HERE WE GO ... AGAIN

Most of us can agree that a big thanks goes out to the Pittsburgh Steelers for the thrilling roller-coaster victory we had last week. Going into Sunday's AFC Championship Game with Denver, though, the team really should keep in mind the age of its fans. In short, we can't take another late fourth-quarter horror reel like the one against the Colts. My suggestion: Throw to Heath Miller, get an early lead, build on it, build on it some more and make the second half as boring as possible. Then, let's go to the Motor City ...

In its first show since returning from Spain, where it traveled with "Dog Face," Quantum Theatre stages "The Human Chair," written and directed by Quantum's Karla Boos from a story by Japanese mystery writer Edogawa Rampo. The two-person play concerns an erotically charged piece of furniture and a lonely woman drawn into a secret world. It stars Patricia Tallman, a CMU grad who starred in the remake of "Night of the Living Dead," and Jeff Monahan ("Knives in Hens," "Anna Karenina"). It's at the Reese Building, 925 Penn Ave., Downtown, through Feb. 5. Performances are 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays; 5:30 and 9 p.m. Saturdays; and 2 p.m. Sundays. Call 412-394-3353 or visit www.proartstickets.org.

If you're looking for something chilling, try The Icicle Ball. The local organization Managerie is holding the ball to support its efforts with the PGHevents: The Pittsburgh Events Web Site (www.pghevents.com), the Pittsburgh A&E Book professional directory and the Pittsburgh A&E Blog. The ball will be held at the Boardwalk in the Strip and will feature singer-songwriter Tom Breiding with his band American Son, funk-rockers Shonuff, alternative-rockers After the Fall and Kaj, the self-explanatory Rockabilly Junction, and Big House Pete, described as "Korn meets ZZ Top." It begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 at the door. This is a 21-plus event. Call 412-325-7070.

Over at the O'Reilly Theater, look for a case of mistaken identity and a web of romantic intrigue when Ted Pappas directs Oscar Wilde's comedy classic "The Importance of Being Earnest" for Pittsburgh Public Theater. It opens tonight and runs through Feb. 19. Tickets are $33 to $52. Go to www.ppt.org or 412-316-1600.

Mike Gallagher, Mark Dignam, Denys Candy and Laughrey Connolly form a Cefalo's Celtic Circle, even though they'll be in a straight line, at the club in Carnegie. It will include spirited Irish folk, an audience Q&A and no doubt a nice pint of Guinness. Cover is $5. Call 412-276-6600.

"It is hard to imagine the history of rock and roll without the many contributions of [blank]." Now, guess who we're talking about: Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, the Ramones? No, this is the first line of the Neil Sedaka bio. Not that he's chopped liver. Sedaka, a classically trained pianist, was one of the creators of the Brill Building sound in the late '50s and early '60s. Without him, we wouldn't have such hits as "Calendar Girl," "Laughter in the Rain" and "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do." What would the history of rock 'n' roll have been without him? I'll go out on a limb and say we'd all be listening to Benny Goodman right now. Think about all this when you see him this weekend with the Pittsburgh Symphony Pops and conductor Daniel Meyer. Concerts are at Heinz Hall at 7:30 tonight; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $19.50 to $72. Go to www.pittsburghsym-phony.org or call 412-392-4900.

The 45th annual CARQUEST World of Wheels has not one, but two of the coolest cars we've ever seen on TV: the Batmobile and the Munster Koach. Any arguments? Both are the creations of the King of the Kustomizers, George Barris of California. The World of Wheels, running at the David L. Lawrence Convention Centre, also features two-time NASCAR champ Terry Labonte (Saturday 1:30 to 3 p.m.), NASCAR's Sterling Martin (Saturday 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.), a BMX X-Treme Freestyle Competition, Steelers Hall of Famer John Stallworth (Sunday 1 to 3 p.m.), plus, from Nickelodeon, SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer. The special sections include Street Rodder magazine's "Fabulous Fat Fenders," Super Chevy magazine's "Street Heat" and a Harley cycle show. Hours are 3 to 10 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $12.50; $5 for kids 6 to 12. Go to www.worldofwheels.com.

We've had a ton of runners-up from the NBC show "Last Comic Standing" come through here, and I'm not just referring to Ralphie May. This weekend, we can see an actual winner, John Heffron, who plays the Improv, Waterfront. In addition to making the rounds on all the late-night talk shows, last year Heffron landed the lead role in the VH1 sitcom "Smash," created by Gene Simmons of Kiss. Shows are 8 tonight; 8 and 10 p.m. Friday; and 7 and 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $18 to $20. Call 412-462-5233.

The College of Fine Arts at Carnegie Mellon, which has produced a successful artist or two or three, celebrates its 100th anniversary with "100% Centennial," three floors of exhibitions featuring the likes of Andy Warhol, Mel Bochner, Philip Pearlstein, John Currin, Deborah Kass and Harvey Breverman. One floor will showcase prominent alumni from various local collections; one will feature more than 200 alumni from the schools of architecture, art, design, drama and music; and a third will focus on "time-based and digitally documented alumni works exhibited through projection and a searchable database." The opening reception is 5 to 8 p.m. at the Regina Gouger Miller Gallery, on the campus. It runs through March 5. Call 412-268-3618.

According to the bio, the sound of the Parallax Project, a power-pop band from Harrisburg, has been likened to Elvis Costello and Squeeze. The first one is a bit of a stretch, because PP singer Michael Giblin (formerly of Cherry Twister) has one of those super-pleasant voices -- more like the guys in Squeeze, actually, so we'll approve the second comparison. Giblin and company can be heard on the band's latest release, "Perpetual Limbo," out now on the L.A.-based Tallboy Records. The Parallax Project rides into our town for a show at the 31st Street Pub with the Breakup Society and Angry Francis. It begins at 10 p.m.

The Shadow Lounge in East Liberty welcomes a pair of bands from Oberlin College, Cobalt and The Briars, both sporting Pittsburgh natives. The Briars, featuring Nate Levin, say, "think the Beatles meets Ben Folds meets Beethoven." Cobalt, with Mike Roth, is a straight-up rock band influenced by the odd combination of Ani DiFranco, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bruce Springsteen. Also playing are The Rock Star Collective. The all-ages show starts at 6 p.m. Cover is $5. Call 412-363-8277.

Lesley A. Martin, executive director of Aperture, a publisher who nurtures fine art photography, will speak about the history of the publication, which has passed the half-century mark. It's at 7 p.m. at the Silver Eye Center for Photography, 1015 E. Carson St., South Side. Admission $15, members $10; reservations recommended. Call 412-431-1810.

Just a few days past Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we're getting one of the people who marched with him to Selma and sang at the 1963 March on Washington, D.C. Of course, it's the legendary Odetta, who was born during the Depression and was on the ground floor of the folk music scene in the 1950s. Odetta, who is 75, recently released "Gonna Let It Shine," a live album full of folk, gospel and blues favorites. Calliope: The Pittsburgh Folk Music Society welcomes her to the Carnegie Lecture Hall in Oakland at 8 p.m.

English ensemble Red Priest (named for Vivaldi) will highlight "the pirating skills of Baroque composers" in "Pirates of the Baroque," a program for the Renaissance and Baroque Society at 8 p.m. at Synod Hall. On the bill: Bach, Telemann, Handel and Vivaldi. Tickets are $10 to $30. Call 412-682-7262.

Garfield Artworks presents Skeletons & the Girl-Faced Boys, a post-rock, electro-funk and world-beat band from Oberlin, Ohio (an obvious theme this weekend), that has drawn comparisons to the Talking Heads, Animal Collective and Sea and Cake. The band is joined by Girl Talk, Discuss and Skullgut at 8 p.m. Tickets are $7. Call 412-361-2262.

"Whose Trust Is It? An Examination of Photography and Creative Nonfiction" features Howard Bossen, guest curator of the exhibit "Luke Swank: Modernist Photographer," and Lee Gutkind, founder and editor of the Creative Nonfiction journal, talking about perceived notions of truth in art and literature. It's at the Carnegie Museum of Art Theater in Oakland and is free with museum admission. Call 412-622-3131.

One horse down. One to go. The Steelers meet the Broncos at 3 p.m. on CBS, followed by a stress-free matchup of Seattle and Carolina at 6:30 p.m. on Fox.

Should there be reason to celebrate, and even if there isn't, the Boogie Hustlers, a local groove-rock octet, will release its debut CD at Mr. Small's Theatre in Millvale at 8 p.m. with Flowdown.