TODAYMUSEUMSSome things borrowedThe Contemporary Projects program at...

TODAY

MUSEUMS

Some things borrowed

The Contemporary Projects program at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is devoted to showcasing the works of promising young artists. “Contemporary Projects 9: Gajin Fujita and Pablo Vargas Lugo” features two artists whose works differ in approach but address issues of cultural appropriation, borrowing from tattoo, graffiti, Asian and Pop art traditions.

“Contemporary Projects 9: Gajin Fujita and Pablo Vargas Lugo,” Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., L.A. Opens today. $9; seniors and students, $5; 17 and younger, free. (323) 857-6000.

* Hours: Noon to 8 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays; noon to 9 p.m. Fridays; 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Ends Feb. 12.

DANCE

Percussive

footwork

Although Seville’s Jose Porcel has danced locally with Antonio Marquez’s flamenco company and, five years ago, at Hollywood Bowl, Ballet Flamenco Jose Porcel is appearing at the Orange County Performing Arts Center for the first time this weekend. His company includes 10 dancers, two guitarists, two singers and a percussionist. In Spain, Porcel has been praised (quoting El Pais Nacional) for “his breadth and lean profile, his strong dramatic accent” and other qualities that mark a major flamenco talent.

Ballet Flamenco Jose Porcel, Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. 8 p.m. today. $20 to $65. (714) 556-2787.

* Also 8 p.m. Friday and 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday.

FRIDAY

ART

So many changes

In 1973, Ed Ruscha mounted a camera loaded with black-and-white film to a tripod in the back of a pickup and took one continuous shot of Hollywood Boulevard. He did the same thing in 2004, this time using color-negative film. In “Ed Ruscha: Then & Now,” the two sets of panoramic photos are displayed side-by-side for the first time. Compare how one of L.A.’s most famous streets has changed 30 over the years.

“Ed Ruscha: Then & Now,” Gagosian Gallery, 456 N. Camden Drive, Beverly Hills. Opens Friday. (310) 271-9400.

* 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Ends Dec. 24.

THEATER

Back during the blacklist

Tony Award-winner Joe Mantegna stars in the L.A. premiere of “Trumbo: Red, White and Blacklisted,” Christopher Trumbo’s off-Broadway drama paying tribute to his screenwriter father, Dalton Trumbo (“Spartacus,” “Roman Holiday,” “Exodus”). In 1947, Dalton Trumbo stood up to the House Un-American Activities Committee’s anti-Communism crusade and was imprisoned as one of the notorious “Hollywood 10.” Peter Askin directs.

“Trumbo: Red White and Blacklisted,” Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank. Opens Friday, 8 p.m. $30 to $37.50. (818) 955-8101.

* Runs 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 4 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 13.

MOVIES

These Dolls were glam

Arthur “Killer” Kane was the bassist for the glam rock band the New York Dolls from 1972 to 1975. The Dolls wore platform shoes, wild hair and makeup, and were more influential with their pre-punk sound than they were famous. After the group disbanded, Kane battled alcoholism and moved to Los Angeles, where he lived in relative anonymity for nearly 30 years. Greg Whiteley’s documentary “New York Doll” catches up with Kane as the surviving band members, including lead singer David Johansen and guitarist Sylvain Sylvain, reunite for a pair of June 2004 shows in London.

“New York Doll,” rated PG-13 for drug content, opens Friday in selected theaters.

MUSIC

Schiff does double duty

Having won ample praise for his piano

artistry, the Hungarian Andras Schiff next turned to conducting. Now he

frequently does that from the keyboard, so as to be able to solo and collaborate at the same time. He’ll be back in town this weekend performing this double act with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Disney Hall, where he triumphed last year in a recital of Bach’s “Goldberg” Variations. The program will encompass Haydn (Piano Concerto in D), Mendelssohn (String Symphony No. 10) and Schumann (Introduction and Allegro appassionato, Symphony No. 1).

Los Angeles Philharmonic, Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave. 8 p.m. Friday. $15 to $129. (323) 850-2000.

* Also 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

SATURDAY

MUSIC

Pipes play at cathedral

By the time he died

13 years ago in Paris at age 83, French composer and organist Olivier Messiaen had written roughly nine hours’ worth of music for his chosen instrument. And in recent years, Paul Jacobs, the 28-year-old head of the organ department at New York’s Juilliard School, has mastered all of it. Not content with that, Jacobs has made a specialty of playing this oeuvre in marathon recitals. He will do so Saturday at the downtown Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, a perfect venue given the centrality of the Roman Catholic creed to Messiaen’s work.

“Marathon Messiaen,” Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, 555 W. Temple St., L.A. 2 to 11 p.m. Saturday. $12 suggested donation (all-day pass). (213) 680-5205.

POP MUSIC

Wake up, wake up

The main act’s lead singer is long dead, and one of the bill’s big names dropped out because the event has corporate sponsorship, but the Waking the Dead concert still figures to pack a punch and generate plenty of curiosity value with a lineup spearheaded by three vintage L.A. punk bands: Fear, Suicidal Tendencies and, in its first live show since breaking up after the 1980 suicide of Darby Crash, the Germs. Actor Shane West fills in for the singer, whom he portrays in an upcoming film about the band. Also playing

are Flipper and Marky Ramone, but no Dead Kennedys, who declined

to play under the Coors banner.

Waking the Dead, Grand Olympic Auditorium, 1801 S. Grand Ave., L.A. 6:30 p.m. Saturday. $26. (213) 749-5171.

POP MUSIC

A jackpot in Las Vegas

Will Sin City be the same after the dust settles at Sam Boyd Stadium? That’s the site for the main action at Vegoose, an ambitious effort

to export the spirit of

Tennessee’s annual Bonaroo Festival to the land of neon and Dion. The two days are packed with

acts, with a perceptible tilt toward the jam-and-groove spirit (Dave

Matthews & Friends, Widespread Panic, Trey Anastasio) and a good dose of creative college-rock favorites (Beck,

Arcade Fire, Flaming Lips).

Vegoose Festival, Sam Boyd Stadium, 7000 E. Russell Road, Las Vegas. Noon Saturday. (702) 895-3900.

* Also noon Sunday. $128.50 for both days.

WEDNESDAY

FAMILY

Adventures with Dora

Dora, her cousin Diego, Boots the monkey and the rest of their pals embark on a trip to Treasure

Island in “Dora’s Pirate Adventure,” the latest “Dora the Explorer Live!” stage spectacular for kids. In this play-along story, Dora and the gang meet up with the Pirate Piggies, who prove no match for the bilingual heroine and friends.

“Dora’s Pirate Adventure, Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Hall, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. Opens 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

* Runs 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. next Thursday, 10:30 a.m. Nov. 4, 11 a.m., 2 and 5 p.m. Nov. 5, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Nov. 6; ends Nov. 6. $17 to $45. (714) 556-2787. www.ocpac.org

BOOKS

Not afraid to speak up

Few would dispute Gore Vidal’s place as one of the most important and prolific American writers of the second half of the 20th century. From his groundbreaking defense of homosexuality in “The City and the Pillar” (1948) to the trenchant satires “Myra Breckenridge” (1968) and “Live From Golgotha” (1992), to his well-known historical novels and sharp criticism of the current political administration, Vidal’s six-decade career as a novelist, essayist, playwright and provocateur is examined in the new book “Gore Vidal’s America” by Dennis Altman. Both men will be on hand to sign and discuss the book.

Gore Vidal and Dennis Altman, Dutton’s Books, 447 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills. 7 p.m. Wednesday. (310) 281-0997.