Warm up with a Heated Rivalry-inspired dance party, take in theater performances filled with ghosts and vampires, and start making plans for your spring garden.
Winter Storm Fern dumped a whole lot of snow and sleet at the start of this week, leading to slippery sidewalks, closed schools, and canceled flights. The frigid temperatures are sticking around for the rest of the week, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t fun to be had. (Just be sure to bundle up before you head out.)
This weekend you can warm up with a Heated Rivalry-inspired dance party, take in theater performances filled with ghosts and vampires, start making plans for spring gardening and summer camps, mark the start of Black History Month, and more.
Please note: Winter weather may affect whether or not these events take place. Be sure to check at the event links before venturing out!
THURSDAY, JAN. 29
Author Talk: SPAM: A Global History, Kelly Spring 📍 Hill’s Kitchen (713 D St. SE) ⏰ 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. 💸 $13.26 Since Spam first landed on grocery store shelves nearly a century ago, the canned meat product has been both celebrated and slandered, serving as a punchline but also showing up in fine dining. Dr. Kelly Spring will serve up a slice of food history at the Capitol Hill cooking store. She’ll give a brief lecture about the history of Spam and its influence across cultures, then take questions. (And yes, there will also be a taste test!)
Paranormal Activity, live on stage 📍 Shakespeare Theater Company (610 F St. NW) ⏰ 7:30 p.m. 💸 $43+ After premiering in London’s West End, this original story set in the world of the Paranormal Activity film franchise is coming to the Shakespeare Theater Company’s Harman Hall. Details of the plot are hush hush, but the show’s creators promise it “will haunt you long after the lights go out.” Opening night on Wednesday is already sold out, but tickets are available through February 7. (Heads up: The show is not recommended for kids, and contains topics that some audience members may find difficult.)
Concert: fly fish fly with Alligator Hands and Birdcage 📍 The Pocket (1508 North Capitol St. NW) ⏰ 7:30 p.m. doors, 8 p.m. show 💸 $18.07 in advance, $20.92 day of show Three local acts (two from D.C., one from Baltimore) come together for a night of funky indie pop with heartfelt, clever writing. If you’re a fan of Reneé Rapp, Laufey, Big Thief, or the Backseat Lovers, this might be the show for you.
FRIDAY, JAN. 30
Film Screening: The Great Yawn of History 📍 National Museum of Asian Art (1050 Independence Ave. SW) ⏰ 7 - 8:40 p.m. 💸 FREE The Asian Art Museum’s Festival of Films from Iran started earlier this month and runs through February 8. Friday’s installment, The Great Yawn of History, follows two men searching for a cave full of treasure that one of them saw in a dream. Written and directed by Aliyar Rasti, the film explores faith, truth, and the cost of chasing after ideas. You can see the trailer here.
Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors 📍 Atlas Performing Arts Center (1333 H St. NE) ⏰ 7:30 - 9 p.m. 💸 $50.75+ Have you ever watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall and found yourself wishing that the Dracula musical was a real play? Unfortunately … this isn’t that, but it’s probably as close as you can get right now. It’s a reimagining of Bram Stoker’s iconic vampire novel full of campy slapstick comedy. Performances run through February 15, so you have a couple more weeks to catch it.
Chamber of Comedy 📍 The DC Arts Center (2438 18th St. NW) ⏰ 10 - 11:30 p.m. 💸 $14.64+ End the week with a little levity! Hosted by Auriel Haack, this month’s edition of the Adams Morgan comedy showcase will feature Dom Grayer, Chris Sintetos, Hector Castro, Jack Trimber, Arko Mazumder, and Izzy Hartnett.
On Saturday, the Capital City Go-Go will take on the Wisconsin Herd at CareFirst Arena. (All-Pro Reels / Flickr)
SATURDAY, JAN. 31
D.C. Camp Fair 📍 Stuart-Hobson Middle School (410 E St. NE) ⏰ 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. 💸 FREE The weather outside is frightful … just like figuring out what exactly your kids are going to do when school’s out for summer. The D.C. Camp Fair brings together groups from across the DMV, from traditional to artsy, soccer to STEAM, children’s theater to chess academy, and more.
Puzzle Swap & Speed Puzzling Competition 📍 Labyrinth Games & Puzzles (645 Pennsylvania Ave. SE) ⏰ 12 - 4 p.m. 💸 FREE To mark National Puzzle Day, technically on Jan. 29, Labyrinth is piecing together a fun afternoon. Bring your completed jigsaw puzzles for a swap — you can take home as many new ones as you brought with you. Toward the end of the swap, there will also be a Speed Puzzling competition, where teams of two race through assembling a 500-piece puzzle.
Artist Talk: Rik Freeman 📍 Phillips@THEARC (1801 Mississippi Ave. SE) ⏰ 2 - 4 p.m. 💸 FREE, registration required Spend an afternoon with D.C. painter Rik Freeman, who is responsible for large-scale murals across the city. His ongoing show “Wade in the Waters”explores waterways and their connection to the African diaspora. The Anacostia Watershed Society will have a pop-up at the exhibit.
Capital City Go-Go vs. Wisconsin Herd 📍 CareFirst Arena (1100 Oak Dr. SE) ⏰ 7 p.m. 💸 $20.10 You can see great basketball for way less than the cost of a ticket to a Wizards game! Check out D.C.’s minor-league team, the Capital City Go-Go — they’re facing off against the Wisconsin Herd on Saturday night in the St. Elizabeths East campus, just off the Congress Heights Green Line stop.
Heated Rivalry Dance Party 📍 DC9 (1940 9th St. NW) ⏰ 11 p.m. 💸 $7.21 in advance; $13.39 day of event If you spent a snow day watching Heated Rivalry and are yearning to stare longingly at a crush across a crowd, this party is for you. Leave your skates at home, but bring your energy for a night of queer pop anthems and competition on the dance floor.
This could be your garden in the near future! (Courtesy of Nora Simon / Edgewood Community Farm)
SUNDAY, FEB. 1
Crochet 101: Applique and Patches 📍 Rhizome DC (6950 Maple St. NW) ⏰ 11 a.m. 💸 Pay what you like, recommended donation $15 + fee Whether you need to fix a hole or just want to add some whimsy to your knitwear, Annie from Swamp Rose Studio will teach you how to make crochet patches and attach them to your clothes. Crocheters of all experience levels are welcome. Rhizome will have supplies on hand, but you’re welcome to bring your own yarn and hooks if you have them.
Film Screening: We Were Here: The Untold History of Black Africans in Renaissance Europe 📍 Folger Theatre (201 East Capitol St. SE) ⏰ 1 - 2:30 p.m. 💸 $20 Created by Italian-Ghanaian filmmaker Fred Kuwornu, We Were Here explores the untold history of Black Africans in Renaissance Europe. The film challenges the idea that all Black people on the continent were slaves or servants — people of African descent were merchants and ambassadors, religious figures and royalty. Kuwornu will be at the Folger Shakespeare Library’s theater for a Q&A following the screening.
Now That's What I Call Burlesque Vol. 3: Blue (Da Booty Da Ba Di) 📍 DC Comedy Loft and Bier Baron Tavern (1523 22nd St. NW) ⏰ 1 - 3:30 p.m. 💸 $23.18+ Nostalgic for the drama of putting My Chemical Romance lyrics in an AIM away message or keeping tabs on your ranking in a Myspace Top 8?Pull out your platform flip flops and roll on some body glitter for this Y2K-themed afternoon burlesque show.
Language & Liberty: The Greatest Sentence Ever Written with Walter Isaacson 📍 Planet Word (925 13th St. NW) ⏰ 2 - 4 p.m. 💸 $20 In honor of the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding, the Planet Word museum is launching a lecture series exploring how language has shaped democracy. It kicks off on Sunday with bestselling author Walter Isaacson, whose most recent book looks at how a single sentence from the Declaration of Independence helped launch the American Revolution. Each ticket includes a copy of Isaacson’s book.
Rooting and Growing Raspberries 📍 Edgewood Community Farm (2304 2nd St. NE) ⏰ 2:15 - 3:30 p.m. 💸 $10 Ready to expand your home garden beyond tomatoes and herbs? Learn how to grow your own raspberries during this hands-on workshop at Edgewood Community Farm. Experienced farmers will show you how to divide canes, plant them into pots, and move them outside once the weather is better for berry-growing. The farm will provide supplies, but you’re welcome to bring your own pot from home. All participants will leave with a rooted raspberry cane.
Author Talk: Bibb Country, Lonnae O'Neal 📍 Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (901 G St. NW) ⏰ 3 - 4:30 p.m. 💸 FREE To kick off their Black History Month programming, the MLK Library is bringing in Lonnae O’Neal to talk about her book, Bibb Country. In a journey that started with planting lettuce seeds in her home garden, O’Neal peels back the leaves on generations of her family’s history, exploring a complicated legacy of enslavement, emancipation, and inheritance. There will be a 45-minute discussion with author Dolen Perkins-Valdez, followed by a short Q&A and a book signing.
Michelle is a writer and editor based in Washington, D.C. She writes about science, nature, culture, and art. Her work has appeared in Atlas Obscura, National Geographic, and other publications.
You may be tempted to stay home and curl up under a blanket this weekend. But that would be a mistake when D.C. is alive — from a comedy show and clothing swap to hip-hop meditation.
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