PAST: Free things to do from "The List: Top Eleven Things to Do this Month at the Smithsonian After Work" FRI, Oct 7th - SAT, Oct 22nd

Here are some highlights for free things to do from "The List: Top Eleven Things to Do this Month at the Smithsonian After Work" from October 5, 2011 post on the Around the Mall blog. I've copied the seven free ones from the list for you below. Even if free, tickets may be required.

See a film: If you’re a fan of Asian cinema, Friday nights at 7:00 at the Freer Gallery this October could be your bag, baby. The ambitious Boxer Rebellion tale, 55 Days at Peking, featuring Charlton Heston and Ava Gardner, is playing October 7. You can check out Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor, the aptly-titled film about Puyi, the last emperor of China on October 14. And in Rebels of the Neon God, October 21, a street hood gets a overly zealous student admirer.

Summary: Film Screenings at the Freer on Friday Nights on The Mall

Friday, October 7th, 14th & 21st

7:00pm

Gaze into the starry, starry night: Get all romantic and hold hands with that special someone while you do some stargazing at the museum’s Public Observatory at the Air and Space Museum. No excuses, guys. You’ve got three dates to chose from—October 8, 21 or 22.

Summary: Check out the Stars at the Air and Space Observatory on The Mall

Saturday, October 8th

Friday, October 21st

Get your dose of intellectual: Share an art outing Wednesday, October 12 at 7:00 and head over to the Smithsonian American Art Museum for figurative painter and portraitist Elizabeth Peyton’s lecture on the creative experience. Peyton is best known for her smaller-scale paintings of stylized, elongated, androgynous figures.

Summary: Lecture at SAAM in Chinatown

Wednesday, October 12th

7:00pm

Play ball: True, the Nationals didn’t make the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to stop loving baseball. The authors of Baseball Americana: Treasures from the Library of Congress will be on hand for signing and discussion at the National Portrait Gallery Wednesday, October 12 at 6:00. The book uses the Library of Congress’ vast trove of baseball goodies to cover over two centuries of baseball history.

Summary: Baseball Book - Author Talk & Signing at NPG in Chinatown

Wednesday, October 12th

6:00pm - 7:00pm

Expand your music horizons: Go hear the performance of American composer Daron Hagen’s new concerto for Japanese koto and string quartet Thursday, October 13 at the Freer Gallery. The piece is based on the eleventh-century work of Japanese literature, Tale of Genji, and the soloist Yumi Kurosawa has appeared at Carnegie Hall.

Summary: Music - Japanese Koto and String Quartet at the Freer on The Mall

Thursday, October 13th

7:30pm

Do the locomotion: Receive a history lesson in cinematic form, courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. American Experience: Transcontinental Railroad covers the six-year construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, in all its laborious glory Thursday, October 20 at 6:30.

Summary: Learn about the history of the Transcontinental Railroad at SAAM in Chinatown

Thursday, October 20th

6:30pm

Be a problem solver: Head over to the Anacostia Museum Thursday, October 20 for the lecture and book signing The Heart of the Race Problem: The Life of Kelly Miller Author Ida E. Jones will be discussing the accomplishments of Miller, the first African American admitted to Johns Hopkins University in 1887. Miller, who pursued a doctorate in mathematics, physics and astronomy, later became interested in improving relationships between the races.

Summary: Learn about the first African American admitted to Hopkins at the Anacostia Museum

Thursday, October 20th

7:00pm

Metro: See metro for best access to each museum - some are in Chinatown, some on The Mall and one in Anacostia.