5 picks for art in Las Vegas

‘Pagliacci’

Leoncavallo’s sad-clown opera “Pagliacci” — about traveling performers torn apart by passion, jealousy and betrayal — gets a “Mad Men”-era twist courtesy of Sin City Opera, which switches the setting to a 1950s TV show, where an egomaniacal comedy star and his wife (Phoenix Opera’s William McCullough and Anna-Lisa Hackett) are bound for tragedy. “Pagliacci” opens a two-weekend run at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Winchester Cultural Center, 3130 S. McLeod Drive; performances continue at 7 p.m. April 27 and 28 and 2 p.m. April 29. For tickets ($20), visit sincityopera.com.

‘Tao: Drum Heart’

Tao returns to The Smith Center with “Drum Heart,” the troupe’s latest percussion showcase, which augments traditional Japanese drumming with dancers in dramatic costumes and musicians playing drums, flutes and the three-stringed shamisen. They’ll perform at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in Reynolds Hall; tickets are $26 to $70 and available at thesmithcenter.com.

Kat Edmonson, Rhonda Vincent

Two singers share the Myron’s Cabaret Jazz spotlight this weekend at The Smith Center. Kat Edmonson delivers vintage pop and jazz at 7 p.m. Friday. At 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Rhonda Vincent and the Rage explore their bluegrass roots. For tickets ($37-$55 for Edmonson, $39-$59 for Vincent), visit thesmithcenter.com.

Musical Arts Society

Joseph Haydn’s Creation Mass in B Flat Major and Edvard Grieg’s Holberg Suite inspire the Southern Nevada Musical Arts Society’s second Masterwork Concert of the group’s 55th season; the chorus, orchestra and guest soloists perform at 3 p.m. Sunday at UNLV’s Artemus Ham Hall; tickets ($10-$20, free for middle and high school students with ID) are available at unlv.edu/pac.

Dance concert

Three world premieres choreographed by company founder Bernard H. Gaddis highlight Contemporary West Dance Theater’s free spring concert series this weekend. The troupe will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday at the West Las Vegas Library Theatre, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd. For more details, visit lvdance.org.