The Anthem DC: October 2026 Events & Getting There

The Anthem DC is a 6,000-capacity concert venue at 901 Wharf Street SW, on the Southwest Waterfront at The Wharf in Washington, D.C. Opened in 2017 and operated by I.M.P. — the company behind the 9:30 Club and Merriweather Post Pavilion — it hosts a packed October 2026 schedule including Morrissey, Beck, Jerry Seinfeld, The Chicks, and Steve Lacy. Because The Anthem sits on a primarily pedestrian street with designated rideshare pickup at 900 Maine Avenue SW and limited Wharf parking that fills on show nights, planning how you'll get there is worth doing before the show. This guide covers the October lineup, tickets, seating, and every way to reach the venue — including from Baltimore and the suburbs.

The Anthem DC October 2026 Events

The Anthem's October 2026 calendar is one of its busiest of the year, spanning rock, pop, hip-hop, comedy, and indie across the month. Here's the current lineup:

Show dates and additions can change, so confirm your specific event on the official theanthemdc.com calendar before buying tickets or planning your trip. Most shows have doors an hour or two before the performance — check your ticket for the exact door time.

Where Is The Anthem DC?

The Anthem DC is located at 901 Wharf Street SW, Washington, DC 20024, on the riverfront at The Wharf in the Southwest Waterfront neighborhood. Wharf Street is a primarily pedestrian street along the water, one block south of Maine Avenue — the entrance and box office are on the waterfront side, behind the 900 block of Maine Avenue SW.

The Wharf location is central to the whole experience: The Anthem is surrounded by restaurants, bars, and waterfront paths, so most concertgoers make an evening of it with dinner or drinks before the show. That same popularity is why the area gets busy and parking fills on show nights — the venue's appeal and its access challenges are two sides of the same waterfront setting.

Tickets & Box Office

Tickets for The Anthem are available online through the official venue site and at the on-site box office at 901 Wharf Street SW, which sells tickets with no service charge — a genuine saving over online convenience fees. Box office hours are 12:00 PM–7:00 PM seven days a week, extending to 12:00 PM–9:30 PM on show nights.

The same box office also sells tickets for the other I.M.P. venues — the 9:30 Club, Lincoln Theatre, and Merriweather Post Pavilion — making it a one-stop shop for DC-area shows. General admission tickets are non-transferable until 72 hours before showtime, and the venue discourages overnight queueing, preferring lines to form no more than an hour before doors.

Seating & Venue Layout

The Anthem has a variable capacity of 2,500 to 6,000 guests, made possible by a movable stage and backdrop that reconfigure the 57,000-square-foot room to fit the show. The venue can run as an intimate general-admission floor for smaller acts or open up fully for a 6,000-person mega-show.

Seating options vary by event but generally include a general-admission standing floor plus reserved balcony seating, with some shows offering full theatre seating. The balconies are positioned closer to the stage than at most venues — a deliberate design choice for better sightlines. Because configurations differ show to show, check the specific event's seating map when buying. A Jerry Seinfeld comedy night and a Knocked Loose show use the room very differently.

How to Get to The Anthem From Baltimore

The Anthem DC is about 40 miles from Baltimore, roughly a 50–75 minute drive south via I-95 and I-395 into Southwest D.C., depending on traffic and the Wharf's show-night congestion. The trip is straightforward by car — but the Wharf-end logistics (limited parking, pedestrian streets, post-show crowds) are the part worth planning.

The alternatives from Baltimore are the MARC train or Amtrak to Union Station, then Metro toward the Waterfront — workable but involving a transfer and time constraints, since MARC runs a limited evening and weekend schedule. For an evening concert with a late finish, that transfer-dependent transit route often doesn't line up with when the show actually ends, which is where driving or a pre-arranged car becomes the more reliable Baltimore option.

Baltimore Transportation Options at a Glance

Getting to The Anthem From Maryland & Northern Virginia

From the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia, The Anthem is reachable by car via the major interstates and by Metro, which serves The Wharf well. The venue sits four blocks from L'Enfant Plaza (Blue, Orange, Green, Silver, and Yellow lines) and four blocks from Waterfront station (Green line), with a free District Wharf Circulator shuttle running from both Metro stops directly to The Anthem's front door.

For drivers from Maryland or Virginia, the same Wharf parking constraints apply — garages below The Wharf fill on show nights. Metro plus the free Circulator is often the smoothest option for suburban concertgoers who live near a Metro line, while those farther from transit tend to drive and pre-book parking or arrange a drop-off. The Potomac Riverboat Company Water Taxi also connects The Wharf to Georgetown, Old Town Alexandria, and National Harbor — a scenic option for anyone coming from those waterfront points.

Parking & Drop-Off

Parking for The Anthem is available in garages below The Wharf, but it is limited and frequently sells out on show nights. The venue partners with SpotHero for advance parking reservations — that's the most reliable way to guarantee a spot rather than circling a full Wharf on show night.

Rideshare services (Uber, Lyft), taxis, and DC's DDOT have designated pickup and drop-off locations at The Wharf — the app will direct you to the current spot, since these can shift with Wharf event management. The same 900 Maine Avenue SW point is where Bayside's chauffeurs stage for pre-booked concert pickups.

Private Car & Limo for Anthem Concert Nights

For a concert at The Anthem, a private car or limo service solves the two hardest parts of a Wharf show night: the limited, often-sold-out parking, and the post-show pickup scramble in a busy pedestrian-street district. A pre-booked car drops you at the designated 900 Maine Avenue pickup point and returns at a scheduled time after the show — so you skip both the garage hunt and the rideshare surge that hits when 6,000 people exit at once.

This matters most for specific situations: a night out where nobody wants to be the designated driver, a group coming in from Baltimore or the suburbs, or a special-occasion show — a Jerry Seinfeld night, an anniversary concert — where arriving and leaving smoothly is part of the experience. Scheduled drop-off at 900 Maine Avenue SW and a confirmed pickup time after the show are what DC car service is actually useful for.

Group Transportation to The Anthem

For groups heading to an Anthem show — a birthday, a corporate outing, a friend group from out of town — group transportation in one vehicle beats coordinating multiple cars into the Wharf's tight parking and pedestrian streets. A party bus, Sprinter, or shuttle keeps everyone together, handles drop-off at the designated 900 Maine Avenue point, and manages the post-show pickup as one coordinated departure.

It also turns the trip into part of the night, especially from Baltimore or the suburbs — everyone arrives together, no one drives or parks, and the ride home is sorted before the night starts. For groups doing DC concert nights regularly, a party bus or Sprinter booked for the season makes more sense than coordinating cars every time.

Frequently Asked Questions