23rd talk is on Impressionism in art and in classical music.

Hillwood begins decking the halls: This year’s Christmas display is inspired by the Hillwood Museum’s special exhibition, Fragile Beauty: The Art of the Ocean, which closes on January 5th. You’ll see the many Christmas trees and other holiday décor starting November 26th.