BEST BETS: Thursday 9/23 : all day: Museum

Oscar Wilde, upon arriving in the United States in 1882 for a lecture tour, told customs he had “nothing to declare but my genius.” Indeed, the poet, playwright, critic and internationally renowned wit was the prototype of celebrity. Even his affair with Lord Alfred Douglas--revealed in civil and criminal trials--added to the myth of Wilde as a victimized genius. Evidence of that genius will be on display at the UCLA Hammer Museum in “Oscar Wilde,” an exhibition of items from UCLA’s Clark Library. The library--which has an unrivaled Wilde collection--never lets its holdings leave the university, so this is a rare opportunity to view these photographs, letters, caricatures and, interestingly, a first edition of “Portrait of Dorian Gray” inscribed to Lord “Bosie” Douglas.

* “Oscar Wilde” at the UCLA Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.; Thursday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. $4.50 adults; $3.50 seniors, students. (310) 443-7000.

8:15 pm: Pop Music

Mana mania anyone? Following fast on its recent four-night stand at the Arrowhead Pond with Santana, the Mexican pop band plays four shows at the Universal Amphitheatre.

* Mana, with the Chris Perez Band, Universal Amphitheatre, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, 8:15 p.m. Thursday and Saturday sold out; Friday and Sunday, $43 to $58. (818) 622-4440.

8 pm: Theater

David Hyde Pierce heads the cast in “The Boys From Syracuse,” the Reprise! Broadway’s Best in Concert semi-staged musical based on Shakespeare’s “Comedy of Errors,” with music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart; book by George Abbott. Arthur Allan Seidelman directs.

* “The Boys From Syracuse,” Freud Playhouse, UCLA (Parking Lot 3), Westwood. Wednesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 2 p.m. Ends Oct. 3. $45 to $50. (310) 825-2101, (213) 365-3500.

8 pm: Theater

Make way for “Dralion,” Cirque du Soleil’s newest spectacular, taking its name from its main symbols: a dragon and a lion. It’s an odyssey through a magical universe where East meets West, celebrating life and the elements of air, water, fire and earth. It plays first in Santa Monica and in Irvine starting in December.

* “Dralion,” Cirque du Soleil, under the big top at Santa Monica Pier. Opening week: Today and Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 4 and 8 p.m.; Sunday, 1 and 5 p.m. Regular schedule: Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 8 p.m.; Thursdays and Fridays, 5:30 and 9:30 p.m.; Saturdays, 4 and 8 p.m.; Sundays, 1 and 5 p.m.; except Sept. 30 and Nov. 18, 8 p.m. only; dark Oct. 19 and Nov. 1. Moves to Irvine Spectrum Center on Dec. 2. Indefinitely. $34 to $55 for adults; $23.75 to $38.50, children. (800) 678-5440.

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FREEBIE: Ten alternative galleries in Los Feliz, Silver Lake and Echo Park open their doors--and living rooms--from 5 to 11 p.m. today and Friday for the “East Side Art Crawl II.” (323) 666-9447.