What to do this weekend, including Baltimore’s Birthday Bash and a Patty Griffin concert

Happy birthday, Baltimore! The city turns 297 this Friday, and that calls for a dance party. Grab your people and head to the Baltimore War Memorial for Baltimore’s Birthday Bash 2026, featuring sounds from DJ Tanz, an open bar and birthday desserts. Tickets start around $90, with proceeds supporting Live Baltimore.

Read on for more to do this weekend, including a Grateful Dead planetarium show, a celebration of Filipino history, Sundance film screenings and afternoon tea with a 100-year-old quilter.

Thursday, July 30

Craft and Cinema Night

Bring your latest craft project to Creative Alliance for a night of making and movie-watching. Knit, crochet, embroider or sketch during a screening of the ’90s film “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion,” starring Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow.

Prefer action flicks? Creative Alliance will screen the Wesley Snipes classic “Passenger 57” two days later (sans crafts). Rotten Tomatoes gives the movie a whopping 4.6 out of 10, but don’t let that stop you from going. DJ 2-Tone Jones is adding a whole new layer, with a live score blending hip-hop, soul, rock and more.

Time: 7:30 p.m. Thursday; 7 p.m. Saturday

Price: $15-$18 Thursday; $20-$23 Saturday

Location: Creative Alliance (3134 Eastern Ave., Baltimore)

Family friendly? Geared toward adults

When Life Gives You Lemonade

It’s hard to believe a decade has passed since Beyoncé dropped her acclaimed visual album “Lemonade.” Experience it again with DJ Ty Alexander during a sunset screening and dance party by the Patapsco River. Whiskey tastings and a conversation about the album’s significance round out the night. VIP tickets get you early entry and exclusive access aboard a Flohom luxury houseboat.

Time: 5 p.m.

Price: $49.87-$81.88

Location: Baltimore Peninsula (321 E. Cromwell St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? 21 and over

‘What They Don’t See’

WombWork Productions’ Summer Teen Ensemble takes on youth incarceration in this original production. Witness young artists confronting the impacts of the juvenile justice system and the school-to-prison pipeline as they imagine different pathways forward.

Time: 6:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday

Price: Free

Location: UMB Community Engagement Center (16 S. Poppleton St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? Yes

There’s a Story in Every Name

Dr. K. Zauditu-Selassie, a local author and retired Coppin State University professor, leads this writing workshop as part of the House of Melo Community Empowerment Symposium. You won’t just sit back and take notes here; participants will examine their names and “ways of narrating and crafting a story that presents that unique self.”

Time: 6-7:30 p.m.

Price: Free

Location: Enoch Pratt Free Library (1251 Light St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? For adults

Friday, July 31

Music Under the Dome: Grateful Dead

Trip out under flashing lights and moving graphics at this planetarium show set to a Grateful Dead soundtrack. Get there early for happy hour, science demonstrations and access to select exhibits. Each show runs about 45 minutes.

Time: 8 and 9 p.m.

Price: $35

Location: Maryland Science Center (601 Light St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? 21 and over

‘American Mosaics’ Closing Reception

What does America at 250 mean to you? See how artists have responded to this question across 100 different canvases at the closing reception for “American Mosaic,” organized by the Baltimore County Arts Guild. Artwork will be for sale.

Time: 6-8 p.m.

Price: Free

Location: The Catonsville Clubhouse (10 St. Timothys Lane, Catonsville)

Family friendly? Yes

Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour

No need to travel west — the SNF Parkway is bringing Sundance to Baltimore with a selection of this year’s best shorts. The lineup ranges from a nonfiction piece about Black beekeepers tending hives in rural Georgia to an animated piece about a man caring for his wife as she experiences hallucinations.

Time: 7:30 p.m.

Price: $16.79

Location: SNF Parkway Theater (5 W. North Ave., Baltimore)

Family friendly? Check individual film ratings and use your best judgment.

Saturday, Aug. 1

Charm City Run Timonium Summer Block Party

Someone once said that running is like cilantro — you either love or hate it. If running is your thing, then lace up for this block party organized by Charm City Run Timonium. The morning starts with Dash’s 5K Dash, to honor Dash Daichman, a 3-year-old with a rare neurodegenerative condition, and raise money for the University of Maryland Pediatric ICU Parent and Family Advisory Council (PFAC). A block party follows with arts and crafts, caricatures and workout classes. Bring school supply donations to support Baltimore’s Jeremiah Program,.

Time: 7-10 a.m.

Price: Free

Location: 1313 York Road, Timonium

Family friendly? Yes

Watch and Play Kids Day: America’s Awesome Kids

Celebrate America’s 250th birthday and the new docuseries “America’s Awesome Kids” at Maryland Public Television. Kids can watch the show spotlighting children from across the country in all their beautiful diversity, make arts and crafts, dance around and play games. The dress code encourages kids to rock red, white and blue.

Time: 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Price: Free; registration required

Location: Maryland Public Television (11767 Owings Mills Blvd., Owings Mills)

Family friendly? Yes

An Afternoon with Patty Griffin

Folk singer Patty Griffin has been named one of the 100 greatest living American songwriters, praised for “songs that create complete emotional portraits of specific people.” Catch the two-time Grammy winner at Rams Head on Stage when her summer tour stops in Annapolis for a matinee performance.

Time: 2 p.m.

Price: $108.50-$285.88

Location: Rams Head on Stage (33 West St., Annapolis)

Family friendly? All ages. A parent/guardian must accompany minors.

Stitched in History: Quilts, Codes & Conversation

Join Edith Younger Edmunds — a 100-year-old quilter, historian and best-selling author — for afternoon tea at the Harriet Tubman Cultural Center. Edmunds will talk about the art of quilting and its connections to the Underground Railroad and broader African-American history. Arrive before tea for the Howard County BLK Author Expo, showcasing African American authors from the region.

Time: 12:30–2 p.m.

Price: $28.52

Location: Harriet Tubman Cultural Center (8045 Harriet Tubman Lane, Columbia)

Family friendly? Yes

Hiraya Manawari Vendor Market + Benefit Concert

Celebrate the Philippines’ history of resistance and imagine a better future for oppressed people everywhere at this market and benefit concert. Organized by Binhi Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle, a University of Maryland, Baltimore County student solidarity organization, the event includes deejays, a live band and a mini printing-making workshop.

Time: Noon-5 p.m. market; 7-9 p.m. concert

Price: Free

Location: Making Space Bmore (709 N. Howard St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? The market is all ages. Concert geared toward adults.

John Williams and Steven Spielberg: Movie Magic

Composer John Williams and director Steven Spielberg are one of Hollywood’s most illustrious duos. Hear compositions from their soundtracks, including “Jaws,” “E.T.,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Jurassic Park,” performed by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

Time: 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday

Price: $75-$141

Location: Friday: Music Center at Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda); Saturday: Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (1212 Cathedral St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? Recommended for children ages 8 and up.

Sunday, Aug. 2

Synergy Artist Talk

Hear from artists in the exhibition “Synergy” at the Mount Vernon art space, Quid Nunc Art Gallery. Maurice Scarlett III, Jada McAliley and G. Pack share the stories behind their work — and how their self-portraits come together in a single composition at the center of the show.

Time: 4–6 p.m.

Price: Free

Location: Quid Nunc Art Gallery (1007 N. Charles St., Baltimore)

Family friendly? Yes