The Fourth of July falls on a Wednesday. For information about the parade, concert and fireworks, see the end of this listing. But don’t wait to celebrate! Stars will perform at Wolf Trap and Strathmore this Friday. On Saturday, kids can honk truck horns and grownups can raise a wineglass. Sunday choices include a “Fierce Women” art tour and a concert of Alexander Hamilton’s favorite tunes. For more July events, visit The Georgetowner’s online calendar.
Signature Theatre: ‘The Scottsboro Boys’
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave. in Arlington, Virginia, presents the D.C. premiere of “The Scottsboro Boys,” the final musical collaboration of Kander and Ebb (“Cabaret,” “Chicago”). The Tony Award-nominated show is based on a true story of racism and injustice. On March 25, 1931, nine African American teenagers were ripped off a train in northeast Alabama, falsely accused of a crime, hastily tried and sentenced to death. Performances are: Thursday, June 28, and Friday, June 29, at 8 p.m.; Saturday, June 30, at 2 and 8 p.m.; and Sunday, July 1, at 2 and 7 p.m. Tickets are $72 to $101. For details, visit sigtheatre.org or call 703-820-9771.
Author Talk: ‘Kat Vespucci Takes Taiwan’
At this free talk at the Georgetown Public Library, 3260 R St. NW, on Thursday, June 28, at 6:30 p.m., Ingrid Anders will share insights about her English/Chinese bilingual novel “Kat Vespucci Takes Taiwan.” How did an American girl who initially thought Thai was the official language of Taiwan successfully build a life and career in the island’s capital city? For details, visit dclibrary.org/georgetown or call 202-727-0232.
Bruce Hornsby at Wolf Trap
On Friday, June 29, at 7:30 p.m., Wolf Trap, 1551 Trap Road in Vienna, Virginia, presents Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers and the Wood Brothers. Tapping into pop, jazz, bluegrass, country and modern classical, Hornsby’s varied, Grammy Award-winning career is filled with high-profile collaborations from Bob Dylan to Elton John. The Wood Brothers are a literal band of brothers who adapt the blues, folk and roots music into their own evocative sound. Tickets are $27 to $60. For details, visit wolftrap.org or call 703-255-1900.
Sarah McLachlan at Strathmore
This performance at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane in North Bethesda, Maryland, on Friday, June 29, at 8 p.m. is a solo piano show by the Lilith Fair founder and Grammy and Juno Award-winning singer-songwriter of hits such as “Possession,” “I Will Remember You” and “Building a Mystery.” Tickets are $66 to $146. For details, visit strathmore.org or call 301-581-5100.
Georgetown Independents Day
The Georgetown Business Improvement District will celebrate the neighborhood’s independently owned businesses at Georgetown Independents Day, Sunday, June 30, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For details, including a list of businesses offering special deals, visit georgetowndc.com.
Citywide Truck Touch
On Saturday, June 30, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Department of Public Works present Citywide Truck Touch, a free event in Stadium Lot 7 at RFK Auxiliary Turf Field, 279 Oklahoma Ave. NE. Kids can climb aboard nearly 40 vehicles used to clean and repair streets, change traffic lights, collect refuse, clear snow, provide emergency services and administer mobile healthcare. For details, visit eventbrite.com.
Red, White & Brew
Also on Saturday, June 30, there will be two sessions — from 1 to 4 p.m. and from 6 to 9 p.m. — of the Red, White & Brew Festival, presented by Drink the District. Tickets include: unlimited full pours of an American-made beer, cider and sangria; unlimited tastings of 100+ wines, beers and ciders; live entertainment; and a commemorative cup. General admission is $50 ($89 for wine lovers, who get four bottles to take home). This 21+ event will be held at the Akridge Lot at Buzzard Point, 1926 2nd St. SW. For details, visit eventbrite.com.
Film: ‘A Brief Spark Bookended by Darkness’
Accompanied by live narration, Foley sound, drums and piano, the moments within “A Brief Spark” — a handmade film by Brent Green and percussionist Brendan Canty of Fugazi — weave an intricate and delicate narrative of everlasting love in an increasingly dark time. This free screening will take place on Saturday, June 30, at 3 p.m. in the National Gallery of Art’s East Building, Constitution Avenue at 4th Street NW. For details, visit nga.gov or call 202-737-4215.
Howard U. Gospel Choir and Countermeasure
As part of the Serenade! Choral Festival, the Kennedy Center presents a free performance on Saturday, June 30, at 6 p.m. by the Howard University Gospel Choir — founded in 1968 as the first collegiate choir of its kind in the world — and Canadian vocal ensemble Countermeasure, which will give the world premiere of founder Aaron Jensen’s multimedia tribute to Nelson Mandela. For details, visit kennedy-center.org or call 800-444-1324.
‘Fierce Women’ Tour at NMWA
This 1 p.m. tour — on Sunday, July, 1, a free community day at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, 1250 New York Ave. NW — will feature artwork by and about fierce women who refused to let men define their place; thumbed their noses at the limited roles society accorded them; and blazed a trail as artists, activists and innovators. For details, visit nmwa.org or call 202-783-5000.
Music of Hamilton’s Time
David and Ginger Hildebrand of the Colonial Music Institute will perform music that Alexander Hamilton knew well, including ballads, marches, dance tunes and theater songs, at Anderson House, the American Revolution Institute of the Society of the Cincinnati, 2118 Massachusetts Ave. NW, on Monday, July 2, at 6 p.m. The free concert also celebrates the Second of July, the day the Continental Congress voted for American independence. For details, visit societyofthecincinnati.org or call 202-785-2040.
Film: ‘Three Identical Strangers’
The Washington Jewish Film Festival will screen “Three Identical Strangers,” winner of a special jury award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, on Monday, July 2, at 7:30 p.m. at the Edlavitch DCJCC, 1529 16th St. NW. After two strangers discovered they were identical twins, another 19-year-old realized he was their triplet. Instant media sensations, the brothers had set in motion a chain of events that would unearth a disturbing secret decades later. This is a pay-what-you-can screening. For details, visit wjff.org or call 202-777-3242.
National Independence Day Parade
The parade, on Constitution Avenue from 7th to 17th Street NW, will step off at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesday, July 4. Expect to see invited bands, fife-and-drum corps, floats, military and specialty units, giant balloons, equestrian and drill teams, national dignitaries and celebrities. For details, visit july4thparade.com.
‘A Capitol Fourth’
John Stamos returns to host “A Capitol Fourth” on Wednesday, July 4, from 8 to 9:30 p.m. What is said to be the nation’s greatest display of fireworks will be broadcast by PBS from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. The performers will include the Beach Boys, Jimmy Buffet, Renée Fleming, Chita Rivera, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Choral Arts Society and several military ensembles. For details, visit pbs.org.