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Things to Do This Weekend in Washington, DC

Our end-of-the-week picks for March 22-24

We've gathered up some fun things to do in DC this holiday weekend. You can also read what else is going on during the week and throughout the month.

Looking for a local perspective delivered directly to your inbox every two weeks? Sign up for our "DC on the Go-Go" Local Newsletter to stay in the know.

Friday

 

NATIONAL CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL

National Cherry Blossom Festival
DC celebrates the blooming of cherry trees with a month-long festival that commemorates the 1912 gift from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo to the city. Peak bloom, defined as when 70% of the Yoshino cherry blossom trees around the Tidal Basin have opened, occurred on March 17 and offers great viewing for up to seven days. Check out popular festival events in the lead-up to the celebration, in addition to our guide to the celebration, how to get the most popular blossom spots and the best places to snap photos.
 

Grandma Moses, 'The Old Oaken Bucket', 1945.

Grandma Moses, 'The Old Oaken Bucket', 1945.

Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection, 1860-1960
This year, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden brings you one exciting event after another in celebration of their 50th anniversary. The museum's latest exhibit features works from more than 120 artists, so we suggest giving yourself plenty of time to soak up all the wonder. The revolutionary installation offers well-known masterpieces alongside contemporary creations from a wide range of artists including Francis Bacon, Jean Dubuffet, Lee Krasner, Wifredo Lam, Jacob Lawrence, Georgia O’Keeffe and Jackson Pollock.
10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. |  Free admission
Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, Independence Avenue & 7th Street NW, Washington, DC 20560

 

Bond In Motion
Across more than six decades of films, James Bond has become the on-screen embodiment of spies for millions. The International Spy Museum pays homage to the fictional character, along with his allies and adversaries, with a breathtaking display of iconic vehicles from the movies. In total, visitors can fix their eyes on 17 pieces, including cars, motorcycles, submarines and even more from the Q Branch Garage. 
Hours & Admission
International Spy Museum, 700 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Washington, DC 20024
 

Lulu's Wine Garden

Spring Wine Fling
Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington spruces up spring with special discounts at participating restaurants all over the District. Spring Wine Fling (March 19-31) means you get a two-course meal and two glasses of wine for just $55 per person, which adds up to tremendous value during one of the most vibrant times of the year in DC.
 

COMPANY
Five Tony® Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical, were awarded to this rendition of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s marvelous musical comedy. At Bobbie’s 35th birthday party, her friends keep pestering her about marriage, wondering why she hasn’t settled down. As our main character looks for answers, she realizes that the 21st century is enough to drive a person crazy – whether they’re single, married or simply alive.
Tickets
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20566
 

Kim Gordon
The seeds of modern alternative rock were planted by Kim Gordon and her group, Sonic Youth, in grimy clubs in New York City in the early 1980s. Nearly four decades later, Gordon continues to produce visionary work, now as a solo artist. Her latest tour in support of The Collective (which will be released on March 8) touches down at Black Cat in DC for one night only.
8 p.m. |  Tickets
Black Cat, 1811 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

 

Saturday

 

National Cherry Blossom Festival

National Cherry Blossom Festival

Petal Porches
Presented by Amazon, Petal Porches asks participants to decorate their porches in cherry blossom style from March 20 through April 14. Residents can register now to add their homes to the Petal Porches map and participate in friendly decorating competitions for prizes. Festival-goers will be encouraged to #SpringTogether in DC by admiring Petal Porches across the area based on registered locations. For more information, including the official map of locations and registration details, visit the festival's website.
 

ISEKAI: Blooming Parallel Worlds
ARTECHOUSE welcomes visitors to its seventh annual installation dedicated to celebrating the beauty of the cherry blossoms in DC. The museum treats your eyes to an exhibit inspired by the Isekai genre of Anime, allowing for the exploration of alternate universes stacked with colors, adventures and immersive technologies. Make sure to take advantage of tickets with a 10% discount.
Tickets (10% off)
ARTECHOUSE, 1238 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20024
 

Sewn in America: Making, Meaning, Memory
The DAR Museum presents a groundbreaking exhibit featuring sewn items from every textile section of its collections including clothing, household items, needlework and quilts. Sewn in America examines how the activity shaped gender roles, from the homestead to professions like dressmaking, tailoring and factory work. Pieces from the 18th century to today will be juxtaposed to show how women of diverse backgrounds have used needles to express emotions and battle injustice.
Hours |  Free Admission
DAR Museum, 1776 D Street NW, Washington, DC 20006

 

Star Power: Photographs from Hollywood’s Golden Age by George Hurrell
Hollywood’s premiere photographer during the onset of the studio system, George Hurrell set the template for how to capture the brightest stars of the cinematic universe. As MGM’s in-house portraitist and in his own studio, Hurrell used lighting expertise and the sharpest of eyes to create glamorous images of Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy and many, many more. The National Portrait Gallery displays many of these Golden Era photographs in the new exhibit.
11:30 a.m. – 7 p.m. |  Free Admission
National Portrait Gallery, 8th and G Streets NW, Washington, DC 20001

 

Harlem Globetrotters
Your favorite Globetrotter stars will show off their amazing basketball skills, roof-raising athleticism and make the entire family laugh the whole time as their new world tour visits Capital One Arena in downtown DC. Watch as the men and women of the legendary Globetrotters go head-to-head against the Washington Generals, who will stop at nothing to try and defeat the team that never loses.
1 p.m. |  Tickets
Capital One Arena, 601 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

 

National Cherry Blossom Festival

National Cherry Blossom Festival

National Cherry Blossom Festival Opening Ceremony

The National Cherry Blossom Festival and the Japan Foundation join together to bring an exciting opening ceremony to the Warner Theatre. The spectacle features performers from DC and Japan. Early access to tickets to this epic spring celebration can be obtained by signing up for the festival's email list. The event will also be livestreamed on the festival's YouTube channel.

5-6:30 p.m. |  More Info

 

Chaotic Singles Party x Washington Wizards Swipe Right Night
Mingle with fellow singles and cheer on the Washington Wizards for a slam dunk date night. Join the Chaotic Single Party for pre-game drink specials and games before things heat up on the court as the Wizards take on the Toronto Raptors. Bond over love and basketball in this new dating format.
Pre-game event 5-7 p.m., Game 8 p.m. |  Tickets
Capital One Arena, 601 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

 

The Lehman Trilogy – Final Weekend
Three actors portray various generations of the Lehman family in the 2022 Tony Award winner for Best Play. What begins as three immigrants attempting to live their American dream turns into a disaster for future generations, which eventually leads to the biggest financial crisis in U.S. history. Edward Gero, Mark Nelson and René Thornton, Jr. give unforgettable performances across 160 years of family history.
Tickets
Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

 

Little Shop of Horrors
Originally a sci-fi/horror comedy film released in 1960, Little Shop of Horrors then became an off-Broadway musical in the early 1980s. Yet another film adaptation followed a few years later, showing how this timeless story of a floral shop assistant and his singing, deadly plant will always dazzle audiences. The historic Ford’s Theatre revives the dynamic production during its upcoming spring season. Make sure to use code DDCSHOP20 for 20% off your tickets to the show (valid for March 16 - April 6 & May 1-18; limit two tickets per purchase)!
Tickets
Ford's Theatre, 511 10th Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

 

Sunday

 

Staging the Supernatural: Ghosts and the Theater in Japanese Prints
The Japanese Edo period (1603–1868) gave credence to essential ideas about the supernatural in Japanese culture. Many of the beliefs that came to prominence during this time are still held as conventional wisdom today. This exhibit at the National Museum of Asian Art allows you to explore the roles that ghosts and spirits play in the retelling of Japanese legends as well as real events. Staging the Supernatural features woodblock prints and illustrated books that showcase the spooky specters that haunt the Japanese theater traditions of noh and kabuki.
10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. |  Free Admission
National Museum of Asian Art, 1050 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20560

 

Art in Bloom
Custom cherry blossom public art sculptures will be placed at distinct locations all over the DC metro area as part of Art In Bloom presented by Amazon. Challenge your friends and family to discover all of them across the four-week celebration and make sure to post your poses with the pieces on social media using the hashtag #ArtInBloom. Check the Festival’s website for updates on the promotion.

 

Book spring excursions with DC Design Tours
Add education to your cherry blossom sightseeing with DC Design Tours this spring. The company is offering two excursions: one that encounters the beautiful blossoms on the Tidal Basin (March 17 to April 6) and another that goes in-depth at Cleveland Park (March 17-30), a lesser-known prime spot for blossoms with plenty of history of its own. Use the code "DCDESIGNBLOOM" for 10% off your tickets.
 

Change Your Game
The National Museum of American History’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention developed a new exhibit filled with interactive elements that highlight the intersection of invention, sports and technology. Items on display include a prototype of the Jogbra from the 1970s, a football helmet with Crash Cloud prototype to help protect the brain, a Hawk-Eye camera used during the pandemic by the U.S. Open to automate line calls and prostheses that made extreme sports possible for athletes with amputations.
10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. |  Free Admission
Smithsonian National Museum of American History, 1300 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20560

 

Imagined Neighbors: Japanese Visions of China, 1680-1980
From 1603-1868 during what is known as the Edo period in feudal Japan, many of the country’s artists combined their limited knowledge of China with their own imaginations to create breathtaking works of painting and calligraphy. Once modernization set in during the Meiji era (1868-1912), Chinese art and culture remained a touchstone for Japanese artists, even through imperialism and war.
10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. |  Free Admission
National Museum of Asian Art, 1050 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20560

 

Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction
The National Gallery of Art dives deep on the overlap between fashion, design, arts and crafts. Through 160 works including oil paintings, weaving, basketry, knotting and knitting, you can see how textiles have influenced modern artists and movements. The exhibit also showcases moments when social and political issues activated textile production and artmaking with heightened focus and urgency.
10 a.m. – 5 p.m. |  Free Admission
National Gallery of Art, 6th Street & Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC

 

Fighters for Freedom: William H. Johnson Picturing Justice
In the mid-1940s, William H. Johnson painted his Fighters for Freedom series to honor Black activists, scientists, teachers, performers and international heads of state working to bring peace to the world. Johnson celebrated these figures – some very famous, others unsung – while acknowledging the racism, violence and oppression each one fought against. The exhibit showcases many of these paintings, including Johnson’s portraits of Harriet Tubman, George Washington Carver, Mahatma Gandhi and Marian Anderson, elevating stories that are still relevant to the struggle for social justice today.
11:30 a.m. – 7 p.m. |  Free Admission
Smithsonian American Art Museum, 8th and G Streets NW, Washington, DC 20004

 

Bonnard’s Worlds
The first major retrospective of the work of Pierre Bonard at the Phillips Collection in 20 years, Bonnard’s Worlds opens new avenues for exploring the mind and surroundings of the French artist. Some of the most celebrated works by the master have been brought together from museums across Europe and the U.S. and from private collections worldwide for an exhibition that highlights how Bonnard translated the spaces around him, from Parisian landscapes to the interior spaces of his dwellings and thoughts.
Hours & Admission
The Phillips Collection, 1600 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
 

Penelope
It’s time for a new perspective on the Trojan War. Signature Theatre hosts the DC premiere of Penelope, in which the wife of Odysseus takes center stage. She steps into the spotlight, glass of bourbon and microphone in hand, to detail the 20 years she spent waiting on the island of Ithaca in a one-woman show. This musical spin on Greek tragedy is unlike anything else you’ll see on a stage this season.
Tickets
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206
 

Places to Stay

Hotel room in the Hay Adams

Need some inspiration for a place to stay in between events? Washington, DC is filled with a multitude of hotels to fit your needs. Whether you are looking for that specialty boutique hotel or booking at your favorite hotel brand, Washington, DC's booking engine has it all. Find your stay today!
 

#Only1DC Photo of the Week

 

 

Do you know where you’ll be dining pre- or post-event? From pop-up restaurants to Michelin-starred hot spots to laid-back food halls, our DC food guide is perfect for helping you plan a more memorable experience.

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