Awesome Con 2022. Photograph by Evy Mages .Happy Monday, DC! Petalpalooza lights up the Capitol Riverfront with cherry blossom fireworks this weekend. Also, two homegrown events—Awesome Con and Words, Beats, and Life Festival—offer entertainment for music and pop culture fans.   Best Things to Do This Week and Weekend March 31–April 6  Petalpalooza. Enjoy art, music, and a dazzling set-to-music fireworks along the banks of the Anacostia River at Petalpalooza. The family-friendly cherry blossom festival will feature 3D cherry blossom sculptures, coffee samples, an art market, popcorn, crafts, games, go-go and pop music performances, and more (Sat, free, Capitol Riverfront). Tyler, The Creator concert. For the past decade, Tyler, The Creator has made eclectic and adventurous rap music. The artist’s latest album, Chromakopia, is an introspective project rhymed over hip-hop beats. Fans can hear some of the album’s songs performed live at Capital One Arena (Tues, $198+, Capital One Arena). Awesome Con. Comic nerds and enthusiasts will celebrate another year of Awesome Con at the Washington Convention Center this weekend. The local geek culture takeover features cos­play fashion shows, gaming, book and science fairs, a shorts film festival, a emo dance party, and celebrity appearances by actors such as Orlando Bloom and Liv Tyler (Fri-Sun, $65+, Mount Vernon Square). Words, Beats, and Life Festival. Attend four days of concerts, exhibitions, and special events across the DC area this week during Words, Beats, and Life Festival. The lineup features an outdoor Jazz and Blossoms concert with performers such as Arrested Development and Black Folks Don’t Swim, a DJ rooftop party at Wild Days Rooftop, and poetry and art showcases at such venues as the Kennedy Center and Busboys and Poets (Thurs-Sun, free+, various participating locations).  “Adam Pendleton: Love, Queen” exhibit. The art of painting, drawing, and photography are utilized in a number of Adam Pendleton’s visual works. You can view the artist’s distinct style, and the debut of his new video work Resurrection City Revisited (Who Owns Geometry Anyway?) at “Adam Pendleton: Love, Queen“—Pendleton’s first solo exhibition in DC (opens Fri, free, Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden). Fake It Until You Make It play. Native American playwright Larissa FastHorse satirizes identity politics among coworkers and friends with a comedy set in the nonprofit sector. Theater-goers can see Fake It Until You Make It at Arena Stage (Wed through May 4, $45+, Southwest DC). RelatedMarch Culture Guide: 31 Things to Do in the DC Area Want More Things to Do? Arts and culture: Josh Duboff discusses his funny debut novel Early Thirties at East City Bookshop (Thurs, free, virtual, Capitol Hill). Dress in your favorite floral attire, and participate in cherry blossom-themed art making, music, tastings, and other Japanese entertainment at Phillips After 5 (Thurs, $20, Dupont Circle). Artist Chakaia Booker coils, cuts, and mends tires into sculptures. You can view three of Booker’s environmental works in the “Treading New Ground” exhibit (opens Fri, free, National Gallery of Art). Watch six documentary shorts at Bethesda Film Fest (Fri-Sat, $15, Bethesda). Craft origami, Haiku poetry, buttons, and more artsy fun at Arena Stage (Sat, free with rsvp, Southwest DC). Record producer Joe Boyd journeys through global music in his book And the Roots of Rhythm Remain (Sun, free, Northwest DC). Community and heritage: This year’s DC History Conference presents more than 38 panels, keynotes, walking tours, and poster presentations for the community (Thurs-Sun, free, MLK Library). Take a stroll through the picturesque White House gardens this spring (Fri-Sat, free with timed-ticket entry tickets available outside of White House Visitor Center, White House). Professor Walter Denny examines the impact of traditional Anatolian carpets at George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum (Sat, free, virtual). Theater and shows: Get a first look at new works at Round House Theatre’s Bonnie Hammerschlag National Capital New Play Festival (Wed through April 27, free+, Bethesda). Mosaic Theater presents cullud wattah—a play about Flint, Michigan’s 2016 water crisis (Thurs through April 27, $50.50, H Street Corridor). Illusionists, aerialists, and more French performers present a colorful Cirque de Paris (Thurs through April 13, $17+, Annapolis). Celebrate 25 years of Benise’s Spanish guitar and dance at Lisner Auditorium (Sun, $39+, Northwest DC). Music and concerts: Max Weinberg, the drummer for Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, plays two shows at Wolf Trap (Tues-Wed, $58+, Vienna). Composer and musician Nubya Garcia plays jazz melodies at The Birchmere (Tues, $30, Alexandria). Eat a buffet dinner aboard City Cruises while listening to a live concert with singers Joey Fatone and Wanyá Morris (Sat, $300, Wharf). Country-folk masters Zac Brown Band perform at MGM National Harbor (Fri, $177+, National Harbor). Alternative metal musicians Deftones arrive at Capital One Arena (Sun, $100+, Capital One Arena). Exercise and wellness: Stretch outdoors with Yoga District at Triangle Park (every Fri, free, Dupont Circle). Participate in yoga, boxing, HIIT, and a bike ride at Move and Bloom (Sat, free, Anacostia). Bites and beverages: Make and taste matza ice box cakes with Pastry Chef Rochelle Cooper at Hill Center (Sat, $125, Capitol Hill). Things to do with kids: Youngsters can watch the children’s movie Wish at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library (Wed, free, Alexandria). Early readers can have story time with friendly dogs at Charles E. Beatley Jr. Central Library (Wed, free, Alexandria). Take your kids to the Library of Congress for Japanese Culture Day where they can practice calligraphy, view collections, and watch storytelling and music performances (Sat, free, but timed-entry passes required for indoor activities, Library of Congress).   If you enjoyed these events, please don’t forget to share this post with a friend on social media, and sign up for our newsletter for more things to do.The post 30 Things to Do in the DC Area This Week and Weekend first appeared on Washingtonian. ...read more read less