July 16
El Nino-driven weather catastrophes -- floods in California and the Midwest, tornadoes and wildfires in Central Florida -- have taken their toll, but the Buehler Planetarium show Stormy Weather makes them seem like mere inconveniences. Assistant planetarium director Susan Barnett begins the show by talking about the forces that drive weather here on Earth, then shows how good we really have it. Splashed across the planetarium's domed screen are images captured, up close, by NASA space probes. That red spot on Jupiter, for example, is actually a 400-year-old hurricane with a diameter several times that of the Earth's and winds whipping at 220 miles per hour. On Mars, meanwhile, anyone standing on the surface would freeze his or her face off while feeling toasty down below. "Five feet off of the surface makes that much difference," says Barnett. Almost makes stifling humidity sound OK. Reservations are required for the 7:30 p.m. show, tickets for which cost $6. Buehler Planetarium is located at Broward Community College, 3501 SW Davie Rd., Davie. Call 954-475-6680.
Friday
July 17
In Martin Blinder's play The Perfect Man, a quick-thinking screenwriter named Nat devises a way to derail the palimony suit his ex-girlfriend Brooke has filed against him: Find her a new guy. The play is a satire on the movie industry, and the suitors Nat pays to date Brooke represent a cross-section of Hollywood stereotypes. The first, a mellow European Romeo, isn't rugged enough for the outgoing Brooke. So along comes Biff, an Australian bodybuilder who, as it turns out, can't keep up with Brooke during a vacation of jogging and playing sports. Next up is a young lounge singer who falls so hard for Brooke he returns Nat's money. When she finds out about the payment, the suit is back on. Eventually Brooke realizes that not one of the suitors had what she was looking for, so she sets her sights on -- guess who? -- Nat. Will they get back together? Find out at the Public Theatre, where a run of the play continues through July 26. The theater is located in the Museum of Art Auditorium, 1 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets cost $18. Call 954-568-2243.
Saturday
July 18
You're an artist back in, say, the 1500s, and you've come up with a design which, if you could only make copies, would sell like hotcakes. But, alas, the color laser copier is still hundreds of years from being invented. No problem; there's this new method called the intaglio process, which basically involves chiseling a design into wood, metal, or some other hard surface, filling the indentations with ink, and pressing paper over them. In fact, it allows artists to make copies, or prints, while retaining every nuance of the original. Some of the finest examples of the form are on view in "Platemarks," which opens today and runs through September 6 at the Norton Museum of Art, 1451 S. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach. Selections from the museum's permanent collection illustrate the printmaking process from 1512 to the present day and include works by Rembrandt van Rijn, Francisco Goya, Edouard Manet, and Edgar Degas. Admission is $2 to $5. Call 561-832-5194.
Sunday
July 19
Break out the ear plugs. During the Second Annual Super Boat Grand Prix, the most powerful offshore-racing boats in the world -- up to 50 feet long and propelled by 4000-horsepower engines -- will roar along a course paralleling Deerfield Beach from Boca Raton Inlet to Hillsboro Inlet. Various classes of speedboats, from stock sports models to the supercharged racing craft, will compete by category. The start-finish line is in front of the Embassy Suites Hotel, 950 SE 20th Ave., Deerfield Beach. Following the 1 p.m. race, Three Dog Night will perform at 4 p.m. on the stage at the main Deerfield Beach parking lot. The race and concert are free. Call 954-426-0478 for details.
Monday
July 20
The rock band Psychotica offers a goth-industrial sound played with some off-the-wall instruments, including bagpipes, cello, and koto -- a Japanese string instrument similar to a guitar. Frontman Patrick Briggs -- wearing plenty of makeup and a glitter jump suit -- also has been known to open shows by popping out of a smoke-filled, chrome-plated egg, a la Mork & Mindy, and he sometimes ends up in the buff by show's end. The New York City sextet, which opened on the main stage at Lollapalooza in 1996, plays with local bands Jack Off Jill and the Groovenics tonight at Respectable Street Cafe, 518 Clematis St., West Palm Beach. Goth groovers age 18 and older are welcome. Doors open at 8 pm. Tickets cost $8. Call 561-832-9999.
Protease inhibitors are prolonging life for many with HIV and AIDS. But long before the treatments became available they had to be tested, first in animals, then in humans. Since 1989 the Community Research Initiative (CRI) has allowed more than 3000 HIV/AIDS patients in Broward and Miami-Dade counties to participate in clinical trials. And while the tests have led to FDA approval of new drugs, there's still no cure. In order to keep working on one, CRI has merged with Health Crisis Network, an outreach program for HIV/AIDS patients. The creation of Community Health Resource, as the new entity is called, will be celebrated tonight at Toast Toward a Cure, which is also a fundraiser. Radio personality Stu Grant of Love-94 (WLVE-FM) will host the gala, at which a selection of wines, microbrewery beers, and liqueurs will be sampled, along with gourmet fare from local restaurants. Glasses clink tonight from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the Fort Lauderdale Hilton, 1870 Griffin Rd., Dania. Admission is $35 to $40. Call 954-772-2242, ext. 16.
Tuesday
July 21
In the granddaddy of rockumentary films, Dont Look Back (1967), filmmaker Donn Alan Pennebaker plays the fly on the wall to Bob Dylan's angry young man. Pennebaker follows the 23-year-old Dylan, cinema verite-style, on his 1965 tour of England, capturing some of the folk-rock demigod's last pre-electric performances in grainy black and white. Long concert sequences include performances of the classics "The Times They Are a-Changin'," "Maggie's Farm," and "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue." It's bare-bones Bob -- Dylan, his voice, and his guitar. And while he bares his emotions, as well as his political views, in his music, Dylan off stage is defiant and difficult. Montage scenes intercut with concert shots show him doing verbal battle with bewildered reporters, answering questions with questions. Is this the true Dylan, or just an act to cover up the real man? Either way, Pennebaker shot it as he saw it, setting the tone for documentaries to follow. Rereleased in late 1997 on its 30th anniversary, the film runs through July 23 at the Alliance Cinema, 927 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach. Admission is $4 to $6. For times call 305-531-8504.
Wednesday
July 22
Broward County has the largest resident British population in Florida, according to the U.S. Bureau of the Census. And many of the transplants are single, according to Patricia Kawaja. "When they come to America, they tend to come alone," she explains. Kawaja runs the British Network, which offers business and social networking opportunities to local Brits -- and the Yanks who want to meet them. "There's a lot of Anglophiles here," says Kawaja. So every couple of months, she gives singles from both sides of the pond a chance to meet and mingle at a BritSingles Party. "There's a natural rapport among the Brits, but Americans want them, too," she claims. The next party will be held tonight from 8 to 11 p.m. at Lord Nelson Pub and Eatery, 320 SW 2nd St., Fort Lauderdale. Cover is $7. Call 954-565-3429.
