FRIDAY, APRIL 21
EARTH DAY AT HILLWOOD: Meet the HEAT — that stands for Hillwood’s Environmental Action Team — at the Hillwood Estate’s Earth Day celebration. They’ll give you tips on how you can protect the environment from home. Plus, you can take home a free plant and free coffee, if you bring your own mug. (Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens; 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; suggested donation)
JOKES UP IN SMOKE: Grab your buds and bring them to Jokes Up in Smoke’s Anniversary Show. The comedy group has been providing the District with jokes and joints for a year. Headlining the celebration are comics Nick Hopping and Elizabeth Booker Houston. Watch them tell jokes, get high, and try telling them again. (Pyramid Lounge; 7 p.m.; $15+)
THE ART OF UNEMPLOYMENT: Movies and TV shows are always getting D.C. wrong. One person sure to get the city right is Jay Sun, an artist and storyteller dedicated to producing work that captures the District’s spirit. His latest project, a D.C.-set film called The Art of Unemployment, premiers on Thursday and screens again on Friday and Saturday at Honfleur Gallery. (Honfleur Gallery; Friday and Saturday; 7 p.m.; $20)
COMEDY ROAST OF EARTH: Earth has been heating up for a while. This weekend, it’s getting roasted. Join DC Science Comedy and local comics for The Comedy Roast of Earth, an Earth Day themed evening of jabs and digs, featuring Joe Zimmerman, Kasha Patel, Eddie Morrison and more. (DC Improv; 7:30 p.m. and 9:45 p.m.; $20)
SONGWRITING AWARDS: Spend an intimate evening with some of the best songwriters in the region at the Bernard Ebb Songwriting Awards’ Finalist Concert, hosted at the Bethesda Blues and Jazz Supper Club. Finalists include D.C. cellist Carol Anne Bosco and Baltimore R&B artist Josh Lay. There’s also a youth category, featuring songwriters who are under the age of 18. (Bethesda Blues and Jazz Supper Club; 7:30 p.m.; $20)
MORE: Elena James Pop-Up (Nina May; 12 p.m.-3 p.m.; $35), Andreas Arnold (Upstairs @ 4027 Brandywine St. NW; 6:30 p.m.; $30), Introverts Mixer (Made With Love; 7 p.m.-9 p.m.; $20+), Pleasure Portal: Energetic Awareness and Embodiment (Femme Fatale DC; 7 p.m.-9:30 p.m.; $22.22), Stephen Ulrich & Big Lazy: Music from This American Life (Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital; 7 p.m.; $22), Danish String Quartet (Kennedy Center; 7:30 p.m.; $45+), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Gunston Arts Center; through May 6; $30+), Djunah (Pie Shop; 8 p.m.; $12+), Lights Out Comedy (Eighteenth Street Lounge; 8 p.m.-10 p.m.; $10)
SATURDAY, APRIL 22
RIVER CLEANUP: Make a splash this Earth Day at Oxon Cove Park, where you can help remove single-use plastics and trash from the shoreline at Oxon Cove’s River Cleanup. There’s plenty of room for volunteering in the morning and afternoon — just be sure to dress in clothes you don’t mind getting wet and muddy. (Oxon Cove Park & Oxon Hill Farm; 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; FREE)
SPRING FESTIVAL: Spring into the weekend with The Farm at Kelly Miller’s sixth annual Spring Festival, which brings farm-to-table food, pony rides, face painting, music, games and more to Lincoln Heights. If you’d like to lend a helping hand, there’s still time to sign up as a volunteer. (The Farm at Kelly Miller; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; FREE)
GARDEN PARTY: Who said your local hardware store doesn’t know how to party? Head to any Ace Hardware location across the city this Saturday for a Garden Party, featuring pop-up vendors, gardening workshops, and more. Plus, enjoy 20% off the entire store all weekend long. (All Ace Hardware locations; 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; FREE)
BLACK WOMEN IN FOOD: Feed your appetite for learning this weekend at the Black Women in Food Summit, taking place at Eaton DC and streaming online. The summit brings prominent voices in the food industry together to discuss the challenges and triumphs of Black women in the food space through panels, breakout sessions, and networking opportunities (Virtual and Eaton DC; 11 a.m.-7:30 p.m.; $50)
DO THE LOOP: It’s all in the name. This Saturday, leading art organizations around Northwest D.C. invite you to “do the loop” by using a free shuttle service to visit museums around the quadrant, including American University Museum at the Katzen Art Center, The Kreeger Museum, Dumbarton Oaks, Jackson Art Center, Addison/Ripley Fine Art and Klagsbrun Studios. At each location, you’ll find special programming happening all day long. (Northwest D.C.; 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; FREE)
GROW BOLDLY: Looking for an Earth Day celebration in Maryland? Look no further than the Merriweather District’s Grow Boldly: Earth Day Celebration at Color Burst Park. Bring out the whole family for an afternoon of face painting, yoga, flower pot decoration, lawn games, tie-dye and more. (Color Burst Park; 11 a.m-1 p.m.; FREE)
NATIONAL CANNABIS FESTIVAL: The National Cannabis Festival comes to the RFK Festival Grounds this weekend. With panels on policy and legalization, vendor booths, and a day-long concert headlined by 2 Chainz and Juicy J, the festival is a can’t-miss event for cannabis enthusiasts. (RFK Festival Grounds; 12 p.m.-10 p.m.; $85+)
MORE: World of Possibilities Disabilities Expos (Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center; 11 a.m.- 3 p.m.; FREE), Green Talk and Talents: An Earth Day Exchange and Brunch (Teaism Penn Quarter; 11 a.m.; FREE), Earth Day Market (Woodley Park; 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.; FREE), The Ice Cream Truck Is Broken! & Other Emotional Arias (Kennedy Center; Saturday 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.; Sunday 2 p.m.; $25+), Celebrate Earth Day w/ Poetry: Peter Coppelman & A Life of Service (Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital; 4 p.m.; $10), Deconstructing Barriers to Social Justice (Sandy Spring Museum; 4 p.m.; $30+) Jazz Ages of U Street Walking Tour (Howard Theatre; 5 p.m.; $30), Sip & Learn: Potter’s House Lecture (Potter’s House; 5 p.m.; FREE), Fruit Bats (9:30 Club; 6 p.m.; $25), Reunion of the Elements (DC Scottish Rite; 7 p.m.; FREE), The Batman in Concert (Warner Theatre; 8 p.m.; $69+)
SUNDAY, APRIL 23
LIVING EARTH FESTIVAL: What can we learn about earth from Indigenous communities? Find out at the Living Earth Festival, taking over the National Museum of the American Indian this weekend. With panels, workshops, art making and more, Living Earth explores how Indigenous communities have taken care of the planet historically, and how they continue doing so today. (National Museum of the American Indian; Saturday and Sunday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; FREE)
EARTH DAY FESTIVAL: Terracotta pot decorating, pet rock adoption, and more await you at City Ridge and URBNmarket’s Earth Day Weekend Festival. Stock up on locally crafted goods, grab some grub from a food truck, and bust a move in a fitness class led by Equinox at this weekend-long event. (City Ridge; Saturday and Sunday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m.; FREE)
EARTH DAY CONCERTS: An ocean’s crescendos and a forest’s serenity are the inspiration for this weekend’s Earth Day Concerts at the National Gallery of Art. On Saturday, four musicians bring you Because the Oceans, a chamber group initiative dedicated to promoting ocean conservation and bringing awareness to the climate crisis. On Sunday, prose and music come together for A Forest Unfolding. (National Gallery of Art; Saturday and Sunday; 3 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.; FREE)
EARTH DAY EVERY DAY: Langston Boulevard wants to show you how you can live every day like it’s Earth Day. Earth Day Every Day takes place this Sunday, bringing the community demos on how to compost, fix a flat tire, garden and harvest, as well as live music, interactive workshops, and a discussion on the importance of looking after Mother Nature. (Lee Heights Shops; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; FREE)
MORE: PNC Parkway Classic (100 Madison Street Alexandria; 8 a.m.; $50+), Fossil Free Festival (George Washington University Yard; 12 p.m.-5 p.m.; FREE), Georgetown Walking Tour: Off the Beaten Path (27th and Q Streets NW; 1 p.m.; $25), Mt. Pleasant Neighborhood Spring Tree Walk (Lamont Plaza; 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.; FREE), Curator Tour of Out of Many with Robyn Asleson (National Portrait Gallery; 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.; FREE), The People’s Account (National Gallery of Art; 3 p.m.; FREE), Ari Voxx & The Sad Lads (Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital; 4:30 p.m.; $15)
