Weekend Preview Weekend Preview (December 14, 2005)

Thursday

"Romance in D" takes a theatrical look at two holiday traditions and two holiday romances, staged by the Bus Barn Stage Company at 97 Hillview Ave. in Los Altos. The show runs through Dec. 17, with performances Thursday through Sunday. Tickets range from $22 to $28. Call (650) 941-0551 or go to www.busbarn.org.

"Into the Woods" traces familiar fairy tales and the post-happily-ever-after at the Lucie Stern Theatre at 1305 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto, thanks to TheatreWorks. Shows are Tuesday through Sunday through Jan. 7, and tickets range from $28 to $50. Call (650) 463-1960 or go to www.theatreworks.org.

"Seussical, The Musical" is staged today at 4:30 p.m., Friday at 7:30, and Saturday at 2:30 at the Palo Alto Children's Theatre at 1305 Middlefield Road. Tickets are $8 for adults and $4 for children. Call (650) 463-4970.

Free docent-led tours take place each Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Palo Alto Art Center at 1313 Newell Road through Dec. 17. Current exhibits at the center are "Romancing the Shadows," "Elsa Rady: The Cycladic Swing" and "Edward Eberle: Classicism & Chaos." To arrange a private tour, call (650) 329-2370 or (650) 329-2366.

Amaranth Ehrenhalt's abstract oil paintings and etchings grace the ART21 Gallery at 539 Alma St. in Palo Alto this month. Opening hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays. Call (650) 566-1381 or go to www.art21.us.

Indonesian textiles by the Iban of Borneo are on display at the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University as part of an exhibit called "Flaming Red Cloth." The exhibit runs through March 26, and the museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursdays until 8 p.m. Call (650) 723-4177.

Friday

The Silicon Valley Gay Men's Chorus performs at 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts at 500 Castro St. Favorite holiday songs and carols from around the world make up the program. Tickets are $20; call (650) 903-6000 or go to www.mvcpa.com.

"El Mundo," a concert by the San Francisco Early Music Society, features seasonal music from Spain, Italy and Latin America at 8 p.m. The performance, which includes singers, strings, guitar, percussion and harpsichord, takes place at the First Lutheran Church at 600 Homer St. in Palo Alto. Tickets are $25/$22. Call (510) 528-1725 or go to www.sfems.org.

Modular railway trains are at the Museum of American Heritage at 351 Homer Ave. in Palo Alto as part of the "Garden Gauge Rail Display." Exhibit hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, through Dec. 17. Call (650) 321-1004 or go to www.moah.org.

"The Velveteen Rabbit," the favorite story by Margery Williams, gets a children's theatrical treatment by the Peninsula Youth Theatre's Stories on Stage program. Show times are 9:30 and 11 a.m. today and 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Saturday on the SecondStage of the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts at 500 Castro St. Tickets are $6 on Friday and $7 on Saturday. Call (650) 903-6000 or go to www.mvcpa.com.

"You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train," a documentary on the life and times of historian/activist/author Howard Zinn, will be shown at 7:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Palo Alto at 505 E. Charleston Road. Suggested donation is $5 to $10, and the screening will be followed by a discussion. Call (650) 326-8837.

A sing-along "Messiah" will be hosted at 8 p.m. by Stanford University's department of music in the Memorial Church. Tickets are $10 general, $9 for seniors and $5 for students. Call (650) 725-2787.

Hedda Hope's colorful abstract paintings can be seen through Dec. 18 in the lobby of the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts at 500 Castro St. The lobby is open from noon to 1 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and one hour prior to every public performance. Go to www.mvcpa.com.

Saturday

The Aurora Singers host a 7 p.m. holiday concert including favorite seasonal songs and "The Reluctant Dragon," a costumed entertainment number based on a children's story by "The Wind in the Willows" author Kenneth Grahame. The concert is at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Palo Alto at 505 E. Charleston Road. Tickets are $9 for adults and $7 for students, seniors and kids. Call (650) 321-4262.

The Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra performs at 8 p.m. at Dinkelspiel Auditorium at Stanford University. The program includes Beethoven's "Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73" and selections from "West Side Story." Tickets are $10/$5; call (650) 856-3848 or go to www.pacomusic.org.

Sunday

The El Camino Youth Symphony holds its annual holiday concert on Sunday at 2:30 p.m., joined by Afro-Cuban percussionist Michael Spiro. The program includes Strauss' Overture to "Die Fledermaus" and Dukas' "Sorcerer's Apprentice," and will be held at the Spangenberg Theatre at 780 Arastradero Road in Palo Alto. Tickets are $10/$5; call (650) 327-2611 or go to www.ecys.org.

The Oratorio Society and Orchestra of the First Congregational Church of Palo Alto will perform Haydn's "Mass for St. Nicholas," "Fantasia on Christmas Carols" by Vaughan Williams, and other music at 4 p.m. at the church at 1985 Louis Road in Palo Alto. Tickets are $10 general and $5 for students and seniors. Call (650) 856-6662 or go to www.fccpa.org.

Hip-hop music

Homegrown artist Insomniac writes and rhymes while delivering pizzas in Palo Alto.
Festive songs

Chestnuts roast, herald angels sing, and the flavors of the music range from Celtic to Portuguese at the Gryphon Carolers Holiday Concert.
Movies

Reviews of "Brokeback Mountain" and "The Family Stone."

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