ART

REFLECTION SELECTIONS Jeffrey Aaronson takes color photographs of reflections he spots on the streets of New York. He trains his digital camera on the windows at Bergdorf’s, shiny taxi hoods, and skyscrapers. The exhibit “Transparencity” includes photos of the entire Chrysler Building reflected in an office tower across the street, and Rockefeller Center shimmering on a Superman figurine. Though some of the juxtapositions seem too elegant to be real, none of the photographs are digitally manipulated . Through Saturday, February 26, Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Kashya Hildebrand Gallery, 531 W. 25th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-366-5757, free.

WOMEN’S WORK The group exhibit “Women of the World” features 176 female artists from 176 countries answering the question: “What image represents ‘woman’?” It includes applique from Azerbaijan, digital art from Argentina, and a baby bulletproof vest from England. After New York, the exhibit will move to Boston and Dallas. Through Friday, noon-6 p.m., World Financial Center Courtyard Gallery, 220 Vesey St. at West Side Highway, 212-945-0505, free.

THE LAKE’S PROGRESS David Maisel displays 19 large-scale aerial photographs of Utah’s Great Salt Lake and Great Basin in his exhibit “Terminal Mirage,” which is closing this weekend. Mr. Maisel also photographed Robert Smithson’s environmental sculpture “Spiral Jetty,” built in 1970, which is above the surface of the lake for the first time in decades. Through Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Von Lintel Gallery, 555 W. 25th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-242-0599, free.

BENEFITS

DOUGHNUTS AND DANCING The UJA-Federation of New York presents the “Music to Their Ears” benefit party to celebrate the Grammy Awards. Young professionals gather to nosh on Krispy Kreme doughnuts, enjoy unlimited Absolut vodka drinks, and dance the night away. Sunday, 8 p.m.-midnight, BLVD, 199 Bowery at Spring Street, 212-836-1129, $40 in advance, $60 at the door.

BOOKS

MYSTERY MOTHER The author of “Confessions of a Serial Egg Donor” (Adrenaline), Julia Derek, reads from her memoir about earning tens of thousands of dollars selling her eggs to unregulated fertility clinics – and nearly destroying her body in the process. Tonight, 7 p.m., Columbia University Bookstore, 2922 Broadway at 115th Street, 212-854- 4132, free.

SCHOOL DAZE Karen Quinn reads from “The Ivy Chronicles” (Viking), her novel about a Park Avenue mother who starts a business to help parents get their preschoolers into the best private schools. Tonight, 7:30 p.m., Barnes & Noble Upper West Side, 2289 Broadway at 82nd Street, 212-362-8835, free.

DANCE

MOVING ON UP Choreographer Twyla Tharp discusses her book “The Creative Habit” (Simon & Schuster), which combines stories from her career and advice for readers to develop their creative instincts. Tomorrow, 9 p.m., Symphony Space, Leonard Nimoy Thalia, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, 212-864-5400, $18 general, $16 seniors and students, $15 members.

AMERICAN SPIRIT Thunderbird American Indian Dancers hold their 30th annual dance concert and storytelling “pow wow.” Highlights include Raymond Two Feathers’s hoop dance, an Inuit “caribou dance,” and a shawl dance from the Oklahoma tribes. In the final section of the program, the audience can join in the Round Dance, a friendship dance. The troupe’s director, Louis Mofsie, narrates all the performances. Proceeds will go to college funds for needy American-Indian students. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m., Sunday, 5 p.m., Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave. at 10th Street, 212-254-1109, $10.

WORLD MOVES A ballet gala gathers dancers from the American Ballet Theater, the Bolshoi Ballet, the Paris Opera Ballet, the Royal Ballet, and many other companies. “Stars of the 21st Century” also includes a modern dance piece, Martha Graham’s 1936 “Steps in the Street,” performed by the Martha Graham Ensemble. Monday, 7:30 p.m., Lincoln Center, New York State Theater, Broadway and 63rd Street, 212-307-4100, $20-$120.

FAMILY

PENGUIN PALS Families can get up close and personal with the penguins at the Central Park Zoo this weekend. Children can sing silly penguin songs, play goofy games, and make crafts. Friday, 10:30-11:30 a.m. or 1-2 p.m., Central Park Zoo, 64th Street and Fifth Avenue, 212-439-6583, $30, registration required.

FILM

SWEDISH LOVE STORY Scandinavian playwright Lars Noren wrote the script for “Detaljer” (“Details”), a 2004 Swedish film about a literary love triangle between a novelist, a writer, and a publisher. The movie is screened as part of “This is Not A Doll’s House,” a weekly series of recent Scandinavian films. Tomorrow, 6:30 p.m., Scandinavia House, 58 Park Ave., between 37th and 38th streets, 212-879-9779, $8 general, $6 members, in Swedish with English subtitles.

HISTORY AND HOMER The Museum of Modern Art’s mammoth film series “112 Years of Cinema,” which began in November and runs through the end of this year, will screen one film from each year of moving-image history – starting with an 1893 Thomas Edison creation and proceeding nonchronologically. This weekend, visitors can enjoy “Le Mepris” (“Contempt”), a 1963 film by Jean-Luc Godard. Brigitte Bardot and Jack Palance appear in the fictional story of an ill-fated attempt to make a screen version of “The Odyssey.” Saturday, 2 p.m., Museum of Modern Art, 11 W. 53rd St. at Fifth Avenue, 212-708-9480, $10 general, $8 seniors, $6 students, free for children under 16, in French with English subtitles. Note: Tickets do not include admission to the museum but the cost may be applied to a museum ticket within 30 days. Paying the full museum admission allows admission to same-day screenings.

MUSIC

NATURAL SELECTION NYC Atheists present Richard Milner in the one-man musical “Charles Darwin: Live & In Concert.” Mr. Milner is an anthropologist at the American Museum of Natural History – but he sings, too! Thursday, through Sunday, 8 p.m., Where Eagles Dare Theater, 347 W. 36th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues, please contact rmilner@nyc.rr.com for reservations, $20.

LITTLE BROWN JUGS Jugfest celebrates country music with a Brooklyn twist. Performers at the down-home hootenanny include Bill Carney’s Jug Addicts, River Alexander’s Mad Jazz Hatters, the Brooklyn Jugs, and the Flanks. Burlesque beauty Peaches ‘n’ Cream lends her talents to the festival. Thursday, 8 p.m. doors open, Southpaw, 125 5th Ave. at St. John’s Place, Park Slope, Brooklyn, 718-230-0236, $5.

POETRY PETITION Every year, thousands of people respond to advertisements in the back of magazines that beckon them to send in song lyrics with promises of making a fortune in royalties – after paying a fee. A musical event Thursday celebrates the “song-poem,” those heartfelt and odd poems that are turned into recordings by jaded producers and musicians. Filmmaker Jamie Meltzer screens his one-hour documentary “Off the Charts: The Song-Poem Story,” which first aired on PBS. Then, David Fox and the New York Song Sharks perform a set of song-poem favorites from the film and the 100-year history of the little-noticed form. Mr. Fox has been putting music to mailed-in lyrics for more than 20 years. Audience members can bring their own poems for a chance at stardom. Thursday, 10 p.m., Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery at 1st Street, 212-614-0505, $8.

READING

SERIOUS WOMEN Novelists Maxine Swan (“Serious Girls,” Picador) and Samantha Hunt (“The Seas,” MacAdam/Cage) read from their work and participate in a short discussion with journalist Katherine Lanpher at an installment of the Cupcake Reading Series. Open to “New York’s best women writers,” the series was founded by Elizabeth Merrick and Lauren Cerand, who have made it their mission to point out imbalances in the number of male and female writers at magazines from the New Yorker to n+1. Tomorrow, 7:30 p.m., Lolita, 266 Broome St. at Allen Street, free.

TALKS

THE LONG VIEW The author of “Banking on Baghdad” (John Wiley & Sons), Edwin Black, gives a lecture about America’s prospects in Iraq, based on a 7,000-year historical perspective. Tonight, 6-8 p.m., Metropolitan College of New York student lounge, 75 Varick St. at Canal Street, 12th floor, 212-343-1234 ext. 7025, free.

CAN’T BUY HAPPINESS British unemployment analyst Richard Layard discusses the correlation between happiness and money with economist Paul Krugman. Mr. Layard explores a curious paradox: Though almost everyone wants more money, societies do not become happier as they become richer. Mr. Layard asks, “If we really want to become happier, what would we do differently?” He examines the question using new research into the conditions that produce happiness. Mr. Layard is a member of the House of Lords and runs an economic research center at the London School of Economics. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., Cooper Union Great Hall, 7 E. 7th St. at Third Avenue, 212-353-4195, free.

LEFT-WING CULTURE Memoirist Vivian Gornick participates in a discussion about radicalism and the arts with the cultural editor of the Forward, Alana Newhouse. Thursday, 6:30 p.m., Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. at 103rd Street, 212-534-1672, $10 general, $6 seniors, students, and members, reservations required.

THEATER

TWO BY PINTER The T. Schreiber Studio performs the Harold Pinter plays “The Homecoming” and “The Birthday Party” in rotating repertory. One performance of each play will include food, wine, and a talk with the cast, crew, and director (“Homecoming”: Saturday, 8 p.m. “Birthday”: Saturday, March 5, 8 p.m., $50). Through Sunday, March 13, Wednesday-Friday, 8 p.m., Saturday, 3 and 8 p.m., Sunday performances vary, T. Schreiber Studio, 151 W. 26th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 212-352-3101, $15 general, $10 seniors and students, $20 for two Saturday productions.

IMMIGRATION IMPROV The Big Apple Playback Company performs a new version of the theater piece “Inside the Golden Door: Personal Stories of Immigration” at every show. During each performance, one audience member will be selected to tell their life story or immigration experiences, which will then be acted out on the spot. Through Sunday, February 20, Fridays, 8 p.m., Sundays, 2 p.m., Lower East Side Tenement Museum, 90 Orchard St. at Broome Street, 800-965-4827, $15 general, $12 seniors, students, and members, $22 tickets include 6:30 p.m. guided tour of museum.

THEY’RE HERE AGAIN Samuel Beckett’s “Happy Days” is in previews at the Classic Stage Company. Jeff Cohen directs the Worth Street Theater Company production. Opens: Tuesday, February 15, Classic Stage Company, 136 E. 13th St., between Third and Fourth avenues, 212-279-4200, $45 and $50.

TOURS

GOLDEN GATES Bike the Big Apple presents a family friendly bicycle tour of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Central Park art installment “The Gates,” which it terms the “golden river.” Saturday through Saturday, February 26, daily, 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., meet at 69th Street and Second Avenue, 877-865-0078, $59 includes bicycle and helmet.

BURR’S OTHER DUEL Vice President Burr became the second husband of Eliza Jumel in 1833, when he was 77 and she was 58. Less than a year later, the slayer of Alexander Hamilton and “the richest woman in New York” had separated. Burr was served divorce papers in 1836, on his deathbed. Visitors to Jumel’s family home, the Morris-Jumel Mansion, can learn about their ill-fated union during a tour of the historic building this weekend – just in time for Valentine’s Day. Saturday, 11 a.m.-noon, Morris-Jumel Mansion, 65 Jumel Terrace, between 160th and 162nd streets, 212-923-8008, $5 general, $3 seniors, students, and members.

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