Theater heat

Two plays with toasty temperature in their titles wind up their unfortunately short runs this weekend. "Red Hot Patriot," the true story of the late Texas firebrand Molly Ivins, whose columns often ran in the Daily News, relayed through her own acerbic wit, will unfold at Cyrano's, 413 D St., with performances at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 3 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are $18.50 at centertix.net. Meanwhile, UAA is presenting Paula Vogel's amusing yet very sad look at domestic violence, "Hot 'N' Throbbing," with performances at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. on Sunday on the UAA Fine Arts Building Mainstage. Tickets, $17, are available at uaatix.com. Both of these are for mature audiences.

MUSIC

Choral cool

The Anchorage Chamber Singers presents a concert focusing on stunning contemporary works, including Grammy Award winning composer Eric Whitacre's breathtaking "Cloudburst," "Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae" by Jaakko Mäntyjärvi of Finland and Samuel Barber's "Agnus Dei," the composer's choral setting of his beloved "Adagio for Strings." The Alaska Children's Choir will join the singers in the program, which also features folk songs, Renaissance pieces and more. Performances will take place at 8 p.m. on Friday at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 3900 Wisconsin St., and 4 p.m. on Sunday at St. Andrew Church, 16300 Domain Lane in Eagle River. General admission is $30.

ART

New old master

David Kassan, the phenomenal realist painter and instructor, whose life-size portraits have been shown around the world, will present a free lecture at 7:30 p.m. on Monday in the UAA Fine Arts Building recital hall. Kassan is in Alaska as the juror of the 27th Annual No Big Heads Self-Portrait Exhibition, which will have its opening reception at 5 p.m. on Tuesday in the Student Union Gallery. In Kassan's hands, doing a portrait that rivals Rembrandt or Durer seems like a spectator sport. See what we mean in this time-lapse video posted to Kassan's portfolio website.