July Culture Guide: 45 Things to Do in the DC Area

10 Best Things to Do in DC

by Pat Padua

Museums

“Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage”

July 6–September 22

A fascinating counterpart to Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series from the 1940s–a signature installation at the Phillips–this exhibit examines Black American artists’ work in collage. It features pieces by 49 artists, including Derek Fordjour (below), Mark Bradford, Kerry James Marshall, and Kara Walker.

Books

Emily Nussbaum

July 9

How did Candid Camera and The Gong Show beget Survivor? The Pulitzer Prize–winning New Yorker critic discusses her new book, Cue the Sun!: The Invention of Reality TV, which examines the television audience’s seemingly insatiable appetite for their fellow humans’ foibles.

Books

Gabrielle Zevin

July 10

Zevin’s bestselling recent novel, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, deploys a Shakespearean title to tell the story of friends who find their creative voice in the colorful world of video-game design. Zevin will be in conversation with Happiness Falls author Angie Kim.

Museums

“Ruffled Feathers: Creating Whistler’s Peacock Room”

July 13, 2024–January 31, 2027

James McNeill Whistler designed the dazzling Peacock Room for a wealthy London businessman in 1876. The Art Nouveau masterpiece is now on permanent display at the Freer, and this exhibit–which includes other Whistler works–chronicles its surprising journey from London to the Mall.

Music

Totally Tubular Festival

July 14

A Gen-X extravaganza featuring a parade of ’80s staples: Thomas Dolby, Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey, Men Without Hats, the Romantics, Bow Wow Wow, the Plimsouls, and the band–you can almost certainly guess which–that’s famous for wanting you to Wang Chung tonight.

Museums

“Gordon Parks: Camera Portraits From the Corcoran Collection”

July 14 , 2024–January 12, 2025

In addition to his photographs of ordinary Black Americans and other subjects, Parks took famed images of some of the 20th century’s most towering figures, including Muhammad Ali (below) and Leonard Bernstein. Parks’s portraits are the focus of this exhibit, which features images taken be­tween 1941 and 1970.

Opera

La Bohème

June 7–July 14

It premiered in 1896, but Puccini’s tale of young artists struggling to get by in the big city has inspired more than a century of pop culture. This fresh new staging–performed with the National Symphony Orchestra–features Eric Taylor as Rodolfo and Amanda Batista as Mimi.

Music

Olivia Rodrigo

July 20

Two years after her last gig in DC, Rodrigo graduates from the Anthem to the basketball-arena big time. Fast-classic hits like “Vampire” and “Bad Idea Right?,” both from her most re-cent album, should benefit from what’s sure to be a rabidly enthusiastic crowd.

Now in its second decade and relocated to a new venue, the music fest continues to attract some of the most exciting hip-hop and R&B acts around, with this year’s lineup including names like Megan Thee Stallion (above), Gunna, Lil Yachty, Party Next Door, and Veeze.

Sports

Mubadala Citi DC Open

July 27–August 4

DC’s annual showcase for international tennis talent returns. Last year, Coco Gauff (above) became the youngest women’s champion in the competition’s history, while Frances Tiafoe bowed out disappointingly early. What will this year’s big stories be?

Want More Things to Do?

by Briana Thomas

Arts and culture:

• Watch the French film Contempt at the National Gallery of Art (July 7, free, National Gallery of Art).
• Build domino creations with YouTuber and domino artist Lily Hevesh at the National Building Museum (July 11, $25, Penn Quarter).
• Movies on the Memorial has three outdoor movie screenings in July (July 11, 18, 25, free, Downtown).
• It’s the last chance to take a guided tour of the “Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction” exhibit (July 17, free, National Gallery of Art).
• Make pony bead lizard keychains to kick off the Get Crafty workshop series (July 17, free, Dupont).
• It’s Christmas in July at Heurich House. You can decorate wooden ornaments, and eat ice cream (July 25, free, but registration encouraged, Dupont).

Community and heritage:

• Watch daytime fireworks and military drills, listen to a reading of the Declaration of Independence and to the National Concert Band, and more at George Washington’s Mount Vernon (July 4, $26 adults, $13 ages 6-11, Mount Vernon).
• Spectators can view glowing fireworks that launch from both sides of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on the Fourth of July (July 4, free, National Mall).
• Don your red, white, and blue, and head to Constitution Avenue for the annual National Independence Day Parade (July 4, free, Downtown).
• Sit in on a live reading of the Declaration of Independence, and see The Experience Band and Show perform their go-go hits at the National Archives (July 4, free, National Archives).

Theater:

• The Colored Museum is a journey through 11 exhibits about the Black American experience (July 3 through August 11, $40, Logan Circle).
• Capital Fringe Festival returns this summer with a ton of diverse local performances and productions (July 11-21, $15, various locations).
• See productions led by the graduates of Shakespeare Theatre Company (July 17-27, $20, Downtown).
• Back to the Future the Musical brings your favorite scenes from the movie to life on stage (July 23 through August 11, $49+, Kennedy Center).

Shows and performances:

• Watch Black ballet performances curated by Black choreographers at the Kennedy Center (July 2-3, $39+, Kennedy Center).
• Four humor writers share new stories and jokes at Humor Books: ALIVE (July 20, $15, Kennedy Center).
• Attend Julia Masli’s newest comedy show at Woolly Mammoth Theatre (July 17 through August 3, $43+, Penn Quarter).

Music:

• Superstar performer Chris Brown brings his R&B melodies and hip-hop dance stunts to Capital One Arena to promote his most recent album, 11:11 (July 2-3, $79+, Capital One Arena). 
• The US Navy Band performs outdoors at the Navy Memorial this summer (July 2, 16, 23, 30 free, Downtown).
• Vocalist Fantasia, soul legend Smokey Robinson, and many more artists will ring in the country’s birthday with a concert on the West Lawn of the Capitol (July 4, free, US Capitol, virtual).
• Escape the summer heat at Washington National Cathedral’s holiday-themed concert (July 4, free, virtual, Cathedral Heights). 
• Jazz in the Parks is back at The Parks at Historic Walter Reed, featuring live jazz performances on the lawn (July 13, free, Takoma Park).
• Luke Combs’ country fans can see him play at FedEx Field with special guests Jordan Davis, The Avett Brothers, Drew Parker, and others (July 26-27, $60+, FedEx Field).
• Award-winning band blink-182 is on the road this year for their One More Time Tour (July 27, $49+, Capital One Arena).
• Electronic music DJs, yard games, food stands, and carnival treats, are some of the draws of Ballroom on the Block (July 27, $20+, Arlington).
• Experience ’80s and ’90s rock groups Green Day, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Rancid at DC’s baseball stadium (July 29, 63+, Nationals Park).

Exercise and wellness:

• Seniors can break a sweat at a low-intensity Zumba class (July 1, free, Tenleytown).
• Learn new line dances with neighbors at the library (July 1, free, Southeast DC).

Bites and beverages:

• Take in spectacular views of the fireworks from the Hotel Washington’s luxurious rooftop terrace, and eat snacks from the barbecue buffet (July 4, $175+, Downtown). 
• Dance the night away, or swim, at The Ven at Embassy Row’s party featuring tunes from a live DJ, drink tickets, and picnic bites (July 4, $155, Northwest DC).
• Join the Willard Ardbeg Annual Independence Day BBQ and Block Party on Cafe du Parc’s terrace (July 4, free, Downtown).

Things to do with kids:

• Youngsters can decorate mezuzah cases, play outdoor games, make goodie bags, eat hot dogs, and learn about about Jewish history at the Capital Jewish Museum (July 4, free, but registration encouraged, Northwest DC).
• Take a Dino safari adventure through more than 70 life-size animated animals and lighting sculptures (July 4 through August 4, free for ages 3 and under, $20+ for adults, Bethesda).
• Attend a family-friendly baseball event to help raise funds for Horton’s Kids (July 10, free for ages 5 and under, $60 for ages 6 to 17, $150 for adults, Nationals Park).
• Kids can explore Mexican cultural traditions in the new STEAM and interactive play exhibit “Placita Mágica” at National Children’s Museum (through January 3, 2025, $19, Downtown).

A version of this article appears in the July 2024 issue of Washingtonian.