7:30pm MoviesIn her new film “What’s Cooking?,”...

7:30pm Movies

In her new film “What’s Cooking?,” director Gurinder Chadha (“Bhaji on the Beach”) looks at American multiculturalism by dramatizing four diverse families at Thanksgiving. Joan Chen, Alfre Woodard, Julianna Margulies, Mercedes Ruehl, and Kyra Sedgwick star. Following this advance screening at the Museum of Tolerance, “What’s Cooking?” opens Nov. 17 in limited release.

* “What’s Cooking?,” Museum of Tolerance, Simon Wiesenthal Plaza, 9760 Pico Blvd., West Los Angeles. Saturday, 7:30 p.m. $5 to $6. (310) 772-2452.

7:30pm

Gospel Music

Choirs from Los Angeles, Duarte, Victorville and El Monte will participate in the finals of the 16th annual McDonald’s Gospelfest. The competitors will be joined by Walter Hawkins, Beverly Crawford and the Starlights, with proceeds benefiting the Pride and Leadership for African American Youth Scholarship Program.

* McDonald’s Gospelfest, Saturday at the Shrine Auditorium, 665 W. Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles. 7:30 p.m. $15 to $100. (213) 749-5123.

all day

Crafts

With November marking the season of harvest for many Native American cultures, the Southwest Museum presents its 10th annual Intertribal Marketplace. More than 100 artists and musicians from Native American cultures throughout the United States will congregate at the Mount Washington museum selling handcrafted items ranging from baskets and pottery to jewelry and beadwork. In addition, the event will feature music and dance performances, Native American foods and a children’s craft village.

* Intertribal Marketplace. Southwest Museum, 234 Museum Drive, Mount Washington. Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $8; seniors and students, $6; children under 6, free. (323) 221-2164.

7:30pm

Theater

In the West Coast premiere of “Enter the Guardsman,” the award-winning romantic musical by Scott Wentworth, Craig Bohmler and Marion Adler, an actor gives his best performance in the role he plays to test his wife’s fidelity while they are starring in the same play.

* “Enter the Guardsman,” Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach. Saturday, 7:30 p.m. Regular schedule: Tuesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m.; Saturdays-Sundays, 2 p.m. Dec. 3, 2 p.m. only. Ends Dec. 3. $34-$41, except opening night benefit, $75. (949) 497-2787.

8pm

Music

Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Shirley Jones, Charlotte Rae, Alan Campbell, Dale Kristien, Carole Cook, Pam Dawber and Gogi Grant are among the stellar cast that will perform “Kurt Weill: The Centennial,” an evening that will include such Weill musical collaborations as “Lady in the Dark,” “The Threepenny Opera,” “Lost in the Stars” and “One Touch of Venus.” It’s presented by S.T.A.G.E. (Southland Theatre Artists Goodwill Event) as a benefit for the Actors’ Fund of America.

* “Kurt Weill: The Centennial,” Luckman Theatre, Cal State L.A., 5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles. Saturday, 8 p.m. $30-$250. (323) 933-9244, Ext. 33.

8pm

Dance

For most ethnic dance companies, the essential task involves editing (and sometimes falsifying) their source materials to keep an audience interested--while still making sure that the result can be passed off as folklore. But “Charkh: Turning Through Time” reflects a daring new approach. Here the award-winning, locally based Avaz International Dance Theatre moves away from simulating village dances into the realm of cultural interpretation: selecting and abstracting an array of dervish and other traditions (including martial arts) from Iran and the Middle East to discover and unveil their essences. One good turn always deserves another--and “Charkh” offers a whirlwind tour of whirling.

* Avaz International Dance Theatre in “Charkh: Turning Through Time.” Japan America Theatre, 244 S. San Pedro St., downtown Los Angeles. 8 p.m. $25. (213) 680-3700.

FREEBIE

“Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz: A Muse for the Americas” is a daylong program of music, poetry and lectures celebrating the life and legacy of Sor Juana, a 17th century Mexican nun and poet, at UCLA’s Moore Hall, room 100, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (310) 825-2272.

Some 30 resident artists at the Factory Place Studios will hold an open house, noon to 6 p.m. at 1308 Factory Place, downtown Los Angeles. Also Sunday, noon to 6 p.m. (213) 623-6688.