Art: The Palm Beach Photographic Centre in downtown West Palm Beach feels more like an office than an art gallery, but there’s almost always something worth seeing in its free shows. Opening today is the 22nd annual Members’ Show, which features the work of no less than 70 photographers, curated by Scott McKiernan, who heads the Zuma press agency. As with most photographic shows, you’ll be surprised at how many people there are who have a good eye for an arresting image, and in this case, at the amount of local talent on display . The show runs through Oct. 27. Admission is free, the center is open every day but Sunday. Call 253-2600 or visit www.workshop.org.
Film: Despite its attention-getting title, there is nothing salacious about Juliet, Naked, based on a novel by Nick Hornby (High Fidelity, About a Boy). Instead it is a quirky romantic comedy between a once-famous folk rocker named Tucker Crowe (the well-rumpled Ethan Hawke) and Annie (the luminous Rose Byrne), whose pompous boy friend idolizes Crowe and recently wrote a glowing blog on a newly discovered, unorchestrated – as in “naked” – version of his early album Juliet. But it is Annie’s pan of the album that attracts Crowe’s attention, so he reaches out to her and tries to meet her when he comes to London for the birth of his grandchild, the offspring of one of his several neglected grown children. Why this low-key, but smart film was released in the summertime is a mystery, but it is one of the best movies you’re likely to see this season. At area theaters.
Theater: Fifteen years ago, Actors’ Playhouse produced a two-man farce called The Big Bang – unrelated to the TV series – but rather a fictional backers’ audition for an epic four-night musical which aims to tell the story of the history of mankind. Instead of the eventual cast of hundreds, though, the purported writers of the show-within-a-show cavort about a borrowed Park Avenue apartment, tearing it apart for props as they sprint from the Garden of Eden to Woodstock. Ken Clement, who appeared in that 2003 production, returns to knock himself out clowning deftly with some wit-stretching material, as does Nick Santa Maria, who also will do anything for a laugh. Make that a three-man show, because piano accompanist David Nagy is an integral part of the fun. Through Sunday, Sept. 2, in Coral Gables. Call 305-444-9293 for tickets.
Music: There are more reasons these days for musicians to be back on the road, the chief one being that with the advent of the internet and shared files, songwriters and bands can no longer rely on royalties from an album to keep their bank accounts above water. There’s also the question of nostalgia, and aging Baby Boomers still want to get out there and brave the outdoors like they did in their younger days, which brings us to tonight’s concert at Coral Sky Amphitheatre, where one guitar god – Jeff Beck – is joined by two vocal champions, Paul Rodgers and Ann Wilson, for a tour called Stars Align. Tonight’s show is also being recorded live and will be available immediately after the show as a download. Tickets for the 7 p.m. show start at $25. See livenation.com for tickets.