The Folger Shakespeare Library marks the Bard's birthday with an open house, complete with jesters and jugglers, on April 17.

Best Spring Events in Washington

Theater & Arts

A Mid-Spring Night’s Dream

Celebrate the Bard’s birthday month as you like it at the Folger Shakespeare Library (201 East Capitol St., SE). April kicks off with a treat for the ears at Fête d’Eté: French Cantatas and Suites (April 8–10) with 17th- and 18th-century musical tidings. Bring the gang to Shakespeare’s Birthday Open House (April 17) for live entertainment from the jugglers, jesters and budding actors (yes, there will be cake), and snag your tickets for “Cyrano,” starting April 26, for the classic battle between wits and dashing good looks. (A good joke gets us every time.)

No Fear Here

Living-legend playwright Edward Albee will receive well-deserved hosannas from Arena Stage (1101 6th St., SW) this spring with productions of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” (through April 10) in the Kreeger and “At Home at the Zoo” (through April 24) in the Kogod Cradle. In “Woolf,” directed by Pam MacKinnon, George and Martha invite a young couple over for cocktails and reveal the darker side of marriage with wonderfully acerbic lines that landed it a Tony Award. Albee’s new work expands on “The Zoo Story” and walks the tightrope of relationships among three New Yorkers.

First Song

We have to admire Wolf Trap’s (1551 Trap Rd., Vienna, Va.) ambition. The only national park for the performing arts has commissioned yet another opera, “The Inspector,” and its world premiere will take place in the acoustically sublime Barns on April 27, 29 and May 1. Also on tap in the Barns: political comedy from Second City (March 11–12) with “Fair & Unbalanced,” roots rock from Cravin’ Dogs (April 2) and soulful Celtic harmony from Orla Fallon (April 6–7), pictured left.

Museums & Galleries

Family Flights

The Mall’s most popular stop, the National Air and Space Museum (Independence Avenue and 6th St., SW) and its sister museum, the Udvar-Hazy Center (14390 Air & Space Museum Pkwy., Chantilly, Va.) have plenty in store for spring. We like the Center’s family days, including Women in Aviation and Space (March 12), which highlights women’s contributions to aviation and aerospace, and National Robotics Week (April 9–17), with robotic demos and hands-on activities. Plus, catch the Kites of Asia (March 19) on the Mall, where children can decorate their own flying machines and watch indoor kite-flying demonstrations.

Green Homage

Here’s a new way to go green: Visit the Textile Museum’s latest exhibit, “Green: The Color and the Cause,” opening April 16. The multifaceted exhibit explores the cultural and artistic significance of the spring color (themes include man and nature, green as a color and the significance of water). Pieces showcase stitched canvases, sculptures and—for the first time in the museum’s history—two site-specific installations.

Beauty Above

You’ve probably appreciated her work, but never considered the depth and intricacy required to pull it off. Now the National Building Museum (401 F St., NW; nbm.org) sheds more than a little light on gorgeous mosaics and murals in monumental buildings with the March opening of “Walls Speak: The Narrative Art of Hildreth Meiere.” The artist’s canvases were domes, walls and windows—even the apse mosaic in the National Cathedral’s Chapel of the Resurrection. Her work redefined heavenly pursuits, and the new exhibit frames the bounty of a visionary and infinitely patient artist.

Special Events

Creature Features

With more than 140 films in 50 venues around town, the Environmental Film
Festival, March 15–27, isn’t just a documentary-heavy downer about the state of Mother Earth; instead, it’s a celebration and examination of the planet’s natural resources, flora and fauna. Expect stirring stories, along with national and world premieres of short and feature-length films screened in museums, embassies and movie theaters across town.

Taking It to the Streets

Take a break from the cherry blossoms and head to Kushi’s Japanese Street Festival April 1–3 (5th and K streets, NW). It kicks off Friday with a Japanese fashion show, musical entertainment and a cocktail party. Throughout the weekend, look for outdoor markets with relics from Japanese artists, plus fish-cutting and sushi-rolling demonstrations from the experts behind the (sushi) bar.

European Influence

Georgetown is upping its European quota … for the weekend, anyway. Stroll along the Book Hill neighborhood April 29 and 30 for the annual Georgetown French Market, featuring European cuisine (think crepes and cheese plates, for starters), musicians and deep discounts in shops along Wisconsin Avenue.