ART

GIVE YOUR GIRL A BOUQUET “Still Life — Watercolor” is an exhibit of 30 new watercolors by Ed Baynard. The watercolors depict flowers that the artist purchased at the 28th Street Flower Market. Selections include “Still Life No. 24” (2006). Through Saturday, March 3, Tuesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m., Dillon Gallery, 555 W. 25th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-727-8585, free.

DANCE

THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS Choreographer Alex Escalante dances “Swallow Sand” as part of the Studio Series presented by the Dance Theater Workshop. The dance investigates the root impulses of social desensitization in a hyper-frenetic environment. The piece unfolds before an installation of hundreds of copper tin cans, conjuring an uneasy landscape. Featured performers Renée Archibald and Sarah White round out the trio with Mr. Escalante. Tomorrow and Friday, 7:30 p.m., Dance Theater Workshop, Jerome Robbins Studio, 219 W. 19th St., between Seventh and Eighth avenues, 212-924-0077, free.

FILM

A DARK THEATER The repertory film program at BAM Rose Cinemas, BAMcinématek, presents Valentine’s Day screenings of Preston Sturges’s “The Lady Eve” (1941), about a man who falls in love with a con artist on a cruise, goes through a bad breakup, and suffers torment at her hands when she disguises herself to get back at him. The film stars Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. A three-course dinner with complementary champagne follows each screening. Reservations are required. Tonight, 6:30 and 9:30 p.m., BAM Rose Cinemas, 30 Lafayette St., between St. Felix Street and Ashland Place, Brooklyn, 718-636-4139, $40.

1960s STYLE Filmmaker Peter Whitehead documented episodes from 1960s counterculture from his perch as a respected artist in Swinging London. He recorded the Royal Shakespeare Company’s protest against the Vietnam War, and the occupation and campus takeover by students at Columbia University. Anthology Film Archives presents a retrospective of Mr. Whitehead’s works, beginning with screenings of “Benefit of the Doubt” (1967) and “Wholly Communion” (1965), a documentary about the first meeting among American and English beat poets at the Royal Albert Hall, including Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and Alexander Trocchi. Tomorrow, 4:30 p.m., AFA, 32 Second Ave. at 2nd Street, 212-505-5181, $8 general, $6 students and seniors, $5 members.

BROOKLYN, MY HABITAT A screening of Stefanie Joshua’s “Bushwick Homecomings” is featured as part of the “Best of the Fest” program presented by the Brooklyn Academy of Music to coincide with the opening of the African Diaspora Film Festival. The documentary explores the rapid change and gentrification in a Brooklyn neighborhood once plagued by poverty and violence and now a lure for developers. (Ms. Joshua’s 38-minute film is also featured as part of the ADFF’s “Brooklyn Stories” segment.) Friday, 6:50 p.m., BAM festival through Wednesday, February 21, BAM, Rose Cinema, 30 Lafayette Ave., between Ashland Place and St. Felix Street, Fort Greene, 718-636-4100, $10. For complete information, go to bam.org.

MUSIC

LOVE OVERBOARD Carnegie Hall and the R &B station 98.7 KISS FM present Grammy-award winning singer Gladys Knight, who performs selections from her expansive soul catalog — both songs recorded with her backing vocalists, the Pips, and as a soloist. “If I Were Your Woman,” recently covered by singer Alicia Keys, and “I Heard It Through Grapevine” are among the crowd favorites. Ms. Knight’s most recent release is “Before Me,” an album of jazz standards. Saturday, 8 p.m., Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium, 54 W. 57th St. at Seventh Avenue, 212-247-7800, $35–$200.

READINGS

FAMILY TREES Henry Louis Gates, Jr. reads from and discusses his book “Finding Oprah’s Roots: Building an African-American Family Tree” (Crown). The chairman of the African American Studies department at Harvard University, Mr. Gates wrote the book as a guide for black Americans who want to study and rediscover their own roots, using Oprah Winfrey as his chief example. The discussion is moderated by a columnist for the New York Times, Bob Herbert. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West at 77th Street, 212-868-4444, $15 general, $10 students, educators, and seniors, $8 members.

THEATER

BOROUGH OF DREAMS The New York Book Club hosts “Crossing the BLVD: Strangers, Neighbors, Aliens in a New America,” a theatrical performance and conversation inspired by the book of the same name by authors Warren Lehrer and Judith Sloan. A selection of newly minted American citizens join the authors in a performance that explores the ongoing debate over immigration policy and portrays the struggle and humor of creating a life in the ethnically diverse borough of Queens. Tomorrow, 6:30 p.m., NYBC, Visitors Center & Museum Shop, 108 Orchard St., between Delancey and Broome streets, 212-982-8420, free. To RSVP, e-mail bookclub@tenement.org.

VALENTINE’S DAY

LOVE FILMS The Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Film Comment Selects series begins with a Valentine’s Day screening of Jean-Claude Brisseau’s “Exterminating Angels” (2006), about a filmmaker who auditions young actresses to explore the “taboos of female pleasure.” The series continues through the end of the month. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., FSLC, Walter Reade Theater, 165 W. 65th St. at Amsterdam Avenue, 212-875-5600, $10 general, $7 students, $6 members, $5 seniors.

SONGS ABOUT LOVE The Victor Goines Quintet performs a program of enduring love songs and jazz standards. Performers including bassist Peter Washington and vocalist Vanessa Rubin join Mr. Goines on saxophone and clarinet. A special Valentine’s Day prix fixe menu is also on offer tonight. Through Sunday, tonight and tomorrow, 7:30, 9:30, and 11 p.m., Friday–Saturday, 7:30, 9:30, and 11:30 p.m., Sunday, 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., JALC, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, 33 W. 60th St. at Broadway, 212-258-9800, $10 table minimum, $5 bar. For complete information, go to jalc.org.

ALTERNATIVE RELATIONSHIPS Arin Crumley and Susan Buice’s “Four Eyed Monsters” (2005) documents the beginning stages of their relationship, which began through an online dating service. The two artists decided to communicate only through artistic means during their courtship, using notes, e-mails, and video. The IFC Center hosts a special Valentine’s Day screening of the film, which made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival. Tonight, 7:30 p.m., IFC Center, 323 Sixth Ave. at Waverly Place, 212-924-7771, $11 general, $7.50 children and seniors.

MINTY FURY 826NYC pairs with Altoids Mints for an anti-Valentine’s Day reading to benefit the nonprofit organization. Featured readers include the author of “I Love You More Than You Know” (Grove), Jonathan Ames, a contributor to National Public Radio’s “This American Life,” Starlee Kine, comedian Leo Allen, and a contributor to GQ magazine, Andy Seisberg. Tonight, 8 p.m., Altoids Chocolate Shoppe, 350 Bleecker St. at 10th Street, 718-499-9884, free.

FABULOUS VOWS The duo behind the off-Broadway show “The Big Voice: God or Merman?” Jim Brochu and Steve Schalchlin, Rabbi Jill Hausman of the Actor’s Temple, and the New York Gay Men’s Chorus are a part of a same-sex commitment ceremony, where several couples take the plunge and exchange vows. The ceremony follows a performance of the show. Mr. Brochu, an ordained minister, and Ms. Hausman lead the inter-denominational ceremony. Tonight, 8 p.m., the Actor’s Temple Theater, 339 W. 47th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues, 212-239-6200, $35–$55.

To submit an event for consideration for the Calendar, please wire the particulars to calendar@nysun.com, placing the date of the event in the subject line.