Community at a glance

Today-April 16 UNT graduate art students are exhibiting their art in the Communication Arts Building College Hall. There will be a reception for the artists today, 6-9 p.m.

Today-April 18 Bessie Smith: Empress of the Blues concludes its popular run at Jubilee Theatre. A legendary singer who dominated her art in her era, Bessie Smith brought the blues into mainstream culture, resuscitated the recording industry and rode the crest as the highest-paid vocalist and music artist among African Americans of her day. Smith lived life to the fullest. The musical biography offers a look into her life through a fictional last studio session. Performances are 8:15 p.m. Friday and Saturday with 3:15 p.m. matinees Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $16-$25 with discounts for seniors, students, children and preview audience. For reservations, call the theater at 817-338-4411.

Today- April 18 Dinner with Friends is running at Theatre Arlington. Beth, Tom, Karen and Gabe are two married couples and long-time friends. The couples come together and learn of the unraveling of Beth and Tom’s marriage. This unexpected revelation causes Karen and Gabe to examine their marriage, too. Told in real time and through flashbacks, this drama reveals the truths that have been hiding for years in the lives of these four people. The play is the winner of the 2000 Pulitzer Prize. For tickets, call 817- 261-9628.

Today-April 18 The Kimbell Art Museum is exhibiting The Drawings of Francois Boucher (1703-1770) and Boucher’s Mythological Paintings. Hours are Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Friday noon-8 p.m. and Sunday noon-5 p.m.

Today- April 18 The Texas Ballet Theater, formerly the Fort Worth Dallas Ballet, presents Peer Gynt in Dallas’ Music Hall at Fair Park. The story is from Henrik Ibsen’s tale of a hot- blooded young peasant boy who breaks out of the stifling confines of his provincial village and sets out on a string of adventures. Peer Gynt’s action, atmosphere and characters are lifted from Norwegian folklore to function as shadows and images of a satirical view of the human condition—either be yourself or become a troll. For single tickets, call toll free 1-877-212-4280.

Today-May 2 The Amon Carter Museum currently is presenting Sights Once Seen: Daguerreotyping Fremont’s Last Expedition Through the Rockies. This exhibition brings together American history and the history of photography. It features more than 100 daguerreotypes by photographer Robert Shlaer, who from 1994-98 retraced the route of explorer John C. Fremont. Fremont led an expedition from Missouri to California in an attempt to locate a route for the proposed transcontinental railway.

Today-May 9 The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History presents an interactive exhibit: Play it by Ear. This exhibit invites visitors to touch, hear and play with sound art. Children and adults alike will enjoy the interactive exhibit. Admission to the exhibit is included with regular admission: $7 for adults, $5 for children (3-12) and seniors (60+). Exhibit hours are Monday-Thursday 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Friday-Saturday 9 a.m.-8 p.m. and Sunday 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. For more information, call the museum, located in the cultural district of Fort Worth, at 817-255-9300.

Today-May 9 Picasso: The Cubist Portraits of Fernande Olivier is on exhibit at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas. Although most famous as a painter, Picasso also was considered one of the 20th century’s most ground-breaking sculptors, greatly influencing the evolution of sculptural thought. Approximately 25 works by the artist in the mediums of painting, drawing and sculpture are currently on display Tuesday-Wednesday and Friday-Sunday 11 a.m.-6 p.m. and Thursday 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults, $7 for seniors, $5 for students and free for members and children under 12.

Today-May 15 Pocket Sandwich Theatre will continue its regular wacky fare of programming with Notorious Psycho Birds in the North by Northwest Rear Window, a comedy spoof. The comedy pokes fun at Alfred Hitchcock’s most famous potboiler mystery films. Performances are Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. in the Dallas theater. Prices are $8-$10. Call 214-821-1860 for information and reservations.

Today-May 16 The Literary Café in the Dallas Museum of Art is sponsoring three evenings with writers and poets from area universities. Echo Theatre will stage a reading of The Daughters of the Late Colonel by Katherine Mansfield as the final café performance Friday, May 16. Literary Café is a part of a new initiative “Late Night at the Dallas Museum of Art.” The museum will stay open until midnight, offering a variety of experiences for visitors of all ages. Late night activities are free with paid admission to the museum. For more information, call the cafe at 214-922-1220.

Today-May 31 The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History presents Whodunit? This interactive exhibit explores scientific methods and technologies used to solve crimes, including DNA profiling, fingerprinting, firearm identification, forensic anthropology, pathology, entomology, odontology, evidence collection and trace evidence. Admission to the exhibit is included with regular admission. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for children (3-12) and seniors (60+). Exhibit hours are Monday-Thursday 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Friday-Saturday 9 a.m.-8 p.m. and Sunday 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. For additional information or tickets, call 817-255-9300.

April 16-18 The Vocal Majority Chorus will perform A Candle Glows at its spring concert in The Charles W. Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts in Richardson. Performances are at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday with a 2 p.m. performance Sunday. The concert will offer songs of hope and encouragement that are featured on the group’s new recording.

April 22-25 The Dallas Symphony Orchestra welcomes award-winning pianist Stephen Hough in a weekend Rachmaninoff’s Festival. Hough and the DSO perform Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2. The program also includes Stravinsky’s The Right of Spring and Arensky’s Variations on a Theme of Tchaikovsky. Tickets range from $8-$100, and senior citizens receive a 20 percent discount on single ticket purchases. For tickets, call 214-692-0203 or visit www.DallasSym-phony.com.

May 7-9 WildFlower! Arts & Music Festival will be in Galatyn Park in Richardson on US 75. The festival is a three-day event that features local, regional and national acts performing the best in rock, country, jazz, blues, swing, pop and folk music. Featured artists include Stephanie Urbina Jones, The Classical Mystery Tour, classic rock group Blue Oyster Cult and Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers. Also performing is the Gin Blossoms. The festival will also feature a Nortel Network Kidz Korner, the City of Richardson’s Petting Zoo, The Acoustic Café and “Faceination” WildFlower!’s signature face-painting troupe from Belgium. Also the first annual Richardson Regional Medical Center Foundation “Wild Bike Ride” to benefit the Richardson Regional Cancer Center/ Lance Armstrong Shaped Beam Surgery Program will be on the morning of May 8. For complete information and registration information on the run, visit www.wildflowerfestival.com or call 972-744-4580. Three-day passes are available for $15, and single-day tickets are $10 and $3 for kids ages 3-11.

May 28 Dallas Symphony Orchestra will present its 12th annual celebration of Hispanic contributions to classical music. The event will be at 8 p.m. at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. This year’s concert has two special guests. Guest conductor Germán Gutiérrez is returning for his seventh year, and cellist Jesus Castro-Balbi will also perform. Also included is an art exhibit featuring the work of local Hispanic artists. To reserve tickets, call the Patron Services Center at 214-692-0203.