8 pm: Jazz

The Grammy contemporary jazz album category usually goes to artists who prefer the smooth sound, but this year the eclectic style of Bela Fleck rose above the competition for the trophy. In concert, that eclecticism takes on an energetic edge.

* Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, Wiltern Theatre, 3790 Wilshire Blvd., 8 p.m. $31 and $38.50. (213) 380-5005

6:30 pm: Pop Music

It’s been a while since Rock for Choice staged one of its concerts in L.A., but with reproductive-rights activists bracing for a fight with the new White House administration, the organization--founded in 1991 by L.A. rockers L7--is tuning up again. Laura Dern hosts its benefit at the Hollywood Palladium, featuring Melissa Etheridge, Paula Cole, the Bangles, Mia Doi Todd and a guest performance by Sarah McLachlan.

* Rock for Choice, Hollywood Palladium, 6215 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood. 6:30 p.m. $35 and $55. (323) 962-7600.

8 & 9 pm: Pop Music

Los Angeles is still churning out notable rock bands, but if you have a soft spot for the late ‘70s and early ‘80s you don’t need to settle for your record collection and old copies of Slash magazine. A trip to the Roxy will plunge you into the corrosive world of Lee Ving’s band Fear and Orange County trailblazers Agent Orange, while Spaceland hosts two of their more art-conscious brethren, the Urinals and Human Hands.

* Fear and Agent Orange, with Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs, 3 Way, at the Roxy, 9009 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, 8 p.m. $15. (310) 278-9457.

* The Urinals and Human Hands, at Spaceland, 1717 Silver Lake Blvd., Silver Lake. 9 p.m. $8. (213) 833-2843.

8 pm: Jazz

He’s long been known to jazz insiders and now Cuban pianist Chucho Valdes is finally beginning to get the widespread acclaim he deserves, aided by rave reviews for recordings such as his latest, “Chucho Valdes Solo: Live in New York.”

* Chucho Valdes Quartet, El Camino College Center for the Performing Arts, Marsee Auditorium, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Redondo Beach. 8 p.m. $24 and $26. (800) 832-ARTS.

8 pm: Theater

The Padua Hills Playwrights Workshop/Festival, which developed groundbreaking new works between 1978 and 1995, returns in a new incarnation: Padua Hills Playwrights Productions. The 2001 inaugural season features three plays by Murray Mednick (“The Coyote Cycle”), kicking off with Mednick’s edgy comedy “16 Routines,” about an actor who forgets his lines.

* “16 Routines,” 2100 Square Feet, 5615 San Vicente Blvd., L.A. 8 p.m. Regular schedule: Thursdays to Sundays, 8 p.m. Ends May 5. $15. (323) 692-2652.

8 pm: Dance

At 70, choreographer Paul Taylor is internationally celebrated as a master of dance-drama, dance-parody, formal abstraction and experiments that take modern dance into new conceptual territory. Nobody’s range is wider, and his company’s annual residency at the Alex Theatre in Glendale has allowed local audiences to sample the extent of that range--not only the latest hits but repertory staples as well. Its current two-night engagement is no different. On Friday, the Taylor company performs the local premieres of “Dandelion Wine” and “Fiends Angelical,” along with his classic “Musical Offering.” On Saturday, the program includes “Arabesque,” “Eventide” and “Funny Papers.”

* Paul Taylor Dance Company, Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. 8 p.m. Also Saturday, 8 p.m. (different program). $20 to $43. (800) 233-3123.

8 pm: Theater

“A Bicycle Country,” by Cuban American playwright Nilo Cruz, is a portrait of three Cuban rafters and their harrowing and transcendent journey across the Caribbean to the Florida Straits. Directed by Richard Hochberg and featuring Armando DiLorenzo, Kadina de Elejalde and David Barrera, this West Coast premiere is part of the inaugural season of the Group at Strasberg, a yearlong centennial celebration of the late Lee Strasberg, a landmark figure in the world of acting.

* “A Bicycle Country,” Marilyn Monroe Theatre, Lee Strasberg Creative Center, 7936 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood. 8 p.m. Regular schedule: Thursdays to Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m. Ends May 13. $17 and??? $19. (323) 650-7777.

8 pm: Theater

Stage and TV’s Joely Fisher (“Ellen” and “Normal, Ohio”), daughter of Connie Stevens and Eddie Fisher, performs her autobiographical comic musical, “Joely Fisher . . . From Here to Maternity.”

* “Joely Fisher . . . From Here to Maternity,” Renberg Theatre, L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center’s Village, Ed Gould Plaza, 1125 N. McCadden Place, Hollywood. 8 p.m. Also Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 7 p.m. $25. (323) 860-7300.

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FREEBIE: The spotlight is on Chinatown’s blossoming art scene as seven galleries host concurrent openings. “An Event for Art on Chung King Road” will be from 6 to 9:30 p.m. For participating galleries, see Art Listings.