Top weekend events: Dia de los Muertos, Twyla Tharp Dance, ‘Laughter’

Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday. Sherman Heights Community Center, 2258 Island Ave., San Diego. Free. (619) 232-5181 or shermanheights.com/day-of-the-dead.html

Celebrate this Mexican holiday honoring the dead during the Dia de los Muertos festival at the Sherman Heights Community Center. The festivities will go on for a few days, starting with the Noche de Mole opening reception and altar preview from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Friday with samples of mole sauces, traditional Mexican food, live music, a special ballet folklorico dance performance, silent auction and more than 20 community altars. The big festival is on Saturday and starts with the blessing of the community altars, live performances, food, shopping and a self-guided tour of the altars. On Sunday, attend a community breakfast (with a menu that includes menudo, tamales, aguas frescas and pan de muertos) in memory of the deceased, followed by the market where people can find traditional items to use to build a Day of the Dead altar. LISA DEADERICK

“The Poe Show”

Opening reception 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday. Through Nov. 26. Ashton Gallery, Art on 30th, 4434 30th St., North Park. (619) 894-9009 or ashtonartgallery.com

All things Poe will take center stage Saturday when Ashton Gallery in North Park launches its new exhibit, “The Poe Show,” in honor of Edgar Allan Poe, the American writer, editor and critic. An opening reception will showcase images and sculptures as well as poetry and short stories. “Artists across the country are fascinated by Poe and his Raven,” according to Kate Ashton, founder of the gallery. “We will begin this ‘midnight dreary’ evening at 6 p.m., with the ‘unhappy hour.’ The evening will progress with a recitation of ‘The Raven’ and other Poe and ‘Poe-ish’ readings.” The exhibition will be juried by Chris Semtner, curator of the national Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Richmond, Va. MICHAEL JAMES ROCHA

San Diego New Music presents a program curated by flutist Rachel Beetz

7:30 p.m. tonight. Athenaeum Music & Arts Library, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. $5 students; $20 Athenaeum members; $25 general public. (858) 454-5872 or ljathenaeum.org

Flutist Rachel Beetz is not yet 30, but she’s already a veteran champion of contemporary classical and new music. She is also a 2015 recipient of the prestigious Listhus Skammdegi Air Award. Her Friday night Athenaeum concert with cellist Jennifer Bewerse, pianist Kyle Adam Blair and percussionist Dustin Donahue will feature works by John Cage, Peter Ablinger and others. It will also include the world premieres of new compositions by Samuel Dunscombe and Michael Pisaro. GEORGE VARGA

Sacra/Profana: “Purple Rain” Tribute

7:30 p.m. tonight at The Industry, 861 Harold Place, Suite 103, Chula Vista; 6:30 p.m. Sunday at WorldBeat Cultural Center, 2100 Park Blvd., San Diego. $10 to $30. (800) 838-3006 or sacraprofana.org

Fulfilling its mission of “redefining the choir,” the sonically gorgeous choral group Sacra/Profana will launch its eighth season by performing the entirety of Prince’s iconic 1984 album “Purple Rain.” A reception precedes the concert. “The songs on the album will be presented in a variety of arrangements — from a cappella to small groups to instrumental forces,” according to the group, which has been San Diego’s go-to choral ensemble since its inception in 2009. BETH WOOD

“Laughter on the 23rd Floor”

Opens Saturday. 7 p.m. Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Through Nov. 20. North Coast Repertory Theatre, 987 Lomas Santa Fe Drive, Solana Beach. $39-$50 (discounts available). (858) 481-1055 or northcoastrep.org

When it debuted in 1950, the pioneering TV variety program “Your Show of Shows” became such a sensation that Americans soon felt they knew the performers who crossed their tiny black-and-white screens every week. But North Coast Rep artistic director David Ellenstein actually did know some of them — or would, in later years. “I crossed paths with quite a number of them,” says Ellenstein, who grew up in a show-biz family led by his father, the late television and stage actor-director Robert Ellenstein. Among those he became acquainted with were such now-legendary figures as Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner, both of whom were writers on “Your Show of Shows.” He also met Sid Caesar — a version of whom Ellenstein now happens to be playing in North Coast Rep’s “Laughter on the 23rd Floor,” Neil Simon’s autobiographical 1994 ode to his own experiences as a writer for the program. JAMES HEBERT

HauntFest on Main

5 to 10 p.m. today. Along East Main Street from Magnolia to Avocado avenues, downtown El Cajon. Free. hauntfest.org

An evening of pumpkins and candy and carnival rides awaits at the annual HauntFest on Main in downtown El Cajon on Friday. This family-friendly event features costume contests for various age groups, a car show, face painting, live entertainment and performances, booths with crafts and games, an LED rock wall, inflatable jumping houses, outdoor movies and other activities. Take a stroll through the pumpkin patch, or stop by the carving station to watch the master carver at work. Have a picture taken at the staged photo area or watch Godzilla movies on the outdoor, 26-foot screen. LISA DEADERICK

San Diego Opera presents “Cinderella”

7 p.m. Saturday and Oct. 25 and 28; 2 p.m. Oct. 30. San Diego Civic Theatre, 1100 Third Ave., downtown. Tickets start at $37. (619) 533-7000 or sdopera.org

It’s been 20 years since San Diego Opera produced Gioachino Rossini’s “Cinderella,” and just like its title character’s dramatic transformation, a lot has changed for the company and the opera world since then. In the recession-fueled wake of industry-wide budget cuts and closures, San Diego Opera came perilously close to shutting down in 2014. These days, the revitalized company is having its own Cinderella story. Back in 1996, the comedic opera was produced under its Italian name, “La Cenerentola,” a long-held tradition for a company that for decades showcased singers imported from abroad. But now, slimmed-down San Diego Opera has been revamped into a community-focused company that casts mostly American singers. And in its efforts to attract a new audience, the opera opening Saturday — while still sung in its original Italian — is being marketed as “Cinderella.” PAM KRAGEN

Niykee Heaton

8 p.m. Saturday. Observatory North Park, 2891 University Ave., North Park. $20 general admission; $89 VIP meet-and-greet package. (619) 239-8826 or observatorysd.com

Just as Justin Bieber and Shawn Mendes used social media to fuel their quests for stardom, so has Niykee Heaton. But while Bieber used YouTube and Mendes used Vine, YouTube veteran Heaton, 21, has gained the most traction from her Instagram account. Her series of come-hither poses have helped this Illinois-bred singer-songwriter become a thirst trap — parlance for someone whose public image is designed to attract attention. Taking her musical cues from Lana Del Ray, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj, Corinne Bailey Rae and — Heaton claims — Tom Waits and Bob Dylan, she writes and produces her own songs. Her challenge now is to develop her music, not her image. GEORGE VARGA

La Jolla Music Society presents Twyla Tharp Dance

8 p.m. Saturday at Spreckels Theatre, 121 Broadway, downtown. $20-$75. (858) 459-3728 or ljms.org

Twyla Tharp last year celebrated her 50th anniversary as an award-winning choreographer. She is a tireless force in a world of dance that she has indelibly impacted, both as a performer and as a deft architect of movement. During that time, she has choreographed more than 160 works, collaborated with everyone from Mikhail Baryshnikov to David Byrne of Talking Heads, and won a Tony Award and two Emmy Awards. She also has received 19 honorary doctorates, as well as a 2004 National Medal of the Arts and a 2008 Kennedy Center Honor. Her virtuoso troupe, Twyla Tharp Dance, opens the La Jolla Music Society’s 2016/2017 dance series with a Saturday performance at Spreckels Theatre. The program will feature three works by Tharp that span a 40-year period: 1976’s whimsical “Country Dances”; 1980’s “Brahms Paganini”; and one of her newest pieces, “Beethoven Opus 130,” a showcase for dancer Matthew Dibble, who was featured in two of Tharp’s Broadway productions, “Movin’ Out” (which featured the songs of Billy Joel) and the Frank Sinatra homage “Come Fly Away.” GEORGE VARGA

Harvest Festival Original Art & Craft Show

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Del Mar Fairgrounds, O’Brien Hall and Bing Crosby Hall, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd., Del Mar. $9 adults; $7 seniors and military; $4 ages 13-17; free to children 12 and under; parking $10. harvestfestival.com

Get your holiday gift-giving lists in order because the annual Harvest Festival Original Art & Craft Show is coming to the Del Mar Fairgrounds. More than 300 booths will showcase 24,000 handmade items, including jewelry, clothing, original art, photography and ceramics. The three-day shopping extravaganza also features a Kids Zone, stage acts, strolling entertainers and a food court. Admission is good for all three days, so be sure to get your hand stamped before you leave. CAROLINA GUSMAN

Boomont Park Fall Festival & Haunt

5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 31 at Belmont Park, 3146 Mission Blvd., San Diego. Admission and parking are free. Cost of rides and some activities varies. (858) 228-9283 or belmontpark.com/boomont-park

Why celebrate Halloween only on Oct. 31 when you can celebrate it every weekend this month? For four years now, Belmont Park has done exactly that — transforming the beachfront amusement park into Boomont Park, a frightfully fun, Halloween-themed park, brimming with family activities befitting ghouls and goblins of all ages. “The idea of doing a Halloween-themed event came up several times before we finally settled on what we now call Boomont Park,” said Becca Crain, director of marketing and sales at the park. “We always struggled with how to make our event stand out among all of the others in our area while keeping it fun for all ages. Finally, we brainstormed with our marketing and events teams to create what we think is a fun, family-friendly (but not too friendly) Halloween festival.” CAROLINA GUSMAN