ART

POLITICAL STATEMENT Tom Meacham’s exhibit of paintings and sculpture, “the greater good,” features a sculpture of the same name, above middle, that is made of a slab of wood covered in knives of varying sizes, from stilettos to machetes, that were purchased from a late-night shopping network. Other selections include two untitled paintings from 2007, above left and right. This is Mr. Meacham’s second exhibit with the Oliver Kamm/5BE Gallery. Through Friday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m., Oliver Kamm Gallery, 621 W. 27th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-255-0979, free.

FROM THE HEAVENS TO EARTH Terry Rowlett, who is showing a collection of new paintings at Jenkins Johnson Gallery, juxtaposes images of religion and morality with scenes from modern daily life. He began painting while at school at the University of Georgia and the University of Arkansas. Through Friday, July 20, Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Jenkins Johnson Gallery, 521 W. 26th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-629-0707, free.

SOUTH ASIAN SENSATION “Where the Sand Meets the Sky,” the latest exhibit of paintings by Bengali artist Jayashree Chakravarty, opens today at Bodhi Fine Arts. She is known for interspersing representations of ducks, sparrows, and insects into her paintings, and takes inspiration from Byzantine mosaics and French Impressionism. Through Tuesday, July 31, Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m., Bodhi Fine Arts, 535 W. 24th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-352-2644, free.

SIDEWALKING “The Secret Lives of Streets” is an exhibit organized by 10 Brooklyn high school students who researched how Brooklyn’s streets were originally named. The students used the resources of the Brooklyn Historical Society to complete their research, in a pilot after-school program called Exhibition Laboratory. The teenagers curated the entire exhibit, showing how culture, historic Brooklyn events, and notable Brooklyn residents factored into the naming of the streets. Through Sunday, September 2, Wednesday-Sunday, noon-5 p.m., Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepoint St. at Clinton Street, 718-222-4111, free.

EASTERN VISIONS The Museum of Biblical Art presents “TheChristian Story: Five Asian Artists Today,” an exhibit featuring the works of Nalini Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka), Sawai Chinnawong (Thailand), Nyoman Darsane (Bali), He Qi (China), and Wisnu Sasongko (Indonesia). The works depict scenes from the Hebrew and Christian bibles, combining Western interpretations of scripture with Eastern artistic influences. Through Sunday, September 16, Friday–Sunday and Tuesday–Wednesday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m., Thursday, 10 a.m.–8 p.m., MOBIA, 1865 Broadway at 61st Street, 212-408-1500, $7 general, $4 students and seniors, free for members and children.

STRUGGLING TO ESCAPE The exhibit “Daring To Resist: Jewish Defiance in the Holocaust” celebrates individual and collective acts of resistance, which sought to undermine the Nazi goal of annihilating the Jewish people. Photographs depict efforts either to physically escape various confines, or culturally escape the pain of oppression through art. Through July 4, 2008, Sunday–Tuesday and Thursday, 10 a.m.–5:45 p.m., Wednesday, 10 a.m.–8 p.m., Friday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, 36 Battery Place at Little West 12th Street, 646-437-4200, $10 general, $7 seniors, $5 students.

DANCE

TAPPING WITH HAPPY FEET An American dancer and choreographer, Savion Glover, performs a summer season at the Joyce. Mr. Glover is the force behind the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, “Bring in the Noise, Bring in the Funk” (1996), and the choreographer for the tap dancing penguin featured in the animated film “Happy Feet” (2006). For this show, Mr. Glover delivers an energetic program including his signature style of tap, “hitting,” and footwork that appears to double as musical accompaniment. Friday, 8 p.m., Saturday, 2 and 8 p.m., Joyce Theater. 175 Eighth Ave., between 18th and 19th streets, 212-242-0800, $44 general, $33 members.

FAMILY

MIDSUMMER IN SUNSHINE Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night’s Swing series shines in daylight for “Kid’s Day,” led by a competitive dancer and instructor for DanceSport, Franklin Ayala. Mr. Ayala teaches children the basics of salsa, merengue, and mambo. Ismael “Bongo Bruno” and his quartet provide salsa music along with the instruction. Saturday, 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m., Lincoln Center, Josie Robertson Plaza, 63rd Street and Columbus Avenue, 212-721-6500, $5, children under 5 are admitted free.

HOP TO IT The Central Park SummerStage concert series hosts “Global Family Day,” a day of festivities and food for the pre-school set designed to satisfy parents as well. Among the featured performers is the rhyming star of a popular Discovery Kids and TLC network program, Hip-Hop Harry. The 6-foot bear brings his wild beats, breakdancing moves, and educational lyrics to the park. A family-friendly pop-rock band with such influences as the Velvet Underground and T. Rex, the Sippy Cups, also performs. The chefs and owners of the Smoke Joint, Craig Samuel and Ben Grossman, cook up barbecue dishes. Sunday, 1:30–5 p.m., Central Park SummerStage, Rumsey Playfield, enter on 69th Street at Fifth Avenue on the East Side, or 72nd Street at Central Park West on the West Side, 212-360-2756, free.

FILM

ENGLAND ON THE STREETS Woodfall Film Productions was founded in Britain in 1956, and released inexpensive films that showed the true nature of British street life by utilizing new and young actors, location shooting, and a philosophy of realism in filmmaking. The Film Society of Lincoln Center honors the work of the production company with a two-week showcase, “Leading the Charge: Woodfall Film Productions and the Revolutionin’60sBritishCinema.”Actors Vanessa and Lynn Redgrave and Michael Sheen introduce select films throughout the series. The showcase opens with a screening of Tony Richardson’s “Tom Jones” (1963), featuring Albert Finney as the title character as he mischievously journeys around London, adventuring with rich women and the authorities. The film features Lynn Redgrave’s first big screen appearance; she introduces the film for the series. Friday, 6:30 p.m., FSLC, 165 W. 65th St. at Amsterdam Avenue, 212-875-5600, $11 general, $7 students, seniors, and members.

EXILE IN GUYVILLE The Film Society of Lincoln Center and Asian CineVision host a premiere screening of the director’s cut of Patrick Tam’s “After This Our Exile” (2006). Mr. Tam appears in person to discuss the film, which marks his return to filmmaking after 17years. Setin Malaysia, the plot depicts the bond between a son and his father, who is a womanizer and gambler. The boy eventually takes to a life of crime to support his father’s vices. Saturday, 8:15 p.m., Lincoln Center, Walter Reade Theater, 165 W. 65th St., between Broadway and Amsterdam avenues, 212-496-3809, $11 general, $7 students and FSLC members.

FOOD & DRINK

LET THEM EAT CAKE The home of a collection of city bakeries, eateries, and retailers, Chelsea Market, hosts a Parisian-themed celebration to commemorate Bastille Day, the July 14 anniversary marking the fall of the French monarchy. The market is transformed with sights, tastes, and sounds to evoke the City of Light, as cancan dancers, French musicians, and caricature artists entertain on the promenade. A selection of shops offer delicacies including roast duck, mussels meunière, and steak au poivre. The market also sponsors four private French wineand-Champagne tastings. Friday, noon–6 p.m., Saturday, 11 a.m.–3 p.m., Chelsea Market, 75 Ninth Ave., between 15th and 16th streets, For complete information, go to chelseamarket.org.

MUSIC

SHE’S ALWAYS A WOMAN Alexa Ray Joel sings selections from her independent release, “Sketches.” Ms. Joel has eschewed the spoils of nepotism — she is the daughter of “the Piano Man,” Billy Joel, and American supermodel Christie Brinkley — and major-label support. Instead, the 21-year-old with a fondness for jazz, pop, and blues has steadily developed a loyal following through her MySpace page, small venue tour dates, and most recently, by distribution through such outlets as Target. Accompanying acts include singer Lucy Woodward. Saturday, 8 p.m., Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey St., between Bowery and Chrystie streets, 212-533-2111, $15.

PAINTING

LINE AFTER LINE The group show “Horizon” at the Elizabeth Foundation of the Arts Gallery, curated by David Humphrey, features paintings from 70 artists that were all created with the theme of a horizon in mind. The paintings are situated around the gallery so as to create a continuous horizon. In the July 5 The New York Sun, Stephen Maine wrote: “The show is a blast, and a funny send-up of the inevitable catch-all summer group show that commercial galleries struggle to repackage under curatorial cover.” Selections from the exhibit include Angela Dufresne’s “Les Rallizes Denudes Portable Concert Tent Somewhere in Greene County, NY” (2007), above. Through Friday, July 27, Wednesday–Saturday, noon–6 p.m., EFA Gallery, 323 W. 39th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues, 212-563-5855, free.

PHOTOGRAPHY

TURN ON THE LIGHT “Illuminations: Photographs by Lynn Davis” is an exhibit that documents Ms. Davis’s travels throughout the world in search of the greatest universal sites, both man-made and natural. Ms. Davis documented individuals interacting with their local environments, and religious artifacts. Through Monday, Monday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m., Rubin Museum of Art, 150 W. 17th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 212-620-5000, $10 general, $7 students, seniors, and neighbors of the museum, free for children.

READINGS

ONLINE FICTION The L Magazine is an online event guide for city dwellers, providing feature articles, reviews, and event listings for the culturally aware. The magazine holds its second annual summer fiction issue reading, featuring writers Tom Hopkins, Ned Vizzini, and more. Friday, 7 p.m., KGB Bar, 85 E. 4th St. at Second Avenue, 212-505-3360, free.

RIVER TO RIVER FESTIVAL

TINKERBELL’S COLLEAGUES “Enchanted Fairies and Elves: Protectors of Woods and Streams,” also co-presented by the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy, features storyteller Laura Martin as she regales children with fairy stories found in worldwide cultures. Children can make fairy houses and wings to take home. Sunday, 11 a.m., Battery Park City, Teardrop Park, River Terrace, between Warren and Murray streets, 212-267-9700, free.

THEATER

ROCK ON As part of the New York Stage and Film Festival, the Powerhouse Summer Theater series at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., an hour north of the city, presents the rock opera “The Boy Who Heard Music,” written by a guitarist for the 1960s band the Who, Pete Townshend. The musical is based on the story of a teenage rock band made up of three members of different ethnic backgrounds, seen from the eyes of an aging rock star. The story is autobiographically drawn from Mr. Townshend’s own experiences in working with his Who bandmates. The play is directed by Ethan Silverman. Friday, 8 p.m., Saturday, 2 p.m., Vassar College, Martel Theater, Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film, 124 Raymond Ave., Poughkeepsie, 845-437-7235, $30–$35.

TOURS

ACROSS TOWN The Central Park Conservancy hosts “Cross Park Promenade,” a one-hour stroll during which participants discover the park’s hidden treasures. Among the highlights is a bench that tells time, a drinking fountain for the city’s equine population, and a group of miniature wind-powered boats. Saturday, noon, meet inside Central Park in front of the statue of Samuel F. B. Morse, Fifth Avenue at 72nd Street, 212-772-0210, free.

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.