At the 10 a.m. matinee, I found myself floating in the middle of a noisy sea of high schoolers from Cibola and West Mesa. Yikes! Modern experimental theater isn't easy for a lot of adults to handle. For most high school kids, it seems like an experience close to torture.

The 2005 John Donald Robb Composers' Symposium

When the bland, homogenized pop music spoon-fed to you by mainstream radio starts turning your stomach, you know it's time to get a little adventurous. One of the best opportunities to do this comes every year during UNM's John Donald Robb Composers' Symposium.

Untitled by Anna Tsouhlarakis

Downtown Contemporary Art Center

Anna Tsouhlarakis' new show at the Downtown Contemporary Art Center (105 Fourth Street SW) evolved out of awards she received in conjunction with the Albuquerque Contemporary exhibit presented last year at the Albuquerque Museum. Tsouhlarakis has a Masters of Fine Arts from Yale and has studied art in Italy, but her work is intimately tied with the Southwest, often centering around issues of native identity. Fixations opens Friday, April 1, with a reception from 5 to 9 p.m. Runs through April 28. 242-1983.

And on the seventh day the Lord said, Eat, Drink and Be Larry.

Gorilla Tango Comedy Theatre

The late night anarchists that make up the comedy collective Eat, Drink and Be Larry are moving their show from the Vortex Theatre to Gorilla Tango Comedy Theatre (519 Central NW) for a show this weekend. Best of all, this hootenanny is being guest hosted by none other than the Alibi's own Devin D. O'Leary. The show—titled Eucalyptus and Other Fine Scents or The Life and Times of Dick Knipfing—runs Friday, April 1, and Saturday, April 2, at 10:30 p.m. A very reliable source tells me this show is freakin' hilarious. $6. 245-8600.

Even though as a critic I recommend books for a living by writing about them, my most rewarding experience of praising a novel was not in print but in person. I was sitting in the corner of a bar where I used to go and read at night because you could smoke there. A friend stopped by and asked what I was reading. I described the novel—Monica Ali's Brick Lane—and told her why it was keeping me up at night. She said, "Hey, that sounds good, I don't sleep anyway."

Book freaks, take heed! The 14^th Annual Albuquerque Antiquarian Book Fair will be held at UNM's Continuing Education Center (1634 University NE, 291-9653) this Friday, April 1, from 5 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, April 2, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Organizers say this is the biggest antiquarian book sale in the state. In addition to books on everything from cooking to history to the occult, you'll also find maps, plates, photographs, prints and various other bookish ephemera. The event is a benefit for the library at the university's Maxwell Museum of Anthropology. Admission is $6 for both days, or $2 if you plan on only attending Saturday, when all the best stuff will have already been nabbed.