MONDAY, MARCH 30
DRINK: Vote for your favorite cherry blossom-inspired cocktail at the Occidental Grill & Seafood tonight, when six bartenders will compete, and you can help pick the winner. The rules: Cocktails must be prepared with sherry and must embody spring. Admission includes cocktail tastings as well as light appetizers. $35, 6 to 9 PM.
MUSIC: Good Graeff, a band comprised of twin sisters Brooke and Brit, got its start in Florida but later made it big in Vietnam, where the duo once lived. The pair plays folk-inspired indie music, which includes cello riffs and the occasionally pop beat. Check them out tonight at DC9. $10, 9 PM.
TUESDAY, MARCH 31
BOOKS: Choose from two book events: Graeme Simsion will be at Busboys and Poets Takoma at 6:30 PM talking about The Rosie Effect, the novel that follows the bestseller, The Rosie Project. Also on deck: John Benditt at 7 PM at Upshur Street Books in Petworth.
MUSIC: You might remember Gene Weingarten‘s 2008 Pulitzer Prize-winning story about a famous violinist who played at the L’Enfant Plaza Station during rush hour and was, for the most part, ignored by passersby. Well, here’s your chance to hear Joshua Bell in a concert hall, where he will perform Beethoven, Brahms, Grieg, and more. 8 PM at the Kennedy Center, $45 to $115.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1
MUSIC: Lillywood and the Prick is made up of Israel-native Nili Hadida, who sings, and Parisian Benjamin Cotto, who plays the guitar. Together the duo create folk/pop music with a touch of blues. They may be most known for DJ Robin Schulz’s remake of their track, “Prayer in C,” but there’s so much more to the band than that. Check them out at U Street Music Hall. $25, 7 PM.
MUSIC: Funk band Dumpstaphunk performs at The Hamilton, where you can expect to hear originals from the New Orleans band once called “the city’s hardest-hitting funk” by the New York Times. $20 to $25, 7:30 PM.
