FEBRUARY CALENDAR

Daily (Mon.-Fri.)

HIV Testing. HCHD Thomas Street Clinic is offering HIV testing free to the public, 9 am-1 pm. There is no need to establish eligibility ("gold-card"), no donation will be asked of the person seeking testing, and the test is free. Thomas Street Clinic, 2015 Thomas, 713/873-4157 or 713/873-4026.

Daily (Mon.-Sat.)

HIV Testing. The Montrose Clinic offers free confidential HIV testing at these locations:

Monday: Bricks, 617 Fairview, 4-8 pm; Keys West, 817 W. Dallas, 8 pm-midnite; Club Xcape, 2612 South Richey, 9 pm-midnite.

Tuesday: The 611 Club, 611 Hyde Park, 4-8 pm; The Briar Patch, 2294 W. Holcombe, 8 pm-midnite; The Club Houston, 2205 Fannin, 8 pm-midnite.

Wednesday: Mary's, 1022 Westheimer, 4-8 pm; Houston Lesbian & Gay Community Center, 803 Hawthorne, 6-9 pm; Ripcord, 715 Fairview, 9 pm-midnite; EJ's, 2517 Ralph, 10 pm-1 am; Midtowne Spa, 3100 Fannin, 10 pm-1 am.

Thursday: The Outpost, 1419 Richmond, 4-8 pm; Brazos River Bottom, 2400 Brazos, 8 pm-midnite; Cousins, 817 Fairview, 8 pm-midnite; Toyz Disco, 5322 Glenmont, 10 pm-1 am.

Friday: Club Escandalo, 2053 Wirt, 8-10 pm; Viviana's, 5219 Washington, 10 pm-midnite; Midtowne Spa, 3100 Fannin, 10 pm-1 am; Club Kalipso, 6806 Longpoint, midnite-2 am.

Saturday: Club Inergy, 5750 Chimney Rock, 9 pm-midnite. The clinic offers classes for those newly diagnosed with HIV or Hepatitis C. For more info: 713/830-3000.

2 (Sun.)

Candle Procession & Choral Evening Prayer Service: "A Church with a Heart for the City." 6 pm @ Trinity Episcopal Church, 1015 Holman at Main in midtown Houston. More info: 713/528-4100.

2 & 15 (Sun.)

Wellness & Psychic Expo. Explore alternative healthcare medicine & products, including vitamins & magnets. Try aromatherapy, acupressure, reflexology, & more. All at CenterPoint, 1920 Hollister. Entry $2. Info: 713-932-7224 or www.centerpointhouston.com.

7 (Fri.)

Frogz is a fantastic creature-theater per-formance that will entertain & mystify all ages. Objects, animals, & absurdity all come to life in this original, madcap show. With a frog the size of a grown man, & lizards the length of two, Frogz turns the world upside down & inside out with illusions that explore the absurd nature of the world. Without spoken text, each piece in Frogz is performed by the five-member cast to a diverse soundscape influenced by silent movies & circus melodies. The vignettes move sinuously from screwball comedy, to high drama, to abstract movement & back. Society for the Performing Arts presents Imago Theatre's production of Frogz at 8 pm in Wortham Center's Cullen Theater. Tickets ($29-$45) can be purchased online at www.spahouston.org, by phone at 713/227-4SPA, or at the street level box office at Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana. For more info: Society for the Performing Arts at 713/227-4772.

7-9 (Fri.-Sun.)

Texas Home & Garden Show features over 1500 exhibits, products, & services, and includes a designer garden home; latest trends from local designers/decorators; art, antique, & accessories showcase; lawn & garden ideas; home & garden seminars and gourmet cooking shows; everything for home improvement; and info on destinations around the world, the country, and in Texas. $8.50 (kids under 14 free). Fri. 2-9 pm, Sat. 10 am-9 pm; Sun. 11 am-6 pm @ Reliant Center. Info: 713/529-1616 or www.TexasHome andGarden.com.

9 & 10 (Sun. & Mon.)

Annual "Valentine's Opera with a Difference": Giacomo Puccini's Madame Butterfly. Presented by OrchestraX at 7:30 pm in the Crystal Ballroom @ Rice Lofts, 909 Texas Ave. Info: www.orchestrax.com or 713/225-6729.

10 (Mon.)

Listen Up. Called the "Grande Dame of diasporic Indian literature," fiction writer Bharati Mukherjee won the National Book Critic's Circle Award for The Middlemen and Other Stories. She is also author of another story collection and six novels, including Jasmine and her most recent Desirable Daughters. Naomi Shihab Nye has written seven books of poetry, including her most recent, Nineteen Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East, a collection of essays, and several children's books. In addition to her many awards, she was featured in two PBS documentaries, including The United States of Poetry. They are part of Inprint's 2003 Margarett Root Brown Houston Reading Series. 7:30 pm (no late seating) @ Alley Theatre, 615 Louisiana. Suggested donation is $5 (students/senior citizens free). For more info: 713/521-2026 or www.inprint-inc.org.

13 (Thu.)

Building Bridges. Catholic ministry to lesbian/gay Catholics must continue despite negative rumblings about homosexuality from some Church leaders in the wake of the recent clergy sex-abuse crisis. That affirmative message will be the underlying theme of a daylong workshop conducted by two leaders of New Ways Ministry, a national Catholic educational ministry of justice & reconciliation. Entitled "Building Bridges: Gay and Lesbian Catholics and the Church," the workshop includes presentations on pastoral outreach, church statements, spirituality, lesbian/gay reality, & social justice. Francis DeBernardo, New Ways Ministry executive director, and Linda McCullough, associate director, will conduct the program. The workshop is designed for Catholic clergy and laity, educators, counselors, social workers, HIV/AIDS ministers, other professionals, gay & lesbian persons, & family members. 8:30 am-4 pm @ the Dominican Sisters' Motherhouse, 6501 Almeda Road. Registration is $55. For more info: e-mail newwaysm@aol.com or call 301/277-5674.

13-22 (Thursdays, Fridays, & Saturdays only)

Suchu Dance. Nonverbal forms of communication often take a back seat to the too highly regarded spoken & written word. How & why this is so is the subject of Suchu Dance's world premiere of Mouthpiece. Juxtaposing movement, visual images, humor, original music, & narrative, Mouthpiece examines the behavioral, emotional, & logical effects of language and how-without words-a visual experience can go straight to your subconscious. Tickets $15 (members $10). DiverseWorks, 1117 East Freeway. Reservations: 713/335-3445. More info: www.diverseworks.org.

14 & 15 (Fri. & Sat.)

Dominic Walsh Dance Theater presents the inaugural performance of Moving Bodies, Moving Minds, an innovative contemporary dance in a fusion of modern techniques with classical form. Founded by Dominic Walsh, one of the country's most coveted principal dancers, the company handles a classical, neoclassical, & contemporary repertoire that explores the vertical, horizontal, & spiraling energies of the human body. 7:30 pm both nights @ Hobby Center's Zilkha Hall. Tickets ($18 & $36) are available at 713/315-2525 or www.uniquelyhouston.org.

14 & 15 (Fri. & Sat.)

Beauty and the Beast (La Belle et la bête, France, 1946, subtitled, restored print, directed by Jean Cocteau). Perhaps the most faithful film adaptation of Marie Leprince de Beaumont's 1757 fairy tale, Jean Cocteau's debut feature employs techniques that he considered "almost documentary," combined with Surrealistic visual effects. A merchant picks a rose at the castle of the Beast (Jean Marais), who imprisons the merchant until the man's daughter Belle (Josette Day) agrees to take her father's place. At first horrified by the Beast's appearance & nightly proposals of marriage, Belle eventually learns to respect the Beast's inner beauty. From Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times: "One of the most magical of all films. Cocteau, a poet, was not making a 'children's film' but was adapting a classic tale that he felt had a special message after the suffering of World War II: Anyone who has an unhappy childhood may grow up to be a Beast." 7 pm both nights @ the Musuem of Fine Arts, Brown Auditorium. $6 ($5 students/seniors). Film info line: 713/639-7515. For more info: www.mfah.org.

14-16 (Fri.-Sun.)

Jazz Fest. Trinity Episcopal Church announces its 2nd annual jazz festival. The inner-city church will celebrate spirituality, diversity, & creative expression with performances by musicians & a jazz-inspired mass. The three-day event kicks off at 8 pm on Friday with two soloists & their handpicked combos. Headlining will be jazz trumpeter Marvin Stamm. Opening for Stamm will be Houston jazz pianist Marsha Frazier. The celebration will continue at 8 pm on Saturday. Headlining will be saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman. One of the great "Texas Tenors," Newman made a name for himself as the star tenor soloist for the Ray Charles band, playing on many hits such as the 1958 classic "Hard Times." Opening for Newman will be the Houston-based quartet "Tribute" who will be performing an homage to the Gerry Mulligan/Chet Baker quartet of the 1950s. The connection between creative expression, diversity, & spirituality will be the central focus of a jazz-inspired mass that will conclude the three-day festival on Sunday at 8 & 10:30 am. Music for the mass will be performed by local jazz great Paul English, who will also accompany David "Fathead" Newman on Saturday. Tickets for the Fri. & Sat. night concerts: $30 ($20 with student ID), $55 for both concerts. Tickets/info: 713/528-4100 or www.trinityjazzfest.net. Trinity Episcopal Church is located at 1015 Holman at Main in downtown Houston.

15 & 16 (Sat. & Sun.)

Astrology. In this astrology class, the meaning of the aspects in natal charts will be examined. This class is the 2nd in a series of OutSmart astrologer Lilly Roddy's beginning astrology classes. You will study the conjunction, opposition, sextile, square, trine, & quincunx. For this class, you only need a basic understanding of the signs, planets, & houses. On the 15th: 10 am-3 pm; on the 16th: 11 am-4 pm, @ 920 West Main, near the corner of Richmond & Montrose. Cost $65. Info: 713-529-5842, Lillycath@aol.com, or www.hermesfoot.com.

21 (Sat.)

8 Seasons. The Mercury Baroque Ensemble presents "Baroque and Beyond"-Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Piazzolla's Four Seasons. For info/tickets: 713/498-4853, e-mail Mercury@houston.rr.com, or visit www.Mercury BaroqueEnsemble.org.

21 & 22 (Sat. & Sun.)

Aeros, presented by Society for the Performing Arts, is a soaring evening of dance and gymnastics. The event brings gymnasts into the world of the performing arts with an encompassing exhibition of muscular strength, symmetry, and harmony. Fifteen members from the National Sports and Aerobics Gymnastics Team of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation were chosen for the show. The athletes who comprise this unusual performance troupe range in age from 19-26 and five are world champions in artistic, rhythmic, and sports aerobics, while the others are European champions. 8 pm @ Hobby Center's Sarofim. Tickets ($15-$50) can be purchased online at www.spahouston.org, by phone at 713/227-4SPA, or at the street level box office at Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana.

28 (Fri.)

Kodo Drummers of Japan. With their powerful and stirring rhythms, Kodo not only takes listeners to the far-away Sea of Japan, but brings them intimately close to the beating of their own hearts. New York's Village Voice describes this amazing show as "an athletic and intimate duet between man and drum, a choreographed stage ritual that lifts you out of your seat." The Kodo Drummers of Japan come from the beautiful and enchanting Sado Island. Listeners are taken away to this exotic place as the Kodo drummers create unique rhythms that portray the deep traditions of the Japanese people. These rhythms are created with the use of the traditional drum called the taiko. Since ancient times the taiko has been a symbol of community-serving as a link among people, and people and the heavens. Society for the Performing Arts presents the Kodo Drummers of Japan in Jones Hall at 8 pm. Tickets are $15-$55 and can be purchased online at www.spahouston.org, or by phone at 713/227-4SPA, or at the street level box office at Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana.

PLANNING AHEAD FOR MARCH

March 1 (Sat.)

Stop Making Sense is DiverseWorks' 20th anniversary celebration. DiverseWorks pulls out all the stops celebrating an unbelievable 20 years of art & artists and honoring all those individuals who have helped keep the dream alive. Like all DiverseWorks galas, this will be the see-and-be-seen event of the year, full of DiverseWorks' usual brand of antics & surprises. Tickets start at $150 for a grand buffet dinner & '80s-inspired entertainment. 7 pm-? @ Edwin Hornberger Conference Center, Texas Medical Center. For more info: 713/223-8346 or www.diverseworks.org.

March 7 (Fri.)

A Midsummer Night's Dream, the Houston Symphony Ball 2003. This Shakespearean-style evening will capture the magic & intrigue of this timeless classic, with dining & dancing among fairies & whimsical spirits, highlighted by a classical performance by the orchestra. The evening begins with a cocktail reception during bidding for items in the silent auction (including trips to Austria & France), followed by a seated dinner. The orchestra's performance follows, with the evening ending with dessert & dancing. 7 pm @ Inter-Continental Houston. Individual tickets $500-$2,500; tables $5,000-$25,000. Reservations/info: Houston Symphony Volunteer Services Office at 713/344-5617.

PERFORMING ARTS

) Actual Air is Troy Schulze's stageadaptation from the poetry of David Berman and is the first of four world premieres for Infernal Bridegroom Productions. It's a surreal anti-narrative decorated with striking visuals, hilarious dialogue, and live rock music, which is somehow simultaneously bizarre and accessible, soporific and dynamic. Simply put, it's the sort of work Infernal Bridegroom exists to produce: fresh, bold, challenging, entertaining, brand-new poetry in motion for the next generation. 8 p.m., Feb. 13-Mar. 8 at the Axiom, 2524 McKinney. Tickets for opening weekend (Feb. 13-15) are $5.99; remaining performances $10-$15. For reservations or for more information, call 713/522-8443, or visit www.infernalbridegroom.com.

) Art. Revealing lessons on art & life ensue when the purchase of a white-on-white painting throws the friendship of three men into turmoil. Marc & Yvan are less than enthusiastic about Serge's recent acquisition, which cost him a small fortune, and have a difficult time hiding their feelings. It's a send-up of modern art in this 1998 Tony Award winner. Through Feb. 23 @ Galveston's Strand Theatre, 2317 Ship's Mechanic Row. Reservations/info: 1-877-STRAND-9.

) An Evening of One-Acts: two one-act plays by Rice University's playwright-in-residence Douglas Mitchell. His works were seen last winter at Theatre LaB Houston and included the comedies A Surplus of Charity & It's Hard to Say. Mitchell's plays explore internal confrontations, which we most often choose not to see ourselves. 8 pm, Feb. 26-Mar.15 @ Theatre LaB Houston, 1706 Alamo. Tickets are $20 in advance, $22 at the door. To reserve tickets: 713/868-7516. For more info: www.theaterlabhouston.com.

) Fruit Cocktail, a world premiere musical revue by the musically gifted Eric Lane Barnes (Fairy Tales), consists of mostly comedy numbers, and a few ballads, with a cast of six men who sing about the contemporary lifestyle. Fairy Tales, the inaugural production at Theatre New West, was a major success, both critically & at the box office. Fruit Cocktail is directed by Joe Watts, artistic director of Theatre New West. Musical director is Michael Harren. Through Mar. 8 @ Theatre New West, 1415 California. Tickets $20. Reservations/info: 713/522-2204.

) The Goat or Who Is Sylvia? Winner of the 2002 Tony Award for Best Play, voted Best Play of 2002 by the New York Drama Critics Circle, & recipient of the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play, The Goat extends the boundaries of American drama. "The sense that everything's going right is a sure sign that everything's going wrong," Stevie tells her husband Martin, a successful architect who has just received an international prize, been awarded a lucrative contract, & celebrated his 50th birthday all in one week. His surprising confession of an extramarital affair jolts his family & best friend. Through Feb. 16 @ the Alley Theatre, 615 Texas Ave. Tickets ($40-$45) available at www.alleytheatre.org, at the Alley box office, or by calling 713/228-8421.

) Houston Ballet's winter repertory program pairs two modern masterpieces alongside a new work by Ben Stevenson. Hailed at its premiere as "the boogie woogie ballet," Company B is an exuberant celebration of the music of the Andrews Sisters. Balanchine's The Four Temperaments is a lyrical, astringently beautiful piece, powered by the surging chords of Paul Hindemith's score. Feb. 27-Mar. 9 @ Wortham Center's Brown Theater, Texas at Smith. Tickets available at the ballet box office at the Wortham, at the Houston Ballet at 1916 W. Gray, by phone at 713/227-ARTS, or online at www.houstonballet.org.

) Houston Grand Opera presents The Merry Widow: No one in Paris can seem to decide who should marry Hanna (Susan Graham), a flirtatious widow with a fortune. Hanna spends her time sorting out suitors, while a fortune-seeking baron (Dale Travis) plays matchmaker between the widow & the rogue Danilo (Bo Skovhus). Through Feb. 16 @ Wortham Center's Brown Theater. Tickets (which start at $15) are available by calling 713/228-6737 or by visiting www.houstongrandopera.org.

) Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris. Houston chanteuse Deborah Boily directs & performs in this intimate event featuring the pointed, passionate, & profound songs of Belgian songwriter Jacques Brel. Through Feb. 16 @ Main Street Theater in Rice Village, 2540 Times Blvd. Tickets are $20-$30. For more info: www.mainstreet theater.com or 713/524-6706.

) Killer Karaoke and Come Up and Slay Me Sometime are presented by Mystery Café, home of Comedy Murder Mystery Dinner Theater. • Killer Karaoke: The Gulf Coast Regional Semi-Final Three Steps Before National Silver Microphone Karaoke Competition will continue, despite an "accidental" fire and a crazed karaoke serial killer stalking the contestants. Anybody who's actually listened to karaoke will probably side with the killer, if they can figure his or her identity. • Come Up and Slay Me Sometime: Bathtub gin isn't the only illegal thing going on in this 1920s floating speakeasy-there's a dead body lying around, and nobody can call the cops. Featuring special appearances by Mae West, Charles Lindbergh, and Abraham Lincoln. • Killer Karaoke plays Fridays; Come Up and Slay Me Sometime plays Saturdays. Both shows presented at 8 pm @ Marriott West Loop, 1750 West Loop South at San Felipe. Reservations required: 713/944-2583 or www.mysterycafe houston.com.

) My Fair Lady. Based on the comedy Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw, My Fair Lady shows how Henry Higgins, professor of linguistics, transforms Eliza Doolittle, a lowly flower girl, into a princess. To name a few of the gems in the score: "I Could Have Danced All Night," "With a Little Bit of Luck," "The Rain in Spain," "On the Street Where You Live," "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face." Through Feb. 16 @ the Hobby Center, 800 Bagby. Tickets ($25-$68) are available at 713/558-8887, at the box office, or at www.tuts.com.

) The Piano Lesson by August Wilson. A brother & sister battle over a piano-a family heirloom-and over their own lives, which are similarly obsessed with ghosts & the sacrifices of their ancestors. Through Feb. 23 @ the Ensemble Theatre, 3535 Main St., 713/520-0055.

) Rumors is a farce by Neil Simon. The deputy mayor of New York is slightly shot & his wife goes missing, so his lawyer quickly decides on a cover-up just as the guests begin arriving for the couple's anniversary. 8 pm, Fridays & Saturdays, through Mar. 8, @ the Company Onstage, 536 Westbury Square. Tickets are $12. Info/reservations: 713/726-1219.

) The Stand-In. Ex-soap star Lester Perry thinks he knows what his next step up the Hollywood ladder is: a choice role as a gay umpire in a cable-TV movie. The only problem is that Perry is deeply closeted and doesn't think he can stand to be identified as homosexual. His way out of this dilemma is to continue his straight charade and to insist that a stand-in do all the graphically gay shots. All of that works until two gay journalists get wind of the game Lester Perry is playing. • Those elements are at the crux of Keith Curran's cutting satire, The Stand-In, which makes its Houston debut at Unhinged Productions on Feb. 7. Reservations can be made by calling the theater and leaving voice mail information. The theater will return the call. • Playwright Curran was previously seen in Houston in Unhinged's highly regarded Walking the Dead, a drama about female-to-male transsexuals. Playwright Edward Albee said about the production that it is the type of theater that should be encouraged in Houston. • In The Stand-In, Curran throws poison darts at Hollywood's internalized discrimination against homosexuals and, by extension, all of society's homophobia. But The Stand-In is larger than that, touching many other bases, including the propriety of journalists who out well-known personalities, the vacuity of television on-air personalities, and on and on. • Once outed, Perry laments to the world, "I have nothing in common with that person who's been living my life." Despite the play's heavy subjects, Curran's approach is entirely comedic and even compassionate. • The Stand-In is the first Unhinged offering of the new year, and the little theater that concentrates on plays with gay and lesbian themes and characters is promising a run that will leave theatergoers laughing and thinking. • Unhinged, which last year was located at an old warehouse on LaBranch, has moved, now using Wayne Wilden's Atomic Café, just north of the downtown area and just south of Interstate 10, in an old industrial/warehouse district that is in transition, with lofts and restaurants rising around it. The venerable Last Concert restaurant is virtually across the street from Atomic Café. • Unhinged is trying hard to get information about the move to its patrons. The theater's board discovered that the move confused many of its regulars. The move and downtown construction hurt the theater's first offering of the 2002-2003 season, last fall's Lips. And now Unhinged is printing as many maps and instructions on how to get to the theater as it can, including it in some of its tickets, its pamphlets, ads, and playbills. • Unhinged's managing artistic director, Chris Jimmerson, a familiar name to Houston theatergoers, is directing The Stand-In, which runs from Feb. 7-Mar. 16 (Fridays & Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 5 p.m.) @ Atomic Cafe, 1320 Nance. Tickets ar $10-$15. For reservations or more info: 713/547-0440. Be warned (or be glad): contains nudity.

) Syncopation. Henry dreams of becoming a ballroom dancer. Anna yearns for a life of her own. But the harsh realities of turn-of-the-century New York threaten to dash the hopes harbored by this middle-aged meat packer & disheartened young factory worker. When Anna answers Henry's ad for a dance partner, the future seems within reach. Through Feb. 9 @ Stages Repertory Theatre, 3201 Allen Parkway. Tickets ($32-$42) are available by calling 713/527-0123 or by visiting www.stagestheatre.com.

) Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? takes place in the home of George (James Black) & Martha (Judith Ivey), a couple living in mordant, uproarious antagonism. In the still hours of a Saturday night, the two entertain a young married couple, introducing them to fun & games. But before the drunken night is through, there are harsh self-revelations for all. Through Feb. 8 @ the Alley Theatre, 615 Texas Ave. Tickets ($35-$50) available at www.alleytheatre.org, at the Alley box office, or by calling 713/228-8421.

) Young and Fertle features the ever-popular Fertle Family of Dumpster, Texas. A class reunion has everybody flashing back to their favorite moments from the 1970s. Champagnes, wines, beers, cappuccino, & munchies are available throughout the show. Admission is $18. Through May 3 @ Radio Music Theatre, 2623 Colquitt. Reservations/info: 713/522-7722.

PERFORMING ARTS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

) Johnny Tremain. On Dec. 16, 1773, a group of Boston citizens protested the British tax on tea imported to the colonies by dumping 342 chests into the Boston Harbor. Johnny Tremain is the fictional adventure of a young apprentice silversmith who gets caught up in the event. Through Feb. 21 @ Main Street Theater in Chelsea Market, 4617 Montrose. Public performances: Feb. 9 & 16; school performances: through Feb. 21. Tickets for public performances are $8 for children/students/seniors, $10 for adults; for school performance rates, call 713/524-7998 or e-mail vstjohn@mainstreettheater.com. For more info: www.mainstreet theater.com or 713/524-6706.

) The Magic Ring Dang Do. Peter, a farm boy who wants to be a knight, goes to Honest John, a used-armor dealer, for advice. He is sent to perform a heroic deed, & with the help of Oswald, a misunderstood ogre, saves a lovely princess from the evil dragon that lives in a cave. Saturdays, 11 am & 1:30 pm, through Mar. 1, @ the Company Onstage, 536 Westbury Square. Tickets are $6. Info/reservations: 713/726-1219.

) Sunday Gold is a historical look at life in 1840's North Carolina. It is the story of Annie & Lizzie, two childhood friends who must confront the harsh realities of slavery in America's first mining town, Gold Hill. This story brings to light a part of our country's history while offering the opportunity to examine universal questions of sacrifice & loyalty. Recommended for grades 4 & up. Through Mar. 1 @ Stages Repertory Theatre, 3201 Allen Parkway. Tickets are $8 and are available by calling the box office at 713/527-0123. For more info: www.stagestheatre.com.

RADIO

) After Hours. Saturdays, midnight to 3 am. Featuring the QMZ (Queer Music Zone) with Jimmy Carper. KPFT 90.1 FM, 713/526-5738.

) Queer Voices. Mondays, 8-10 pm. Features, news, music, interviews, reviews, and commentary. KPFT 90.1 FM, 713/526-4000.

ART/PHOTOGRAPHY

) Jasper Johns: Drawings brings together some 35 objects selected from Johns's own holdings as well as private collections. The exhibition reviews the broad career of this singularly American artist through his works on paper, beginning with his early iconic images of targets, beer cans, flagstones, & flags-and continues into the present day with his more complex works that often find the artist quoting as much from the history of art as from his own oeuvre. Through May 4 @ the Menil Collection, 1515 Sul Ross, 713/525-9400, www.menil.org.

) Lubricious. In his first Texas exhibition, New York-based artist Scott Teplin fills DiverseWorks' Project Space with an offbeat collection of drawings, wallpaper, & video that obsessively & humorously explores the malleable nature of lubricants. Through Feb. 22 @ DiverseWorks, 1117 East Freeway, 713/335-3445, www.diverseworks.org.

) Mads Gamdrup: Renunciation. Featuring 16 large-scale color photographs that focus on the desert landscapes of the U.S., Morocco, Egypt, & Iceland, the exhibition examines the intersection of the real & the imagined through the lens of landscape imagery. Through Mar. 16 @ Blaffer Gallery, the Art Museum of U of H, 120 Fine Arts Building, 713/743-9528, www.blaffergallery.org.

) Poetics of Clay: An International Perspective is an exhibition of selected ceramic works by world-renowned artists drawn from numerous private & public collections. Includes vessels, domestic ware, sculpture, & an architectural installation by artists from approximately 17 countries. Feb. 15-May 3 @ Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, 4848 Main Street, 713/529-4848, www.crafthouston.org.

) The Sound We Make Together. Harrell Fletcher has taken the West Coast by storm with his humorous & poignant approach to community-based conceptual art practice. Adding interesting twists to the notion of outsider art, Fletcher's projects are designed to include everyday people from outside the art world as both participants & audience. Combining two temporary public works with a gallery exhibition, this show serves as a complex portrait of our community & illuminates the very things which tie us together. Through Feb. 22 @ DiverseWorks, 1117 East Freeway, 713/335-3445, www.diverseworks.org.

) William Pope.L: eRacism. Citing racial conumdrum as the engine which drives his work, Pope.L addresses contemporary issues such as class, consumerism, & culturally embedded racism with dark humor and biting critique. His art installations use unconventional materials such as peanut butter, mayonnaise, and Pop Tarts to provoke a closer examination of the "stuff" of everyday life and to raise questions about art as a commodity. Through Feb. 22 @ DiverseWorks, 1117 East Freeway, 713/335-3445, www.diverseworks.org.