Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloe Moretz in Let Me In.Film: I am no fan of vampire movies, particularly the Twilight series, with its two-dimensional, catatonic acting. But two years ago, a subdued, suspenseful Swedish film, Let the Right One In, put a new twist on the undead genre with its tale of a 12-year-old boy who is befriended by a seemingly young vampire who moves into his neighborhood. Now comes Matt Reeves’ (Cloverfield) remake, Let Me In, transferred to New Mexico in the Reagan ’80s, and as close to the original film as the title is. Ignore the TV ads, which pump up the gore and special effects. Reeves keeps the focus on the characters and the pressures on Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee), who is hassled by bullies and mystified by this girl he has met, just like every other 12-year-old. At area theaters beginning today. – H. Erstein
Theater: In 1971, composer-lyricist Stephen Sondheim was on a creative roll in his collaborations with director Hal Prince, allowing himself to think big, creating an original musical with a huge cast, Follies, the story of former chorus girls from the fictional Weisman Follies, now at middle age and reunited by the imminent razing of the theater where they once performed. Because of the show’s size and degree of difficulty, it is rarely produced, but that does not stop the Caldwell Theatre and its enthusiastic artistic director, Clive Cholerton, from mounting a concert version for four performances only this weekend, today through Sunday. Such members of the Caldwell’s informal musical rep company as Wayne LeGette, Melissa Minyard and Laura Hodos are joined by newcomer Stephen G. Anthony as the show’s four principals. Just to hear the score – which includes such cabaret classics as Broadway Baby, I’m Still Here and Losing My Mind – is reason enough to seek this concert out. Call (561) 241-7432 or (877) 245-7432 for tickets. – H. Erstein
Rush.Music: It’s a classic rock weekend starting tonight with a return appearance at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood of Crosby, Stills and Nash. Possessors of a great catalog of intelligent, beautifully harmonized songs, all three men – now in their 60s – are accomplished songwriters as well as persuasive singers, and their music evokes a very different time in American popular music, when its folk roots were much more apparent. CSN appears tonight beginning at 8; tickets are $40-100; call 800-745-3000 or visit www.hardrocklivehollywoodfl.com.
On Saturday, it’s a visit from Canada’s most successful prog-rock band, Rush. Revered beginning in the 1970s for their rhythmically and melodically intricate songs, impressive musicianship, and geeky subject matter, they stood out on the radio of the day perhaps most for lead singer Geddy Lee’s unmistakable voice. They’ve been playing together for more than 40 years, and they’ve got a new album in the works coming out next year. They’re at the Cruzan Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach at 7:30 p.m. Saturday; tickets are $47.10-$143.50, and are available through Ticketmaster or Live Nation.
Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943).Miami’s Seraphic Fire concert choir begins its ninth season this week fresh off the fuel from rocket-like ride up the iTunes charts with its recording of the Monteverdi Vespers of 1610. Tonight through Sunday, Patrick Dupre Quigley leads his group in another Vespers: the All-Night Vigil (Vsenoshchnoye bdeniye) , Op. 37, of Rachmaninov, written in 1915. It’s a setting of the vigil texts that precede the major feasts of the Orthodox Church, and it’s considered the composer’s finest choral work. It’s ravishingly beautiful, and while Rachmaninov’s motivation in writing it was as much patriotic as it was religious, there’s no mistaking the intense emotion behind the music. 7:30 p.m. today at First United Methodist of Coral Gables; 8 p.m. Saturday at All Saints Episcopal in Fort Lauderdale; 4 p.m. Sunday at Miami Beach Community Church, Miami Beach. Tickets: $35. For more information, call 305-285-9060.
A painting of pink potted plants by Mahlon Cline. Art: Mahlon Cline left the New York advertising world behind in 1972 to retire to South Florida and pursue a second career as a painter and art teacher. He worked with numerous artists until his death at 94 in 2000, and enjoyed successful exhibits locally and in New York of his gentle Impressionist style.
Cline left an endowment to the Lighthouse ArtCenter in Tequesta, and the center is currently showing the first retrospective of the artist’s work in 10 years. These are pretty paintings of mainstream subjects (many of which are for sale), and they fit well in the tradition of such paintings as well as evoke some of the light and color of South Florida. The Cline exhibition and sale, which opened Sept. 21, runs through Nov. 2. Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, at ArtCenter in Gallery Square North, Tequesta. Admission is $5 for non-members, free on Saturdays. Call 746-3101 for more information.
An upstream scene painted by Mahlon Cline.