WEEKEND FORECAST

TODAY

POP MUSIC

They’ll get that ice rink rocking

Spaceland has been one of the coolest rock clubs in town for years, but now it’s gone even cooler with “Spaceland on Ice” -- a teaming with the city’s parks department to present music at Pershing Square’s ice-skating rink. The series hits a high point with Los Abandoned, whose shiny, new-wave-ish bilingual pop album “Mixtape” includes a perfect song for the occasion, the bittersweet “Office Xmas Party.”

Los Abandoned, Spaceland on Ice, Pershing Square, 532 S. Olive St., L.A. 8 tonight. $6 skate session, $2 skate rental. (213) 847-4970.

MOVIES

Rare view in war tale

In “Flags of Our Fathers,” director Clint Eastwood brought to life the stories of the men in the famous photograph of the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima. With “Letters From Iwo Jima,” Eastwood returns to the rock and sees the battle from the perspective of the Japanese. Ken Watanabe stars.

“Letters From Iwo Jima,” rated R for graphic war violence, now playing exclusively at Pacific’s ArcLight, 6360 W. Sunset Blvd. (at Ivar Avenue), (323) 464-4226; Laemmle’s Monica, 1332 2nd St., Santa Monica, (310) 394-9741.

DANCE

‘Nutcracker’ variations

So many unusual “Nutcrackers,” and so little time before Christmas comes and goes. Dancing to taped Tchaikovsky, the young trainees of the Bolshoi Ballet Academy (the school, not the main company) bring Vasily Vainonen’s familiar version of the Yuletide classic to the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in the final days before Santa’s big night. The same weekend, the brand-new Los Angeles Ballet gives repeat performances of its homegrown staging at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, dancing to live accompaniment and with more of its colorful scenery on view than the Wilshire Theatre could accommodate earlier in the month.

Bolshoi Ballet Academy, Pasadena Civic Auditorium, 300 E. Green St., Pasadena. 7:30 tonight and Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. $15 to $45 (children), $25 to $55 (adults). (626) 449-7360 or www.ticketmaster.com.

Los Angeles Ballet, Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 Manhattan Beach Blvd., Redondo Beach. 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 1 p.m. Sunday. $28 to $95. (310) 998-7782 or www.losangelesballet.org.

JAZZ

Emphasis is on cool

For those looking for a last-minute chance to cool their yule, the Cool Jazz Christmas show is coming to town -- Cerritos, to be exact. Pianist-composer David Benoit, guitarist-singer-songwriter

Jonathan Butler, pianist singer-songwriter Michael Franks and saxophonist Kirk Whalum will be the featured acts in this smooth jazz medley

of talent that also promises some “surprise” guests.

Cool Jazz Christmas, Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 12700 Center Court Drive, Cerritos, 8 tonight. $30 to $60. (800) 300-4345.

* Also 8 p.m. Friday.

THEATER

They’ll spell it all out

Adolescent misfits (played by adults) get their chance to shine in “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” the 2005 musical by William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin. Sheinkin’s book won a Tony Award, and the quirky, audience-participation show, now arriving in its touring version, has been running on Broadway for nearly 20 months, which suggests there might be a lot of former and current adolescent misfits out there who can identify with it.

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” Segerstrom Hall, Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. $20 to $70. (714) 556-2787; www.ocpac.org

* Runs 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Ends Dec. 31.

FRIDAY

MOVIES

Ruling over the drama

Palace intrigue -- both political and romantic -- and a fetish for golden chrysanthemums are at the heart of Zhang Yimou’s latest historical epic, “Curse of the Golden Flower.” Gong Li and Chow Yun Fat star as a 10th century Chinese emperor and empress.

“Curse of the Golden Flower,” rated R for violence, opens Friday at selected theaters.

POP MUSIC

It’s all in the genes

Patriarch Pete Escovedo’s roots extend back to the pioneering Latin rock of Santana and Azteca, and the beat runs in his family, notably daughter and fellow percussionist Sheila E. Then there’s his brother, the widely acclaimed singer-songwriter Alejandro, and sons Juan and Peter Michael. They’ll all gather Friday for the Escovedo Family Orchestra’s Latin Holiday Celebration as part of the Walt Disney Concert Hall’s “Deck the Hall” series of holiday concerts.

The Escovedo Family Orchestra’s Latin Holiday Celebration, Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., L.A. 8 p.m. Friday. $27 to $79. (323) 850-2000.

SATURDAY

MUSIC

Be part of the show

Actor-storyteller David Prather hosts the Los Angeles Philharmonic Assn.’s annual family-friendly Holiday Sing-Along. Here’s a chance to sing out with the 40-member Angeles Chorale, organist Philip Allen Smith and pianist Bryan Pezzone. The program will include familiar carols and other holiday favorites. Lyric sheets will be given to the audience so nobody will be at a loss for words.

Holiday Sing-Along, Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., L.A. 2 p.m. Saturday. $23 to $69. (323) 850-2000; www.LAPhil.com

MONDAY

ART

Saved from being scrap

Artist Michael C. McMillen has a knack for discovering abandoned objects and resuscitating them. His latest discovery: a series of eccentric films found in a discarded crate in a building set for demolition. In lieu of Christmas lights, TAG Gallery will project “Cyclops,” a vignette of some of these films, off the gallery windows and onto the street after dark. Some of the other “artifacts” McMillen found are on display.

Michael C. McMillen: “Cyclops,” TAG Gallery, 2903 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica. Opens Monday. (310) 829-9556.

* Gallery hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Projection hours: 5:30 p.m. to midnight. Ends Jan. 13.