Madness Endorsed by the Neighborhood?!

If you are just as upset as we are about missing out on the world’s biggest skinny dip, fret no more. Rumor has it that the Potomac River waterfront will be having its own wet and wild event this Sunday, when the Georgetown Business Improvement District hosts a water balloon fight from 1-3 p.m. at Washington Harbour.

Yes, a water balloon fight! Waterfront establishments Tony and Joe’s and Nick’s Riverside Grill will be serving up burgers and seafood. Other restaurants will be offering drinks and gelato, with steel drums and face painting completing the  festivities.

Local Tunes with a View

For those of you looking for something involving less H2O and more clothing, Fort Reno Park will be hosting local bands every Monday and Thursday night at 7:15 p.m. Locals have given the concert series rave reviews on Yelp, and to top it off, the concerts take place at the highest point in all of D.C. Plus, it’s only a bus ride away: just hop on the 31 bus at Wisconsin and Dumbarton and ride down Wisconsin to the Brandywine Street stop.

Photo by Nikki Tysoe

As if free cupcakes and tickets to the Newseum are not enough, a plethora of other free events in D.C. have been announced recently, and are definitely worth a sojourn out of the bubble.

Outdoor Movie Night

Entitled “Best of the Oscars,” every Thursday night through July 28th the Capital Riverfront outdoor movie series will deliver some of Hollywood’s best. The events also feature food trucks, popcorn, cotton candy and sorbet, but do not forget to bring along your own bug spray. This week’s film is The Blind Side, and films begin at 8:45 p.m. To get there, the best way is to take the Green Line to Navy Yard.

Geek out, Alex Trebek Style

If you need some incentive to head over to the National Archives, this Thursday the Archivist of the United States will be hosting food-themed jeopardy and awarding prizes to promote their new exhibit, What’s Cooking, Uncle Sam?, which explores the way the government affects the diet of the American people. Are there any other history major foodies out there?! If so, take the Yellow line to the Archives/Navy Memorial station.

Portuguese, Please

This Thursday, the Embassy of Brazil wraps up its 4th Annual “Brazil Docs” at the E Street Cinema. You can browse the schedule and trailers here. The decisions will be tough though, as the acclaimed documentaries run every 2 hours and all look promising. To get there, take the 32 bus from Wisconsin Avenue.

Photo from Coffee for the Brain.

Although most internships are sadly unpaid, it’s not all hard work and making copies. June 10-19, D.C.’s discount labor get free and reduced fare at restaurants, museums, and shops in the city during the InternsRock: Intern Appreciation Week, hosted by the Washington Center.

Some of the promotions include 20% off at Tombs, a free Sprinkles cupcake, and free admission to the Newseum. All you need to do is present proof of your internship – like a letter from your supervisor, a note, or an e-mail – at one of the Washington Center offices near Dupont (1333 16th Street, N.W., 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Friday) or Union Station (1005 3rd Street N.E., 10 a.m.-11:00 a.m. daily) and you get a wristband that will access all the discounts.

Image: Washington Center

For those of us not looking to break the bank in D.C. this summer, Vox will be scouring the Internet for fun things to do - fo’ free.

Dancing in the streets

This week’s big free extravaganza is Capital Pride. The nation’s fourth-largest LGBT pride celebration gets into full swing on Saturday with a parade starting at Dupont Circle at 5:30 pm. There’s also a street festival on Saturday at 7th Street, NW, and Pennsylvania Avenue.

Otherwise, today’s edition focuses on perennial favorites, the “oldies but goodies,” if you will.

Jazz Hands

The DC Jazz Festival will be wrapping up with free music on the National Mall this Sunday. Do not miss out on Eddie Palmieri at 6:20pm, as the 9 time Grammy Award winner is sure to put on a good show.

The “Jazz in the Garden” series will not be ending anytime soon, so if you want to eventually kill two cultural birds with one stone but are still too afraid to venture beyond the front gates, check out one of the weekly Friday jazz concerts at the Sculpture Garden next to the National Gallery. The series’ 11^th season runs through September 9^th.

All Day, every day

The Kennedy Center provides entertainment practically all day, every day, but unfortunately not all of it is free. The good news though, is that the Center’s Millennium Stage offers free shows 365 days a year. Acts range from Indian hip-hop to National Symphony Orchestra prelude concerts.

Another plus: the dress code is definitely less stuffy than it is for the Center’s pricier events so you will feel right at home walking in wearing your overpriced jorts.

Image: The National Gallery of Art

For those of you who haven’t returned to your various corners of the world to spend time with family and old friends before the fall semester begins, Vox has put together some free events that will hopefully help these last few lonely days pass by quicker as you wait for your friends to filter into the district. Enjoy!

Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night

Starting this Thursday, August 19, Harman Hall will be offering free performances of Twelfth Night, running now through September 5. Interested parties now enter to win tickets through an online lottery system, saving you a hot and sweaty trip into downtown to stand in line. Dates and times, as well as access to the online lottery, can be found on the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s website.

Third-sy Thursdays?

This Thursday is the third Thursday of the month, and MidCity is giving Thursday nights a whole new (and far more culturally vibrant) meaning. Shops and galleries in the U and 14th Street Corridors will be open late, allowing visitors to peruse until about 8 or 9 p.m. All stores will be offering special deals for customers. A list of shops can be found here.

Community Art

The Corcoran Gallery continues its free summer series this Saturday with a community art project. Visitors will get free admission to the gallery, where they can contribute to the creation of a large-scale portrait inspired by Chuck Close. Pre-registration is required for this event.

For the 21-and-up crowd

Half in Ten, an anti-poverty non-profit, is hosting a free happy hour this Thursday, July 29th at Grand Central in Adams Morgan.  A representative from the Center for American Progress will speak on the anti-poverty campaign, and there will be an open bar (!!!) for all DC staff and interns. You’ve got to RSVP, so reserve your spot quickly!

Hot Summer [Movie] Nights

The Columbia Heights Day Initiative will show Hairspray at 8:30 pm at Harriet Tubman Elementary School’s field (located at 11th and Kenyon Streets NW) this Thursday. There will be a DJ beforehand starting at 8 pm. Have a picnic on the lawn, rock out to some tunes, and ogle Zac Efron—all in one night!

Not Quite the World Cup

Soccer fans, the fun’s not over! Street Soccer USA comes to DC this Friday for a three-day event. Featuring 18 street soccer teams from across the country, the USA Cup will be held at the Washington Kastles Stadium. Tickets are free if you reserve in advance. There is also a kick-off party on Friday at 5 pm with something called a Parade of States, a Celebrity First Kick, and a live samba band.

Piano Prodigies

If you really feel like realizing just how untalented you are, the Kennedy Center will be hosting a free performance from the finalists of the International Young Artist Piano Competition this Saturday, July 31st. Watch a bunch of young prodigies play beautiful pieces of music that make the fine arts aficionados in the audience cry! Go home feeling a lot less accomplished than you previously thought! Fun for all!

“On no account will a Commie ever drink water, and not without good reason.”

Hamburgers, malts, and a classic movie.  What could be better?  Although the first two ain’t free, you can catch Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 classic Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb on Saturday at the American City Diner.  The movie starts at 8:30 p.m., with free admission, and the diner will be offering its full menu.  If Saturday doesn’t work for you, the diner offers movies nightly [PDF].

Get into the swing of things

Want to impress your friends with dance skills, but never have time to go to the Ballroom Dance team’s lessons?  Then head over to Rosslyn at 5:30 p.m. tonight to learn and practice the art of swing dancing.  After half an hour of instruction from professional dancer Michael Rye, participants will be treated to two hours of swing music by Blue Sky 5.  The “Party at the Plaza” is located outside of the Rosslyn Spectrum Theatre at 1611 North Kent Street.  Make sure to bring a friend, as dance partners are not included.

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What’s cheaper than a dollar store?

DC’s Fringe Festival brings more than art to the District … it’s also brings free clothes, books, and music. The Free Store promotes donating, recycling, and reusing among festival attendees, so if you want to add to your wardrobe—or empty out your closet—visit 1013 7th Street NW on Wednesdays through Sundays while Festival shows are running. The Free Store only has a few rules: clothes must be washed, and no Kenny G CDs or Danielle Steele books.

Free beer … seriously!

This Friday, Dixie Liquor will host the Great Lakes Brewing Company for a free beer tasting. The Ohio-based beer peddler will sample three different beers: Dortmunger Gold Lager, Lake Erie Monster, and (the delightfully named) Eliot Ness Amber Lager. The tasting runs from 5 to 8 p.m.

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The Fourth is officially over and D.C. is in the middle of a nasty heat wave. But despite the heat and your (days-old) hangover, you shouldn’t miss out on some of the events going on in the city this week. Not every one of these events will cool you down, but they’ll all get the heat off of your mind.

Dance It Out

Everyone knows that the only event more anticipated in D.C. than Cherry Blossom Festival is the internationally acclaimed (not so much) DC Hip-Hop Theater Festival. There are plenty of great events going on during the festival, which runs through July 10. Vox‘s favorite event is the break dance contest on Saturday from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Columbia Heights Youth Club (1480 Girard Street NW). A full schedule of events can be found here.

Cannonbaaaallll!

The Volta Park pool might just be the best place to spend the next few days. Located at 3400 Volta Place NW, the public pool opens at 11 a.m. during the heat wave. Be sure to bring your school ID if you want to take a dip; college students and D.C. residents swim for free.

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There is simply no better place to celebrate Independence Day than our nation’s capital. Here is Vox‘s guide to the big events going on in the D.C. area that will help you get your patriotic groove on. Keep in mind, however, that the Smithsonian Metro stop will be closed on the big day.

Don’t Rain on my Parade!

The National Independence Day Parade will begin at 11:45 a.m. on Constitution Avenue and 7th Street. It will conclude at 17th Street. It’s sure to be a gross display of patriotism in oppressive heat and humidity with large crowds contributing their body heat to the mix—don’t miss out!

Lobsterbacks and Bayonets Not Included

The Archives will host an all-day Fourth of July celebration on Sunday. At 10:00 a.m., there’ll be a dramatic reading of the Declaration of Independence. In the Jefferson Room, according to Archives officials, visitors can use a real quill pen to write down what’s stuck in their craw, put on a tri-corner hat and read their own declaration, and—here’s the best part—get a National Archives temporary tattoo! Very gangster.

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