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Filter Events

23nov(nov 23)5:00 pm01jan(jan 1)8:00 pmZooLightsPowered by Pepco(november 23) 5:00 pm - (january 1) 8:00 pm Smithsonian's National Zoo

Event Details

This season, ZooLights is bigger and better than ever. Take a peek at this year’s attractions:

New: Gingerbread Village

Follow the twinkling lights to the Gingerbread Village at Elephant Outpost. This magical land is complete with frosted cookies, lollipops and a gingerbread throne that’s perfect for a photo opp. Enjoy food, holiday shopping and live music, too!

New: Reindeer Games Fun Zone, sponsored by GEICO

Head to Lion-Tiger Hill to zip down giant inflatable slides, try a holiday-themed obstacle course and twirl on illuminated rides.

New: Symphony of Lights

Explore an interactive light canopy that responds to music, creating a unique sound and light show as you listen to the festive sounds of holiday performers on the Great Meadow.

Laser Light Shows, sponsored by Pepco

Watch animals come to life in laser lights on the outdoor wall of the Elephant Community Center. Now with two shows!

GRUMP holiday market

Shop at a European-style outdoor market that will double in size this year, featuring more local artisans offering unique gifts for all ages. GRUMP visits the Zoo on Dec. 7, 8 and 9.

Zoo Rides

Take a merry tour on the Smithsonian’s National Zoo Choo-Choo, sponsored by Metro by T-Mobile, which whisks guests around the Kids’ Farm and features gorgeous views of the holiday light displays. Hop on to your choice of 50 animal figurines at the Speedwell Foundation Conservation Carousel, which highlights the Zoo’s incredible research and success stories.

Please note that ZooLights does not feature the Zoo’s animals. All indoor animal exhibits will be closed to allow animals to get a full night’s rest. Visitors will be able to warm up indoors in the Zoo’s Visitor Center, Panda Plaza Gift Shop, Mane Grill and Great Cats Gift Shop.

All ZooLights attractions are weather permitting. Attractions may not be open when temperatures are 35 degrees or below.

Time

November 23 (Friday) 5:00 pm - January 1 (Tuesday) 8:00 pm

Location

Smithsonian's National Zoo

3001 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008

Cost

FREE

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11dec10:00 am12:30 pmWreaths with Smithsonian Gardens10:00 am - 12:30 pm

11dec6:45 pmStrange and Curious Smithsonian Jobs: Religion and Politics6:45 pm S. Dillon Ripley Center

Event Details

As a secular and educational cultural institution, the Smithsonian’s touchpoints with religion and politics are diverse and sometimes surprising. The latest in this occasional series of programs explores the age-old dichotomy of church and state, as seen through the work of two Smithsonian staff members.

At the American History Museum, curator Lisa Kathleen Graddy spends her time taking care of the desk Thomas Jefferson used to write the Declaration of Independence; hunting for signs at protest rallies; dodging balloons while chasing delegates in funny hats at political conventions; greeting first ladies; deciding how to tell the story of voting rights in 1,000 square feet; and planning ways to tell more stories about the political lives of women. Graddy shares the excitement and inspiration that comes with the job of researching, collecting, and displaying the variety of ways that Americans have engaged with and influenced their government and continue to shape our democracy.

Across the street at the African American History and Culture Museum, Brad Braxton, director of the Center for the Study of African American Religious Life, explores the role of religion in the Smithsonian’s newest museum. According to Braxton, a chief characteristic of Africana culture is a deep appreciation for the spirit and the marvelously diverse ways in which they define it: as tribal gods, elemental forces, human capacity, community wisdom, and religious rituals and artifacts that serve as links to a sacred universe. By establishing a center on religion as a key part of the museum, the Smithsonian emphasizes the indispensable role of religion in the African American journey, and by extension, in the broader American experience.

Time

(Tuesday) 6:45 pm

Location

S. Dillon Ripley Center

1100 Jefferson Dr SW

Cost

$30-$45

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11dec7:00 pmPhosphorescentw/ Liz Cooper & The Stampede7:00 pm 9:30 Club

12dec6:30 pmIngrid Michelson Trio - Songs for the Season6:30 pm Lincoln Theatre

12dec7:00 pm9:00 pmFree Weekly Bar Bingo w/ Maddy's Bar7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Maddy's Bar

13dec10:00 am12:30 pmCenterpieces with Smithsonian Gardens10:00 am - 12:30 pm S. Dillon Ripley Center

13dec7:00 pmThievery Corporationw/ The Suffers7:00 pm 9:30 Club

14dec6:00 pmMumford Sonsw/ Maggie Rogers 6:00 pm Capital One Arena

Event Details

Mumford & Sons will embark on an extensive 60-date worldwide arena tour this fall featuring a groundbreaking new in-the-round stage design. Kicking off November 16 in Dublin and hitting Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. Dec. 14, the tour will span throughout next spring and includes fall North American stops at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center, Boston’s TD Garden, New York’s Madison Square Garden, DC’s Capital One Arena and Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena. Special guest Maggie Rogers will join as support. The band’s largest tour to date, the Delta Tour 2018/2019 includes over 800,000 tickets, which will go on sale starting next Friday, October 12 via https://www.mumfordandsons.com/live. See below for complete tour details. The tour celebrates the multi-Platinum, Grammy Award-winning band’s forthcoming album, Delta. Available now for pre-sale, the band’s fourth release hits shelves November 16 on Gentlemen of the Road/Glassnote Records. Delta was written collectively by the band, produced by Paul Epworth and recorded at London’s The Church Studios. Listen to the album’s first single, “Guiding Light,” HERE.
Already receiving widespread acclaim, the band recently debuted “Guiding Light” on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” with special guests The Roots. Watch the performance HERE. Marcus Mumford also joined host Jimmy Fallon as a guest on the couch. Watch the interview HERE. Additionally, Rolling Stone calls the single, “wildly experimental…Delta has the band incorporating elements of electronica, rap, jazz and other sonic territory rarely visited,” while Paste asserts, “If it’s any indication of how Delta will sound as a whole, this could shape up to be the band’s most experimental album yet.”

Time

(Friday) 6:00 pm

Location

Capital One Arena

601 F Street Northwest, Washington, D.C., 20004

Cost

$44 – $104

Learn More

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