The cultural impact of director Peter Jackson’s film adaptations of The Lord of the Rings is undeniable. With Variety magazine featuring all three films in their list of the 10 best fantasy movies of all time, the academy-award-winning series has certainly left its mark.
Luckily for The Lord of The Rings enthusiasts in the DC area, there are 2 incredible opportunities to commemorate 25 years since the fellowship first set out. The first is a limited run of screenings at the American Film Institute Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, Maryland. Projected in 35mm film, the venue will screen each film for one night only throughout Thanksgiving weekend.
For those fascinated by the series’ music score, Washington DC’s National City Christian Church will also be hosting Candlelight: The Lord of the Rings over several dates in the new year.
23 January 2027 18:45 + more dates
National City Christian Church
From the Shire to the Grey Havens in an hour
Candlelight: The Lord of the Rings is a concert of music from the three Lord of the Rings films, played live by a local string quartet in the glowing light of thousands of candles. It runs for about an hour, following the whole journey of the saga.
The concert starts where the films do, with “Prologue: One Ring to Rule Them All”, then settles in the Shire for “Concerning Hobbits”. From there, the road runs down into Moria’s depths with “Foundations of Stone” (Gandalf and the Balrog). “The Ride of the Rohirrim” charges onto the Pelennor Fields, “The Return of the King” crowns Aragorn, and “The Grey Havens” follows Frodo, Bilbo and Gandalf out of Middle-earth.
All 13 pieces are adapted from Howard Shore‘s original music for strings, with the sheet music approved by Shore himself. Fever and Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences co-present this concert series for the trilogy’s 25th anniversary.
Thomas Circle’s neoclassical landmark
You will find Washington DC’s National City Christian Church at 5 Thomas Circle NW. The building was designed by John Russell Pope, famed for his work on the Jefferson Memorial, and it was completed in 1930. Inside, stained-glass windows commemorate presidents James Garfield and Lyndon B. Johnson, both linked to the congregation during their presidencies. The church is part of the Greater Fourteenth Street Historic District.
