With the heat broken—for now—this weekend is a great time to dance to your heart’s content. If you’re feeling less active, avoid the rain by seeing a movie or show.
Jamyl Dobson in Wig Out! (Photo by Teresa Wood)
FRIDAY, JULY 28
ASIAN-AMERICAN AUTHORS: Learn about (and meet!) contemporary writers and dive into the legacy of Asian-American literature at the Smithsonian Asian American Literature Festival. You can sit in on lectures or panel discussions, schmooze with dozens of scholars and writers, sign up for one-on-one mentoring, invent literary memes, create your own book, learn how to use tarot cards, check out the second half of a two-day reading of Carlos Bulosan’s 1946 autobiographical work, America is in the Heart, and more. Cap off the night at Dupont Underground with a poetry slam and “literaoke” (literary karaoke). For more about the festival, which ends Saturday, read our preview here. (Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Phillips Collection, Dupont Underground, and The Library of Congress, 11 a.m. – 10 p.m. FREE)
LOST TREASURES: Imagine a time before Snapchat, when those who longed to film idiotic, silly, or seemingly (to them) normal videos had to do so on tape. All those VHS cassettes had to go somewhere. After all, there’s only so much room in empty nesters’ dens. Some of those lost treasures from homemade videos and amateur commercials past are being shared with the public at the Found Footage Festival, an event hosted by comedians Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher. The evening promises to be both weird and wonderful. (Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse, 8 p.m. $13)
BIG SCREEN: Friday is not shaping up to be a great day for outdoor activities. Catch a movie tonight, like director Christopher Nolan’s new WWII film Dunkirk, about a famous military mission carried out in 1940. Trapped on a French beach by German forces, Allied troops had to be evacuated by the hundreds of thousands. We recommend you see this one “on the biggest screen possible.” You might try the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum’s Lockheed Martin IMAX Theater. No worries if you can’t make it Friday. You can always check out some entertainment at the museum another time, which is more than we can say about the Natural History Museum’s IMAX… (Lockheed Martin IMAX Theater, various times. $15)
WIG OUT: This weekend, dig much deeper into drag culture than you ever would at brunch. Wig Out! is Tarell Alvin McCraney’s exploration into African-American drag ball culture, told through the lens of drag star Nina, A.K.A. Wilson. He’s handsome, talented, and unbothered, least of all by the new boyfriend, who’s caught in the middle of Wilson/Nina’s competitive community. (Studio Theatre, 8 p.m. $20-70)
A National Dance Day participant busts a move. (Photo by Elvert Barnes)
SATURDAY, JULY 29
LOVE ALL: It’s not the US Open, but if watching people grunt as they smack a fuzzy yellow ball back and forth sounds like a good time, you’re in luck! The Citi Open tennis tournament opens today. If all that competition makes you hungry, you can tailgate the match with all-you-can-eat brats and beer. Head’s up: if the rain ruins your plans, organizers aren’t serving up refunds. (Rock Creek Tennis Center, 10 a.m. $10-25)
WE’RE NEUTRAL ON IT: Swiss National Day is technically August 1, but you can celebrate this weekend with the Swiss Club. There will be music, Swiss sausages, games and prizes, pool time, and a cash bar. (Swiss Embassy, 4-9:30 p.m. $35)
DANCE: We’re expecting temperatures in the 70s this Saturday. If that news makes you want to get up and dance, head to The Kennedy Center. At National Dance Day, you’ll hear live music, see performances in a range of styles, and learn a few steps. You can get your blood pumping with a fitness dance, learn how to do jazz hands with the best of them, boogie with Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Nortion, and see dance from all over the world. There will be a free performance at 6 p.m., followed by Dancing Under the Stars at 7:30 p.m. The swing social will begin with an intro-level lesson by Gottaswing, so you can learn the moves you need for the next two hours of dancing. The all-day event will be held outdoors on the venue’s North Plaza (hopefully—check the website for updates if it rains). (The Kennedy Center, 2-10:30 p.m. FREE)
DANCE MAIS: If you’re a sucker for samba or a fan of forró, slip on some shoes you can move in. Baile De Favela is hosting a rooftop São João Party this Saturday night. Turn U Street tropical as you groove to Brazilian music, snack on salgadinhos, and crush some cocktails. (Local 16, 4-10 p.m. $15)
BLERDS, ASSEMBLE!: Are you super excited for Marvel Studio’s soon(ish)-to-be-released Black Pantherfilm? Dress up and nerd out at Move or You Will Be Moved: A Black Panther Fashion Show. Cosplay and Wakandan style dress are strongly encouraged. If you need a statement piece, peruse what the vendors have to offer. Local black artisans will be selling jewelry, clothing, and other Afrofuturist accessories for your Black Panther fan needs. (Fantom Comics, 6-9 p.m. $5)
CHILL & TRIPPY: Fleet Foxes and Animal Collective are coming to Merriweather Post Pavilion this Saturday. Originally from this neck of the woods (Baltimore), electro-pop outfit and seizure-inducing video maker Animal Collective named its 2009 album after the outdoor venue. They’ll be opening for indie folk group Fleet Foxes, which just put out a new album last month. Listen closely to the band’s thoughtful lyrics, one of the traits critics seem to love. (Merriweather Post Pavilion, 7:30-10:30 p.m. $41-56)
More: Soca Inferno, Ladies Night: Washington Nationals vs. Colorado Rockies, DC Poster Project: Exhibit and Open House
Drive out to Poolesville this weekend for sunflowers as far as the eye can see. (Photo by Angela Pan)
SUNDAY, JULY 30
SUNFLOWERS: The rain and grey should clear up by Sunday, just in time for you to check out those fields of sunflowers everyone has been Instagramming. The big yellow flowers are spread across nine fields, totaling 30 acres of beautiful blooms for you to run and casually walk through in the perfect #SundayVibes outfit. The flowers are at their peak right now, but that won’t last for too long (about one more week). So grab some friends, put on something cute, and get to Poolesville. (McKee-Beshers WMA, Whenever. FREE)
BEATS & BREWS: For the record, we love beer. For the beer, we love records! Isn’t that neat how it works both ways? The first-ever Silver Spring Record Fair is this Sunday, just up the block from the Metro at Denizens Brewing Co. Come have a beer, dig for some new albums, and relax with music provided by a lineup of locals DJs. (Denizens Brewing Co., 1-6 p.m. FREE)
K-POP: In South Korea, K-pop is king. If the genre also rules your world, check out Sunday’s live audition for the K-Pop World Festival. You can compete for a chance to visit and perform on stage in Korea, or just hang out and watch K-pop aficionados showcase their talents. (Korean Cultural Center, 2-6 p.m. FREE)
FAREWELL, FRINGE: The 2017 Capital Fringe Festival closes this Sunday, so if you’ve been waiting to see one of the indie plays in this year’s lineup—well, hopefully you didn’t have a specific one in mind. Only a few are still in the rotation. Luckily for you, the extension week options are some of the best (at least we think so). (Logan Fringe Art Space and Atlas Performing Arts Center, various times. $17)
BBALL: Sports, go, sports! A 3×3 basketball competition tour is coming to D.C. this weekend. At DEW NBA 3X, some of the International Basketball Federation’s top players from across the globe will dribble, pass, shoot, and maybe do that cool trick where they spin the ball on their finger. If you want to see how you measure up, fill out the online application for your chance at the 2017 USA Basketball 3×3 National Tournament. A single-elimination playoff bracket will determine a winning team, which will qualify to visit LA. for the national tournament. (Park between M St SE & First St SE, across from the Navy Yard Metro Station, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. FREE)
