Small Pleasures for the Season

By Lavanya Ramanathan

This month is all about big, from Cirque du Soleil's towering Grand Chapiteau to the traffic-jamming ceremony to celebrate the lighting of a massive Christmas tree. But there is something to be said for good times in intimate spaces, where no one will jostle you for a better view. You just have to know where to look.

· This week, Landless Theatre Company brings two of its wacky, born-off-Broadway musicals back to the black-box theater at DCAC. The blink-and-you-might-miss-it art space is tiny (and on 18th Street, right in the midst of Adams Morgan bars). Its fun little secret: On event nights, the concession stand sells beer -- for a buck. First up is "A Very Merry Unauthorized Children's Scientology Pageant," which uses cute little kids to tell a tale of L. Ron Hubbard. But mark your calendar for the return of "Gutenberg! The Musical!," a spunky and well-reviewed song-and-dance sendup of Broadway musicals; it's about two composers who strive to make it big with their musical about the inventor of the printing press and fighter of illiteracy.

Tickets are $25. "Scientology" opens tonight at 7:30 p.m. and continues Thursdays and Fridays through Jan. 4, except Christmas and New Year's Day. "Gutenberg!" opens Dec. 20 and runs Saturdays and Sundays Dec. 27-Jan. 4. 2438 18th St. NW. 202-462-7833 or visit http://www.landlesstheatrecompany.org.

· And in Capitol Hill, the intimate Corner Store offers what co-owner Kris Swanson calls a "salon-style" setting, complete with wine, food and an informal air; tomorrow, catch artist/writer Brett Busang's performance, "Holiday Tales for Redeemable Misanthropes." The short stories about love gone wrong at the holidays are the ideal antidote to "The Nutcracker." Come early and check out the holiday art show, which runs noon to 6.

$10 donation includes wine and snacks. 6-7:30 p.m. 900 South Carolina Ave. SE. 202-544-5807.

Save the Date

Onstage: At Ford's, Lincoln and Conan

Next year, expect an onslaught of events celebrating the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth. But the highlight might be the Ford's Theatre Society's Living Lincoln Series schedule: The theater reopens after an 18-month renovation with a series of speakers including Conan O'Brien. He joins Joshua Wolf Shenk on March 2 to give a talk about Lincoln as a humorist. Tickets are free (but you'll have to reserve them through Ticketmaster, and thus pay a small fee). The series is held various Monday nights Feb. 16-May 18. To reserve tickets, call 202-397-7328 or visit http://www.fords.org and select "buy tickets" from the top of the screen.

Onstage: Jewmongous: Klezmerpalooza

Though founder Sean Altman was once a member of the a cappella act Rockapella, we detect hints of They Might Be Giants in this satirical Jewish variety act, which returns to Jammin' Java this month just in time for Hanukkah. Songs include the hilarious "They Tried to Kill Us (We Survived Let's Eat)." $20; $17 in advance. Doors at 6 p.m.; show at 7 p.m. Dec. 24. 227 E. Maple Ave., Vienna. 703-255-1566 Ext. 8 or visit http://www.jamminjava.com.