The Girl of the Golden West (La Fanciulla del West), Puccini's oft-forgotten opera that's being billed as "the original Spaghetti Western," has a few more performances at the War Memorial Opera House, and suffice it to say it's real swell. It's great to see diva Deborah Voigt wearing a red leather cowgirl getup, astride a real live (!) horse, and whipping a bunch of sex-starved miners into shape at a bar called the Polka. more ›

We had an interview lined up, and were instructed to call his hotel at the agreed time, and ask to be transferred to Christopher Hampton. What? The guy won an Academy Award for writing the screenplay for Dangerous Liaisons, won a Tony award for the libretto of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical adaptation of Sunset Boulevard, wrote the script for, and directed tons of movies involving Leonardo di Caprio, Richard Gere or Gérard Depardieu, and he checks in the hotel under his real name? We're glad to be of help, so we put his name into the Ron Mexico name generator: Christopher, you'll be Fausto Tobaggo on your next trip. more ›

-- "Kim Nalley Sings Nina Simone": Local legend/songstress pays tribute to Dr. Nina Simone's brilliance, goddamn. Nalley blesses us with two sets at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. at Jazz at Pearl's; $15, $20. more ›