LABOR DAY WEEKEND
Labor Day Weekend at Glen Echo Park provides an incredible opportunity to immerse yourself in the arts!
RSVP for Labor Day Weekend Events
RSVPs preferred, not required
Labor Day Art Show
The 55th Annual Labor Day Art Show at Glen Echo Park will be held in the historic Spanish Ballroom from Saturday, September 4 through Monday, September 7, 2026 from 12pm - 6pm. The exhibition features the work of more than 400 artists from the mid-Atlantic region. The show includes works in a wide range of artistic media, including sculpture, painting, drawing, ceramics, glass, jewelry, fiber arts, photography, furniture, and more! A Donor Preview and an Opening Reception for the public are both held on Friday, September 4.
Global Rhythms
The Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture is pleased to present a FREE showcase of music, dance, and storytelling from around the world over Labor Day Weekend! This event features performances by artists sharing traditions from a variety of cultures.
Saturday, September 5, 2026
12pm - 6pm
Carousel Rides
The historic 1921 Dentzel carousel will operate all weekend, 11am - 5pm each day. Learn More >>
"Meet the Band Organ" | Sunday: 10:30am - 11am. The carousel building will open 30 minutes early to give visitors a chance to see the Park's 100-year-old Wurlitzer 165 Military Style band organ up close. Learn More >>
Food & Beverages
- Praline Café | Open Saturday - Monday
- Saté (Indonesian Food) | Saturday & Sunday
- Fly Pizza | Saturday
- Pacha Mama Juice Co. | Monday
Open Studios & Resident Artists/Organizations
- Art Glass Center
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Art Glass Center >> | Saturday & Sunday: 12pm - 4pm
Open studio & gallery and studio tours
- Glen Echo Park Aquarium
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Glen Echo Park Aquarium >> | By appointment
- Glen Echo Glassworks
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- Glen Echo Pottery
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Glen Echo Pottery >> | Saturday - Monday: 11am - 6pm
Labor Day Weekend Pottery Sale
- Photoworks
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Photoworks >> | Saturday: 12pm - 4pm; Sunday: 1pm - 4pm
- the Puppet Co.
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the Puppet Co. >> | Saturday & Sunday: 11:30am & 2:30pm; Monday: 10:30am
Little Red Riding Hood and the 3 Little Pigs
August 22 - September 20, 2026We all think we know the Big Bad Wolf from the classic fairytales, but what if it’s the same Wolf in both stories? What if there’s been a big mistake? What if the Wolf isn’t so big or so bad?
Directed By Danny Pushkin
Starring Lee Gerstenhaber, Mollie Greenberg James, and Brigid Wallace Harper. Swing Andrew Quilpa.
Recommended ages 4+. Run time approximately 45 minutes.
- SilverWorks Studio & Gallery
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SilverWorks Studio & Gallery >> | Saturday & Sunday: 11am - 5pm
- Stone Tower Studio
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Stone Tower Studio >> | Saturday - Monday: 11am - 5pm
J.Jordan Bruns: Garden Variety
- Sculpture Studio
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Sculpture Studio >> | Friday & Saturday: 11am - 1pm
- Washington Conservatory of Music
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Washington Conservatory of Music >>
Capital Horns performance during Global Rhythms | Saturday: 5:15pm - 6pm | Bumper Car PavilionWashington Conservatory of Music's Capital Horns invite you to tap your toes—and maybe even grab a dance partner! Join us for an entertaining program of arrangements for horn ensemble by Capital Horns members Doug Fox and Nielsen Dalley. The program travels through a lively mix of musical styles, including a tango by Astor Piazzolla, bossa nova by Antônio Carlos Jobim, spirited sailing songs, folk songs, polkas and waltzes, ABBA’s Mamma Mia, and the global hit Despacito. Learn more about Capital Horns >>
- Yellow Barn Studio & Gallery
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Yellow Barn Studio & Gallery >> | Saturday - Monday: 12pm - 5pm
Friends of the Yellow Barn Studio: Drawing, Watercolor and Digital Art Show
Reception - Saturday, September 5, 5pm - 7pm
Partnership Galleries
- Popcorn Gallery
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Popcorn Gallery >> | Saturday - Monday: 12pm - 6pm
- Stone Tower Gallery
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Stone Tower Gallery >> | Saturday - Monday: 12pm - 6pm
- Park View Gallery
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Park View Gallery >> | Saturday: 10am - 6pm
Social Dances
- Zouk Dance with District Zouk
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Zouk Dance with District Zouk >> | Saturday: 7:00pm - 12:30am | Ballroom Back Room
Join us for a District Zouk social at the Park! As usual, we'll have an open level beginner-friendly class followed by social dancing. We'll also have a lambada practica before the class so our lambada students and dancers can practice together. Come get your dance on!
- Square Dance (Bumper Car Squares)
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Bumper Car Squares >> | Sunday: 2:45pm - 5:30pm | Bumper Car Pavilion
Join us for square dancing at Glen Echo Park! Do-si-do and swing your partner at an afternoon Bumper Car Squares dance. We'll start out with a square dance intro lesson for all skill levels from 2:45pm - 3pm. Then, caller Dakota Karper will lead a rousing square dance to live music from Critton Hollow String Band! The band will play from 3pm - 5:30pm so get ready for big square dancing fun that still gets you home early.
No partner or special attire required. Shoes with backs are recommended (no flip flops).
No need to worry about the weather! We'll dance in the covered, open air Bumper Car Pavilion, which has industrial fans and overhead radiant heaters, ready for rain or shine, hot or cold.
Mark your calendar for 2026!
September 6 | October 4 | November 1 | December 6
Tickets
Discounted Advance Tickets || $12/adults (Online only) || Sales end at 11:59pm the night before the dance
Same-Day Tickets || $15/adult (Online or at the door), $5/teen (At the door only), FREE for ages 12 and under (At the door only) || Cash, check, or credit cardAll sales final.
- Walt Dance with Waltz Time
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Walt Dance with Waltz Time >> | Sunday: 6:15pm - 9:30pm | Bumper Car Pavilion
Enjoy a summer evening with waltzing and more in the breezy Bumper Car Pavilion. Live music by SOME ASSEMBLY with Mary Fiora (woodwinds), Donna Moore Boylan (keyboard), Adam Lee (guitar), Joe Klausner (strings), and Iain Sturrock (percussion, guitar, vocals). Beginner Social Waltz lesson starts at 6:15pm, included with admission. No partner required, participants are encouraged to rotate so everyone can learn and practice the moves. Live music for dancing - waltz mostly, with polka, schottische, tango, swing and more - from 7:00pm - 9:30pm.
- Tango Dance with Tango Brillante
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Tango Dance with Tango Brillante >> | Sunday: 6:30pm - 11:00pm | Ballroom Back Room
Tango Brillante presents lessons and a dance. Tango lesson (6:30pm), Milonga lesson (7:30pm), Social Dance (8:30-11:00pm). Live music by Ramon Gutierrez and Emmanuel Trifilio!
Tickets at the door
$15 for social dance only; $20 for one lesson; $30 includes both lessons and the social dance
National Park Service Programming
- Glen Echo Park Civil Rights and History Tour
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Glen Echo Park Civil Rights and History Tour >> | Saturday: 10:00am - 10:45am | Dentzel carousel
Who led the Civil Rights protests to desegregate Glen Echo Amusement Park in 1960? Which amusement park ride was a focal point of the protests? How did Glen Echo Park become part of the National Park System? Explore Glen Echo Park’s history on this 45-minute free walking tour and find out the answers to these questions and more! This 45-minute ranger-led tour starts at the Dentzel Carousel at 10:00am. No registration required.This tour takes place monthly on the first Saturday of the month from 10:00am - 10:45am, meeting at the Dentzel carousel.
- Junior Ranger Swearing In Event
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Junior Ranger Swearing In Event >> | Saturday: 11:00am | Candy Corner
Meet the ranger at the Candy Corner on the first Saturday of the month at 11:00am. to be sworn in as a junior ranger or to be issued any of the various junior ranger books from the north district of the George Washington Memorial ParkwayThis event takes place monthly on the first Saturday of the month, 11:00am at the Candy Corner ranger station.
Suggested Donation: $10
Every contribution helps us present free festivals, concerts, preserve and maintain the Park's historic buildings, and more.
Interested in becoming a sponsor? Click here to see our Labor Day Weekend Sponsorship Opportunities. For more information, please email development@glenechopark.org.
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