DANCE

‘ONE’ FOR ALL The TAKE Dance Company, under the direction of Takehiro Ueyama, dances five contemporary works, three of which are premieres. Mr. Ueyama’s choreography is influenced by his Japanese heritage, and his 12-member modern dance ensemble is known for blending Eastern and Western dance techniques, music, and narratives. Among the pieces performed is “One.” The piece is based on the work of Canadian photographer Gregory Colbert and set to compositions ranging from Bach to 20th-century Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu. Tomorrow through Saturday, 8 p.m., Miller Theatre at Columbia University, 2960 Broadway at 116th Street, 212-868-4444, $25 general, $15 students.

FAMILY

CHILDREN’S FESTIVAL The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian hosts its annual Children’s Festival. The “Youth Day” events are dedicated to exploring the native cultures of the North Pacific coast. The Git-Hoan Dancers perform, led by the troupe’s artistic director, David Boxley. Children can interact during the dances, and participate afterward in paper crafts. Saturday-Sunday, noon-5 p.m., National Museum of the American Indian, 1 Bowling Green, across from Battery Park, 212-514-3700, free.

MUSIC

BANG ON THE DRUMS The Ngqoko Cultural Group performs traditional songs of South Africa as part of a program presented by the World Music Institute. Members of Ngqoko are considered to be guardians of rural Xhosa culture, indigenous to southeast South Africa; their task is to preserve the music and instruments of the region. The group is best known for its mastery of the 3,000-year-old style, umngqokolo, or split-tone singing, an unusual vocal technique similar to overtone singing. The group brings its melodic sounds to New York in a debut performance. Friday, 8 p.m., Skirball Center for the Performing Arts, 566 La Guardia Place at Washington Square South, 212-545-4200, $27 general, $15 students.

INSPIRED BY VENICE The Little Orchestra Society performs Vivaldi’s 1733 opera “Concierto Barroco.” The concert is part of the ensemble’s 18th annual Vivaldi’s Venice concert series. The orchestra plays an interpretation of the fantasy piece that borrows from Cuban author Alejo Carpentier’s 1974 novella of the same name. Carpentier’s work imagines Handel and Scarlatti in a jam session at the Pietà, and a picnic at the Venetian island resting place of Igor Stravinsky. Dino Anagnost conducts; actor David Gonzalez narrates. Tomorrow, 7:30 p.m., Carnegie Hall, Zankel Hall, 881 Seventh Ave. at 55th Street, 212-247-7800,$25-$40.

PAINTINGS

HOMEWARD BOUND During the last 50 years, Lois Dodd has made her natural surroundings the subject of her paintings. Maine and the Delaware Water Gap figure prominently in Ms. Dodd’s work. The exhibit “Landscapes and Structures” gathers more than 45 of her small- and large-scale oils depicting light-filled views of garden paths, sheds, foliage, and other scenes. Through Friday, May 30, Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Alexandre Gallery, 41 E. 57th St. at Madison Avenue, 212-755-2828, free.

MUDDY WATERS New Orleans is magnified in Allison Stewart’s exhibit “Inside.” Ms. Stewart, a longtime resident of the Crescent City, creates abstract scenes of swampy landscapes bogged down by withered flowers and pallid vegetation. The images are meant to offer commentary on the sluggish rebuilding process in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina; the bright colors used in the seven paintings are reminiscent of more joyful times there. Through Thursday, May 22, Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Kathryn Markel Fine Arts, 529 W. 20th St., room 6W, between Tenth Avenue and the West Side Highway, 212-366-5368, free.

TRAVELIN’ LIGHT Meera Thompson’s latest exhibit, “A Sense of Place,” features horizontal views of landscapes inspired by her travels to Spain, New Zealand, Peru, Mexico, Japan, and India. The artist is on hand to discuss her artworks with visitors to the gallery on Fridays between noon and 6 p.m. Through Saturday, May 24, Tuesday-Saturday, noon-6 p.m., Atlantic Gallery, 135 W. 29th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 212-219-3183, free.

READINGS

GREAT ESCAPE Fans of the Academy Award-winning actor Gene Hackman might not know that the “Hoosiers” star moonlights as an author. Mr. Hackman joins his co-author Daniel Lenihan to discuss and read from their third book, “Escape From Andersonville: A Novel of the Civil War” (St. Martin’s). The novel follows a fictional Union officer, Nathan Parker, as he makes a dramatic escape from a notorious Confederate prison. Tomorrow, 7 p.m., Borders, 10 Columbus Circle, between 58th and 59th streets, 212-823-9775, free.

TALKS

NATIONS UNDER A GROOVE The editor of the transcultural Trace magazine, Claude Grunitzky, discusses his vision of the “urban” arena. The talk, featured as part of the “World Nomads” series at the French Institute Alliance Française, also celebrates the French-language release of Mr. Grunitzky’s book “Transculturalismes” (Grasset & Fasquelle). Each month, Trace comments on music, style, art, and politics, from a global perspective. The magazine’s annual “Black Girls Rule” issue highlights the fashion industry’s emerging faces, many of whom often remain under the radar in American glossies, even as they grace the pages of top European publications. Tonight, 7 p.m., French Institute Alliance Française, Le Skyroom, 22 E. 60th St., between Park and Madison avenues, 212-307-4100, $12 general, $8 members.

BATTLE OF THE ART CRITICS The Jewish Museum presents “Identity, Engagement, Judgment: Clement Greenberg and Harold Rosenberg, Then and Now,” a discussion about the rival art critics who became instrumental in defining the terms of postwar American art. Both men were strong proponents of the Abstract Expressionist movement: Rosenberg is credited with coining the term “action painting,” while Greenberg was among the first to champion painter Jackson Pollock. But the two often clashed on paper, debating the finer points and merits of the avant-garde and Modern art movements. Panelists include the chairman of the Department of the history of art at Yale University, David Joselit, and a professor of Modern art at New York University, Kenneth Silver. Tomorrow, 6:30 p.m., the Jewish Museum, 1109 Fifth Ave. at 92nd Street, 212-423-3200, $15 general, $12 seniors and students.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT New York University hosts “From Ethiopia to Chechnya: Reflections on Humanitarian Action,” a discussion that examines recent humanitarian crises and the global response to them. Participating speakers discuss what hunger in Ethiopia and other parts of the African continent taught the world about addressing famine, and how intervention efforts in Sudan and the Balkans changed the way many countries and organizations deliver aid. Panelists are the former president of Doctors Without Borders, Dr. Rony Brauman, and the author of “A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis” (Simon & Schuster), David Rieff. Tomorrow, 7 p.m., New York University, Kimmel Center for University Life, Eisner and Lubin Auditorium, 60 Washington Square South at La Guardia Place, 800-601-1466, free.

LIVE TO TELL Symphony Space hosts a conversation with three biographers who discuss the process of researching and writing about public figures. Biographers of the writer Saul Bellow (James Atlas), President Theodore Roosevelt (Edmund Morris), and the aviator and author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Stacy Schiff) detail their investigation techniques. Tonight, 7:30 p.m., Symphony Space, Leonard Nimoy Thalia, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, 212-864-5400, $21-$25.

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