The Kennedy Center kicks off its fall season with its annual Open House Arts Festival, a highlight of its performance calendar. Every year, as part of its Performing Arts for Everyone initiative, the Center opens its doors to the public and folks can see cutting edge artists from around the world in nearly every performance space the venue has to offer. This Saturday marks the 25th installment of the festival, dubbed Stage & Street Spectacular. In recognition of that milestone, the event’s organizers took a step back to assess their approach.

Washington is an international city and draws people and visitors from around the globe, but it is more often associated with cynicism and politics than with warm fuzzy feelings of goodwill.