In entertainment, events and the arts this weekend:

DANCE: Folk Ballet

“Ballet Folklorico de Mexico by Amalia Hernandez” will be on stage at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Reynolds Performance Hall, University of Central Arkansas, 201 Donaghey Ave., Conway. Founded in 1952 by dancer and choreographer Amalia Hernandez, the company combines the music, dance and costume of Mexican folklore from pre-Columbian civilizations to the modern era. Tickets are $30 to $40, $10 for children and students. Call (501) 450-3265 or (866) 810-0012 or visit uca.edu/Reynolds.

MUSIC: Quartet at the tavern

Most music fans don’t consider the White Water Tavern, 2500 W. Seventh St., Little Rock, a chamber music venue, but it will be this weekend. At 6 p.m. Sunday, Arkansas Symphony violinists Katherine Williamson and Geoffrey Robson, violist Timothy MacDuff and cellist David Gerstein perform works by Jesse Montgomery, Gyorgy Ligeti, Felix Mendelssohn and Florence Price. The concert kicks off a series of chamber music planned at the venerable Capitol View Tavern. Tickets are $10; proof of vaccination or a negative covid-19 test is required to enter. Visit whitewatertavern.com.

Quartet at ASU

Catalyst Quartet — (left to right) Paul Laraia, viola; Karlos Rodriguez, cello; and Abi Fayette and Karla Donehew-Perez, violins — are performing today Jan. 27 at the Fowler Center at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. (Special for the Democrat-Gazette/Ricardo Quinones)
Catalyst Quartet — Karla Donehew-Perez and Abi Fayette, violins; Paul Laraia, viola; and Karlos Rodriguez, cello — performs at 7 p.m. today at Riceland Hall, Arkansas State University’s Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive, Jonesboro. The concert is part of the center’s performing arts series. On the program: “Lyric Quartette” (“Musical Portraits of Three Friends”) by William Grant Still; “String Quartets” in D major, Op. 1 no. 6, and C minor, op. 1 no. 4, by Joseph Bologne, Knight of Saint-Georges; and Florence B. Price’s “String Quartet No. 2” in A minor. The Fowler Center will follow seating safety guidelines. Tickets cost between $18 and $33. Call (870) 972-3687 or visit AState.edu/tickets.

ART AND EXHIBITIONS: ‘Painting’ exhibited

“Painting,” works by nine artists from Arkansas, Maryland, New York, Virginia, Kansas and California, opens today with a reception from 4-7 p.m. at Baum Gallery, McCastlain Hall, University of Central Arkansas, 201 Donaghey Ave., Conway.

The exhibition’s curator, until February 17, is gallery director Brian Young, who describes it as “meant to show all the possibilities through this most traditional medium.” Free entry. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday. Call (501) 450-5793 or visit uca.edu/art/baum. Covid-19 protocols are available at uca.edu/coronavirus.

Selfie area

The Mid-America Science Museum, 500 Mid America Blvd., Hot Springs, opens Friday “Point of view,” a special space to promote the taking of selfies. An adjacent area will display cameras and photographs. Customers are encouraged to take selfies there throughout the year and post them on Facebook or Instagram with the hashtag #MASMSelfie.

Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $12, $10 for children ages 3-12, $11 for attendees 65 and older, teachers, and military. Call (501) 767-3461 or visit midamericamuseum.org. The museum is following CDC guidelines for masks and social distancing.

Photo contest

The South Arkansas Arts Center, 110 E. Fifth St., El Dorado, is accepting entries for its annual photography contest, “The viewfinder”, on view February 8-25 at the Merkle and Price galleries downtown.

Submit up to two framed photographs along with a completed entry form (find it at tinyurl.com/4cwj65py) and the entry fee for each piece ($10 each; center members get entry) free). Photographers can use any type of camera and print on any media. Basic corrective editing in the darkroom or digitally on a computer is allowed, but no graphic manipulations. Rules and more information are available at tinyurl.com/yepvxx4d.

Deliver tickets to the center before February 4; any submitted work may be reproduced for promotional purposes. Winning works may also be published in the quarterly El Dorado Insider, which co-sponsors the competition with the center and the Diamond Agency. Photographs must not have been previously shown at the center.

Contest judge Dero Sanford, a photographer from Little Rock, will award $1,000 in cash prizes – best of show ($500), first place ($250), second place ($150) and third place ($100) – at an artist reception, 5:30-7 p.m. Feb. 17

Dial (870) 862-5474.

HEARINGS: PB ‘Outsiders’

The Southeast Arkansas Arts and Science Center will hold auditions for actors ages 12 and up to “The foreigners,” Adaptation by Christopher Sergel of the SE Hinton classic, February 12-13, by appointment only, at the Catherine M. Bellamy Center Center, 701 S. Main St., Pine Bluff. The auditions will consist of script readings; “sides” will be available at the audition or in advance by emailing Lindsey Collins at [email protected] Production dates are April 15-17 and April 22-24. Register at asc701.org/auditions.

ETC. : End of the world ?

Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. and Special Forces veteran Brad Taylor discusses “End of Days: A Novel by Pike Logan”, his latest book, virtually via Zoom, 6:30 p.m. today. The thriller involves a serial killer on the loose in the heart of Rome who leads to a plot to bring about the end of the world. It is part of the Central Arkansas Library System’s “Six Bridges Presents” series. Attendance is free but registration is required — visit www.cals.org/event/brad-taylor. Email [email protected] for more information.

“Naturally Arkansas”

“Naturally Arkansas,” a series of Central Arkansas Library System monthly interactive programs about nature in Arkansas with Master Naturalist Lynn Foster, debuts today via Zoom. For the inaugural program, Foster and guest Myron Means explore “Lions, Wolves and Bears in Arkansas.” Subsequent programs, which are expected to run through September with the option to continue if there is enough interest, will explore how individuals can reduce their impact on the environment. “Admission is free. A list of the following programs and how to connect to them can be found at cals.org/naturally-arkansas-series.

Theater internship

Argenta Community Theatre, 405 Main St., North Little Rock, enrolls students in its TO ACT 2022 Summer Theater Camp, expanding from two to three weeks — June 13 to July 1 — culminating in an all-camper-produced production of “Disney’s Moana Jr.” Instruction is available in Musical Theater Dance, Vocal Music, Theater and Film, Performing Arts, and Technical Theater. Tuition is $400 with a materials fee of $50; total “early bird” cost if you register before noon on February 15: $395. Visit argentacommunitytheater.org/education.