THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21
BEER For beer fans, nothing says Christmas quite like Hardywood’s Gingerbread Stout (GBS) and all its variants. ChurchKey is hosting a Hardywood tap takeover with 8 different versions of the stout, including Apple Brandy Barrel GBS, Double Barrel GBS, and the Kentucky Christmas Morning (bourbon barrel-aged GBS with coffee). Free to attend, 4 PM.
PERFORMANCE Legendary filmmaker John Waters (Hairspray, Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble) presents his one-man holiday show, “A John Waters Christmas,” at the Birchmere. With his own brand of perverted piety, Waters will share his profane and bizarre view of Christmas, the way only he can. $55, 7:30 PM.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 22
THEATRE The musical adaptation of the popular book Mr. Popper’s Penguins runs at the Kennedy Center’s Family Theatre. A painter named Mr. Popper pines for winter adventures, then receives mysterious packages containing penguins. For ages 3 and up. Through December 31. $25-$30.
LANDMARK Join a Ranger-led walk starting at the Tidal Basin Parking Lot and tracing the Potomac River’s original shoreline, discovering the “Secrets of the Washington Monument Grounds”. Walk is approximately 1 mile. Free, 10 AM. Also on December 29.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23
THEATRE The Keegan Theatre’s comedic production of How To Catch a Leprechaun is based on an Irish folktale. The musical follows a minstrel who wants to catch a leprechaun, but when she’s successful, the leprechaun seems suspiciously more than willing to give up his pot of gold. Appropriate for ages 3 and up. Through December 31. $15, 11 AM.
MUSIC Local doom metal band The Obsessed was formed in the late 1970s in Potomac under the influence of Black Sabbath. The group gained national and international attention but broke up in the mid-1990s. Frontman Scott “Wino” Weinrich recently reformed the band—their first studio album since 1994, Sacred, was released earlier this year. Hear the band play songs from that new album as well as other Obsessed classics at the Black Cat. $20, 8 PM.
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 24
MUSIC New York music duo Good For the Jews returns to Jammin’ Java for their regular Christmas Eve show. Rob Tannenbaum and David Fagin have written numerous unorthodox songs about the holidays; this year, their War On Christmas tour will feature the debut of a topical new song, “Jews Who Voted For Trump” (rhyming the lyric, “you’re about as smart as Forrest Gump”). $25, 7 PM.
STARS Every Sunday, Rock Creek Park hosts constellation lectures at the Rock Creek Park Planetarium. Learn the stories behind tonight’s brightest stars, planets, and constellations. Ages 5 and up. Free, 1 PM.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 25
MUSIC The Kennedy Center presents free performances every day on its Millennium Stage, and Christmas is no different. The All-Star Christmas Day Jazz Jam, a Millennium Stage tradition now in its 19th year, features host/vibraphonist Chuck Redd, drummer Lenny Robinson, trumpeters Robert Redd and Tom Williams, bassist James King, and vocalist Delores King Williams. Free, 6 PM.
YOGA Not everything is closed on Christmas: the Washington Yoga Center is hosting a special Christmas Day Vinyasa yoga class. The class includes a full-body warm-up in addition to mindful movement and sequencing. $20, 9:30 AM.
