Three Day Forecast

FRIDAY

Hitching a ride with Almodovar

Gael Garcia Bernal, fresh off a critically acclaimed ride in “The Motorcycle Diaries,” stars in Pedro Almodovar’s latest, “Bad Education.” A young filmmaker (Fele Martinez) in 1980 Spain encounters an aspiring actor (Bernal) who may or may not be the boy he loved back in Catholic school in this gender-bending noir delight.

“Bad Education,” rated NC-17 for a scene of explicit sexual content, opens Friday in limited release.

Rock’s howlin’ Swedes

Here’s another chance to bask in the Hives’ manic attack and haughty mien, the two cornerstones of the Swedish throwbacks’ primal appeal. It remains to be seen how long it can last without some great new songs to plug into its formula, but for the moment the Fagersta Five remains one of rock’s most reliable alternatives to the weighty and the morose.

The Hives, Wiltern LG, 3790 Wilshire Blvd., L.A., 8 p.m. Friday. $20. (213) 380-5005.

SATURDAY

A shipshape procession

An aerial fireworks display will kick off the 41st annual Marina del Rey Boat Parade at 5:55 p.m. The procession of watercraft decorated for the holidays will take place in the main channel of the marina and will be visible from Chace Park.

Marina del Rey Holiday Boat Parade, Burton Chace Park, 13650 Mindanao Way, Marina del Rey. 6-8 p.m. Saturday. Free. (310) 305-9548.

A saintly musical meditation

Joseph Swensen, principal conductor of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and former concert violinist, steps onto the podium of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra this weekend, as his friend, colleague and one-time piano partner, Jeffrey Kahane, relinquishes the post. But Kahane won’t be going far. He’ll be at the keyboard to play Chopin’s Second Piano Concerto. Their program also will include Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1 and James MacMillan’s “I (A Meditation on Iona),” a work commissioned by Swensen’s group. MacMillan’s title refers to one of the islands of the Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland. It is known as the Island of Colm Cille, an Irish priest and prince who was to become revered as St. Columba.

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. 8 p.m. Saturday .

* Also 7 p.m. Sunday, Royce Hall, UCLA. $17-$75. (213) 622-7001, Ext. 215, or www.laco.org.

Smooth sounds

The San Fernando Valley’s own Dave Koz brings his Smooth Jazz Christmas tour to Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre. Joining saxophonist-composer Koz will be guitarist Norman Brown, keyboardist Brian Culbertson and singer Patti Austin. Koz and friends will return to the greater Los Angeles area later this month with a show in Long Beach.

Dave Koz’s Smooth Jazz Christmas, Kodak Theatre, 6801 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood. 8 p.m. Saturday. $46-$76. (323) 308-6363.

The way of an artist

The Santa Barbara Museum of Art explores the works of one of the driving forces behind the Conceptual art movement in “The Art of David Ireland: The Way Things Are.” A three-decade survey of some of Ireland’s most intriguing works, created between 1972 and 2002, includes “Duchamp’s Tree,” a tribute to artist Marcel Duchamp, and “Angel-Go-Round,” a large-scale installation with a motorized, suspended angel circling above concrete nymphs.

“The Art of David Ireland: The Way Things Are,” Santa Barbara Museum of Art, 1130 State St., Santa Barbara. Opens Saturday. Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. $6-$9; 6 and younger, free. (805) 963-4364.

* Ends March 13.

SUNDAY

Bulls, bears and secrets

The new Kirk Douglas Theatre’s inaugural season continues with Jon Robin Baitz’s world premiere play, “The Paris Letter,” a drama that spans four decades as it traces the rise and fall of a sexually conflicted Wall Street powerhouse. With Neil Patrick Harris, Lawrence Pressman, Josh Radnor, Ron Rifkin and Patricia Wettig.

“The Paris Letter,” Kirk Douglas Theatre, 9820 Washington Blvd., Culver City. Opens 4 p.m. Sunday. $19-$40. (213) 628-2772.

* Also 8 p.m. Dec. 17; 2 and 8 p.m. Dec. 18; 2 and 7 p.m. Dec. 19. Week of Dec. 20: 8 p.m. Monday and Tuesday; 2 and 8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; 7 p.m. Sunday. Week of Dec. 27: 8 p.m. Tuesday; 2 and 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday; 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday; ends Jan. 2.