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Comedy: Standup for peace

A cynic might say that the idea of Visions of Peace with Justice in Israel/Palestine is a bit of a laffer all by itself, given the history in that corner of the world. But the group of Boston Jews working under that name works to promote a vision of peaceful coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians "based on respect, justice and equality." And on Oct. 30 at 3 p.m., two comedians - one Jewish and one Palestinian-American - will take to the stage of Jimmy Tingle's Off-Broadway in Somerville to try to bring that vision a little closer to reality. The performance by Scott Blakeman and Dean Obeidallah is a fundraiser for theVisions of Peace organization. Tix, $30-$50 at Theatermania 1-866-811-4111 or jtoffbroadway.com.

Music: Either/Ethiopiques

In the Herald, Bob Young brings out the connection of Boston's Either/Orchestra to a recent Bill Murray movie. The jazz group's trip to Ethiopia last year led to filmmaker Jim Jarmusch loading the soundtrack for "Broken Flowers" with 1970s cuts by that country's jazz great Mulatu Astatqe. In addition to the soundtrack, fans are now snapping up 2,000 copies a week of the Astatqe compilation "Ethiopiques Vol. 4."

Among the buyers of both CDs is yours truly, after seeing "Broken Flowers" at the Screening Room here in Newburyport. HubArts has been put together a number of times to the mysteriously evocative track "Yekermo Sew." (The first time I heard a snatch of it in the movie, I thought it was a dub version of Horace Silver's "Song For My Father," a chunk of which Steely Dan adopted for "Rikki Don't Lose That Number").

Astatqe is not the only one seeing a happy ending here. Either/Orchestra has just released a double CD "Live in Addis" that is Vol. 20 in that same "Ethiopiques" series. And happiest of all, the band, led by Somerville's Russ Gershon, plays the Lizard Lounge on Friday - with Astatqe! Be there!

Maura, leave my childhood out of it

Love Lisa Wangsness' article in the Globe on sculptor Nancy Schon and her irritation with a Maura Hennigan mayoral campaign ad that uses "Make Way for Ducklings" to needle Tom Menino about "ducking" issues. Schon did the "Ducklings" sculpture that's a favorite of Public Garden visitors, and since "Ducklings" author Robert McCloskey is deceased, she feels it's her responsibility to defend the classic. She says the ad is a "disgraceful" political ploy and that the "Ducklings" should never be so exploited. Hennigan says she's entitled to her opinion. HubArts firmly sides with Schon.

The morning papers

In the Globe, Meredith Goldstein has a smart feature on one of the bright kids at ImprovBoston. ... Richard Dyer assesses the state of leadership at the Handel & Haydn Society, as Grant  Llewellyn's role is about to change. ... And Karen Campbell gives a rave review to the latest from area novelist Anita Diamant. ... In the Herald, Dana Bisbee connects this week's opening of "Tuesdays with Morrie" to the Brandeis community and sociology professor Morrie Schwartz.

Also, if you missed it, Sunday's Globe had a good package on the Brattle's financial difficulties, which I did an item on last week. The stories are still online today here and  here.

Music: NEC to celebrate Schuller's 80th

New England Conservatory will celebrate the 80th birthday of composer, conductor, musician, writer and educator Gunther Schuller with a series of events Nov. 14-22. I won't even try to list Schuller's accomplishments here; suffice to say that he has played with Miles Davis, been commissioned to compose for the Boston Symphony Orchestra and collected one o' them MacArthur genius grants. The BSO and the Office for the Arts at Harvard are collaborating with NEC on the festivities. (Schuller's birthday is the 22nd.)

The events include Jordan Hall performances Nov. 14-16 highlighting Schuller's contributions to the ragtime resurgence and jazz in general, as well as chamber music. James Levine will conduct the BSO in two performances of Schuller's "Spectra" on Nov. 19 and 22. And there are a slew of other events, including panels, performances and the debut of the New New England Conservatory Ragtime Ensemble. Many events are open to the public and some are free. Call the BSO for tix to their performance; for the rest, call NEC at 617-585-1122 or use the web site.

NEC2: Celebrating Jochum's 40 on faculty

In a milestone that seems almost as momentus as Schuller's, pianist Veronica Jochum will celebrate 40 years on the NEC faculty with an all-Mozart concert at Jordan Hall on Nov. 29, as an advance salvo in next year's celebration of the 250th anniversary of the composer's birth. The program will feature works composed during all periods of Mozart's life and excerpts from his letters read by NEC Provost Robert Dodson. For more information, call 617-585-1122 or visit the web site.

Music: Sox out, BSO in

TGIF! Tons of local arts news in both dailies today. Buy a paper. Save some ink-stained wretch from becoming a blogger. No time to link to it all. But there's one angle shaping up here that we must note: Richard Dyer's Classical Notes says the New Yorker's classical critic, Alex Ross, added yet another rave review of this week's Carnegie Hall performance by James Levine and the BSO. On his blog, Ross says the BSO is once again "the champion American orchestra." This comes on the heels of the rave N.Y. Times review on Wednesday. And here we are only a few weeks into Levine's second season. It appears that the many grand predictions accompanying Levine's arrival on Huntington Avenue are already coming true.

The only downer in Ross' entry is that he invokes the end of this year's Red Sox season as a contrast to the BSO triumph. He even illustrates the item with a ticket stub from the 1946 World Series, to what point it's unclear. Yo, Alex, the Sox won the thing last year. After your town's team delivered a choke so massive I can't even think of a classical music parallel. Perhaps it would have been better to note that Levine has simply outpaced the new Sox owners, who became champions in their third season.

Maybe Crystal could play an elf...

Annoying former "Saturday Night Live" comedians are all over the Boston dailies with news about their stage activities today. Martin Short has canceled his one-man show scheduled for the Colonial next month due to a movie role, according to the Globe and the Herald. And what cinematic triumph has caused him to drop his plans to grace us with his presence and perform his art on stage? Why, it's "Santa Claus 3" with Tim Allen. ... Meanwhile, the Herald's Terry Byrne talks to Billy Crystal about "700 Sundays," his one-man show, which opens at the Opera House on Tuesday.

Arts: August Wilson sendoff

That's not how the event was intended, of course. But the two-night show "Celebrating August Wilson" at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education on Friday at 8 p.m. and the Roxbury Community College on Saturday at 2 p.m. will serve as a sort of Boston farewell to the great playwright, who died of liver cancer Oct. 2. Local directors Akiba Abaka, Robyn Rease and Jeff Robinson will each offer their take on scenes from plays in Wilson's towering 10-play cycle about the African American experience, including "Fences" and "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom." Robinson will focus on the influence of the blues, whil Abaka looks at theatrical influences and Rease on spirituality. For details, call 617-547-6789 or visit www.ccae.org. While tix are free, a $6 donation is welcomed.

Briefly noted

Should have tipped you to it this morning, but check out the rave review for James Levine and the BSO in the New York Times, headlined "The Growing Impact of the Levine Era." ... OK, "Karl Marx the one-man show" doesn't sound like a laugh riot. But you might want to check out Bob Weick in Howard Zinn's "Marx in Soho" on Oct. 24 and 25 at Jimmy Tingle's Off Broadway. The shows are a benefit for Boston Mobilization and the theater. And Zinn himself will be on-hand for questions, comments and debate after the shows. Tix, $25, at the web site or 1-866-811-4111. ... Cambridge's Rounder Records will issue a remastered version of 1964's "The Doc Watson Family Tradition on Oct. 25.