A Hylton Center subscription is a customized package of three or more of your favorite Hylton-presented performances. Add a little extra pizzazz to your selections and let these fun themes inspire your very own 2025–26 subscription package. Read on for the details.
Celtic Pride
The luck of the Irish is on your side with these lively Celtic offerings! D.C.-based harpist and singer-songwriter Abbie Palmer and percussionist-composer Lucas Ashby perform on the Matinee Idylls series (11/5) with musical stylings from traditional Celtic and African to New Age and Hip-Hop. Next, it’s always a family affair with audience favorite Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy and The Celtic All Stars (3/8). Don’t miss this family-friendly, toe-tapping concert featuring a talented lineup of special guests, including the artists’ daughter Mary Frances (fiddle/piano).
Classic tales
These literary-inspired performances feature tales as old as time. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom: The Musical (11/8) revisits every kid's favorite zany coconut tree on the Hylton Family Series. Or, polish up your spyglass for a thrilling take on a Sherlock Holmes favorite as Aquila Theatre (1/25) presents The Hound of the Baskervilles, adapted from the novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Join the picket line on this next Hylton Family Series performance when the cows and hens go on strike in Click, Clack, Moo (4/19), a lively musical based on the Caldecott Award-winning book by Doreen Cronin. If opera is more your scene, classic opera stories also take center stage in two performances this season: Virginia Opera: A Taste of Opera (10/14), and a special concert from the Washington National Opera Orchestra Featuring the Cafritz Young Artists (3/1).
Christmas in July
The heat and humidity outside is frightful, but getting a jump on your holiday planning is, indeed, delightful! Our jolly holiday musical lineup kicks off with the Canadian Brass (11/30) in Making Spirits Bright, a festive program chock full of original arrangements and signature takes on beloved seasonal classics. Add a little bit of country, bluegrass, and gospel spirit to your holidays with the Dailey & Vincent Christmas Tour (12/7). These charming Grand Ole Opry members and five-time Grammy Award winners really know how to put on a show and performed to a full house during their last Hylton Center appearance in 2017. The always-popular American Festival Pops Orchestra presents Holiday Pops: Songs of the Season (12/12), and the Bria Skonberg Quintet (12/14) brings audiences smoky vocals, blistering trumpet, and compelling compositions in Jingle Bell Swing this December.
Mason Artists-in-Residence
Did you know that Mason Artists-in-Residence bring their talent beyond the stage during the week of their Hylton Center performances? These skilled artists spend a full week using their talent to create meaningful connections in the community through special classes and workshops. The Grammy and Emmy Award-winning trio Time for Three (10/26) defies boundaries by combining their instruments and voices in a remarkable sound, establishing a distinct voice of expression that resonates with listeners worldwide. Soles of Duende (2/21), a multicultural, all-female trio, blends the rhythms of tap, flamenco, and kathak classical Indian dance with joyful expression.
World Beats
Sounds from all around the globe are at your fingertips with these international artists! Soweto Gospel Choir (10/3) brings an inspiring program of South African freedom songs and traditional spirituals mixed in with spirited modern music. The Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra (11/1) and Cuban clarinet and saxophone extraordinaire, Paquito D'Rivera, deliver an evening of sizzling Latin jazz. Drum Tao (2/14) returns with its intensely energetic, highly visual display of Japanese taiko drumming, and the percussive dance trio Soles of Duende (2/21) embraces cultural fusion through dance and music.
And this rich tapestry of cultural expression doesn’t stop there. Celebrate the sounds of the smoldering Spanish guitar with Pablo Sainz-Villegas (2/28). Continue the celebration with two-time Grammy Award winner Lucy Kalantari & the Jazz Cats (3/7) in a swingin’ multilingual concert in English and Spanish as part of the Hylton Family Series. Plus explore the music of Ireland, England, Scotland, and beyond with Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy and The Celtic All Stars (3/8).
Artistic Journeys
Sit back, relax, and let these performances transport you to new worlds—all from the comfort of your seat in Merchant Hall. Visit the Great White Way with Broadway leading man and Tony Award nominee Jeremy Jordan in Concert (9/21). Witness the rebellious modern dance company Pilobolus (10/5) as they traverse the landscapes of the human experience with heart-stopping grace and acrobatic power in Other Worlds. Join Cirque Mechanics’ Tilt! A Circus Thrill Ride (2/7) on the backlot of a buzzing theme park, complete with modern acrobats and aerialists. You’ll also want to bring the whole family on an out-of-this-world expedition in Secrets of Space (2/15), on the Hylton Family Series. Next, explore our Matinee Idylls series as violinist Marjory Serrano-Coyer and pianist Hsin-Yi Chen (3/25) take you on a musical journey across the beloved landscapes of the Western Hemisphere.
We hope these fun themes and incredible performers inspire your own personalized Hylton Center subscription. Subscribe today to secure the best seats, 15% off ticket prices, no-fee ticket exchanges, and much more. Single tickets go on sale August 1. See you at the Hylton Center soon!