ALL WEEKEND

COLONIAL RETREAT

This weekend you can stay around town and endure 21st century life (Go Steelers!). Or you can head for the forests and escape into the French and Indian War era -- without getting shot at with a musket.

The 24th annual Penn's Colony Festival opens for a two-weekend stand on 12 shaded acres in Saxonburg, celebrating daily life in Western Pennsylvania during a bygone era.

The heart of Penn's Colony is its craft market, with more than 100 juried craftsmen offering handmade decorative arts, crafts, jewelry, metal ware and furniture. Artists will demonstrate glassblowing and stained glass-making, Windsor chair making, wood carving, knitting and spinning and decorative painting.

"You can talk with the artisans who made [the crafts]," says festival Beth Rush. "Ask them why they do what do. They'll be glad to share their stories of how they made the decision to act on their passions to create and preserve the handmade in America arts."

Guests will see red-coated British soldiers marching about town and Native Americans at the edge of the forests. Costumed participants will provide period music, dance and comedy, not to mention foods eaten three centuries ago.

One treat to watch out for is the peanut butter hot chocolate mix of Ron and Frank Morrone of Cheswick, who were praised by Rachael Ray on the "Today Show."

The festival is located on Saxonburg Boulevard, just outside Saxonburg in Butler County. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays this weekend and next. Admission is $6.50; $5.50 seniors; $4.50 kids 8 to 15. For details, go to www.pennscolony.com or call 724-352-9922.

BEER PARTIES

With the help of a few Oktoberfest Beers, Penn Brewery will take you to Germany the next two weekends for the annual Oktoberfest.

"This is as good as it gets in the U.S." says Penn Brewery president Tom Pastorius. "It's my favorite time of year and we're pulling out all the stops for Pittsburgh. We've made more Oktoberfest Beer [more than 750,000 glasses], more bratwurst, more chickens, more German potato salad and more apple strudel than ever before. I hope everyone will join us."

There also will be German folk music to go with the beer and brats. Hours are 5 p.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays, and 4 to 10 p.m. Sundays. Children are welcome if accompanied by a parent or guardian only until 8 p.m.

Admission and parking are free. Go to www.pennbrew.com.

Not to be outdone, Church Brew Works rolls out 60 kegs of its Oktoberfest brew for a party in the outdoor hop garden. Look for strolling oompah musicians The Grkman Clan and a menu of German fare such as Weiner Schnitzel Holstein and Beer Battered Chicken. It begins tonight and runs through Sept. 30. Visit www.churchbrew.com for details.

FRIDAY

HAUNTING BEGINS

South Park just can't wait any longer to scare you.

It jumps into the Halloween season now with the fourth annual Hundred Acres Manor Haunted Attraction, complete with witches, monsters, ghouls and eerie surprises.

The Manor, which benefits the Homeless Children's Education Fund and Animal Friends, features the Fun House, Manor Creek Bog, Hillbilly Hell, The Maze, a 7,500-square-foot labyrinth plagued with chainsaw wielding maniacs.

It is located on Hundred Acres Drive (off of Corrigan Drive) on the site of what used to be Sully's Pool in South Park. It runs Sept. 21 through Oct. 28 (closed Mondays and Tuesdays). General admission is $13. Call 412-851-HAUNT or visit www.hundredacres-manor.com.

-- Scott Mervis

PEARL'S 'RECOIL'

Staycee Pearl, formerly of Xpressions Dance Company, and Herman "Soy Sos" Pearl, oft-requested deejay for dancers, are collaborating with film artist Isabelle Strollo and dancer Lisa Belcher to create "RECOIL," a dance-for-camera video and sound installation on Friday at Construction Junction Gallery on Lexington Avenue in Point Breeze.

Inspired by the magical realism of literary artists such as Ben Okri, "RECOIL" tells an enchanted story of an urban woman who retreats to a fantasy world to find peace of mind. Performance times are 8:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. For more information, call 412-371-4878.

-- Jane Vranish

SATURDAY

DRAGONS ON THE MON

The beauty and majesty of the Orient hits the Mon Saturday with the sixth annual Dragon Boat Festival at South Side Riverfront Park.

The festival promotes understanding of Asian culture and celebrates arts, customs and traditions that go back thousands of years, including dragon boating, a centuries-old water sport that will be featured in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. There also will be live music, food, children's activities, storytelling, arts and crafts.

The PNC Stage will feature traditional Lion and Dragon Dances and other colorfully costumed performances by Chinese, Indian, Filipino and Japanese organizations. A highlight will be the Japanese Koto, a 6-feet long instrument that dates to the seventh century and was originally used for imperial court music.

Kids will be able to try their hand at traditional and hand-painted fans, paper cuttings, book markers and paper dragons.

It runs from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Go to www.PittsburghDragonBoatFestival.org.

PHANTOMS AND PHOOD

Free food.

Now, add in Kennywood. And Phantom Fright Nights.

Sounds like a winning combination.

Kennywood presents a Free Food Frenzy to preview its annual Halloween attraction Saturday from 7 to 11 p.m. Haunted attractions include Villa of the Vampires, Mortem Manor, Fort Despair, Kennyville Cemetery, Gory Park, Captain Skully's Curse in 3-D and the new Death Valley Haunted Ghost Town. It is not recommended for children under 13.

Phantom Fright Nights will continue -- minus the free food -- every Friday and Saturday night from Sept. 28 through Oct. 27 from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m., with an extra night of fright on October 7.

Tickets are $21 at the gate ($18.00 at participating Giant Eagle locations). Halloween masks, make-up, or costumes are not permitted. For the Food Frenzy preview, Kennywood is encouraging guests to bring a donation for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.

For more details, call 412-461-0500 or visit www.phantomfrightnights.com.

MACHINE SHINES ON

Hey Pink Floyd fans, you're not going ,to see the real thing anytime soon, so welcome to The Machine.

The Machine is a tribute band that "sounds exactly like Pink Floyd," according to Spin.

The New York band performs a range of Pink Floyd material with dramatic lighting, multimedia and impromptu jams. The band is captured live on the new CD/DVD "Two Nights at the Keswick," of which we can say Spin was right, with the possible exception of some of the vocals.

Now, is it worth $20 to $30 for the imitation? If you think so, The Machine plays the Carnegie Library Music Hall of Homestead Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Call 412-323-1919.

-- S.M.

LEGACY SHOW

The August Wilson Center for African American Culture is offering an opportunity to learn about collecting art by African-American artists, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at Gallery 209/9, 209 Ninth St., Downtown.

The "Preserving A Legacy: National African American Fine Art Show," a one-day exhibit organized by event chair and AWC board member Tyra Butler, will feature 50 works including painting, sculpture, textiles and prints. Artists include nationally recognized figures such as Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Benny Andrews, Twin (Jerry & Terry Lynn), Charles Bibbs and Ed Dwight.

From 10:30 a.m. to noon an educational forum, "Embracing the Arts," will be held. Designed for novice and experienced collectors alike, it will include academic background information, practical advice and a discussion of investment value of some artists' works.

The event is free and open to the public, but seating is limited and reservations are encouraged to 412-258-2700.

-- Mary Thomas

SUNDAY

SOUTH OF THE BORDER

Headdresses that are 6 feet long, feathers, lace, fringe -- it sounds like something out of Las Vegas, but it's all part of the lavishly colorful troupe, Ballet Folklorico de Mexico, to be presented at the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust at the Byham Theater at 7 p.m. on Sunday.

The 60-member ensemble will provide a peek at the fascinating folklore and ceremonial rituals from Verzcruz and Tamalipas and will touch on the Aztec, Michoacan and other cultures -- a terrific and economic way to visit south of the border for a few hours. Call 412-456-6666, go online at www.pgharts.org or visit the Box Office at Theater Square.

-- J.V.

NEED TO KNOW

Melanie Maloy, a Greensburg-based road comic who's building a national following, presents her "Party Girls Comedy Tour" tonight at 8:30 at the Four Points Sheraton in Greensburg with Bill Scott and David Kaye ($12), and Saturday at Slapsticks! Comedy Loft, 2660 Library Road, with Gab Bonesso, Sharon Daly, and Trina Hess ($10 advance; $12 at the door; 412-920-5653).

Bob Log III, a Fat Possum blues rocker who lists his influences as Hasil Adkins and AC/DC, turns up at the Warhol Museum with his guitar and some sort of alien mask Friday at 8 p.m. with Uncle Scratch's Gospel Revival. Admission is $10. Call 412-237-8300.

Southern Culture on the Skids, always a recklessly good time, brings some white trashy honky tonk to the Rex at 8 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $16.

The Mattress Factory introduces Third Thursdays in the Cafe with Seattle New Age guitarist Damon Buxton tonight at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $10; $5 for members and students. Light refreshments will be served and you can BYOB for a $2 corkage fee. Call 412-231-3169 or go to www.mattress.org.

Some of the catchiest songs of the past few decades have been written for TV themes. Or maybe it's just that we hear them over and over. No, they're pretty catchy. Christine Laitta knows this and brings TV Tunes, an interactive cabaret, back to the CLO Cabaret Theatre Saturday at 10:15 p.m.

First Published: September 20, 2007, 8:00 a.m.