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Everyday adventures are all around you

Wanderful

Wanderlist: 50+ Awesome Things to Do in DC in August

7/25/2022

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Summer may be winding down but there's still plenty of good vibes left!

Mark your calendars this month:

Celebrate at the National Museum of African American History and Culture's star-studded Hip-Hop Block Party; feed your hunger at the DC Burger Battle and Summer Restaurant Week; have a pint at the Black-owned brewers Beerfest; wind it up on Chuck Brown Day; experience Latino history and culture at Viva Cultura!; get your groove on at the largest jazz festival in the District; spend the night with actor-political activist, turned author Kal Penn; and go on a food adventure with Jose Andres. And that's just for starters!

No matter what you're looking to do, you'll find something to grab your interest on our curated list of 50+ awesome things to do in the city. Don't waste a second of that summer sunshine!
Legend:
  • ​🆓 ​: This is a free event
  • ​💲:  Donation or paid ticket required
  • ​👤:  This is an in-person event
  • 💻: This is an on-line/streaming event
Dark Star. Don't miss the Rosslyn favorite tradition that only comes around once a year! Every Aug. 1 at precisely 9:32 a.m., shadows created by the poles at Dark Star Park align with shadow patterns on the ground. See it live or via livestream. 🆓🖥👤 August 1
Feel the AdMo Vibe. Groove to local music at Adam's Morgan new outdoor music series, AdMo Vibe, featuring performances by local musicians in Kalorama Park. Bands will be playing various genres of music including folk, pop, classical, rock, jazz, and more throughout the month. 🆓​ ​Starts August 3
Anacostia River boat tour. Explore the Anacostia River with Anacostia Riverkeeper on a 45-minute  boat tour, where you will learn about the history, environmental preservation efforts, and biodiversity of one of Capitol Riverfront's most treasured hidden gems. 🆓​ August 4
Culture Caucus Summer Festival. Creative Nomads hosts DJ Harvey Dent and screening of Hip-Hop Fellow, a feature length documentary following Grammy Award winning producer 9th Wonder's tenure at Harvard as he teaches 'The Standards of Hip-Hop' course, conducts research and explores hip-hop's history, culture and role in academia. 🆓 August 4
DC Burger Battle. Get ready to help fight huuuuunger! Sample burgers, enjoy ice cold beer and vote for the Supreme Burger while helping benefit SOME (So Others Might Eat). The night includes live music, games, photo ops, swag and more! 💲🎟 August 4
Live at the Library. Join the Library of Congress on the Southeast lawn at the Thomas Jefferson Building for a live performance of funk, R&B, and soul classics from the group Sudden M Pac. Performance will be followed by a screening of the movie Wall-E. 🆓 August 4
Local Faves Rock Howard Theatre.  Oh He Dead, Dior Ashley Brown, Jarreau Williams, three local bands/musicians that have won thousands of fans across DC and beyond, will take the Howard Theatre stage by storm for a high-energy, dance-along show.  Come out and support some of the best in local music!💲🎟 August 5
Queen of All Media. Margaret Cho, named by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the 50 Best Stand-Up Comics, comes to DC Improv for a two-date special event. 💲🎟​ August 5 - 6
Shakespeare + Hip Hop. Actor-writer-musician Malik Work leads an interactive workshop at the National Building Museum to unveil the tools of theater and storytelling through the celebrated work of Shakespeare and the equally innovative and relevant work of contemporary Hip Hop. This event is special daytime programming as part of  this summer's The Playhouse. 💲🎟 August 5 - 7
African Diaspora International Film Festival. Now in person for the first time in two years at GWU University Student Center, ADIFF DC hosts a selection of 16 fiction films and documentaries representing 16 countries: USA, Brazil, Uganda, Morocco, Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic, France, Haiti, Mali, New Zealand, Senegal, Madagascar, Tunisia, Serbia, Bulgaria. 💲🎟 August 5 - 7
Culture Caucus Summer Festival: Tahrook​. Kennedy Center Culture Caucus presents Alt-Fusion Festival, a day filled with set performances, a pop-up market of the culture's favorite streetwear, a yoga class, and a community discussion celebrating artists of the DMV who exist in their own experimental genre-bending category. 🆓​ August 6
Annual DC Funk Parade. Get ready to dance your face off and show your love of funk music. The DC Funk Parade is BACK!  The music celebration was previously postponed due to poor weather conditions. Performers will include Night Train 357, Nia Monae, Skip Step, the Naptown Brass Band and headliners Critical Condition Band. Music activations will staged at three to at the African American Civil War Memorial, Lee’s Flower Shop, Reeves Center, and at Right Proper Brewing for festival beer where individuals can see live music and enjoy entertainment right outdoors. 🆓 August 6
Women's History: Marches and Protests. Washington, D.C. is no stranger to protests and rallies. Women and gender politics have played a major role in the history of political marches on Washington.Learn about the diverse women who have marched and the various political causes that they championed. From suffragists with colorful sashes to modern feminists in pink hats, Washington has seen an evolution of women’s revolutions. 💲🎟​August 6
Southwest BID Sunday Supper. Come together to meet your SWDC neighbors for free yummy food and awesome entertainment throughout August, sponsored by the Southwest BID. Limited seating, registration required. 🆓August 7, 14 and 21
Secrets and Scandals. Take a special guided tour that exposes the greatest secrets of our Nation’s Capitol. Not only will you learn about secret political hideaways and the meeting places of some of our most renowned spies, you'll also take a historical look into some of the best keep secrets about our Nation’s Capital, including scandals our leaders would rather keep secret. 💲🎟August 7

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DC is Punk AF. The DC Punk Archive throws down with a rooftop punk show featuring Big Cry Country and Prude at the Martin Luther King Jr Library. 🆓​ August 10
Music at the Arboretum. Bring a picnic and enjoy a summer evening concert with the U.S. Navy Band in the National Arboretum's Ellipse Meadow and watch the full moon rise over the Capitol Columns. 🆓​ August 10
Sunset Hike & Bonfire. Lace up your hiking boots for a sunset hike along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and Potomac River with REI. Along the way, you'll explore the rich history and natural wonder of one of our region's most iconic places and enjoy a campfire at a campsite along the canal, complete with snacks, good company. Rated Easy Active: Great for newcomers to outdoor adventures who are ready to move.💲🎟 August 10
A Night with Kal Penn. Kal Penn has starred  in some of the world's most-watched television shows and movies, including How I Met Your Mother, 24, Designated Survivor, House, and more. Kal has also worked at the very highest levels of politics, as an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, where he was President Obama's Liaison to Young Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and the Arts communities in America. Now an author, he visits the Martin Luther King Jr. Library to discuss his book You Can't Be Serious and his crazy, dynamic life. Registration required. 🆓 August 11
Evening at the New Embassy of Cameroon with the Ambassador. Experience the mysteries and the culture of Cameroon at their NEW embassy! Step onto foreign soil as you travel halfway across the world without ever leaving the District for a multi-faceted unique and celebratory night of native food, drinks, music, cultural dancing, fashion, diplomats, film, and more! 💲🎟​ August 11
NMAA: Hong Kong Style. National Museum of Asian Art stays open late for an outdoor festival to celebrate summer and the Made in Hong Kong Film Festival! Enjoy art and music from across Asia with performances, food, and exclusive curator talks. Experience the museum galleries open late, purchase signature cocktails and taste food from local vendors, plus see Jackie Chan at his very best in a special outdoor screening of Drunken Master, perhaps the greatest kung fu comedy of all time, as part of our annual Made in Hong Kong Film Festival. 🆓​ August 12
Brews and banter. Enjoy a pre-show beer and chat with select cast members of the A Midsummer Night's Dream  at the National Building Museum. 💲🎟 August 12
Sunset salsa. Get your dancing shoes on for a night of live themed dance music and cocktails al freso at the Wharf. Professional dancers will be on hand to help with you with your moves. 🆓 August 12
NMAAHC Block Party. Celebrate the first anniversary of the Smithsonian Anthology of Hip-Hop and Rap at the National Museum of African American History and Cutlure with a star-studded Hip-Hop Block Party includingdaytime and evening performances by local and national talent, presentations, and activities to explore hip-hop music and culture's origins, elements, and influences. 🆓​ August 13
Navy Yard walking tour. Put on your walking shoes and join in on this fascinating tour of one of Washington DC’s oldest facilities. On the tour, you’ll see some of the major historic buildings and homes associated with the Navy Yard, learn about the people who lived and worked in the buildings and what purpose the buildings served. 🆓​August 13
Get Lit. Literary Cocktails, #GetLitDC (get it?), returns to the upstairs bar at The Gibson  inspired by this month’s book  “Project Hail Mary” by Andy Weir. Ticket includes 3 Literary Cocktails + light snacks. Reservations for the 6-8pm or 8:30-10:30pm seatings. 💲🎟 August 13
Viva Cultura! Celebrate the Latino Community's history and culture through live music, folk dance, art, hand-crafted items and international street foods from Central and South America and the Caribbean at the Viva Cultura festival. There will also be plenty of kid-friendly activities, including face painting, clowns, balloons, sack races, musical chairs, and more. 🆓 August 13
Yoga in the Sculpture Garden. Start your Saturday morning out blissfully with a relaxing yoga flow in the beautiful sculpture garden at the Kreeger Museum. The one-hour, all-levels session will be led by a certified yoga teacher who has apprenticed with master sound healers from across the world. 💲🎟 August 13
Hong Kong Film Festival: Icons. The twenty-seventh edition of this popular festival returns to the National Museum of Asian Art this month with a salute to the classic movies that made the island’s cinema beloved around the world. Each weekend will be devoted to a famous Hong Kong movie icon. Titles include: The Way of the Dragon, Fist of Fury, Kung Fu Hustle and Once Upon a Time in China. 👤 🆓 Now through August 14
DC Summer Restaurant Week. It's too late to worry about getting a beach body so kick back and enjoy dining at 200+ restaurants during DC's Summer Restaurant Week. Participating restaurants will offer multi-course brunch, lunch and dinner menus for in-person dining; some restaurants will offer cocktail pairings or to-go options, too. Tickets are $25 per person for multicourse brunch and lunch menus, $40 and $55 per person for multicourse dinner menus. 💲​August 15 - 21
Art Walk. Explore Dupont Circle's local arts community and businesses with Artwalk Dupont featuring a gallery walk, live music and more. 🆓​ August 18
When Barbara Jordan Came to Town. Congresswoman Barbara Jordan made history in 1974 when she delivered the opening statement for President Richard Nixon’s impeachment hearings. This moment launched the Texas politician into the national spotlight and set the tone for a career that carried out the promise of the American dream. This one-hour virtual program brought to you by the Portrait Gallery explores the history of this remarkable woman and examines the limitations for Black, queer and women politicians both then and now. 🆓​ August 18
Cool "Disco" Dan Day. Commemorate DC street art legend  Danny Hogg, known worldwide as Cool “Disco” Dan, at the 14th Street Graffiti Museum. The event will feature a live Humanitini panel with DC's very own legends Lisa of the World and Miss Chelove. 🆓 August 19
Spend the night with Grace. Spend an evening enjoying Hillwood’s summer gardens and Grace Kelly’s signature sense of style and glamour, first in the exhibition Grace of Monaco: Princess in Dior and then on the big screen with Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. 💲🎟​August 19
Sounds of Africa. Feel the rhythms at the National Museum of African Art's summer evening concert series celebrating the music of the African diaspora. 🆓 August 20
Wind Me Up, Chuck. Commemorates the life legacy and music of DC legend Chuck Brown,the Godfather of Go-Go, at the annual Chuck Brown Day celebration. Every year, the celebration features musical performances by the Chuck Brown Band and other local Go-Go bands. Bring a blanket or lawn chair for an afternoon of entertainment at Chuck Brown Memorial Park which features a homage to Brown with a curved, inscribed memorial wall at the entrance of the park, where visitors can learn about his legacy. Visitors can also interact with an interpretive statue of Chuck Brown, play the outdoor toy drums, and visit the central plaza. Food trucks and kids activities will be available. Come get that Go-Go swing! 🆓 August 20
Grammarly. Their, there or they're? Ellen Jovin, author of Rebel with a Clause. brings her popular Grammar Table to Planet Word to answer all your grammar questions and conundrums in a friendly, judgment-free zone! 🆓​ August 20
Oh Dolley. Celebrate the anniversary of Dolley Madison’s flight from the White House to Dumbarton House in 1814 with some of her favorite and ice cream (one of Dolley’s favorite foods) available to add to the fun. Plus, the museum will be open for FREE self-guided tours with a special handout about Dolley. 🆓 August 20
DC World Reggae Festival. This two-day festival features international reggae music, world music, soca music and afrobeat music acts.that aim to promote diversity and unity through music among the relatable diasporas. 🆓 August 20 - 21
Erotic festival.  This one is for the curious and adventurous only, no prudes allowed. The Erotic August Festival Variety Show celebrates the joy, playfulness, and possibilities of erotic life through storytelling, visual installations and performance art. There is definitely nothing else like it! 💲🎟 August 20 - 21
Ladysmith Black Mambazo.  Paul Simon’s 1987 Graceland album introduced Ladysmith Black Mambazo to the world. The late former South African President Nelson Mandela designated the group “South Africa’s cultural ambassadors to the world."  Performing for more than 60 years, catch Ladysmith Black Mambazo in DC at Hamilton Live. 💲🎟 August 21
Indian Cooking Class. Discover exotic spices and how to prepare a complete Indian meal with dessert at home. The chef at Heritage India, one of the most celebrated Indian restaurants in town, will demonstrate how easy it is to prepare a delicious Indian meal. 💲🎟​August 21
DIY Candle Making. Create a one-of-a-kind tie-dye candle! You’ll pour your candle then color it with dyes and swirl to create a unique piece of wax art. You'll be guided in this unique DIY experience and go home with a one-of-a-kind candle. 💲🎟 ​August 21
Remembering the Bright lights of U Street's Black Broadway. Long before today’s restaurants, boutiques, and luxury high-rises, Washington’s U Street was known as the city’s vibrant Black Broadway. Author Briana A. Thomas brings to life the historic U Street neighborhood’s heritage of arts, entertainment, and commerce from the early triumphs of emancipation to the recent struggles of gentrification. 💲​🖥August 24
Movie Screening Benefiting the Ukraine. Join District Cinema, Immigration Film Fest, and Planet Word for a screening of Olga, a film about a Ukrainian gymnast living in exile in Switzerland who is preparing for the European Championships during the 2014 Maidan Revolution. 80% of proceeds from the event will be donated to United Help Ukraine. 💲🎟August 25
Pershing's Own. The Performance Lab at the MLK Library presents a live chamber music performance by members of The United States Army Band "Pershing's Own". The ensemble provides musical support for the leadership of the United States and a wide range of national and international events. August 25
Pink Wine Tasting. Join Advanced Sommelier Michael Scaffidi in a class perfect for new and experienced rosé enthusiasts to come together to taste and learn about the ins and outs of this ever popular wine! This class will cover the basics of this pink drink and how both the still and sparkling versions are made. 💲🎟 August 26
DC Jazzfest. The largest jazz festival in the nation’s capital, the 17th Annual DC JazzFest will feature a robust lineup of performers – from local legends to NEA Jazz Masters. Featured artists include Christian McBride & Inside Straight, Cindy Blackman Santana Band, DCJF Artist-In-Residence Orrin Evans' Captain Black Big Band, Dianne Reeves, The Baylor Project, Emmet Cohen, and many more.This year's DCJF experience will include more than 50 concerts, Meet the Artist interviews, and other exclusive events citywide. 💲🎟 August 31 - Sept 4
Keegan Theatre regional premiere. In politics, the less you know, the higher you’ll go! At once a razor-sharp satire and an inspirational tribute to democracy, The Outsider , making its regional premiere at Keegan Theatre, is a timely and hilarious send-up of modern American politics where the worst candidate to ever run for office, might just win.💲🎟​Starts August 27
Black-owned Brewers Beerfest. Experience DC’s newest Beer Festival featuring Black-owned brewers! The Soul Mega Summerfest is a community celebration of Soul Mega’s three-year anniversary, bringing together the DMV’s black-owned beer brands, food and some of the hottest DJs in the city. 21+ only 💲🎟 August 27
Legends of Raggae. Four legendary reggae bands, UB40, The Original Wailers, Maxi Priest and American band Big Mountain take the stage for one epic night on the bigga baggariddim tour. 💲🎟 August 27
Three Bills in the Pocket.  Rock out in an unexpected music venue. The Pocket at 7DrumCity, an intimate and funky space, hosts a triple bill featuring The Southern Ocean (dreamy emo), Wreath (Emo/indie/math) and Guest Bed (Baltimore nerd rock). 💲🎟 August 28
Frederick Douglass In His Own Words. Musical American Prophet couples Frederick Douglass’ own speeches and writings with soaring new melodies and an original script that celebrates the revolutionary legacy of Douglass as a fierce abolitionist and distinguished orator. 💲🎟 Now through August 28
The Museum Workshop. Lou Stovall: The Museum Workshop reexamines the history and legacy of the Dupont Center, an artist’s museum founded in Washington, DC, in 1969. Under the visionary collaboration of curator Walter Hopps and artist Lou Stovall, the Dupont Center advanced a new, innovative model for the museum as a place for exhibition, art-making, and community-building.  Now on display at the Phillips Collection,this exhibition presents work produced by artists at the workshop and collected by Stovall between 1969 and 1973, as well as Stovall’s early community posters from 1967 and 1968, which document DC in a time of protest and upheaval. 💲🎟​Now thru October 9
Jose Andres Food Adventure. This scavenger hunt / podcast / food crawl experience will connect you with landmarks in DC through the eyes of Chef and Humanitarian José Andrés, Participants will experience a self-guided tour of landmarks in Washington, D.C., with audio narration by José Andrés. You'll get a kit that includes the necessary supplies (and swag) to guide you through multiple city locations. You’ll be mailed a box with supplies to help guide you to four different D.C. locations that are important in José Andrés’ life journey as a chef. Plus Andrés has created a special at-home kitchen challenge. 💲Now through Sept 20

Curious? There's more!
  • Lights! Camera! DC Outdoor Movie Guide 📽
  • Summer Scoops: 10 of the Absolutely Best Ice Cream Spots in the DMV 🍦
  • Adventures in DC Summer Bucket List (Free Digital Download) ⛱
  • Summer in DC: Family Guide 👨‍👩‍👧
  • 10 Places to Pick Up the Perfect Summer Picnic (Free Download) 🍗
  • The Best Canned Cocktails Made in the DMV to Try This Summer 🍸
  • Summer Reading List: 6 Six DC-Based Books to Chill Out With 📚
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