This beloved improv group is back by popular demand! Based on one audience suggestion (a title of a show that has never been written), The Improvised Shakespeare Company® creates a brand new, fully improvised Shakespearean masterpiece right before your eyes!

Kennedy Center Dance Council members Tammy Hurt and Brandye Lee provide commentary, via wireless headsets, about the choreography, dancers, and history of the art form as BalletX rehearses.
 

BalletX is Philadelphia’s premier contemporary ballet, lauded for producing 140 world premiere ballets by more than 80 choreographers from around the world. The acclaimed company returns with works by Justin Peck, Jodie Gates, Takehiro Ueyama, and Matthew Neenan.

The NSO invites all current, retired, veteran, and prior service members and their families to a special FREE performance of the hottest holiday bash in town—A Holiday Pops! Get ready to sing along, laugh, and embrace the magic of the season with sparkling renditions of your favorite holiday classics, Broadway showstoppers, and beyond.

The Jasper String Quartet is praised for its compelling, thought-provoking programs, which connect the music of underrepresented and living composers to canonical repertoire.

From the creator of Doc McStuffins and Vampirina, Finn is filled with vibrant sea creatures and catchy tunes. Hilarious and heartwarming, this world premiere musical chronicles the coming-of-age journey of a young shark following his dreams.

Grammy Award winner Kathy Mattea brings her deep acoustic music roots to an original and traditional holiday music program. 

Washington, D.C.’s most dazzling holiday concert returns! Get ready to sing along, laugh, and embrace the magic of the season with sparkling renditions of your favorite holiday classics, Broadway showstoppers, and beyond. Featuring special guests including Broadway darling Jessica Vosk, the Heritage Signature Chorale, and Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre narrating The Night Before Christmas*!

Your favorite holiday classics as you’ve never heard them! The Kennedy Center and NPR present A Jazz Piano Christmas, the annual sell-out event featuring jazz-infused renditions of the season’s most-loved tunes performed by Grammy Award^®–winning pianist Kris Davis, 2023 Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition winner Jahari Stampley, and Cuban sensation Roberto Fonseca.

The world’s first Grateful Drag band, BERTHA is an all-star collective of queer and allied East Nashville talent coming together in wigs and full face for a good cause. Fronted by a harmony trio of Berthas and backed by a rocking all-Bertha band, BERTHA has captured the heart and imagination of Deadheads everywhere

YahZarah is a District of Columbia–born Ghanian singer and songwriter hero is perfect for the times today. Her voice has been recognized in groundbreaking musical compositions with Erykah Badu. She’s also performed her music live on stage with The Roots, and traveled the world as a member of rock icon Lenny Kravitz’s band.

Amythyst Kiah is an artist of both daring originality and uncompromising depth. In 2021, the Grammy® nominee released her breakthrough album Wary + Strange. Maia Sharp has had her songs recorded by Bonnie Raitt, The Chicks, Trisha Yearwood, and many more. Through it all, Sharp has continued to record her own albums including nine solo releases.

Guitarist & Composer, Connor Leeds Holdridge and his trio perform an intimate set of blues-infused originals with the occasional deep cut from his favorite records.

These theatre workshops are free creative offering to the community around how to elevate your creative process. Workshops will be led by experts in their fields, including playwriting, choreography, and devising a solo show.

Launched as a partnership between Mark Morris Dance Group and the Brooklyn Parkinson Group, this program offers over 400 acclaimed dance classes each week for people with Parkinson’s Disease, in more than 250 communities and 24 countries. 

The Washington Musical Pathways Initiative (WMPI) is a talent development program for dedicated student musicians in grades 8–12 from communities that have been historically excluded from classical music and want to pursue music study in college.

John Doyle and Mick McAuley have been playing music together on the international stage for over 20 years. As multi-instrumentalist members of Irish American supergroup Solas, they combined to create part of the group’s unmistakable early sound which garnered critical worldwide acclaim.

The world’s first Grateful Drag band, BERTHA is an all-star collective of queer and allied East Nashville talent coming together in wigs and full face for a good cause. Fronted by a harmony trio of Berthas and backed by a rocking all-Bertha band, BERTHA has captured the heart and imagination of Deadheads everywhere

YahZarah is a District of Columbia–born Ghanian singer and songwriter hero is perfect for the times today. Her voice has been recognized in groundbreaking musical compositions with Erykah Badu. She’s also performed her music live on stage with The Roots, and traveled the world as a member of rock icon Lenny Kravitz’s band.

Amythyst Kiah is an artist of both daring originality and uncompromising depth. In 2021, the Grammy® nominee released her breakthrough album Wary + Strange. Maia Sharp has had her songs recorded by Bonnie Raitt, The Chicks, Trisha Yearwood, and many more. Through it all, Sharp has continued to record her own albums including nine solo releases.

Guitarist & Composer, Connor Leeds Holdridge and his trio perform an intimate set of blues-infused originals with the occasional deep cut from his favorite records.

Grammy Award winner Kathy Mattea brings her deep acoustic music roots to an original and traditional holiday music program. 

Washington, D.C.’s most dazzling holiday concert returns! Get ready to sing along, laugh, and embrace the magic of the season with sparkling renditions of your favorite holiday classics, Broadway showstoppers, and beyond. Featuring special guests including Broadway darling Jessica Vosk, the Heritage Signature Chorale, and Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre narrating The Night Before Christmas*!

Your favorite holiday classics as you’ve never heard them! The Kennedy Center and NPR present A Jazz Piano Christmas, the annual sell-out event featuring jazz-infused renditions of the season’s most-loved tunes performed by Grammy Award^®–winning pianist Kris Davis, 2023 Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition winner Jahari Stampley, and Cuban sensation Roberto Fonseca.

Add some soul to your holiday season with KEM at a brand-new, Kennedy Center-exclusive symphonic show! The Platinum-selling R&B star treats audiences to an evening of holiday magic and jazzy love songs at this intimate, uplifting concert featuring music from KEM’s acclaimed album What Christmas Means, fan favorites from his prolific career, fresh takes on comforting Christmas classics, and more. KEM is joined by special guest Ledisi at this one-of-a-kind concert!

Experience the magical sound of Celtic Woman this holiday season! This brand-new symphony show features the all-female ensemble’s favorite Yuletide songs: “Silent Night,” “Carol of the Bells,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Deck the Halls,” and more—along with iconic Celtic Woman classics including “Danny Boy,” “Amazing Grace,” and “You Raise Me Up.”

Hallelujah—Washington, D.C.’s favorite holiday tradition returns! Since its debut nearly three centuries ago, Handel’s Messiah reigns unchallenged as the ultimate celebration of holiday joy. This year, experience the larger-than-life oratorio in all its splendor as Masaaki Suzuki conducts the NSO, a stellar cast of soloists, and the University of Maryland Concert Choir in this always-daring, beloved classic.

Make it an unforgettable evening at D.C.’s hottest New Year’s Eve show! Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Kurt Elling and visionary hybrid guitarist Charlie Hunter reignite their funk, soul, and fusion–inspired partnership in SuperBlue—a fierce collection of new songs and surprising covers. They’re joined by dynamic jazz/R&B/funk drummer Nate Smith and the high-energy Huntertones Horns.

Since its pre-Broadway run at the Kennedy Center in 1986, Les Misérables has changed the world of musical theater. Now, Cameron Mackintosh’s acclaimed production of Boublil & Schönberg’s Tony Award-winning phenomenon returns to the Opera House after its sold-out run in 2023. Set against the backdrop of 19th-century France, the musical tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice, and redemption—a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit.

For its annual Kennedy Center engagement, the beloved company presents Ailey classics and new works, including Ailey’s signature Revelations.

Third Coast Percussion has distinguished itself through energetic and unexpected musical experiences that “push percussion in new directions” (NPR) and create “an inspirational sense of fun and curiosity” (Minnesota Star-Tribune).

Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s novel Crime and Punishment is a devastatingly modern psychological thriller that provided choreographer Helen Pickett and director James Bonas with a startling source for a ballet. Watch as striking movement depicts a young man’s journey towards redemption.

The Paul Taylor Dance Company makes a triumphant return to the Kennedy Center as the company commemorates 70 years of extraordinary dance, featuring a world premiere by Hope Boykin (Artistic Advisor for Dance Education at the Kennedy Center).

Electronic indie band Balún differentiates itself through genre-morphing explorations and experimental creativity with its “dreambow” sound, echoing inspiration from reggaeton’s “dembow” pulse and dream pop.

Wildly relevant and bitingly funny, Eureka Day comes to the Kennedy Center in an exclusive engagement direct from the Manhattan Theatre Club on Broadway!

Jonathan Spector’s play, directed by Tony Award® winner Anna D. Shapiro, is set in a private California elementary school with a Board of Directors that values inclusion above all else—that is, until an outbreak of the mumps forces everyone in the community to reconsider the school’s liberal vaccine policy. As cases rise, the board realizes with horror that they’ve got to do what they swore they never would: make a choice that won’t please absolutely everybody.

Since Riverdance first emerged onto the world stage, its Grammy Award®–winning fusion of Irish and international dance and music has captured the hearts of millions. Now the show is embarking on a special anniversary tour, bringing its magic to audiences worldwide.

The whole family will delight in the misadventures of the spirited Swanilda, her foolish sweetheart Frantz, and mad inventor Dr. Coppélius in New York City Ballet’s Coppélia. The New York Times calls it a “story ballet done to perfection.”

BalletX is Philadelphia’s premier contemporary ballet, lauded for producing 140 world premiere ballets by more than 80 choreographers from around the world. The acclaimed company returns with works by Justin Peck, Jodie Gates, Takehiro Ueyama, and Matthew Neenan.

Your favorite holiday classics as you’ve never heard them! The Kennedy Center and NPR present A Jazz Piano Christmas, the annual sell-out event featuring jazz-infused renditions of the season’s most-loved tunes performed by Grammy Award^®–winning pianist Kris Davis, 2023 Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition winner Jahari Stampley, and Cuban sensation Roberto Fonseca.

Created by the Emmy® Award–winning writer from Schitt’s Creek, this hilarious new musical flips the script on the greatest love story ever told. & Juliet asks: What would happen next if Juliet didn’t end it all over Romeo? Get whisked away on a fabulous journey as she ditches her famous ending for a fresh beginning and a second chance at life and love—her way.

Add some soul to your holiday season with KEM at a brand-new, Kennedy Center-exclusive symphonic show! The Platinum-selling R&B star treats audiences to an evening of holiday magic and jazzy love songs at this intimate, uplifting concert featuring music from KEM’s acclaimed album What Christmas Means, fan favorites from his prolific career, fresh takes on comforting Christmas classics, and more. KEM is joined by special guest Ledisi at this one-of-a-kind concert!

Make it an unforgettable evening at D.C.’s hottest New Year’s Eve show! Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Kurt Elling and visionary hybrid guitarist Charlie Hunter reignite their funk, soul, and fusion–inspired partnership in SuperBlue—a fierce collection of new songs and surprising covers. They’re joined by dynamic jazz/R&B/funk drummer Nate Smith and the high-energy Huntertones Horns.

After making history as the first DJ and hip-hop artist to headline the Kennedy Center Opera House in 2022 and launching his three-day Club Quarantine Live Residency in 2023, legendary artist, DJ, photographer, and Kennedy Center Hip Hop Culture Council Member D-Nice brings Club Quarantine Live back for another year—this time in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall!

Celebrate the end of 2024 with John Oliver, who shares his warm, witty jokes in a new stand-up set. Oliver is an Emmy® and Writers Guild Award–winning writer and comedian, and is the host and producer of the HBO show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

The LA Times named Kenny Barron “one of the top jazz pianists in the world” and Jazz Weekly calls him “the most lyrical piano player of our time.” The NEA Jazz Master—along with his trio featuring bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa and drummer Savannah Harris—brings soul, grace, wit, and an unmatched ability to mesmerize audiences with elegant playing and infectious rhythms.