RANDOM ACTS: Concert to aid youth shelter

A concert featuring the socially conscious rappers of Public Enemy is set for Nov. 18 to mark the third annual National Homeless Youth Awareness Month.

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the number of teenage runaways is on the rise, as evidenced by an increase in the number of youths being served by federally financed outreach programs, from 550,000 in 2002 to 761,000 in 2008.

The concert, hosted by Virgin Mobile USA, will be held at George Washington University’s Lisner Auditorium, with ticket sales benefiting Sasha Bruce House, a nonprofit shelter for homeless children and teens in the District.

In addition to raising funds, the concert organizers — working with the nationwide One Warm Coat drive and D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty’s Office on Volunteerism — are collecting used jackets and overcoats for the Sasha Bruce House to be distributed to youngsters in need of warm clothing as winter approaches.

Tickets, which cost $25, may be purchased at the 9:30 Club in the District before the show or online at www.aneveningwithpublicenemy.com. Concertgoers who drop off a coat at the 9:30 Club when buying tickets will receive a free upgrade to VIP seats at the concert, subject to availability. Ticket buyers who order online and bring a coat to the will-call window the night of the show also will be eligible for a free VIP ticket.

To end slavery

The spotlight of awareness will continue to shine on troubled young people Nov. 21 as guests gather for the Capital City Ball, which benefits, among other organizations, Innocents at Risk. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to stopping the exploitation and trafficking of women and children.

Capital City Ball Inc., the all-volunteer group that organizes the gala to raise money for charities, will hold the black-tie event at the Washington Club on Dupont Circle.

In addition to Innocents at Risk, proceeds will be distributed to the Emancipation Network and the Polaris Project, groups that also work to stop human trafficking and modern-day slavery.

Tickets start at $125 and are available online at www.capitalcityball.org.

For VIP ticket holders, an exclusive after-party will be held from 1 to 3 a.m. at the Jockey Club restaurant in the Fairfax at Embassy Row hotel, a short walk from the main event.

Parkinson’s dance

Arts lovers battling Parkinson’s disease, a degenerative disorder that has afflicted actor Michael J. Fox and former Attorney General Janet Reno, will be the star performers at a free 6 p.m. show Sunday on the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage.

The Arlington-based Bowen McCauley Dance Company offers free weekly movement classes to people with Parkinson’s disease; the participants of those classes will perform the world premiere of “If I Can’t Dance” on Sunday. Also performing will be award-winning Washington-area folk singer Grace Griffith, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1998.

“On this small stage, you will see a huge show involving the young, the old, the disabled, the professional, with live musicians, and all for free,” says Lucy Bowen McCauley, the dance company’s artistic director and founder.

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