Reprinted from the Montgomery Journal, July 31, 1998

WEEKEND'S BEST
Smoke-free house party will groove to live music

Sure, there's a certain appeal to going to folk clubs to watch singers strum their guitars while bathed in blue light on a bare stage.

But one usually can't help but emerged from such experiences smelling like the Marlboro Man. So while the medical experts debate the risks of secondhand smoke, Rockville residents Scott and Paula Moore offer an alternative.

Since November, the Moores have opened their house periodically to local and national singer-songwriters to perform for however many people they can fit into their smoke-free recreation room.

On Sunday at 7 p.m., Boston-based Greg Greenway will visit to perform compositions from his new album, "Mussolini's Head."

Scott Moore, a reporter for The Washington Post, said he wrote a story two years ago about people who held such concerts in their homes. Once the article was done, he kept going to the shows and finally decided to start having them himself.

"We get a lot of people who just don't like going to clubs," Moore said. "There's a lot of smoke, and maybe the chairs are uncomfortable, and they don't necessarily know the quality of the music. People who go to our shows trust our taste."

Refreshments will be provided, although visitors will have to bring their own alcohol. Donations of $10 are suggested, with the money going to Greenway.

For reservations and directions, call the Moores at (301) 309-0983.

Also happening this weekend:

In the mood for crab? Friendship Heights Village's 20/40s - those would be residents from ages 20 to 40 - will hold their eighth annual all-you-can-eat crab feast Sunday at 6 p.m.

The menu will feature barbecued chicken, corn on the cob, coleslaw, watermelon, brownies with ice cream and, of course, steamed Maryland blue crabs.

The feast will be held on the patio of the Friendship Heights Village Center or, if it rains, in the Village Center auditorium.

Attendees must register and pay ($40 for residents, $25 for nonresidents) in advance. Call (301) 656-2797 before 5 p.m. today to make sure there is still space.

It's a good weekend for galleries, with three shows opening.

Sheryl Leonard Galleries, in Cabin John Mall in Potomac, will host its annual local artists show beginning tomorrow and running through Aug. 15. It will feature two- and three-dimensional works by Maryland artists, including Kirsten Dennison, Peggy Hawley, Robert Le Mar, Linda Press, Albert Reuben, Klara Rozner, Barbara Seigel, Suzanne Yurdin and Irene Zweig. Call (301) 983-0710.

Geometrice, a show featuring works of geometric abstraction, will begin with a reception tomorrow at 3 p.m. and a gallery talk at 5 p.m. at Rockville Arts Place. It will include pieces by regional artists Carol Miller Frost, Madeline Keesing, Nan Montgomery and Gail Watkins. It will run through Aug. 29. Call (301) 309-6900.