South Lakes High School Theatre will present its spring musical, “Beauty and the Beast,” beginning Friday night.

More than 100 actors, singers, musicians and technical crew from the South Lakes Performing Arts Department will be featured in the show. Maria L. Harris is the director.

Performances will be Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m.; and at 7 p.m. next Thursday through Saturday. Tickets are $8-$10 presale and $10-$12 at the door.

In addition, there will be two Disney-themed special events related to the show: a “Princess Tea” to meet the cast following Saturday’s matinee and a “Prince’s Ball” following the Friday, May 5 show. Tickets to each event are $5.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the South Lakes Theatre Arts Department’s website or call 703-715-4589.

Videos courtesy South Lakes High School Theatre

Full-Scale Terror Response Exercise Today — Fairfax County is one of six sites in the DC Metro area participating in a drill today “designed to prepare for the possibility of a complex coordinated terror attack in the region.” The county’s exercise site is the former Lorton Reformatory prison site. [Fairfax County Emergency Information]

Amazon to Move Into Herndon Office Tower — One Dulles Tower (13200 Woodland Park Drive) will be leased out by Amazon Web Service, the Washington Business Journal first reported. That building is just across the Toll Road from Amazon’s facility on Worldgate Drive. [Bisnow]

BXP First-Quarter Earnings Down from 2016 — Boston Properties, owner of Reston Town Center, announced Tuesday that profits are down 8.9 percent from the first quarter of 2016. Revenue fell 5.1 percent. In addition to the DC region, BXP has properties in Boston, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. [Nasdaq]

Seahawks Soccer Team Ranked in Region — The South Lakes High School boys’ soccer team, 6-2-2 so far on the season, is ranked No. 8 in the Washington Post’s Metro region Top 10. The team next plays Thursday night at Hayfield. [Washington Post]

Golf Tournament Will Benefit Families of Heroes — The 47th annual HEROES Inc. golf tournament will be July 13-14 at Twin Lakes Golf Course in Clifton. The event benefits the HEROES scholarship fund, which provides financial aid and professional counsel to the surviving family members of law enforcement officers and firefighters who have been killed in the line of duty. [Fairfax County Fire and Rescue]

J.McLaughlin Now Open at Reston Town Center — The new clothing store at 11932 Market St. opened to the public Monday. [Reston Town Center/Facebook]

Thermal Cameras Available for Home Inspections — Fairfax County residents can now reserve thermal imaging cameras for loan from any branch of the Fairfax County Public Library. The county says it is making the cameras available so that residents can inspect their home or business for hot and cold spots, which can indicate energy-saving opportunities. [Fairfax County]

SLHS Runner Takes Meet MVP Honors — Olivia Beckner (pictured) ran the 800 meters in 2 minutes, 16.03 seconds and the 1,600 meters in 5 minutes, 1.35 seconds on her way to winning the Most Valuable Female Track Athlete award at the recent Lake Braddock Hall of Fame Invitational. The SLHS track team next competes in the Penn Relays, Thursday through Saturday at the University of Pennsylvania. [Press Release]

Reston Man Up for Bowling Board — Adam Mitchell is one of four candidates for three seats on the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Board of Directors. Mitchell has been a board member for Nation’s Capital Area USBC since 2014, and is a current Virginia State Youth Director. The vote will be done this week during the group’s annual convention in Las Vegas. [USBC]

Photo of Olivia Beckner courtesy South Lakes High School track and field

For 23 students from South Lakes High School, spring break was a chance to travel to an exotic place — and also to help make the world a better place.

The students traveled to Ecuador during this month’s break to participate in a Fairfax County Public Schools service learning trip. Working with nonprofit organization Me to We, the students helped build classrooms in an indigenous community.

The SLHS students made up nearly half of the 48 total FCPS students on the trip. They were accompanied by SLHS Spanish teachers Sandra Rebello, Ana Viamonte and Kirsten Hope.

The students spent two days doing construction work at a school in the remote Amazon Basin village of Kanambu.

“Students who attend this school come from many communities and many have to walk over 6 hours to get to school,” Rebello said. “Students who live far away will stay at the school for the week and return home every Friday.”

Local students who traveled there were able to see the boarding accommodations of the school, which Rebello said were “extremely poor,” with no beds. About 400 students attend the school.

In addition to their work on the service project, local students spent a few days in Baños de Agua Santa, a town with 60 waterfalls. They were able to swim in thermal baths, Rebello said. Students also visited the equator and Yunguilla, a sustainable development community in the cloud forest.

“Our Seahawks were amazing and represented our school well,” Rebello said of the trip.

Local Students Excel at State Science Fair — Among the honorees at the 2017 Virginia State Science and Engineering Fair was Michael Gamarnik of South Lakes High School, who took third place in electrical and mechanical engineering for his project, “The Effect of Vortex Generator Angle on the Downforce of an Airfoil.” Rini Gupta and Shalini Shah of Herndon High School took third place in behavioral and social sciences for their project, “Effect of Binaural Beats with Isochronic Tones on PTSD & GAD Patients.” [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Baby Deer Should Be Left Alone — The Fairfax County Police Department’s Animal Protection Police is reminding residents that in almost all cases, white-tailed deer fawns found alone are not orphaned or abandoned. They should be left where they are, as their mothers will return for them. [Fairfax County Police Department]

Learning Facility Coming to Fox Mill Center — Ashish Gandhi and Sapna Chordia are opening a branch of Sylvan Learning later this year, offering tutoring programs and camps to kindergarten through 12th-grade students. They plan to open in June, in time for summer programming. [Fairfax Times]

The South Lakes Seahawks will be well-represented at the conference championship next month after performances in recent days.

At the Northern Virginia Invitational, April 7-8, the following team members hit qualifying marks for postseason competition:

• 400 meters: John Eggeman (junior)
• 3,200 meters: Marissa Banga (freshman), Sean Casey (junior), Isabelle Gulgert (sophomore) and Peter Sepulveda (senior)
• 300-meter hurdles: Abby Wickman (senior)
• discus: Jamie Richard (junior)
• pole vault: Megan Allison (junior) and Abby Wickman (senior)
• shot put: Madie Evans (junior) and Jessica Rice (senior)

Participating at the Arcadia Invitational in California, the sprint medley relay team — Hannah Waller (freshman), Cara Hutson (sophomore), Olivia Beckner (junior) and Devyn Jones (senior) — set a school-record time of 4 minutes, 6.84 seconds. Jones also hit state-qualifying times in the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles. Waller did so in 100 and 200 meters.

Also in California, Timiebi Ogobri (senior) ran a state-qualifying time in the 100 meters; while Sophie Halkett (sophomore) and Alex Loukili (junior) both qualified in the 800 meters.

At their final event during spring break, last Thursday, more SLHS athletes qualified at the Leslie Sherman Memorial Invitational.

• 200 meters: Timiebi Ogobri (senior)
• 400 meters: Timiebi Ogobri (senior)
• 800 meters: Olivia Beckner (junior) and Alex Loukili (junior)
• 4×100-meter relay: Devyn Jones (senior), Hannah Waller (freshman), Danielle Spears (sophomore) and Rhema Konadu (freshman)
• 4×800-meter relay: Peter Sepulveda (senior), Sean Casey (junior), Alex Loukili (junior) and Jack Watkins (senior)
• discus: Jamie Richards (junior)
• shot put: Ronak Cuthill (junior)

The Seahawks next compete in a conference meet Wednesday at Langley High School, followed by the Hall of Fame Invitational at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke on Friday and Saturday.

Image of Devyn Jones, Hannah Waller, Cara Hutson and Olivia Beckner at Arcadia Invitational, courtesy South Lakes High School track and field

Reston Rotary Ball Set for April 22 — The annual “Blackbeard’s Ball” event next weekend at Hidden Creek Country Club will benefit the Lake Thoreau Project by the South Lakes High School STEAM team, as well as the nonprofit organization Stop Hunger Now. [Reston Rotary/Facebook]

Men Who Killed SLHS Grad in Israel Charged in US — Two Palestinian men already serving life sentences in an Israeli prison for killing Kristine Luken, a 1984 South Lakes High School graduate, in 2010 have now also been charged with murder by U.S. prosecutors. [Washington Post]

Seahawks Lacrosse Team Has Strong Start — There were no games this week because of Spring Break, but the lacrosse team at South Lakes High School will come back next week looking to improve on their 5-1 early-season record. [South Lakes Athletics]

Arrest Made in Anti-Semitic Graffiti Incidents in Fairfax County — A 20-year-old Annandale man has been charged with committing the vandalism, called “hate-motivated” by police, earlier this week. [Fairfax County Police Department]

Runners Marathon of Reston is Sunday — Some volunteers are still needed for the Runners Marathon of Reston, which will be held Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in South Reston. There are still a few slots available for runners as well. Drivers are reminded to be on the lookout for runners on roads including South Lakes Drive, Soapstone Drive, Lawyers Road and Sunrise Valley Drive. [Reston Now]

Brew House, Kiln & Co. Collaborating for Event — Kiln & Co. will officially open its pottery and custard shop at Lake Anne Plaza on Saturday during Founder’s Day. Tonight, however, it will be part of a special event at Lake Anne Brew House. Special beer and custard combinations will be served. [Lake Anne Brew House/Facebook]

Nats’ Opening Week Celebration at Reston Town Center — Fans are invited to get a picture with one of the Washington Nationals’ Racing Presidents today from 3-6 p.m., and special Happy Hour deals will be available at American Tap Room when the game starts at 3. [Reston Town Center/Facebook]

Open House Set for Preschool — Bright Horizons at Commerce Metro Center (11400 Commerce Park Drive) will host an open house event April 17-20 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day. Parents are invited to learn about what the school has to offer their children. [Bright Horizons]

Proposed Changes to South Lakes Fairfax Connector Schedule — The public is invited to give its feedback on a series of proposed changes to the Fairfax Connector schedule and routes in the county. One of the proposals is listed as “minor schedule adjustments to address crowding issues associated with ridership to and from South Lakes High School” on Route 551. [Fairfax County]

Former Assistant Principal Passes Away — Bill Weaver, a longtime assistant principal at South Lakes and Herndon high schools, died last week at the age of 83. Weaver was also a former football coach at George Mason and James Madison high schools. [Southern Maryland Online]

Community Meeting Tonight on Temporary Fire Station — Residents are invited to come to the North County Governmental Center (1801 Cameron Glen Drive) tonight at 7 p.m. to learn about the county’s plan for Reston’s temporary fire station, and to share their thoughts. [Reston Now]

County Fire Welcomes New Recruits — After 28 weeks of training, new members of Fairfax County Fire and Rescue graduated from training Friday evening. Some began work the next morning, while others started on the job today. [Fairfax County Fire and Rescue]

Police: Watch for Signs of Gang Activity — The Fairfax County Police Department says certain types of graffiti can be an indicator of increased gang presence in a community. In addition, they are sharing tips for parents to look for in kids who may be at risk. [WTOP]

State FBLA Conference is April 7-8 in Reston — Numerous local students are among the 120 from Fairfax County who have qualified for the state FBLA-PBL leadership conference. Among them are Cyril Antoney, Adam Asif, Amanzeb Aurangzeb, Rochelle Barasona, Rahbar Chowdhury and Ryan Terrell of Herndon High School; and Spencer Alston, Jennifer Alvarez, Kian Attari, Jon Burbach, Juhi Chandrabhatha, Ayah Elnafe, Conor Gill, Noah Goldstein, Ajit Gupta, Ian Hughes, Jarius Johnson, Rachel Kessler, Bardia Kimiavi, Eric Kiss, Jesse Lynch, Davi Meran, Rabia Mohamednur and Ahmed Rabani of South Lakes High School. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Bechtel Exec Gets Black Women in Business Award — Charlene Wheeless, Bechtel’s principal vice president for global corporate affairs, has been named one of the 25 Influential Black Women in Business by the Network Journal. Wheeless also serves on the boards of the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce and Reston Hospital Center. [Press Release]

‘Sacred Profane’ Coming to CenterStage — Featuring an all-women cast of diverse ages, cultures and ethnicities, the show features music compositions, pop songs and classical music to create a “loose, provocative canvas with bodies in motion.” It is set for Reston Community Center’s CenterStage (2310 Colts Neck Road) on April 5. [Reston Connection]

Some Work on Phase 1 of Silver Line Project Ongoing — The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority says some work connected to the first phase of the Silver Line still needs to be completed. All significant work is done, according to MWAA, but continuing projects include realignment of Old Meadow Road in McLean. [WTOP]

SLHS Softballer Heading to Europe — Alyssa Smith, a freshman at South Lakes High School, is raising money to travel to Europe to play softball for the Student-Athlete USA Team. Alyssa is the center fielder for HRYS Glory 16U and has hopes of playing Division I college softball after she graduates. [GoFundMe]

Bluegrass Series Wrapping Up at Frying Pan Park — The Bluegrass Barn series at Frying Pan Farm Park (2739 West Ox Road, Herndon) will come to an end April 9 with a performance by The Boxcars. Tickets are now on sale. [Fairfax County Park Authority]

Gillespie Wins County GOP Straw Poll — A Fairfax County Republican Party straw poll over the weekend has Ed Gillespie, former Republican National Committee chairman, firmly in the lead in the GOP race for Governor of Virginia. Gillespie is facing Corey Stewart and Frank Wagner in the primary, which takes place June 13. [WTOP]

Report: Golf Course Could Sell for $25-$35M — Real-estate news website GlobeSt.com reported earlier this week that it hears anyone who buys Reston National Golf Course for that price and gets approval for development might be looking at a $200 million windfall. [GlobeSt.com]

Mobile DMV Service Coming to Reston — DMV 2 Go, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles’ mobile service, will soon visit Reston. DMV 2 Go is a handicapped-accessible full-service office that provides all DMV transactions. The mobile DMV will be at the North County Government Center (1801 Cameron Glen Drive) from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 3-6. [Virginia DMV]

Independent Panel to Study Metro’s Woes — Former U.S. transportation secretary Ray LaHood will take charge of a panel to examine Metro’s governance and long-term financial needs. Meanwhile, Metro’s general manager says the system needs major work to fix its “unsustainable cost model.” [Washington Post]

South Lakes Lacrosse Team Kicks Off 2017 — The Seahawks’ boys lacrosse team won its conference and advanced to the state tournament last year. They started the 2017 season with a 16-3 win over Fairfax last week, and though they dropped their second contest to Stone Ridge, they still have big dreams. [South Lakes Athletics]

Reminder: RA Board Meeting Tonight — The Reston Association Board of Directors meets tonight at 6:30 p.m. at RA Headquarters (12001 Sunrise Valley Drive). The meeting will also be streamed live on RA’s YouTube channel. [Reston Now]

SLHS Students Attend Science Symposium — South Lakes High International Baccalaureate chemistry students recently attended the event at Georgetown University, sitting in on seminars and hearing talks from experts. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Warm Weather Once Again on the Horizon — We were spoiled by temperatures in the 70s in February and early March before winter came back for one more round. The thermometer is on the rise again, though, and it is expected to top that 70 mark again Saturday. [Capital Weather Gang]

Longtime Herndon Town Manager Honored for Work — Arthur Anselene retired from his position as Herndon town manager last month. His more than 40 years of service to the town was honored at the town council’s meeting last week. [Reston Connection]

Police Seek Ashburn Assault Suspect — Police in Loudoun County are looking for a man who is believed to have assaulted a woman in an Ashburn parking lot last week. [Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office]

Reminder: RA Board Special Meeting Tonight — The special meeting of the Reston Association Board of Directors originally scheduled for March 14 will be held tonight at 6:30 p.m. at RA Headquarters (12001 Sunrise Valley Drive). The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the findings in StoneTurn Group’s review of Reston Association’s purchase of the Tetra/Lake House property and the subsequent overruns in the cost of its renovation. [Reston Association]

New Town Center Restaurant Seeks Employees — Hen Penny is the newest restaurant by Pheast Food Group, a subsidiary of Thompson Hospitality. Management says it is planning to open March 30 at 1820 Discovery St., the former home of Pheast’s BRB. The business is looking to hire cashiers, delivery drivers, cooks and more. [Pheast Food Group]

St. Johns Wood Redevelopment Again on Agenda — The Reston Planning & Zoning Committee will have an informational meeting March 27 at 7:30 p.m. on Bozzuto’s planned redevelopment of St. Johns Wood. [Reston Planning & Zoning Committee]

SLHS Grad’s Team Falls in NCAA Tournament — Princess Aghayere, South Lakes High School Class of 2015, played 12 minutes for the University of Pennsylvania Quakers in their NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament first-round game Saturday against Texas A&M. Penn led by 21 points early in the fourth quarter; however, Texas A&M staged the biggest comeback in women’s tournament history and came out victorious, 63-61. Aghayere scored 2 points and recorded 2 rebounds. [Penn Athletics]

Students Named to All-State Band, Orchestra — The All-Virginia High School Band and Orchestra will both perform April 8 in Manassas. Among the performers will be 77 students from Fairfax County, including several local students. On the All-State Band are Catie George and Mason Moy (South Lakes High School); and Nathan Coughlin, Noah McKee and Emma Rood (Herndon High School). Members of the All-State Orchestra include Herndon High’s James Adams and Ethan Morad. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Photo via @FunInFairfax on Instagram

It’s St. Patrick’s Day weekend and a lot of people will be out celebrating. Safety officials are reminding residents to party responsibly and to be sure to have a safe ride home.

As part of the effort to keep everyone safe, the Washington Regional Alcohol Program is offering revelers free rides (up to a $20 value) through its SoberRide campaign. The program is open to everyone throughout the Washington region through 4 a.m. Saturday.

To get the free ride, use the Lyft app and enter the promo code SOBERRIDE.

Partying or not, though, there will be plenty of things to do in the Reston area this weekend. Here are just some of the options available.

• The Reston Community Center (2310 Colts Neck Road) will host its annual spring flea market Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. The free event is available to residents of all ages. For more information, call 703-476-4500.
• The fourth annual Maker Faire NoVa is Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., at South Lakes High School and Langston Hughes Middle School. Tickets at the door will be $15 for adults, $12 for senior citizens and $5 for children. Family packs of five tickets will be $40.
• Teen job fairs and resume-building workshops will be offered Saturday by Fairfax County at Chantilly High School (4201 Stringfellow Road) from 10 a.m. to noon, and at Oakton High School (2900 Sutton Road, Vienna) from 1-3 p.m.
• Reston Town Center is hosting “Family Fun Saturdays” throughout March to benefit Opportunity Neighborhood: Reston. This week’s schedule features horse-drawn carriage rides, free funnel cakes and a performance by the McGrath Academy of Irish Dance. The event will go from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday.
• The opening reception of Greater Reston Arts Center’s “Emerging Visions” exhibit is set for 6-8 p.m. Saturday. The show features curated works of art created by Fairfax County students from South Lakes, Herndon and Oakton high schools, and it will be on display through April 1.
• The Social Justice & Peace Conference will be Saturday from 12:30-6 p.m. at United Christian Parish (11508 North Shore Drive). The free event will include workshops on how people from different religious backgrounds can support immigrants, the trans community, environmental justice and more.
• A bird walk at Sunrise Valley Wetlands and Polo Fields will be offered from 7:30-10:30 a.m. Sunday. Check out Reston Association’s WebTrac for more information.
• Reston Community Players’ will put on “Rock of Ages” tonight and Saturday at 8 p.m., as well as Sunday at 2 p.m. at CenterStage (2310 Colts Neck Road). Use the password “St. Paddy’s” when purchasing tickets for tonight’s show by phone or in person to get them for $10. Regular tickets for each performance of the show, which will run through April 1, are $25.
• A Kennedy Center Production of “From the Mouths of Monsters” will be performed at Herndon High School (700 Bennett St.) tonight at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday at 2 and 7:30 p.m.; and at 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for students and children.
• Reston Regional Library (11925 Bowman Towne Drive) will be visited by Frying Pan Farm Park on Saturday from 11 a.m. to noon, featuring animal education, stories and crafts. For adults, the lecture series on World War I will continue at 2 p.m. Sunday.
• Kalypso’s (1617 Washington Plaza N.) will have live music tonight for St. Patrick’s Day, with Mark Scott from 4-8 p.m. followed by Sam Gunderson from 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.
• ArtSpace Herndon (750 Center St.) will have the opening reception for its exhibit “There’s No Place Like Home,” by members of the Great Falls Studios, from 3-5 p.m. Sunday. The show will be on display through April 8.
• The Reston Town Center Singles Meetup group has an event scheduled for tonight at Ned Devine’s Irish Bar & Restaurant (2465 Centreville Road, Herndon). Shake 3X will perform at the restaurant from 9:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.