The National Aviary in Pittsburgh's theme for the next week just might be "Come fly away, come fly away for free."
The North Side bird sanctuary is offering free admission during its Snowbird Festival, which runs through Dec. 23. Visitors can enjoy the Aviary's winter walk, decorated trees, art and crafts booths and other activities.
Also free is the Aviary's Owl Encounter, daily at 11:30 a.m., for those with an interest in Harry Potter. Of course, there's the colorful regular tenants: red-crown cranes, yellow-naped Amazons, hyacinth macaws and wattled curassows. Parking is also on the house during the Snowbird Festival.
The National Aviary is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. More info: (412) 323-7235.
The Winter Kids Zoofari is the next best thing to a trip to the North Pole: a free day of adventure for kids at the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium.
From Monday through Dec. 23, all children age 13 and younger will be admitted at no charge during regular zoo hours for a cavalcade of winter delights.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day, there will be special activities, including ice carving demonstrations, appearances by Amo, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds mascot, Mr. McFeely from "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," craft activities sponsored by the Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project, and animal enrichment training and other activities led by zookeepers. Interactive presentations also will be given by staff from Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall, the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, the Carnegie Science Center, the Pittsburgh Children's Museum, Gemini Theatre Company, Three Rivers Dance Company and the Ampersand Dance Theatre.
The Winter Kids Zoofari is sponsored by AT&T Broadband and Hidden Valley Four Seasons Ski Resort. Zoo hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For a complete schedule of Zoofari events, log on to www.pittsburghzoo.com.
More info: (412) 665-3640.
Duck Baker and Woody Mann won't be confused anytime soon with, say, Eric Clapton and Keith Richards.
But the duo, who perform Friday at the Frick Fine Arts Auditorium in Oakland, are noted guitarists in their own right who have sterling reputations in the world of acoustic blues music.
Baker's fingerstyle guitar has earned him a reputation as one of the genre's most diverse performers. His repertoire on any given evening may include bluegrass, gospel, ragtime, swing, traditional Irish folk songs and contemporary jazz. Via his instructional videos and compositions, he's influenced a generation of guitarists; Stefan Grossman and John Renbourn have cited Baker for his pioneering work.
Mann learned his way around the guitar from the king of acoustic, finger-picking blues, the legendary Rev. Gary Davis. He's since performed with noted blues masters, including John Fahey, Bukka White and Son House. Mann's ability to blend blues, jazz, classical and world music has enabled him to perform on Broadway, at small night clubs in Europe and America, and even teach Paul Simon. His latest CD, "Cat Burglar," is a compilation of his best music.
Friday's show, sponsored by the Pittsburgh Blues Society and Calliope, the Pittsburgh Folk Music Society, begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12; $8 for students.
More info: (412) 432-0333.
The Kingsbury Manx isn't going to change this. They're as quiet as it gets. They do, however, illustrate why quiet pop became a sort of rebellion in the first place. There's simply nothing else in pop music like this - understated four-part harmonies, subtle instrumentation and lyrics that focus on the power inherent in words and simple observations, rather than trying to create artificial melodramatic "scenes'' to grab the listener's attention.
And it's not off-putting at all. If you can get into Nick Drake, Big Star or even (gasp!) Simon & Garfunkel, you can probably get into the somnambulent sounds of The Kingsbury Manx. The show starts at 8 p.m. today at Club Cafe, South Side, and Pittsburgh's always excellent Boxstep. Dublin's The Frames have canceled. Tickets are $10. More info: (412) 431-4950.
In this second and best known story of Lewis' seven-part series "The Chronicles of Narnia," the children step through the wardrobe into Narnia, a world frozen into perpetual winter by the evil White Witch.
It's a land where it snows eternally but Christmas never comes. On their adventures, the children meet Aslan the Lion, an evil wolf and the faun Mr. Tumnus while they confront good and evil, hope and faith.
Performances are at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays through Dec. 23 at the Hazlett Theater, Allegheny Square, North Side. Tickets are $15; $13 for senior citizens; $8 for age 18 and younger. More info: (412) 394-3353.
