Spotlight: Miranda Lambert, Florence Foster Jenkins, Film Festival at Strathmore and more
COMCAST XFINITY OUTDOOR FILM FESTIVAL
Outdoor cinema returns to the lawn at Strathmore this summer and first up, on Saturday, Aug. 20, is Jurassic World, last year’s blockbuster and the fourth in the “Jurassic Park” franchise. Sunday night offers animated sensation Minions featuring voice acting by Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Steve Coogan and Jennifer Saunders. The final screening on Monday, Aug. 22 is the Judy Garland classic The Wizard of Oz. Clearly, there’s no place like Strathmore. Festivities begin at 6:30 p.m., with screenings at 8:30 p.m. each night in the Gudelsky Gazebo, 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda. Free. Call 301-581-5100 or visit strathmore.org.
UKE FEST 2016
Grammy Award-winning folk musicians Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer, partners in music and life, present their eighth annual festival at Strathmore featuring several events all devoted to that signature Hawaiian instrument — the ukulele. The festival includes: a Uke and Guitar Summit for established or aspiring string musicians, featuring jam sessions, concerts and music workshops, on Saturday, Aug. 13, at 9 a.m.; and the free capstone event, the Uke Fest, featuring performances by Fink and Marxer, Tobia Elof, Jeff Peterson and the Strathmore Ukulele Orchestra, on Wednesday, Aug. 17, at 7 p.m. Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda. No tickets required for UkeFest, the Summit costs $400. Call 301-581-5100 or visit strathmore.org.
FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS
Meryl Streep has proved both on stage and in film that not only is she an incredible actress, but a great singer, too. In the biopic from one of the finest directors of this generation, Stephen Frears (The Grifters, The Queen), Streep stars as New York heiress Florence Foster Jenkins, who was determined to become an opera singer despite a painful lack of singing ability. Hugh Grant, Simon Helberg, Nina Arianda, and Rebecca Ferguson co-star. Opens Friday, Aug. 12. Area theaters. Visit fandango.com.
MIRANDA LAMBERT
She may have only come in third during the first season of USA Network’s Nashville Star, but Lambert is the biggest star to emerge from that reality series — and one of the biggest stars in all of country. She’s captivated critics and audiences with her winning personality, astute songwriting and sense of candor — on display in new, post-Blake Shelton heartbreak music. Kip Moore and the Brothers Osborne open. Thursday, Aug. 25. Doors at 6 p.m. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia, Md. Tickets are $45 to $125. Call 800-551-SEAT or visit merriweathermusic.com.
ARTS OF AFGHANISTAN
The Smithsonian’s Freer|Sackler Museums of Asian Art toasts the rich heritage of Afghanistan in Turquoise Mountain: Artists Transforming Afghanistan. The exhibition features stunning ceramics, jewelry, jali, rugs, and more made by young artisans of Murad Khani in Old Kabul. Traditional Afghan food will be available all afternoon, and there will also be performances by Afghan musicians and a traditional Afghan storyteller, lessons in Attan dance, calligraphy, and making Afghan fighter kites concluding with a kite-flying exercise outside at 4 p.m., plus rounds of chess and other games. The event concludes with a discussion among entrepreneurs about the global craft industry. Saturday, Aug. 13, from 1 to 7 p.m. Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, 1050 Independence Ave. SW. Call 202-633-4800 or visiting asia.si.edu.
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