I DREAM DC Civic Engagement Project to be Presented at Arena Stage

​Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater will present I Dream DC. Created for the community, by the community, I Dream DC is an arts and civic engagement project inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s world-changing “I Have a Dream” speech, to center Washington, DC in a national conversation about hope, healing, and justice. Aligned with the nation's 250th Anniversary, I Dream DC will premiere at THEARC (Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus) on Saturday, June 27, 2026, at 5pm.

More than a theatrical offering, I Dream DC is designed as a civic experience. Featuring a community ensemble of local residents performing alongside professional artists, it amplifies local voices and connects artists, elders, and activists in re-envisioning what belonging, freedom, and transformation look like here and now.

As the first installment of a new annual production series dedicated to creating theatrical works rooted in community voices, artistic collaboration, and civic engagement, the project invites residents of the Washington metropolitan area to imagine a more just and connected future through storytelling, performance, and collective dialogue.

“I Dream DC is not only about what we present, but how we arrive there. The process itself is the work—creating space for truth, connection, and collective responsibility,” added I Dream DC director and Arena Stage Community Engagement Producer Tiffany Fulson. “Through interviews and workshops, we invite community members not just to witness theater, but to practice it and become co-creators. This work asks for presence and care from everyone involved, and in that exchange, we open the door to healing, transformation, and art as a catalyst for meaningful change, locally and across the nation.”