ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT REPORTS FROM THE TIMES, NEWS SERVICES AND THE NATION’S PRESS.

THEATER

‘Flower Drum’ Run Extended at Taper

With “Flower Drum Song” sold out and scalpers demanding up to $180 for tickets, the Mark Taper Forum is extending the musical--originally scheduled to close Dec. 2--through Jan. 13.

During the extension, Lea Salonga will vacate the starring role of Mei-Li because of a previous commitment to appear in “Proof” in the Philippines. Her understudy, Jennifer Paz, will take over the role Dec. 5. Paz, who starred in “Miss Saigon” at the Ahmanson Theatre in 1995, currently plays a new immigrant to whom Mei-Li gives a drum as a symbolic gesture at the end of the show. Tickets for the extension go on sale Nov. 11. The Taper’s next scheduled show, Israel Horovitz’s new “My Old Lady,” was slated to open Dec. 20. It will now move to the Doolittle Theatre in Hollywood, where it will open the first week of January with Sian Phillips (“I, Claudius”) in the title role.

Turner Taking Mrs. Robinson to Broadway

Mrs. Robinson is coming to Broadway.

Kathleen Turner (“Body Heat,” “Peggy Sue Got Married”) will play the seductive older woman in a stage version of “The Graduate,” adapted by Terry Johnson from the cult novel by Charles Webb and the hit 1967 movie that starred Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman.

She’ll star opposite Jason Biggs of “American Pie” fame, who will portray Benjamin Braddock, the young man she seduces. Alicia Silverstone co-stars as Mrs. Robinson’s daughter, Elaine, the role played in the movie by Katharine Ross.

“The Graduate” embarks on a pre-Broadway tour in Baltimore in January before moving to Toronto and Boston. Preview performances in New York begin March 15, with an opening set for April 4 at a theater to be announced.

Turner originated the role of Mrs. Robinson in the London production of “The Graduate,” which opened in April 2000 and is still running. ‘

MOVIES

Variety Oscar Ads Also Help Out Sept. 11 Fund

The trade publication Variety says it will donate $100 from the sale of each full-page ad related to the Oscars, the Golden Globes or other major movie awards to the Sept. 11 Fund for victims of the attacks.

The initiative runs now through the Academy Awards ceremony in March.

Charles Koones, publisher of Variety, told The Times that the policy--a first for the publication--is two-pronged: joining forces with the studios and networks who have responded so “generously” to the crisis while boosting its own bottom line.

“As they say, ‘doing well by doing good,”’ Koones said Tuesday. “We want to take the momentum of this season--our busiest--and focus it in a positive way. Despite the tough advertising climate, we don’t expect any drop in sales because the competition is so tight. No clear-cut winner has emerged in any category, so ads may be even more important--and prevalent.”

THE ARTS

Smooke Auction Falls Short of Expectations

Phillips’ auction of modern art from the estate of L.A. collectors Nathan and Marion Smooke brought $86 million Monday night in New York.

The sum was considerably less than the $100 million-plus predicted by the auction house and not even half the $180 million to $200 million reportedly guaranteed to the Smookes’ heirs, who put the collection on the block.

A village scene by Egon Schiele brought the top price of $9.9 million; a Modigliani portrait came in second, at $7.1 million. Five of the 72 works failed to sell, including Degas’ large bronze sculpture “Little Fourteen-Year-Old Dancer,” valued at $8 million to $12 million.

Phillips offers hefty guarantees to sellers to grab market share from industry giants Sotheby’s and Christie’s--and, apparently, took a big hit on the Smooke sale. The auction house will most likely attempt to cut its losses with private sales of the remaining artworks.

POP/ROCK

Olympics Organizers Reveal Talent Lineup

The Feb. 24 closing ceremony at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games will not lack for talent. The organizers announced Tuesday that the entertainment lineup will include ‘N Sync, Christina Aguilera, Bon Jovi, Harry Connick Jr. and Charlotte Church. There also will be ice skating by Kristi Yamaguchi, Scott Hamilton, Oksana Kazakova, Artur Dmitriev, Ilia Kulik, Renee Roca and Gorsha Sur.

QUICK TAKES

The Nov. 14 Garth Brooks concert at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood will be televised on CBS. He’ll also do programs for the network Nov. 21 and Nov. 28.... Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan welcomed their fourth child, Esme Annabelle Fox, on Saturday.... Owners of the DVD for “Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace” will be able to access an Internet preview of the next installment, “Episode II Attack of the Clones,” via a DVD-ROM link.... Tom Hanks and HBO have optioned David McCullough’s best-selling biography of the second American president, John Adams, for a miniseries.... A two-CD set from the Concert for New York City will hit stores Nov. 27, and a DVD and video are in the wings. Proceeds from the Columbia Records album will benefit victims of the Sept. 11 attacks.... UPN has ordered a full season of its first-year Monday-night comedy “One on One”.... According to the Sunday Times of London, “Harry Potter” creator J.K. Rowling was beaten out by Madonna for the title of Britain’s highest-earning woman. The singer, who qualifies because she has a house in London, was said to have earned $43.8 million, compared with Rowling’s $36.2 million, for the year that ended Oct. 1.