The 2024 Atlas INTERSECTIONS Festival will take place at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, or the Atlas, from Feb. 3 to March 23.
It’s a privilege to curate such a dynamic range of artists as we continue to democratize access to the arts — Douglas Yuell
“Nowhere else in The District can you find such unique offerings in dance, film, music, and theater all under one roof,” Executive Director Douglas Yeuell stated in a press release for the 2023-2024 Atlas season. “It’s a privilege to curate such a dynamic range of artists as we continue to democratize access to the arts.”
Yeuell emphasized the venue’s commitment to ensuring that everyone has access to the arts, highlighting the focus on “providing free and reduced-cost events for the community” and “breaking down as many barriers to the arts as possible.”
“Everyone should have access to the arts that teach us, inspire us, and ultimately change us. Here at Atlas, we believe the arts are critical to the development of the self and as a reflection of our world,” Yeuell said.
The Atlas is a non-profit performing arts space located in the H Street Corridor of Northeast Washington. Built in 1938, the theater was a bustling hub of entertainment to Washington residents for 30 years. This activity was halted in 1968 — following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., many shops and businesses were destroyed, including the Atlas, which was abandoned for several years.
Jane Lang, the founder of the space, fortuitously came across the Atlas Theater in 2001 while on a mission to transform a small space into a new theater. Lang and her team spent six years raising funds to revive the then Atlas Movie Theater into the Atlas Performing Arts Center.
The Atlas strives to create an environment where members of the community can be united, engaged and inspired by different forms of performing arts. The INTERSECTIONS Festival is a testament to the diverse and unique performing arts talent that Washington has to offer — artists who participate in the festival explore real-world issues through different art forms, including film, dance and music, which are categorized into “story,” “movement” and “sound.” This year, the INTERSECTIONS Festival is hosting close to 40 artists and performing groups in “a multi-week long celebration of the arts.”
According to Atlas Marketing Director Rachel Pearl, the program for the INTERSECTIONS Festival is meticulously curated by the Atlas team — the artists’ submissions are evaluated by a panel that includes the Executive Director and the Program Manager, who go through the applications and make the final selection.
In an original interview, Pearl explained that the variety of artists that are selected for the INTERSECTIONS Festival itself are “reflective of the applications [the Atlas] receives… so it is filled with different voices, different ages, different ethnicities.”
An exciting inclusion to the INTERSECTIONS Festival this year is Tara Hoot, a drag queen. Although Hoot is performing on the Atlas stage for the first time, she has gained popularity in the Washington area. Her show is called “Tara Hoot: A Hoot in the Holler” and falls under the “story” category of performances, as she shares “favorite stories, songs, and life moments to help lift your spirits and get us all through the darkness of winter.”
In a video on the Atlas’ YouTube channel, Lang acknowledges the profound impact that the Atlas and its festivals have had on the community: “You see the vibrant life of H street restored thanks to this extraordinary community of believers.”
