Things to Do

25 Things to Do in the DC Area This Week and Weekend

Usher and Chris Brown concert, "Beetlejuice" musical, and Lizzo at Wolf Trap are cool things to do.

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Catch "Beettlejuice" at National Theatre. Photograph by Matthew Murphy.

Happy Monday, DC!

Welcome back from the holiday weekend. July heats up this week with a Raymond and Brown tour stop at Northwest Stadium, the return of Beetlejuice to National Theatre, and an American Football reunion at 9:30 Club.

 

Best Things to Do This Week and Weekend

July 6–July 12

    1. Usher and Chris Brown concert. From Usher’s show-stopping Super Bowl performance to Chris Brown’s sold-out Breezy Bowl, the two R&B and dance icons have been touring nearly nonstop over the past two years. Now fans of both Billboard-charting artists can see them perform together live at the Raymond and Brown tour coming to Northwest Stadium this summer for three nights; tickets are going fast (Fri-Sat, July 13, $110+, Northwest Stadium).
    2. Beetlejuice: The musical Beetlejuice returns to National Theatre; prepare to roll in the aisles with laughter as the classic supernatural story takes center stage (Tues through July 19, $44+, National Theatre).
    3. Lizzo at Wolf Trap. Hear your favorite Lizzo pop songs accompanied live by the National Symphony Orchestra. The trained flutist and lyricist will perform at Wolf Trap’s open-air amphitheater Filene Center (Tues, $65.50+, Vienna).
    4. American Football concert. American Football—a Illinois emo band who rocked out during the Y2K era— is back together to perform highly-technical and introspective songs from their new album American Football (LP4) at 9:30 Club (Sat-Sun, $52+, Shaw).
    5. Smithsonian Sleepover. Kiddos get a rare chance to explore after hours or sleep at the Smithsonian American History Museum. Tickets are selling out for this week’s opening dates, but there are a few dates still available (July 24, August 5, $100+, Smithsonian American History Museum).
Related
July Culture Guide: 38 Things to Do in the DC Area

Want More Things to Do?

Arts and culture:

  • East City Bookshop dives into Lana Ferguson’s latest hockey romance The Final Score at a hybrid author talk (Tues, free, Capitol Hill).
  • Keep the Independence Day fun going with an outdoor movie screening of Hamilton (Wed, free, Wharf).
  • Borrow a book to read at The Yards’ sundeck to unwind this summer (Wed, free, Navy Yard).

Theater and shows:

  • Experience the action of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi accompanied by a live soundtrack courtesy of the National Symphony Orchestra (Thurs, $57+, Vienna).
  • Bring a picnic to this outdoor comedy pop-up at Edgewood Community Farm (Thurs, $10, Edgewood).
  • The Shakespeare-inspired musical Something Rotten! is sure to have you chuckling (Thurs-Sat, $20, H Street Corridor).
  • You get to solve a murder investigation at this improvised comedy show (Fri-Sat, July 15, 18, 24-25, $15, Van Ness).
  • See dazzling acrobatics under the Big Top at Water Circus (Fri-Mon, $10+, Southwest DC).

Music and concerts:

  • Singer Madison Beer arrives in DC to promote her latest album Locket (Mon, $69+, Wharf).
  • Alt-rock artist Poppy brings her genre-blending tunes to the Anthem (Tues, $56+, Wharf).
  • One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson has a solo concert (Tues, $95+, Wharf).
  • Jazzy Sundays showcases local bands this summer (Sun through August 30, free, Anacostia).

Sports:

  • USA takes on Belgium in the World Cup. Root for the home team at Pearl Street at the Wharf with fellow soccer fans (Mon, free, Wharf).
  • Watch the World Cup quarterfinal matches on an outdoor big screen at The Boro (Sat, free, Tysons).

Things to do with kids:

  • Youngsters ages nine and older can learn how to fish aboard the 1948 Chesapeake Bay buyboat Mildred Belle (Fri, $7, National Harbor).
  • Kids can go on a bilingual Goldilocks journey during musical Ricitos and the Three Bears (Fri-Sun, $14, Vienna).
  • Play carnival games, go on family-friendly rides, and check out live music performances at A Day at the Fair (Sat, free, MLK Library).

Bites and beverages:

  • Learn how to bake, stack, and decorate a cake at Hill’s Kitchen (Sun, $121, Capitol Hill).
  • Sample 30 refreshing rosé wines at The Roost (Sun, $52, Southeast DC).

Plan ahead:

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Briana Thomas

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.