The Vagina Monologues

Eve Ensler's groundbreaking one-hander has taken a long time to reach these shores. The evening evolved from a series of interviews Ensler did with women and their thoughts on one of their major organs. The result was a multi-character performance that opened in 1996 and still plays on Off-Broadway. Both comic and insightful, the evening is a very original take on areas of human sexuality that were once seriously private. This production stars Colette Mann.

Frank

Where do you find a decent Italian meal in New York with and an unpretentious menu at unpretentious prices despite its hip clientele? Frankly, you can do no better than Frank. You may have to wait online for up to an hour, but it's worth your trouble. It feels like you're in someone's East Village apartment - none of the cutlery or crockery matches - but the rustic Italian food is excellent. Delicious gnocchi, pasta and meatloaf are just the things to keep winter's chill at bay, complemented by tasty basics such as fennel salad and exquisite mozzarella shipped in from Naples.

Hamlet

Frailty, thy name is the Las Vegas arts scene. Thus it is refreshing to witness the inaugural performance by the fledgling Nevada Conservatory Theatre. Headed by UNLV Theatre Department Chair Thomas Cooke, the Conservatory aims to act as a professional extension and training ground for the university. In this post-modern version of Shakespeare's treatise on pride, lust and gluttony, Michael Lugering directs a cast including Sandra Shipley as Gertrude.

Nicola Hawkins Dance Company

The respected local dance troupe headed by dancer-choreographer Nicola Hawkins presents a programme of three premières. 'The Red Haired Boy' is a piece of individual dancers set to a selection of traditional country songs. 'The Marriage' features the MIT Orchestra, Gamelan Galak Tika, performing a score by composer Evan Ziporyn. And the third performance is a duet choreographed for and performed by Erin Gottwald and Jessica Reed.

Cypress Hill

Cypress Hill's B-Real, Sen Dog and DJ Muggs are back with a vengeance. They took a break after their first three albums chockfull of menacing rhymes over hemp-heavy hip hop beats, then shot back in 1998 with Cypress Hill IV. They followed that up in 1999 with a long overdue album in Spanish, before releasing the new double 'Skull and Bones' this year, filled with those blunted beats and gangster boasts that made them the West Coast's most consistent players.

The Sunday Social

The Social is, without doubt, the best way to while away the tail end of the weekend. This month, Brazilian jazz-fusion pioneers Azymuth are all set to play an exclusive live set, as are Dundonian orchestra-hop newcomers Voight Kampff. Sidewinder returns for DJ duties, and Tapehaed supplies the visual mix.

ZooLights Festival

Look into the night sky over Lincoln Park Zoo for a display of more than a million dazzling lights illuminating whimsical holiday displays of polar bears, penguins, lions, giraffes, elephants and other animals. New this year is a laser light show with images dancing off a cascading 15-foot-tall water screen. Also debuting are 20-foot-tall holiday characters including Frosty, Santa and Rudolph who dance in the sky. Children's activities, family crafts, cookie decorating and an animal fun-fact scavenger hunt are also scheduled. The Holiday Café serves dinners, hot drinks and seasonal treats.