The sips: We signed up for the Wine Exploration, and received an Oregon pinot gris and Napa Valley syrah. The wines weren’t the expected regional varietals, and were from top-notch producers. Oenophiles may recognize many of the boutique labels; wine newbies may not. This is a great option for wine lovers who want to get out of a rut and try something new. Details: www.uncorkedventures.com. Wine AwesomenessCurated by staff sommeliers, the offerings are billed as wines you don’t see everywhere but want to drink daily. The team finds small-production wines and also collaborates with winemakers on bottlings, such as the Lekker South African rosé included in our shipment. You can choose monthly 3-packs ($45) or six-packs ($75) of all white, all red or a mix. And, they promise, if you can find the wines in their shipments for less, they’ll give you wine free for a year. Shipments include a mini-magazine, The Back Label, filled with stories about the wines and recipes from the Food52 blog.

Hillbarn Theatre, “White Christmas.” Through Dec, 21, By Irving Berlin, Directed by Virginia Musante, Music direction by Tracy Chiappone, Featuring Jim Ambler as Phil Davis and Pierce Peter Brandt as Bob Wallace, and Ken Brill, Alyson Chilton, Janice Engelgau, Amanda Farbstein, Bob Fitzgerald, Jackson Foster, Paul Guyer, Dylan Harris, Greg Lynch, Emily Mannion, Claudia McCarley, Michelle McComb, Ron Munekawa, Noelani Neal, Alexandra Nemchik, Jon Nowakowski, Melissa O’Keefe and Devin Smith, Hillbarn Theatre, 1285 E, Hillsdale Blvd., Foster City, $23-$42, 650-349-6411, ext, 2, or personalized dance frame, ballet frame, ballerina picture frame, i love dance frame, gift for dancer www.hillbarntheatre.org..

The Don Giovanni protagonists will be doing a short minuet, which James Callon, singing the tenor role of Don Ottavio, claims was easy to learn. “This is my first time working with Lise. She’s awesome because she made us feel really at ease,” says the second-year company resident. He went on to express his appreciation that la Cour “knows how to deal with people and makes them feel comfortable with her right away.”. It’s a sentiment echoed by Callon’s stage fiancée, soprano Cecilia Violetta López, who has the role of Donna Anna. “It’s so fun to watch Lise, and I’m lucky enough to have James as my Don,” says López, whose residency ends with this performance, but who will return next year as a guest artist. La Cour “is very open, very friendly and patient. It’s rumored that singers can’t dance, but Lise is lucky that she’s got four singers who are dancers.

Anything Goes, Costume fundraiser for TheatreWorks, 5:30 p.m.-midnight Oct, 20, Guests are invited to pick an personalized dance frame, ballet frame, ballerina picture frame, i love dance frame, gift for dancer outfit from one of TheatreWorks’ past productions to wear to the party, The event is held at TheatreWorks’ scene shop and features cocktails, dinner by Grace Street Catering, dancing, and a live auction, TheatreWorks Scene Shop, 1100 Hamilton Court, Menlo Park, $275-$500, Tables: $2,750-$10,000, Contact TheatreWorks Special Events Department at 650-463-7159 or email events@theatreworks.org, www.theatreworks.org..

The producers’ two year contract with the town expired last September, and negotiations for a new contract began shortly after that. But the negotiations stalled over a number of items, most notably Music in the Park’s request for an additional $5,000 on top of the $6,000 the town has given the event for the past two years. The added dollars would cover the cost of security at the 11 events, plus new light poles for the park dance. “The light towers they gave us are broken, and we asked for police or a parks officer to help with security and the town said they couldn’t provide that,” event co-producer Scott Canali said. “Before us, there was a parks service officer who was usually around. We didn’t have that, and last year it put our volunteers in a position of enforcing town codes.”.