One of the more hilarious rumors (unless you're a kid) this spring was the constant question as to the dead-or-alive situation of Blue's Clues star detective, Steve Burns, who is very much alive (at press time) but has moved on after an amazing five-year run with the phenomenally popular children's show. Which provides an opportune moment for the travelling roadshow version of the show, BLUE'S BIRTHDAY PARTY, to unveil its new host, Roger Kraus (left). The summer tour makes a pit-stop at the Saenger Theatre (125 N. Rampart St.) this week. I don't know about you, but there's at least one uncle (ahem) who'd gotten a little tired of Burns' Homer Simpson-esque "doh!" expressions anyway and is ready to see what a little fresh blood can do for this version. In an apparent attempt to breathe even more new life into this show, the stage production includes the debut of several new characters: a next-door neighbor named Periwinkle (who we assume will help Blue borrow sugar), a best friend in Magenta, and Baby Cinnamon. All of Blue's friends will be on hand to help that loveable pooch celebrate her birthday: Tickety Tock, Slippery Soap, Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper. They will help put their heads together with Blue's human sidekick to find out what ol' Blue wants as her birthday gift. (Our guess: profit-sharing.) This Blue's Birthday Party also features new songs and will provide children with a complimentary notebook and crayons to keep up with the action onstage. Behind the stage, the show also enjoys the return of co-author Angela Santomero and co-author/director Gip Hoppe, so it will be interesting to see how the veterans provide a fresh take on one of the most popular children's learning shows in recent memory. Showtimes are 7 p.m. Wednesday, 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. Thursday, 7 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets range from $16 to $26 and are available at the box office (524-2490) and through Ticketmaster (522-5555, www.ticketmaster.com). -- David Lee Simmons

The Case of Friar Lawrence 8 p.m. Tuesday, June 11; through July 2 Le Chat Noir, 715 St. Charles Ave., 581-5812 Earlier in the spring, Kara Hadigan, Dane Rhodes and Michael Sullivan hatched that most novel of concepts: the Shakespeare on Trial series, with the debut (The Trial of Macbeth) an absolute laugh-fest. The idea of holding Shakespearean characters' feet to the fire works on a couple levels, and this group hopes to repeat its success by trying to take down the friar who dealt the bad dope to young lovers Romeo and Juliet. Not only is Friar Lawrence (Sullivan) up on federal charges of possession with intent to distribute narcotics, but he's also facing the charge of harboring a fugitive. District attorney B.B. Lynch (Loyola law school grad Alice Hall, whose Marcia Clark stiffness was a real treat last time around) will put the screws to Lawrence, whom she's dubbed "The Reverend Lo-Down." The friar will receive needed legal advice from real-life criminal attorney Joe Peiffer, who actually knows of a street youth who uses the "Lo-Down" alias. This promising farce also features Rene Piazza, Renee Maxwell, Bob Scully and mikko. The show will run every Tuesday through July 2. Tickets are $12 general public, $8 students. -- Simmons

KMFDM featuring Pig 9 p.m. Wednesday, June 12 The Howlin' Wolf, 828 S. Peters St., 522-WOLF Industrial techno legend KMFDM gets letter-perfect Wednesday at the Howlin' Wolf. Metamorphosis is a recurring theme in KMFDM's 18-year career, and the last five years have been especially shifty for the seminal German industrial cult band. They suffered morbid association in 1999 when authorities learned that Columbine killers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were fans. (The band denied responsibility for the tragedy, maintaining its non-violent stance.) After disbanding earlier that year, leader Sascha Koneitzko reformed the band without key members En Esch and Gunter Schulz, naming it MDFMK for the sake of tabula rasa. Especially since they refused to play KMFDM songs live, the new group received mixed reactions from fans. Now reformed, once again, as KMFDM, the band still delivers a scorching mix of heavy electronic beats and organic instrumental strains that industrial rock heads feed on. Their latest album Attak, released in mid-March, is vintage KMFDM. Raymond Watts (aka Pig) will appear with the band. Kidney Thieves and 16 Volt open. Tickets $20. -- Cristina Diettinger

Wit 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, June 13-15; 2 p.m. Sunday, June 16; through July 7 Southern Repertory Theatre, Canal Place, 365 Canal St., third floor, 522-6545 There are myriad rationales why death, redemption and true love are often-used, but never exhausted, motifs in literature. Pondering life at the point of death has defined many a character. These thoughts, held in the mind of a brilliant academic, are catalyst for intense drama in Margaret Edson's Pulitzer Prize-winning Wit, now embarking on a month-long run at Southern Rep. Edson, an Atlanta native, spins the tale of Vivian Bearing, an English professor facing her own death while examining her life spent in the proverbial Ivory Tower. Bearing crosses from a life-long pattern of distance and analysis to real emotions and love, with 17th century poet John Donne's "Death Be Not Proud" woven into the plot to provide added weight. Bert Pigg directs Adriana Bate, Vatican Lokey, Amy Alvarez, Rex Badeaux and Charlotte Schully. Tickets are $20. -- Frank Etheridge

Preston School of Industry 10 p.m. Thursday, June 13 Mermaid Lounge, 1100 Constance St., 524-4747 Preston School of Industry frontman Scott Kannberg has always played second fiddle to Stephen Malkmus. As co-founders of influential '90s underground rock band Pavement, Malkmus' good looks and songwriting skills overshadowed guitarist Kannberg's presence, and that hasn't changed much since Pavement quietly disbanded in 2000. While Malkmus' self-titled solo project won heaps of media hype upon release in 2001, PSOI's debut All This Sounds Gas (a play on George Harrison's All Things Must Pass) went largely unnoticed. Kannberg's latter-day output is more poppy than Pavement, but he doesn't show much artistic progression (neither does Malkmus). On vocals, Kannberg belts out the high notes and drones on the low ones in typical indie style. He still goes by his Pavement moniker, "Spiral Stairs," assigning himself more mystique than he deserves. But for fans of '90s-era college rock, this show should be appealing fare. Roving singer-songwriter David Dondero and local rock band Hotchkiss (named for a Connecticut boarding school) are also on the bill. Admission $10. -- Diettinger

Uptown Okra 10:30 p.m. Thursday, June 13 Maple Leaf, 8316 Oak St., 866-9359 Uptown Okra serves up a Potluck Gumbo on Thursday at the Maple Leaf. One of the best sets at this year's Jazz Fest was the hootenanny thrown on the Lagniappe Stage by Uptown Okra, the born-in-New Orleans bluegrass ensemble that's quickly grown from a charming novelty into a formidable, syncopated acoustic quintet. Mandolinist Nick Backer, guitarist Brian Seigel and banjo man Steve Kierniesky are stylish pickers, and the rhythm section of drummer Danny Devillier and bassist Sam Price can nail a jug-band breakdown and a New Orleans shuffle. But the real kicker? These guys can sing, whether it's soulful tenor lead vocals or harmony choruses. Those talents are on display on the band's recent debut CD, Potluck Gumbo, and in their live shows, where their unexpected but eminently soulful collaboration with singer John Boutté shines a new light on standards like "Blue Moon of Kentucky." This is one of your last chances to hear Okra locally until the fall season, as the band's heading out for a national summer tour. You can also hear Uptown Okra on Tuesday at Twi-Ro-Pa Mills (with the Marc Stone band), and Friday night at Mid City Lanes on a double bill with Irene Sage. Admission TBA. -- Scott Jordan

Christian Scott 10 p.m. and midnight Friday, June 14 Sweet Lorraine's, 1931 St. Claude Ave., 945-9654 Eighteen-year-old trumpeter Christian Scott is the nephew of New Orleans saxophonist extraordinaire Donald Harrison, and his bloodlines show in his fearless yet reverent approach to his craft. Scott's maturity shone in his recent appearance with Harrison at Jazz Fest 2002, where Scott stood tall in a heavyweight band that included bassist David Pulphus and pianist Peter Martin, listening intently before stepping up to the mic for a number of confident, bluesy solos that belied his age. Hopefully, this is the first of a number of summer headline gigs for Scott in his hometown. Like his uncle, he tackles everything from bop to standards and also seems destined to take his talent into the national spotlight -- so catch him while you can. Admission $10. -- Jordan

Bywater Art Market 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 15 New Orleans Conservation Guild, 3301 Chartres St., 944-7900 This is nothing new, of course. For years, the New Orleans Conservation Guild (NOCG) has been putting Faubourg Marigny and Bywater artists in a position to sell their works, with antique and vintage frame sales. But now the NOCG is going all out; just a few months after setting up shop in its new Bywater location (after a stint in the Marigny), the NOCG is sponsoring an art market on the third Saturday of each month for local artists to peddle their works. The precursor for this market has been "affordable art" shows held just two blocks down at Elizabeth's Restaurant, itself a hot spot on Saturdays. NOCG is also getting ready to open an art-supply store in its two-story building in the hopes to round out its services. So let's see if the area that spawned Dr. Bob, Studio Inferno, Michelopelous and Patti D'Amico can sport the next big thing. Free admission; refreshments available. -- Simmons

Victory Ball 7 p.m. Saturday, June 15 Hilton New Orleans Riverside, Grand Ballroom, Poydras at Mississippi River, 527-6012 More than a celebration of three icons of Americana, the D-Day Museum's second annual Victory Ball -- which pays tribute to World War II, rock 'n' roll and Elvis Presley -- also works toward making The Center for the Study of the American Spirit a reality. The center, planned as an addition to the museum, will focus on World War II and American culture during that era. Saturday night's black-tie Victory Ball includes cocktails and a full-course dinner followed by dancing with a special rock 'n' roll theme that includes an Elvis spotlight and a full orchestra. A patron party will be held Friday night from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the D-Day Museum (945 Magazine St.), featuring vignettes with WW II re-enactors. Tickets to the ball and patron party are $250. Call 527-6012, ext. 226, for tickets. -- Etheridge

For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf 8 p.m. Saturday, June 15; 3 p.m. Sunday, June 16; through June 30 Ashé Cultural Arts Center, 1712 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd., 569-9070 Paulette Williams enjoyed a relatively affluent middle-class existence as a child, with artists such as Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Chuck Berry and W. E. B. Du Bois visiting her African-American family's household over the years. And yet she had a troubled young adulthood, attempting suicide several times after separating from her law-school student husband in 1966. She survived, and went on to become an active figure in the feminist and poetry scenes in California. She later changed her name to Ntozake Shange, moved to New York and wrote what became a combination of dance and poetry in For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf in 1975. This "choreopoem" is truly an exercise in catharsis, and is a remarkable selection for the Cakula cha Jua Theater Company's summer production. The show, directed by its founder, is a series of 20 poems acted out by women whom we recognize only by color, with subjects ranging from rape and abortion to abandonment. Tickets are $15 adults, $10 students, seniors and children. -- Simmons

Rock U Showcase 8 p.m. Saturday, June 15 The Howlin' Wolf, 828 S. Peters St., 522-WOLF Everybody knows it's difficult for startup bands to get heard, and for rock bands in New Orleans, it's nearly impossible. This Saturday's Rock U Summer Showcase will offer six local bands a chance to play in front of some influential A&R reps, booking agents, managers, attorneys and publicists. The show is a local installment of the Rock U Summer Showcase tour, a traveling showcase for bands in 10 cities throughout the Southeast region. Event promotion efforts are supported by funds from the Louisiana Department of Economic Development and the Louisiana Music Commission, in hopes that the show will jumpstart economic opportunities for local artists. Chosen by suggestions from local media, club personnel and other industry authorities, the lineup is a good sampling of local up-and-coming rock bands including Joe Stark, Focus 21, Overtone, Shanni Sane, Amerigo, and Endochine. Admission $5. -- Diettinger

David Hillegas: Color Trips Through June 20 Delgado Gallery, 615 City Park Ave., 483-4512 They've been around for as long as photography itself. Travel photographs: memories of trips and vacations preserved on paper for posterity. For most of us it means views of a beach or expansive mountain vistas, but for a dedicated travel photographer it means zeroing in on those unique slices of life that epitomize particular places, especially exotic, faraway places. For New York photographer David Hillegas, that means finding striking color compositions in ornate Moroccan doorways framed by mysterious arches, in a market umbrella left standing on a deserted Indonesian street in the eerie light of dusk, or in a pair of bare feet propped against a wall seen through a doorway in Venezuela. In the hands of a skilled photographer, such things convey a unique sense of place in a world that grows smaller and more homogenous every day. -- D. Eric Bookhardt