Every Friday, the National Gallery of Arts Sculpture Garden offers free jazz concerts in the Sculpture Gardens. Experience an eclectic mix of top Washington-area jazz artists. Concerts take place in front of the pavilion café next to the grand reflecting pool and fountain.

Metro: Archives/Navy Memorial, Smithsonian and Judiciary Square.

Dates: Every Friday, September 12 to October 3, 2008

Time: 5 to 8:30 p.m.

Location: The Pavilion Café at the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden, 7th and Constitution NW, Washington, DC. Admission: Free

Performance Schedule

September 12 - 5-6:30 Bruce Ewan and the Solid Senders, 6:30 - 8:30 The U.S. Navy Commodores (Swing Jazz)
September 19 - Warren Wolf (Vibes)
September 26 - 5-6:30 The Rob Levit Trio, 6:30 – 8:30 The U.S. Navy Commodores (Swing Jazz)
October 3 - The Duke Ellington Jazz Festival Presents Frédéric Yonnet (Harmonica)

Penn Quarter Arts on Foot Festival

The Penn Quarter Arts on Foot Festival is a visual and performing arts festival featuring Washington, DC theaters, museums, and arts at a variety of venues in the Penn Quarter neighborhood of Washington, DC. The festival becomes an art walking tour with area restaurants, theaters, galleries, museums, and more than 80 visual artists participating and dozens of Downtown attractions hosting visual art exhibits, performances, workshops, demonstrations, films, concerts and children's activities.

Date and Times:September 13, 2008, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Location: Penn Quarter, between 4th and 14th Sts., Pennsylvania Ave. and L St.Washington, DC. Metro Stations Near Penn Quarter: Gallery Pl-Chinatown, Metro Center, Archives-Navy Mem’l-Penn Quarter, Federal Triangle, Mt. Vernon Sq/7th Street-Convention Ctr, and Judiciary Square
(Article by Rachel Cooper, About.com)

Washington DC 4th Annual 9/11 Unity Walk

In a powerful statement reminiscent of Gandhi's Walks, every church, synagogue, mosque and temple on Embassy Row opens their doors to each other and symbolically the world. People of all faiths will come together on September 14th for the 4th Annual 9/11 Unity Walk, the signature event in Washington, DC for building bridges between faiths.

When: Sunday, September 14
Time: 1:30pm
Where: Washington Hebrew Congregation, 3935 Macomb Street NW Washington, DC 20016 (Corner of Massachusetts and Macomb St. NW)

(by Rachel Cooper, About.com)

The Pentagon Memorial Dedication

The Pentagon Memorial will be officially dedicated and open to the public on September 11, 2008. To commemorate the Pentagon Memorial's public opening, the Navy Band and the Sea Chanters Chorus will perform a musical tribute from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. on the stage adjacent to the Memorial.The Pentagon Memorial commemorates the 184 lives lost in the Pentagon and on American Airlines Flight 77 during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

Memorial Location I-395 at Boundary Channel Drive Washington DC. The site is accessible from the Pentagon Metro Station. Parking is not available on site. Visitors can park at the Pentagon City Mall at 1100 S Hayes St, Arlington, VA, which is a short walk to the Pentagon.

(Article by Rachel Cooper, About.com)

Labor Day Events

The National Archives will be displaying the Treaty of Paris, the document that ended the American Revolution, beginning August 29. It will remain on view through September 3, which is the 225th anniversary of its signing. For more information, call 866-272-6262.

Carter Barron Blues Festival, Saturday, August 30, at noon at the Carter Barron Amphitheatre, 4850 Colorado Avenue, NW. Free but tickets are required. Call (202) 426-0486. (Metro: Take the S2 or S4 Metrobus from 16th & N Streets, NW)

On Saturday, August 30, from 2-10:00 p.m., The Kennedy Center will have more than 25 area theater companies hold reading and open rehearsals of plays and musicals that will be performed in the 2008-2009 theater season. The event is free. Kennedy Center, 2700 F St. NW. For more information call (202) 467-4600 or 800-444-1324. (Metro: Foggy Bottom)

NSO Capitol Concert, Sunday, August 31 at 8:00 p.m. on the west lawn of U.S. Capitol, East Capitol and First Streets. Emil de Cou will be conducting the orchestra. This is a free event. For more information call 202-467-4600.

Washington DC Restaurant Week

There’s no better time to taste what’s new on the Washington, DC restaurant scene than Washington, DC Restaurant Week. From August 11 through August 17, dozens of the city’s top restaurants will offer three-course, fixed price lunch and dinner specials priced at $20.08 (lunch) and $30.08 (dinner). For a list of participating restaurants visit www.opentable.com.

Summertime Weekly Performances & Events in DC

Weekdays from 12-1:30 p.m. (through September 28) Live! On Woodrow Wilson Plaza, Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. From salsa to strings and blues to swing, you’re in for an entertaining treat at Live! Savor world-renowned entertainment in a variety of flavors, such as African dance, Celtic folk songs, jazz, hip hop, Latin swing and pop rock. Every lunchtime performance is a crowd-pleaser and it’s free. (202) 312-1300 or http://www.itcdc.com/. (Metro: Federal Triangle)

Mondays 6:00 & 7:30 p.m., National Theatre, Helen Hayes Gallery, 321 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. (202) 783-3372 or http://www.nationaltheatre.org/. Monday showcase features local performers, original plays, singers, musical ensembles, dance, drama and comedy. Tickets are free but required and are distributed a half-hour before the show on the day of the performance. (Metro: Metro Center)

Mondays and Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. (through August), U.S. Navy Band Summer Concert Series, US Capitol, west side. (202) 433-2524 or http://www.navyband.navy.mil/. The U.S. Navy Band and specialty groups perform a series of concerts on the steps of the west side of the U.S. Capitol. Free. (Metro: Capitol South). Tuesdays at 8:00 p.m. (through August). U.S. Navy Band performs at the U.S. Navy Memorial, 701 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. (202) 433-2524 or http://www.navyband.navy.mil/. (Metro: Archives/Memorial)

Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. (through August 15), “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band, presents its outdoor concert series at the U.S. Capitol, West Terrace. These concerts feature light classics, country music, and popular band favorites.
(202) 433-4011 or http://www.marineband.usmc.mil/.

Thursdays 6:30-8:00 p.m. (through August 9), Sunset Serenades at the National Zoo, 3001 Connecticut Avenue, NW (202) 673-4482 or http://www.nationalzoo.si.edu/. Enjoy free summer concerts featuring local artists performing a wide variety of music, including jazz, blues, folk, rock/pop, reggae, and more (Metro: Woodley Park/Zoo)

Thursdays, 5:00-7:00 p.m. (through August 23), Farragut Sounds in the Square, Connecticut Avenue & K Street, NW. (202) 463-3400 or http://www.gtbid.com/. Thousands of office workers, tourists and residents relax to music in the renovated Farragut Square. (Metro: Farragut West)

Fridays at 5:00 p.m. (through August 31), Jazz in the Sculpture Garden, Constitution Avenue between 3rd and 9th Streets, NW, (202) 737-4215 or http://www.nga.gov/. Enjoy summer evenings of jazz in the National Gallery of Arts Sculpture Garden. Experience an eclectic mix of top Washington-area jazz artists. Concerts take place in front of the pavilion café next to the grand reflecting pool and fountain. (Metro: Archives/Navy Memorial)

Thursdays 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m., the Freer and Sackler Art Galleries offer an extended evening of contemporary art exhibitions and other cultural activities. Extended hours are through August 9. (Metro: Smithsonian)

Mondays at sunset, July 14-August 11, 2008, Screen on the Green, National Mall between 4th & 7th Streets, NW, (877) 262-5866. Recline in the heart of Washington, DC on a summer night, gazing at a gigantic movie screen and enjoy a classic film. This summer’s last two movies are “The Apartment” (1960) and “Superman” (1978). (Metro: Archives/Navy Memorial)

Fridays at dusk, (through August 22), All Bond movies are being featured, rain or shine, at Gateway Park, located at N. Lynn Street and Lee Highway just two blocks from Rosslyn. (Metro: Rosslyn) Call The Events Line (703-276-7759) or go to http://www.rosslynva.org/.

(Source: The Washington Post & the Web)