Bars and Clubs

Black Rose. Harvard Square. 492-8630. College Night on Thursday, Nov. 18. Jim Plunkett on Saturday, Nov. 20.

Comedy Connection. Faneuil Hall. 248-9700. John Valby on Nov. 19.

House of Blues. Harvard Square. 491-BLUE. Philip Walker on Friday, Nov. 19. Salim Washington on Sunday, Nov. 21.

ManRay. 21 Brookline St., Central Square, Cambridge. 864-0400. Campus for Gay Men on Tuesday, Nov. 23 and Thursday, Nov. 18. Gothic/Industrial on Wednesday, Nov. 24. Gothic Weekend on Saturday, Nov. 20.

Nick's Comedy Stop. 482-0930. Steve Sweeney on Nov. 19 and 20.

T. T. The Bears. 10 Brookline St., Cambridge. 492-BEAR. Chainsaw Kittens on Thursday, Nov. 18. Mr. Jones on Friday, Nov. 19. Merengue on Saturday, Nov. 20.

Concert

Boston Symphony Orchestra. Symphony Hall, 301 Mass Ave., Boston. 266-1492. Perform Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto and Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2 on Thursday, Nov. 18 at 8 p.m.; Friday, Nov. 19 at 1:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 20 at 8 p.m. Performs Hadyn's Symphony No. 92 and Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and Symphony No. 28 on Wednesday, Nov. 24.

Exhibitions

Museum of Fine Arts. 465 Huntington Ave., Boston. 267-9300.

The Age of Rubens. Through Jan. 2. The first major survey of Flemish Baroque painting ever mounted in the United States, presenting about 120 paintings by Rubens and his most important pupils.

Robert Cumming: Cone of Vision. Through Nov. 28. Focuses on the remarkably consistent and the objects he has chosen to focus on - the disc, cone, boat, house and chair.

Duccio to Delacroix: Masterpieces of European Paintings from the Collection. Through Jan. 2. Includes over 80 European paintings.

African and Oceanic Sculpture: Treasures from a Private Collection. Through July 3. The objects are mostly wood and terracotta, ranging from a miniature wooden mask from Zaire to a monumental yoruba veranda post from Nigeria.

Rubens, Bellange, Rebrandt; European Graphic Art, 1580 - 1660. Through Feb. 6. Ninety prints, drawings and illustrated books explore the rich variety and visual extravagance of European graphich art from the final phases of the Renaissance through the apogee of Baroque.

In and Out of Place: Contemporary Art and the American Social Landscape. Through Jan. 23. explores representations of people, from the homeless to the wealthy, and the places they inhabit.

Deities, Saints, and Allegories: Late Antique and Coptic Textiles. Through March 6. Includes tapestries of full-length images and busts of Classical deities, saints and allegoric figures.

Festival

Boston International Festival. Music and dance, food and shopping. Bayside Expo. $6 for students. Friday, Nov. 19 - Sunday, Nov. 21. Call 861-9729 for more information.

Movies

Brattle Theatre. 40 Brattle St., Harvard Square. 876-6837. New British Cinema: "Orlando" at 3:45 and 7:45 and "Drowning by Numbers" at 5:30 and 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 18. "The Secret Garden" on Friday, Nov. 19 at 4 and 8 and Saturday, Nov. 20 at 4 and 7:50. "Olivier Olivier" at 5:50 and 9:50 on Friday, Nov. 19. "Into the West" at 2, 5:55 and 9:40 on Saturday, Nov. 20. Starring Katharine Hepburn: "The Philadelphia Story" at 3:20 and 7:30 and "Bringing Up Baby" at 1:20, 5:30 and 9:30 on Sunday, Nov. 21. Film Noir: "In a Lonely Place" at 4:15 and 7:50 and "The Big Heat" at 6:05 and 9:35 on Monday, Nov. 22. Vamps and other Lesbians: Vampire Lovers: Lesbians in the Horror Film presentation at 5:30 and 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 23. From Hong Kong: The Films of Tsui Hark: "Peking Opera Blues" at 5:15, 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 24.

Coolidge Corner Cinema. 390 Harvard St., Brookline. 734-2500. On Thursday, Nov. 18. "Betty" at 5:45, 7:40 and 9:45. "8 1/2" at 5 and 9:30. "La Strada" at 7:25.

Loews Fresh Pond. Fresh Pond Plaza. 661-2900. On Thursday, Nov. 18. "The Three Musketeers" at 12, 2:15, 4:40, 7:15, and 9:40. "My Life" at 11:30, 2, 4:55, 7:30 and 10:10. "Carlito's Way" at 12:55, 4, 7 and 9:55. "Flesh and Bone" at 12:10, 2:45, 5:20, 7:55 and 10:30. "Look Who's Talking Now" at 1:50, 4:20, 6:45 and 9:25. "Fearless" at 11:50, 2:30, 5:10, 7:45 and 10:20. "Malice" at 3, 5:35, 8:15 and 10:40. "Cool Runnings" at 1:30, 3:45, 6:30 and 8:50. "Fatal Instinct" at 12:25 p.m. "A Bronx Tale" at 12:40, 3:15, 5:50 and 8:30. "Rudy" at 1:10 and 6:10. "Robocop 3" at 3:30 and 9:10.

Loews Harvard Square. 10 Church St., Cambridge. 864-4580. On Thursday, Nov. 18. "The Joy Luck Club" at 12:10, 4:05, 6:45 and 10. "The Age of Innocence" at 1, 4:20, 7:15 and 10:15. "Remains of the Day" at 12:30, 3:50, 7, 9:45 and 12:15. "Farewell my Concubine" at 11:50, 3, 6:05 and 9:10. "The Nightmare Before Christmas" at 11:30, 1:30, 3:30, 5:30, 7:30, 9:30 and 11:30. "Rocky Horror" at 12:35 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Loews Janus. 57 JFK St., Harvard Square. 661-3737. "Short Cuts" at 12:30, 4:30 and 8:30 p.m.

Theatre

A Christmas Carol. Through Dec. 23, Presented by the Huntington Theatre company to benefit Globe Santa. $22-$39. 264 Huntington Ave., Boston. Call 931-ARTS for tickets. Forever Plaid. Indefinite run. In Stuart Ross's tribute to the "guy groups" of the '50s and '60s, the Plaids, a semi-pro harmony group killed on the eve of their first big-time gig, have come back from the dead to croon their tunes. Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 64 Alington St., Boston. Call 357-8384 for more information.

Lady from the Sea. Through Nov. 14. A revival of Henrik lbsen's tale of Ellida Wangel, a wife who dreams of leaving the domestic life. $18-$38. Call 266-0800 for more information.

The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me. Through Nov. 28. David Drake's one-man show about gay awakening and AIDS, which won the playwright an Obie Award. Lyric Stage, 140 Clarendon Street, Copley Square. Call 437-7172 for tickets and more information.

Nunsense. Indefinite run. This Off Broadway musical revue has the Little Sisters of Hoboken putting on a talent show to finance the burial of 52 of their number inadvertently poisoned by the convent chef. Theatre Lobby, 216 Hanover St., Boston. Call 931-2000 for tickets and more information.

The Nutcracker. Through Jan. 2. Presented by the Boston Ballet. Wang Center, 270 Tremont St., Boston. $18-$56. Call 931-ARTS for tickets.

Shear Madness. Indefinite run. This audience-participant whodunit is about the murderer of a classical pianist who lived over the unisex hair salon where the show is set. Charles Playhouse, 74 Warrenton St., Boston. Call 426-5225 for tickets and more information.

The Secret Garden. Through Nov. 21. The Frances Hodgson Burnett Classic, about children and adults renewed by the natural world. Wheelock Family Theatre, 180 the Riverway, Boston. Call 734-4760 or 731-4426 for tickets and more information.

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Through Dec. 26. The classic family musical. Charles Playhouse, 76 Warrenton St., Boston.