For some reason, being at a museum after-hours feels magical. Maybe it’s the childhood daydream of being accidentally locked in when the place closes, or the glamour of feeling like an art world VIP. Or just that it reminds us of Night at the Museum. DC’s many museums and institutions take advantage of that feeling with after-hours events. Here are five of them taking place this Fall.
Saturdays in September at Glenstone
Potomac’s out-of-the-way contemporary art museum stays open until 8 PM on Saturdays in September, with a slate of additional programming like live music, beer and wine, nature walks, and curatorial discussions. Like regular tickets to the museum, entry to the evening programs is free but limited, with batches of tickets dropping each Monday at noon.
CJM After Sunset
The Capital Jewish Museum, DC’s newest museum, will spotlight its exhibition on Ruth Bader Ginsburg on October 19. The 21+ after-hours event—tickets include two drinks—delves deeper into the late Supreme Court justice’s life with a talk, a community action lab, and a dissent notebook workshop, along with refreshments.
National Gallery Nights
The National Gallery’s wildly popular nocturnal events with food, drinks, music, and performances will return this fall, and free tickets are available by lottery only. This season’s events are “Block Party,” in honor of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, on September 14; “Nightmare at the Museum,” a spooky costume party with haunted art stories, on October 12; and “Indigenous Futures,” tied to the museum’s The Land Carries Our Ancestors: Contemporary Art by Native Americans exhibition, on November 9. If you miss your shot at the lottery, there will be very limited tickets at the door and non-ticketed programming in the plaza out front.
Phillips After 5
The Dupont Circle institution hosts an after-hours event once a month and is expanding its evening offerings. On September 7, the Phillips After 5 theme is “Back to School,” with art activities, live music by Michael Bowie and the Blues Alley Youth Orchestra, and cider tastings. Subsequent Phillips After 5 events (themes TBD) take place on October 5 and November 2. The museum is also extending its closing time to 8pm on the third Thursday of every month, and on October 15, it will kick off a concert series set for every Sunday at 4.
Live! at the Library
Every Thursday, stay past closing time at the Library of Congress for happy hour snacks and drinks in the Thomas Jefferson Building’s Great Hall. Plus, you can stroll around the legendary main reading room, usually reserved for researchers. There are also regularly scheduled talks, music, and film screenings. Events this fall include a performance by the Rockville Strings Pop Quartet, a workshop on historical comics with graphic novelist Derf Backderf, and a ticketed literary costume ball on September 14.
