More than a fortnight before French culture is celebrated with Bastille Day, another aspect of Franco heritage in New Orleans will be celebrated with the FIFTH ANNUAL MUSCADET WINE FESTIVAL, at the Royal Sonesta Hotel (300 Bourbon St.) Friday night. Distinctly French in both tradition and practice, the arrival of Muscadet wine -- a light, crisp white with tastes of fruit and flowers -- is a ritual considered a perfect match for New Orleans. This is, after all, the first American city to celebrate the arrival of Muscadets, and the indigenous cuisine is the perfect complement to the wine, considered its best when paired with all types of seafood including oysters, clams, fish and scallops, as well as seasonal vegetables. The wine's culinary connection to local foods will be demonstrated by chefs from some of the city's best-known restaurants -- who are charged with creating dishes that bring out the best in the varieties of Muscadet wines available, which festival-goers will "pull" from barrels. To further accentuate the ritual's roots, host Royal Sonesta's Grand Ballroom will sport impressionistic decor and live music to showcase the spirit of the times. Guests are encouraged to dress in impressionist and turn-of-the-century costumes (with daydreams of the Seine's left bank an unofficial added bonus). The event runs from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Special drawings will be held, with two Air France tickets and a grand prize trip for two to Nantes, France. The event is sponsored by the Louisiana Chapter of the French-American Chamber of Commerce (FACC/LA), and the Nantes Wine Council in France. Proceeds will benefit FACC/LA and the Second Harvesters Food Bank. Tickets in advance are $40, $35 for members of the FACC/LA and $350 for groups of 10; $45 at the door for everyone. -- Frank Etheridge

All in the Timing 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, June 25-28 NOCCA/Riverfront, Nims Black Box Theatre, 2800 Chartres St., 940-2854 As NOCCA/Riverfront prepares to celebrate its 30th anniversary in the coming 2003-2004 school year, one of the first activities giving the school's talented alumni roster its props comes with All in the Timing, a staging of seven one-act plays by the recently formed Thick Space, a theater company comprised of NOCCA graduates. Created by David Ives, All in the Timing is directed by Ray Vrazel Jr., chair of the school's theater arts department. Ives' works place heavy emphasis on prose, with plots shining a comedic light on human behaviors and desires. Tickets are $10; NOCCA alumni are encouraged to call and reserve complimentary seating for the Sunday (June 29) matinee in advance. The matinee will conclude with a potluck alumni reception. For more info, call 940-2854. -- Etheridge

Greg Tardy 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. Thursday, June 26 Snug Harbor, 626 Frenchmen St., 949-0696 In the early '90s, saxophonist Greg Tardy often played in New Orleans with local brass bands or at various jazz jams. Always a very quiet and humble man, Tardy has the ear and reception of a giant, a ravenous appetite for knowledge, and a monster tone and approach heavily inspired by John Coltrane. Since leaving New Orleans in 1996 for New York City, Tardy has continued developing his unique voice and style, filled with deep expressionism and superb dynamics. Part of the credit goes to his collaborations with living legends such as Elvin Jones, Rashied Ali and Andrew Hill, and those experiences continue to nurture Tardy's musical vision and freedom. With four albums now under his belt (including Serendipity, his major-label debut for Impulse!), Tardy returns to New Orleans for his first appearance since his departure. Admission $12. -- Manny Lander

Psychedelic Breakfast 10 p.m. Thursday, June 26 The Howlin' Wolf, 828 S. Peter St., 522-WOLF Like the Disco Biscuits and Deep Banana Blackout, Psychedelic Breakfast is a constituent of the New England "food band" trend. Taking a cue from its Phish forefathers, PB (as the group is commonly known) mixes up a whole mess of American roots styles, concentrating heavily on Allman Brothers-style bluesy roots rock, taking cues from Frank Zappa's twisted humor, and, of course, the relentless, otherworldly drugginess of Pink Floyd. The band is currently on tour supporting its latest album, Bona Fide. This show falls near the top of the two-month outing, which will eventually take PB through major jam-band epicenters such as Colorado, San Francisco, and the High Sierra Music Festival in Quincy, Calif. For this stoner's bill, PB is flanked by two local bands of similar ilk -- Loyola student band Saaraba and Already Slated for Crashville, a descendent of now-defunct Tulane jam band, Jonas Risin'. Admission $6. -- Cristina Diettinger

Mike West CD-release party 10 p.m. and midnight Thursday, June 26 Funky Butt, 714 N. Rampart St., 558-0872 Ninth Ward picker Mike West celebrates the release of his new CD, The Man Who Could Fall Backward, on Thursday at the Funky Butt. The Ninth Ward isn't exactly known as a bluegrass hotbed, but it's a creative wellspring for resident singer/songwriter/picker Mike West. Working in his home studio, West is one of the Ninth Ward's most prolific artists, recording and touring at a relentless pace. His new CD, The Man Who Could Fall Backward, is one of West's most personal albums, with a more melancholy edge than his previous CDs. (Maybe his breakup last year with longtime partner Myshkin provided creative inspiration.) On mournful tracks such as the death premonition "Carpenter" and the lost-lover lament "O Fire," West's raspy, deep baritone cuts to the core. Superb backup (both instrumentally and vocally) from Jeff & Vida adds deepened musical and emotional textures. It's not all despair, however; West's keen humor still surfaces on tracks such as the musician's anthem "Come on In." Pistol Pete & Popgun Paul open. Admission TBA. -- Scott Jordan

Shalom Y'all 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Friday-Saturday, June 27-28; 2 p.m. Sunday, June 29 Contemporary Arts Center, 900 Camp St., 528-3800, (866) 468-7630 Shalom Y¹all wasn't just a surprise smash at last fall's New Orleans Film Festival (NOFF). The documentary about Jewish culture in the Deep South from director Brian Bain and producer Susan Levitas (both New Orleanians) has been on a national tour of festivals with virtually unanimous acclaim. It's a very personal film, as Bain searches for the intersection of his Southern and Jewish heritage, interviewing historians and locals in places such as Tupelo, Miss. (interviewing Mississippi State football announcer Jack Cristil) and Kerrville, Texas (singer-songwriter Kinky Friedman of Texas Jew-Boy fame). Along the journey he courts his future wife, a New Orleanian who's moved to (gasp) New York City but feels a tug homeward. Think Sherman¹s March with a yarmulke. Copies of the newly released DVD version, featuring 18 additional minutes of footage, will be available for purchase. Tickets are $7 general admission, $6 NOFF/CAC members. -- David Lee Simmons

The Music Man 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, June 27-28; 2 p.m. Sunday, June 29 Jefferson Performing Arts Center, 400 Phlox Ave., Metairie, 885-2000 While many youngsters will now forever associate Meredith Wilson's classic musical The Music Man with actor Matthew Broderick's ill-fitting turn as charlatan Harold Hill, this weekend the Jefferson Performing Arts Society (JPAS) corrects that connotation with its own mounting of the work. Part of JPAS' Children's Summer Theatre program, and presented in conjunction with The Lupin Foundation, The Music Man will be performed by a cast consisting entirely of children in grades three through seven. The story follows the schemes of Harold Hill as he descends on small, trusting River City, Iowa, to make some money. Hill's plan involves creating a boy's band, giving himself false credentials as a music teacher. Everything runs according to plan until he falls in love. Michelle Pietri directs, with Lauren Buckley conducting the jazzy score. Tickets $12 adults, $10 seniors, $8 students. For tickets or more info, call or visit www.jpas.org. -- Etheridge

Urban Ballet Theater 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 27 Loyola University, Roussel Hall, 522-0996 The Urban Ballet Theater will include "Mambo" as one of the pieces performed Friday at Loyola's Roussel Hall. Evoking a street-smart vitality, Urban Ballet Theater combines indigenous, urban and classical dance forms with innovative contemporary storytelling. Founded by Artistic Director Daniel Catanach, the company was established "to develop a ballet-theater dialect that reflects the current tempers of society." The New Orleans Ballet Association (NOBA) and Friends of NORD in collaboration with Loyola Ballet present Urban Ballet Theater in this production. The company will perform a world premiere ballet set to an original jazz score and two repertory works: "Mambo," which includes a section performed by the young dancers of the NORD/NOBA Center For Dance, and "Trouble," a ballet that blends jazz and hip-hop with neoclassical ballet and contemporary dance traditions while examining the effects of war. Tickets $8 for adults, $5 for students. Call 522-0996 for more information. -- Heidi Braden

Happensdance's "Dreams and Slipstreams" 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, June 27-28 NOCCA/Riverfront, Lupin Hall, 2800 Chartres St., 865-9242 Known for its distinctively athletic style, Happensdance, a group of 14 local modern dancers, will end its fourth season with a production of past favorites and new works. Artistic director and founder Jeanne Jaubert, who moonlights as a cellist in the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, has choreographed a new solo, "Melisma/Organum," that features a live performance by renaissance music specialist Karen Ray. Favorites revisited include "Random Acts of Velvet," featuring music by Beethoven performed live by members of the Louisiana Philharmonic, and "Twangproof," a romp featuring cowboy boots and the music of Leo Kottke. Another feature of the program is a reworking of "Emergency Exit," a piece touted as a tour de force that earned a 2001 Tribute to the Classical Arts nomination. Tickets $12 general admission, $9 for students and professional artists. -- Braden

The Deathray Davies 10 p.m. Saturday, June 28 Carrollton Station, 8140 Willow St., 865-9190 It's no secret that today's rockers are obsessed with their parents' music -- and that's especially true in the case of the Deathray Davies. The Dallas sextet delivers exactly what its name suggests: short, catchy songs with that all-important lo-fi British invasion sound that kids just can't get enough of, even in the 2000s. Originally a one-man recording project engineered by vocalist/multi-instrumentalist John Dufilho, the band formed in a hurry when Dufilho's 1999 record, Drink With the Grown-Ups and Listen to Jazz, won him a slot on Austin's South by Southwest Music Festival. With the recent onslaught of retro-rock bands in the mainstream, a band named for the Kinks' Ray Davies was bound to create a buzz. The Davies are popping up in the national press more now than ever -- they made Esquire magazine's list of "9 most remarkable things in culture" this month with "The Girl Who Stole the Eiffel Tower." It's a quirky love song from their latest album, Midnight at the Black Nail Polish Factory. No cover. -- Diettinger

Ron Bechet: Tapestries of Life Through June 28 Stella Jones Gallery, 201 St. Charles Ave., 568-9050 What's up with trees? Trees mean different things to different people, but to painter Ron Bechet trees symbolize life itself, the cycle of birth, death and transformation. A philosopher in paint, he sees trees as witnesses to man's struggles, noting that "Buddha found enlightenment under a tree" and that "in African mythology the tree holds the earth together." But questions of life, death and transcendence may come naturally to Bechet, who has a master's degree from Yale, whose parents were both NOPD officers, and whose great uncle was Sidney Bechet, the great New Orleans jazzman. As he sees it, his trees are doors to other worlds: "Geometric forms can be seen through the illusions of paint. One can open the door or not. In making these pieces I also understand the singing of the blues of my ancestors." -- D. Eric Bookhardt