Briefs: Music, theater and First Friday, Dec. 6-12

Music

WINCHESTER HOSTS

HAWAIIAN CONCERT

Hawaiian transplants like to call Las Vegas “the Ninth Island,” thanks to all the Aloha State natives who now make their homes in Southern Nevada.

That number includes Gary Haleamau, a slack-key guitarist and falsetto singer who bridges the gap between homes past and present Saturday afternoon at the Winchester Cultural Center.

Haleamau leads the performers in the show “Kaulana Na Pua,” which features not only songs but dances from Hawaii — as performed by the members of the Halau Hula O’Kaleimomi hula school.

They’ll perform at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Winchester center, 3130 S. McLeod Drive. For more information or tickets ($10 in advance, $12 on the day of the show), call 702-455-7340.

Theater

‘HUNTER GATHERERS’

INVADE LITTLE THEATRE

Just a little get-together among four friends — a couples get-together that starts with an animal sacrifice and continues with sex, violence, deception, revelations, dancing and wrestling.

That’s the darkly comic world of “Hunter Gatherers,” which begins a three-weekend run Friday in the Las Vegas Little Theatre’s Black Box.

Playwright Peter Nachtrieb’s play, hailed as “a mash-up of the most brutal episode of ‘Wild Kingdom’ and any episode of ‘South Park,’ ” follows the foursome as their well-mannered hypocrisy gives way to baser instincts.

“Hunter Gatherers” (recommended for audiences over 18) will be staged at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Las Vegas Little Theatre, 3920 Schiff Drive. For tickets ($13-15), call 702-362-7996 or visit www.lvlt.org.

First Friday

MUSIC, DANCE SPARK

HOLIDAY ATMOSPHERE

Special seasonal touches will greet First Friday attendees as the downtown Arts District’s free monthly arts and culture festival serves up a heaping helping of holiday spirit.

Music from the animated classic “Fantasia” will ring through the streets, while members of Sin City Opera, dressed as traditional carolers, will roam the Arts District, bursting into song. Characters from Nevada Ballet Theatre’s “The Nutcracker” will promote the production’s Dec. 14 return to The Smith Center.

Star Nursery will create an enchanted forest, to be decorated with ornaments made by participants in a community art project. And shoppers can choose from handcrafted arts and crafts for sale at the Bazaar.

North of Charleston Boulevard, multiple stages at Bar + Bistro and Artifice will showcase live music, while food trucks will provide a variety of culinary treats. And at the KidZone, kids can learn steps from Kravenko Dance Academy, pose for a photo op with Kris Kringle or create magic wands — just like the one Mickey Mouse used in “Fantasia.”

First Friday runs from 5 to 11 p.m. in the downtown Arts District; more information is available online at www.firstfridaylasvegas.com or www.facebook.com/firstfridaylasvegas or on Twitter at @firstfridaylv.

Music and dance

MULTIPLE SHOWS

GRACE CSN STAGES

The College of Southern Nevada celebrates music and dance with a week of performances at its Cheyenne campus, 3200 E. Cheyenne Ave., North Las Vegas.

The fall arts festivities launch Friday and Saturday with the fall dance concert, as the CSN Dance Ensemble, the Concert Dance Company and special guests perform “Ein Heldenleben: A Hero’s Life …The Story of Richard Moore,” inspired by the life of the former CSN president. Kelly Roth choreographs to the music of Richard Strauss; performances at 7 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday in the Nicholas K. Horn Theatre; tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students and seniors.

At 2 p.m. Sunday, CSN’s three jazz combos (led by Matt Taylor and Kevin Stout) and the Jazz Singers (directed by Mark Wherry) perform standards, classics and contemporary works in the BackStage Theatre; tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and seniors.

The CSN Concert Band, directed by Richard McGee, and the Mariachi Band, under the direction of Albert Garcia, will perform traditional and holiday selections at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Horn Theatre.

The Wednesday Night Jazz Band (led by McGee) and the Calypso Coyote Steel Drum Band, directed by Robert Bonora, take the Horn Theatre stage at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Wrapping up the week’s concerts: CSN’s Chamber Chorale, Jazz Singers and vocal students, performing at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the Horn Theatre.

Tickets for all three concerts are $8 for adults and $5 for students and seniors.

For reservations and information on all concerts, call 702-651-5438 or visit www.csn.edu/pac.

Theater

RAINBOW COMPANY

STAGES ‘SCROOGE’

If Ebenezer Scrooge doesn’t strike you as the song-and-dance type, think again — because Charles Dickens’ beloved “A Christmas Carol” gets a musical twist in “Scrooge.”

The Rainbow Company Youth Theatre production opens a seven-performance run Friday, presenting the Victorian-era miser’s discovery of the true spirit of Christmas — after some haunting spirits show him the consequences of his stingy ways.

“Scrooge” will be performed at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush St., with additional performances at 7 p.m. Dec. 13-14 and 2 p.m. Dec. 15. For tickets ($5), visit www.artslasvegas.org or call 702-229-6553 or 702-229-6383.

Theater

COCKROACH OPENS

‘THE CHALK BOY’

Beneath its small-town facade, there’s more to Clear Creek than the new Taco Bell — as audiences discover when four local girls offer a guided tour of their funny yet brutal hometown reality in “The Chalk Boy,” which opens a seven-performance run Friday at downtown’s Art Square Theatre.

Troy Heard directs the Cockroach Theatre production of Joshua Conkel’s play, about a quartet of Clear Creek girls struggling with everything from faith, friendship and sex to algebra and the occult — along with the disappearance of the most popular boy at school.

“The Chalk Boy” will be staged at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Art Square Theatre, 1025 S. First St. Performances continue at 8 p.m. Dec. 12-14 and 2 p.m. Dec. 15. For tickets ($16-$20) and more information, go online to www.cockroachtheatre.com.

Music

HOLIDAY HARMONIES

CELEBRATE THE SEASON

“Don’t Stop Believing.” That’s the theme of the Performing Arts Society of Nevada’s holiday concert Sunday afternoon at the Winchester Cultural Center.

“Jubilee!” singers Michael Scott Ross and Artie Anderson join Megan Gallup, Joel Rene and Alison Ward for renditions of seasonal favorites from “O Holy Night” to “Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah.”

Joining the singers: “Jubilee!” and “Dancing Queen” dancers David Lee Brown, Holly Lauren Dayton, Rachael Hayner, Jill Otte and Chris Racine, whose specialties range from ballet to tap.

“Don’t Stop Believing: Music to Celebrate the Season” begins at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Winchester center, 3130 S. McLeod Drive. To purchase tickets ($15 in advance, $18 at the door), call 702-658-6741 or email PASNV@aol.com.

— By CAROL CLING