September in the Neighborhood: Star Trek science, shop local artisans, picnic at Peirce Mill

To boldly go… Sept. 8 is the 60th anniversary of the day the first episode of Star Trek aired. Sept. 9 is the day our Broad Branch Road neighbor, the Carnegie Earth and Planets Laboratory, is inviting us over for a Star Trek-themed lecture on the worlds among the stars, and how the science of the fictional series compares with real-world research. RSVP to attend in person or register to watch online.

Get the kids involved in some hands-on history. During Children’s Day on Sept. 12 at Peirce Mill, kids can try their hand at grinding corn, make a toy, and join special kid-focused tours of the almost 200-year-old grist mill. At 11 a.m., Teatro La Bolsa will perform a version of the classic tale, “The Little Red Hen.”

Celebrate the arts and local businesses on our Main Street. Art All Night is returning to Van Ness Main Street on Sept. 12, so from 2 to 9 p.m. there will be performances, pop-up shops and other activities all along Connecticut Avenue.

Party with Emily, Charlotte and Anne. The Van Ness Main Street office at 4340 Connecticut is doing double duty as a theater for performances of Brontë Sister House Party. The play, performed Thursday through Sunday until Sept. 12, is set in Purgatory, and the sisters must throw a party night after night until they throw the “best house party” and can advance to the next stage of the afterlife.

Join your voices in song. Levine Music’s Community Sing invites people of all abilities to experience the joys of singing together. Register here for the Sept. 16 event at the music school’s Upton Street campus.

Popping up on Sept. 19. Van Ness Main Street’s rescheduled “Christmas in July” artisans market features more than 20 local makers with unique art and gifts for all ages. And from 2 to 4 p.m., head to the Forest Hills Park for another VNMS offering: free line dancing lessons.

A picnic served with a side of Samba. How about dinner and a show? At Peirce Mill’s Sept. 26 Picnic in the Park, you provide the dinner; Friends of Peirce Mill is providing the show: the music of Casa da Cultura Brasileira EducArte.

Forest Hills Connection is an editorially independent program of Van Ness Main Street.