Nego Gato, a local ensemble that performs traditional Afro-Brazilian dance and martial arts, has been named Hardie Artist of the Year by Gateway to the Arts.

The award is named for Frances Hardie, a former board member of Gateway to the Arts. Established last year, the honor, which carries a cash award of $600 this year, goes to an artist or ensemble that has made the greatest contribution to local schools because of time commitment, energy and enthusiasm.

The company's program "From Africa to Brazil" introduces students to the Afro-Brazilian art form of Capoeira Angola, which combines martial arts with dance. African slaves who worked on Brazilian plantations were forbidden to practice traditional martial arts so they disguised their fighting as dancing.

-- Marylynne Pitz,
Post-Gazette cultural arts writer

2 Do 2Day

A glance at events in and around town.

Harold Betters, Agnes R. Katz Plaza, 5 p.m. Free.

Al Stewart, Club Cafe, 7 p.m. Tickets: $22, $24; 412-323-1919.

The Beach Boys, Pepsi-Cola Roadhouse, 8 p.m. Tickets: $95-$135 (includes dinner); 412-323-1919.

"First Baptist of Ivy Gap," Red Barn Theater, 8 p.m. Tickets: $9, $12; 412-487-4390.

Umphrey's McGee, Mr. Small's Theatre, 8 p.m. Tickets: $15, $17; 412-821-4447.