Music, dancing, drinking, and networking thrive in the nation's capital. As a town with legendary musical history, where Duke Ellington first played in the U Street district known as "Black Broadway," Washington D.C. boasts spectacular live music, especially jazz. Chuck Brown, godfather of go-go, fills clubs at late-night gigs. The U Street Corridor stays true to roots as the epicenter of jazz culture, with HR-57 and the Lincoln Theatre packing in crowds. After a 30-year closure, Bohemian Caverns -- once hosting Ellington, Cab Calloway and Ella Fitzgerald -- is an up-and-comer, where entrees are named for jazz luminaries and décor harkens to the 1920s. In Georgetown, Blues Alley draws crowds to the nation's oldest jazz supper club. The Kennedy Center has the KC Jazz Club, while the Smithsonian and other museums often stage summer outdoor jazz sets. Bluegrass and country is found at Madam's Organ in Adams Morgan, with free outdoor concerts at the Library of Congress. Electronica has emerged on the capital scene, thanks to the Thievery Corporation, known for eclectic DJ sessions at the 18th Street Lounge. Also into electronica are Chi Cha Lounge, Local 16 and Gazuza. While the MCI Center fills up for national headliners, Washington D.C. boasts several intimate concert venues: The 9:30 Club, Black Cat, and Warner Theatre book hip-hop, rock, reggae, indie, punk and more. Opera and classical music attract dignitaries, diplomats, and romantics, with the Washington Opera under artistic direction of Placido Domingo and the National Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Slatkin. Washington, D.C. is also the capital of choral music, with more than 70 groups including the Air Force Singing Sergeants.
Choice bars are often in hip hotels. Bar Rouge at the Hotel Rouge mixes sultry libations, while Helix Lounge at the Hotel Helix serves retro drinks in a room of white vinyl with rotating lighting. The Ritz-Carlton Georgetown, at the site of the old incinerator, touts Degrees, with a black granite bar and red velvet curtains. In upper Georgetown, Bourbon lives up to its name, serving more than 50 varieties, plus several whiskeys and a dozen wines on draft. Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan remain hot, with low-key bars and stylish dance clubs. The Reef has aquatic décor and Monday "Firkin Nights," when ales are dispensed by gravity from a small cask called a firkin. Finn MacCool's features live Irish musicians and drafts of Beamish instead of Guinness. Downtown is a destination to waltz, rumba, and salsa the night away at places like Dream. In Penn Quarter, upscale, high energy clubs like Home, once a bank building, play top 40, Bhangra and hip-hop. Another former bank is Platinum on downtown's F Street, where a chandelier dominates for trance, hip-hop, and salsa. Adams Morgan possibilities include Habana Village serving Cuban drinks and music from merengue to flamenco, reggae, and tango. Also in Adams Morgan, Rumba Café has live Brazilian music and tasty caipirinhas. Nation ranks among the city's largest, most popular clubs, well-attended by all ages, races, and sexual orientations, although best known for Velvet, a Saturday night gay circuit party. For mellow nightlife without dress codes, D.C. Sanctuary is the place.
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Washington, D.C. Nightlife By Location
·District of Columbia
Nightlife options on the 69 square miles of central Washington, D.C. includes Capitol Hill, Georgetown, Chinatown, the Convention Center and other areas.
·Alexandria
Nightlife options in historic Alexandria Virginia, located 6 miles to the south of the District.
·Northeast Virginia
Nightlife options just to the west of the District, in Fairfax County locations such as Tyson's Corner, McLean, Falls Church and Springfield.
·Southwest Maryland
Nightclubs to the east of the District, in Maryland cities such as Silver Spring, Cheverly, Rockville, Bethesda and others.
·Washington Airport - Arlington
Nightclubs located near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and the Arlington area.