Art times 7

Seven exhibitions -- including one geared to Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary year celebration and one that starts the roll toward the March National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts conference that's spawning ceramic shows all over Pittsburgh (and beyond) -- open from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts.

"Pittsburgh Through AAP Eyes" presents interpretations of Pittsburgh past, present and future by members of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh. It runs through March 9 with "Bedazzled: Stars, Pagans and the Cosmos," videos by Suzie Silver.

The first of the official NCECA exhibitions to hit town, the "Regional Student Juried Exhibition," will continue through the end of the conference, March 22.

And up through April 13 will be "Icons and Incongruities: Photographs From America's Heartland," by Jim Schafer; Group A's "Hide and Seek"; "Duets," featuring mixed-media work by twins Mark and Jeff Zets; and "Binding Forces," work by self-taught artists Doug Hill (cardboard mechanical sculptures) and the late Dorothy Williams (embroidery floss scenes) that was curated by Tom Sarver of the North Side's Tom Museum.

Admission is $5 donation (members free). The center is at 6300 Fifth Ave. (at Shady), Shadyside. For information, call 412-361-0873 or visit www.pittsburgharts.org.

-- Mary Thomas

Live on stage

• Pittsburgh improvisational music ensemble Dust & Feathers will perform "I, Norton" -- an avant-garde opera by West Coast composer Gino Robair -- 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the New Hazlett Theater. "I, Norton" is based on the true story of Joshua Norton, an eccentric homeless man who proclaimed himself emperor of the United States after losing his fortune in the Gold Rush. Admission is $12, $10 for students. Advance tickets: 412-320-4610, ext. 18.

• Quantum Theatre opens "Breakfast With Mugabe" at 8 p.m. Friday at Piatt Place (the former Lazarus store at Wood Street and Fifth Avenue), Downtown. In Fraser Grace's play, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is stalked by a malevolent spirit and haunted by the racial discord of the country he once liberated. The play runs through Feb. 24. Tickets: $25-$32, $15 for students; 412-394-3353 or www.proartstickets.org. Details: www.quantumtheatre.com.

Rowdy Supersuckers

The Supersuckers, a band that's long been blurring the line between country and garage-punk, takes a break from remastering its first record since 2003 for a quick tour, which hits Altar Bar in the Strip on Friday night.

The Tucson, Ariz., group, once chosen as Willie Nelson's backing band, will be playing some of the new songs. "It's a little different than our previous records," frontman Eddie Spaghetti says in the press notes. "I almost hate to say this, but it's a little bit more mature. An ugly word to use to describe what we do, but I think it fits this time around. But it's an awesome record, and I'm really proud of the way it's turned out. Now if I could just come up with a title for the damn thing ...."

Prior to the band's set, Eddie Spaghetti will perform a solo set backed by Jordan Shapiro. It begins at 10 p.m. Tickets are $13; $15 day of show. Call 412-323-1919.

-- Scott Mervis

Ashcan NYC

"Seeing the City: Sloan's New York" promises a rarely seen look at the Big Apple, both because the subjects represented are not those of glossy tourism brochures and because the images were created decades ago. John Sloan, famed Ashcan School painter, died in 1951. The exhibition of 115 paintings, drawings, prints and photographs was organized by the Delaware Art Museum and reflects Sloan's interest in the people of New York, the city's street life, public spaces and elevated trains.

Running concurrently is "Dylan Vitone: Pittsburgh Project," large-scale black-and-white panoramic photographs of Pittsburgh and Pittsburghers. Vitone is an assistant professor in the College of Fine Arts, Carnegie Mellon University, and was the Silver Eye Center for Photography 2004 Fellowship awardee.

This exhibitions open from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday at the Westmoreland Museum of American Art, 221 N. Main St., Greensburg (free, cash bar) and continue through April 27. For information, call 724-837-1500 or visit www.wmuseumaa.org.

-- M.T.

Urban dance

Sometimes two are better than one and nowhere is this more apparent than the upcoming Urban Bush Women/Compagnie Jant-Bi collaboration at the Byham Theater on Saturday night.

The event capitalizes on a transcontinental connection between the all-female Brooklyn group, Urban Bush Women, and the all-male Sengalese troupe, Compagnie Jant-Bi, in "The Scales of Memory." Both ensembles explore the role of identity within the community from their own perspectives in this singular evening of contemporary and African dance.

A local twosome, Pittsburgh Dance Council and the August Wilson Center, will be co-presenters. Tickets: $14.50-$40.50; call 412-456-6666, go online at www.pgharts.org or visit the Box Office at Theater Square.

-- Jane Vranish

Fiber content

Now that the football season is over, it's time to think about picking up a hobby or returning to an old one. Like, for instance, knitting.

The fourth annual Pittsburgh Knit & Crochet Festival descends upon the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Pittsburgh South, Saturday and Sunday with local and nationally recognized teachers as well as 33 exhibitors from across the country.

Among those offering classes will be Karen Page, a fiber arts teacher at CAPA, focusing on wet felting class; LaVerne Kemp, a local fiber artist who works with recycled materials; Victoria Fergus, a WVU professor who will be teaching "Creative Crochet"; and Susan Radford, a local woman who has been knitting since she was a little girl back in the WWII days.

"Our event offers a richness that other festivals lack," says coordinator Barbara Grossman. "There is a reverence to the handmade, the hand-dyed, the shearing and spinning of fiber. We will have yarns that are made not only from the usual sheep's wool, but alpaca, llama, angora bunnies, cashmere goats, tencel (from tree bark) soy, silk, bamboo and more. The fibers are colorful, rich and there is something for everyone, whether you have allergies or sensitivities."

If you recognize the coordinator's name, yes, that is the wife of former Steeler Randy Grossman, known for his unique knit hats.

For details, go to www.pghknitandcrochet.com or call 412-963-7030.

-- S.M.

Flight plan

The Zombo Gallery in Lawrenceville flaps its wings Saturday and Sunday with "Birds in Art," multi-media work by such artists as Maddie Warhola, Wayno, Bob Ziller, Ian Green, Kurt Kornacki and Joe Wos.

There will be a wine and cheese party Saturday from 5 to 10 p.m. and the cookie and coffee reception with singer-songwriter Brad Yoder Sunday from 2 to 7 p.m. Proceeds benefit the Wild Bird Recovery and Animal Rescue League Wildlife Center, who will have educators there with owls, crows and other birds.

Zombo is at 4900 Hatfield St. Call 412-904-3703.

Sarah's 'Seasons'

Violinist Sarah Chang was a child prodigy at 8 and recorded her first album at a mere 9 years old. Now, the Philadelphia native and Juilliard grad is 27 and still going strong, performing with symphonies and chamber orchestras all over the world.

She joins the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and resident conductor Lawrence Loh for two performances: Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in Heinz Hall and then Monday at 7:30 p.m. in the Lyell B. Clay Concert Theater at West Virginia University in Morgantown.

The program will feature Chang as soloist and conductor in Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons," a piece that she recorded with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra last year. In addition, Loh will lead the PSO in Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.

Tickets for the Heinz Hall concert are $19-$80. Tickets for the Morgantown concert are $38; $12 for students. Call 412-392-4900 for either performance.

-- S.M.

Lunafest at Filmmakers

Lunafest -- a traveling festival of short films by and about women -- will make a stop at Pittsburgh Filmmakers this Sunday.

Lunafest gathers a collection of short features, documentaries and animation by an international group of female filmmakers that have been screened at other film festivals.

The event also raises funds for women's organizations. All net proceeds from the Pittsburgh screenings go to the Breast Cancer Fund and Bethlehem Haven.

The nine short films: "My Other Mother," "Make a Wish," "Dona Ana/Mrs. Ana," "Happiness," "Family Reunion," "Daikon Ashi," "Breaking Boundaries," "The Guarantee" and "Pockets." For more on the individual films and their directors, go to Lunafest's site, www.lunafest.org.

The 90-minute program will be screened Sunday at 7:30 p.m. at Pittsburgh Filmmakers' Regent Square Theater. Tickets are $10. Information: 412-681-5449.

-- Adrian McCoy

• Sunday is the last chance to see "Pittsburgh Steelers 75th Season Celebration: Treasures From the Pro Football Hall of Fame" at the Senator John Heinz History Center. Among the hundreds of artifacts are Franco Harris' MVP ring from Super Bowl IX, a section of Three Rivers Stadium turf, jerseys from legendary Steelers, a helmet from "Mean" Joe Greene and Rocky Bleier's Purple Heart.

• Award-winning freelance photojournalist Chris Hondros will give a free artist talk at 7 tonight at Pittsburgh Filmmakers Melwood Screening Room, North Oakland. Hondros is covering the Barack Obama presidential campaign for Getty Images. He was awarded the Robert Capa Gold Medal for War Photography for his coverage of conflicts in Iraq, Liberia and Kosovo. Some of his Iraq images were recently exhibited at Filmmakers (412-681-5449 or www.pghfilmmakers.org).

• Jupiter One, a synth-rock band from NYC that harks back to the '80s, plays the Brillobox Saturday at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $6.

• The Redwalls, a Chicago band with a touch of Beatlemania, plays Garfield Artworks Saturday at 8 p.m. with the Meridians (featured in these pages last week). Call 412-361-2262.