On November 2, 2026, Washington DC has free Smithsonian museums, the salsa exhibition Puro Ritmo at the National Museum of American History, a Georgetown spy walking tour with a former CIA officer, live music, and a week full of events building toward DC Beer Fest at Nationals Park on November 7.
In brief
On November 2, 2026, Washington DC has free Smithsonian museums open from 10 a.m., the bilingual salsa exhibition ¡Puro Ritmo! at the National Museum of American History, a 90-minute Georgetown spy walking tour led by former CIA officers, live concerts, and a week of events building toward DC Beer Fest at Nationals Park on November 7.
Free museums: the easiest yes in DC
All Smithsonian museums in DC have free admission and are open every day of the year except December 25. The National Museum of American History is open every day from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The National Museum of Natural History is also open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., except December 25.
Four museums require free entry passes: the African American History and Culture Museum, the Air and Space Museum in DC, the National Zoo, and the Cooper Hewitt in New York City. Book those at si.edu before you leave the house.
¡Puro Ritmo! at the National Museum of American History
This is the exhibition to see right now. The National Museum of the American Latino presents its second major exhibition on the origins of salsa music, running from April 18, 2026 through November 26, 2028. The bilingual exhibition traces salsa's roots and rise through nearly 300 objects.
The show traces salsa's roots from the dance halls of Havana to the clubs of New York City, Washington, DC, Los Angeles and beyond. A centerpiece is the debut of five ensembles and four pairs of shoes worn by Celia Cruz, celebrated worldwide as the Queen of Salsa.
Jorge Zamanillo, director of the National Museum of the American Latino, said the exhibition "tells a vital chapter of the American experience." "Salsa is not simply a Latin genre; it's become a great American musical tradition," he said. It sits in the Molina Family Latino Gallery inside the American History Museum on Constitution Avenue. Admission is free.
Georgetown spy tour: 90 minutes with a former CIA officer
If museums aren't your thing today, consider going outside. Spyher, founded by CIA veteran Rosanna Minchew, offers guided spy-themed walking tours in Georgetown and along Embassy Row, with guides who are all former CIA officers.
Along the way the guide shares personal anecdotes from their time overseas and covers the history of the people who called Georgetown home, including leaders, heroes and traitors. The tour explores hidden histories from WWII and the Cold War. It begins outside Oak Hill Cemetery and ends about 0.7 miles away outside of Martin's Tavern. The tour runs approximately 90 minutes and is offered in English, with a maximum of 25 travelers per group. Tickets start from $85 per adult with free cancellation available.
Live music and arts tonight
Tonight (November 2) also has a Brass Against concert and a Hovvdy with Christian Lee Hutson show in DC, both listed on SeatGeek. Check those platforms for venue and ticket details, as showtimes can update.
Other active exhibitions today include In Pursuit of Life, Liberty & Happiness on the National Mall, Wendy Red Star: Whispering Spirit in Penn Quarter and Chinatown, and To Hear Her Speak: Black Women and Shakespeare on Capitol Hill.
Coming up this week: DC Beer Fest at Nationals Park
Make a plan now for Saturday. DC Beer Fest returns November 7 to Nationals Park, featuring seasonal brews from over 80 craft breweries, 200 beers, local food trucks, and live music. Two sessions are available: noon to 3 p.m. and 5 to 8 p.m. General admission is $55 and includes unlimited samples plus access to live music, a dueling piano bar, and DC's best food trucks, with food sold separately. This is a 21 and over event. The address is 1500 South Capitol Street SE.
Free community events and outdoor options
There is at least one free thing happening in DC today, with 42 free things across the week, including free food, museum free days, library programs, classes, and events. Free health screenings for DC residents are available through the Health Betterment Initiative. The DC Public Library system runs free programming throughout the week at branches across all eight wards.
If you want something that costs nothing and requires zero planning, the National Mall monuments are always open. Walk from the Lincoln Memorial at the western end past the Reflecting Pool, the Washington Monument, and the Capitol. No tickets, no crowds at dawn or dusk.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
