Sports Inventions, Music and More, Check Out These March Happenings

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

NEW EXHIBITION & RELATED PROGRAM

“Change YOUR Game” / “Cambia TU juego”
Jerome and the Dorothy Lemelson Hall of Invention and Innovation Gallery 
First Floor, West 
Opens: March 15, 2024; Ongoing

Invention and technology can make the difference between victory and defeat as well as expand the field of who can participate in sports. “Change YOUR Game,” is a family-friendly, interactive exhibition on the intersection of invention, sports and technology developed by the museum’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. The exhibit will showcase dynamic stories and objects related to diverse inventors, athletes, and technologies that have changed how sports are played. A prototype of the Jogbra from the 1970 reflects the fitness boom at a time when women had few athletic clothing options, a football helmet with Crash Cloud prototype to help protect the brain, a Hawk-Eye camera used during the pandemic by the U.S. Open to automate line calls and prostheses that made extreme sports possible for athletes with amputations are among the objects in the exhibition. Visitors will be invited to identify themselves as inventive problem solvers who can become "game changers" in their daily lives. In addition to hands-on activities in the gallery’s four key sections, the adjacent Draper Spark!Lab will also feature themed activities.

“Innovative Lives: Shawn Springs”
Wednesday, March 27; 4 – 5:15 p.m.
Coulter Plaza, First Floor West

The Lemelson Center and InventEd will present a conversation with Shawn Springs, former NFL player and the CEO and Founder of Windpact, a Software and Technology company. After surviving a serious car crash, Spring was inspired to found Windpact, convinced that car safety technologies could protect athletes. Working to improve the technology for helmets, Windpact invented Crash Cloud technology to protect the brain by absorbing collision energy. The technology is now used in sports, the military, construction, and automotive industries. For more information and to reserve a seat go to Eventbrite.

NEW ONLINE VIDEO SERIES

“Latinas Talk Latinas” online educational video series 
Launches March 22

“Latinas Talk Latinas,” will launch its second season March 22, introducing viewers to the lives of six Latinas as told by curators, scientists and educators across the Smithsonian. The new season will explore stories of Latin music and folklore as well as journalism, labor and social justice organizing.  A joint production of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History and the National Museum of the American Latino, the series will feature six episodes and will be available on the two museums’ respective websites. The “Latinas Talk Latinas” videos are accompanied by digital educational resources that enhance learning about the featured women. Among the women are Graciela, an Afro-Cubana who helped popularize Latin music in 1950s New York, Texas journalist and educator Jovita Idar, who worked for Mexican American civil rights and the story of Sylvia Mendez, whose parents sought equal access to public schools prior to “Brown v. Board.”

CLASSICAL MUSIC

Smithsonian Chamber Music Society Presents
“Masterworks of Five Centuries: Consorts of Orlando Gibbons and Henry Purcell”
Sat., March 16, 7:30 - 9:30 p.m., Pre-concert lecture: 6:30 p.m.
Sun. March 17, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Nicholas and Eugenia Taubman Hall of Music
Third Floor, West

The 46th season of the Smithsonian Chamber Music Society presents musical masterpieces from the late 16th century to the cusp of the 21st, played on some of the world’s most highly prized musical instruments. This Spring concert features English consort music by Orlando Gibbons and Henry Purcell presented by the Smithsonian Consort of Viols: Kenneth Slowik, Arnie Tanimoto, Wade Davis, Catherine Slowik, Chelsea Bernstein and Lily Schrantz.

To purchase tickets:
Sat. March 16: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/scms-masterworks-1P0826
Sun. March 17: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/scms-masterworks-1P0832

Members $30; Nonmembers $35

VISITING

What to know:
The museum is open seven days a week, except Dec. 25, between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Admission is free, and passes are not required. For more information, go to https://americanhistory.si.edu/visit

Food:
The Eat at America’s Table Cafe is open for complete food and beverage service, celebrating Julia Child during Women’s History Month. Special offerings include Boeuf Bourguignon, Chicken Waterzooi, Quiche Lorraine, Salade Niçoise and Clafoutis Aux Cerises. The Leroy Neiman Jazz Cafe offers light lunch, including Chicken Etouffee, Shrimp Creole and Dirty Rice, Cajun Grilled Cheese Sandwich & Creole Tomato Soup and House Made Beignets, as well as hot and cold beverages. For more information, visit the website.

Bottled water is allowed in the museum. We recommend bringing a refillable water bottle for fountains.

Stores: Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

ABOUT THE MUSEUM

Through incomparable collections, rigorous research and dynamic public outreach, the National Museum of American History seeks to empower people to create a more just and compassionate future by examining, preserving and sharing the complexity of our past. The museum, located on Constitution Avenue N.W., between 12th and 14th streets, is open daily except Dec. 25 between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Admission is free. The doors of the museum are always open online and the virtual museum continues to expand its offerings, including online exhibitions, K–12 educational materials and programs. The public can follow the museum on social media via Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. For more information, go to https://americanhistory.si.edu. For Smithsonian information, the public may call (202) 633-1000.

Amy Kehs | READ MORE

Amy Kehs is a brand strategist and communications expert for museums.