10 Kids Euro Festival Events You Don’t Want To Miss | October 21–27
Your #KidsEUFest Weekly Round-Up
Kids Euro Festival is returning for its tenth year with two weeks of fun activities for your whole family. With more than 85 unique performances, concerts, workshops and films, we’ve selected some events you don’t want to miss. All events are free, but most require a reservation.
This weekend: October 21 & 22:
1. Film Screenings | Denmark, France and Croatia
Various locations and times (click on links below for more information)
Superheroes, fairy tales, and a young detective, oh my! On Saturday, 10/21, Antboy springs back into action when strange things start happening in Middellund. The Embassy of Denmark’s screening of Antboy 3 is the last chapter in the superhero trilogy. The same day, we travel to magical lands with the Embassy of France’s two showings of Ivan Tsarevitch and the Changing Princess, directed by the renowned Michel Ocelot. On Sunday, 10/22, young-adult novel character, Koko, comes to life in the live-action film Koko and the Ghosts when he starts investigating the mysterious death of an old man. Will Antboy save Middellund? What happens to the cursed princess? Can Koko get to the bottom of a series of peculiar events? Join us this weekend to find out!
2. The Family Day: (Un)Common Threads | Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Sweden and United Kingdom
The George Washington University and The Textile Museum | 10/21, 10:00AM -4:00PM
Bring your friends and family for a day of art, music, and thinking outside the box. Meet Box Project artist Ai Kijima and watch her turn second-hand scraps of fabric into spunky, vibrant collages. Delve deeper into the captivating exhibition with a scavenger hunt (at 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM). If you’re feeling inspired, put your own creative spin on The Box Project challenge by designing your own box to take home. No reservation required.
3. Story Time with German Songs and Rhymes | Germany
Georgetown Library | 10/21, 10:30 AM
Enjoy traditional story time with Germany-themed books (in English) and lots of songs and rhymes in German. Share in the fun with your children as we explore games, stories, and the sounds of a different language. This program is designed to encourage children to develop a lifelong love of reading and learning and to stimulate an interest in German language and culture. It will take place during regular Preschool Story Time. No reservation required.
4. Maria Skłodowska-Curie Chemistry Workshop |Poland
KID Museum | 10/22, 3:00 PM-4:30 PM
Do you have a budding scientist on your hands? Join the Embassy of Poland for the Maria Skłodowska-Curie Chemistry Workshop. Your child will do hands-on experiments and learn about Polish scientist Marie Curie, the first person and only woman to win the Nobel Prize twice, and the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different sciences – now that’s impressive! The Embassy of Poland celebrates the 150th anniversary of Curie’s birthday this year by bringing two female scientists from Poland for Kids Euro Festival. Due to high demand, we’ve added a second workshop at 3:00 PM. Reserve your spot now.
Looking Ahead: Monday, October 23 - Friday, October 27
Daytime Activities:
5. DC Public Libraries Events | France, United Kingdom, Spain, the Netherlands, and Poland
Various locations and times (click on links below for more information)
On Monday, 10/23, join the Embassy of France at Mount Pleasant Library for a reading of the children’s book The Mighty Lalouche. Following the story, children bring the characters to life by acting out the story. On Tuesday, 10/24 at Benning Library, children explore famous sites in London like the Big Ben and Buckingham Palace through books. Wednesday, 10/25, Deanwood Library celebrates Spain in a special Preschool Story Time. The same day at Shaw Library, children can taste the Netherlands with stroopwafels and drop licorice. They can even make their own hagelslag (sprinkles on top of buttered bread)! We finish the week on Friday, 10/27 at Mount Pleasant Library with the Embassy of Poland’s screening of Copernicus’ Star, a film about famed 16th century polish astronomer, Nicolaus Copernicus, who discovered the Earth revolved around the sun. No reservations required.
6. Music and Jazz Workshops | Netherlands
Sitar Arts Center | 10/25, 1:30 PM & 2:15 PM
This is a fun event to introduce children to the beauty of music. Hit a key on the piano, strum the bass and bang the drums in two workshops led by Philippe Lemm Trio, a Dutch-American jazz group. They’ll teach children why these instruments sound the way they do and how to use them in music. The first workshop at 1:30pm, Introduction to Instruments and Music, is designed for children ages 2–7. Reserve your spot now. The second workshop at 2:15 PM, Introduction to Jazz, is for children ages 7-12. Reserve your spot now.
7. Mask making | Estonia
Sitar Arts Center | 10/26, 4:00 PM
With Halloween right around the corner, learn how other cultures celebrate this spooky holiday. Martinmas — Estonian Halloween — takes places on November 10 each year. This old tradition was important for ensuring a plentiful harvesting season. Nowadays, it’s a fun activity for school children who disguise themselves, usually with masks, and go door-to-door singing songs, asking riddles, and wishing good luck and happiness. Bring your child to make their very own mask for Estonian Halloween. We’ll provide the art supplies. Reserve your spot now.
Evening Activities:
8. Film Screenings | Finland, Italy and Luxembourg
Various locations and times (click on links below for more information)
On Monday, 10/24, catch two films at the Embassy of Finland and the Embassy of Italy. You’ve probably heard of Angry Birds, but did you know it was developed in Finland, an EU Member State? The characters of the Angry Birds game come to the big screen in the animated comedy, The Angry Birds Movie, starring American actors Josh Gad, Jason Sudeikis and Danny McBride. Reserve your spot via wasevents@formin.fi. The same evening at the Embassy of Italy, there is a screening of the Italian film When I Will Be a Child. We’ll travel through time, starting in the 1950s and ending in the present, following six different stories of the moments children realize they’re growing up. Reserve your spot now. Get in the spirit of Halloween on Friday, 10/27,with the film Extraordinary Tales, an adaptation of several Edgar Allen Poe stories and a product of the United States and three EU Member States: Luxembourg, Belgium and Spain. Reserve your spot now.
9. Introduction to Jazz| Netherlands
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage | 10/26, 6:00 PM
Can’t make Philippe Lemm Trio’s workshops during the day? Attend the American-Dutch jazz group’s evening performance and workshop. This is an interactive performance for kids to learn about the piano, bass, and drums. Your child find out why these instruments sound the way they do and how we use them in making music. No reservation required.
10. Forgotten Princesses | Lithuania
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage | 10/27, 6:00 PM
This contemporary dance performance by Padi Dapi Fish of Lithuania is about the search of each child’s unique qualities and how to cherish them while creating valuable, respectful interactions with others. Putting real-life situations into the imaginary world of princesses, dancers talk about the unique princess inherent in each of us. No reservation required.
Now in its 10th year, Kids Euro Festival brings Europe’s most talented children’s entertainers to the DC metro area each fall for two weeks of free performances, concerts, workshops, movies, storytelling, puppetry, dance, magic, and cinema. With programs both for the general public and for school groups, more than 10,000 DC-area children and their families enjoy Kids Euro Festival programs each year. For more information, visit kidseurofestival.org or follow the Kids Euro Festival page on Facebook.
