Smithsonian Associates Presents February Program Highlights

The February issue of the Smithsonian Associates’ program guide features a variety of educational and cultural programs, including seminars, lectures, studio arts classes, performances for adults and children and local and regional study tours. Highlights this month include:

Divinely Decadent Chocolate

Thursday, Feb. 4; 6:45 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Smithsonian’s S. Dillon Ripley Center

Participants spend an evening with some of the Washington area’s premier chocolatiers and enjoy a chocolate tasting featuring a selection of each’s signature specialties. Cookbook author Monica Bhide, who partnered with Co Co. Sala to create a line of Indian-spiced chocolates, moderates a panel discussion that begins with the bean, discussing how cacao is cultivated, and covers practical tips on cooking with chocolate to understanding what cacao percentages mean and pairing chocolates with wine.

Behind the Science with Joe Palca: Insights from Scientific Innovators

Monday, Feb. 8; 6:45 p.m. to 8:15 p.m.

Smithsonian’s S. Dillon Ripley Center

NPR science correspondent, Joe Palca, kicks off a five-session lecture series that offers insights into what scientists do and why it is important in February with NASA administrator, Charles Bolden. Palca and Bolden will discuss new advances in space science, the future of NASA and whether (or when) astronauts will be able to travel to Mars.

D.C.’s Historic Sites: Welcome to the Southeast

Wednesday, Feb. 10; 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Smithsonian’s S. Dillon Ripley Center

In a new lunchtime lecture series, Smithsonian Associates hosts experts that focus on the four quadrants that form the nation’s capital, highlighting their most compelling sites. The exploration begins in the quadrant known as Southeast, one of the first areas of the federal city to develop. Josh Gorman, collections manager at Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum, discusses the museum’s history and its role as an advocate for people who live in the Anacostia community.

Masterworks of Four Centuries Concert Series

Saturday, Feb. 20 and Sunday, Feb. 2; 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

National Museum of American History’s Music Hall

The Castle Trio returns, with friends, in February, for two of the best-loved piano quintets in the trio’s repertoire: those of Dvorak (1887) and Brahms (1865).

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