GOINGS ON / SANTA BARBARA : Out of Africa : A performance troupe will bring its multi-tribal music, dance and costumery to the Lobero Theatre.

Imagine an African travel film on fast-forward. Now take out everything but the singing, dancing and music. And remember to keep it on fast-forward.

That’s what you might expect to see at the Lobero Theatre tonight and Friday when the touring group Africa Oye! comes to Santa Barbara.

The show features 38 performers belonging to eight African tribes from Zaire, Guinea, the Ivory Coast, Mali and Niger.

“It’s a panoramic view of various parts of Africa’s performing arts,” said David Coffman, general manager of Africa Oye! “Each of the individual groups do costumes, music and presentation exactly the way they do it in their countries.” The tribes perform separate 10-to-15-minute segments, joining one another on stage only for the grand finale.

Shows begin at 8 p.m. The Lobero is located at 33 E. Canon Perdido. General admission is $22.50. For tickets call 963-0761.

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Fifteen of the top musicians in the country, ages 16 to 28, will be competing in the second Santa Barbara Symphony/Esperia Foundation Young Artists’ Competition Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Music Academy of the West.

The eight violinists, three violists, two cellists and two double bassists, though they live in the United States, represent seven different countries. The top three finishers will come away with $5,000, $2,500 and $1,500 respectively. There is no charge to attend the competition, which will run from 1 to 6 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Sunday’s program will begin at 1 p.m. The Academy is located at 1070 Fairway Road in Montecito.

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Have you ever wondered, as you walked down the street, whether something might fall out of the sky and plunk you on the head? Well, sure, if there’s a flock of sea gulls around.

But even more serious, to some, is the possibility of being hit by an asteroid.

Eleanor Helin of Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California Institute of Technology will visit the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History tonight to talk about asteroid activity. She will also discuss how scientists are working to have us avoid a serious collision with one.

The museum is located at 2559 Puesta del Sol Road. The discussion will take place at Fleischmann Auditorium at 8 p.m. General admission is $3. For more information, call 682-3224.

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Beginning Friday night and running through Nov. 22, Santa Barbara’s Museum of Natural History will present 20-minute laser shows at its Gladwin Planetarium. The lasers, which are designed to resemble stars moving along the planetarium’s domed top, will be accompanied by music. Depending on the show, the music will be Baroque/classical, New Age, classic rock, AC/DC, Led Zeppelin or Pink Floyd. Friday’s programs will begin every hour from 7 to 11 p.m. Admission is $5, and advance purchase is recommended. For more information, call 682-3224.

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“Changing Our Minds: The Story of Dr. Evelyn Hooker” will be the feature film at Friday night’s opening of “First Time Out,” the first annual Santa Barbara Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, at the Victoria Street Theatre.

The movie looks at the work that Hooker, a psychologist, did in the ‘50s to challenge the belief that homosexuality was a mental disorder. Her 1957 report showed no pathological differences between homosexual and heterosexual men.

The documentary was directed by Richard Schmiechen, producer of the Academy Award-winning “The Times of Harvey Milk.” Schmiechen and producer Davis Hauglind will be on hand. Admission is $7 for the movie, $10 for a post-screening reception and $15 for both. Show time is 8 p.m.

The two-day film fest will continue from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call the Gay and Lesbian Resource Center at 963-3636. The Victoria Street Theatre is located at 33 W. Victoria St.

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UC Santa Barbara is emphasizing diversity this week.

On Wednesday the university kicked off a four-day conference called “Translating Cultures: The Future of Multiculturalism?,” a mix of free films and talks by the filmmakers.

The feature at 8 p.m. tonight is the documentary “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien.” It combines poetry, music and the stories of five HIV-positive African-American men for a look at the AIDS epidemic. Friday’s highlights include a 5 p.m. showing of “Columbus on Trial,” a vision of what might happen if Christopher Columbus were to stand trial as performed by the Culture Clash comedy troupe. Both movies will be shown at the Girvetz Theater on campus.

For the complete schedule of events, call 893-3535.

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In conjunction with the film series, the UCSB University Art Museum is showing the exhibit “Mistaken Identities.” The 16-artist project looks at “the construction of racial, sexual and ethnic identities in their political, social and psychic dimensions.” The show will run through Dec. 20.

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Santa Barbara Winery will celebrate the first wine of the year’s harvest, the 1992 Beaujour, at its fourth annual Beaujour Celebration on Wednesday. The event will include hors d’oeuvres, jazz by the Bob Ledner Trio and, of course, a sampling of the wine--which is described in the party announcement as “an intensely fruity Beaujolais-style Zinfandel.” The winery also notes that “roughly half of the grapes were gently foot stomped” to emphasize the fruitiness.

Admission to the event, which will run from 5 to 8 p.m., is $15. For reservations, call 963-3633 or (800) 225-3633.