2007 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL

FROM PETE SEEGER TO LUDACRIS Savage Steve Holland’s “Shredder man Rules” (2006) follows the tri als of the dorky but lovable Nolan Byrd as he attempts to escape the clutches of schoolyard bully Bubba Bixby through the aid of a cyber hero. The movie is presented by Nickelodeon (Today, 3:30 p.m. AMC 34th Street, 312 W. 34th St. between Eighth and Ninth avenues 212-244-8850, $14). Jim Brown’s “Pete Seeger: The Power of Song” (2007) is a documentary about the folk-rock singer who some — in cluding Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen — consider to be one of the most significant folk artists of our time (Today, 4:30 p.m., AMC Village VII, 66 Third Ave. at 11th Street 212-505-6397, $14). Chris “Ludacris” Bridges sits down with a correspondent from Vanity Fair Lisa Robinson, to talk about music movies, and entertainment. Mr Bridges acted in the films “Hustle and Flow” and “Crash.” The talk is part of the “Tribeca Talks” series (Tonight, 7:30 p.m., Borough of Manhattan Community College Performing Arts Center, 199 Cham bers St., between Greenwich and West streets, 212-220-1460, $25) Vivienne Roumani-Denn’s “The Last Jews of Libya” (2007), pre miering at the festival tonight, is a visual memoir of the filmmaker’s family, who belonged to the last Sephardic Jewish community in the African nation (Tonight, 7:45 p.m., AMC 34th Street, 312 W. 34th St., between Eighth and Ninth av enues, 212-244-8850, $18).

ART

A STORYOF CHINA The Gallery at Hermès presents the opening of “Story,” a video and sound installation by artist Gao Shiqiang. ‘Story” is arranged in four Chinese ceramic jars and includes four singlechannel works that depict the monotony and despair experienced by contemporary Chinese youth trapped by the routines of daily life. Mr. Gao, who is among the generation of young Chinese artists to embrace the use of new media in his art, has shown his work since 1996 throughout China and Asia. Tomorrow through Friday, May 25, tomorrow, 10 a.m.–7 p.m., Monday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m., , the Gallery at Hermès, fourth floor, 691 Madison Ave. at 62nd Street, 212-751-3181, free.

REVELATIONS A.I.R. Gallery hosts an opening reception for Judith Cooper’s “New Orleans Sunday,” an exhibit of photographs that combines Ms. Cooper’s previous series, “Church Ladies” and “Second Liners.” The works depict two facets of the local black community’s observance of Sunday traditions, both secular and religious. The artist seeks to highlight the important historical and presentday role female members of the church and social clubs play and have played in the New Orleans community. Tomorrow, 6 p.m., exhibit through Saturday, May 26, Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m., A.I.R. Gallery, 511 W. 25th St, between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-255-6651, free.

FESTIVALS

SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION “Grab It!” is a three-day festival of dance, music, and video organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art at Altria and conceptual artist Jacob Ter Veldhuis. The festival begins with the premiere of “Pitch Black,” a performance art piece set to six of Mr. Veldhuis’s scores for saxophone and boombox. The piece features the Miro Dance Theatre and the Prism Saxophone Quartet. Tonight, 8 p.m., Whitney Museum of American Art at Altria, 120 Park Ave. at 42nd Street, 800-944-8639, free. For complete information, go to whitney.org/live.

FILM

A DIRECTOR’S HABITAT The Department of Film at the Museum of Modern Art hosts the opening of “Filmmakers at MacDowell: The Studio System Reconsidered,” a touring film series presented in conjunction with the centennial celebration of the MacDowell Colony, the oldest artists’ residency program in America. The series features 26 film and video works selected from submissions of work created by MacDowell fellows, who were asked to reflect in some form the Macdowell studio experience. The program kicks off tomorrow with a screening of “Seasons of MacDowell,” a quartet of short films by David Pederson, Elisabeth Subrin, Michael Almereyda, and George Griffin. A questionand-answer session with the filmmakers follows. The curator for film at MoMA, Jytte Jensen, is organizer of the event. Tonight, 7 p.m., through Wednesday, May 16, dates and times vary, MoMA, Theater 1 T1, 11 W. 53rd St., between Fifth and Sixth avenues, 212-408-6347, $10 general, $8 members, $5 students and seniors. For complete information, go to moma.org

A NEW YORK BOY “The Magic of Paul Mazursky,” a series presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, is the first major retrospective of the writer, director, actor, and producer, a New York native. The series begins with a screening of “Next Stop, Greenwich Village” (1976), a semi-autobiographical account of Mr. Mazursky’s move to Greenwich Village. Actors include Shelley Winters, Lenny Baker, and Christopher Walken. The screening is preceded by a short clip of Mr. Mazursky trying his hand at acting, and a question-and-answer with the director. Friday, 6:15 p.m., FSLC, Walter Reade Theater, 165 W. 65th St. at Broadway, 212-875-5600, $11 general, $7 children, students, and members.

FOOD & DRINK

HERALD SQUARE REFUGE Marcus Samuelsson and Ming Tsai demonstrate some of their little-known culinary secrets and share tasty sample menu items. Mr. Samuelsson is an award-winning chef and co-owner of the Aquavit and Riingo restaurants. Mr. Tsai is chef and owner of Blue Ginger and the recipient of numerous accolades, including the James Beard award for the 2002 Best Chef Northeast. Macy’s Culinary Council gathers 15 of the world’s top chefs with the mission of turning the kitchens of their customers into culinary tours de force. Thursday, 6 p.m., Macy’s Herald Square, Cellar Kitchen, 151 W. 34th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, free.

MUSIC

THE LIBERATION As part of the lunchtime Midtown Concert series, the New York Continuo Collective performs scenes from Francesca Caccini’s 1625 opera “La Liberazione di Ruggiero” (“The Liberation of Ruggiero”), which is the first opera ever composed by a woman and the first Italian opera to be performed outside Italy. Today, 1:15 p.m., Church of St. Francis of Assisi, 135 W. 31st St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 212-967-9157, free.

OPERATIC ROLES Columbia University’s Italian Academy for Advanced Studies in America concludes its spring 2007 season with a concert by pianist Kathleen Supové and violinist Jennifer Choi. The program features works by Roger Zahab, Alvin Curran, Randall Woolf, Francesco D’Errico, and the premiere performance of “Thar He,” a work for piano and violin by Leroy Jenkins. Tonight, 8 p.m., Columbia University, Italian Academy, 1161 Amsterdam Ave. at 118th Street, 212-854-1623, free.

SEVEN STEPS TO HEAVEN A renowned jazz vocalist, Cassandra Wilson, makes a rare club appearance during an engagement at the Blue Note. The Mississippi native with the distinctive alto sings a program that reflects her deep musical and cultural education in the South, blues, and American jazz and classics. Selections include songs from her breakthrough album “New Moon Daughter,” which featured sublime covers of titles by the Beatles and Hoagy Carmichael. Songs from Ms. Wilson’s aural tribute to Miles Davis, “Traveling Miles,” which includes a haunting rendition of Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time” are also featured. Guitarist Marvin Sewell, pianist Cyrus Chestnut, and drummer Herlin Riley are among the accompanying musicians. Tonight through Friday, 8:30 and 10:30 p.m., Saturday, 9 and 11:30 p.m., Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd St., between Sixth Avenue and MacDougal Street, 212-475-8592, $55 at a table, $35 at the bar.

READINGS

AMERICAN MESSAGES Editors Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove introduce dramatic readings from their collection “Voices of a People’s History of the United States” (Seven Stories Press), which features essays by American personages, including Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, Malcolm X, and Frederick Douglass. Readers include Danny Glover, Ally Sheedy, Brian Jones, Deepa Fernades, and Harris Yulin. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., the Cooper Union, the Great Hall, 7 E. 7th St. at Third Avenue, 212-353-4195, free.

SOIRÉES

AN EXCELLENT CAUSE The Center Against Domestic Violence is a nonprofit organization that provides shelter and services to abused women and their children. The group hosts an art exhibit and silent auction that includes works by established and emerging artists and children’s art called “Drawing the Line Against Domestic Violence.” In addition to the exhibit and auction, VIPs are invited to a private reception with the artists. Featured artists include Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Donald Baechler, Danica Phelps, and Elliot Land. Photographer Patrick McMullan is the honorary chair of the event. Tomorrow, VIP reception, 6 p.m., auction, 7 p.m., Metropolitan Pavilion, the Gallery, 123 W. 18th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 718-254-9134, $100 general, $250 VIP admission.

TALKS

MOSES ON A SWING In conjunction with the exhibit “Robert Moses and the Modern City: Remaking the Metropolis,” the Museum of the City of New York presents “New Plans for Parks: A 21st-Century Vision,” a talk about Moses’s influence over the city’s public spaces, and how parks are undergoing a renewed period of transformation and expansion. Parks commissioner Adrian Benepe presents an illustrated talk about the legacy of Robert Moses and new efforts to reinvent the park system for the 21st century. He is followed by a panel discussion featuring the president of the Bronx and urban planner, Adolfo Carrión Jr., a landscape architect and the Parks Department director of field operations, James Corner, and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh, in a discussion moderated by the chief of design for the Department of Parks and Recreation, Charles McKinney. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., MCNY, 1220 Fifth Ave. at 103rd Street, 212-534-1672, $9 general, $5 students, seniors, and members.

HORSING AROUND The Frick Collection presents “George Stubbs and the Image of the Horse,” a lecture by a senior curator at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, Malcolm Warner. Although Stubbs rejected the label “horse painter,” he drew and painted horses differently from any artist before him, bringing to his work a classical sensibility, and a powerful charge of intellectual and imaginative associations. The lecture is presented in conjunction with the exhibit “George Stubbs (1724–1806): A Celebration,” which features the work “Mares and Foals in a River Landscape (c. 1763–8), above. Tonight, 6 p.m., the Frick Collection, 1 E. 70th St. at Fifth Avenue, 212-547-6844, free.

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