Tradition Continues: Army Birthday Twilight Tattoo

On any given day you may hear the distinct boom of a cannon coming from Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall but on Wednesday nights in the summer that can only mean one thing – Twilight Tattoo. Each week Twilight Tattoo, a live military experience, honors and tells the story of the U.S. Army through a variety of vignettes and musical performances but on June 10, 2026, those cannons helped ring in the the U.S. Army’s 251st birthday.

“Twilight Tattoo has been an Army outreach program since 1961,” said Paul Hadwiger, Live Events Project Manager, at the U.S. Army Military District of Washington (USAMDW).

Hadwiger, from Kirksville, Missouri, said when Twilight Tattoo first started at USAMDW it was based on a set of military demonstrations in the evening that focused on signaling the end of the day but has since evolved into the show it is today.

“In the last 15-20 years, the show has really turned into a public outreach product that we use to tell the Army's story to the public,” said Hadwiger. “We tell that story through a series of military and musical demonstrations with The U.S. Army Drill Team, The U.S. Army Fife and Drum Corps, The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own, and Soldiers from the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard).”

Bringing these military units together for one show is Hadwiger’s role for Twilight Tattoo.

“My role is to really bring all of these different units that have their own specific mission sets together into one cohesive show to show the American people the variety of talent that the Army has to offer,” said Hadwiger.

While USAMDW produces the Twilight Tattoo program, more than 250 Soldiers of The 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) and The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” play a vital role in bringing Twilight Tattoo to life. One of these Soldiers is Sgt. 1st Class Jasmine Rodriguez.

“I am one of the 91X on this post a maintenance supervisor,” said Rodriguez, describing her military occupational speciality (MOS). “Essentially manage everything from trucks and any equipment from all over The Old Guard.”

Initially Rodriguez, a native of Brooklyn, New York, auditioned for the role of Betsy Ross but the team at USAMDW had a different position in mind for her.

“I tried to get my soldiers to [audition], because I felt like this was a great opportunity for them to get out of the normal stuff that we do on a daily basis, and to see the other side of like being part of Honor Guard,” said Rodriguez. “Then [USAMDW] chose me [for a role] and I found out the day of the first rehearsals that I was actually one of the narrators.”

Self-proclaimed history nerd, Captain Michael Zantello, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) said that he volunteered to be a part of Twilight Tattoo after hearing about it upon his arrival to The Old Guard last year.

“For Twilight Tattoo this year, I'm playing Francis Scott Key,” said Zantello. “I go out and I tell the story of the Star-Spangled Banner, mostly in the context of Key watching the bombardment of Fort McHenry from Baltimore Harbor.”

“Pershing’s Own” provides a lot more than the musicians who play the music at Twilight Tattoo. They compose original music and thoughtfully choose the songs that guide the audience through the show.

“All the music that we do is original except for the features that we have,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Mike Becker, Music Director for the Army Blues Band. “The two featured songs we do is Color Me America, which is originally a Dolly Parton tune, and then we have Whatever It Takes [ by Imagine Dragons], so a rock tune.”

Each year Twilight Tattoo changes its themes and messaging. This year was no different.

“The show normally focuses on key important dates and people, and developments throughout the Army's history,” said Hadwiger. “This year we are doing a special show for America’s 250th birthday where we focus on the flag and the Army's contributions to how our flag has developed through time, and where the Army has been for each of those momentous occasions.”

A big part of telling the new stories each year is the music provided by “Pershing’s Own”.

“This year our focus is a lot on Army innovations throughout history,” said Becker. “So as we look at the different themes that we want to hit, the music pulls in some of those themes, and we've also got little hints of like the Army Song that we embed into the music, or hints of the National Anthem when we talk about the flag and the attack at Fort McHenry. All of that gets integrated into our final musical product that we put together.”

While America is celebrating its 250th birthday, the Army is celebrating its 251st birthday and with that Twilight Tattoo offered some exciting special guests that the typical show doesn’t have.

“The Army birthday show is always a special show for us, and we pulled in different units and assets throughout the entire Army to include the U.S. Army Parachute Team who did a parachute packing demonstration,” said Hadwiger. “It gives us the chance to not only show the history of the Army but the wide variety of job opportunities within.”

The Army has over 200 military occupational specialties available for enlisted Soldiers and officers and at the Army Birthday Twilight Tattoo more than 30 new Soldiers took the oath to serve their country.

“We had a new soldier enlistment, where we're brought 30 civilians and enlisted them into the Army,” said Hadwiger. “After the enlistment ceremony we hosted an officer commissioning ceremony where we tapped three people who lead their industries and inducted them into the Army as well.”

The last important piece of the puzzle that makes up a successful Twilight Tattoo is the audience.

“Our show has 250 service members in it, soldiers, musicians, infantrymen from all different walks of life, from all different careers, and for a lot of us, it can be repetitive, but what makes it special is when the audience arrives,” said Hadwiger. “It really brings the Soldiers pride in what they do and allows them to go do their other Army missions with more pride, knowing that the American public is proud of them."

The Soldiers participating in Twilight Tattoo use the energy from the crowd to motivate them to continue to do better each week.

“Their energy is what keeps us going, especially when the band is playing the music pre-show,” said Rodriguez. “I love it, and I love seeing them entertained by it. It makes me want to try to be twice as good, make sure I'm talking as clear as I possibly can, and make sure I keep them involved in the storytelling part of the show.”

Each segment of Twilight Tattoo gives the audience something new and different to react to. From loud booms coming from a cannon to an unexpected song from “Pershing’s Own” the audience never knows what might be next.

“I love seeing the audience's reactions to every different piece of the show,” said Hadwiger. “From watching the kids gasp as the horses run on, or people in shock when the cannons go off for the first time, that makes it special to me. Nowhere else in my career have I been able to write and produce a show that's really moving to people. It brings people so much joy.”

Each week at Twilight Tattoo the audience not only watches the show, but they also get to interact with the Soldiers.

“I've had people ask me about the Army,” said Zantello, of Kalamazoo, Michigan. “These are people that are in their mid to late teens and maybe they're thinking about joining the Army. There are also people that are like, hey, I just learned about this stuff in history class. There are multiple angles that we can satisfy the audience's curiosity.”

At the end of the day honor is the word that Rodriguez says describes how it feels to be part of the Army’s 251st birthday.

“To be honest, out of all the Army birthdays I've seen from Fort Carson, Hawaii, and Fort Drum, and this being my first ceremonial unit, it's completely different,” said Rodriguez. “I feel more involved, and it is quite an honor. It's fun to just be a part of something this big.”

While the Army Birthday Twilight Tattoo has passed USAMDW still has three shows left in the season. For more information, please visit https://jtfncr.mdw.army.mil/twilighttattoo/.