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Carnegie Screenwriters is sponsoring a free showing of "The Mothman Prophecies" (2002), a film made in 2001 in local neighborhoods and communities such as Shadyside, Oakland, West Mifflin, Eighty Four and Kittanning.

The screening will be at 2 p.m. Sunday at Sewickley Public Library, 500 Thorn St., with popcorn and beverages to be served and a discussion to follow.

Richard Gere, Will Patton, Sam Nicotero and current Oscar nominee Laura Linney ("Kinsey") star in the drama based on a John Keel novel that grafts a supernatural spin onto a real-life event, the collapse of the Silver Bridge in Point Pleasant, W.Va., in 1967.

-- Ed Blank

August Wilson's latest to fold on Broadway

The Broadway production of August Wilson's "Gem of the Ocean," with Phylicia Rashad, will fold Feb. 6 after 15 previews and just 72 performances.

Its opening had been delayed by a lack of capital. Even with generally enthusiastic reviews, the play, set in Pittsburgh's Hill District in 1904, struggled at the box office.

"The Phantom of the Opera," on the other hand, celebrated its 17th anniversary on Broadway on Wednesday and played its 7,089th performance. Business has perked a bit since the movie's release in December.

-- Ed Blank

Soulful trio to perform tonight at Club Cafe

The Holmes Brothers will be bringing their foot-stomping gospel sound to the South Side tonight.

Sherman and Wendell Holmes, who team with drummer-singer Popsy Dixon, have been working together as a backup crew since the mid-'60s. But in 1979, they decided to concentrate on their own show and hit the road as The Holmes Brothers.

While they have their own distinct sound, they are not averse to working with other well-known artists, such as Alison Krauss or Richard Thompson.

On its current album, "Simple Truths," the band is joined by Willie Nelson and Hank Williams. But the show here will be the soulful trio of the two brothers and Dixon.

Music begins at 7:30 p.m. at Club Cafe on the South Side. Tickets are $18.

Details: (412) 431-4950.

-- Bob Karlovits

McKeesport polka band is up for Grammy

Quick, what Pittsburgh artist is up for the most glittering prize in all of music, the Grammy? Not Christina Aguilera -- it's Henny & The Versa J's. This McKeesport polka band features Ryan Ogrodny, 19, a Duquesne University student, who sings and plays 10 instruments.

Their send-off party is from 3 to 7 p.m. Sunday, with a dance and performance by the band, at the White Oak American Legion. It's free, but they'll also be collecting donations for Children's Hospital's Free Care Fund.

Details: (412) 672-7994.

-- Michael Machosky

Winner of composition competition named

David T. Little, who is pursuing his doctorate in composition at Princeton University, took first prize in the 2005 Harvey Gaul Composition Competition. He won $6,000 and a commission for a new work that will be performed by the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, which has run the competition since 1980.

The cash award for first place was doubled this year, resulting in the largest number of applications and "the highest overall quality in the 25 years we have been administering this competition," PNME artistic director Kevin Noe says.

The Harvey Gaul Composition Competition was created in 1945 in memory of the Pittsburgh composer by his friends and colleagues.

-- Mark Kanny

Children's Museum tells story of steel giant

The legend of Joe Magarac -- the 9-plus-foot tall mill worker who could stir molten steel with his bare hands -- will come to life Sunday at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh on the North Side.

"Joe Magarac: Man of Steel Day" -- a day of storytelling and education about the legendary giant and steelmaking -- is sponsored by the museum and the Allegheny County Labor Council, the local division of AFL-CIO. The story of Joe Magarac -- who was born out of an iron-rich mountain -- emerged during the heyday of the Pittsburgh steel mills. He came to symbolize the work ethic, strength, sacrifice and heart of steelworkers.

Storyteller Tim Hartman will perform at 1:30 and 3 p.m. at the museum. Representatives from United Steelworkers of America will teach about steel creation and life in a steel mill before and after each show. Children can see how a tool tote is made at 12:30 and 2 p.m., in a presentation by members of the apprenticeship program of the Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 12.

Details: (412) 322-5058.

-- Kellie B. Gormly

Cultural events in the city today

Cultural events in the city today include:

Pittsburgh Public Theater presents "Ain't Misbehavin'" at 8 p.m. Performances continue through Feb. 20 at the O'Reilly Theater, 621 Penn Ave., Downtown. $36 to $55. (412) 316-1600.

PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh presents "The Producers" at 2 and 8 p.m. Performances continue through Sunday at the Benedum Center, Seventh Street and Penn Avenue, Downtown. $27 to $60.50. (412) 456-6666.

Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra presents "Bright Baroque" at 8 p.m. at Heinz Hall, Sixth Street and Penn Avenue, Downtown. $17 to $69. (412) 392-4900.

Pittsburgh Dance Council presents DanceBrazil at 8 p.m. at the Byham Theater, 101 Sixth St., Downtown. $20 to $40. (412) 456-6666.

Foot infection nearly KO'd Hilary Swank on 'Million Dollar Baby' set

While training for the boxing drama "Million Dollar Baby," Hilary Swank was nearly TKO'd -- by a foot infection.

Swank, nominated for a best-actress Oscar for her performance in the Clint Eastwood-directed film, says a blister on her foot nearly led to her downfall.

After popping the blister, Swank continued her rigorous workouts. But soon she was in intense pain and knew something was wrong.

"I couldn't believe the pain," the 30-year-old actress says in an interview to air Sunday on CBS' "60 Minutes" newsmagazine. "It was unbelievable and I looked down, there were streaks going to my foot.

"So, I went to the doctor's that second and he looked at me and he said, 'This is really serious. And if you would have waited two more hours, you would have been in the hospital for three weeks -- and if it gets to your heart, that's it.'"

Swank says she was diagnosed with a bacterial infection but never told Eastwood, also her co-star in the movie, because it wouldn't have been in character.

Instead, she took several days of medicated rest and then returned to the ring.

Swank won an Oscar in 2000 for "Boys Don't Cry."

-- The Associated Press

Maazel to conduct own compositions at 75th birthday concert

Maestro Lorin Maazel will celebrate his 75th birthday by conducting a concert in New York City featuring his own compositions.

This time, the former music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra has help from his actress-wife, Dietlinde Turban, and actor Jeremy Irons, who will be narrators at the March 1 concert with the New York Philharmonic. The program features five works written by Maazel, now the Philharmonic's music director, including "Monaco Fanfares" and "The Giving Tree," based on the poem by Shel Silverstein.

Also performing are flutist Sir James Galway, cellist Han-Na Chang and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus.

Maazel became music adviser for the Pittsburgh Symphony in 1986, and was music director from 1988-96. He became the Philharmonic's music director in 2002.

Born in France on March 6, 1930, Maazel was a prodigy conductor who led virtually every major orchestra in the United States by age 15. He was a violinist with the Pittsburgh Symphony while attending the University of Pittsburgh. He began recording with the Berlin Philharmonic just before his 27th birthday.

-- The Associated Press

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