Things to Do This Week in Washington, DC

Monday

Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream

Shaping American Identity: The Art of the U.S. Department of the Treasury 
If you’ve ever (or never) thought about how the visuals of a nation’s currency affect its identity, this is the exhibit for you. In this special showcase at MCAAD, get to know a department of American government not often thought of for its art. From rare oil paintings by classically trained artists to famed war bond posters to the meticulously designed paper in your pocket, the Treasury’s history of producing iconic works of art takes center stage.
Free Admission | Timed Entry Passes
Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream, 1503 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Much Here Is Beautiful: Photography Surveys of the U.S. Bicentennial 
From the California coast to the Kansas heartland to the streets of New York City, the photographs in this exhibit (which takes its name from Robert Hayden’s poem “American Journal”) offer an expansive and evocative portrait of America in the 1970s and early 1980s. Explore selected images from photography surveys that document people and places in the United States from the 19th century to the years before and after the U.S. Bicentennial in 1976.
11:30 a.m. – 7 p.m. | Free Admission
Smithsonian American Art Museum, 8th and G Streets NW, Washington, DC 20004

Fever Originals

Smithsonian Starstruck: An Immersive Experience 
This first-of-its-kind virtual reality adventure doesn't just show you the universe but places you inside of it. Created in collaboration between Fever Originals and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, the experience takes visitors on a breathtaking journey through the cosmos, from dazzling galaxies to the edge of a black hole.
Tickets
Fever Hub Washington DC, 926 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

Tuesday

Hillwood Museum

Interwoven: A Tradition of Textiles 
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, the sumptuous estate of Marjorie Merriweather Post, presents myriad treasures literally in every corner – this year they’ve rounded up their rich holding of fabrics for their first ever textile-focused exhibition. The offering invites visitors to consider the enduring power of textiles, not only as decorative or domestic objects but also as expressions of identity, devotion, innovation and exquisite craftsmanship.
No tickets required; suggested $20 donation for adults
Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art

From the Louvre: Masterpieces of Islamic Art 
In its only U.S. stop, this exhibition comes to DC with 26 works from the Musée du Louvre in Paris. Some of the pieces, which showcase Islamic art from Spain to India, date back to the 7th century. The collection explores the evolution of artistic styles and reveals how art shaped cultural exchange, trade and diplomacy across centuries.
Free Admission
Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, 1050 Independence Ave SW, Washington, DC 20013

Shakespeare Theatre Company

Frida…A Self Portrait 
The Brazilian writer and performer Vanessa Severo plays Frida Kahlo on the eve of her death as her pain and passion are laid bare. Expect incredible physicality in Severo's one-woman performance, bringing the famous Mexican painter to vivid life in a play that illuminates a fascinating journey.
Tickets
Klein Theatre, 450 7th Street NW, Washington, DC 20004

Wednesday

The Phillips Collection

Avery, Gottlieb & Rothko: By the Sea 
For three months this fall and winter, you can savor a lovely moment of summer. This exhibition will tell the story of the lifelong friendship between three towering figures in American art: Milton Avery (1885–1965), Adolph Gottlieb (1903–1974) and Mark Rothko (1903–1970). Approximately 90 works of art will highlight the inspiration they derived from summers in Gloucester, Massachusetts, on Cape Ann, and from each other. Many have never been on public view.
Hours & Admission
The Phillips Collection, 1600 21st Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

Homelands 
Discover how people and places relate to each other in a new exhibit at the National Gallery of Art’s East Building. Across 20 pieces, see the ways in which artists consider ancestral links, pressures that caused them to move from one place to the next and the larger histories to be found all across the United States.
10 a.m. – 5 p.m. |  Free Admission
National Gallery of Art, 4th Street & Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20565

Measure for Measure 
Psalmayene 24, Helen Hayes Award winner, directs this rare staging of a Shakespeare comedy. The story of societal upheaval, which concerns a corrupt official and a young nun, will make the audience wonder whose voices are elevated and whose are silenced.
Tickets
Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol Street SE, Washington, DC 20003

Thursday

Library of Congress

Alive in Many Hands
The Library of Congress debuts a new exhibit that explores how the American Folklife Center has preserved and shared cultural traditions across generations. The Center's collections are the source for the in-depth display that includes more than 150 items; standout treasures include a performance by Go-Go legend Chuck Brown of "Bustin' Loose" at the 2002 American Folklife Center Homegrown concert, a Diné (Navajo) rug that blends traditional and contemporary imagery (pictured above) and a banjo signed by Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and other folk music legends.
Hours & Admission (free; timed-entry required)
Library of Congress, 101 Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20540

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Routed West: Twentieth-Century African American Quilts in California 
The National Museum of Women in the Arts' new exhibit  traces the flow and flourishing of quilts in the context of the Second Great Migration, a mass movement of approximately five million African Americans from the rural South to cities in the North and West between 1940 and 1970 in search of a more equitable life. Many of the hundreds of thousands of migrants who arrived in California carried quilts for warmth and protection, as containers for ancestral memory and as emblems of cultural survival. America itself has always been a quilt of many cultures; come celebrate the art form in the country’s 250th year.
Hours & Admission
National Museum of Women in the Arts, 1250 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005

Arena Stage

The Fruits of Our Labor
Legendary DC dance company Step Afrika! honors America’s 250th anniversary with a new show set to premiere at Arena Stage. The Fruits of Our Labor uses percussion, stepping, moving visual imagery and a bold red, white and blue color palette to explore the American experience.
Tickets
Arena Stage, 1101 6th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024

The Keegan Theatre

Hundred Days 
Keegan Theatre brings an incredible true story to the stage in a thrill-filled new production. What would you do if you only had 100 days to live? With folk-punk music as the soundtrack, Hundred Days goes for broke and welcomes you to embrace the unknown and take risks along the way.
Tickets
Keegan Theatre, 1742 Church Street NW, Washington, DC 20036

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