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Friday, June 20, 2003

By Scott Mervis, Weekend Editor

LAST CALL AT TRAF

After Sunday, the Three Rivers Arts Festival will end and take all the rain with it. But first, the closing weekend promises a mini jazz festival of sorts and what could be one of the highlights of the entire concert year. Here's what to look for:

Maceo Parker: James Brown used to say, "Maceo! Blow Your Horn!" Then, the sax player from North Carolina would unleash one of his fine, funked-up jams in "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" or "Cold Sweat." And it wasn't enough that Parker would contribute to the work of one R&B giant. In the '70s, he moved his groove to Parliament/Funkadelic, under the psychedelic watch of George Clinton. In 1990, he launched a solo career that's swung from bebop to smooth jazz, from funk to pop collaborations with the likes of Ani DiFranco and Dave Matthews.

Wilco: This is the other half of the Sonic Youth show from last Sunday (the two bands are touring together), but this one shouldn't terrorize families. While the Chicago-based band dabbles in distortion, the songs are still rooted in pop, folk and alt-country. "Yankee Foxtrot Hotel" was the critics' pick for 2002, topping the Village Voice's Pazz and Jop Poll (not to mention Ed Masley's list in the PG). Since then, the band has issued an EP to fans online. According to a recent concert review in Minneapolis, Wilco turned up with a fifth member, keyboardist Mike Jorgensen, and delved more into sonic territory with a handful of new songs, while either stripping down or grunging up a few of the older ones.

Boney James: OK, let's get this straight. The Arts Festival lists Maceo Parker as "an unrivaled musical legend," which is nice but a bit absurd in light of people like, oh, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, etc., etc. Then it lists Boney James as a "legendary jazz saxophonist," which is flat-out absurd in any light. James is a contemporary jazz-R&B player in the vein of Grover Washington Jr. who came up through Morris Day's band before launching a solo career in 1992. He's a favorite among smooth-jazz fans and a long shot for the "legend" label, but, hey, it's free and they are bringing Wilco and Parker, so we're not complaining. Opening the set of this Arts Festival-Mellon Jazz Festival collaboration will be up-and-coming pianist Hiromi.

"Your Mama!": Heather Arnet, a local playwright and peace activist, wrote and directed this one-hour piece that's described as "a provocative new comedy about the modern malaise of motherhood." It's presented at 937 Liberty Avenue at 8 tonight and 4 p.m. Saturday.

See the schedule on this page for details.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Have you ever sung happy birthday to a building? You can on Saturday when The Pittsburgh Children's Museum celebrates its 20th with a party and a Wonder-ous new exhibit. The exhibit is "Alice's Wonderland," an interactive adventure that lets kids explore the world of the Lewis Carroll classic. Once they follow the White Rabbit into the Underground, kids can experience the illusive Hall of Doors, create a Mad Tea Party, manipulate time with the Crazy Clock and challenge Alice and the Queen to a game of Crazy Croquet. The idea is to not only let them have fun with the story, but introduce them to science and math concepts. It will run through Sept. 7.

Here's the party plan:

10 a.m.: Super-duper cake decorating and Juggleseeds balloon creations.

11 a.m.: Storyteller Tim Hartman performs "Folk Trails."

11:30 a.m. (and 12:30 p.m.): Tea with the Queen of Hearts.

Noon: Storyteller Alan Irvine.

1 p.m.: Musical storytelling with Betsy & Pals.

1:30 and 2:30 p.m.: Tea with the Mad Hatter.

3 p.m.: Candles and cake.

4 p.m.: Actor Greg Kenney performs a Willie Stargell tribute.

Admission is $5; $4.50 kids 2-18; under 2 free. Call 412-322-5058.

HARRY 5 HITS

Speaking of magical worlds, J.K. Rowling created one of her own with the Harry Potter series and as every muggle knows, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" -- also known as Harry 5 -- goes on sale at the crack of midnight tonight. A pair of Oakmont destinations are teaming up for an evening of sorcery at 9:30 tonight with a screening of "Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone" at the Oaks and then the sale of the book at the Mystery Lovers Bookshop. Movie tickets are $2. Call 412-828-4877.

The six Barnes & Noble Booksellers and the three Borders Books and Music stores will stay open as well, with activities leading up to the witching hour.

CREATURE FEATURE

While the ambiguous green monster, the Hulk, is stomping through theaters, the amphibious green monster, the Creature, will be on the prowl at the Days Inn in Butler. Ben Chapman, who played the "Creature from the Black Lagoon," appears at Monster Bash 2003 along with Julie Adams, his crush in the 1954 classic. Sara Karloff, daughter of the great Boris, also makes an encore appearance, with Chilly Billy Cardille, Kevin McCarthy ("Invasion of the Body Snatchers"), special-effects master Tom Savini, actress Kyra Schon (the little girl with the trowel from "Night of the Living Dead") and the cast of the TV series "Ghoul a Go-Go." Movie props and memorabilia will also be shown, along with screenings including the 1919 horror classic "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" featuring a new score performed live by composer Kevin Slick. Hours are 3 p.m. to 1 a.m. today; 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $15; $30 for three-day VIP passes; under 12 free. Call 724-532-5226.

BOBCAT FEVER

By now we know that Bobcat Goldthwait isn't as nuts as he appeared to be in his early stand-up routines. If he were, he'd probably be dead by now. As it is, Goldthwait is a slimmed-down, 41-year-old comic actor who recently guest-starred in "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and will be seen in the movie "The Grind," coming out in August. As for his stand-up work, he recently told the Orlando Sentinel, "My act is undisciplined. It's autobiographical. The reason comics do that is if you talk about your own personal experiences, the odds of going on after somebody who does the same topics go way down. Because, there's only four topics in stand-up today, and 'The Crocodile Hunter' is one of them." He brings such observations to the Improv at 8 and 10 tonight; 7 and 9 p.m. Saturday; and 7 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $20; $17 Sunday. Call 412-462-5233.

FRIENDS MIX

To highlight the trail work on the South Side, Friends of the Riverfront go with the urban setting of the Terminal Properties (off Carson, near Station Square), for the second annual Trail Mix(er) benefit from 6 to 9 tonight. The Mix(er) will showcase and benefit the environmental and recreational projects and feature food, drink, the Boilermaker Jazz Band, Mayflies by Persephone Project artist Stephanie Flom and Dina Klavon's architectural renderings of what the South Side riverfront could be. Tickets are $50; $35 for members or if you arrive by hike, bike, boat or bus. Call 412-488.0212.

OH, BABY

The only thing cuter than little babies are little baby animals (don't know why, just the way it is). The guides and zoo keepers at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium will be on hand Saturday for the 5th annual Baby Day to talk about the baby elephants, orangutans, gorillas and colobus monkeys. There will also be face painting, a scavenger hunt, a Salute to Disney and more from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call 412-665-3640.

WHAT ELSE?

Ellsworth Avenue is the scene Saturday for Pittsburgh PrideFest 2003, presented by the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Pittsburgh and starting with the 30th annual Pride Parade at 11 a.m. on Westminster Place, Shadyside. It continues from noon to 8 p.m. with live entertainment and activities on Ellsworth, and a dance from 8 to 11 p.m. at First Unitarian Church, Morewood Avenue. Check out www.glccpgh.org.

Allegheny County, which doesn't have to compete with the Arts Festival after this weekend, goes with Southern rock band Sister Hazel at South Park at 8 tonight and R&B diva Chaka Khan ("I Feel For You") at Hartwood at 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Both free.

It may be summer, but the club shows look good this weekend. Ed Harcourt brings his melancholy chamber-pop to Club Cafe tonight with Sondre Lerche, a Norwegian in the vein of mellow Beck; Saturday at Club Cafe, it's the female singer-songwriter night with Sarah Harmer and Lisa Germano (see page 35); for something more far out, Robert Rich explores the realm of space and electronic music at the Rex tonight with Jeff Pearce.

Guaracha gets its Latin groove on for families at the Center for Creative Play, Regent Square, on Sunday at 3 and 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $5; $3 kids. Call 412-371-1668.

The Andy Warhol Museum delves into the artist's heritage with 6th Annual Carpatho-Rusyn Event, focusing this year on contemporary and historical aspects of the Rusyn women in Warhol's life. The event will feature film, music, dance, talks, art projects and a variety of traditional Carpatho-Rusyn foods. It runs from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday. Admission is $8; $7 seniors; $4 students.