Things to Do

Fall Foliage, Scary Folktales, and a New Museum: Things to Do in Washington, October 26-28

Plus: The culture, joy, and frustration of voting lines.

Illustration by Hannah Good.

Hi everyone!

We’ve got new theater, fall foliage, and scary folktales.

It’s time to take some pics among the beautiful autumn leaves.

Here’s what you should check out this week:

Online drama: Mosaic Theater is releasing the filmed play Dear Mapel from DC playwright Psalmayene 24. The one-man work, directed by Natsu Onoda Power, focuses on the letters that he writes to his deceased father. Monday 10/26 through October 10/31; Free, reserve tickets here.

Spooky stories: Hear Slavic folktales about the netherworld from GW professor Philippa Rappoport. In a virtual Profs & Pints event, she’ll talk about Vasilisa the Beautiful, a witch named Baba Yaga, magic dolls, fairies, and more. Tuesday 10/27 at 7 PM; $12, register here.

For leaf peepers: We’ve got a list of the 14 best spots to see gorgeous fall foliage in DC. Happy trails.

TMI: The Borat sequel is wild, so Washingtonian senior editor Andrew Beaujon knew he had to watch it: Read his review: Rudy Giuliani Really Was Just Tucking His Shirt In. But Almost Everything Else He Did in the New “Borat” Is Really Gross.

A new museum: 1980s-scandal-figure-turned-21st-century-wiseman Michael Milken was pardoned by Trump back in February. So, naturally, he’s opening a museum in DC now. What? Read more here.

Holiday planning: Are you already talking turkey? Find great Thanksgiving takeout and delivery around town here.

A powerful tribute: A field of 200,000 white flags symbolizes the staggering losses from Covid-19 at RFK Stadium. See Washington artist Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg’s installation “IN AMERICA How Could This Happen…” through November 6 and see Washingtonian photographer Evy Mages’s powerful photos of the work here.

Something to nibble on: I’m hungry right now so I’m including some food recs for those of you who feel the same. There are EIGHT new taco spots opening around DC and we have a roundup of amazing breakfast places because egg sandwiches are self-care, obviously.

In the news: 

Let’s talk about voting lines.

Have you voted yet? More than 50 million people across the country have cast their mail-in, drop-off, in-person ballots. In the past couple weeks, we’ve seen photos and videos illustrating the long lines of folks who have to wait hours before they can enter their polling place. Just today, we covered some of the early voting lines people saw in Maryland. Despite the barrier that these long waiting times represent, many people have also found inspiration and hope from seeing the collective process of civic engagement.

Plus, some of the videos of journeys to the polls are fantastic—like the one I saw this morning of the horseback riding Nevadans with cowboy hats trotting together to cast their votes. Recently, journalist Roland Martin shared a video in which he tearfully drives around a Texas voting center and captures a long line that inspires him. If you want to dig more into the history and culture of the voting line, I’d suggest exploring the Washington Post’s recent interactive story “America in Line,” which shows what voting looks like in six different cities. I sincerely hope that you don’t have to experience a crazy line (or any other inconvenience) when trying to cast your ballot. Happy voting!

Thanks for reading! Tell me what you’re up to at home by dropping me a line at rcartagena@washingtonian.com.

Rosa is a senior editor at Bitch Magazine. She’s written for Washingtonian and Smithsonian magazine.