MONDAY, MAY 11
OPERA: Check out the Washington National Opera’s production of Rossini’s Cinderella at the Kennedy Center. The three-hour opera features over the top, colorful costumes–yellow and pink wigs included. And tonight’s ticket holders get an added perk: There’ll be a free Q&A after the show. 7 PM, $25 to $300.
DRINK: Kick off the week with free booze. Stop by the Park at 14th tonight from 6:30 to 8:30 PM for a Ciroc party, featuring an open bar and appetizers. There’s more: Party-goers get three tokens in order to vote in a cocktail competition pitting 20 DC bartenders against each other.
TUESDAY, MAY 12
EAT: Two restaurants come together for a cause. At chef Seng Luangrath’s Thip Khao, try food made by neighboring chef Deth Khaiaphone of Doi Moi, who offers a special three-course dinner: green mango salad, curry vermicelli noodle soup, and yellow mung bean cake. This pop-up noodle shop benefits Legacies of War, an advocacy group for the impact of Vietnam War-era conflict in Laos. 6 PM, $30.
THEATER: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead opens on Tuesday at the Folger Theatre. The tragicomedy by Tony Award-winning playwright Tom Stoppard runs through June 21. And if it’s anything like the blooper video above, it’s sure to be a compelling show. 7:30 PM, $30 to $75.
MUSIC: Tennis–the Denver-based, husband-and-wife band–started writing music when they were living on a sailboat a few years ago. Now they’re selling out shows everywhere from Hollywood to Brooklyn–and have what might just be the coolest band website ever. Watch them perform at U Steet Music Hall at 7 PM. $18.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 13
EAT: At this event at the National Museum of American History’s Warner Bros. Theater, you can learn about the history of American sushi. And you get to do it by watching sushi-making demonstrations and sampling sake, Japanese snacks, soy sauce, and, of course, Sapporo beer. 6 PM, $40.
MUSIC: Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Luther Adams teams up with the US Air Force Band for Sila: The Breath of the World–music inspired by nature. At this outdoor show at Meridian Hill Park, the performance features only brass and percussion. Upcoming shows vary; woodwinds, strings, and voices will be at Constitution Gardens on May 15 and the full ensemble will be at the Jefferson Memorial on May 16. Free.
