The National Mall Is a Circus This Weekend
Start the Fourth of July festivities a little early with a waterfront beer and wine festival, a JFK centennial celebration at the National Museum of American History and celebrate the circus on the National Mall.
Metro’s SafeTrack might be over, but we aren’t getting a break on service interruptions this weekend. Red Line trains will single track between Grosvenor and Twinbrook with trains running every 18 minutes between Shady Grove and Glenmont with additional trains running every 9 minutes between Grosvenor and Silver Spring from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Orange and Blue Line trains single track between Foggy Bottom and Clarendon or Arlington Cemetery with trains operating every 26 minutes. Silver Line trains will operate every 26 minutes as well between Wiehle-Reston East and Ballston ONLY and Yellow Line trains running every 26 minutes between Huntington and Mount Vernon Square ONLY. And Green Line trains will single track between Georgia Avenue-Petworth and Fort Totten with trains running every 18 mintues.
Smithsonian Folklife Festival
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival — the annual celebration of folk arts, crafts, music and cultures — opens it tents for the 50th time this weekend with more than 850 participants and more than 750,000 visitors expected. Over the years, the festival has celebrated the cultures of countries around the world, but for this special anniversary program, curators have focused their attention on America’s traditions and diversity. This year’s themes are Circus Arts featuring The Hebei Golden Eagle Acrobatic Troupe from China, the Wallenda Family Troup and the UniverSoul Circus on the big top stage along with aerialists, tightrope walkers, jugglers and clowns, as well as circus chefs and the food served to performers. The other focus is On the Move, a program about migration and immigrations. The festival will host two citizenship ceremonies, one for young children and one for teens, as well as evening concerts including one by the Chuck Brown Band at 7 p.m. Friday. The full schedule is online.
June 29-July 4 and July 6-9 from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. with evening dance parties at 5:30 p.m. and circus performances most nights at 7 p.m. on the National Mall between Seventh and 12th Streets. Admission is FREE!
Ai Weiwei: Trace
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei brings a new, groundbreaking piece to the Hirshhorn Museum. Ai Weiwei: Trace is a stunning installation that showcases activists from around the world through 176 portraits, each comprised of thousands of plastic LEGO bricks. The installation is influenced by Weiwei’s own experiences with interrogation and incarceration (he was prohibited from traveling abroad by the Chinese government from 2011-15), as the individuals represented have also been detained, exiled or sought political refuge. The exhibit also features a 360-degree wallpaper installation, adding up to nearly 700 feet of Weiwei’s art residing in the Hirshhorn’s third floor Outer Ring galleries.
Daily through Jan. 1, 2018, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Seventh Street and Independence Avenue SW. Admission is FREE!
The Late Shift: Freestyle
The Late Shift: Frestyle is the first of three late-night summer festivals. At the skate park meets secret pop-up art show, you can skate the indoor park with music by DJ Sharkey and Capps Music, check out the artwork, make your own art, listen to a poetry slam, take your photo in a photo booth and enjoy beer, wine, sandwiches and bronut ice cream sandwiches from Eats Place.
June 30 from 7 p.m.-midnight at the Torpedo Factory, 105 N. Union St., Alexandria. Admission is FREE!
Disney’s The Little Mermaid
Broadway took its shot at a live-action version of The Little Mermaid long before Disney started reworking all of its animated tales with actors, and the musical snagged Grammy and Tony nominations in 2008. With five shows over four days of this family-friendly production by the Pittsburgh CLO and Kansas City Starlight, Wolf Trap will transform its Filene Center into an “Under the Sea” world for Ariel and friends – and Ursala, of course.
June 30 at 8 p.m., July 1 at 2 and 8 p.m. and July 2 at 2 p.m. at Wolf Trap, Filene Center, 1636 Trap Road, Vienna. Tickets are $25-$85.
Declassified: Ben Folds Presents
Rock artist Ben Folds was recently named artistic advisor at the Kennedy Center, and Declassified: Ben Folds Presents features Folds curating, hosting and performing with the National Symphony Orchestra. The show will feature new music from Folds, composer/performer Blake Mills and Cuban R&B artist Danay Suárez. This is the first event in the Ben Folds Presents series, which will blend 21st-century pop with orchestral music. Before the show, enjoy a free tasting from Port City Brewing and a free concert at Millennium Stage by “queer pop” pioneer Be Steadwell, whose music is a soulful blend of her jazz, a capella and folk music roots, and the Hot Pink Photo Booth. There will also be an after party with live band karaoke.
June 30 at 9 p.m. with beer tasting at 8 p.m. at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F St. NW. Tickets are $39.
Independents Day
This Independence Day weekend, Georgetown is celebrating small businesses with its Independents Day event. Join in on the fun and shop, eat and play around M Street, Wisconsin Avenue, Cady’s Alley and side streets. The event includes exclusive deals from 35 independent merchants including restaurants, boutique shops and home design stores. Deals include discounted beer at Pizzeria Paradiso, 15-percent-off at Olivia Macaron and a rosé party at Chez Billy Sud. Add in live music at various corners and alleys throughout the neighborhood by Emma G, Brass Connection Band, Vasili Frankos, Raycurt Johnson & Puro Gusto, and Laissez Foure and your Saturday agenda is set. Shoppers can register to win a free $500 shopping spree in Georgetown.
July 1 from 10 a.m-5 p.m. in Georgetown. Admission is FREE!
Parallax Gap
The Renwick Gallery turns its Bettie Rubenstein Grand Salon into a stunning visual puzzle with the new Parallax Gap exhibit. The immersive installation features renditions of ceilings inside nine famous American buildings that are laid atop or near each other, creating fascinating layers of both recognizable and mutated spaces that change as observers move underneath. Eastern and Western ideas of perspective are evident in this large-scale display that only the Renwick Gallery could host.
July 1-Feb. 11, 2018, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. daily at the Renwick Gallery, Pennsylvania Avenue at 17th Street NW. Admission is FREE!
Red, White & Brew Festival
Yards Park in the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood hosts the Red, White & Brew Festival that combines patriotic colors with brews, tunes and food just a few days before the Fourth. Wine lovers, do not fret: fruits of the vine will be available as well. Dozens of breweries and wineries from across the country and 16 breweries and cideries from the DMV will be on-hand to share their suds, including 3 Stars Brewing, D.C. Brau, Dogfish Head, Flying Dog and Devil’s Backbone. There will also be live music, food trucks, an artisan markets, Boozie Bingo and lawn and social games, such as giant Jenga and beer pong.
July 1 from 1-4 p.m. or 6-9 p.m. and July 2 from 1-4 p.m. at Yards Park, 1300 First St. SE. Tickets are $50. Tickets include admission, unlimited pours of beer, cider and sangria, a 20-tasting flight from the more than 100 wines, craft beers and ciders and a mug.
We the Party People
The National Museum of American History celebrates President John F. Kennedy’s 100th birthday with We the Party People a night party at the museum. You will be treated to lightning talks, 1960s-themed food from local restaurants and drink from an open bar, live music from local DJs Purity ring, Jonathan Toubin and Kid Congo Powers and artifacts that reflect the impact of the Kennedy era on modern American, including rate objects such as Jackie Kennedy’s clothing, that are rarely shown to the public. There will also be a photo booth, face painter, caricature artist, roaming performers and a scavenger hunt.
July 1 from 7-11 p.m. at the National Museum of American History, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Tickets are $55 in advance and $65 at the door.
Saturday Cinema at Carlyle
Alexandria is hosting an outdoor summer film festival the first Saturday of every month from July to October. The Saturday Cinema at Carlyle series will run at John Carlyle Square Park in Alexandria, and the film this Saturday will be Top Gun. In addition, Alexandria’s Nice Cream will be on site selling handcrafted ice cream and Popped! Republic will be selling its gourmet popcorn. Other screening include Caddyshack at 8:14 p.m. on Aug. 5, When Harry Met Sally at 7:36 p.m. on Sept. 2 and The Birds at 6:41 p.m. on Oct. 7. Don’t forget your lawn chairs and picnic baskets.
July 1 at 8:37 p.m. at John Carlyle Square Park, 300 John Carlyle St., Alexandria. Admission is FREE!.
On-Going Events
Architecture of an Asylum: St. Elizabeths 1852-2017 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday through Jan. 15, 2018 at the National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for seniors, students and children.
Down These Mean Streets: Community and Place in Urban Photography from 11:30 a.m.-7 p.m. through Aug. 6 at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Eighth and F Streets NW. Admission is FREE!
Fancy Animal Carnival daily through Oct. 15 at CityCenterDC, 825 10th St. NW; Chinatown Park, Sixth Street and Massachusetts Avenue NW; and Herald Square, 13th Street and New York Avenue NW. Admission is FREE!
The First Lady of Song: Ella Fitzgerald at 100 from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. daily through April 2, 2018, at the National Museum of American History, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Admission is FREE!
The Faces of Battle: Americans at War, 9/11 to Now from 11:30 a.m.-7 p.m. daily through Jan. 28, 2018, at the National Portrait Gallery, Eighth and F Streets NW. Admission is FREE!
Frédéric Bazille and the Birth of Impressionism from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. daily through July 19 at the National Gallery of Art, Sixth and Constitution Avenue NW. Admission is FREE!
Hedwig and the Angry Inch at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday through July 2 at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ Eisenhower Theater, 2700 F St. NW. Tickets are $59-$159.
Jazz in the Garden from 5-8:30 p.m. on Fridays through Aug. 25 at the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden, Sixth Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Admission is FREE!
Jesus Christ Superstar at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 7 p.m. Sunday, and 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday through July 2 at Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington. Tickets are $40-$89.
Marlene Dietrich: Dressed for the Image daily from 11:30 a.m.-7 p.m. through Apr. 15, 2018, at the National Portrait Gallery, Eighth and F Streets NW. Admission is FREE!
Nicholas Party: Sunrise, Sunset daily from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. through Oct. 1 at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Seventh Street and Independence Avenue SW. Admission is FREE!
Sharks daily from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. through Oct. 15 at the National Geographic Museum, 1145 17th St. NW. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and military and $10 for children ages 5-12.
The Sound of Music at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and 1:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday through July 16 at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F St. NW. Tickets are $49-$169.
Source Festival at various times through July 2 at the Source Theater, 1835 14th St. NW. Tickets are $20 for adults, $12 for students and seniors, and $32 for VIP. A five-play pass is $75 and VIP five-play pass is $150.
Summer of Yoko Ono daily from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. through Sept. 17 at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Seventh Street and Independence Avenue SW. Admission is FREE!
Trolley Car Mail from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. through Sept. 10 at the National Postal Museum, 2 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Admission is FREE!
Wright on the Walls from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday through Sept. 4 at the National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. Admission is $10 for adults and $7 for seniors, students with ID and youth ages 3-17.
XYZT: Abstract Landscapes hands-on interactive experience from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and 5:30-10 p.m. daily through Sept. 3 at Artechouse, 1238 Maryland Ave. SW. Daytime admission is $15 for adults and $10 for children, students and seniors and evening admission (21+) is $25.
Editor-in-Chief Mark Heckathorn is a journalist, movie buff and foodie. He oversees DC on Heels editorial operations as well as strategic planning and staff development. Reach him with story ideas or suggestions at dcoheditor (at) gmail (dot) com.