Spotlight: Events happening in D.C., November 16-22
Our picks of the best arts, entertainment and everything else in D.C. this week!
BPM (BEATS PER MINUTE)
Robin Campillo’s drama examines the onslaught of AIDS and the concomitant advance of gay rights in early 1990s France, told through the Paris chapter of ACT UP. Touted as heartbreaking and inspiring, but also funny and even erotic, Campillo co-wrote BPM with Philippe Mangeot, drawing on their personal experiences in ACT UP. A four-time winner at Cannes this year and also France’s Official Selection for Best Foreign Language Film at next year’s Oscars, BPM stars Arnaud Valois as a shy newcomer to activism and Nahuel Pérez Biscayart his opposite, an outspokenly flamboyant radical. Subtitled. Opens Friday, Nov. 17. Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW. Call 202-452-7672 or visit landmarktheatres.com.
WTF HAPPENED TO BABY SISTER?!
If Studio’s hit production of Wig Out! wet your whistle for Harlem’s enthralling gay house/ball subculture, the local LGBTQ-focused Brave Soul Collective has just the ticket for you. WTF Happened, inspired by Michael Sainte-Andress, pays homage to the classic, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? with an R&B/Motown-esque twist on the diva rivalry. Jared Shamberger and Monte J. Wolfe play the Fabulous Jenkins Sisters in a drag-infused dramedy full of “reading,” “shade” and ball battles, plus a little bondage, murder, and diva worship thrown in for good measure. With Aleta C. Dunn and Jivon Lee Jackson. Thursday, Nov. 16, through Saturday, Nov. 18, at 8 p.m. Anacostia Playhouse, 2020 Shannon Place SE. Tickets are $30 to $40. Call 202-241-2539 or visit tinyurl.com/WTF-BSC.
LADY GAGA
While the more restrained, contemplative and self-aware Joanne marks a dramatic turn from her previous material, Lady Gaga is still very much a pop star at heart. Spectacle and artifice have been staples of her act from the very beginning, and there is no reason to think she has abandoned it. For the New York diva, channelling the rural west is a performance like any other — and an intriguing concept for her Joanne World Tour. Sunday, Nov. 19, at 7:30 p.m. Capital One Arena, 601 F St. NW. Call 202-628-3200 or visit capitalonearena.com.
CATVIDEOFEST 2017
Will Braden has assembled an 80-minute program that’s a fancy feast for cat lovers, chock-full of cat videos both popular, as well as new and undiscovered. Yet CatVideoFest, co-presented with the Bethesda-based, globally focused nonprofit Alley Cat Allies, doubles as a fundraiser and networking event for fellow feline fans. Saturday, Nov. 18, at 5 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 19, at 5 p.m. AFI Silver Theatre, 8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring. Tickets are $13 general admission. Call 301-495-6720 or visit afi.com/Silver.
GERARD PANGAUD: THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING
The man behind former D.C. restaurant Gerard’s Place and now chef at Malmaison on the Georgetown Waterfront, Gerard Pangaud was the youngest chef ever to receive a two-star Michelin rating (for the namesake French restaurant he had prior to moving to the U.S.). At the Hill Center he offers a regular Art of French Cooking class, predicated on his approach in the kitchen emphasizing the creative and unique over the rote and standard — in other words, winging it versus relying on a recipe. For his next class, at the Intermediate to Advanced level, Pangaud demonstrates how to make Salmon en Papillote with mango chutney, a soup of red lentils and apple, and rice pudding with caramelized pineapple. Saturday, Nov. 18, at 11 a.m. Hill Center, Old Navy Hospital, 921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. Cost is $85, including wine pairings. Call 202-549-4172 or visit HillCenterDC.org.
LIGHTS ON THE BAY
More than 70 animated and stationary displays depicting regional and holiday themes factor into the annual holiday show, featuring a two-mile scenic drive along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. A North Pole Village & Enchanted Fairy Tales is a new edition at this year’s event, a benefit for the SPCA of Anne Arundel County. Opens Saturday, Nov. 18, at 5 p.m. On display every evening from 5 to 10 p.m. through Jan. 1. Sandy Point State Park, 1100 E. College Parkway, Annapolis. Admission is $15 per car, or $30 to $50 for larger vans and buses. Visit lightsonthebay.org.
BEIGNET VS. DOUGHNUT EATING CONTEST
Even if you couldn’t care less about football, any fried-dough lover can appreciate what Bayou Bakery is cooking up during Sunday’s game between the local home team and the New Orleans Saints. At halftime, nine participants will compete to see who’s the fastest at scarfing down 10 beignets prepared by Bayou’s David Guas and 10 doughnuts from Christine Schaefer of District Doughnut — 20 fattening fritters in all, washed down with café au lait and milk. The speediest binger wins a $150 cash prize, though all participants will earn gift cards from both venues. As a New Orleans-themed establishment, Bayou will be pouring draft Abita Beer, NOLA Swinger and “Gator-aide” cocktails, and offering other “Game-Day Dishes” for only $5. And then there are those beignets…. Game starts Sunday, Nov. 19, at 1 p.m., though interested competitors should arrive by 12:30 p.m., as it’s first-come, first-entered. Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery, 1515 N. Courthouse Rd., Arlington. Call 703-243-2410 or visit bayoubakerydc.com.
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