ART

A GRAVE MATTER Monya Rowe Gallery presents the opening of “130,000 Years of Last Tendencies,” a solo exhibit of works by artist Abigail Lazkoz. Ms. Lazkoz shows a series of large-scale works on paper that act as a site-specific installation. Upon entering the installation, visitors to the gallery are thrust into a cemetery where not only are the headstones visible but so are the dead. Her drawings depict an array of characters in compromising arrangements and are suffused with the artist’s dark humor and existentialist references. Scientists have concluded that the first burial rituals by human were conducted about 130,000 years ago. Tonight, 6 p.m., opening reception, exhibit through Saturday, May 12, Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m., Monya Rowe Gallery, 526 W. 26th St., no. 605, between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-255-5065, free.

DANCE

SELF-ANALYSIS Symphony Space begins “Gender Benders,” a three-week series of performances that explores sexual confusion through contemporary dance. The series begins with a performance by the Keigwin Kabaret, whose work combines contemporary dance and burlesque performed as sitespecific work. Tonight through Saturday, 8:30 p.m., Symphony Space, Leonard Nimoy Thalia, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, 212-864-5400, $17-$25.

MUSIC

A ROSE IN SPANISH HARLEM Makor hosts a performance by Kokolo, a band whose name is derived from the Spanish Harlem slang for devotees of afro music. The band performs songs from its album “More Consideration.” Formed in 2001, the group blends social commentary, rhythmbased music, afro-beat, funk, and salsa. The members of Kokolo are firm believers in the notion that music can be an effective tool for social change — whether the cause is the crisis in Darfur or environmental protection — and still entertain. Tonight, 9:30 p.m., 92nd Street Y, Makor, Steinhardt Building, 35 W. 67th St., between Columbus Avenue and Central Park West, 212-601-1000, $10.

TALKS MANHATTAN RIOT Historian Barnet Schecter, author of “The Battle For New York: The City At the Heart of American Revolution” (Penguin), speaks about “The Devil’s Own Work: The Civil War Draft Riots and the Struggle to Reconstruct America.” Mr. Schecter tells the story of the Civil War through the perspective of New Yorkers who suffered at the hands of pro-slavery mobs that terrorized the city in July 1863. Tonight, 7 p.m., Tony Dapolito Recreation Center, 1 Clarkson St. at Seventh Avenue South, 212-242-5228, free.

POETRY

HOLY WEEK As part of a Maundy Thursday celebration that precedes Easter (Maundy Thursday commemorates Jesus Christ’s Last Supper with his Apostles), the Cathedral of St. John the Divine presents a reading of Dante’s “Inferno.” Readers include Annie Finch, Phillis Levin, David Yezzi, and translators Robert and Jean Hollander. Dante set the events in the “Inferno” on the Thursday before Easter. Tonight, 9 p.m.–midnight, St. John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Ave. at 112th Street, 212-316-7540, free.

SCULPTURE

WHITE ON WHITE Louise Hindsgavl’s “Installations” features sculptures that she created as part of a dual installation project she worked on with goldsmith Mette Saabye, which was shown last year at the Danish Museum of Art. Her sculptures depict humanlike animals in both familiar and unusual circumstances. Selections include “Contemplation” (2006), above. Through Saturday, April 14, Tuesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m., Nancy Margolis Gallery, 523 W. 25th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-242-3013, free.

WRITING

SILVER SCREEN DREAMS The editor of “Writing Movies: The Practical Guide to Creating Stellar Screenplays” (Bloomsbury), Alexander Steele, leads a workshop for aspiring writers. The workshop consists of short lectures and writing exercises, and advice on pitching screenplays. Tonight, 7 p.m., Strand Bookstore, 828 Broadway at 12th Street, 212-974-8377, free.

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