Stage & Screen
Presenting an exciting selection of filmed performances ranging from one-of-a-kind concerts to stage productions from the National Theatre.
Upcoming engagements will be announced on an ongoing basis.
AFI Silver After Dark
All tickets just $8!
Join us for a monthly late-night series showcasing classic, soon-to-be classic and should-be-classic horror, sci-fi, action, fantasy and cross-genre gems hand-picked by the AFI Silver programming team. We promise deep cuts — sometimes literally — underrated classics, sneak peeks, new restorations and all-time favorites up on the big screen, the way late-night movies are meant to be seen!
Monthly selections will be announced on an ongoing basis.
NEW: Pick up our new After Dark Punch Card at the Silver Box Office! Catch six After Dark flicks and your next one is on us.
The STAR WARS Saga
May 1–7
May the Fourth Be With You!
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, George Lucas created a fantasy adventure that would change filmmaking forever. Lucas combined an old-fashioned appreciation for classic storytelling, drawing on the mythological structure of fables and legends, plus the rousing adventure and action emphasis of Hollywood westerns, war movies, swashbucklers and serials, with the most advanced and innovative screen special effects work yet seen. STAR WARS became a worldwide phenomenon and launched a movie and merchandising franchise that would become the standard against which all others would be measured — often imitated but never equaled.
Recent Restorations
April 24–July 9
This series rounds up a wide range of recent digital restorations of screen classics. Here is your chance to see them back on the big screen and looking better than they have in years, thanks to the efforts of dedicated film archivists and specialty distributors.
Rob Reiner Remembered
April 24–July 9
A beloved actor, writer, director, producer and activist, Rob Reiner (1947–2025) broke the Hollywood mold, deftly navigating the transition from television actor to acclaimed studio filmmaker with an enviable track record of iconic hits. Beginning with his riotous debut, THIS IS SPINAL TAP, his films would go on to define entire genres, from the now-often-imitated mockumentary to the modern romantic comedy with WHEN HARRY MET SALLY… Reiner dominated the cinematic landscape of the ‘80s with quintessential classics STAND BY ME and THE PRINCESS BRIDE before turning to more politically minded fare in the ‘90s with A FEW GOOD MEN and THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT. Even as he focused on directing and producing via his company Castle Rock, he still lit up the screen as an actor, with a standout being his performance as Leonardo DiCaprio’s beleaguered father in Martin Scorsese’s THE WOLF OF WALL STREET. With this series, the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center pays tribute to the legendary filmmaker and actor whose impact on our global cinematic vocabulary “goes to 11."
Andrzej Wajda Centennial
April 24–June 29
To mark the centennial of Polish filmmaker Andrzej Wajda (1926–2016) — and the “Year of Andrzej Wajda” in Poland — AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center celebrates his visionary work with a selection of nine films from across his more than six-decade career. Over the course of more than 40 features, Wajda became one of cinema’s most vital chroniclers of Polish history, while also exploring universal themes — political repression, resistance and the role of artists in speaking truth to power — that saw the impact of his work expand beyond Poland to influence filmmakers like Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese. Wajda captured audiences across the globe, receiving a Palme d’Or and honorary awards from the Oscars®, the Venice Film Festival and the Berlinale. Beginning with Wajda’s landmark War Trilogy — A GENERATION (1955), KANAL (1957) and ASHES AND DIAMONDS (1958) — this series also includes the incisive critiques of state power MAN OF MARBLE (1977) and MAN OF IRON (1981), as well as lesser-known gems, such as the Nouvelle Vague-inspired INNOCENT SORCERERS (1960), and later works, including KORCZAK (1990) and AFTERIMAGE (2016), his final film. Additional films will be presented at the National Gallery of Art later this year.
Presented in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC, the Wajda Film Center and the National Gallery of Art.
Special thanks to DI Factory, Jędrzej Sabliński and Jessica Rosner.
2026 DC Labor FilmFest
May 1–28
Organized and presented by the Labor Heritage Foundation and the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center, this annual series features a wide-ranging selection of films about work, workers and the wider issues affecting workers’ lives. This year’s program opens with the multi-award-winning documentary STEAL THIS STORY, PLEASE!, a gripping portrait of investigative journalist Amy Goodman, who will be in attendance. The festival closes with a 90th anniversary screening of Charles Chaplin’s MODERN TIMES, presented in 35mm, and also features brand new restorations of acclaimed documentarian Barbara Kopple’s Academy Award®-winning classics AMERICAN DREAM and HARLAN COUNTY USA, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Additional highlights include Park Chan-wook’s NO OTHER CHOICE; 2026 Swiss Oscar® submission LATE SHIFT and Sundance Special Jury Award winner EVERYBODY TO KENMURE STREET.
With the presentation of a union card, union members will receive a Silver Cinema Club ticket discount at the Star level.
Pride on Screen
May 29–June 30
As Pride celebrations in Washington, DC, enter their 51st year, the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center proudly presents a series of 10 films in recognition and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community. Pride on Screen offers a globe-spanning tour of LGBTQ+ history, from recent releases like A USEFUL GHOST, a Thai romance about a haunted vacuum cleaner, and S&M biker romantic drama PILLION to a new restoration of radical Brazilian drag-queen crime film THE DEVIL QUEEN and anniversary celebrations of THE HANDMAIDEN, Park Chan-wook’s effortlessly cool lesbian thriller, and Barry Jenkins’ Best Picture–winning MOONLIGHT. Notable presentations include a screening of FUCKTOYS with filmmaker and star Annapurna Sriram and AFI Silver After Dark shows of THE SERPENT’S SKIN.
Spanish Cinema Now 2026
May 29–June 2
The AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center and the Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain in Washington, DC, are proud to co-present Spanish Cinema Now, an annual festival of outstanding new films that reflect the breadth of styles and talents at work in Spain today.
$10 Ticket One-Day Sale from 10:00 a.m.–10:00 p.m. on Friday, May 1
Organized and presented by the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center and the Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain in Washington, DC.
Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair
June 12–18
Presented in partnership with the American Cinematheque, Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair is an annual festival showcasing some of the greatest works of cinema from across the globe that venture into the darkest sides of humanity and the bleakest points in human history.
The AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center joins the fifth annual edition in June 2026 as the festival expands to nearly 100 theaters across the U.S., Canada, UK and South and Central America, with each venue presenting its own lineup of uncompromising films defined by unpleasant truths and raw empathy.
AFI Silver’s original curated lineup features 17 dark, depressing works from some of cinema’s most celebrated auteurs, including Béla Tarr’s immersive seven-hour masterpiece SÁTÁNTANGÓ, Isao Takahata’s devastating GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES and Lynne Ramsey’s raw and deeply poetic RATCATCHER.
Also part of Bleak Week: MISERY and KORCZAK.
Learn more about the dreary dates and ennui-inducing events that are part of Bleak Week.
