WEDNESDAY 11/3
© Ethan Murrow/Winston Wächter Fine Art
Murrow and wife (pictured) will attend Wednesday's reception.
© Angela Sterling
Kaori Nakamura (with Charlie Neshyba-Hodges) in Afternoon Ball.
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Comedy: The Laugh Olympics
With 32 comics in this year's Seattle International Comedy Competition, competing in two weeklong rounds to reach the finals, it's hard to handicap the favorites from the comedy fodder. Tonight's opening event features a dozen national acts and four locals: Jay Hollingsworth, Sean Ottey, Derek Sheen, and Travis Vogt. Because we like his face, we'll be rooting for Vogt, a doughy, self-deprecating regular at the Laff Hole. A binge drinker who claims to be willing to mix "absinthe and shoe polish," he bemoans the age of political correctness. "You can't even go up to a woman and compliment her on her breasts at Safeway anymore," Vogt complains. Another problem? The store expects him to wear pants. And since the holidays are near, Vogt may return to a favorite old topic: the recriminatory titles of those Charlie Brown TV holiday specials. Who wants to watch You Ruined Yom Kippur, Charlie Brown? Venues for the 22 following shows range from bars in Bellingham to a casino near Tacoma to the Comedy Underground in Pioneer Square; the final week concludes at the Moore on Nov. 28. The Vera Project, 305 Harrison St. (Seattle Center), seattlecomedycompetition.com. $11. 8 p.m.BRIAN MILLER
Visual Arts: Backyard Cosmology
In a recent Huffington Post interview, New York artist Ethan Murrow declared, "The things I keep returning to are failure and obsession. It seems to me that there is a fragile line between reckless obsession and brilliant success. My work resides in this area, applauding ridiculous pursuits and cringing at ill-fated experimentation." His new series of large graphite drawings, called Will Be Snaring Meteorites, celebrates just such a fanciful, ridiculous quest. His wife, Vita Weinstein-Murrow, is the model and protagonist of this whimsical adventure, which has her employing ropes, pulleys, and other homebuilt contraptions to capture what may only be Wiffle Balls and other round plastic toys. We all can't afford to go into space to find meteorites, and Murrow's backyard expeditions are a lot more fun. (Through Jan. 5.) Winston Wächter Fine Art, 203 Dexter Ave. N., 652-5855, winstonwachter.com. Free. Artist reception: 6 p.m.BRIAN MILLER
THURSDAY 11/4
Dance: Living Legacy
Since its founder's death almost 20 years ago, the Martha Graham Dance Company has been carving a middle ground between the preservation of Graham's work and heading in new creative directions. This program combines several of the choreographer's implacable early dances into a multimedia presentation called Prelude & Revolt. It's followed by three recent works inspired by Graham's classic solo Lamentation. Although she was known for her darkly emotional choreography, Graham had a sly sense of humor, and in her Maple Leaf Rag, which closes the program, she turned a satiric eye on her own passionate style. (Through Sat.) Meany Theater, UW campus, 543-4880, uwworldseries.org. $20–$46. 8 p.m.SANDRA KURTZ
FRIDAY 11/5
Film: A Wanted Man
Directed by the estimable Jacques Tourneur, set in a lost America of neon signage and out-of-town newsstands, the 1956 Nightfall is not only a nifty late noir, but a model of economical filmmaking—well-sketched atmosphere, deft characterizations, and a 78-minute run time. "You're the most wanted man I know," the young, sultry Anne Bancroft tells beleaguered hero Aldo Ray, an ordinary guy who's under constant, mysterious surveillance and is also being tracked by a pair of implacable desperados. Occupying 48 hours, the action shifts from the bright lights of Hollywood Boulevard to the snowy wilds of Wyoming—a pristine landscape that serves to emphasize the hero's innocence. The cocktail-lounge pickup is adroitly staged, the action climax is expertly choreographed, and a fashion-show set piece is worthy of Hitchcock. Aspiring filmmakers should take notes. (Through Thurs.) Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave., 267-5380, nwfilmforum.org. $6–$9. 7 and 9 p.m.J. HOBERMAN
Dance: Ms. Eclectic
With some choreographers, an evening of their work is an essay in sameness, slight variations on a single theme. A program of Twyla Tharp, however, is most definitely a mixed bill. For this year's All Tharp show, Pacific Northwest Ballet offers a pastoral romp set to Brahms, a discordant examination of emotional dysfunction, and a bubbly, vaudeville-tinged entertainment. But while on the surface these three dances are totally distinct, they share a wickedly complex approach to structure and an articulate use of ballet vocabulary. Not many choreographers make you feel smart while you're laughing out loud—Tharp is one of the few. (Through Nov. 14) McCaw Hall, 321 Mercer St., 441-2424, pnb.org. $27–$165. 7:30 p.m.SANDRA KURTZ
SUNDAY 11/7
Video Art: Shout-Free TV
In his installation Harry Shearer: The Silent Echo Chamber, the veteran comic actor cuts the volume on some of cable TV's most vociferous talking heads. Here are Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, and others in blissful, bored silence. Shearer has long been fond of culling the satellite airwaves for the pre-broadcast waiting, the interval before the camera clicks on and the shouting begins. These are unguarded moments of yawning, hair-combing, and tie-straightening—the "unvarnished depictions of human behavior," says Shearer. It's true, and whether you vote Republican or Democrat, there's something calmly reassuring about John McCain sipping cheap coffee or Joe Biden scarfing down a cookie. Lou Dobbs doesn't seem quite such a demagogue when hushed; he's more like a serene, shiny Buddha. President Obama, Hillary Clinton, and other politicians are glimpsed on the nine video monitors. But the star is Anderson Cooper, so hyperactive and fidgety before his camera cue that, in his tight black T-shirt, he appears to be leading an aerobics class. Henry Art Gallery, 4100 15th Ave. N.E., 543-2280, henryart.org. $6–$10. 11 a.m.–4 p.m.BRIAN MILLER
