The Good Week | October 1, 2026

With fall here, it feels like everything happening around us has multiplied overnight. There are so many events and activities that it’s getting harder to narrow each issue down to the ones I think you’ll enjoy most.

But that’s also one of my favorite parts of The Good Week, and a big reason I started it in the first place: finding the interesting things happening nearby and bringing them together in one place, so you don’t have to rely on your newsfeed or dig through a dozen different calendars.

And I have to say, I’m especially enjoying all the Halloween fun aimed at us adults. Paint a pumpkin with a drink in hand. Learn sculptural pumpkin carving. Make a spooky orchid arrangement. Halloween crafting has clearly grown up.

I hope you find something fun to do this week, plus a few things to get excited about and look forward to later in October.

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Art, music, performances, and a few reasons to spend the evening out.

Barbara Mandel’s French Impressions travels through France in oil paint, from lavender fields and vineyards in Provence to Paris gardens, Brittany, Corsica, Normandy beaches, and, naturally, a few patisseries along the way.

Mandel has deep local ties as an artist and educator, including teaching at Holton-Arms in Bethesda, and now serves as a docent at the National Gallery of Art. Stop by during weekend gallery hours or meet the artist at the opening reception. Free.
👉 Explore French Impressions at Triangle Art Studios

Pike & Rose is going full fall festival with live music, two DJs, craft beer, food, and a makers market featuring more than 20 local artisans. Browse small-batch goods, grab something to eat, and settle in for music hosted by WAMU’s Spencer Bryant.

There’s also a Rivian experience on site, plus beer garden and margarita stops around the neighborhood. Admission is free; RSVP for a chance to win Pike & Rose gift cards.
👉 RSVP for PIKEtoberfest

Montgomery County is turning 250, and Montgomery History is throwing it a birthday party. Head to the Spanish Ballroom for an afternoon of music, dancing, games, cake, and a few guests from the past, including Benjamin Franklin, or at least a very convincing version of him.

The celebration also features the Washington Revels Heritage Voices and the Old Line Fife and Drum Corps. Free; tickets required.
👉 Get tickets for Party Like It’s 1776!

Australia’s Gravity & Other Myths strips contemporary circus down to the essentials: extraordinary acrobatics, split-second timing, and the trust it takes for performers to quite literally put themselves in one another’s hands.

In Ten Thousand Hours, the company turns its attention to mastery itself, showing the years of repetition, strength, precision, and teamwork behind movements that can look almost effortless from the audience. The spare staging keeps the focus on the performers and what the human body can do after thousands of hours of practice. Tickets $28–$78.
👉 Get tickets for Gravity & Other Myths: Ten Thousand Hours

Food experiences, tastings, and classes that make the week revolve around something delicious.

The 34th annual Taste of Bethesda takes over the streets of Woodmont Triangle with dozens of local restaurants serving small plates, sweets, drinks, and plenty of reasons to graze your way through the afternoon. This year’s lineup ranges from Q by Peter Chang, Pisco y Nazca, and RUTA to Levain Bakery, Tout de Sweet, Bethesda Chocolates, and longtime local favorites.

Four stages of live music run throughout the day, with performances from The 19th Street Band, Kemi Adegoroye, Honest Lee Soul, and others. Admission is free; tasting tickets are $10 for five, with dishes costing one to four tickets. Ticket sales end at 3:30 pm.
👉 Explore Taste of Bethesda

Clear Skies Meadery is teaming up with local chocolatier The Chocolatier’s Palette for a fall tasting of handcrafted chocolate and seasonal mead. The Chocolatier’s Palette specializes in small-batch artisanal fudge, made without corn syrup, gluten, or artificial flavors and colors.

The evening starts with a complimentary welcome cocktail and meet-and-greet with the makers, followed by a flight of chocolates paired with a “super flight” of fall meads and taproom exclusives. The $15 ticket includes the chocolate flight; the mead flight is purchased separately for $29.95 and can easily be shared by two.
👉 Get details from Clear Skies Meadery

Hands-on classes and social activities where you can learn something new or step a little outside your comfort zone.

Slow down and take a closer look at the forest floor in this beginner-friendly nature drawing session at Locust Grove. A naturalist will lead a short walk and show you how to sketch the leaves, textures, and small details that make up autumn leaf litter.

Bring your own sketchpad and drawing materials if you have them. The program includes time on natural-surface trails, which may include some steep sections. Registration required. $10.
👉 Register for Art in Nature: Nature Drawing

Spend a Saturday morning learning three folk dance traditions from India with instructor Smita Khatri. The class introduces energetic Bhangra from Punjab, along with Garba and Dandiya Raas from Gujarat, with a focus on the communal spirit these dances bring to festivals and celebrations.

Come for one class or make a month of it. No street shoes are allowed on the studio floor, so bring a clean pair for dancing. $13 in advance or $15 at the door.
👉 Register for DanceFit: Folk Dances of India

Plant lovers can trade the garden center for the pottery studio in this hands-on workshop at Capital Clay. You’ll learn slab construction, rolling, cutting, and joining flat sheets of clay to create a geometric desktop planter from scratch.

Afterward, choose a glaze from the studio’s house palette, and Capital Clay will handle the drying, firing, and finishing. Your completed planter will be ready for pickup about three weeks later. $75.
👉 Register for the Slab Planter Workshop

Bring an old shirt, pair of jeans, tote bag, thrifted find, or other piece that could use a second life. In this beginner-friendly upcycling workshop, instructor Jojo Craven will show you how to rework clothing and accessories using patches, zippers, grommets, thread, bleach pens, and other simple techniques.

You can sew by machine or by hand, and materials are provided. Bring something you want to transform, or use one of the items available at the workshop. $23.
👉 Register for the Upcycling Workshop

REWILD is giving its orchid workshop a spooky-season twist. You’ll start with a 3-inch Phalaenopsis orchid and turn it into a Halloween-themed arrangement using a black pot and seasonal decorations.

Everything needed for the project is included, so you’ll leave with a finished arrangement ready for October. $60.
👉 Register for the Halloween Orchid Arrangement Workshop

This is pumpkin carving with a little more ambition. Artist Candice Bloch will teach the techniques behind sculptural pumpkin carving, with demonstrations followed by time to create your own dimensional design.

The workshop is open to beginners and experienced artists, with individual guidance along the way. Most tools are provided; bring your own large pumpkin, at least 11 inches in diameter. $85.
👉 Register for Sculptural Pumpkin Carving

Meadowside Nature Center is turning its raptor deck into a fall happy hour with pumpkin painting, snacks, seasonal beer and wine, and time to mingle in a setting that’s a little more interesting than your usual Friday drink.

Registration includes one pumpkin, snacks, and two alcoholic beverages. Ages 21+. $25.
👉 Register for Happy Hour on the Raptor Deck

Move your body, get outside, and stay active this week.

If pickleball has been sitting on your “maybe I should try that” list, this beginner clinic gives you a low-pressure way in while supporting Girls on the Run of Montgomery County.

The first hour is coached in small groups, followed by an hour of open play with instructors circulating to offer tips. Paddles are available to borrow with a photo ID. Wear athletic clothes and non-marking court shoes. Proceeds benefit Girls on the Run of Montgomery County.
👉 Register for Picklefest

Earlier picks still ahead — and still worth catching.

💃 Latin Dance Basics at MOM-entum Dance Troupe — Thu, Oct. 1 & 15 and Nov. 5 & 12, 7:30 pm — Try cha-cha, rumba, samba, jive, and more in relaxed, non-performing classes for beginners and experienced dancers in North Bethesda.

🙌 Volunteer at Taste of Bethesda — Sat, Oct. 3, shifts from 7 am–4 pm — Help with setup, restaurant teams, drink tents, visitor information, and other roles at Bethesda’s annual food festival.

🌾 Volunteer at Harvest Festival — Sat, Oct. 3, 10 am–4:30 pm — Help visitors try traditional crafts, games, and farm activities during Montgomery Parks’ Harvest Festival at Agricultural History Farm Park in Rockville.

💌 Card Making for Empty Nesters — Tuesdays, Oct. 6–27, noon–1:30 pm — Make handmade cards and connect with other empty nesters during four lunchtime gatherings at FiberArt.STUDIO in Bethesda.

🔥 Woodburning Workshop at VisArts — Tuesdays, Oct. 6–13, 6–8 pm — Learn the basics of pyrography and create a decorated wooden spoon, tray, box, or wall hanging in this two-session Rockville workshop. $100.

🎭 Kentlands Community Players Auditions — Tue–Wed, Oct. 6–7, 7–9 pm — Audition for the January production of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, a four-person musical comedy about relationships and all their stages.

🎨 Oil Painting at The Compass Atelier — Wednesdays, Oct. 7–Nov. 11, 9–11:30 am — Develop your oil-painting skills in a six-week Kensington class open to beginners and experienced painters. $300 series; $65 drop-in.

📚 Local Author Showcase at The Cordell — Thu, Oct. 8, 7–9 pm — Meet 30 local authors, browse their books, and enjoy an evening of literary conversation hosted by Wonderland Books in Bethesda. Free.

🎶 The Fleetwood Mac Experience — Fri, Oct. 23, 7:30 pm — Hear tribute band Silver Springs perform Fleetwood Mac favorites including “Dreams,” “Rhiannon,” “Landslide,” and more at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre. $49–$69.

🎭 Caroline, or Change — Oct. 31–Nov. 15 — Rockville Musical Theatre presents Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s acclaimed musical exploring race, class, family, and change in 1963 Louisiana. $23+.

If you stop by any of this week’s spots, let them know you heard about it in The Good Week.

If something landed well—or if we missed a place you think deserves attention—tell us at [email protected].

And if you know someone who’d appreciate a little local intel on Thursdays, forward this along.

See you next week.

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