PACZKI DAY CELEBRATION: The Polish Home of Omaha is having a Paczki Day Celebration Sunday from noon. to 6 p.m. Paczki, pastries filled with fruit fillings, will be for purchase. Polish food — pierogi, Polish sausage, golabki, potato soup — will be available for purchase from noon to 5 p.m. From 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. there will be music by the Harmony Boys Polish band. The event is open to the public. Admission: $7 Adults, 16 & under free. The Polish Home is located at 201 E. First St. in Papillion.
KIDZEXPLORE: Go for the gold at this year's KidzExplore. The annual event for children and families will be on Saturday and Sunday at the Mid-America Center. The theme, Kids Explore Games, draws inspiration from the upcoming Olympic games and from the joy of being active. Kids can run, kick, throw and swing a bat to win. There will be soccer, T-ball, football, floor hockey and many more games. Youngsters can participate in a training camp and try out the 40-foot inflatable Extreme Obstacle Course. They can make and carry a "torch" on a track. Or they can make a gold medal and take their place on an awards podium. Parents are welcome to bring cameras and snap photos of these golden moments. Weekend activities will include exotic animals, pony rides, bounce houses, local entertainment, Shrine clowns, games, costumed characters, food sampling and face painting. A special area for children ages 3 and younger will have soft play areas, a junior bouncer, music and games appropriate for that age group. Event activities will be indoors at the Mid-America Center, 1 Arena Way, Council Bluffs, on Saturday and on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission will be $7 for adults and $5 for children ages 3 to 12. (No Frills Supermarkets has $1 discount coupons and also sells discounted tickets.) Information: www.KidzExplore.com.
CONSTRUCTION ZONE: Children rushing to explore the new "Construction Zone: Return of the Bulldozer" exhibit at the Omaha Children's Museum are thrilled to be there. They are sounding the horn on the tractor-trailer, checking out the metal detailing on the rig and exploring the cargo area of the trailer. They're moving the levers on the bulldozer and learning how to use hammers, needle-nose pliers and paint rollers. The exhibit, on display through April 22, will celebrate a grand opening on Saturday and free "hard hats" will be distributed as long as they last. Even if you don't get a free hat to take home, there will be lots of gear for children to wear when they visit. A dress-up box near the exhibit entrance has lots of tool belts, safety glasses, reflective safety vests and real hard hats. From there, kids can go off in many directions to dig, design, build and learn about safety. The Children's Museum hours are: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Open late, until 8 p.m., on the first Friday of the month. Cost for the Construction Zone exhibit: $2 in addition to regular museum admission, which is $8 for ages 2 to 59, $7 for age 60-plus and free for children under 24 months. Information: www.ocm.org and 402-342-6164
THE MARRIAGE CONTRACT: Zany antics and concealed agendas have helped make "The Marriage Contract" one of the most beloved operas for more than 200 years. Opera Omaha is performing the popular comedy this weekend with its own twist. The company is taking the centuries-old opera and transporting it to 1950s Italy, adding some style and sophistication to the otherwise wacky performance. "The Marriage Contract" centers on Toby Mill, who attempts to marry his daughter Fanny to a Canadian fur-trader named Slook. His plans are derailed by clever servants and the determined lovers Fanny and Edward Milford. The great one-act masterpiece about the crazy love triangle is by composer Gioachino Rossini, who is known for the popular "William Tell Overture" and "The Barber of Seville." To make a night out of it, Opera Omaha is adding the option of a meal and drinks before each performance. Caterer John Benker will prepare each Venice-inspired meal. "Cocktails and Canapes" is Friday at 6 p.m. for $30 per person, "The Lover's Feast" is Saturday at 6 p.m. for $40 per person and "Sweetheart Brunch" is Sunday at 12:30 p.m. for $35 per person.
ORCHESTRA OMAHA CONCERT: Orchestra Omaha will present a concert at St. Paul United Methodist Church in Papillion at 3 p.m. Sunday. Titled "Small Wonders," the program includes Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2 (Little Russian). The general public is invited to the free concert (although donations will be accepted).
PANCAKE BREAKFAST: St. Benedict the Moor Women's Society is hosting its annual pancake breakfast, featuring the Pancake Man, on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. A $6 donation gets you into event at St. Benedict the Moor Church, 2423 Grant St. For information or to donate, contact Sharon Rhodes at 402-348-0631.
SOUP LUNCH: Dietz United Methodist Church, 1423 S. 10 St., will serve a vegetable-beef soup lunch on Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The meal includes salad, roll, dessert and beverage. The cost will be $6 for adults and $2 for children ages 4 to 10.
FRANCISCAN INFORMATION: Information on how to become a member of the International Secular Franciscan Order will be provided on Sunday at 1 p.m. at the New Cassel Retirement Center, 900 N. 90th St. Information: 402-493-6730.
CHILDREN'S STORY TIME: Project Interfaith is taking reservations for a weekly children's program about world religions that will run Feb. 5 through March 4. The story times for children and their families will be 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays at the Bookworm, 8702 Pacific St. Each week, a member from the local religious community will read a children's book about a holiday, talk about some beliefs and practices and show items connected to their faith. The schedule: Hinduism, Feb. 19; Islam, Feb. 26; and Judaism, March 4. Story times will be free and open to the public; donations will be welcome.
FAMILY FLICKS: Aksarben Cinema has brought back its Free Family Flicks. Families can enjoy a movie with the donation of a canned good/nonperishable item or $1 donation per person on Saturday and Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. All donations will benefit Together Inc. Doors open approximately 30 minutes in advance, and seating is offered on a first-come, first-served basis. The Free Family Flicks schedule for February: 18-19, "Mr. Popper's Penguins"; and 25-26, "Kung Fu Panda 2."
MELODRAMATIC FUN: The melodrama "Fibs, Frauds & Fisticuffs" and the olio "Crazy, Groovy, Fun Times" will be presented by St. James and St. Elizabeth Ann Catholic Churches Friday through Sunday and Feb. 23, 24 and 25. The curtain opens at 7:30 p.m. except on Feb. 19 when the show starts at 6:30 p.m. The all-in-fun shows will be presented at Sokol Auditorium, 13th and Martha Streets. (Round-trip bus service, $5 per person, is available from St. James Church, 9025 Larimore Ave.) Tickets, $17, are available by calling 402-493-3326.
TWIN CATS ARE BACK: "Cats," Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1982 Broadway musical smash based on "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats" by T.S. Eliot, long featured a set of twin cats. Coricopat and Tantomile were slightly psychic. They sensed what was about to come a couple of beats ahead of the other cats. But as the years went by and tours got leaner, the twins, who had no vocal solo, disappeared to save money. American audiences haven't seen them since the version on Broadway closed in 2000. Now they're back, thanks to a chance conversation national tour director-choreographer Richard Stafford had with the show's original choreographer, Gillian Lynne, and her assistant, Jo-Anne Robinson, in London in late 2010. "Jo-Anne was surprised the twins had disappeared in the U.S.," Stafford said. "She suggested a solution, and the twins returned with this tour. The twins add a greater sense of diversity within the tribe," Stafford said from his Manhattan apartment on the Upper West Side, overlooking a canyon of skyscrapers. "They were ethereal, almost spooky. They add depth to the mystery of the show. If you're looking, that psychic sense is there in almost every scene." Stafford said fans who know the show well have responded positively to the twins, "like a return of old friends," while audiences new to "Cats" get the added depth provided by their presence. Cats is showing at the Orpheum Theater, 409 S. 16th St. Showtimes: 8 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: $25 to $58. Information: 402-345-0606, online at ticketomaha.com or at the Holland Center box office, 13th and Douglas Streets
ONGOING EVENTS:
CHILDREN'S BOOK ILLUSTRATIONS ON DISPLAY: "Bravo!" featuring works by Chris Raschka is now on display in the Mind's Eye gallery at the Joslyn Art Museum. Raschka has illustrated more than 50 children's books, including "The Hello, Goodbye Window," which won a Caldecott Medal. He will be teaching a number of workshops at the museum in February, including a talk for educators on Feb. 23, and a public appearance on Feb. 25 from 10 a.m. to noon at the museum. The free public event will include an art-making activity.
OUTDOOR SKATING: The University of Nebraska Medical Center's public ice rink is open for its third season. The outdoor skating rink, located between 40th and 42nd Streets between Dewey Avenue and Emile Street, will be open through March 3. Hours will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 8 p.m. Sundays. The rink is normally closed Mondays but will be open Feb 20 on President's Day. The cost to skate is $5, which includes skate rental. Hot chocolate will be available for purchase.
ZOO'S IMAX THEATER: Take in a movie at Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo's Lozier Imax Theater. Showing now are "Sharks 3D," "Journey Into Amazing Caves," and "Grand Canyon: The Hidden Secrets." Presented by Jean-Michel Cousteau, "Sharks 3D" is a breathtaking 3D film experience that offers audiences an astonishing up-close encounter with the lions and tigers of the ocean. Come face-to-face with a multitude of shark species, including the great white, hammerhead, and whale shark. Witness them as they really are: not wicked man-eating creatures, but wild, fascinating and endangered animals that have been in existence since a million years before dinosaurs roamed the earth. "Journey Into Amazing Caves" takes a look at one of Earth's last unexplored frontiers. For those compelled to push their limits in the world's most hostile environments, the risk of fatal danger and the thrill of new discovery are the everyday factors that make cave exploration such an awe-inspiring experience. "Grand Canyon: The Hidden Secrets"opens with the beginning of man's fragile kinship with the twisting 277 mile Grand Canyon in Arizona, then moves the audience through time with brief glimpses at the stone pages of human history. Movie admission is $5 per person. You need not pay zoo admission fees if you only want to attend a movie. Go directly to the theater or to the guest services office at 3701 S. 10th St. to gain admission. Information and show times: www.omahazoo.com and 733-8400.
TRAVEL BACK IN TIME: "Travel Back in Time," a new exhibit at Homestead National Monument, gets you close to the buggies, carts and wagons that moved generations of homesteaders across the prairie. Horse-drawn vehicles were a common means of transportation in cities and rural areas until early in the 20th century. The vehicles will be in the monument's education center through March, 2012. Homestead National Monument, 8523 W. State Highway 4 in Beatrice, is a unit of the National Park Service. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free and the buggy exhibit is also free. Information: 402-223-3514 or www.nps.gov/home.
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