Weekend Preview Weekend Preview (January 18, 2006)

Thursday

"The Clean House" by Sarah Ruhl is now playing at TheatreWorks through Feb. 12 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St. The romantic comedy tells the tale of a successful doctor trying to keep her life under control while being challenged by her joke-cracking maid and obsessively tidy sister. Tickets are $20-$52; call (650) 903-6000 or go to www.theatreworks.org.

Indonesian textiles by the Iban people of Borneo, rich with intricate patterns and deep red hues, are on exhibit at the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University through March 26. Admission is free, and opening hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursdays. Call (650) 723-4177 or go to www.stanford.edu/dept/ccva.

"Over the Tavern," a Tom Dudzicks play about growing up in the Eisenhower years, is playing at the Bus Barn Theatre through Feb. 11 after a preview performance tonight. The theater is at 97 Hillview Ave. in Los Altos. Tickets are $20-$32; call (650) 941-0551 or go to www.busbarn.org.

Portraits, poems and stories by the residents of the Stevenson House senior community are on display through Feb. 28. The building is at 455 E. Charleston Road and the exhibit is free. Call (650) 493-1478.

Friday

"Our Country's Good," presented by Palo Alto Players, has a paid preview performance tonight and then opens Saturday night at the Lucie Stern Theatre at 1305 Middlefield Road in Palo Alto. The Timberlake Wertenbaker play follows convicts and officers in the penal colony that would become Sydney, Australia, portraying their efforts to put on a play. Tickets are $18-$29, with discounts available for students and seniors. The show runs through Feb. 5. Call (650) 329-0891 or go to www.paplayers.org.

Soprano Christine Brandes and pianist Laura Dahl perform at 8 p.m. in the Campbell Recital Hall at Stanford University, taking on works by Strauss, Debussy, Hindemith and Hahn. Tickets are $20 general and $10 for students. Call (650) 725-ARTS or go to music.stanford.edu.

"Lend Me A Tenor," a romantic comedy by Ken Ludwig, opens this evening at 7 p.m., courtesy of the Menlo-Atherton High School Thespian Society. Max, the main character, winds up impersonating a famous opera singer, and shenanigans ensue. The young actors take the stage in the J Building on campus at 555 Middlefield Road in Atherton; tickets are $8 for evening shows and $5 for matinees. Show dates are Jan. 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28. Call (650) 322-5311 or email apaye@seq.org.

Saturday

"Bach, Bluegrass and Chamber Jazz," a benefit for the outreach ministries of All Saints' Episcopal Church in Palo Alto, takes place at 7:30 p.m. The TOPAZ music ensemble will perform music by Bach, Mozart and Dvorak, as well as a bluegrass work by American composer Mark O'Connor. It will also premiere "Paradise Dreams" by TOPAZ co-director Mimi Dye. Also at the event, artist Harry Cohen will display his Jazz Series of paintings, and artist Leonard Breger will show his painting of Bach. The event is at the church at 555 Waverley St. in Palo Alto; tickets are $25/$30. Call (650) 380-0961 or go to www.topazmusic.org.

The Peninsula Teen Opera performs "Hansel and Gretel" by Engelbert Humperdinck, along with scenes from other operas and operettas, at 7:30 p.m. in the Eagle Theater at Los Altos High School, 201 Almond Ave. in Los Altos. There will be another performance on Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $15 general and $12 for seniors and students under 18. Call (650) 400-4923.

Guitarist Charles Ferguson will perform a solo recital of his new transcriptions of Scarlatti's harpsichord sonatas, Bach's second "English Suite" and all five Villa-Lobos preludes. The concert is at 8 p.m. in Dinkelspiel Auditorium at Stanford University; tickets are $10 general and $5 for students. Call (650) 725-ARTS.

Sunday

"Zamacueca," a music and dance event representing the cultures of Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina, comes to Dinkelspiel Auditorium at Stanford University at 3 p.m. Several Bay Area dance companies and musicians will take part, including De Rompe y Raja, an Afro-Peruvian dance company. Tickets are $18 general and $12 for students. Call (650) 725-ARTS.

Wild cats including a cougar, African leopard and cheetah will come to Foothill College at 12345 El Monte Road in Los Altos Hills at 2 p.m. for a family program put on by Leopards, Etc., a group based in Occidental, California. The program will include information about the animals' habits and habitat. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12. The event is in room 5015; attendees are asked to park in lot 6. Call (707) 874-3176 or email leopards@leopardsetc.com to reserve tickets. Some tickets may also be available at the door.

Art

A tale of two new Palo Alto murals: one envisioned to conceal ugly pipes at a preschool, and one created by developmentally disabled children.
Theater

An advance look at "Our Country's Good," being put on by the Palo Alto Players.
Movies

Reviews of "The New World," "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" and "The White Countess."

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