A little known fact about A Capitol Fourth, the PBS aired concert and fireworks coverage live from the steps of the capitol, is that the dress rehersal on July 3 is open to the public. This year, we went down early and ate dinner inside security so that we could save time and get good seats. The crowd wasn’t as large as last year, but there were still thousands of people there. Since there was a Nationals game downtown tonight as well, the metro trains were crowded coming home after the concert.
Last year, the dress rehersal wasn’t really a rehersal at all. There were no breaks and no do-overs. However, only about half the acts for the actual event were there. The Beach Boys were filled in for with a band half their age. This year, every single scheduled performer was there, even though several numbers were repeated and there was a break in the middle. Jason and the other headliners did an excellent job adlibbing through the wrinkles.
The headliner was Stevie Wonder and the announcer Jason Alexander (George on Seinfeld). Other guests were Vanessa Williams, Elmo, JoJo, Michael Bolton, Jo Dee Messina, and the National Symphony Orchestra. With this extrordinary cast, the highlight of the evening was easily Jason Alexander. He performed the opening number singing, dancing, and drumming during the course of several choruses. As the announcer, he did most of the introductions from a booth located behind the VIP seats–about 50 feet to the right and maybe 15 feet in front of me. During one of the breaks, he came up to the fence near my section and was talking with people. I didn’t get in a word or a handshake, but I was able to snap a close up picture on my cell phone. Too bad I let others convince me that I wouldn’t need my camera the year I got up close seats.
Tomorrow morning, I’m headed back to Blacksburg. My summer class starts on July 5.