all day: Movies

One of the topics in Hollywood right now is: Who will play the role of Clarice Starling in the announced “Silence of the Lambs” sequel “Hannibal,” which will be directed by Ridley Scott? Jodie Foster, who won an Academy Award for her turn as the steely FBI agent, has opted not to reprise the role. Variety reports that British actress Cate Blanchett is on the short list of actresses being considered. Meanwhile, Anthony Hopkins, or Sir Anthony Hopkins as he’s known in some circles, has indeed signed to return as Dr. Hannibal “The Cannibal” Lecter, a highly intelligent psychopath who consumes his victims. But did you know that Hopkins was not the first to portray Lecter on-screen? In 1986 Brian Cox played Lecter in Michael Mann’s tense thriller “Manhunter.” Both films--”Manhunter” and “The Silence of the Lambs”--will screen at the New Beverly Cinema for a deliciously creepy double bill. “Manhunter,” “The Silence of the Lambs,” and the upcoming “Hannibal” are all based on novels by Thomas Harris.

* “Manhunter” and “The Silence of the Lambs,” New Beverly Cinema, 7165 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles. Sunday: “Manhunter,” 3 and 7:30 p.m., and “The Silence of the Lambs,” 5:15 and 9:45 p.m. Jan. 24 and 25: “Manhunter,” 7:30 p.m., and “The Silence of the Lambs,” 9:45 p.m. $3 to $6. (323) 938-4038.

2 & 3:30 pm: Folk Music

Fiddler Bruce Molsky may have been born in the Bronx, but his first love is the hill music of Appalachia. His group Big Hoedown, with banjo player Beverly Smith and guitarist Rafe Stefanini, will bring the sound of the mountains to Hollywood’s historic Country Chapel Theater, built appropriately enough by Tennessee minister Dr. William Hogg in 1932 and traditionally used as a venue for gospel and country music since the 1940s. This pair of concerts is sponsored by the Da Camera Society of Mount St. Mary’s College’s Chamber Music in Historic Sites series.

* Bruce Molsky & Big Hoedown, Country Chapel Theater, 1750 N. Argyle Ave., Hollywood, 2 and 3:30 p.m. $32. (310) 954-4300.

2 pm: Family

Folklorist, stage veteran, and children’s singer and storyteller Paul Tracey performs in “Our Little Blue Planet,” a musical environmental experience featuring a giant and a floating globe presented in celebration of Tu Bishvat--the Jewish New Year of the Trees. The show, for ages 4 and up, will be followed by an arts workshop.

* “Our Little Blue Planet,” Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles,. 2 p.m. $5. (310) 440-4636.

noon: Art

Using museum displays, dollhouses and model railroads as inspiration, 13 artists create two- and three-dimensional environments in “Small World: Dioramas in Contemporary Art,” opening Sunday at the Museum of Contemporary Art/San Diego. Ranging from large-scale tableaux modeled after museum displays to a miniature English village square, artists such as Mark Dion, Alexis Rockman and Liz Kraft create works of art that address a variety of environmental, social and psychological concerns.

* “Small World: Dioramas in Contemporary Art” at the Museum of Contemporary Art/San Diego, 700 Prospect St., La Jolla. Ends April 30. Tuesdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Adults, $4; students and seniors, $2; children under 12 free. (858) 454-3541.

1:30 pm: Festival

International folk dancing will be the focus of the Winter Festival, which takes place at the Scottish Rite Temple in Pasadena. Attendees are welcome to either participate or observe. The annual event is open to all age groups. Partner, individual, set and line dancing will be on the program. Refreshments included.

* The Winter Festival, Scottish Rite Temple, 150 N. Madison Ave., Pasadena, 1:30-5:30 p.m. $5. (626) 300-8138 or (626) 794-9493.

noon: Photography

“Still (and All): Eileen Cowin, Work 1971-1998,” the first major survey devoted to the noted Los Angeles artist and longtime Cal State Fullerton professor, will open Sunday at the Armory Center for the Arts. Best known for creating mysterious narrative photographs, Cowin--whose work is often posed--captures people engaged in ambiguous actions. Covering more than two decades and containing nearly 60 works, this survey traces a career in video and photography often influenced by psychology and film.

* “Still (and All): Eileen Cowin, Work 1971-1998,” Armory Center for the Arts, 145 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena. Wednesdays-Sundays, noon-5 p.m.; Thursdays and Fridays, 6:30-9 p.m. Admission is free. Ends March 19. An opening reception will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday. (626) 792-5101.

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FREEBIES: Virtuoso pianist Valentina Lisitsa appears on the Sundays at Two series at the Beverly Hills Library, 444 N. Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills, at 2 p.m. Lisitsa will play a program of demanding works, including Schumann’s Symphonic Etudes, two Bach/Busoni choral preludes and four Schubert songs as transcribed by Liszt, (310) 288-2205.

Continuing the American Youth Symphony’s “Season of Rising Stars,” pianist Andrew von Oeyen plays Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto with conductor Alexander Treger and the orchestra at Royce Hall at UCLA at 8 p.m. Treger closes the program with Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, (310) 476-2825.