WEEKEND FORECAST

TODAY

THEATER

They’re kids of letters

Six adolescent outsiders vie for first place in the spelling championship of a lifetime in “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” The Tony-winning musical comedy’s L.A. stop, presented by Broadway/L.A., reunites the original New York cast for the first time.

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” Wadsworth Theatre, 11301 Wilshire Blvd., L.A. Opens

8 p.m. today. $28 to $83. (213) 365-3500. www.BroadwayLA.org* Runs 8 p.m. Tuesdays to Fridays;

2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays. Exception: 1 and

8 p.m. on June 1. Ends June 17.

DANCE

Stages of Balanchine

Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary’s Los Angeles Ballet turns to one of the modern masters for the closing program of the troupe’s inaugural season, dancing George Balanchine’s “Apollo,” “Serenade” and “Rubies.” Each work reflects a different era and mood in the great choreographer’s life -- classical purity in the early “Apollo,” created in 1928 for Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes; Romanticism in “Serenade,” his first work choreographed in the United States in 1934; and jazzy eclecticism in “Rubies,” the middle of three parts of the ballet “Jewels,” choreographed in 1967. The “Evening of Balanchine” program will be danced in three locations.

Los Angeles Ballet, Freud Playhouse, UCLA, Westwood. 7:30 tonight and Friday. $35 to $95. (310) 998-7782; www.losangelesballet.org.

* Also 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale.

* Also 7:30 p.m. June 2 at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 Manhattan Beach Blvd., Redondo Beach.

BOOKS

Pursuing prisoners

Dialogue king Elmore Leonard’s 40th novel redeposits his character from 2005’s “The Hot Kid,” Carl Webster, into the middle of the action in “Up in Honey’s Room.” This time Webster’s in pursuit of two escaped POWs from an Oklahoma detention camp, German officers Jurgen Schrenk and Otto Penzler. All three end up at Heinrich Himmler look-alike Walter Schoen’s Detroit butcher shop -- and under the thrall of Walter’s wife, Honey Deal.

Elmore Leonard, Book Soup, 8818 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. 7 tonight. (310) 659-3110.

FRIDAY

MOVIES

Paranoia reigns

Oklahoma-born writer-actor Tracy Lett’s play “Bug,” currently onstage at the Coast Playhouse, makes the leap to the silver screen in an adaptation directed by William Friedkin of “The Exorcist” fame. Ashley Judd stars as a waitress hiding out in a desolate hotel room from her abusive husband thinking she’s found solace with a mysterious drifter -- and that’s when things start to get really creepy.

“Bug,” rated R for some strong violence, sexuality, nudity, language and drug use, opens Friday in general release.

MUSEUMS

Surfer species

It is high time, or perhaps high tide, that a museum in Southern California focuses on one of the area’s famous features, surfing. Long Beach’s Aquarium of the Pacific presents Catch a Wave, an exhibit exploring the history of surfing, surf culture, the nature of waves and the animals inhabiting the ocean. The exhibit offers an interactive experience in which patrons may reach in and touch creatures such as rays and even sharks.

“Catch a Wave,” Aquarium of the Pacific, 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach. Opens Friday. $11.95 to $20.95. (562) 590-3100.

* Hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Ends March 31.

SATURDAY

EVENTS

On ice, that’s nice

Silver medalist Sasha Cohen, gold medalist Shizuka Arakawa, gold medalist Evgeni Plushenko and gold medalist couple Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat head an international all-star cast of Olympic figure skaters in “Champions on Ice” gliding and swooshing through the Southland this weekend as part of a 10-city tour of the western U.S. Other skaters in the show include Evan Lysacek, Dan Hollander and Johnny Weir.

Champions on Ice, Honda Center, 2695 E. Katella Ave., Anaheim.

3 p.m. Saturday. $29 to $160. (714) 704-2500.

* Also 3 p.m. Sunday at Staples Center, 1111 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles. $29 to $160. (213) 742-7340.

ART

Out of the ordinary

For his second solo exhibition at the Anna Helwing Gallery, Skylar Haskard has created works out of store-bought objects and readily available materials. Through his reuse of everyday materials, such as in “Endless Column Broken,” the recycling of materials mirrors the recycling of art ideas with its upturned soda cups turned into cement columns. Another piece, “La-Z-Boy Stripped Bare” is just that: the ubiquitous recliner stripped of all but its inner mechanisms and working parts.

“Skylar Haskard: New Work (swap meet at Rodchenkos garden),” Anna Helwing Gallery, 2766 S. La Cienega Blvd., L.A. Opens Saturday. (310) 202-2213.

* Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Ends June 23.

TUESDAY

THEATER

Making her swoon

Elvis classics pepper “All Shook Up,” a rock ‘n’ roll romantic musical by Joe DiPietro (“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change”) about a girl whose dream comes true when a guitar-playing, hip-swinging, Elvis-channeling roustabout rides into town and turns it upside down. Among the Elvis hits in the musical are “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Jailhouse Rock,” “It’s Now or Never” and “Burning Love.”

“All Shook Up,” Segerstrom Hall, Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. Opens 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. $20 to $70.

(714) 556-2787. www.ocpac.org* Runs 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays to Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays,

1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays. Ends June 10.

POP MUSIC

Arcade Fire in the clear

The Arcade Fire hit a bump in the road recently when leader Win Butler had to go under the knife for sinus surgery, but the Montreal band came back with an epic roar in its return at Coachella. The show, and its second album “Neon Bible,” both packed with fervor and urgency, reaffirm the unforgettable Fire’s position as the compelling rock chronicler of these turbulent times.

Arcade Fire, Greek Theatre, 2700 Vermont Canyon Road, L.A. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. $31 to $33.50. (323) 665-5857.

* Also 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

WEDNESDAY

JAZZ

Enhanced by their differences

They’re a generation apart in age, but pianist Joanne Brackeen and

alto saxophonist Greg Osby share an utterly timeless view of the artistry of jazz. Both have served plenty of time as backup players, both have been successfully leading their own groups for years, and both have a powerful belief in the basics of hard-driving, thoughtfully conceived improvisation. Working as a duo, their differences -- Osby’s envelope-stretching style, Brackeen’s far-reaching eclecticism -- should make for a compelling musical encounter.

Joanne Brackeen and Greg Osby, the Jazz Bakery, 3233 Helms Ave., Culver City. 8 and 9:30 p.m. Wednesday through June 2. (310) 271-9039.