Festival in Frame: Photos from Day Four

At this prom, adults weren’t chaperones—they were the faces of the dance floor. Visitors and staff alike—pictured here are program interns Jeffrey, Olivia, Liz, and Khaki—took their fancy outfits off the racks for Prom in the Park, where Stax Music Academy’s 910 Band played soul classics and Orquesta Manplesa energized the crowd with salsa.
Photo by Cassie Roshu, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives
“You can grow up and still have fun.”
—Anonymous, MoCAT Bathroom Wall
The air may not have been clear today, but our vision for the future of culture sure was.
Mary Beth Tinker, who was suspended from school at age thirteen for wearing an armband to protest the Vietnam War, joined us in The Classroom to reflect on her role in a landmark Supreme Court case and inspire the next generation of activists. Over in the Arts + Industries Building, filmmaker Chloe Barnett and environmental advocate Christine Louis-Jeune talked about the #StopTheBurn campaign in South Florida, and how the power of community organizing and multimedia storytelling go hand in hand. The Shop Talk stage hosted a dialogue with master craftspeople and their apprentices about the importance of upholding high standards of craftsmanship—and pride in a job well done.
Across the Festival grounds, our participants remind us that hard work is just that: hard. Whether you’re building a movement, healing the planet, or creating a masterpiece, it takes time, tenacity, and sometimes tears. But a crucial component of being an effective changemaker is making time for joy—for the things that fill up your cup. So at the end of it all, we danced the night away at Prom in the Park, swirling and twirling and forgetting for a moment about all the work that lies ahead for all of us to shape the future on our own terms.
Keep scrolling to see some of our favorite snapshots from Day Four. And don’t forget to share your own photos from today on social media, using the hashtag #2025Folklife.









Tomorrow, rock out at the Battle of the Bands, learn to make chile verde pork gorditas with Chef Checo Alonso, and hear from women and girls in lowrider culture. Don’t miss your chance to explore the cosmos—our sidewalk astronomers will take to the streets again tomorrow for the last time during the Festival. We have double-header concerts in the evening: with Next-Gen Ensembles at 5:30 p.m. and a Community Contradance at 7:30.
See you on the dance floor!
Grace Bowie is the social media specialist for the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Media intern Cassie Roshu and editor and web content manager Elisa Hough contributed.