Arts & Events

FRIDAY, DEC. 22 -more-

A CELEBRATION OF THE WINTER SOLSTICE -more-

Words of My Perfect Teacher, opening today at the Elmwood Theater, begins with a dose of comedy, a sequence of close-ups of two men, both seemingly deep in thought. We are meant to interpret this as some sort of Buddhist exercise, the teacher perhaps leading the student in a form of meditation. But then the camera pulls back, the soundtrack kicks in, and we see instead that the two men are engrossed in a televised soccer match. -more-

“I’m a doctor,” said Dr. Samba, aka Molly Shannon, as she passed out paper napkins for kleenex to a family suffering from little sniffly noses while waiting for Circus Finelli’s Holiday Extravaganza at the Julia Morgan Center on College Avenue. “I have these things under control.” -more-

The practice of home inspection is tied, to a surprising degree, to a study of history. Some of that history is ancient and broad and some of it is as diaphanous as the study of the last five presidencies. -more-

Uh-oh. It’s the 22nd. Last-minute gift shopping! If you celebrate Solstice, you’re late already. No matter. ’Tis the season on some calendar or other, and there’s a good chance you’ve forgotten someone, maybe or the quasi-mail service lost that perfect present you found in the Fussbudgets International catalogue. You’ve just now fished it out of your spamtrap, the email notice about the Christmas party at the executive director’s husbands’ brother-in-law’s stepdaughters’ new club, and you know that if you don’t show up you’ll be nominated to that Interminable Search Committee again. And you’re the Human Resources Director’s Secret Santa, oh joy. -more-

Why Are We So Complacent? -more-

FRIDAY, DEC. 22 -more-

TUESDAY, DEC. 19 -more-

SOLSTICE CELEBRATION -more-

“Both a little naughty and a little nice” is the apt description for husband and wife cabaret team Billy Philadelphia and Meg Mackay’s holiday season show, A Little Cole in Your Stocking, featuring hits and rarities from Cole Porter’s songbook (as well as a few “traditional and non-traditional holiday songs”), playing evenings at 8 p.m., Dec. 20-23 and 27-30, at the Aurora Theatre, where it debuted last year. -more-

A 16th-century Russian conspiracy swept Boyars and Old Believers last Friday night into the First Congregational Church at Dana and Durant, where they put on a private show of Modest Mussorgsky’s opera, Khovanchina, for an audience of friends and family. -more-

I’ll admit that I don’t have much of an ear for the language of crows. Ron says they have a specific call that means “Raven!,” uttered when the crows are harassing one of their larger relatives or escorting it out of the neighborhood. This wouldn’t surprise me at all, since they do have an extensive vocal repertoire. -more-

TUESDAY, DEC. 19 -more-