Thursday, October 20
Gypsy singer
From Madrid, Grammy-winning Gypsy singer Diego el Cigala performs at 7 p.m. in the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 Manhattan Beach Blvd., RB. For tickets and safety tips, call (800) 595-4849 or go to KalaKoa.com.
Cool music for cool people
“Modern Sounds,” presented by the LA Jazz Institute, celebrates the West Coast sound today (Thursday) through Sunday at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott Hotel, 5855 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles. There are 26 concerts, plus rare films, featuring The Gerald Wilson Orchestra, The Russ Garcia Big Band and Wigville Ensemble, Howard Rumsey, Peter Erskine, Carl Saunders, Don Shelton, Lanny Morgan, and many more. Individual tickets range from $10 to $20, but packages are available. (562) 200-5477 or go to lajazzinstitute.org.
Friday, October 21
Riding down the Mississippi
Metropolitan Educational Theatre Network/MET2 presents “Big River” at 7:30 p.m. today (Friday) and tomorrow, as well as at 2 p.m. on Sunday, in the James Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance. This is the musical version of Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, with Huck, Tom Sawyer, and Jim. For tickets call (310) 781-7171 or, better yet, (800) 961-0194 ext. 2, or access met2.org.
A little more music
The South Bay Chamber Music Society precedes its 8 p.m. concert with another one, starting at 6 p.m., with violinist Catharina Chen, accompanied by pianist Jennie Jung, presenting a program that features work by Christian August Sinding, Edvard Grieg, Ole Bull, Franz Schubert, and Eugène Ysaÿe. It’s free. Then stay for the regularly scheduled event, in which pianist Robert Thies, cellist Andrew Shulman, and violinist Roberto Cani play piano trios by Mozart and Tchaikovsky. Where? Los Angeles Harbor College Music Recital Hall, 1111 Figueroa Place, Wilmington. This is also free. Also, the latter concert will be repeated at 3 p.m. on Sunday in the Pacific Unitarian Church, 6521 Montemalaga, Rancho Palos Verdes.
Tropical rhythms
Katia Moraes and Brazilian Hearts perform at 7:30 p.m. tonight and tomorrow as part of the Jazz Cabaret Series in the George Nakano Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance. Dinner available from Silvio’s Brarzilian BBQ beginning at 6:30 p.m. Tickets, $30; $27. Call (310) 781-7171 or go to torrancearts.org. More information at katiamoraes.com.
Get out your Thomas Brothers
“Road to Zanzibar,” the 1941 comedy starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour, screens today (Friday) and tomorrow at 8:15, plus tomorrow and Sunday at 2:30 p.m., in the Old Town Music Hall, 140 Richmond St., El Segundo. Tickets, $8. Call (310) 322-2592 or go to oldtownmusichall.org.
Without foreign oil
“Revenge of the Electric Car” opens for one week at the Nuart Theatre, 11272 Santa Monica Blvd., W. Los Angeles. Chris Paine is the director. The film takes us behind the closed doors of Nissan, GM, and the Silicon Valley start-up Tesla Motors to chronicle the story of the global resurgence of electric cars. (310) 281-8223 or go to LandmarkTheatres.com.
Saturday, October 22
Like magic lanterns
The Fifth Annual Hermosa Beach “Great Glass Pumpkin Patch” takes place today and tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 710 Pier Ave., Hermosa Beach, and it features the work of Walker and Bowes, Christopher C. Johnson, Bryan Ousdahl, Vax Bowes, and Jaime Guerrero. More at glasshouse.ws.
Monday, October 24
Sound Iberian, right?
Duo Fado is a classically-based guitar and voice duo from Frisco and they’re performing at 6 p.m. in the Chapel at Marymount College, 30800 Palos Verdes Dr. East, Rancho Palos Verdes. (310) 303-7223 or go to marymountpv.edu.
Tuesday, October 25
Witty and amusing
“Private Lives,” by playwright Noel Coward, begins previews tonight at 8 p.m. in the Hermosa Playhouse, 710 Pier Ave., Hermosa Beach. Opening Night is Friday, Oct. 28, but why wait? Preview tickets, $30. Stephanie Coltrin directs. Through Oct. 27. Call (310) 372-4477 or go to hermosabeachplayhouse.com. ER
