Friday - 11/23

//exhibit//

Snow Patrol
"Antarctica"

Most Orange County folk wouldn't feel comfortable with the idea of the temperature reaching 130 degrees Fahrenheit—unless, of course, they simply cannot wait to flock to Lake Havasu in the middle of August—maybe. But now try to imagine 130 degrees below zero.

Just up the road at Pitzer College in Claremont, you will find the "Antarctica" show, an array of both chilly and chilling photos from Earth's coldest continent. There are breathtaking stills full of jagged, icy daggers from a region beaten daily with snow storms and "white-outs." Yet there is something beautiful in the isolation, the way man-made fortresses cannot endure the harshness for too long before becoming enclosed in a coffin of solid ice.

The more you look at these photos, the more you'll feel guilty for complaining it's freezing in here when someone screws with the a/c at your office.

"Antarctica" at the Nichols Gallery and Lenzner Family Art Gallery, Pitzer College, 1050 N. Mills Ave., Claremont, (909) 607-3143; www.pitzer.edu/artgalleries. Tues.-Fri., noon-5 p.m.; or by appointment.

//comedy//

D-Listcious!
Kathy Griffin

Self-deprecation is always funny, right?

The always-candid, sometimes-abrasive Kathy Griffin is gracing the OCPAC with her refreshing comedy. She may have been on Suddenly Susan, Celebrity Mole and other television not-so-greatest-hits, but it's her Bravo reality show, My Life on the D-List, that has given us glimpses of the "real" Kathy. And surprise: The "real" Kathy is pretty similar to comedienne Kathy—Kathy Griffin does not lie.

With her relentless self-criticism (usually on her pseudo-fame and dating life), Griffin is a true storyteller, and she doesn't leave out the harshest bits just to please everyone else—or protect herself.

And besides, it's worth the trip just to hear her talk shit about other celebrities and pseudo-celebrities. (Past victims include Ryan Seacrest, Perez Hilton and Scientologists.)

Kathy Griffin at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa, (714) 556-2787; www.ocpac.org. Fri., 8 p.m. $24-$52.

//concert//

Little Britain
Ray Bush & the BBC Jazz Band

A random trip to English pub the Olde Ship in Santa Ana (just a hop and a skip away from the Weekly office) one fateful Friday night provided the lucky and unexpected discovery of Ray Bush & the BBC Jazz Band. Each member of the ensemble has a guessed age of around 70, but it's clear these chaps have been playing music for the better part of half a century: When they pick up an instrument, an effortlessly impeccable wave of classic jazzy delight envelops the listener. An English pub isn't a common place to find a jazz band, but Ray Bush & the BBC Jazz Band taking center stage (or a cleared-out area in the middle of the floor, whatever) is a seamless fit to the pub's cheeky décor and saucy waitresses. Plus, live jazz goes great with a pint of Boddingtons and some sticky pudding.

Ray Bush & the BBC Jazz Band play at the Olde Ship, 1120 W. 17th St., Santa Ana, (714) 550-6700; www.theoldeship.com. Every Fri., 8 p.m.