The Augusta Savage Gallery will present "Clay, Plaster, and Metal Sculpture by Students of Dorrance Hill." (Opening reception Mon., 5 p.m.; exhibit open through May 3, New Africa House, UMass.)

SELECT FLICKS

Academy of Music Theater

(584-8435)

From director Mira Nair, who directed the popular "Salaam Bombay!" comes "Monsoon Wedding," a hilarious romantic comedy set in New Delhi. As her extended family gathers for her upcoming wedding, the bride, Aditi, starts having doubts about her fiancée when she falls in love with her boss.

Cinemark at Hampshire Mall

(587-4233)

"Blade II" finds Wesley Snipes reprising his role as a half-human vampire hunter in this special-effects-laden action explosion. Boasting a higher budget and more fluid direction, this is a rare sequel that improves on the original.

"Death to Smoochy, " directed by Danny DeVito, showcases the odd but effective combination of Edward Norton and Robin Williams in the form of a clever satire about a straightlaced children's performer's struggle to maintain his dignity in the face of conglomerate corruption.

Though directed by "Se7en" director David Fincher, the thriller "Panic Room" is predictable and flaccid. Starring Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart as a mother and daughter pursued by a trio of thieves in their home, it features too many contrivances to provide the thrills it ought.

Dennis Quaid stars in "The Rookie," the surprisingly earnest real-life tale of retired pitcher Jim Morris, who was inspired by 12 years of coaching a championship high school team to return to competitive play himself.

Pleasant Street Theater

(586-0935)

"Kissing Jessica Stein" is a rare diamond in the barren rough of the romantic comedy genre. Written by its starring actresses Jennifer Westfeldt and Heather Juergensen, its intelligent wit and distinctive characters are even better than the hot lesbian sex.

TALKS

Professor Burke Long of Bowdoin College will give a lecture titled "Madame Mountford, Diva of Fantasy Bibles and other Victorian Entertainments." Madame Mountford was an actress/preacher who operatically performed Bible stories. (Thurs., 4 p.m., McCaffrey Room, Keefe Campus Center.)

Michel Zink, who holds the Chaire de Littératures de la France médiévale at the prestigious Collège de France, will give a lecture titled "Le Poète et le prophète dans la littérature médievale." (Thurs, 4:30 p.m., Porter Lounge, Converse Hall.)

Five College Women's Studies Research Associate Robin Maltz will give a talk titled "The Risk of Arousal: Sexually Explicit Incest Narratives and Feminist Morals." (Thurs., 7:30 p.m., Women's Studies Research Center.)

STAGE

UMass senior dance majors and Five College students will perform their annual Alive with Dance concert. (Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m., Bowker Auditorium, UMass.)

The Pioneer Valley Ballet will collaborate with the Smith College Orchestras to present Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf." (Sat., 8 p.m., Sweeney Concert Hall, Smith College.)

"Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill," a play whose music portrays one of Billie Holiday's final performance, will be performed. Produced by UMass graduate student Greg Allen. (Fri. and Sat., 8 p.m. Sun., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., Graduate Student Lounge, Campus Center, UMass.)

TUNES

The Amherst College Women's Chorus will present its annual spring concert. The program is directed by Mallorie Chernin and will include the music of Fauré, Brahms, Martinu, Schubert and others. (Fri., 8 p.m., Buckley Recital Hall.)

Under the direction of Greg Brown '98, the Amherst College Concert Choir will present a concert featuring Benjamin Britten's "Hymn to St. Cecilia" as well as settings of Vepsic folk texts. (Sat., 8 p.m., Buckley Recital Hall.)

The final concert of the 2001-02 Music at Amherst Series will be performed by the Czech Nonet, one of the oldest continuously performing ensembles of its type in the world. It will feature Beethoven's "Septet in E flat" and Martinu's "1959 Nonet," which was composed for the group. (Sun., 3 p.m., Buckley Recital Hall.)

MISCELLANEOUS

Hanne Blank and Raven Kaldera will offer a reading and booksigning of Best Transgender Erotica. (Wed., 7 p.m., Food for Thought Books.)

Professor Alexandra Juhasz '86 will share screening and discussion of her short film "Naming Prairie" and her current feature-length project "Dear Gabe." "Naming Prairie," about a lesbian couple's Jewish baby-naming ceremony, was shown at this year's Sundance Film Festival. (Thurs., 4:30 p.m., 115 Fayerweather Hall.)