Weekend Forecast

TODAY

POP MUSIC

Singers still feeling benevolent

Jackson Browne has barely caught his breath after playing the recent benefit concert for ailing musician Wally Ingram, then he’s back on stage for another medical-themed fundraiser. Browne will be joined by the similarly philanthropic Willie Nelson and singer-poet John Trudell at “Give Love, Give Life,” benefiting ovarian cancer research at the Cedars-Sinai Women’s Cancer Research.

“Give Love, Give Life,” Gibson Amphitheatre, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City. 8:15 tonight. $39.75 to $89.75. (818) 777-3931.

ART

From beautiful butterflies

Cheeky artist Damien Hirst, the Brit who famously pickled a tiger shark and encased it in a giant tank of formaldehyde,

continues his fixation with dead animals in his latest works. “Superstition,” his first L.A. solo exhibition

in more than 10 years, features a series of canvases, each with thousands of butterfly wings mounted in intricate geometric patterns resembling stained glass windows.

Damien Hirst: “Superstition,” Gagosian Gallery, 456 N. Camden Drive, Beverly Hills. Opens today.

* Hours: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Ends April 5.

DANCE

They’re hoping that you eat it up

When Spain’s wildly popular Ballet Flamenco Sara Baras performed locally two years ago, a Times reviewer praised Baras’ “attempt to wake up and demystify an art that many outsiders see as a closed enclave rooted in the past. Out go a number of antique structures and strictures; in comes a list of priorities topped by accessibility and excitement.” Now Baras and a company that includes dancers Jose Serrano and Luis Ortega return to the UCLA Live series in a program titled “Sabores” (Flavors). Taste -- and savor.

Ballet Flamenco Sara Baras, Royce Hall, UCLA campus, Westwood. 8 tonight. $30 to $70. (310) 825-2101. www.uclalive.org

FRIDAY

MUSIC

‘Monsters,’ straight from Italy

The CalArts New Century Players will perform contemporary works from Italy on two different programs called “Friendly Monsters From the Boot” this weekend at REDCAT. Sylvano Bussotti, described as “one of the most aesthetically inventive provocateurs of his generation,” will oversee performances of his “Concerti grossi all’ara delgi ulivi” for chamber ensemble and “Fragmentations” for harps. Berio’s “Points on the curve to find” for piano and 22 instruments, and works by Ada Gentile, Carlo Alessandro Landini, Luca Lombardi, Luigi Nono and Salvatore Sciarrino will complete the programs.

New Century Players, REDCAT, Walt Disney Concert Hall, 2nd and Hope streets. 8:30 p.m. Friday. $10 to $20. (213) 237-2800. www.redcat.org

* Also 8:30 p.m. Saturday.

MOVIES

Down

and dirty

Sex, mud and rock ‘n’ roll. The Glastonbury festival has it all, and director Julien Temple brings it to you in the documentary “Glastonbury.” The film features performances by David Bowie, Coldplay, Radiohead, Oasis, Chemical Brothers, Velvet Underground, Primal Scream and many others, but it’s mainly about capturing the vibe that has infused the event over its almost 40-year existence.

“Glastonbury,” rated R for nudity, drug use, language and some sexual content, opens Friday exclusively at Landmark’s Nuart, 11272 Santa Monica Blvd., West L.A. (310) 281-8223.

SATURDAY

JAZZ

The sons shall mambo

The Big 3 Palladium Orchestra attempts to re-create the halcyon days of the 1950s when mambo and Afro-Cuban rhythms achieved their greatest popularity in the U.S. Three of the top bandleaders of the era -- Machito, Tito Puente and Tito Rodriguez -- would battle it out musically at the Palladium Ballroom in New York. The ensemble, which is led by the sons of those original leaders and features many of the same players, performs Saturday at the Luckman. Free mambo lessons will be offered Friday at 7 p.m.

Big 3 Palladium Orchestra, Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Cal State Los Angeles, 5151 State University Drive, L.A. 8 p.m. Saturday. $35 to $40. (323) 343-6600.

www.luckmanarts.org

EVENTS

A peace offering

The theme of the 2007 Queen Mary Brazilian Carnaval is “Peace in the World ... Samba Not War.” This celebration is scheduled one week after Brazil’s own carnival in Rio de Janeiro, and scenes from the “real thing” down south will be on big screens throughout the event. In Long Beach, Afro-Brazilian music groups from Northern Brazil including Ile Aye, Mario Peter, Waghner Abuter and Dandah will be featured along with local acts Katia Moraes and Pure Samba, Sambada, the OYA Sambo Show Dancers and others. Brazilian food and drink, including what are billed as the “world’s best caipirinhas” (a Brazilian cocktail), will be available. All ages are welcome.

Queen Mary Brazilian Carnaval, Queen Mary, 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach. 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday. $38 to $70. (818) 566-1111.

THEATER

Taking it all off

Musical Theatre West presents “The Full Monty,” the hit Broadway musical comedy based on the British film about six bumbling out-of-work guys who shed their

inhibitions to raise money and regain self-respect. The scheme: a male strip show.

“The Full Monty,” Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 Atherton St., Long Beach. Opens 8 p.m. Saturday. $25 to $52. (562) 856-1999, Ext. 4. www.musical.org

* Runs 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, except 2 and 7 p.m. March 4; ends March 11.

EVENTS

Celebrating year of boar

Veteran character actor James Hong will serve as grand marshal of the 108th Annual Golden Dragon Parade on Saturday in Chinatown. The parade will start at 2 p.m. and run along Broadway and Hill streets. More than 100 floats, bands, traditional Chinese dancers, dragons and other participants, including the Chinatown queen and her court, will celebrate the year of the boar. An adjunct family festival Saturday and Sunday will feature traditional and contemporary entertainment and cultural events, food and, on Sunday, a car show.

108th Annual Golden Dragon Parade and Chinese New Year Festival, Broadway and Hill streets, Chinatown. 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday (parade, 2 to 5 p.m.). Free, but grandstand seats for the parade are $27. (213) 680-0243.

* Festival continues 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Car show: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

THEATER

Coping with tragedy

In Deborah Brevoort’s award-winning drama “The Women of Lockerbie,” inspired by a true story, a group of women in Scotland cope with the aftermath of the crash of Pan Am 103 by forming a plan to wash the clothes of the dead and return them to the bereaved families. Brent Hinkley directs this West Coast premiere.

“The Women of Lockerbie,” Actors’ Gang Theater at the Ivy Substation, 9070 Venice Blvd., Culver City. Opens 8 p.m. Saturday. $25, except pay-what-you-can on Thursdays. (310) 838-4264. www.theactorsgang.com * Runs 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays; ends April 28.

WEDNESDAY

JAZZ

Definitely on the edge

Pianist Myra Melford is a certified, cutting-edge contemporary jazz artist with credits embracing gigs and/or recordings with the likes of such avant-gardists as Dave Douglas, Joseph Jarman and Leroy Jenkins. But her restless creative curiosity takes her into other areas as well, including a fascination with Eastern European music and Fulbright scholarship study of North Indian music in Calcutta. Her electro-acoustic ensemble, Be Bread, includes trumpeter Cuong Vu, guitarist Brandon Ross, bassist Stomu Takeishi and drummer Elliot Humberto Kavee.

Myra Melford, UCLA Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood. 8 p.m. Wednesday. Free. (310) 443-7000.