Go Out! Fun events this week

Skip Hooper

Jack Worthing (Brian Everson, from left), Gwendolen (Meghan Lissi), Lady Bracknell (Jude Knight), Lane (Chris Sterling) and Algernon Moncrief (Stephen Garrett) populate "The Importance of Being Earnest" at Theatre Memphis.

FRIDAY

Cult Favorite

Memphis punk-rock quintet Sex Cult, featuring members of Magic Kids, celebrates the release of its new single "Plain Jane," on Nashville's Dead Records label with a show at The Buccaneer. Also performing are locals True Sons of Thunder and Moving Finger, and Nashville's Feral Beat.

10 p.m. The Buccaneer, 1368 Monroe. Cover: $5. For more information, call (901) 278-0909.

Oscar-Worthy

In Oscar Wilde's timeless comedy of manners, "The Importance of Being Earnest," two friends find out that each other is leading a secret life in order to escape his domestic obligations. When they both fall in love with women in each other's acquaintance, however, they must justify their invented personas. Jerry Chipman directs this production on Theatre Memphis' Lohrey Stage.

7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Feb. 12 at Theatre Memphis, 630 Perkins Ext. Tickets: $23 adults, $15 students. Call (901) 682-8323.

Associated Press

Movie director and pop culture podcaster Kevin Smith's interactive program "Kevin Smith: Live From Behind," showing Thursday at the Paradiso.

David Cho

Secret Summit

Jeff Stetson's short play "The Meeting" imagines a secret discussion between Malcolm X (played by Donrico Webber) and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (T.C. Sharpe) in a Harlem hotel room. With King advocating peace and Malcolm X reconciled to violence, the two argue their positions on how to achieve racial equality. Hattiloo Theatre stages this play in its Black Box Theatre.

7:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays through Feb. 5 at Hattiloo Theatre, 652 Marshall. Tickets: $10-$15. Call (901) 525-0009.

In Pla(i)n(e) view

The name of the new student-run gallery at the University of Memphis is Pla(i)n(e), and that's as, um, plain as the nose on your face. The first exhibition in the gallery, "South of Hell: Shot in Tennessee," features work by Cookeville, Tenn., artists Logan Myers and James Dale and promises themes of taboo eroticism, Southern violence and DIY culture. The opening reception runs from 6 to 8; the artists talk about their work and answer questions from 5 to 6.

Through Feb. 3, Art and Communications Building, 3715 Central, Room 100. Call (901) 678-2216.

Art and color

"Facts, Fictions and Figures," opening at the Hyde Gallery of Memphis College of Art's Nesin Graduate School, gathers work by 16 artists, mainly national but some local, that explores notions of blackness and black culture and the layers of myth and misconception that heavily encrust them. The exhibition was curated by Rehema Barber and Jennifer Sargent and runs through March 17.

Opening reception 6-9 p.m. 477 S. Main. Call (901) 272-5100.

SATURDAY

Devil's bargain

Igor Stravinsky's "L'historie du Soldat," or "The Soldier's Tale," uses music, acting and dance to tell the story of a violin-playing soldier who trades his instrument to the devil for a book that will show him how to obtain his desires. The Memphis Chamber Players team up with dancers from New Ballet Ensemble to perform this unusual work.

8 p.m., Christian Brothers University Theater, 650 East Parkway S. Tickets: $10, $5 for Rhodes College and CBU staff. Call (901) 843-3775.

Get on the 'Bus'

Based on the educational Scholastic book series, the touring production "Magic School Bus Live! The Climate Challenge" is a musical that takes children on an adventure from the Arctic to the equator to examine what affects the Earth's climate. The show is part of the Orpheum's Family Series.

11 a.m. and 6 p.m., 203 S. Main. Tickets: $15 and $20. Call (901) 525-3000.

Train Songs

Local singer-songwriter Kris Acklen marks the release of his debut release, a collection of smart, piano-driven pop called The Trainsets EP (think Ben Folds), at Otherlands Coffeehouse. Local Ruthie Shaffer opens.

8 p.m. Cover: $5. For more information, call (901) 278-4994.

Orchestral Fun

Cellist David Cho, a regular with the IRIS Orchestra, is the featured soloist with the Memphis Repertory Orchestra at First Congregational Church. Cho will tackle Dvorak's Cello Concerto in B minor on a program that includes the Finale from Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake," and Copland's "Appalachian Spring."

8 p.m. First Congregational, 1000 S. Cooper. Donations are accepted. Visit memphisreporchestra.com.

Keeping Pace

Led by Crime members Jeff Golightly and Rick Camp, British Invasion tribute band Jeffrey & the Pacemakers has become a staple in Memphis, and in August the group will be visiting its spiritual home, representing the Bluff City at the Mathew Street festival in Liverpool. In the meantime, the band plays Swanky's at Poplar and Colonial.

10 p.m. 4470 Poplar. Call (901) 730-0763.

THURSDAY

Silent Bob speaks

Writer-director-podcaster Kevin Smith, whose 2 million Twitter followers and sold-out speaking engagements generate more awe than his movies these days, appears live via satellite from Toronto in a three-hour event titled "Kevin Smith: Live From Behind." The program begins with Smith and actor Jason Mewes hosting an episode of their podcast, "Jay and Silent Bob Get Old," then continues with Smith's patented "tell it like it is" stand-up/lecture act, followed by a question-and-answer session open to fans from around the country, who will be able to interact with the filmmaker/racounteur via social media technology.

8:30 p.m., Paradiso, 534 S. Mendenhall. Tickets: $15. Visit malco.com.

Ethnic cinema

Purposeful films that explore racial and social issues will be screened the first Thursday of each month through September at the National Civil Rights Museum. The series begins with director Marlon Riggs' Emmy-winning documentary "Ethnic Notions," which examines the stereotypical depictions of servants, slaves, criminals and other black characters in songs, films, folklore, minstrel shows and so on, throughout the history of American culture.

6 p.m., 450 Mulberry. Admission: free. Call (901) 521-9699, or visit civilrightsmuseum.org.

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