Calendar
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DANCE
FANCY FREE American Ballet Theatre dances a program that includes Antony Tudor’s pas de deux “The Leaves are Fading” and the Jerome Robbins–Leonard Bernstein classic “Fancy Free,” on the second night of its fall repertory season. Tudor’s “Leave Are Fading,” unlike works he choreographed earlier in his career, is essentially abstract — a story that leaves plenty of room for the audience to fill in the blanks. Other featured works this season include a world premiere by choreographer Jorma Elo; George Balanchine’s virtuosic “Ballo della Regina,” and a dance based on the true story of the notorious Lizzie Borden, Agnes de Mille’s “Fall River Legend.” A collaborative effort among the company, artist Chuck Close, and composer Philip Glass, “C. to C. (Close to Chuck),” has its debut on Saturday. Tonight, 7:30 p.m., through Sunday, November 4, dates and times vary, New York City Center, 131 W. 55th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 212-581-1212, $30–$135.
FAMILY
PETER AND THE WOLF In honor of the work of the Harmony Program, an organization that helps bring music to New York City children, an actress and current co-host of ABC’s “The View,” Whoopi Goldberg, narrates Prokofiev’s classic “Peter and the Wolf” during the Park Avenue Chamber Society’s gala event. Prokofiev originally composed the piece as a way to introduce children to an orchestra, with each instrument or group of instruments representing a character. Tonight, 8 p.m., New York University, Skirball Center for the Arts, 566 Laguardia Pl. at Washington Square South, 212-279-4200, $50.
FILM
THANK YOU FOR SMOKING BAMcinématek’s annual series of Gallic cinema, “New French Film,” offers up five new features. The series was created in response to the difficulty that international filmmakers face in distributing their work in America. The series opens with a screening of Emmanuelle Cuau’s “Very Well, Thank You” (“Très bien, merci”) (2007) about an accountant who lives by the rules until one day, he attempts to light a cigarette in a no-smoking area of the Paris Metro, unleashing a chain of events that leads to his arrest. Ms. Cuau participates in a question-and-answer session after the screening. Tonight, 6:50 p.m., BAMcinématek, BAM Rose Cinemas, 30 Lafayette Ave., between Ashland Place and St. Felix Street, 718-636-4100, $11 general, $7.50 students, $7 members.
MUSIC
SHINS DON’T SPLIT A Portland, Ore.-based indie band, the Shins, perform selections from “Wincing the Night Away,” which was released earlier this year to critical acclaim. The group is the creation of singer and guitarist James Mercer, whose cerebral songwriting has drawn praise from fans of the kind of bookish, rollicking pop-rock also produced by such bands as the Arcade Fire. The latest album was recorded in Mr. Mercer’s basement with his bandmates, including drummer Jesse Sandoval and keyboardist Marty Crandall, all of whom share the same quirky musical sensibility. Tonight, 7 p.m., Terminal 5, 610 W. 56th St. at Eleventh Avenue, 212-260-4700, $39.50.
PAINTINGS
THE NAKED EYE Many of William Beckman’s portraits feature the artist or people close to him, including his daughter, son, and first wife, Carol. Mr. Beckman’s self-portraits and paintings of couples frequently depict subjects in the nude. But these are not the nudes of classical painting — in his work, subjects are depicted rather awkwardly, sometimes standing in a stark room holding hands and fully exposed. Selections from a self-titled exhibit at Forum Gallery include a portrait of Mr. Beckman’s daughter, “Deidra” (2003), above. Through Saturday, November 24, Tuesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m., Forum Gallery, 745 Fifth Ave. at 57th Street, 212-355-4545, free.
PHOTOGRAPHY
IN TOO DEEP A photojournalist who contributes regularly to European magazines, Alex Ten Napel, trains his lens on parents and children in “Water Portraits,” his latest exhibit at Cook Fine Art. One part of the show features fathers protectively holding their children while standing half-submerged in a pool of water. Some of the men appear aloof in the images, as if preoccupied more by their children than by the camera. Through Wednesday, November 21, Monday–Friday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m., Cook Fine Art New York, 1063 Madison Ave. at 81st Street, 212-737-3550, free.
READINGS
SEPTEMBER RAIN Authors Rick Moody and Helen Schulman read from their recent work as part of the Reading Series presented by the Creative Writing Program of New York University. Mr. Moody’s “Right Livelihoods: Three Novellas”(Little, Brown)pitsitswayward characters against conspiracies sometimes entirely imagined. Ms. Schulman’s “A Day at the Beach” HoughtonMifflin)depictstheharrowing hours in the life of a family on September 11, 2001. Tomorrow, 7 p.m., New York University, Bobst Library, 70 Washington Square So. at LaGuardia Place, 212-998-8850, free.
SHOPPING
VINTAGE TREASURE At the City Opera Thrift Shop’s annual Fall Vintage Event Preview, clothing and accessories are from or inspired by the decades between the 1950s and the 1980s. Highlights include a long-sleeve Emilio Pucci frock ($425) and a Missoni tunic $225). Other featured designers include Diane von Furstenberg, Carolina Herrera, and Oscar de la Renta. A wide selection of pieces is offered at reduced prices: Dresses are $25 to $150, coats and suits are $50 to $250, and jewelry, shoes, and bags are also on sale. Proceeds are used to fund the creation and design of costumes for the New York City Opera. Tomorrow, 5 p.m.–8 p.m., City Opera Thrift Shop, 222 E. 23rd St., between Second and Third avenues, 212-684-5344, $10 suggested donation.
TALKS
GANGS OF NEW YORK The Museum of the City of New York hosts “Ethnic Power in New and Old New York: The Irish, the Jews, and the Italians,” a discussion about how immigrants affected the political, financial, and social scopes of the city in the 20th century. Participants include the author of the novel “North River” (Little, Brown), Pete Hamill, and Mayor Koch. The moderator of the discussion is author Joshua Zeitz. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., New York Academy of Medicine, 1216 Fifth Ave., between 102nd and 103rd streets, 212-534-1672 ext. 3395, $9 general, $5 students, seniors, and members.
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