Emily Dickinson, in “I heard a Fly buzz,” describes the room in which her subject dies as “Blue – uncertain – stumbling Buzz.” The notion that a sound can manifest itself as color, or that any one sense can trigger the experience of another is called synesthesia, something the Cre.Art Project explores in its VISUALITY concert. Pairing chamber music with live theater, dance, and video projection, the Spanish arts collective strives to make you see the sound by presenting nine different works that flow into one another. Read more >>> The performance begins at 8 p.m. at Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Blvd., Arlington. $18. (703) 875-1100. artisphere.com. (Rachel Kurzius)
EAT THIS
Former Neighborhood Restaurant Group pastry chef Tiffany MacIsaac’s new venture, Buttercream Bakeshop, pops up at Cork Market today. From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., stop in for slices of beet red-velvet cake, rice krispies, whoopie pies, peanut butter ho hos, and more. The pop-up will be back again next Friday, Nov. 14, as well. Read more on Young & Hungry. Buttercream Bakeshop at Cork Market, 1805 14th St. NW. buttercreamdc.com/#!shop/ck78. (Jessica Sidman)
OH AND ALSO
Friday: Head to Anacostia for two new art shows. Vivid Solutions Gallery opens “Photobook,” a collection of book projects and images by seven different artists from around the nation, while Honfleur Gallery opens “Volume,” a display of abstract sculptures and paintings by Sheila Crider. 6 p.m. at 1231 Good Hope Road SE (Vivid Solutions) and 1241 Good Hope Road SE (Honfleur). Free.
Friday: North Dakota jangle-pop act Secret Cities performs at Comet Ping Pong with local dream-rock quartet Humble Fire and Virginia psychedelic garage-rockers Absolem. 10 p.m. at 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW. $12.
Friday: Algerian guitarist and songwriter Kamel Zennia plays Tropicalia with a diverse backing band. Find more details on Facebook. 8 p.m. at 2001 14th St. NW. $10.
Saturday: Abrasiveness reigns in comedy nowadays. Mike Birbiglia runs counter to that style. He doesn’t curse, for one thing, and he builds his stories slowly and gently. Birbiglia calls his latest special “Thank God for Jokes,” so don’t worry about feeling a little verklempt when he headlines the Warner Theater. Read more >>> Mike Birbiglia performs at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Warner Theatre, 513 13th St. NW. $41.50–$52. (202) 783-4000. warnertheatredc.com. (Alan Zilberman)
Saturday: Wilco guitarist Nels Cline brings his free-jazz trio to Atlas Performing Arts Center for a free show sponsored by the Library of Congress. 9 p.m. at 1333 H St. NE. Free, reservations required.
Saturday: Award-winning actors appear with NPR science correspondent Christopher Joyce at the Newseum to present Water +/-, a live storytelling performance that explains how water is both nature’s most precious and destructive resource. 8 p.m. at 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. $25.
Saturday: Waxahatchee, the performance alias of singer Katie Crutchfield, takes the stage at the Howard Theatre with her opening act, sister Allison Crutchfield, and Radiator Hospital. 7:30 p.m. at 620 T St. NW. $15.
Sunday: With mall Santas and incessant bell-ringing on the horizon, it seems Christmas saps more and more days from the Halloween season every year. But spookiness gets a last hurrah at Molotov Theatre Group’s Nightfall with Edgar Allan Poe. Inside the DC Arts Center’s black-box theater, actors from the company will attempt to answer a question that’s remained unresolved for more than a century—was Poe insane or psychically tormented? Read more >>> The play runs Nov. 6 through Dec. 7 at the DC Arts Center, 2438 18th St. NW. $25. (202) 462-7883. molotovtheatre.org. (Tim Regan)
Sunday: Former Screaming Trees frontman Mark Lanegan closes out the weekend with a performance at U Street Music Hall. 6 p.m. at 1115 U St. NW. $25.
Want ToDo ToDay sent to your inbox five days a week? Sign up here.