Before the Lonely Island’s “I’m on a Boat” ruined everything, there was the 19th-century comic novel Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog). The plot goes like this: Three young men, suffering from a severe case of “overwork,” take a boating trip through the English countryside with their canine companion, Montmorency. Georgetown University’s Derek Goldman leads the production and Synetic co-founder Irina Tsikurishvili choreographs, so while the characters will inevitably stumble into plenty of boat-related mayhem, they’ll do so artfully. Read more >>>The play runs May 8–June 8 at Synetic Theater, 1800 Bell St., Arlington. $15–$75. (703) 824-8060. synetictheater.com. (Tim Regan)
EAT THIS
City Tap House has its Colorado Brewers Night tonight, including beers from breweries such as Oskar Blues Brewery, Left Hand Brewing, Avery Brewing Company, Great Divide, Odell Brewing Company, New Belgium Brewing, Boulder Beer Company, and Funkwerk’s Brewery. The beers go for $5 to $10 per draft, and the takeover runs from 10 p.m. to close. Chef Brian Cooke will prepare Colorado-inspired specials, such as Colorado rack of lamb with green chili sauce. Representatives from the breweries will also be around for the evening. City Tap House. 901 9th St. NW. (202) 644-9433. citytaphousedc.com. (Quinn Kelley)
OH AND ALSO
Friday: Vivid Solutions Gallery opens a new photography and video show, “If We Came from Nowhere Here, Why Can’t We Go Somewhere There?,” curated by the Mambu Badu collective. 6 p.m. at 1231 Good Hope Road SE. Free.
Friday: If you’re attempting to travel back to 2003, head to Echostage, where Paris Hilton will DJ all night long. 9 p.m. at 2135 Queens Chapel Road NE. $23.30.
Friday and Saturday: Electronic jam band Papadosio plays two shows at 9:30 Club with Baltimore quartet ELM. 10:30 p.m. Friday and 8 p.m. Saturday at 815 V St. NW. $17.
Saturday: On any given night in New York, top dancers regularly perform short, explosive pieces in the name of one charity or another, but that wasn’t the case in D.C. until 2013, when we finally got a decent gala of our own. The cause is a worthy one: CityDance’s DREAM program, which offers after-school dance lessons at six D.C. public schools. Bad Boys of Dance founder Rasta Thomas is producing the program, and he’s brought in an array of stars from all genres. Read more >>>The performance begins at 7 p.m. at the Lincoln Theatre, 1215 U St. NW. $25–$38. (202) 888-0050. thelincolndc.com.
Saturday: Guitarist Kaki King performs at Artisphere in conjunction with the space’s new sound art exhibit, “Fermata.“ 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. at 1101 Wilson Blvd., Arlington. $18–$22.
Saturday: Local art-pop quartet Young Rapids plays its final live show at Rock & Roll Hotel with Big Hush, the Sea Life, and the Effects. 8 p.m. at 1353 H St. NE. $12.
Saturday: Electronic duo Protect-U celebrates its album release with a show at Comet Ping Pong featuring Peaking Lights Sound System and Maxmillion Dunbar. Before the show, check out our review of the album. 10 p.m. at 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW. $12.
Sunday: Milquetoast titles like “Rock Wit U (Awww Baby),” “Always On Time,” and “Baby (Remix)” make Ashanti’s songs easy to push to the bottom of your mental hard drive of lyrics. But just listen to a few bars of the chorus, and you’ll be singing along like it was Y2K again. The title of her new album, Braveheart, is borrowed from the Mel Gibson film of the same name, but Ashanti puts more emphasis on the “heart” part and much less on drawing and quartering. More importantly, her clear soprano can still wrap its way around a hook and drag you in. Read more >>> Ashanti performs at 8 p.m. at Howard Theatre, 620 T St. NW. $35–$70. (202) 803-2899.thehowardtheatre.com. (Rachel Kurzius)
Sunday: Sound designer and songwriter Keren Ann plays a small show at Sixth & I Historic Synagogue’s downstairs space. 8 p.m. at 600 I St. NW. $15–$18.
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