Keep your kids entertained and engaged this summer at an outdoor ballet, sunset movie screening, rock musical, and lots more exciting happenings around town.
Kids Eat Free at Nats Park
Root for the Nationals at a home game with your family to score free food. Children 12 and younger can grab a hot dog, chips, and bottled water meal from one of the five Kids Eat Free stands and kiosks at the stadium this season. On Sundays, baseball fans ages four to 12 can get in on the action after the game when youngsters are invited to run the bases ($5 for DC residents on select games, $20+ for ages 3 and older, free for children under 2).
Sleeping Beauty: The Time Traveler
The classic fairytale Sleeping Beauty gets a time-traveling remix at Adventure Theatre and ATMTC Academy. Princess Aurora teams up with Rolly—a visitor from the future—to plot an escape beyond the castle walls and into the modern world ($28).
Live from the Lawn
Summer is in full swing, bringing outdoor concerts to parks and yards across town. This month at Strathmore there are two concerts for kids on the Gudelsky Gazebo stage: high-energy blues music from Wendy and DB and Big Bang Boom performs rock-pop everyone can move along to. Pack a picnic and bring your own lawn chairs (free).
Waterfront Movie Series
Bring a blanket or lawn chair to a sunset movie screening along the Georgetown waterfront. There’s a family-friendly schedule of movies to see ranging from comedies such as Grown Ups 2 to heartfelt adventure flicks such as Finding Dory (free).
Hershey Super Sweet Adventure
Youngsters will have a blast winning chocolate-themed games and venturing through imaginative playgrounds at Hershey Super Sweet Adventure. The sweet treat-inspired play space take children through rooms of interactive and sensory games such as blowing up balloons, decorating a Hershey’s Kiss, catapulting blocks, and lots more fun ($19.99).
Pete the Cat: A Live Rock Musical
The storybooks of children’s authors Kimberly Dean and James Dean come to life on stage with fast-paced rock music in Pete the Cat. The narrative follows a second grader who is nervous about finishing the school year ($15+).
Maryland Youth Ballet
Local student troupe Maryland Youth Ballet is back at Wolf Trap for its annual summer showcase. This year’s storytelling dance performance enchants audiences with fairy magic, princess fun, and a narrative on love in Sleeping Beauty. Families are invited to watch the show outdoors at Children’s Theatre in the Woods ($14, free for ages under 2).
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.
