With the 4th of July falling on a Tuesday this year, you can enjoy a long weekend full of patriotic events if you so choose. But there's far more than just that going on, including a theater festival, movies both indoors and out, three new outdoor concerts, a holiday musical event, and another home game from the local WNBA team.
Below are the best options for your precious free time Thursday through Sunday. Don't like what you see? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events.
Thursday, June 29
Legoland Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth presents Building Massive LEGO Mosaic
Over the next two months, LEGO-maniacs can help build a massive Ninjago-themed mosaic that will be displayed on opening day of the new The LEGO Ninjago Movie. The first stop is Legoland Discovery Center in Grapevine, where LEGO brick fanatics of all ages can add the first of almost 80,000 bricks to the nearly 6-foot-tall by 10-foot-wide mosaic featuring Sensei Wu and all six ninjas from Ninjago.
2017 Trinity Shakespeare Festival
This is the final weekend to catch the annual Trinity Shakespeare Festival, taking place on the TCU campus. The two productions in rep are Richard III, Shakespeare’s unflinching look at power and corruption, and Measure for Measure, Shakespeare’s brilliant comedy of intrigue. Measure for Measure plays in the Buschman Theatre on June 29, July 1, and July 2, and Richard III plays in the Hays Theatre on June 30 and July 2.
Sundance Square Movie Nights: Ghostbusters
The 2016 all-female remake of Ghostbusters was mostly a disappointment, so you can wash that bad taste out of your mouth with this outdoor screening of the original 1984 Ghostbusters starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Ernie Hudson. Showtime is at dusk (approximately 8:45 pm) on the Sundance Square Plaza stage. Moviegoers are invited to bring blankets or chairs for seating in the plaza.
Friday, June 30
Magnolia at the Modern presents Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary
Chasing Trane is the definitive documentary film about jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, an outside-the-box thinker with extraordinary talent whose boundary-shattering music continues to influence people around the world. The film screens six times through Sunday at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra presents Concerts in the Garden: Asleep at the Wheel
If you've been even halfway interested in Texas country music over the past 40 years, then you know the legendary Asleep at the Wheel well. The Grammy Award-winning group has been a mainstay since 1973, and they continue to crank out music as they near their 45th anniversary. They make their annual return to Concerts in the Garden at Fort Worth Botanic Garden, playing alongside the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.
Saturday, July 1
2017 Rockin' the River
We're nearing the peak heat of the summer, so there's no better time for the annual Rockin' the River series to kick off. Returning for a seventh year to Panther Island Pavilion, the series features new bands playing every Saturday through August 5, starting with Prophets & Outlaws, Cole Risner, Wayne Garner, Austin Meade, and Eric Tessmer. You can watch the show in a tube on the river or sitting on the shore, and then take in a fireworks show afterwards.
Billy Bob's 4th of July Picnic featuring Eli Young Band
Willie Nelson isn't the only one who's hosting a 4th of July picnic this year. Eli Young Band, which originated in Denton and just released their sixth album, Fingerprints, headline this year’s Billy Bob's 4th of July Picnic. They are joined by Green River Ordinance, Lanco, Charlotte Leigh, and more.
Dallas Wings vs. Seattle Storm
After a rocky first season in Arlington, the Dallas Wings are having a nice rebound season, sitting at 8-8 after a recent four-game winning streak. Led by star Skylar Diggins-Smith, who's averaging almost 18 points per game, the Wings are currently in sixth in the WNBA standings. They take on the Seattle Storm, featuring stars Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart, at College Park Center on the UT Arlington campus.
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra presents Concerts in the Garden: The Music of Led Zeppelin
Before they start their annual Fourth of July series of shows, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra pays tribute to yet another classic rock band, Led Zeppelin. For the first time since 2011, the orchestra melds with a full rock band to play songs like “Stairway to Heaven,” “Black Dog,” “All of My Love,” and more. The event takes place at Fort Worth Botanic Garden.
Asleep at the Wheel plays at Fort Worth Botanic Garden as part of the Concerts in the Garden series on June 30.
