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The Listings: May 6-12

Selective listings by critics of The New York Times of new and noteworthy cultural events in the New York metropolitan region this week. * denotes a highly recommended film, concert, show or exhibition.

Theater

Approximate running times are in parentheses. Full reviews of current shows, additional listings, showtimes and tickets: nytimes.com/theater.

Previews and Openings

'CAPTAIN LOUIE' Opens Sunday. A new family musical by Stephen Schwartz, who wrote the music to "Wicked," and Anthony Stein, about a lonely boy whose imagination wanders on Halloween night. Based on Ezra Jack Keats' short story "The Trip" (1:00). The York Theater Company at the Theater at Saint Peter's, 619 Lexington Avenue, at East 54th Street, (212)868-4444. Closes June 12.

'BOOZY: THE LIFE DEATH AND SUBSEQUENT VILIFICATION OF LE CORBUSIER AND, MORE IMPORTANTLY, ROBERT MOSES' Opens Wednesday. Les Freres Corbusier remounts its rapid-fire tale about Jane Jacobs, bunnies, urban planning and everything else under the sun. Ten minutes have been trimmed (1:30). 45 Bleecker Street Theater, (212)307-4100.

'THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA' Previews start Tuesday. Opens Wednesday. The Acting Company mounts one of Shakespeare's early and often overlooked comedies (2:30). Acorn at Theater Row, 410 West 42nd Street, (212) 279-4200.

'THE APPLE TREE' Opens Thursday. Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock's three one-act musicals about temptation finish the 2004-2005 Encores! Season with a star-studded cast including Kristin Chenoweth, Malcolm Gets and Michael Cerveris (2:00). City Center, West 55th Street, (212) 581-1212.

'SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER' Opens Thursday. Oliver Goldsmith's 1773 comedy mocks the snobbery of the London upper class, while piling on the slapstick, mistaken identities and farce (2:30). Irish Repertory Theater, 132 West 22nd Street, (212) 727-2737.

'AFTER THE NIGHT AND THE MUSIC' Opens June 1. Elaine May's three one-acts is a new comedy on Broadway (remember those) about married couples and aging singles looking for love. It's being called a play "about life in the new millennium." Daniel Sullivan directs (2:00). Biltmore Theater, 261 West 47th Street, (212)239-6200.

'DRUMSTRUCK' Previews start Thursday. Opens late May/early June. The gimmick of this new spin on "Stomp," which includes 11 percussionists from West and South Africa, is that every audience member plays his or her own drum during the show. David Warren directs (1:25). Dodgers Stages, 340 West 50th Street, (212) 239-6200.

'FLIGHT' Previews start Sunday. Opens May 16. A new drama about the controversial and extraordinary life of aviator Charles Lindbergh (2:00). Lucille Lortel Theater, 121 Christopher Street, (212) 279-4200.

'HENRY FLAMETHROWA' Previews start Wednesday. Opens May 14. Loosely based on a true story, this timely drama, starring Tim Daly of the TV series "Wings," is about a girl who has been in a coma for several years and her brother who plans to disconnect her breathing ventilator and allow her to die (1:30). Studio Dante, 257 West 29th Street, (212) 279-4200.

'HOWIE THE ROOKIE' Previews start Thursday. Opens May 18. A funny-tragic Irish yarn by Mark O'Rowe that describes one evening in the lives of a few lads looking for cash and birds to shag. (1:50). Irish Arts Center, 553 West 51st Street (212) 868-4444.

'LOVE/LIFE A LIFE IN SONG' Opens May 15. Velvet-voiced smoothie Brian Stokes Mitchell applies the charm offensive in this cabaret show featuring the music of everyone from Cole Porter to Bruce Hornsby (1:30). Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater, (212) 239-6200.

'MEMORY HOUSE' Opens May 17. Dianne Wiest stars as mother of girl looking for answers about her adoption. (1:30) Playwrights Horizons, 416 West 42nd Street, (212) 279-4200.

'MISS JULIE' Previews start Thursday. Opens May 19. Craig Lucas's adaptation of August Strindberg's ferocious battle of the sexes starring Reg Rogers and Marin Hinkle (1:35). Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, 224 Waverly Place, (212) 868-4444.

'SONGS FROM AN UNMADE BED' Previews start Thursday. Opens May 24. Seventeen composers each wrote one song to go with the lyrics of Mark Campbell for this solo show about the heartaches and successes of a gay New Yorker. Running in repertory with "Score." (1:10). New York Theater Workshop, 79 East Fourth Street, (212) 239-6200.

'TERRORISM' Previews start Monday. Opens May 23. A jet black and ominous comedy about modern Russian life that weaves together six interconnected scenes set everywhere from an airport runway to a lover's bedroom. Written by Siberian brothers Vladimir and Oleg Presnyakov (1:20) The Clurman Theater at Theater Row, 410 West 42nd Street, (212) 279-4200.

Broadway

'ALL SHOOK UP' In a pint-size theater with a campy young cast, "All Shook Up" might be a moderate hoot. Inflated to Broadway proportions, it's a mind-numbing holler (2:10). Palace Theater, 1564 Broadway, at 47th Street, (212)307-4100. (Ben Brantley)

'BROOKLYN THE MUSICAL' Try to imagine a sanitized "Hair" or a secular "Godspell," with a helping of funky 70's disco, all filtered through the vocal pyrotechnics of "American Idol" (1:45). Beginning Monday the theater will be renamed the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater. Plymouth, 236 West 45th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'JULIUS CAESAR' Those cruel forces of history known as the dogs of war are chewing up everything in their path in this tragedy: friends, Romans, countrymen, blank verse and even the noblest movie star of them all. That's Denzel Washington, who plays the conflicted Brutus (2:40). Belasco, 111 West 44th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG' The playthings are the thing in this lavish wind-up music box of a show: windmills, Rube Goldberg-like machines and the show's title character, a flying car. It's like spending two and a half hours in the Times Square branch of Toys "R" Us. (2.30). Hilton Theater, 213 West 42nd Street, (212) 307-4100. (Brantley)

'DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS' On paper, this tale of two mismatched scam artists has an awful lot in common with "The Producers." But if you are going to court comparison with giants, you had better be prepared to stand tall. "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," starring John Lithgow and Nobert Leo Butz, never straightens out of a slouch (2:35). Imperial, 249 West 45th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'FIDDLER ON THE ROOF' From the moment it sounds its first word in this placid revival, the voice of Harvey Fierstein (who has replaced Alfred Molina in the central role of Tevye) makes the audience prick up its ears. Whether it fits comfortably into the Russian village of Anatevka is another issue. But at least it brings a bit of zest to this abidingly bland production (2:55). Minskoff, 200 West 45th Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

'THE GLASS MENAGERIE' This revival suggests that to recollect the past is to see life as if it had occurred underwater, in some viscous sea. Folks drown in this treacherous element. Unfortunately, that includes the show's luminous but misdirected and miscast stars: Jessica Lange and Christian Slater (2:30). Barrymore, 243 West 47th Street; (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

* 'GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS' Highly caffeinated bliss. Watching Joe Mantello's hopping revival of David Mamet's play about a dog-eat-dog real-estate office is like having espresso pumped directly into your bloodstream. But what's a little lost sleep when you've had the chance to see a dream-team ensemble, including Liev Schrieber and Alan Alda, pitching fast-ball Mamet dialouge with such pure love for the athletics of acting? (1:45). Royale Theater, 242 West 45th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Brantley)

'JACKIE MASON: FRESHLY SQUEEZED' Jackie Mason has so cunningly manufactured and marketed his dyspeptic comic persona -- the herky-jerky movements, the voice that's like a sinus infection with a bad back -- that he may soon be able to refine all actual jokes out of his act, and still slay 'em. That's chutzpah. and quite a talent, too (2:05). Helen Hayes Theater, 240 West 44th Street, (212)239-6200. (Charles Isherwood)

'LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA' Love is a many-flavored thing, from sugary to sour, in Adam Guettel and Craig Lucas's encouragingly ambitous and discouragingly unfulfilled new musical. The show soars only in the sweetly bitter songs performed by Victoria Clark, as an American abroad (2:15). Beaumont, Lincoln Center, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'LITTLE WOMEN' Watching the production is rather like speed-reading Alcott's novel. And the cast members mostly bring to mind 1860's-themed editions of American Girl dolls (2:20). Virginia Theater, 245 West 52nd Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley) 'MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT' This staged re-creation of the mock-medieval movie "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" is basically a singing scrapbook for Python fans. Still, it seems safe to say that such a good time is being had by so many people that this fitful, eager celebration of inanity and irreverence will find a large and lucrative audience (2:20). Shubert, 225 West 44th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

* 'ON GOLDEN POND' Placing a powerhouse like James Earl Jones in Ernest Thompson's teary sentimental comedy about an elderly couple's summer of healing suggests a German shepherd in a poodle-sized dog house. Yet rather than make his surroundings feel small and artificial in this surprisingly fresh revival, Mr. Jones's natural grandeur forces the play to find room for his sweeping emotional breadth (2:15). Cort, 138 West 48th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'STEEL MAGNOLIAS' Despite an ensemble featuring high-profile veterans of stage, film and television, sitting through this portrait of friendship among Southern women, set in a beauty parlor in small-town Louisiana, is like watching nail polish dry (2:20). Lyceum, 149 West 45th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE' The capricious gods of casting have not been kind to Tennessee Williams of late. This staging, starring an erratic Natasha Richardson as Blanche, is not the hazy mess that the current "Glass Menagerie" is. But it too suffers from fundmental mistmatches of parts, especially John C. Reilly's sexually unmagnetic Stanley (2:45). Studio 54, 254 West 54th Street, (212)719-1300. (Brantley)

'SWEET CHARITY' This revival of the 1966 musical, directed by Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Wayne Cilento, never achieves more than a low-grade fever when what's wanted is that old steam heat. In the title role of the hopeful dance-hall hostess, the appealing but underequipped Christina Applegate is less a shopworn angel than a merry cherub (2:30). Al Hirschfeld Theater, 302 West 45th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

* 'TWELVE ANGRY MEN' This stage adaptation of Reginald Rose's celebrated television drama from 1954 (made into a film in 1957) suggests that sometimes the best way to present a fossil is just to polish it up and put it on display without disguise, annotation or apology. Even those who like their theater hip and cerebral might want to lower their eyebrows for this 90-minute production. (1:30). American Airlines Theater, 227 West 42nd Street, (212)719-1300. (Brantley)

* 'THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE' William Finn's score sounds plumper and more rewarding than it did Off Broadway, providing a sprinkling of sugar to complement the sass in Rachel Sheinkin's zinger-filled book. The performances are flawless. Gold stars all around. (1:45). Circle in the Square, 1633 Broadway, at 50th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Isherwood)

* 'WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?' Everybody ultimately loses in Edward Albee's great marital wrestling match of a play from 1962. But theatergoers who attend this revealingly acted new production, starring a superb Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin, are destined to leave the Longacre feeling like winner (2:50). Longacre Theater, 220 West 48th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

Off Broadway

'ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING' Cheers to the British cabaret trio that calls itself Fascinating Aida. These women revel in the here and now. They are bawdy and political; loopy (in that crisp English way) and whimsical (2:00). Kirk Theater, 410 West 42nd Street, (212)279-4200. (Margo Jefferson)

* 'ALTAR BOYZ' This sweetly satirical show about a Christian pop group made up of five potential Teen People cover boys is an enjoyable silly diversion (1:30). Dodger Stages Stage 4, 340 West 50th Street, (212)239-6200. (Isherwood)

'BEAST ON THE MOON' Richard Kalinoski's musty romantic drama depicts the fractious marriage of two survivors of the Armenian genocide. Larry Moss's production is respectable and effective, but the performances by Omar Metwally and Lena Georgas are exhaustingly busy (2:00). Century Center for the Performing Arts, 111 East 15th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Isherwood)

'DESSA ROSE' It's easy to admire Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens ("Ragtime") for their belief in the humanist potential in musical theater. But their new show isn't likely to win many converts to the cause (2:30). Newhouse, Lincoln Center, (212)239-6200. (Isherwood)

* 'HURLYBURLY' If you are going to inhabit a wasteland, you might as well be thoroughly wasted. That seems to be the first rule of survival for the characters who have been brought so vibrantly and unforgivingly to life in this smashing revival of David Rabe's 1984 play. But thanks to a terrific cast, theatergoers are likely to experience a heady buzz of excitement and clarity that any of the desperate characters onstage would kill for (3:15). 37 Arts, 450 West 37th Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

'LAZER VAUDEVILLE' If this isn't an ancient showbiz rule, it ought to be: things will look a lot more impressive if they are done in the dark with a heavy dose of fluorescence. That seems to be the guiding principle behind this hodgepodge of juggling, rope twirling and such, delivered wordlessly by the cast (1:30). Houseman, 450 West 42nd Street, Clinton, (212)239-6200. (Neil Genzlinger)

'THE MAIDS' It is no small feat to find the chill in Jean Genet's 1947 play about two maids who fantasize about killing their boss, but Jean Cocteau Repertory manages it. Credit an eye-opening performance by Amanda Jones as Solange, the dominant of the two maids (2:00). Bouwerie Lane Theater, 330 Bowery, at Bond and East Second Streets, (212)279-4200. (Genzlinger)

* 'ORSON'S SHADOW' Austin Pendleton's play, about a 1960 production of Ionesco's "Rhinoceros" directed by Orson Welles and starring Laurence Olivier, is a sharp-witted but tender-hearted backstage comedy about the thin skins, inflamed nerves and rampaging egos that are the customary side effects when sensitivity meets success (2:00). Barrow Street Theater, 27 Barrow Street, Greenwich Village, (212)239-6200. (Isherwood)

'A PICASSO' Jeffrey Hatcher's play is a formulaic two-hander set in occupied Paris in 1941. Pablo Picasso (Dennis Boutsikaris) is brought in for interrogation by the severe Miss Fischer (Jill Eikenberry), who works for the German cultural ministry (1:10). City Center Stage II, 131 West 55th Street, (212)581-1212. (Isherwood)

'SCORE' The subject of this one-man show is Leonard Bernstein and music, and the performer Tom Nelis, and the director, Anne Bogart, "get" Lenny -- now brilliant, now flamboyant, now superficial, now physically responding to recorded music (1:30). New York Theater Workshop, 79 East Fourth Street, (212) 239-6200. (Anne Midgette)

* 'SHOCKHEADED PETER' A gorgeous "nasty picture book" of a musical, in which badly behaved Victorian tots come to ghastly ends. Inspired by Heinrich Hoffmann's droll collection of grisly bedtime stories, "Shockheaded Peter" is both the silliest and most sinister show in town. It is also one of the smartest (1:40). Little Shubert Theater, 422 West 42nd Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'SLAVA'S SNOWSHOW' A giggle of clowns chosen by the Russian master Slava Polunin is stirring up laughter and enjoyment. A show that touches the heart as well as tickles the funnybone (1:30). Union Square, 100 East 17th Street, (212)307-4100 . (Lawrence Van Gelder)

* 'THOM PAIN (BASED ON NOTHING)' Is there such a thing as stand-up existentialism? If not, Will Eno has just invented it. Stand-up-style comic riffs and deadpan hipster banter keep interrupting the corrosively bleak narrative. Mr. Eno is a Samuel Beckett for the Jon Stewart generation (1:10). DR2 Theater, 103 East 15th Street, (212)239-6200. (Isherwood)

'WOMAN BEFORE A GLASS' Peggy Guggenheim, doyenne of the 20th-century art world, becomes the latest public figure to be exhumed onstage in this one-woman show starring the formidable Mercedes Ruehl. Written by Lanie Robertson, the play is gaudy and moderately fun (1:40). Promenade, Broadway at 76th Street, (212)239-6200. (Isherwood)

Off Off Broadway

'PERSEUS' Performed in ancient Greek, "Perseus" tells the saga of the son of Zeus who slew the serpent-headed Medusa and saved Andromeda from a sea monster. Staged by Ellen Stewart, the production has the flamboyant pageantry and occasional ridiculousness of a low rent runway show (1:40). La MaMa Annex, 66 East Fourth Street, (212)475-7710. (Jason Zinoman)

'THE THREE MUSKETEERS' A lot of story and actors have been crammed into this musical version. Unfortunately, that seems to have left little room for other crucial ingredients, like panache (2:30). Wings, 154 Christopher Street, (212)627-2961. (Genzlinger)

'PLANET BANANA' If you think women's gymnastics would be more interesting if performed in outfits from the Victoria's Secret catalog, then "Planet Banana" is the place for you. Featuring incongruous stunts, moderately difficult circus routines and a sketchy searching-for-love story, the show is as enjoyable as it is raucous (1:25). Ars Nova, 511 West 54th Street, (212)868-4444. (Genzlinger)

Long-Running Shows

'AVENUE Q' R-rated puppets give lively life lessons (2:10). Golden, 252 West 45th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'BEAUTY AND THE BEAST' Cartoon made flesh -- sort of (2:30). Lunt-Fontanne Theater, 205 West 46th Street , (212)307-4747. (Brantley)

'BLUE MAN GROUP' Conceptual art as family entertainment (1:45). Astor Place Theater, 434 Lafayette Street, (212)254-4370. (Brantley)

'CHICAGO' Irrefutable proof that crime pays (2:25). Ambassador, 219 West 49th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'HAIRSPRAY' Fizzy pop, cute kids, large transvestite (2:30). Neil Simon Theater, 250 West 52nd Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

'THE LION KING' Disney on safari, where the big bucks roam (2:45). New Amsterdam Theater, 214 West 42nd Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

'MAMMA MIA!' The jukebox that devoured Broadway (2:20). Cadillac Winter Garden Theater, 1634 Broadway, at 50th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'MOVIN' OUT' The miracle dance musical that makes Billy Joel cool (2:00). Richard Rodgers Theater, 226 West 46th Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

'NAKED BOYS SINGING' That's who they are. That's what they do (1:05). 47th Street, 304 West 47th Street, (212) 239-6200. (Anita Gates)

'THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA' Who was that masked man, anyway? (2:30). Majestic Theater, 247 West 44th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'THE PRODUCERS' The ne plus ultra of showbiz scams (2:45). St. James Theater, 246 West 44th Street, (212)239-6200. (Brantley)

'RENT' East Village angst and love songs to die for (2:45). Nederlander Theater, 208 West 41st Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

'STOMP' And the beat goes on (and on), with percussion unlimited (1:30). Orpheum Theater, Second Avenue at Eighth Street, (212)477-2477. (Brantley)

'WICKED' Oz revisited, with political corrections (2:45). Gershwin, 222 West 51st Street, (212)307-4100. (Brantley)

Last Chance

'THE FALSE SERVANT' Decked out in a smart black tailcoat, Martha Plimpton cuts a debonair figure in this revival of this unusually chilly Marivaux comedy. Ms. Plimpton's dashing performance imbues the proceedings with a bright, puckish spirit, but the mechanical staging emphasizes the nip that never leaves the air (2:00). Classic Stage Company, 136 East 13th Street, East Village, (212)279-4200, closing tomorrow. (Isherwood)

'THE HAPPY PRINCE' This is a lovely Scottish production of Oscar Wilde's fairy tale about a statue and a swallow who help the poor and pay a great price. Very little of the Wilde wit has survived the adaptation, but the play may prompt children to turn to his original (1:00). The New Victory Theater, 209 West 42nd Street, (212)239-6200, closing on Sunday. (Gates)

'MONK' Rome Neal eases his way through this solo play about the jazz musician Thelonious Monk, taking his time to tell the story of an artist he clearly loves. But this is not the show for jazz fans that want to delve deep into Monk's psychology or learn something new about his process (1:30). Havoc, 312 West 36th Street, (718)288-8048, closing on Sunday. (Zinoman)

'MOONLIGHT AND MAGNOLIAS' Hollywood ghosts squabble like starving chickens in Ron Hutchinson's shrill, obstreperously silly comedy about the making of "Gone With the Wind" (1:50). City Center Stage I, 131 West 55th Street, (212)581-1212, closing on Sunday. (Isherwood)

'ORANGE FLOWER WATER' Craig Wright's play is about two marriages coming apart. The hurt that people cause one another is communicated only through words in this play -- sometimes too many of them (1:30). Theater for the New City, 155 First Avenue, at Ninth Street, (212)868-4444, closing on Monday. (Andrea Stevens)

'SOULS OF NAPLES' As a lovable dupe who is happier tangling with a family of phantoms than facing the cold truths of his marriage, John Turturro exudes a winsome sincerity that pleasantly perfumes Roman Paska's otherwise flaccid production of this 1946 comedy by Eduardo De Filippo (2:00). The Duke on 42nd Street, 229 West 42nd Street, (212)239-6200, closing on Sunday. (Isherwood)

Movies

Ratings and running times are in parentheses; foreign films have English subtitles. Full reviews of all current releases, movie trailers, showtimes and tickets: nytimes.com/movies.

'A LOT LIKE LOVE' (PG-13, 107 minutes). A film that isn't half bad and every so often is pretty good, filled with real sentiment, worked-through performances and a story textured enough to sometimes feel a lot like life. (Manohla Dargis)

'ALIENS OF THE DEEP' (G, 48 minutes). A hybrid of undersea documentary and outer-space fantasy. Filmed in Imax 3-D, it is a visual adventure worthy of that much-degraded adjective, awesome. (Stephen Holden)

'THE AMITYVILLE HORROR' (R, 89 minutes). Low-key creepy rather than outright scary, this remake of the soporific 1979 horror flick marks a modest improvement on the original. But this time don't get attached to the family dog. (Dargis)

'ANOTHER ROAD HOME' (not rated, 79 minutes). This fascinating film documents the Israeli director Danae Elon's attempt to reconnect with the male Palestinian caregiver who lived with her family. (Jeannette Catsoulis)

'BEAUTY SHOP' (PG-13, 105 minutes). Less a sequel than an old-fashioned sitcom spinoff, this loose and genial comedy moves the "Barbershop" franchise to Atlanta, and gives the ladies a turn at the warm, salty banter that made the first two installments so popular. (A.O. Scott)

'THE BALLAD OF JACK AND ROSE' (R, 112 minutes). A proud survivor of the 1960's and its utopian promise, Jack (Daniel Day-Lewis) lives alone on an island with his only daughter. A story about the limits of love, "Ballad" is also about the limits of idealism as well as, rather unfortunately, those of its restlessly ambitious writer and director, Rebecca Miller. (Dargis)

* 'THE BEST OF YOUTH' (not rated, 6 hours and 23 minutes, shown in two parts; in Italian). Marco Tullio Giordana's six-hour journey through recent Italian history is nothing less than a masterpiece, combining epic sweep with precise, heart-rending intimacy. (Scott)

'BRIDE AND PREJUDICE' (PG-13, 111 minutes). This Bollywood-style musical -- which transposes Jane Austen's 1813 novel to 21st-century India -- is as high concept and rife with cliché as anything churned out by Hollywood, but with worse production values and a load of sanctimony. (Dargis)

'CASUISTRY: THE ART OF KILLING A CAT' (not rated, 88 minutes). In 2001, three young men in Toronto tortured and killed a domestic cat and videotaped themselves doing it. This upsetting incident and its aftermath are the subjects of this documentary that will leave viewers eager to discuss the limits of artistic freedom and the extension of "human rights" to animals. (Dana Stevens)

'DEATH OF A DYNASTY' (R, 74 minutes). Watching Damon Dash's playful movie is like entering a room where a large, noisy party is going on and never fully adjusting to the dark or the din. A young white reporter goes behind the scenes in the hip-hop world and thinks he knows a lot more than he does. (Anita Gates)

'DOWNFALL' (not rated, 155 minutes; in German). Bruno Ganz plays Hitler, palsied and furious, as his Reich collapses. The film's most daring gambit -- to treat Germany's monsters as human -- is also the source of its greatest failure, which is that it uses the conventions of wartime melodrama to elicit sympathy for people who hardly deserve it. (Scott)

'EATING OUT' (not rated, 85 minutes). A dreary erotic roundelay: a modern-day variant on a Shakespeare comedy, only without the verbal felicity or sense of dramatic structure. (Stevens)

* 'ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM' (not rated, 110 minutes). This sober, informative chronicle of the biggest business scandal of the decade is almost indecently entertaining, in part because it offers some of the most satisfying movie villains in quite some time. Recommended for everyone except those likely to be in the Kenneth L. Lay and Jeffrey K. Skilling jury pools. (Scott)

* 'FEVER PITCH' (PG-13, 98 minutes). To watch this new, thoroughly winning if not especially good romantic comedy is to appreciate, yet again, that the great loves of our lives are rarely perfect. (Dargis)

'15' (not rated, 90 minutes, in Hokkien and Mandarin). A Singaporean film about the desultory adventures of a gang of disaffected youth starring young nonprofessional actors who aren't any good. (Stevens)

* 'FUNNY HA HA' (not rated, 89 minutes). Twenty-somethings looking for love, direction and fulfilling work -- this smart, cheaply made first feature is low-key, note-perfect and sneakily artful. (Scott)

'THE GIRL FROM MONDAY' (not rated, 84 minutes). Like so many science fiction fantasies, this deadpan comedy, which is "Brave New World" Lite, begins with a witty premise, then stumbles all over itself trying to tell a coherent, original story. (Holden)

'GUESS WHO' (PG-13, 103 minutes). A loose, pointless remake of "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner." (Scott)

'HAPPILY EVER AFTER' (not rated, 100 minutes; in French). A likable skin-deep sex comedy, which tries half-heartedly to present itself as a treatise on marriage. (Holden)

'HITCH' (PG-13, 115 minutes). As soft and sweet as a marshmallow, and about as interesting, this genial romantic comedy features the ever-charming Will Smith as a dating coach. (Scott)

* 'THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY' (PG, 103 minutes). In this hugely likable, long-awaited film of Douglas Adams's beloved book, the world comes to an end not just with a bang, but also with something of a shrug. Nicely directed with heart and sincerity by the newcomer Garth Jennings, the film features Martin Freeman, a sensational Sam Rockwell and some gloriously singing dolphins. (Dargis)

* 'THE HOLY GIRL' (not rated, 106 minutes; in Spanish). The Argentine director Lucrecia Martel's second feature is an oblique, feverish exploration of religious ecstasy and adolescent sexuality. Hard to classify, other than as a miraculous piece of filmmaking. (Scott)

'HOSTAGE' (R, 113 minutes). More than sad, it's slightly sickening to consider the technology, talent and know-how squandered on this pile of blood-soaked toxic waste dumped onto the screen in an attempt to salvage Bruce Willis's fading career as an action hero. (Holden)

'HOUSE OF D' (PG-13, 97 minutes). Robin Williams plays a wise and kindly mentally retarded janitor. Enough said. (Scott)

'THE INTERPRETER' (PG-13, 123 minutes). A political thriller, both apolitical and unthrilling, notable for two accomplishments: turning the United Nations into a movie set, and, even more remarkably, giving Nicole Kidman the opportunity to embody the suffering of Africans everywhere. (Scott)

'IT'S ALL GONE PETE TONG' (R, 88 minutes). A dance club D.J. loses his hearing and then his grip in this surprisingly sweet faux documentary, while Paul Kaye keeps us interested in a character who doesn't merit our affection but earns it nonetheless. (Dargis)

'KING'S RANSOM' (PG-13, 97 minutes). The cinematic equivalent of trampled chewing gum on a subway platform. (Holden)

'KUNG FU HUSTLE' (R, 95 minutes, in Mandarin and Cantonese). This kinetic, exhausting, relentlessly entertaining film throws scraps of a half-century of international pop culture into a fast-whirling blender. (Scott)

'LADIES IN LAVENDER' (PG-13, 104 minutes). Two Dames of the British empire (Judi Dench and Maggie Smith) inhabit spinster sisters in Cornwall who nurse a handsome Polish violinist back to health in 1936. Amiably bogus. (Holden)

* 'LOOK AT ME' (PG-13, 110 minutes; in French). A delicious comedy, as tart as it is sweet, of ambition, miscommunication and egoism. Set in a Paris that seems to be populated entirely by artists and writers, the film affectionately tweaks the bad manners and complacency of France's intellectual elite. (Scott)

'MADISON' (PG, 105 minutes). This film about hydroplane racing in a small Indiana town wants to be both heartwarming and quirky but is sometimes just cutesy instead. The cast does a fine job, but only moviegoers who care about nitrous-oxide injection systems are likely to appreciate the story. (Gates)

'THE MAN WHO COPIED' (not rated, 124 minutes, in Portuguese). From kitchen-sink realism, to unconvincing caper fantasy, this Brazilian film about a photocopier-turned-counterfeiter loses its bearings the moment it leaps from one to the other. (Holden)

'MELINDA AND MELINDA' (PG-13, 99 minutes). The same story, more or less, told two different ways -- as serious drama and as comedy. Though Woody Allen's drama lacks emotional intensity and the comedy lacks funny jokes, the director interweaves them deftly enough. (Scott)

* 'MILLION DOLLAR BABY' (PG-13, 135 minutes). Clint Eastwood takes what appears to be a conventional boxing-melodrama plot about a crusty old trainer whose heart is melted by a spirited young fighter and turns it into a glowing, somber meditation on friendship, ambition and death. (Scott)

* 'MILLIONS' (PG, 97 minutes). Given the gaudy violence that frequently moves Danny Boyle's stories forward and keeps them jumping, it may come as something of a surprise that he has directed a heartfelt, emotionally delicate children's movie about life and death and all the parts in between. (Dargis)

'MISS CONGENIALITY 2: ARMED AND FABULOUS' (PG-13, 100 minutes). Wading through this junky sequel to her genial goofball hit "Miss Congeniality," Sandra Bullock looks as if she would rather be shoveling pig waste, though of course in some respects that is exactly what she's doing. (Dargis)

'OLDBOY' (R, 118 minutes; in Korean). The latest in dubious pulp-fiction cool, "Oldboy" centers on a seemingly ordinary businessman, Dae-su (the terrific Choi Min-sik), who, after being mysteriously imprisoned, goes on an exhausting rampage, seeking answers and all manner of bloody revenge. (Dargis)

'ONE MISSED CALL' (not rated, 100 minutes; in Japanese). Take the Japanese horror film "Ringu," replace the deadly videotapes with killer cellphones, and add a baroque, everything-but-the-kitchen-sink climactic sequence involving ghosts, zombies, disembodied limbs and pickled fetuses. Are you sure you want to take this call? (Stevens)

'THE PACIFIER' (PG, 97 minutes). Despite the specter of boogeymen, this family flick remains chipper and occasionally clever, as it sends up the high-tech know-how required in 21st-century parenting. (Ned Martel)

'PALINDROMES' (not rated, 100 minutes). The same backward and forward: dud. (Scott)

'ROBOTS' (PG, 89 minutes). This computer-animated film's setting, a world made entirely for and by clanky mechanical gizmos, is rendered with impressive skill and imagination. Otherwise, it's the usual junkyard assemblage of celebrity voices, lame pop-cultural allusions and heartwarming lessons. (Scott)

'SAHARA' (PG-13, 130 minutes). It may not be "Raiders of the Lost Ark," but this screen adaptation of Clive Cussler's sprawling African adventure yarn is a movie that keeps half a brain in its head while adopting the amused, cocky smirk of the Indiana Jones romps. (Holden)

'SAVE THE GREEN PLANET' (not rated, 118 minutes; in Korean). A dog named Earth and aliens both domestic and imported rotate around one another in this self-consciously freaky, rambunctiously goofy genre hybrid from South Korea. Just don't ask what it all means. (Dargis)

'SHORT CUT TO NIRVANA: KUMBH MELA' (not rated, 85 minutes, in Hindi). Seventy million pilgrims gather in India to seek enlightenment; this engaging documentary travelogue, as the title suggests, will save you the trip. (Scott)

'SIN CITY' (R, 126 minutes). Based on the comic book series of the same name by Frank Miller, this slavishly faithful screen adaptation tracks the ups and downs of tough guys and dolls. "Sin City" has been made with such scrupulous care and obvious love for its genre influences that it's a shame the movie is kind of a bore. (Dargis)

'STALIN'S WIFE' (not rated, 104 minutes; in English and Russian). This dense biographical collage of images and memories of the Soviet dictator's second wife, Nadezhda, has a paradoxical quality. While many of the facts of her life are in dispute, the film evokes a fairly defined portrait of a strong, decisive, well-educated woman destroyed by a paranoid husband. (Holden)

'STATE PROPERTY II' (R, 94 minutes). Better than the first one, which isn't saying much, but this brutal celebration of the spirit of capitalism has some moments of energy and wit. (Scott)

* '3-IRON' (not rated, 87 minutes; in Korean). A pop fable of urban loneliness that showcases the Korean director Kim Ki-Duk's witty sense of form. It's a thoroughly modern movie with elements of silent film, a love story shot with horror-film techniques, and a charming blend of style and sentiment. (Scott)

* 'TORREMOLINOS 73' (not rated, 91 minutes, in Spanish). This movie's gentle, humanist vision of pornographic filmmaking as a sexual and aesthetic act of emancipation is a far cry from the graphic social realism of recent films like "A Hole in My Heart." (Stevens)

* 'À TOUTE DE SUITE' (not rated, 96 minutes; in French). This downbeat homage to the French New Wave is a small, nearly perfect film that follows the sad chain of events when a headstrong 19-year-old art student goes on the lam with a Moroccan bank robber. (Holden)

'THE TUNNEL' (not rated, 157 minutes; in German). While the Berlin Wall stood, countless tunnels were planned as escape routes. This emotionally gripping film recounts the digging of the most famous one. (Laura Kern)

'THE UPSIDE OF ANGER' (R, 116 minutes). The upside of this deeply flawed attempt to marry midlife romantic comedy with domestic farce is that it provides a platform for Kevin Costner and Joan Allen to do some marvelous work. (Scott)

'WALK ON WATER' (not rated, 104 minutes). The director Eytan Fox takes on the controversial subject of Israeli nationalism in the aftermath of the Holocaust. Despite an implausible climax and a cloying conclusion, this movie's quiet intelligence sneaks up on you. (Stevens)

'WILD SAFARI 3-D: A SOUTH AFRICAN ADVENTURE' (not rated, 45 minutes). A choppy, bumpy tour of South African flora and fauna. Kids will love the romping lion cubs and elephant calves, while adults will be grateful by this travelogue's vibrancy and brevity. (Martel)

'WINTER SOLSTICE' (R, 93 minutes). This is the kind of ambling, event-free family drama that will either draw audiences in with its understated power, or quietly bore them out of their skulls. (Stevens)

'XXX: STATE OF THE UNION' (PG-13, 94 minutes). A wildly silly action flick in which all that stand between the American people and the yoke of tyranny are big guns, bigger breasts, the thud-thud-thud of commercial rap and the multiplatform artist known as Ice Cube (né O'Shea Jackson). (Dargis)

Film Series

'GREY GARDENS' (Tomorrow and Sunday) The Museum of the Moving Image celebrates Mother's Day with a screening of this legendary 1975 vérité portrait of an eccentric mother and daughter -- the aunt and first cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis -- who live together in isolation in a decaying East Hampton mansion. 35th Avenue at 36th Street, Astoria, Queens, (718) 784-0077; free with admission; museum admission: $10; $7.50 for 65+ and students; $5 for children, ages 5 to 18; free for members and children under 5. (Stevens)

'MICHAEL POWELL: BEAUTY UNENDING' (through May 31) The Film Society of Lincoln Center's major centennial tribute to this British director begins today and continues through the end of the month. The first weekend's offerings range from "The Red Shoes," a lush ballet melodrama starring Moira Shearer, to "Peeping Tom," the story of a serial killer who films his dying victims, which so shocked audiences upon its release in 1960 that it effectively destroyed Powell's career. Walter Reade Theater, Lincoln Center, (212) 875-5600; $10; $7 for students, $6 for members, $5 for children and 65+. (Stevens)

'RECENT FINNISH FILM' (through May 8) The Brooklyn Academy of Music's roundup of Finnish cinema includes "Pearls and Pigs," a comedy about four drunken karaoke-singing brothers, and "Seven Songs From the Tundra," the first feature film written in the language of the Nenet tribe and filmed near the Arctic Circle. 30 Lafayette Avenue, (718) 636-4100; $10; $6 for members, $7 for 65+, students and children. (Stevens)

'SPROUT FILM FESTIVAL' (tomorrow and Sunday) This event focuses on films by or about people with developmental disabilities. Sunday's program includes "Borderline," a documentary about Eunice Baker, a mentally disabled woman who served five years in jail for murdering a child she was babysitting, until evidence emerged that she had been coerced into signing a false confession. NYC Cantor Film Center, 36 East Eighth Street; (888) 222-9575, $8; $6 for 65+, students and disabled. (Stevens)

Pop

Full reviews of recent concerts: nytimes.com/music.

AUKTYON (Sunday and Monday) These veterans of the Leningrad rock club scene known for their Dadaist lyrics and riotous stage show fuse traditional folk with frenetic punk and jazz. Sunday at 9:30 p.m., Joe's Pub, 425 Lafayette Street, East Village, (212)539-8770, $30. Monday at 7:30 p.m., Knitting Factory Tap Bar, 74 Leonard Street, TriBeCa, (212)219-3006, $30. (Laura Sinagra)

AUTECHRE (Sunday) This British techno group made compelling mid-90's electronic music at once too dark for dancing and too funky for headphone reverie. Its eighth album, "Untitled" (Warp), posits the erotic potential of a drill-press in a basement full of rattling ducts and dripping pipes. 8 p.m., Webster Hall, 125 East 11th Street, East Village, (212)353-1600, $20. (Sinagra)

THE BEAT MASTERS: DA BEATMINERZ, PRINCE PAUL, NICOLAY (Tonight) The beat-makers behind 90's underground hip-hop projects like Black Moon perform their latest collaborations. The bill includes a D.J. set by the trickster impresario Prince Paul, and the Dutch D.J. Nicolay, whose beats channel American soul. 10 p.m., Rothko, 116 Suffolk Street, Lower East Side, www.rothkonyc.com, $12. (Sinagra)

* BOBBY BARE JR.,JON LANGFORD (Tonight) Bobby Bare Jr. is an even more eccentric Nashville songwriter than his father was. His music can float down-home Americana in a psychedelic haze; his lyrics are blunt, unsentimental and pugnacious. He is joined by Langford, the leader of English punk legends the Mekons, who bawls his way through songs full of history, surrealism and twang. 9 p.m., Maxwell's, 1039 Washington Street, Hoboken, N.J., (201)653-1703, $10 in advance, $12 at the door. (Jon Pareles)

JAMES BROWN (Wednesday) He may not do as many splits as he did in his physical prime, but he is still one of the most unpredictable performers around. 8 p.m., B. B. King Blues Club and Grill, 237 West 42nd Street, Manhattan, (212) 997-4144. $80 in advance, $85 at the door. (Pareles)

BUILT TO SPILL (Wednesday and Thursday) Doug Martsch, the leader of this Idaho-based band, is one of indie rock's foremost improvisatory guitarists. In the 90's, his balance of keen melodic sense, exploratory shimmer, and Neil Young-ish vocals endeared his band to a larger fan base than that of most guitar noodlers. The band tours this summer and plans to release its first album in four years this fall. 8 p.m., Irving Plaza, 17 Irving Place at 15th Street, Union Square, (212)777-6800, $19.50 in advance, $20 at the door; sold out. (Sinagra)

DAT POLITICS (Monday) This trio from Lille, France, mixes glitch-pop crackle and deconstructed dance beats to suggest a sunny junkyard picnic, complete with mechanical birds. 11 p.m., Rothko, 116 Suffolk Street, Lower East Side, www.rothkonyc.com, $8 in advance, $10 at the door. (Sinagra)

EARLIMART, OKKERVIL RIVER (Tonight) On the latest release by the California dreamers Earlimart, "Treble & Tremble" (Palm Pictures), the songwriter Aaron Espinoza conveys a raw grief over the death of fellow songwriter and friend Elliott Smith, seeking to channel his trademark melodic sadness. Wistful Austin indie folk favorites Okkervil River open. 8 p.m. Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey Street, near the Bowery, Lower East Side, (212)533-2111, $13 in advance, $15 day of show. (Sinagra)

FISCHERSPOONER (Thursday) The heavily conceptual art-world buzz and gallery extravaganzas of Fischerspooner didn't turn its electro ditties into hits; now the band is back on a more humble scale. After party with Misshapes DJ crew ($10). 9 p.m. Canal Room, 285 West Broadway, at Canal Street, Chinatown, (212)941-8100, $22.50 in advance, $25 at the door. (Pareles)

BEN FOLDS (Tuesday) Moving still further from the smarm of earlier incarnations, the gen-x piano man Ben Folds reflects on fatherhood, blue-state regrets and the loss of idols like Elliot Smith, on his latest album "Songs for Silverman" (Epic). 8 p.m., Town Hall, 123 West 43rd Street, Manhattan, (212)840-2824, $27.50 to $37.50. (Sinagra)

GOGOL BORDELLO (Tonight) Led by a gruff and extravagantly mustachioed Ukrainian singer, Eugene Hutz, Gogol Bordello calls itself a Gypsy punk band. Translating Eastern European cabaret to the Lower East Side, its songs work up to a frenetic oom-pah that's the makings of a rowdy party. DeVotchKa and Skampida share the bill. 8 p.m., Irving Plaza, 17 Irving Place, at 15th Street, Manhattan, (212)777-6800, $23.50 in advance, $25 at the door. (Pareles)

PATTY GRIFFIN (Tomorrow) This pensive singer-songwriter diverged from the Lilith Fair folk of her early 90's albums to walk the rootsier path, touring and recording with Emmylou Harris and Gillian Welch and having her songs recorded by the Dixie Chicks. Her recent album, "Impossible Dream" (ATO), looks wistfully at life through a cigarette-smoke blur. 8 p.m., Webster Hall, 125 East 11th Street, East Village, (212)353-1600, $25 in advance, $30 at the door. (Sinagra)

HEAD AUTOMATICA (Tuesday) A blend of squiggly hip-hop and rock blast from Daryl Palumbo of the New York hardcore band Glassjaw and the producer Dan (the Automator) Nakamura. In 2004 they recorded "Decadence" (Warner Brothers) and now they have a band. 6:30 p.m., Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey Street, near the Bowery, Lower East Side, (212)533-2111, $14 in advance, $16 at the door. (Sinagra)

ANGELIQUE KIDJO (Thursday) In her recent music, this Benin-born world beat singer explores the nexus of African, Cuban, and Brazilian styles. 8 p.m., B.B. King Blues Club and Grill, 237 West 42nd Street, (212)997-4144, $30 in advance, $35 at the door. (Sinagra)

LINK WRAY (Tuesday) Link Wray's "Rumble" introduced the distorted sound of a busted amplifier speaker to rock and roll, but he's far more than a novelty. Steeped in blues and rockabilly, he's the punky forefather of Southern rock. 8 p.m., B.B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 West 42nd Street, (212)997-4144, $20 in advance, $22 at the door. (Pareles)

* MARS VOLTA (Tonight) Southwest borderland alternative rock moves further into prog metal and King Crimson territory on the second album by this band founded by former members of indie crushers. At the Drive-In. 6:45 p.m., Roseland Ballroom, 239 West 52nd Street, (212)777-6800, $27, sold out. (Sinagra)

* MASTODON (Thursday) As heavy as the name suggests, this precision metal band is known for pulverizing live performances. Catch them now in a relatively small space before they join the OzzFest outdoor juggernaut. With Death by Stereo. 7 p.m., Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey Street, near the Bowery, Lower East Side, (212)533-2111, $13 in advance, $15 at the door, sold out. (Sinagra)

* MINI-MUTEK NYC (Tomorrow) Just a sampling of the 100-plus international electronic acts performing at Montreal's 6th annual Mutek festival in June. Performers include Akufen, Deadbeat, Vincent Lemieux and Crackhaus. 9 p.m., subTonic (and Tonic main space at 11:30), 107 Norfolk Street, Lower East Side, (212)358-7501, $10 in advance, $15 at the door. (Sinagra)

PETE MISER (Tonight) This underground hip-hop D.J. and emcee is more literal in his narratives than contemporaries like Atmosphere's Slug, but possesses an infectious zest for bohemian city life. His music also recently appeared in the basketball documentary "Through the Fire," which was shown recently at the TriBeCa Film Festival. 10:30 p.m., Mercury Lounge, 217 East Houston Street, Lower East Side, (212)260-4700, $10 in advance, 12 at the door. (Sinagra)

* THE MOUNTAIN GOATS (Tomorrow) John Darnielle, the singer-songwriter who records as the Mountain Goats, just released "The Sunset Tree" (4AD), one of the best albums of his career: a semi-autobiographical disc full of extraordinarily vivid little story-songs. With Shearwater. 9 p.m., Northsix, 66 North Sixth Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, (718)599-5103, $12. (Kelefa Sanneh)

NIGHT OF A THOUSAND STEVIES (Tonight) For devotees of the Stevie Nicks of "Rhiannon" and "Belladonna" this 15th annual lip-synch-heavy tribute to Fleetwood Mac's songstress is a chance for fans to don a diaphanous shawl and join in a night of white winged doves and crystal worship. 9 p.m., Knitting Factory, 74 Leonard Street, TriBeCa, (212)219-3006, $15. (Sinagra)

PAPA ROACH, TRUSTCOMPANY, NO WARNING (Monday) The Northern California rap-rockers Papa Roach howl their "bad childhood" complaints over chunky guitars and a big beat. Still living off the fumes of their 2001 hit "Last Resort," they are joined by like-minded TrustCompany and Toronto's more hardcore outfit No Warning. 8 p.m., Spirit, 530 West 27th Street, West Village, Ticketmaster.com, $20 in advance, $22 at the door. (Sinagra)

PREFUSE 73 (Tonight and Tomorrow) The atmospheric indie hip-hop D.J. Scott Herron's latest album "Surrounded By Silence" (Warp) features guests like Ghostface Killah and Blonde Redhead's Kazu. Live, he may rework some new material as instrumentals, influenced perhaps by his openers, the noise-rock Battles, jazztronic FourTet, and the rapid-rapping Beans. Tonight at 9 p.m. Northsix, 66 North Sixth Street, Brooklyn, (718)599-5103, $15; sold out. Tomorrow at 9 p.m., Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey Street, near the Bowery, Lower East Side, (212)533-2111, $20. (Sinagra)

REVEREND HORTON HEAT, SUPERSUCKERS (Wednesday) The gutter guitar psychobilly evangelist Rev. Horton Heat continues to lean hard on dirty South showmanship. He is paired here with the Supersuckers, with their amiable Satanist speed-metal. 7 p.m. Webster Hall, 125 East 11th Street, East Village, (212)353-1600, $22 in advance, $25 at the door. (Sinagra)

ROOTS MANUVA, AIRBORN AUDIO (Tomorrow) A lot of British hip-hop grime has appeared since Manuva's dub-inflected flow snagged a nomination for the Mercury Prize in 2001. Former Anti-Pop Consortium backpack rappers High Priest and M. Sayyid also aim to conjure past magic as Airborn Audio. 10 p.m., Knitting Factory, 74 Leonard Street, TriBeCa, (212)219-3006, $18. (Sinagra)

EULENE SHERMAN (Tomorrow) In the vein of gutsy gals like Sally Crewe, Eulene Sherman writes simple, satisfying melodies. Her voice can sound like a breathier Sheryl Crow, offsetting the quirkiness of lyrics like "All your chemicals/All the time/All in all/Collide with mine." 8 p.m., the Living Room, 154 Ludlow Street, Lower East Side, (212)533-7235, free. (Sinagra)

* SONGS OF THE SUFI BROTHERHOODS (Tonight and Tomorrow) Mystical Sufism uses kinetic rhythms and soaring voices in the search for divine ecstasy. This concert features Pakistan's Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali (led by two nephews of the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan), along with the Moroccan singer (and Peter Gabriel collaborator) Hassan Hakmoun, and the San Francisco-based Egyptian oudist and composer Hamza El Din. 7:30 p.m., BAM Harvey Theater, 651 Fulton Street, Fort Greene, Brooklyn, (718)636-4100, $20 to $45. (Sinagra)

SOULIVE (Tomorrow) Soulive is an organ-guitar-drums trio that harks back to the 1950's and 1960's, playing meaty, blues-centered jazz for dancers who like straightforward funk. Lately, it has been hooking up with a little hip-hop, as it does here with the beat-making X-Ecutioners. 8 p.m., Irving Plaza, 17 Irving Place, at 15th Street, Union Square, (212)777-6800, $22.50 in advance, $25 at the door. (Pareles)

STEREO TOTAL (Wednesday) Epitomizing the Continental hipster art culture of Berlin, the multi-instrumentalists in this band since the mid-90's have come from several countries across Europe. Their latest record shows they still move deftly from the swinging London sound to candy punk to electronic new wave. 8 p.m., Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey Street, near the Bowery, Lower East Side, (212)533-2111, $15. (Sinagra)

* WEEZER (Wednesday and Thursday) When these nerd rock melodists followed their hit 1994's eponymous debut (Geffen) with 1996's darker "Pinkerton" (Geffen), they never imagined being embraced by a fanatical cult of emo kids. Front man Rivers Cuomo indulges his glam and metal affinities on the band's Queen-like single "Beverly Hills." (Geffen). 7:30 p.m., Roseland, 239 West 52nd Street, (212) 777-6800, $32 in advance, $37 at the door; sold out. (Sinagra)

THE WONDER STUFF, AMBULANCE LTD. (Sunday) The British folk-pop band Wonder Stuff's idea of brashness always made more sense to fans across the pond. They broke up in 1994, but have reunited with a new album that evidences a still-bratty attitude. With dreamy local shoe-gazers Ambulance Ltd. 8 p.m., Irving Plaza, 17 Irving Place at 15th Street, Union Square, (212)777-6800, $20 in advance, $25 at the door. (Sinagra)

Cabaret

Full reviews of recent cabaret shows: nytimes.com/music.

* KAREN AKERS (Tuesdays through Saturdays) Classic romantic ballads gracefully rendered by a statue come to life. Oak Room, Algonquin Hotel, 59 West 44th Street, Manhattan, (212)419-9331, through May 28. Tuesdays through Thursdays at 9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays at 9 and 11:30 p.m. Cover is $50; a $50 prixe fixe dinner is required Thursdays through Saturdays at 9; otherwise, a $20 minimum. (Stephen Holden)

BARBARA CARROLL (Sunday at 2 and 8 p.m.) Even when swinging out, this Lady of a Thousand Songs remains an impressionist with special affinities for Thelonious Monk and bossa nova. Oak Room (see above). Cover: $55 at 2, including brunch at noon; $42 at 8, plus a $15 minimum; an $80 dinner-and-show package is available. (Holden)

* BARBARA COOK (Tuesdays through Saturdays) Now 77, the great lyric soprano pays tribute to her longtime musical director Wally Harper who died last October, and other friends who are gone. Ms. Cook's performances are master classes in life as well as in singing. Cafe Carlyle, Carlyle Hotel, 35 East 76th Street, (212)744-1600, through May 27. Tuesdays through Fridays at 8:45 p.m.; Saturdays at 8:45 and 10:45 p.m. (No performance tomorrow.) Cover is $75 Tuesdays through Thursdays, $90 on Fridays and Saturdays. (Holden)

KEELY SMITH (Tonight and tomorrow) The former partner of Louis Prima and a hot nine-piece swing band recreate the all-night party of 1958 Las Vegas. Feinstein's at the Regency, 540 Park Avenue, at 61st Street, (212)339-4095. At 8:30 p.m. Cover: $60, with a $40 food or beverage minimum. (Holden)

Jazz

Full reviews of recent jazz concerts: nytimes.com/music.

JOHN ABERCROMBIE QUARTET (Wednesday through next Saturday) With the lineup that accompanies him this week -- Mark Feldman on violin, Joey Baron on drums, Marc Johnson on bass -- Mr. Abercrombie, a guitarist, has made the recent albums, "Cat 'n' Mouse" and "Class Trip," two of his best. 9 and 11 p.m., Birdland, 315 West 44th Street, (212)581-3080, cover, $30, with a $10 minimum. (Ben Ratliff)

BILLY BANG'S AFTERMATH BAND (Tuesday and Wednesday) Mr. Bang, the violinist, is an alumnus of the 1970's loft-jazz scene in New York; he's got a folkish sound, and his recent material has incorporated Vietnamese folk music, harking back to his time spent as a soldier during the Vietnam war. It's a nine-piece band with a Vietnamese singer and zitherist; guests include the cornetist Butch Morris on Tuesday and the saxophonist Sonny Fortune on Wednesday. 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., Jazz Standard, 116 East 27th Street, Manhattan, (212) 576-2232, cover, $20. (Ratliff)

PATRICIA BARBER (through Sunday, and Wednesday through next Sunday ) A dry, smart, passionate and original singer-songwriter-pianist. Fridays, Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 7:30 and 9:30, Au Bar , 41 East 58th Street, Manhattan, (212)308-9455, cover, $50 Fridays and Saturdays, otherwise $35, and a two-drink minimum all nights. (Ratliff)

THEO BLECKMANN (Thursday) A singer of deep concentration who has shown up in many different contexts, from jazz groups to art song, Mr. Bleckmann performs two sets, the first one solo, the second a duet with the drummer John Hollenbeck. 8:30 and 10 p.m., Cornelia Street Café, 29 Cornelia Street, West Village, (212)989-9319, cover, $10, with a one-drink minimum (Ratliff)

URI CAINE TRIO (Tonight through Sunday) Mr. Caine has put in plenty of time playing in jazz trios around his native Philadelphia; hence his straight-ahead sets here with the bassist Drew Gress and the drummer Ben Perowsky. But he's probably become better known for an expanded repertory including re-imagined classical music. 9 and 11 p.m., Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, West Village, (212)255-4037; cover, $20, plus a $10 minimum (Ratliff)

EDMAR CASTAÑEDA (Sunday) A young Colombian musician, Mr. Castañeda plays the harp, which has rarely been used in jazz; but once you see his percussive technique you might wonder why this is so. 8 and 10 p.m., Sweet Rhythm, 88 Seventh Avenue South, at Bleecker Street, West Village, (212) 255-3626, cover, $15 plus $10 minimum. (Ratliff).

'CHIVALROUS MISDEMEANORS' (Through tomorrow) Composed by the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra trombonist Ronald Westray, "Chivalrous Misdemeanors" is an extended jazz work based on stories from Don Quixote. With the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. 8 p.m., Rose Theater, Frederick P. Rose Hall, 60th Street and Broadway, Manhattan, (212)721-5600, $30 to $150. (Ratliff)

DON FRIEDMAN TRIO (Tonight and Sunday) A pianist originally from the West Coast who moved to New York in the early 60's, Mr. Friedman has been Clark Terry's pianist for the last decade or so; he's celebrating his 70th birthday this weekend, playing with the bassist Ed Schuller and the drummer Tony Jefferson. 8 and 9:45 p.m., Kitano Hotel, 66 Park Avenue at 38th Street, (212)885-7000, cover, $15, $10 minimum . (Ratliff)

BENNY GOLSON QUARTET (Thursday through next Saturday ) The tenor saxophonist Mr. Golson, in his mid-70's, is an unlikely jazz hero: upbeat, fascinated with technique, a nonpurist who has spent equal time among the different aesthetic dispositions of East and West Coast jazz. 9, 11 and 12:30, Smoke, 2751 Broadway at 106th Street, Manhattan, (212)864-6662, cover, $25. (Ratliff)

JOHN HICKS TRIO (Through tomorrow) A presence in New York since the 1970's, Mr. Hicks is a steamroller of a mainstream-jazz pianist, loading up the music with thick chords as if he wanted to do McCoy Tyner one better. 8, 10 and midnight, Sweet Rhythm, 88 Seventh Avenue South, at Bleecker Street, West Village, (212)255-3626, cover, $20 plus a $10 minimum. (Ratliff)

HIGHLIGHTS IN JAZZ: DICK HYMAN, VINCE GIORDANO, MARCUS BELGRAVE, ET AL. (Thursday) This long-running jazz series presents a program called "Keepers of the Flame," featuring musicians fascinated by old styles. 8 p.m., TriBeCa Performing Arts Center, 199 Chambers Street, (212)220-1460; tickets, $27.50. (Ratliff)

JUILLIARD JAZZ ORCHESTRA: 'CELEBRATING ELLINGTON' (Tuesday through next Sunday ) A band featuring students in Juilliard's Institute for Jazz Studies. Tuesday through Thursday and next Sunday, 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.; next Friday and Saturday, 7:30, 9:30 and 11 p.m., Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Rose Hall, 60th Street and Broadway, Manhattan, (212) 258-9595, cover, $30, with a $10 minimum at the tables, $5 at the bar. (Ratliff)

BIRELI LAGRENE'S GYPSY JAZZ (Wednesday through next Sunday) Mr. Lagrene, a Sinti Gypsy like Django Reinhardt and one of the most talented guitarists to have adopted his style, is a more sensitive, temperate musician than many of his fellow Djangophiles; this is his sextet. Wednesday and next Sunday at 8 and 10 p.m.; Thursday night at 8:30 and 10:30; and next Friday and Saturday nights at 8:30, 10:30 and 11:45, Iridium, 1650 Broadway at 51st Street, (212)582-2121, cover, Wednesday and Thursday, $30, Friday through Sunday, $32.50, with a $10 minimum all nights. (Ratliff)

OLIVER LAKE BIG BAND (Tonight and tomorrow) The alto saxophonist from the World Saxophone Quartet brings his grooving 15-member ark. 9 and 10:30 p.m., Jazz Gallery, 290 Hudson Street, South Village, (212)242-1063, $15, members, $10. (Ratliff)

'LOST JAZZ SHRINES' (Tonight) A concert series that takes its cue not so much from great jazz musicians but the disappeared Shangri-las they played in. The current theme is the Village Gate; tonight's musician is Randy Weston, an imposing pianist who has built on the styles of of Monk and Ellington. He performs with his band African Rhythms, preceded by a public interview. 8:30 (interview at 7), TriBeCa Performing Arts Center, 199 Chambers Street, (212)220-1460, $25. (Ratliff)

* TONY MALABY, ANGELICA SANCHEZ, TOM RAINEY (Tomorrow) Now a well-seasoned trio, this is one of the better units on the razor's edge of free jazz and structured composition. 9 p.m., Cornelia Street Café, 29 Cornelia Street, West Village, (212)989-9319, cover, $10. (Ratliff)

* BILL McHENRY TRIO (Tuesday) Like players decades ago, the tenor saxophonist Mr. McHenry puts his big, round sound before anything else; he likes playing slowly and choosing his moves, guided compositionally by Ornette Coleman and emotionally by Don Byas. 9:30 p.m., Nublu, 62 Avenue C, between Fourth and Fifth Streets, East Village, (212) 979-9925, cover, $5. (Ratliff)

MARIAN McPARTLAND TRIO (Through tomorrow) A pianist from the bebop era and host of a long-running NPR radio program, "Piano Jazz," Ms. McPartland celebrates her 87th birthday. 7:30, 9:30 and 11 p.m., Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Frederick P. Rose Hall, 60th Street and Broadway, Manhattan, (212)258-9595;cover, $30, with a $10 minimum at the tables, $5 at the bar. (Ratliff)

* MISHA MENGELBERG (Tonight through Sunday, Tuesday through next Sunday) This legendary Dutch jazz pianist, a practitioner of wise mischief, in a series of collaborations. 8 and 10, The Stone, Avenue C, at Second Street, East Village, www.thestonenyc.com., each set, $15. (Ratliff)

KEVIN NORTON'S DEWLINE: THE MUSIC OF STEVE LACY (Tonight) The first-rate improvising drummer Kevin Norton presents the concentrated and ever-more rewarding compositions of Steve Lacy, who died last year; the band includes the trumpeter Dave Ballou, bassist John Lindberg, vocalist Kristen Norderval, and poet Bob Holman, reading the poetic texts that Lacy sometimes used. 9 and 10:30 p.m., Cornelia Street Café, 29 Cornelia Street, West Village, (212)989-9319, cover, $10, with a one-drink minimum. (Ratliff)

ARTURO O'FARRILL Y RIZA NEGRA (Tuesday) Son of the celebrated Latin-jazz composer Chico O'Farrill, the pianist and bandleader Mr. O'Farrill has been refining his own Latin jazz over the last 10 years. 8:30 p.m., Cornelia Street Café, 29 Cornelia Street, West Village, (212) 989-9319, cover, $10, with a one-drink minimum. (Ratliff)

JOHN PIZZARELLI QUARTET (Through Sunday) A cool swing guitarist and a relaxed, confident singer, Mr. Pizzarelli is amiable enough to settle on the pop end of jazz. 9 and 11 p.m., Birdland, 315 West 44th Street, (212)581-3080, cover, $40; minimum, $10 (Ratliff)

* CHRIS POTTER TENTET (Tonight through Sunday) At some point in the last decade the still-young tenor saxophonist became one of the most fluid and advanced improvisers in mainstream jazz; this weekend he inaugurates his 10-piece group, which includes violin, cello and flute as well as a jazz rhythm section. 7:30 and 9:30, with an 11:30 set tonight and tomorrow, Jazz Standard, 116 East 27th Street, Manhattan, (212)576-2232, cover, $25. (Ratliff)

MARVIN SEWELL GROUP (Monday) Through recent stretches with Cassandra Wilson and Jason Moran, the jazz guitarist Marvin Sewell has finally become better known. He's interested in American roots music and unusual sounds; his quintet has two accordionists. 10 pm, 55 Bar, 55 Christopher Street, West Village, (212)929-9883, cover, $8. (Ratliff)

* McCOY TYNER TRIO WITH GARY BARTZ, TERRELL STAFFORD AND RAVI COLTRANE (Tuesday through Sunday nights) The great pianist from John Coltrane's classic quartet brings his current trio with some horn-playing guests. 8 and 10:30, Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, West Village, (212)475-8592, cover, $40 at the tables, $30 at the bar; minimum, $5. (Ratliff)

* VANGUARD JAZZ ORCHESTRA (Monday through May 16). A 40th anniversary tribute to departed founders of the Vanguard's regular Monday-night big band, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis. With guests including the rombonist Slide Hampton on Tuesday, the trumpeter Tom Harrell on Wednesday, and others. 9 and 11 p.m., Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, West Village, (212)255-4037, cover, $20; minimum, $10. (Ratliff)

LARRY WILLIS TRIO (Through tomorrow) Mr. Willis has played for years with Roy Hargrove's quintet and Jerry Gonzalez's Fort Apache Band; this gig is straight-ahead jazz, New York-style, with the bassist Buster Williams and the drummer Lewis Nash. 9, 11, and 12:30, Smoke, 2751 Broadway, at 106th Street, Manhattan, (212)864-6662, cover, $25. (Ratliff)

YELLOWJACKETS (Through Sunday) A long-running pop-jazz group, well-practiced and increasingly distancing itself from the smoothness that was a sound of its time 10 years ago. Tonight and tomorrow night at 8, 10 and 11:30; Sunday night at 8 and 10 , Iridium, 1650 Broadway at 51st Street, Manhattan, (212) 582-2121, cover, $35, with a $10 minimum. (Ratliff)

Classical

Full reviews of recent music performances: nytimes.com/music.

Opera

'LA CLEMENZA DI TITO' (Tomorrow and Wednesday) Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's production of Mozart's great venture into opera seria gets star treatment from James Levine, Heidi Grant Murphy and Anne Sofie von Otter. Tomorrow at 1:30 p.m., Wednesday at 8 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212)362-6000, $40 to $215 tomorrow, $26 to $170 on Wednesday. (Bernard Holland)

'FAUST' (Tomorrow and Tuesday) In a revelatory performance, James Levine cuts through the sentimentality and hokum of Gounod's "Faust" and captures the music's dignity and elegance. And the Met has assembled a top-rank cast, especially René Pape as Mephistopheles. Alas, the Met's new production by Andrei Serban is a jumble, with no discernable concept and no consistent look. 8 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212)362-6000, $215 remaining tomorrow, Tuesday sold out, but returns may be available. (Anthony Tommasini)

'TOSCA' (Tonight, Monday and Thursday) Franco Zeffirelli's production of "Tosca," a favorite with Metropolitan Opera audiences, offers three veterans in the main roles: Sylvie Valayre as Tosca, Marcello Giordani as Cavaradossi and James Morris as Scarpia. The dynamic conductor James Conlon will be on the podium. Tonight and Monday at 8 p.m.; Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212)362-6000, $26 to $200. (Tommasini)

'DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE' (Tomorrow and Sunday) 'Tis the season of student opera, when New York's conservatories show off their opera programs with fully staged productions featuring young singers. Mannes College's offering this year, conducted by Joseph Colaneri, is Mozart's enduring "Magic Flute." Tomorrow at 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m., Kaye Playhouse, Hunter College, 68th Street between Park and Lexington Avenues, (212)772-4448, $25, $10 for students and 65+. (Anne Midgette)

Classical Music

AKADEMIE FÜR ALTE MUSIK BERLIN (Sunday night) A sizzling Baroque band not to be missed, to judge from its imminent recording of music from the Hamburg Opera. 7:30 p.m., Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, (212)247-7800; tickets $38 to $52. (James R. Oestreich)

AMERICAN FESTIVAL OF MICROTONAL MUSIC (Tonight) Not all tuning was created equal, and this festival explores the world of nonequal temperament: music not subjected to the Western conventions that govern the way we tune our instruments. Tonight's concert explores music of the Baul culture of India. 8 p.m., Faust Harrison Pianos, 205 West 58th Street, Manhattan, (212)517-3550, $15, $10 for students and 65+. (Midgette)

'THE ANDSNES PROJECT' (Tonight and Monday) The remarkable Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes brings New York audiences a sampling of the adventurous chamber music festival he helps run each summer for one intensive week in the coastal town of Risor. The program offer lots of Scandinavian composers and many fine young European artists. 7:30 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212)247-7800, $32 to $45. (Tommasini)

BARGEMUSIC (Tonight, tomorrow, Sunday and Thursday) Great views and fresh performances help make this floating concert hall one of the best for chamber music. It's all Brahms this weekend, plus a piano recital on Thursday. Tonight, tomorrow and Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 4 p.m., Fulton Ferry Landing next to the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718)624-2083, $35. (Jeremy Eichler)

BROOKLYN PHILHARMONIC (Tomorrow) In his debut with the orchestra, Chelsea Tipton II leads a Gershwin program with all the favorites -- "Rhapsody in Blue," "An American in Paris" and music from "Porgy and Bess." 8 p.m., Brooklyn Academy of Music, 30 Lafayette Avenue, (718)636-4100, $20 to $60. (Allan Kozinn)

CONTINUUM (Thursday) This energetic ensemble explores the spiky, urbane music of the Puerto Rican composer Roberto Sierra in a retrospective. 7:30 p.m., Americas Society, 680 Park Avenue, at 68th Street, (212)873-3258, $15, $10 for students and 65+. (Kozinn)

EIGHTH BLACKBIRD (Tomorrow) This virtuosic young ensemble offers an eclectic mixture of poetry and complexity, with works by George Perle, Frederic Rzewski, Gordon Fitzell, Jennifer Higdon and Derek Bermel. 8 p.m., Washington Irving High School, Irving Place at 16th Street, Manhattan, (212)586-4680, $9. (Kozinn)

ENSEMBLE SOSPESO (Tuesday) Pierre Boulez was fearsome at 40, but at 80 he's the toast of the musical world. This new-music band pays tribute by playing his music alongside works by Bruno Montovani, DJ Spooky, Brian Ferneyhough, John Zorn, Thurston Moore, Marc-André Dalbavie, Rand Steiger and Joshua Cody. 7:30 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212)247-7800, $45 to $65. (Kozinn)

KATYA GRINEVA (Thursday) The young Russian-born pianist offers a solo recital of works by Liszt, Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Debussy. 8 p.m., Carnegie Hall, (212)247-7800, $25 to $75. (Eichler)

RUTH LAREDO (Tonight) A pianist's "Concerts With Commentary," here concluding a series, "The Russian Spirit," with the soprano Courtenay Budd and the St. Petersburg Quartet. 7 p.m., Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street, (212)570-3949, $35. (Oestreich)

MADAME VERA GALUPE-BORSZKH (Wednesday) You don't have to love opera to roar with laughter at Madame Vera, although the diva (by day, the director and voice coach Ira Siff) would frown at a term as crass as "spoof" for her brilliant send-ups of the singer's art. There are additional performances next weekend. 8 p.m., Thalia at Symphony Space, Broadway at 95th Street, (212)864-5400, $30, $25 for students and 65+. (Midgette)

'THE MUSIC OF IGNACE STRASFOGEL' (Thursday) He studied with the formidable modernist Franz Schreker in Weimar Berlin and later worked as a conductor and coach at the Met. His own little-known chamber music receives an evening of attention. 8 p.m., Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow Street, West Village, (212)242-4770, $15; $10 for students and 65+. (Eichler)

ORPHEUS (Tuesday) The violinist Joshua Bell visits the conductorless orchestra as does the music of Sofia Gubaidulina, here her "Concordanza." 8 p.m., Carnegie Hall, (212)247-7800, $30 to $88. (Holland)

NEW YORK FESTIVAL OF SONG (Wednesday) "Lost Tribes of Vaudeville" is the title: the "tribes" in question are black and Jewish, and the program, a big success at its first performance in 2003, includes songs by everyone from Irving Berlin to W.C. Handy. Judy Kaye is among the performers, and the evening ends with, what else, "Alexander's Ragtime Band." 8 p.m., Merkin Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212)501-3330, sold out, but returns may be available at the box office. (Midgette)

NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC (Today, tomorrow, Thursday) With Lorin Maazel away overseeing the premiere of his own opera in London, Leonard Slatkin leads the Philharmonic in "The Throne of the Third Heaven ," a recent work by Jefferson Friedman that promises to be rich-textured and quirky, plus the cellist Lynn Harrell as the soloist in Bloch's "Schelomo." Next week Pinchas Zukerman steps in to lead, from the fiddle, two Bach "Brandenburg" Concertos. Today at 2 p.m., tomorrow at 8 p.m., Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212)721-6500, $22 to $74 today; $25 to $90 tomorrow; the Thursday concert is sold out, but returned tickets may be available at the box office. (Kozinn)

NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC ENSEMBLES (Sunday) Players from the orchestra slip on their chamber music hats for works by Spohr, Sibelius and Fred Lerdahl. 3 p.m., Merkin Concert Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212)501-3330, $28. (Eichler)

NEW YORK PHILOMUSICA (Thursday) The rewarding artists of the New York Philomusica ensemble pair Beethoven's path-breaking "Archduke" Trio with a comparably path-breaking work from the 20th century, Messiaen's "Quartet for the End of Time." 8 p.m., Merkin Concert Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212)501-3330, $35; $30 for 65+; $17.50 for students. (Tommasini)

ST. CECILIA CHORUS (Tomorrow) An all- Brahms program by this venerable amateur chorus pairs two lesser-known works, "Gesang der Parzen" and "Nänie," with a classic, the Requiem. 8 p.m., Carnegie Hall, (212)247-7800, $18 to $75. (Midgette)

TOKYO STRING QUARTET (Tomorrow) This excellent quartet presents a program that delves into different eras of music in Vienna. There will be Haydn Quartet in C (Op. 74), but also the incomplete Piano Quartet by Mahler and Schoenberg's stunning String Quartet No. 2, which includes a lengthy part for soprano, here the radiant Amy Burton. 8 p.m., 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Avenue, (212)415-5500, $35. (Tommasini)

'WHAT MAKES IT GREAT?' (Monday) Rob Kapilow, a composer, has created a flourishing career by explicating live classical music in a personable, even boyish, and certainly well-informed manner. This installment of his now well-known series focuses on Bach's Concerto for Two Violins in D minor. 7:30 p.m., Walter Reade Theater, 165 West 65th Street, Lincoln Center, (212)721-6500, sold out, but returns may be available at the box office. (Midgette)

YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS SOLOISTS (Tuesday) The valuable Young Concerts Artists series concludes its season with an ambitious program presenting three brilliant soloists in concertos: the cellist Alexandre Bouzlov, the marimbist Naoko Takada and the trumpeter David Guerrier. The Orchestra of St. Luke's is conducted by Leonard Slatkin. 7:30 p.m., Rose Theater, Broadway at 60th Street, (212)307-6655, $20 and $30. (Tommasini)

Dance

Full reviews of recent performances: nytimes.com/dance.

* ALVIN AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATER (Tonight through Sunday) Works by Alvin Ailey, Ulysses Dove, David Parsons and Judith Jamison, Robert Battle and Rennie Harris in three programs of different repertory. Tonight and tomorrow at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m., New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street, Newark, (888)466-5722, $17 to $70. (Jennifer Dunning)

RENÉE ARCHIBALD AND FRIENDS (Tuesday) The five "friends" include the always fascinating Deborah Hay. 8 p.m. John Houseman Theater, 450 West 42nd Street, Manhattan, (212)695-2292, $15; $12 for students and 65+ (Dunning)

'BOOGIE DOWN DANCE SERIES AT BAAD!' (Tonight and tomorrow) The festival ends this weekend with Pepatian's "Jump It Up" dance concert. 8 p.m. Bronx Academy, 841 Barretto Street, South Bronx, (718)842-5223; www.BronxAcademyofArtsandDance.org, $12 to $15. (Dunning)

KIMBERLY BRANDT (Tonight and tomorrow) Ms. Brandt's "something we can both be proud of," a piece about winning, represents dance in this theater's monthly series of new performance art, dance and discussion series. Tonight at 8 and tomorrow at 7 p.m. Brooklyn Arts Exchange, 421 Fifth Avenue, Park Slope, (718)832-0018 or www.bax.org, $8 and $15. (Dunning)

NAI-NI CHEN DANCE COMPANY (Tonight and tomorrow) Modern-dance collaborations with the composer Joan La Barbara and the set designer Myung Hee Cho. 8 p.m. John Jay Theater, 899 10th Avenue, at 58th Street, Manhattan, (800)650-0246, $25; $15 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

COMPLEXIONS (Tonight through Sunday) Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson's high-energy modern-dance company in two programs, dominated by choreography from Mr. Rhoden. Tonight at 8 and Sunday at 2 and 7:30 p.m. (program A), and tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m. (program B)., Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, (212)242-0800 or www.joyce.org, $42. (John Rockwell)

DANCE ANONYMOUS (Sunday) Performers take over a new nightspot, dancing in the kitchen, the bathrooms and on the bar and under the tables. 5 p.m. (gala party), and 7 p.m. (performance), Butter, 415 Lafayette Street, East Village, (917)913-7490 or danceanonymous@aol.com; $100 gala, $20 performance. (Jack Anderson)

DANCE AT MARYMOUNT MANHATTAN COLLEGE (Tonight and tomorrow) Choreography by Robert Battle, Jacqulyn Buglisi, Jiri Kylian, Twyla Tharp and William Soleau. Gala program tonight at 7:30; tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m., Marymount Manhattan Theater, 221 East 71st Street, (212)517-0610, $65 (tonight); $12 and $6 for non-Marymount students and 65+ (tomorrow). (Dunning)

DANCEMOPOLITAN 05 SPRING SEASON (Tonight and tomorrow) Dance in a cabaret setting, this time in two programs by 10 choreographers, with work by David Parker, Clare Byrne, John Heginbotham and Ellis Wood on both evenings. 9:30 p.m. Joe's Pub at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street, East Village, (212)539-8770, $15; $12 minumum for food or two drinks. (Dunning)

* DIXON PLACE: MOVING MEN (Wednesday) Chosen by Arthur Aviles, a program of choreography by Miguel Anaya, Esteban Arana, Michael Lynch and Issey Nini. 8 p.m. Dixon Place, 258 Bowery, between Houston and Prince Streets, Lower East Side, (212)219-0736 or www.dixonplace.org, $12 or TDF; $10 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

FRIDAYS AT NOON (Today) This free performance and discussion series will focus on the dramatic element in dances by Christopher Caines, Sunhwa Chung, and Rhiannon Murphy. 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center, at Lexington Avenue, (212) 415-5500. (Dunning)

GINA GIBNEY: WOMEN AT WORK (Thursday) Gala benefit sneak-preview of new dances by Ms. Gibney, with performers including women from Sanctuary for Families. 6:30 to 9 p.m., the New 42nd Street Studios, third floor, 229 West 42nd Street, Manhattan, (212) 677-8560, $250. (Dunning)

LAWRENCE GOLDHUBER/BIGMANARTS (Opens Thursday) "Julius Caesar Superstar" updates Roman history to the inquisitorial McCarthyite Senate of the 1950's with the ballet star Robert La Fosse as the doomed leader. Thursday through next Sunday at 8:30 p.m., Danspace Project, St. Mark's Church, Second Avenue at 10th Street, East Village, (212)674-8194 or www.danspaceproject.org, $15. (Anderson)

* PAT GRANEY COMPANY (Tonight and tomorrow) Henry Darger, an eccentric and reclusive American artist, inspires a fantastic multimedia dance production. 7:30, Dance Theater Workshop, 219 West 19th Street, Chelsea, (212) 924-0077 or www.dtw.org, $20, $12 for members, students and 60+. (Anderson)

'IMPROVISED AND OTHERWISE: A FESTIVAL OF SOUND AND FORM' (Tonight and tomorrow) Nuff said. 7 to 11 p.m. BRIC Studio, 57 Rockwell Place between Fulton Street and DeKalb Avenue, Brooklyn, (718) 718-855-7882 ext 53 or via e-mail or www.improvisedandotherwise.com, $15; $10 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

JOYCE SOHO PRESENTS (Through May 21) Twelve young 'uns show their stuff in programs Thursdays through Saturdays through May 21. All performances at 8 p.m., Joyce SoHo, 155 Mercer Street, (212)334-7479, $15; $12 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

JUILLIARD DANCE DIVISION CHOREOGRAPHERS (Wednesday) See dances by the Cunninghams, Grahams and Taylors of the future. Well, maybe. 8 p.m. Juilliard Theater, Lincoln Center, (212) 769.7406 free. (Dunning)

AMY MARSHALL DANCE COMPANY (Thursday through next Saturday) Athletic dance, a concern for spatial patterns and an exploration of Jewish heritage. 8 p.m., the Puffin Room, 435 Broome Street, SoHo, (917)647-9477, $10; $5 for students and 65+; free for children under 12. (Dunning)

* MOMIX (Opens Tuesday) Moses Pendleton's "Cactus" fills the deserts with dancing wrens and gila monsters. Tuesday through Thursday at 8 p.m., Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea, (212)242-0800 or www.joyce.org, $42. (Company also performs next Friday at 8; Saturday at 2 and 8 and next Sunday at 2 and 7:30 through May 29.) (Anderson)

* NATIONAL TAP DANCE DAY IN HARLEM (Tomorrow) Three hours of rare films and live performing, with Savion Glover as honoree and Delilah Jackson as host. 1 p.m. Art Gallery, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. State Office Building, 163 West 125th Street, Harlem, (212) 749-5298; photo identification required, $5 for adults; $4 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

NEW, NEW STUFF: LEONARDO SMITH AND SARAH VASILAS (Thursday through next Sunday) Their multimedia "FusionFEED" explores our visceral responses to the world around us. Thursday through next Saturday at 8 p.m.; next Sunday at 5 p.m., P.S. 122, 150 First Avenue, at Ninth Street, East Village, (212)477-5288, $15. (Dunning)

* NEW YORK CITY BALLET (Through June 26) What's new? There's a new Christopher Wheeldon ballet tomorrow and Sunday afternoons and Tuesday night and a new Peter Martins ballet Wednesday night. Tonight at 8, tomorrow at 2 and 8, Sunday at 3 p.m., Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday at 8 p.m., New York State Theater, Lincoln Center, (212) 870-5570 or www.nycballet.com, $30 to $83. (Anderson)

* NOCHE FLAMENCA (Through June 5) Get out the fire extinguishers. Wednesdays and Thursdays through June 2 at 7:30 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays through June 4 at 7:30 and 10 p.m.; Sundays through June 5 at 5 p.m. Theater 80, 80 St. Mark's Place, between First and Second Avenues, East Village, (212) 352-3101, $40 (Wednesdays and Thursdays); $45 (weekends). (Dunning)

PURCHASE DANCE CORPS CELEBRATES PAUL TAYLOR (Tonight through Sunday) Mr. Taylor's "Cloven Kingdom" will be performed, with work by Stephanie Tooman, Gerald Arpino, William Carter and Jonathan Riedel. Tonight and tomorrow at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m., Performing Arts Center at Purchase College, 735 Anderson Hill Road, Purchase, N.Y., (914)251-6200, $15. (Dunning)

SPOKE THE HUB'S 12TH ANNUAL LOCAL PRODUCE FESTIVAL (Tomorrow) Have some zucchini with your West African and Spanish dancing: a three-day tour of Park Slope dance, music and theater performances and gardens. The many free events include an outdoor performance by Brooklyn dance artists. 6 p.m. Tent theater, 748 Union Square, Brooklyn, (718)408-3234 , $15. (Dunning)

'SPRING STEPS': REBECCA STENN (Tuesday) This new free series begins with performances by Ms. Stenn and her company. Noon. World Financial Center Winter Garden, 220 Vesey Street, Lower Manhattan, (212) 945-0505 or www.worldfinancialcenter.com. (Dunning)

* STREB S.L.A.M. SPRING SHOW (Tonight through Sunday) High-impact dance and popcorn, too. Tonight and tomorrow at 7 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m. S.L.A.M., 51 North First Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, (718) 384-6481, $15; $10 for children; free for children under 4. (Dunning)

SYMPHONY SPACE DANCE SAMPLER (Tomorrow) A marathon tour through modern dance in New York City today, from Arthur Aviles to Deborah Zall with 14 very different choreographers and companies in between. 7 p.m. Symphony Space, Broadway at 95th Street, Manhattan, (212) 864-5400 or www.symphonyspace.org, $20; $17 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

TAMI STRONACH DANCE (Tonight through Sunday) Deliciously flawed characters dance through scenarios of love, family and power. 8:30, Danspace Project, St. Mark's Church, Second Avenue at 10th Street, East Village, (212)674-8194 or www.danspaceproject.org, $15. (Anderson)

'TANGOS FOR LA MILONGA' (Tonight at 8) Some tango-dancing couples take over the stage, led by Carolina Jaurena and Yvan. Town Hall, 123 West 43rd Street, Manhattan, (212)307-4100, $30 and $35. (Dunning)

TRINITY IRISH DANCE COMPANY (Tomorrow and Sunday) The cheerful cheerleaders of Irish step dancing, this mostly female Chicago company can stake a claim to inspiring stagier, more theatricalized troupes like "Riverdance" and "Lord of the Dance." Tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m. Sunday at 3 p.m., Queens Theater in the Park, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, (718)760-0064 or www.queenstheatre.org, $35, $32 for 65+, $20 for students. (Rockwell)

NINA WINTHROP AND DANCERS (Tonight through Sunday) Funny and dark dance that examines women, children and aging. Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m. Flea Theater, 41 White Street, TriBeCa, (212)645-6462, $15; $12 for students and 65+. (Dunning)

Art

Museums and galleries are in Manhattan unless otherwise noted. Full reviews of recent art shows: nytimes.com/art.

Museums

AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM: 'ANCESTRY AND INNOVATION: AFRICAN AMERICAN ART FROM THE COLLECTION,' through Sept. 4. This selection of quilts, paintings, sculptures and drawings by several generations of self-taught artists jumps with color and talent and reflects a sharp curatorial eye. Also at the museum: "Self and Subject." 45 West 53rd Street (212) 265-1040. (Roberta Smith).

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY: 'TOTEMS TO TURQUOISE: NATIVE NORTH AMERICAN JEWELRY ARTS OF THE NORTHWEST AND SOUTHWEST,' through July 10. Jewelry dating to prehistoric times are used here to lend credence to contemporary works that are sometimes little more than glitzy knockoffs. Central Park West at 79th Street, (212)769-5100. (Grace Glueck)

BARD GRADUATE CENTER FOR STUDIES IN THE DECORATIVE ARTS, DESIGN AND CULTURE: 'CHERISHED POSSESSIONS: A NEW ENGLAND LEGACY,' through June 5. More than 100 choice objects from that vast attic of family relics, historic New England, from a box with two worm-eaten pieces of 17th-century bread to a grand Copley portrait. Thanks to bright captioning, this show conveys a sense of family connection with the objects. 18 West 86th Street, (212)501-3000. (Glueck)

BROOKLYN MUSEUM: 'BASQUIAT,' through June 5. Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-88) wrote, painted and drew his way to fame (usually on the same surface) with a loquacious style that mixed mediums and gave visual voice to the glories, history and pain of blackness. Despite a few glitches, this generous retrospective provides an exhilarating account of his short innovative career. 200 Eastern Parkway, at Prospect Park, (718)638-5000. (Smith)

* BROOKLYN MUSEUM: LUCE VISIBLE STORAGE/STUDY CENTER Sleek vitrines house 1,500 objects from four departments and represents 15 centuries of art and design of the Americas. (See above.) (Smith)

COOPER-HEWITT NATIONAL DESIGN MUSEUM: 'EXTREME TEXTILES: DESIGNING FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE,' through Oct. 30. Don't look for aesthetic pizazz in this intensely tech-y show of industrial fibers and fabrics; but don't rule it out. The show's raison d'être is solely use, but a lot of what's on view, in the first museum display of material made to function in extreme conditions, is visually exciting. 2 East 91st Street, (212)849-8400. (Glueck)

COOPER-HEWITT NATIONAL DESIGN MUSEUM: 'HELLA JONGERIUS SELECTS: WORKS FROM THE PERMANENT COLLECTION,' through Sept. 4. Shifting through the museum's outstanding holdings in embroidered samplers, the innovative Dutch designer has selected a wonderfully reverberant show and also based a series of new wall hangings on sampler motifs. Their combined display diagrams the fraught but essential symbiosis of old and new. (See above.) (Smith)

* EL MUSEO DEL BARRIO: 'MEXICO, THE REVOLUTION AND BEYOND, PHOTOGRAPHS BY CASASOLA 1900-1940,' through July 31. This extraordinary show of work from a photo agency established by Agustín Víctor Casasola in Mexico City has the span of a Greek epic and the nested themes and subplots of a picaresque novel, with Revolutionary heroes and a vivid cast of everyday people. 1230 Fifth Avenue, at 104th Street, (212)831-7272. (Holland Cotter)

SOLOMON R. GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM: 'DANIEL BUREN: THE EYE OF THE STORM,' through June 8. Mr. Buren has devised a lumbering 81-foot-tall construction, mirrored floor to ceiling. Imagine a glass office tower slammed through the front of the building. The spiraling ramps and circular roof complete themselves in the mirrored reflections; there is not much to the work beyond that. 1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th Street, (212)423-3500. (Michael Kimmelman)

INTERNATIONAL CENTER OF PHOTOGRAPHY: 'LARRY CLARK,' through June 5. The controversial creator of two influential photography books -- "Tulsa" (1971) and "Teenage Lust" (1983) -- and director of the brilliant movie "Kids" (1995) has his first retrospective. The provocative Mr. Clark specializes in the dark and seamy side of American youth culture and his best works are unnervingly intimate, morally disturbing and beautiful. 1133 Avenue of the Americas, at 43rd Street, (212)857-0000. (Ken Johnson)

* JAPAN SOCIETY: 'LITTLE BOY: THE ARTS OF JAPAN'S EXPLODING SUBCULTURE,' through July 24. Masterminded by the artist-writer-entrepreneur Takashi Murakami, this eye-boggling show traces the unexamined legacy of World War II as played out in Japan's popular culture. With Godzilla and Hello Kitty presiding, it reveals how this culture was twisted and darkened by the otaku, or geek, subculture, which has in turn influenced younger artists. 333 East 47th Street, (212)832-1155. (Smith)

* METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART: 'DIANE ARBUS REVELATIONS,' through May 30. Arbus could be cruel, but tenderness and melancholy were her finest modes of expression as she captured a moment, the anxious 1950's and 60's, and captured New York. Appropriately, she is given the royal treatment at the Met, including some absurdly theatrical galleries, where her work reveals that in the end we are all drawn together by our different flaws. Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street, (212)535-7710. (Kimmelman)

METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART: 'THE BISHOP JADES,' through January 2006. Jade has been treasured since ancient time, though the almost preposterously exquisite objects on display in the Met's reinstalled galleries for Chinese decorative arts date from the 18th century, when the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) brought Chinese jade work to a peak of virtuosity. (See above.) (Cotter)

METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART: 'DEFINING YONGLE: IMPERIAL ART IN EARLY 15TH-CENTURY CHINA,' through July 10. Sequestered in the exquisite Chinese decorative arts galleries, this show is both perfect and messy. Its porcelain, metalwork, embroidery and ivory highlight the astounding craftsmanship of the imperial workshops under the Ming emperor Yongle, and reflect the miscegenation of Asian cultures at a time when most roads led to China. (See above.) (Smith)

METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART: 'MAX ERNST: A RETROSPECTIVE,' through July 10. Despite and because of Ernst's being one of modernism's mystery men, he remains of interest, and there are intriguing things in this survey: from early Surrealist paintings, to near-abstract images generated by chance techniques, to the collage-style books some consider his masterworks. But only when he responds to specific events, like war, does his art snap into focus. (See above.) (Cotter)

MUSEUM FOR AFRICAN ART: 'RESONANCE FROM THE PAST' Roughly 90 sculptures, along with a few bead and fabric pieces, from the African holdings of the New Orleans Museum of Art. They make a savory anthology, with plenty of textbook staples, and some surprises tucked in. 36-01 43rd Avenue, Long Island City, Queens, (718)784-7700. (Cotter)

* MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK: 'EL BARRIO: PUERTO RICAN NEW YORK,' through June 12. A snapshot of El Barrio -- East Harlem, or Spanish Harlem -- as seen through archival images and pictures by the contemporary photographer Hiram S. Maristany taken at a revolutionary political moment in the1960's and early 70's. 1220 Fifth Avenue, at 103rd Street, (212)534-1672. (Cotter)

* MUSEUM OF MODERN ART: 'THOMAS DEMAND,' through May 30. A generally stellar midcareer survey of the 40-year-old German artist, who makes life-size reconstructions of scenes, often ones he has come across in photographs, taking his own cinematic works. 11 West 53rd Street, (212) 708-9400. (Kimmelman)

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN: 'FIRST AMERICAN ART: THE CHARLES AND VALERIE DIKER COLLECTION OF AMERICAN INDIAN ART,' through April 2006. That American Indian art can provide the same aesthetic and emotional pleasure as European and American Modernism is the premise of this show, made up of 200 objects from the Diker Collection, and it affirms American Indian art's worthy aesthetic place in world culture. 1 Bowling Green, Lower Manhattan, (212)514-3700. (Glueck)

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN: 'GEORGE CATLIN AND HIS INDIAN GALLERY,' through Sept. 5. The portraits and landscapes here give an account of Plains Indian life in the 1830's in wonderful and sometimes harrowing detail. Viewing it is a remarkable experience. (See above.) (Glueck)

NEUE GALERIE: 'PORTRAITS OF AN AGE: PHOTOGRAPHY IN GERMANY AND AUSTRIA, 1900-1938,' through June 6. More than 100 faces shot by 35 photographers. It's a savvy show that homes in on the changing ways people presented themselves in an era of rapidly turning social values. 1048 Fifth Avenue, at 86th Street, (212)628-6200. (Glueck)

THE NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY: 'BYRDCLIFFE: AN AMERICAN ARTS AND CRAFTS COLONY,' through May 15. In its heyday this colony for artists, musicians and writers in Woodstock, N.Y., produced rugged, elegantly designed Arts and Crafts furniture, plus pottery, painting, jewelry, metalwork and textiles. The colony's spirit pervades the show in photographs and other memorabilia. 170 Central Park West, at 76th Street, (212)873-3400. (Glueck)

P.S. 1 CONTEMPORARY ART CENTER: 'GREATER NEW YORK 2005,' through Sept. 26. A youth-besotted, cheerful, immodestly ingratiating, finally disappointing survey of contemporary art, perusing a scene whose wide stylistic range, emphasis on drawing, persistent teenage infatuations and overall dexterousness are firmly entrenched characteristics of the marketplace. 22-25 Jackson Avenue, at 46th Avenue, Long Island City, Queens, (718)784-2084. (Kimmelman)

STUDIO MUSEUM IN HARLEM: 'BILL TRAYLOR AND WILLIAM EDMONDSON AND THE MODERNIST IMPULSE,' through July 3. The work of two self-taught proto-modern artists whose beautifully complementary achievements argue against the usual dualities, but offer further evidence that African-American folk art is as great as any art, or music, this country has produced. Also at the museum: "Chris Ofili: Afro Muses 1995-2005." 144 West 125th Street, (212) 864-4500. (Smith)

THE UKRAINIAN MUSEUM: 'ALEXANDER ARCHIPENKO: VISION AND CONTINUITY,' through Sept. 4. This rare retrospective of work by the Ukrainian-born sculptor opens the handsome, much-expanded new quarters of this museum. The most exciting part is a beautifully illuminated room of Archipenko's most radical pieces that inspired later artists like Henry Moore. 222 East Sixth Street, East Village, (212)228-0110. (Glueck)

* WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART: 'TIM HAWKINSON,' through May 29. On the gee-whiz meter, Mr. Hawkinson skews high. His midcareer retrospective, like a mad scientists' fair of screwball contraptions, hopscotches from one dexterous tour de force to the next. 945 Madison Avenue, at 75th Street, (212)570-3633. (Kimmelman)

WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART AT ALTRIA: 'SUE DE BEER: BLACK SUN,' through June 24. In a walk-in pink castle, "Black Sun" is a two-screen video about teenage girlhood, which alternates passages of lyrical visual beauty and emotional poignancy with periods of aimless tedium. 120 Park Avenue at 42nd Street, (917)663-24538639. (Johnson)

Galleries: Uptown

ERNST LUDWIG KIRCHNER: 'DRAWINGS' The German Expressionist applied his sharp insights and rapid sketching facility to everything; the feelingness of his line gives strong emotional power to this show. Michael Werner, 4 East 77th Street, (212)988-1623, through May 14. (Glueck)

JULIAN SCHNABEL This excellent selection of 21 large and mostly early paintings includes some of the very works that made Mr. Schnabel the most hotly talked-about artist of the Neo-Expressionist era. C & M Arts, 45 East 78th Street, (212)861-0020, through June 4. (Johnson)

* WAYNE THIEBAUD 'SINCE 1962: A SURVEY' In the early 60's, Mr. Thiebaud arrived at the buttery thick still-life paintings of commercial food products that perfectly combined formalism, realism and Pop. This excellent small retrospective shows how he got there and some of the places he has been since. Allan Stone, 113 East 90th Street, (212)987-4997, through May 27. (Johnson)

Galleries: SoHo

JOSEF ALBERS/DONALD JUDD: 'STRUCTURE AND COLOR' Despite the 40-year age difference, this vivacious museum-quality show of two geometric abstractionists -- one proto-Minimalist, the other Minimalist -- is a call and response echo chamber of levitating squares and rectangles of color. Brooke Alexander, 59 Wooster Street, (212)925-4338, through May 21. (Smith)

TERAO KATSUHIRO, SHINKI TOMOYUKI, YOSHIMUNE KAZUHIRO, YUMOTO MITSUO Four artists, from a Japanese facility for the artistically talented mentally disabled, appear possessed of naïve but intense imaginations and formal predilections bordering on compulsive. Phyllis Kind, 136 Greene Street, (212)925-1200, through May. (Johnson)

* '3 X ABSTRACTION: NEW METHODS OF DRAWING BY HILMA AF KLINT, EMMA KUNZ AND AGNES MARTIN,' This fascinating and beautiful show presents mostly abstract, geometric drawings by three women thought to have been motivated largely by spiritual purposes. Drawing Center, 35 Wooster Street, (212)219-2166, through May 21. (Johnson)

Galleries: Chelsea

VICTOR BURGIN: 'THE LITTLE HOUSE' A video meditation on architectural beauty and conflicting male and female desire by a veteran English artist is one of the best, least didactic works of his career. Christine Burgin, 243 West 18th Street, (212)462-2668, through May 28. (Smith)

MOYNA FLANNIGAN: 'A PIE IN THE KISSER' Ms. Flannigan, who teaches in Glasgow, makes queasily erotic paintings of older, Rococo-era women, which owe much to John Currin and Lisa Yuskavage. But she has her own suave painterly touch, a smoldering palette of muted reds and greens and a zanily morbid sense of humor. Sara Meltzer, 516 West 20th Street, (212)727-9330, through May 14. (Johnson)

SAM KUSACK: 'PHASE THREE: SUBSTRATES' Mr. Kusack's sleek industrial fountain of cut-out aluminum, metal tubing and a supposedly real meteorite is like a prop for a science fiction movie. Rare, 521 West 26th Street, (212)268-1520, through May 14. (Johnson)

'L.A.' A group show that reflects the sprawl and vitality of the Los Angeles art scene is also so desperately crowded that it seems superfluous, especially given the high profiles of half of the 48 artists. Schoormans, 508 West 26th Street, (212)243-3159, through May 27. (Smith)

QIU SHIHUA: 'INSIGHT' At first, the canvases by this painter from Shenzhen, China, look like nothing more than slightly scuffed expanses of raw fabric. Look again and you discover peaceful, luminously misty landscapes realized with amazing subtlety. Chambers, 210 11th Avenue, at 25th Street, (212)414-1169, through May 28. (Johnson)

MICHAEL RYAN Using his training in the art of decorative marbleizing, this self-taught painter creates dreamy, primordial landscapes sparsely populated by bizarrely abstracted animals and people. Together, the brushy painting and the visionary imagery create a scary, feverish feeling. Edlin, 529 West 20th Street, (212)206-9723, through June 4. (Johnson)

ANGELA STRASSHEIM: 'LEFT BEHIND' The large, extraordinarily vivid color photographs in this New York solo debut have a subtly gripping archetypal magic. Marvelli, 526 West 26th Street, (212)627-3363, through May 14. (Johnson)

JOAN WALLACE, 'VIOLENT POP PAINTINGS' Each of three videos set into white monochrome panels shows a white-frosted cake exploded in slow motion by a shotgun blast. Ms. Wallace invites us to read this as a commentary on Modernist purity, the shooting of Andy Warhol and the assassination of President Kennedy. Dinter, 547 West 27th Street, (212)947-2818, through May 28. (Johnson)

JIM WRIGHT: 'TWO COATS FOR THE TEMPERANCE REEL' In thick, glossy, candy-colored acrylics, Mr. Wright paints big neo-hippie pictures of guitars, musicians, magic forests and totemic animals. Rare, 521 West 26th Street, (212)268-1520, through May 14. (Johnson)

Other Galleries

* ALBERTO CASADO: 'TODO CLANDESTINO, TODO POPULAR,' This young artist uses a technique involving painting on glass and aluminum foil to create shimmering, faux-kitsch works about politics, religion and ordinary life in Cuba. Art in General, 79 Walker Street, (212)219-0473, through June 25. (Johnson)

MICHAEL ELMGREEN AND INGAR DRAGSET: 'END STATION' The Fur-Lined Teacup Award goes to this art duo, which has meticulously transformed the basement here into a nearly full-scale subway station. Torn posters and graffiti evoke the 1980's. A metaphor for how the political protests of that decade were stopped in their tracks? Bohen Foundation, 415 West 13th Street, Meatpacking District, (212)414-4575, through July 1. (Smith)

"GLASS, SERIOUSLY" This fine selection of artworks in glass, picked by the independent curator Lilly Wei, includes tear drops by Kiki Smith; hand grenades by Kristin Oppenheim; vessels that spell "invisible" by Rob Wynne; a kind of stained glass window made of stacked found wine bottles, by Jean Shin and Brian Ripel; and an elegant bowed panel of frosted sea-green glass by Christopher Wilmarth. Dorsky, 11-03 45th Avenue, Long Island City, Queens, (718)937-6317, through June 27. (Johnson)

Last Chance

* 'SOLOMON R. GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM: 'HUGO BOSS PRIZE 2004: RIRKRIT TIRAVANIJA,' through Wednesday. For his solo show, Mr. Tiravanija built a low-power television station from inexpensive materials and papered the gallery's walls with instructions on how anyone and everyone can do the same, raising issues of government control and First Amendment rights. (See above.) (Cotter)

NATIONAL ACADEMY MUSEUM: 'SURREALISM USA,' through Sunday. Surrealism shook American arts, and this high-spirited exhibition examines the fallout with a wide-angle lens. It presents 120 works by more than 60 artists, from Europeans in exile to Abstract Expressionists to the often forgotten. 1083 Fifth Avenue, near 89th Street, (212)369-4880. (Smith)

* LUCAS SAMARAS: 'PHOTOFLICKS (IMOVIES) AND PHOTOFICTIONS (A TO Z)' Sixty short, surrealistic home-made digital movies and 4,432 still images by an extraordinarily inventive, versatile and idiosyncratic artist. His best gallery show in years. PaceWildenstein, 534 West 25th Street, Chelsea, (212)421-3293, through tomorrow. (Johnson)

* WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART: 'CY TWOMBLY: FIFTY YEARS OF WORKS ON PAPER,' through Sunday. This show starts in the 1950's, with a personal anti-aesthetic in which scribbling was draftsmanship, and gouging and scratching were gestural painting. After a move to Italy, words appeared. Later the work turns lush, into a kind of horticultural expressionism that is appetizing and uningratiating. (See above.) (Cotter)

A version of this article appears in print on  , Section E, Page 24 of the National edition with the headline: The Listings: May 6-12. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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