Alexandra Events June Calendar
June 2017
9th Annual Taste of Del Ray Food Festival
June 4 from 1-3 p.m.
Admission: $10 adults; $5 children
Mt. Vernon Avenue
Mark your calendars, clean your palates and prepare to taste some of the yummiest flavors ever at the 9th Annual Taste of Del Ray, sponsored by the Del Ray Business Association. Top neighborhood restaurants will participate in this delicious competition taking place at the Pat Miller Neighborhood Square and the adjacent United Bank parking lot, located at the intersection of Mount Vernon Avenue and Oxford Avenue. For ticket information, visit www.visitdelray.com.
Frank Lloyd Wright 150th Birthday Celebration Picnic Series & More
June 8, July 12 and August 27
Admission: Varies
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Pope-Leighey House
9000 Richmond Highway
Celebrate world-renowned American architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s 150th birthday at the only Frank Lloyd Wright house open to visitors in the D.C. region—the Pope-Leighey House! Located just 10 miles from Old Town Alexandria, the Pope-Leighey House is the perfect showcase of one of Wright’s “Usonian” style modest homes that he began designing in the 1930s. Visitors are invited to celebrate the anniversary all year long. First up, on Wright’s birthday on June 8, visitors can enjoy Cupcake tours during the day and a special 150th Birthday Picnic & Party fundraiser in the evening, which will include birthday cake from some of the region’s best cake makers, cocktails, music, a unique auction and much more. On July 12, the hilarious cocktail theater troupe Picnic Theater Company will present their version of Noel Coward’s “Hay Fever” in front of the house (picnic dinner available), and on August 27, the Pope-Leighey Picnic Series ends with a mid-century modern, family-style back-to-school picnic (Loren Pope was an education reporter and author) on the grounds of the house. Stay tuned for other events throughout the year, from in-depth architectural tours to Twilight & Tipple Tours with beverages and bites.
Summer Escape at Mount Vernon
June 9 & 10 from 6-9 p.m.
Admission: $25
George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate
3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway
703-780-2000
Sip craft beer and taste local and historic culinary treats while watching the sun set at the first president’s home! Relax to live bluegrass music from Bud’s Collective, play colonial games, and unwind against the backdrop of the Potomac River. Mount Vernon’s chocolatiers will demonstrate the process of making chocolate while serving up chocolate martini samples. The event also offers foodies a chance to talk with a 18th-century herbalist and sample flavorful herb-infused dips and teas. After sampling culinary treats and libations, stroll the lantern-lit grounds and immerse yourself in the 18th century as you mingle with costumed residents. Enjoy 18th-century music, dancing, ice cream making demonstrations, and more historic fun.
Fort Ward Civil War Camp Day
June 10 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Admission: Free; $5 suggested donation
Fort Ward Museum & Historic Site
4301 W. Braddock Rd.
703-746-4848
Union and Confederate reenactors interpret Civil War military activities in camp settings, present drills, infantry and artillery demonstrations, and civilian impressions.
The Old Town Arts and Crafts Fair
June 10 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Admission: Free
Waterfront Park
1A Prince St.
703-836-2176
www.visitalexandriava.com/summer
Now celebrating its 37th year in operation, the Old Town Arts & Crafts Fair features more than 80 arts and crafts vendors. Visitors can browse artisan stalls and purchase handmade pieces in the heart of Old Town at Market Square.
Lecture: Margaret Irwin: “The Journal of Anne Reading”
June 13 at 7 p.m.
Admission: $10
The Lyceum
201 S. Washington St.
703-746-4994
shop.alexandriava.gov
Margaret Irwin had long heard family stories about an ancestor who had learned nursing from Florence Nightingale. In 1955, her mother showed her Anne Reading’s handwritten journal for the first time and, 50 years later, she had it published. “The Journal of Anne Reading” documents this amazing woman’s early training and work in the Crimea with Nightingale, her later service in the Mansion House Hospital here in Alexandria during the Civil War, and some aspects of her life after the war. Margaret Irwin will discuss Anne’s life dressed as a Civil War nurse, and will sign copies of her book following the program. Anne Reading inspired the character Anne Hastings featured on the PBS Civil War-era drama MERCY STREET.
Lecture: Margaret Wagner: “America and the Great War”
June 15, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.
Admission: $10
The Lyceum
201 S. Washington St.
703-746-4994
shop.alexandriava.gov
In partnership with Hooray for Books, author Margaret Wagner will lecture and sign books following her remarks. America and the Great War chronicles the United States in neutrality and in conflict, it presents events and arguments, political and military battles, bitter tragedies and epic achievements that marked U.S. involvement in the first modern war. Drawing on the matchless resources of the Library of Congress, the book includes many eyewitness accounts and more than 250 color and black-and-white images, many never before published.
Father’s Day Weekend at Mount Vernon
June 17 & 18 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Admission: Included in site fee; $20 for adults; $9 ages 6-11; free children ages 0-5
George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate
3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway
703-780-2000
General Washington greets visitors and poses for photographs on Father’s Day weekend. Listen as Washington discusses his role as husband, stepfather, and Father of Our Country in the program “Father to the First Family.”
Father’s Day Open Houses in Historic Alexandria
June 18 from 1-5 p.m.
Admission: Free for visiting fathers; prices vary by location
Friendship Firehouse Museum, 107 S. Alfred St.
Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, 134 N. Royal St.
Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum, 105-107 S. Fairfax St.
www.visitalexandriava.com/summer
In honor of Father’s Day, visiting dads will receive free admission to some of Alexandria’s premier historic sites and have the opportunity to peruse the grounds once frequented by America’s founding fathers.
Alexandria’s Historic Breweries Guided Tour and Tasting
June 18 at 2 p.m.
Admission: $25
Old Town Alexandria
https://portnerbrewhouse.com/events-tours
Join Alexandria’s Historic Breweries author, Garrett Peck, and Portner Brewhouse co-founder, Catherine Portner, on a guided walking tour around Old Town Alexandria exploring the foundations of local brewing. The tour includes highlights from the print brochure, a Portner Brewhouse sponsored beer sampling, and culminates at one of Alexandria’s current Hop Stops. Each tour will feature local homebrewers that are interested in your feedback as part of Portner Brewhouse’s Craft Beer Test Kitchen™.
4th Annual Well Ray Festival
June 24 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Admission: Free
Mt. Vernon Avenue
Alexandria
Well Ray is a community-wide effort to highlight resources for living healthily and happily. Browse health and lifestyle inspired tents, take free exercise classes, and enjoy therapeutic massages, acupuncture, physical therapy consultations, chiropractic adjustments, nutritional counseling, blood pressure screenings, and more. Check out wellness-inspired fashion from local fitness clothing designers, jewelers, and boutiques.
Vine on the Waterfront Food & Wine Festival
June 24, 2017 from noon-6 p.m.
Oronoco Bay Park
100 Madison St.
703-746-5592
Admission: Free; tickets required for food and wine samples
Vine on the Waterfront Food & Wine Festival is a one-day community-based event focused on showcasing the numerous diverse restaurants of Alexandria and Virginia wineries combined with the opportunity to give back to the community through local non-profit organizations. This is a lively, family-oriented festival offering food and wine tasting along with live entertainment, children’s activities and arts and crafts vendors.
Independence Fireworks at Mount Vernon
June 30 & July 1 from 6-9:45 p.m.
Admission: Fireworks with mansion tour: $34 for adults; $24 for youth; no mansion tour: $30 for adults; $20 for youth
George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate
3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway
703-780-2000
Enjoy a patriotic evening filled with dazzling nighttime fireworks, mansion tours, musical performances, and games on George Washington’s beloved estate. Greet General and Mrs. Washington in the historic area before trying your hand at bocce ball. Dust off your dancing shoes for 18th-century dancing demonstrations. Mount Vernon’s colonial artisans will reveal how 18th-century ice cream was made in the days before freezers. Think you can strike a pose better than George Washington? Take your photo posing like the president and tag your photo on social media with #PoseLikeThePrez. Visit Washington’s Tomb at night–this event is one of the few times this area is open in the evening. Sparks will be flying at blacksmith shop, which will also be open. Additional food and drink from the Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant will be available for purchase.
Find more summer events at www.VisitAlexandriaVA.com/summer.