FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15
BANG A DRUM: As part of the Smithsonian Year of Music series, explore African percussions and rhythms with Kwame Ansah-Brew, who uses over 25 types of drums. While you’re there, explore current exhibitions, including Good As Gold: Fashioning Senegalese Women and Visionary: Viewpoints on Africa’s Arts. (National Museum of African Art, 1 p.m.-2 p.m., FREE)
PACK A PICNIC: Don’t let winter weather stop you from enjoying a picnic: Pack a basket and head to the National Cathedral for an indoor picnic and screening of The LEGO Batman Movie. Viewers are invited to bring pillows, yoga mats, and backrests; no alcohol or glass permitted. (National Cathedral, 6 p.m. doors, 6:30 p.m. showtime, FREE)
OBSTACLE 1: Interpol helped usher in the early 2000s rock revival; though the New York band released its latest album, Marauder, last summer, expect to hear cuts from 2002’s touchstone Turn On the Bright Lights at Friday’s set at The Anthem. Fellow New Yorkers Sunflower Bean open. (The Anthem, 6:30 p.m. doors, 8 p.m. show, $40-$55)
A LITTLE LOVE: The DC Shorts & Sweets program from the DC Shorts Film Festival features four different 90-minute short film showcases on Friday and Saturday. The topics range from heartbreak to hate—titled This Is Love, Love Hearts, Love Lies Bleeding, and No Love Lost—but the Valentine’s Day theme remains. (Miracle Theatre, 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., $15 per showcase, $45 for all four)
MORE: Apres Ski Party (Wunder Garten, 4 p.m.-1 a.m., free entry), Partner Yoga (Down Dog Yoga Clarendon, 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m., $25 per person or $40 per couple), Smithsonian Year of Music: Fast Eddie and the Slowpokes (Pearl Street Warehouse, 7 p.m. doors, 8 p.m. show, FREE), Exhibition Opening: Sound Heals All Wounds (Rhizome, 7 p.m.-10 p.m., $5 suggested), Jazz Pizza Night with Herm Hopkins Duo (A Baked Joint, 7:30 p.m.-10 p.m., FREE), Tedeschi Trucks Band (Warner Theatre, 8 p.m., $67+), Graves, Hex Cougar and Eyezic (U Street Music Hall, 10 p.m., $15), Liberation Dance Party (DC9, 11 p.m., FREE)
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16
MUSEUM MOMENT: Beginning Saturday, the Phillips Collection presents the first museum retrospective of Cuban artist Zilia Sánchez, who specializes in lunar scenes and mythological imagery. The exhibition Soy Isla (I Am an Island) follows her 70-year career, beginning in Cuba, following periods in Europe and New York and finally concluding with her move to Puerto Rico, where she still resides. (The Phillips Collection, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., $12 for adults, $10 for students or 62 and over; 18 and under FREE)
A WHOLE NEW WORLD: The whole Disney universe, from Lightning McQueen of Cars to The Little Mermaid’s Ariel to the Toy Story crew, unite in Disney on Ice’s Worlds of Enchantment. And what would a Disney ice spectacular be without Frozen’s Anna, Elsa, and Olaf? The show runs through Monday evening with multiple daily performances. (Capital One Arena, 10:30 a.m., 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., $20+)
LADIES CELEBRATING LADIES: Galentine’s Day is more of a state of mind than a formal holiday, right? East City Bookshop continues the Leslie Knope-style celebration with a Galentine’s book talk from Jasmine Guillory, author of novels The Proposal, The Wedding Date, and The Wedding Party. She’s joined in conversation by writer Nicole Chung; Beuchert’s Saloon provides the cocktails. (East City Bookshop, 4 p.m., FREE)
MORE: National Ballet of China: Raise the Red Lantern (The Kennedy Center Opera House, 1:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., $39-$149), Wharf Winter Games (The Wharf, 2 p.m.-5 p.m., FREE), NW Really Really Free Market (St. Stephen & the Incarnation Episcopal Church, 4 p.m.-7 p.m., FREE), Thursday with American Pleasure Club (Union Stage, 7:30 p.m. doors, 8:30 p.m. show, $35+) Galactic featuring Erica Falls with Aztec Sun (9:30 Club, 8 p.m., $30), National Symphony Orchestra: Noseda Conducts Berlioz’s Romeo & Juliet (The Kennedy Center Concert Hall, 8 p.m., $15-$89), Awkward Sex…and the City (Black Cat, 8 p.m. doors, $15), Ultimate 80’s Prom (Rock & Roll Hotel, 8 p.m. doors, 9 p.m. show, $15), Blowout (Songbyrd, 11 p.m.-3 a.m., $7-$10)
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 17
ART FOR GOOD: As the threat of another potential partial government shutdown wanes, the ramifications of the last one, the longest in history, are still being felt. The Lemon Collective’s Back Pay Art Show, an art show and market day, features the work of artists affected by the shutdown. The artists will receive 100 percent of the proceeds. (The Lemon Collective DC, 5 p.m.-8 p.m., FREE)
2020 WATCH: In a crowded field of candidates, Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, is the first openly gay Democratic candidate ever to run for president. If elected, he’d be the youngest to hold the position. He’s joined in conversation about his recent book, Shortest Way Home: One Mayor’s Challenge and a Model for America’s Future, with Jonathan Allen. (Politics & Prose, 5 p.m.-6 p.m., FREE)
FRIEND OPPORTUNITY: First formed in 1994, San Francisco outfit Deerhoof’s legacy is evident in examining the scene its influenced. The band released its most recent record, Mountain Moves, in 2017. Sadie Dupuis’ Speedy Ortiz and Pygmy Lush open their Sunday show. (Union Stage, 6:30 p.m. doors, 7:30 p.m. show, $15+)
MORE: Valentine’s Bottomless Mimosa Brunch Cruise (Gangplank Marina Pier 4, 10:45 a.m. board, $77.90), The Knocks with Young & Sick and Blu DeTiger (9:30 Club, 7 p.m., $25), So Fetch (U Street Music Hall, 7 p.m., $10), Daughters with Wolf Eyes and Hide (Black Cat, 7:30 p.m. doors, $18-$20), Taste of Summer (Chicken + Whiskey, 8 p.m.-12 a.m., FREE), It Looks Sad. with PEAER (Songbyrd, 8:30 p.m. doors, 9 p.m. show, FREE/$7 suggested)
