Weekend Update: Music, Theater, Etc.

Friday, Jan. 16, 1998 | 9:47 a.m.

JAZZ HOMECOMING -- Saxophonist-composer and UNLV's Combo Uno return from a New York gig to the theater at Whitney Library at 7:30 tonight with a wealth of exciting and original jazz. Others in the stellar group are Rob Stone, Nathan Tanouye, Rachel Eckroth, Kevin Thomas and Chris Benham. Tickets are $7 at the door at 5175 E. Tropicana Ave.

S'MARVELOUS -- Actors Repertory Theater brings the timeless music of George and Ira Gershwin to the stage at Summerlin Library theater this weekend in the musical tribute "S'Wonderful." Performances are Wednesday through Sunday until Jan. 25. Evening performances are at 8, Sunday matinees begin at 2 p.m. Tonight's performance will be a benefit for Music for Hope, and all seats are $12.50. Friday and Saturday performances are $20, $17.50 for students and seniors. Wednesday performances are $15, Thursdays and Sundays, $17.50. Tickets are available at the door at 1771 Inner Circle Drive.

MAKE A MUSICAL DIFFERENCE -- Birdell Gilbert and the Gilbert Singers from Kansas City top a bill that includes Electrifying Gospel Tornadoes and Magnificent Hall Singers, all singing their hearts out, beginning at 7 p.m. Saturday at Zion Methodist Church, 2108 N. Revere Street. Tickets for this joyful noise are $12, $5 for children, at the door.

CUT A RUG -- Jerry Blake and his Orchestra bring back the big band sounds of yesteryear when they hit the downbeat at 7 p.m. Saturday at Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush Street. The center's ballroom has a suspended wood floor, which will put real bounce in your "Jersey Bounce." Tickets are $12 at the door, $8 for students, seniors and the disabled. And if you're a shy person, you can just sit and listen.

THEATER

BLACK HISTORY MONTH -- It begins with "The Dreamer," a one-act variety show that pays tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement. The show features re-enactments of some of the era's great leaders and entertainers performing their most celebrated music. The curtain rises at 8 tonight and Saturday at West Las Vegas Library theater, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd. Tickets are available at Sight and Sound Center or call Platinum Productions, 648-4417.

ETC.

POP INTO THE PARK -- Grapevine Springs, 5280 Palm Ave., officially opens its gates to the community at 11:30 a.m. Saturday when Commissioner Lorraine Hunt cuts the ribbon. All the neighbors are invited to come and, until 1 p.m., the Rec Mobile will be on hand with games and refreshments for the kids. The park's combination of natural wetlands and a tree-lined arroyo with developed play and leisure areas makes it a pleasant place to be on a Saturday morning.

ROLLIN' ON THE RIVER -- The mightiest river in the world floods the Caesars Omnimax dome daily, and you'll feel every ripple via Sensaround sound as "Amazon," a large-format film, focuses on the river's wildlife, people and healing plants. The family film plays every 70 minutes, 11:40 a.m. through 10:10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2-10:10 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $7, $5 for seniors, kids 2 to 12, the disabled, military, Caesars hotel guests and groups of 15 or more. Bring your Nevada ID and you'll save a dollar at the Caesars Palace box office, which is open 9 a.m.-10:30 p.m. daily.