all day: Art

In “Transportable City,” an installation of 10 tents shaped like buildings, a group of Cuban artists known as Los Carpinteros brings its notion of the essence of modern transient life to Los Angeles. The exhibition, opening today at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, includes a domed capitol, a Gothic church, a factory, a hospital and other structures that the artists deem essential to a fully mobile community.* “Transportable City,” Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., L. A. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, noon to 8 p.m.; Fridays, noon to 9 p.m.; Saturdays and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Ends Jan. 13. Adults, $7; students and seniors, $5; children 6 and older, $1. (323) 857-6000.

8 pm: Jazz

Trumpeter-composer Wynton Marsalis, fresh from the West Coast premiere of his symphonic work “All Rise” at the Hollywood Bowl earlier this month, blows through the Southland in a different mode this time. He and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra will celebrate the big band era with the program “United in Swing” at three concerts this weekend.

* Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 12700 Center Court Drive, Cerritos, 8 p.m. $60 to $70. (800) 300-4345. Also Friday at Wilshire Theatre, 8440 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, 8 p.m., $42.50 to $57.50. (213) 480-3232. Also, Saturday at the California Center for the Arts, 2411 E. Valley Parkway, Escondido, 8 p.m., $35 to $65. (800) 988-4253.

8 pm: Jazz

Watching the electives? Elvis Costello has gone academic, donning the robes of artist-in-residence at UCLA’s performing arts program. The first of the prolific rock singer-songwriter’s four events in that capacity is his collaboration with the Charles Mingus Orchestra on a set of jazzy takes on Costello classics alongside some Charles Mingus compositions.

* Elvis Costello and the Charles Mingus Orchestra, Royce Hall, UCLA, L.A., 8 p.m. $35 to $50. (310) 825-2101. Also Friday.

8 pm: Theater

Joe Sears and Jaston Williams return in “Red, White and Tuna,” their critically acclaimed, national touring comedy about the wacky residents of Tuna, Texas. Sears and Williams play all 20 roles as Tuna celebrates Fourth of July and the Tuna High School Reunion. * “Red, White and Tuna,” Riverside Municipal Auditorium, 3485 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside, 8 p.m. Also Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 p.m., 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 p.m. $25-$36. (909) 788-3944, (213) 480-323. (Also at Spreckels Theatre in San Diego, Oct. 2-14.)

7 pm: Family

“Bear in the Big Blue House Live! Surprise Party,” the Disney Channel’s hit show for preschoolers, has become a live stage spectacular, with singing, dancing and audience participation as Bear plans a party for his pal Tutter. * “Bear in the Big Blue House Live! Surprise Party,” Pasadena Civic Auditorium, 300 E. Green St., Pasadena, today, 7 p.m.; Friday, 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m.; Saturday, 10:30 a.m., 2 and 5:30 p.m.; Sunday, 1 and 4:30 p.m. $16-$27. (213) 480-3232, (626) 449-7360. (Also at Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa, Oct. 11-14; Terrace Theatre at the Long Beach Performing Arts Center, Oct. 25-28; Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Nov. 15-18; Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, Nov. 21-25.)

Freebie

* The smooth jazz group Philos performs as part of A Little Night Music, the outdoor concert series at One Colorado on Colorado Boulevard between Fair Oaks Avenue and De Lacey Avenue in Old Town Pasadena, 7 to 10 p.m. (626) 564-1066.