February 27, 2026 – January 31, 2027

Carlotta Corpron: Light Is a Plastic Medium surveys work by the American abstract photographer and educator Carlotta Corpron whose investigations into the poetics of light and form and innovative use of technology supported the establishment of photography as fine art. Highlighting her biography and artistic achievements, the exhibition positions Corpron (1901–1988) in the artistic vanguard through six bodies of photography that she made in Texas from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. The exhibition showcases 48 recent gifts by Herbert Lust to the Hirshhorn, as well as additional loans from his collection.

Carlotta Corpron: Light Is a Plastic Medium

January 16, 2026 – July 19, 2026

At the Vanguard weaves together stories of ingenuity, artistry and resistance—through collections from Clark Atlanta University, Florida A&M University, Jackson State University, Texas Southern University, and Tuskegee University.

Explore stories of creativity, resilience, and legacy through rare collections of our five Historically Black Colleges and Universities partners. This exhibition celebrates how HBCUs preserve history—and shape the future. Be where history lives. Join us at the vanguard.

At the Vanguard

Opening March 1
The International Spy Museum invites you to explore the world of camouflage and deception in a new immersive exhibition where all is not what it seems.

Camouflage: Designed to Deceive is a self-guided experience through the fascinating history of camouflage and its many secret connections to espionage. From its origins in the natural world to its contemporary applications on the battlefield and beyond, this immersive exhibition explores the impact of camouflage from covert operations to popular culture throughout history. Whether you are an animal, soldier, or spy — hiding in plain sight can be a matter of life or death. Utilizing real stories, artifacts, and immersive media, this exhibition is a unique experience that explores the evolution and legacy of camouflage.

Camouflage: Designed to Deceive

The Tuskegee Chapel: Paul Rudolph x Fry & Welch examines the design, construction, and cultural significance of a landmark building at the heart of Tuskegee University. Designed by Paul Rudolph in 1960, revised by Fry & Welch in 1965, and built between 1967 and 1969, the chapel has served as a spiritual, educational, and social center for the campus community, reflecting Tuskegee’s longstanding commitment to craftsmanship, dignity, and collective purpose. 

The Tuskegee Chapel: Paul Rudolph X Fry & Welch

April 10, 2026 – October 12, 2026

In celebration of America’s 250th anniversary, the U.S. Botanic Garden will bloom with the flowers each U.S. state and territory has chosen as their official flower. 

Explore the display throughout the Garden that will showcase the state and territory flowers with living plants, artistic displays, botanical illustrations, and herbarium specimens. 

From fragrant magnolia flowers and roses to native orchids, bluebonnets, and saguaro cactus flowers, enjoy the variety of floral beauty that symbolizes America.  

America’s State Flowers: An America250 Celebration

April 11 - September 20, 2026
What does it mean to be American? How have artists examined this question?

More than 100 works on paper show how artists have explored the American experience over the last 250 years through depictions of the country’s landscape, people, and concepts of freedom.

Dear America

May 6 - June 14, 2026
Purlie is home on a mission—to buy back his father’s church and liberate the sharecroppers he grew up with from the brutal segregationist who still runs their plantation. Purlie Victorious features a madcap plot, survival techniques forged in the Jim Crow South, and satiric targets that feel as urgent as they did when the play premiered in 1961—its 2023 Broadway revival was nominated for six Tony awards. Psalmayene 24 (The Colored Museum) will direct this timely and lacerating comedy. 



Purlie Victorious

MULAN Friday, May 8 
7:30 Parking lot opens, 8:30 Parking lot closes, 8:40 MOVIE STARTS, ​10:05 Movie ends

BARBIE Friday, June 12
​7:30 Parking lot opens, 8:45 Parking lot closes, 8:55 MOVIE STARTS, 10:50 Movie ends

IRON MAN Friday, July 10
​7:30 Parking lot opens, 8:45 Parking lot closes, 8:55 MOVIE STARTS, 11:10 Movie ends

F1 THE MOVIE Friday, August 14
7:30 Parking lot opens, ​8:30 Parking lot closes, ​8:30 MOVIE STARTS, 11:00 Movie ends

MEAN GIRLS Friday, September 4
6:30 Parking lot opens, 7:45 Parking lot closes, 8:00 MOVIE STARTS, 9:40 Movie ends

The Drive In Union Market

MON - TH10AM - 10PM
FRI - SAT 10AM - 11PM
SUN 10AM - 10PM

Sandbox is a futuristic VR experience for groups of up to 6 where you can see and physically interact with everyone inside, just like the real world. Inspired by Star Trek's Holodeck, our exclusive worlds let you feel like you're living inside a game or movie, and are built by EA, Sony, and Ubisoft veterans. 

Sandbox VR

The Motion
May 6 – June 14, 2026
What begins as a razor-sharp debate spirals into a world-altering unraveling as four scholars are thrust into a kaleidoscopic odyssey through memory, identity, and the fragile boundaries of belief. As the world around them transforms, they find unexpected solace, love, and companionship. Collectively, they wrestle with profound and unsettling questions about purpose, morality, and what it truly means to be alive.

The Motion

May 12 – Jul 26, 2026
Stephen Schwartz’s (Godspell, Wicked) musical masterpiece of purpose, ambition, lust and glory sizzles for summer, thrillingly staged as only Matthew Gardiner can do.

A traveling troupe of performers bring to life the story of Pippin, the restless heir of Charlemagne, on his quest for purpose. 

Pippin

MAY 19–JUN 28, 2026
Trust no one.

Simon Godwin directs Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Elsbeth) in Shakespeare’s towering tragedy about the power of words to kill. Venice is scandalized when its protector, Othello (Pierce), elopes with a nobleman’s daughter, while his most trusted lieutenant, Iago (Ben Turner, Macbeth), seethes after being passed over for a promotion. Vengeful Iago speaks a word and contorts the world: transforming Othello’s faithful wife into an adulteress and upright men into beasts.

Othello

May 22 - August 14, 202

DC’s favorite outdoor summer concert series, Jazz in the Garden, returns on Friday evenings. This season’s theme, “American Sounds,” is a nod to the nation’s 250th anniversary. Travel across the country through music, exploring our many traditions—from Appalachian and Americana to Creole jazz, Hill Country blues, contemporary jazz, and more. Join us in the Sculpture Garden on Fridays from May 22 through August 14 (except June 5 and July 3). Plus, we’ll offer special pre-show dance classes on May 22 and 29, June 12, and July 24.

To give everyone an equal chance of getting passes to attend this popular program, we offer registration through a lottery. The lottery takes place the week before each event, opening on Monday at 10:00 a.m. and closing Friday at noon.

Spring Things To Do In DC