Things to Do

Last-Minute Things to Do in the DC Area 7/28-7/31: Food Festivals, Farmers Markets, and Cirque Du Soleil

Plus, a video game exhibit!

Cirque du Soleil's Kurious: Cabinet of Curiosities. Photograph by Mathew Tsang.

Celebrations and festivals. Say happy birthday at Jerry Garcia’s Birthday Celebration (Sun, free, Woodridge) or 730 Day at Metrobar (Sat, free, Brentwood). 

Toes in the sand. If you can’t make it to a real beach this summer, head to the new NaLa Beach Club pop-up for outdoor music, food, and other fun events (All week, free, National Landing) or jam out at Caribeat’s Real Happy Vibes Lime (Fri, free, Union Market).

Kids corner. Get crafty with an original graffiti art class at this week’s Good Kidizen (Sat, free, Columbia). Or, if you’re looking for some fun weekend activities, find some new-to-you puzzles at a puzzle swap (Sat, free, Capitol Hill) or pick up a free book at a summer party & book giveaway (Fri, free, Mt. Pleasant). 

See a show. Cirque Du Soleil opens this week for its two-month DC stint (Opens fri, $60+, Tysons). You can also see more amazing artists at the SOLE Defined dance performance (Thurs – Sat, $2+, Forest Hills), The Frontera Project Performance (Fri, $7+, Chinatown). 

Head to a museum. Learn all about indie gaming and try your hand at a few with the American Art Museum Arcade (Sat, free, Penn Quarter). This is also the first week to see Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equality exhibit at the Reston Museum (Opened Wed, free, Reston). And don’t miss your last chance to see It Takes a Village’s Framing Fatherhood exhibit (Ends Sun, free, Downtown). 

Outdoor films. You can see these free outdoor showings of The Goonies (Thurs, free, The Wharf), A Quiet Place 2 (Thurs, free, Capitol Riverfront), Dog (Thurs, free, Mosaic District), Lawrence of Arabia (Sat, free, Culpepper), Wagon Train (Sat, free, Culpepper), or Beverly Hills Cop (Fri, free, Culpepper).

Outdoor yoga. Get your zen on with some free yoga at Sunday Serenity Yoga (Sun, free, Georgetown) or Yoga at National Landing (Sun, free, Arlington). You can also enjoy views of incredible flowers at Yoga at Kenilworth Gardens (Sun, free, Anacostia) or take a class on the National Mall at Yoga at the Washington Monument (Sat, free, National Mall).

Head to a market. Support local vendors by heading to the National Landing Market (Sat, free, Arlington). You can do some more shopping at one of Freshfarm’s many weekend markets in Dupont Circle (Thurs & Sun, free), Columbia Heights (Sat, free), Arlington (Sat, free), Silver Spring (Sat, free), and even more areas.

Sophia Young
Editorial Fellow
Maggie Hicks
Editorial Fellow