Despite still being in an embryonic stage, the members of the bouncy pop sextet Ra Ra Riot have weathered their fair share of tragedy: Last spring, drummer John Pike passed away after disappearing from a house party. It’s clear that Ra Ra Riot is still grieving; not only is their debut EP titled Dying Is Fine, but on the title track, vocalist-keyboardist Wesley Miles borrows a few mournful musings from e e cummings. (Besides, a band with a string section isn’t complete without a few literary references.) Instead of letting their loss slow them down, Ra Ra Riot finds it more therapeutic to soldier on. The band has charged ahead with touring and still puts on an explosive live show—probably the only one in which audience members have to be on the lookout for an airborne cellist. Ra Ra Riot performs with Jukebox the Ghost, Sam Champion, and These United States at 9 p.m. at the Rock and Roll Hotel, 1353 H St. NE. $12. (202) 388-7625. —-Maggie Serota

After each wrongly confessing to the theft of a renowned diamond, three British brothers independently join the French Foreign Legion, where they endure a cruel sergeant and yield to futile self-sacrifice. It sounds like a story that’s been around forever, or at least since the Victorian age, but in fact Beau Geste was published just two years before its first Hollywood adaptation in 1926. Unrest in Algeria scuttled plans to film there, but the Death Valley area proved a fine substitute locale for a picture whose major set piece is the discovery of a fort manned entirely by corpses. Starring Ronald Colman as Michael “Beau” Geste, the movie was deemed “corking” by Variety. Remade twice and then parodied by Marty Feldman, Beau Geste now seems antiquated. But it has an old-fashioned sweep that suits the silent-film aesthetic, which is why the original version is arguably the best. The film shows at 7 p.m. at the Library of Congress’ Pickford Theater, 101 Independence Ave. SE. Free. (202) 707-5677. —-Mark Jenkins