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Fairfax County’s summer calendar is crowded with Juneteenth programs, outdoor concerts, family festivals, art exhibitions and early Independence Day fireworks. Events begin in June and continue through August across Tysons, Vienna, McLean, Reston, Lorton and neighboring communities.
Juneteenth events
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when the last enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.
On Thursday, June 19, Sully Historic Site will offer free interpretive tours of its original outbuildings and the first floor of the main house. The celebration also includes storytelling, music, children’s activities, quilt displays, artifacts, exhibits, a free health clinic and food trucks.
Green Spring Gardens will host a $60 floral smudge-stick workshop that day with BLK FLWR MRKT, a Black woman-owned business. Participants will create botanical bundles, learn about plants with historical significance for Black Americans and take part in reflective and sensory activities. Registration is required.
Frying Pan Farm Park will explore the history of its Meeting House and grounds on Saturday, June 21. Informal tours will examine the experiences of African Americans in the area, including free and enslaved residents, Black congregations and the community that developed around the site. The free program runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with registration recommended.
Historic Blenheim in Fairfax will host a free talk at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 28, examining the roots of Black mistrust of police. George Mason University graduate Andrew Snowman will discuss white policing of Black people in Fairfax County from the antebellum period through Reconstruction, Jim Crow and the Civil Rights Movement.
Gardens, trees and visual art
Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, at 9750 Meadowlark Gardens Court in Vienna, offers free admission for guided one-hour walks across its hilly grounds. Each outing includes a positive theme, a silent meditative portion and facts shared by a docent.
The region also offers several destinations for self-guided garden visits. Meadowlark has roughly 90 acres, more than 100 cherry trees, a lake, native wildflowers, seasonal blooms and the Korean Bell Garden. Green Spring Gardens includes ponds, a wooded stream, native plants, more than 20 demonstration gardens and a tropical greenhouse.
River Farm occupies 25 acres along the Potomac River and was once part of George Washington’s five farms. Mount Vernon features four gardens, open landscapes and a quarter-mile forest trail. Visitors should confirm operating hours before traveling.
McLean residents can apply to the McLean Trees Foundation’s Neighborhood Trees Program for help selecting, delivering and planting a native tree. The $100 fee covers one tree measuring 6 to 7 feet in a 15-gallon container, along with maintenance guidance and a later check-in. A separate Tree Champion program supports neighborhood planting campaigns.
“IIIuminations: A Retrospective by Rosemarie Forsythe” remains on display at Reston Art Gallery through June 29. The nature- and science-inspired works use acrylic, flashe paint and 23-karat gold leaf.
Theater, camps and family activities
Families can gather on the Freeman Store and Museum patio in Vienna at 10 a.m. every Tuesday in June, July and August for the eighth annual Kids on the Green series. The free shows feature magicians, musicians, storytellers and other children’s entertainers. Guests may bring blankets or lawn chairs.
August Wilson’s “The Piano Lesson” runs June 5-29 at 1st Stage in Tysons Corner. Set in 1930s Pittsburgh, the play follows siblings Berniece and Boy Willie as they confront their family’s past through an heirloom piano. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays. General admission costs $25, $40 or $55, subject to availability; student, educator and military tickets are $15.
LEGO Discovery Center at Springfield Mall presents its Summer of Play through Aug. 3. Activities include designing a playful city, hunting for surprises in MINIWORLD, dancing with a LEGO character, building a LEGO bee and posing for photographs.
Workhouse Arts Center, 9518 Workhouse Way in Lorton, offers nine weeks of art camps for children ages 6-16 from June 16 through Aug. 15. Campers may select visual arts, theater, or music and dance programs.
Play Palooza comes to Vienna Shopping Center, 180 Maple Ave. W., from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 21. Attractions include a climbing wall, bounce house, obstacle course, touch-a-truck area, foam and confetti parties, face painting, virtual games, a toddler zone and child-versus-parent challenges. Cotton candy and popcorn will also be available.
A second Play Palooza is scheduled from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 16, at Springfield Plaza, 7206 Old Keene Mill Road.
At Fairfax Station Railroad Museum, families can make pinwheels during “Whirling Wonders” from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, June 22. Supplies are included while they last, with one craft per person. Members and children 4 and younger enter free. Admission is $3 for ages 5-12, $5 for those 13 and older, $4 for seniors and active or retired military members, and $6 during special events.
Music, movies and community gatherings
The Pack Drumline performs at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 19, at McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave. The production combines Southern show-style drumming, choreography and dance.
The Indigo Girls join the Fairfax Symphony for two performances at Capital One Hall on June 19 and 20. Orchestral arrangements by Sean O’Loughlin and Stephen Barber will accompany songs spanning the Grammy-winning duo’s career from the 1980s onward.
Rocknoceros performs from 10 to 10:45 a.m. Saturday, June 21, on the roof of the Springfield CBC Commuter Garage, 7039 Old Keene Mill Road, as part of Kids’ Concerts on the Green.
Senior Movie Day takes place on the fourth Wednesday of each month at the Reston Town Center movie theater. Doors open at 9 a.m., with films beginning at 10 a.m. Coffee, doughnuts, orange juice and door prizes are provided. “Summer Camp” screens June 25.
The summer Dive-In Movie schedule includes “Kung Fu Panda 4” on June 26, “The Wild Robot” on July 10 and “Moana 2” on Aug. 6.
Bennie and the Jets, featuring Greg Ransom in an Elton John tribute, performs at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 26, at McLean Community Center.
Johnny Folsom 4 brings its Johnny Cash tribute to McLean Central Park, 1468 Dolley Madison Blvd., at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 3. Electro-swing group Good Co. performs there at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 10.
The Hot Lanes play a free outdoor concert from 7 to 8:15 p.m. July 10 at Nottoway Park in Vienna. The band returns to the Fairfax County Park Authority concert series after a seven-year absence.
White Ford Bronco performs from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, July 26, on PenFed Plaza at Tysons Corner Center. The free outdoor concert will feature the band’s 1990s covers, along with interactive activities, photographs and giveaways.
Soccer, history and citizenship
COPA Tysons Soccer Fest runs from 1 to 7 p.m. Saturday, June 21, at Ken Lawrence Park, 8008 Jones Branch Drive. The free, all-ages festival includes bubble soccer, inflatables, skills stations, vendors, music, face painting, food trucks and an appearance by Washington Spirit mascot PK.
The festival’s first coed four-on-four adult tournament includes an Open Division for players 18 and older and a Senior Division for those 35 and older. Registration costs $200 plus fees and includes four games, a shirt and an award for the winning team.
Fifteen people are scheduled to take the oath of citizenship during Vienna’s naturalization ceremony at 5 p.m. Saturday, June 21, at Vienna Community Center, 120 Cherry St. SE. Live music and entertainment begin at 3:30 p.m.
At 3 p.m. Sunday, June 22, the Burke Historical Society meets at Pohick Regional Library, 6450 Sydenstricker Road. George Mason University graduate research assistant Shemika Curvey will present a program about Bethia Fairfax and Sarah Ambrose, free women of color in 19th-century Fairfax County.
Fireworks and anniversaries
McLean’s Independence Day celebration runs from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 28, at Langley High School, 6520 Georgetown Pike. Music, food trucks and giveaways will lead into fireworks at dusk. Free onsite parking is limited, with accessible shuttle service available from satellite lots.
Workhouse Arts Center hosts its free Fireworks Festival from 4 to 10 p.m. June 28 in Lorton. The event features live music by The Outer Loop, DJs, carnival games, interactive art areas, food trucks, art-themed miniature golf, a dunk tank and a fireworks finale.
Oakton-Vienna Veterinary Hospital celebrates its 50th anniversary from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, June 29, at 320 Maple Ave. E. in Vienna. The community event includes raffles, crafts, family activities, music and food.
Tysons Corner Center summer schedule
PenFed Plaza will host acoustic music from 4 to 6 p.m. on selected Fridays: June 27, July 4, July 11, July 25, Aug. 8 and Aug. 29.
The Flying Ivories bring an interactive dueling-pianos show to the plaza from 5 to 8 p.m. June 20, July 18 and Aug. 22. Rain dates are June 26, July 24 and Aug. 28.
Family Game Nights run from 4 to 7 p.m. June 19, July 3, July 17, Aug. 7 and Aug. 21. Cornhole and ping-pong equipment will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis, accompanied by a live DJ.
“Experience Your Korea” arrives at PenFed Plaza Aug. 23-24. The cultural roadshow will feature Korean food, fashion, beauty, travel destinations, festivals and interactive programs.
More events ahead
Pathway Homes holds an artists’ reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 16, in the Fairfax County Government Center’s South Atrium, 12000 Government Center Parkway. The free event is part of the nonprofit’s 12th annual Summer of the Arts exhibit and showcases art, poetry and crafts created by residents living with mental health challenges. Works will be available for purchase.