Happy Monday, DC!
Welcome back from the long weekend. Movie fans can watch a number of new documentaries and feature films at both the DC Independent Film Forum and Mother Tongue Film Festival this week. Or, spend sometime outdoors playing games at Navy Yard to support Special Olympics.
Best Things to Do This Week and Weekend
February 20-February 25
- DC Independent Film Forum. Binge watch more than 70 feature films, documentaries, shorts, local productions, and animated films at the 25th annual DC Independent Film Forum. The multi-day event kicks off with a special preview of award-winning filmmaker André Singer’s Meeting Zelenskyy at Landmark’s E Street Theatre (Tues-Sun, $45+ for passes, various participating theaters).
- Black Art at NMWA Nights. Explore Black art and books at NMWA Nights after-hours party. The Black History Month experience showcases an interactive installation organized by Detroit’s Black Art Library, a bookmark-making workshop, a performance by DC vocalist and songwriter Cecily, and cocktails and mocktails (Wed, $25, sold out, but limited walk-up tickets available, Northwest DC).
- Reach to Forest Festival at Kennedy Center. Celebrate the environment and learn about conservation efforts through art, music, film, and dance at Reach to Forest Festival. The international festival will feature a family-friendly environment-themed book fair, Brazilian culinary experiences, movie screenings inside the 360-degree full-dome theater, and crafts for kids (Tues-March 3, free, Kennedy Center).
- Cat Power in concert. Chan Marshall–who records as Cat Power–has lately been performing concerts that re-create Bob Dylan’s celebrated 1966 “Royal Albert Hall” show. She’s bringing the concept to DC for a sold-out evening (Tues, $55+ on third-party sites, Lincoln Theatre).
- The Lehman Trilogy. This Shakespearean tragedy comes back to life at Harman Hall with three actors portraying 160 years of family problems and achievements. Winner of the 2022 Tony Award for Best Play, Stefano Massini’s sprawling work opens this week at Shakespeare Theatre Company (Thurs through March 24, $54+, Penn Quarter).
- Ice Yards. The Yards’ frosty outdoor party serves up games and drinks for a good cause. You can play shot-ski, ride a snowboard simulator, compete in bowling and ice curling, and throw an axe to help raise funds for the Special Olympics District of Columbia. Tickets include a donation and a drink voucher (Sat, $15, Navy Yard).
- Mother Tongue Film Festival. This week the Mother Tongue Film Festival returns to in-person programming on the National Mall. Various Smithsonian museums are collaborating to feature films and filmmakers that explore cultural and linguistic diversity across digital platforms. You can watch a screening or sit in on a film discussion to learn how language impacts us all (Wed-Sat, free, some events require advance registration, National Mall).
Want More Things to Do?
Arts and culture:
- Observe 20th-century art work from popular local artists Sam Gilliam, Alma Thomas, and others in “American Places” (through May 5, free, National Gallery of Art).
- Bring a prepared dish made from Diana Henry’s Roast Figs, Sugar Snow to share with others at the Bold Fork Cookbook Club (Wed, $5+, Mount Pleasant).
- This one-of-a-kind boozy art show returns to DC with all-you-can-eat pancakes and more than 750 pieces of art to explore (Thurs, $10+, Park View).
- A new record label launches in DC this month. Check out Outside Time, and music and art by Nate Scheible and Claire Alrich (Fri, $10+, Takoma).
- Are you daydreaming about your next vacation? Head over to the Washington DC Travel & Adventure Show for some planning inspiration (Sat-Sun, $13, free for children under 16, Mount Vernon Square).
- Paint flowers with alcohol ink at Relume (Sun, $30, Capitol Hill).
- Women’s contributions to Western art are the spotlight of a new program at the National Museum of the Women in the Arts (Sun, $20+, National Museum of Women in the Arts).
Community:
- A Tour Of Her Own unpacks the history of department stores and their feminine appeal (Tues, $25, virtual).
- Learn about Desegregation in Northern Virginia Libraries from Fairfax County librarians Chris Barbuschak and Suzanne LaPierre (Tues, free, Reston).
- Celebrate the first president of the United States at his historic home; there’s complimentary admission in honor of George Washington’s birthday (Thurs, free, Mount Vernon).
- Historian Kerri Greenidge discusses her new book The Grimkes: The Legacy of Slavery in an American Family at the Library of Congress (Thurs, free, but timed-entry passes required, Library of Congress).
- Commemorate the release of the Reverend Doctor Pauli Murray quarter with the U.S. Mint, the National Women’s History Museum, and DC Public Library (Thurs, free, MLK Memorial Library).
Theater and shows:
- This week’s situation is comedy at Cloak and Dagger (Tues, $10, U Street).
- The American Ballet dance troupe takes on a rendition of Swan Lake (Wed-Sun, sold out, but call box office for availability, Kennedy Center).
- Laugh with comedian Michael Blackson at Warner Theatre (Fri, $102+, Downtown).
- RuPaul’s Drag Race star Bianca Del Rio brings her comedic tour to DAR Constitution Hall (Sat, $39+, Downtown).
Music and concerts:
- Brittany Howard arrives in DC to promote her new album What Now (Tues-Wed, $56, Shaw).
- Tap your feet along to alternative country songs performed by Tanner Usrey at Pearl Street Warehouse (Wed, $22, Wharf).
- Mexican band Enjambre plays energetic tempos at DC9 Nightclub (Thurs, $35+, U Street Corridor).
- Young virtuosos and veteran artists from the Marlboro Music Festival perform at the Smithsonian (Thurs, $6 in advance, free at the door, Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art).
- King George, Calvin Richardson, and several others headline Capital City Blues Festival (Fri, $108+, Downtown).
- More than 20 acts are on the Initialize lineup produced by rave party promoters Hast du Feuer (Fri, $30, Northeast DC).
- Drummer and composer Makaya McCraven arrives on Rockville Pike with an eight-piece jazz ensemble (Fri, $28+, Bethesda).
- Expect to hear a mix of folk, rock, and reggae at Sara Curruchich’s Hill Center concert (Fri, $20+, Capitol Hill).
- Portugal. The Man plays their longtime indie-rock sounds at The Anthem (Sat, $45+, Wharf).
Bites and beverages:
- Raise a glass to Black excellence at Lyon Hall’s Black History Month beer dinner featuring Black-brewed drinks (Tues, $85, Arlington).
- Sticky Fingers Sweet & Eats is opening a new bakery in Takoma. The first 100 guests to show up get free chocolate chip cookies (Sat, free, Takoma).
Get involved:
- Eat yummy bowls of soup at Doubles for a good cause. All the proceeds of Queer Soup Night will support Miriam’s Kitchen (Tues, donations welcome, Park View).
- Bring a pair of gloves, and your bike, for this Hill Family bike ride and community clean-up (Sat, free, Northeast DC).
Things to do with kids:
- Travel to West Africa at Discovery Theater’s kid-friendly cultural performance by Ghanaian storyteller Kofi Dennis (Wed-Fri, $7 for children, $3 for children under 2, $8+ for adults, Southwest DC).
- Discover a quilted self-portrait of artist Faith Ringgold with your youngsters (Wed, free, but registration required, virtual).
If you enjoyed these events, please don’t forget to share this post with a friend on social media, and sign up for our newsletter for more things to do.
Briana A. Thomas is a local journalist, historian, and tour guide who specializes in the research of D.C. history and culture. She is the author of the Black history book, Black Broadway in Washington, D.C., a story that was first published in Washingtonian in 2016.
