The Beat Generation

There's going to be a nuclear explosion at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Touhill Performing Arts Center on the University of Missouri-St. Louis campus (1 University Drive at Natural Bridge Road; 314-516-4949 or www.touhill.org), and no one is doing anything to prevent the blast. In fact, tickets are being sold to the public for $10 to $35! But before you go calling the authorities and the TV stations, we should probably let you know what's really happening is a concert called Explosions: A Festival of Percussion, which features the Nuclear Percussion Ensemble and members of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. The musicians have put together a thunderous program showcasing unusual instruments such as the djembe and the kenkeni, but rest assured that the only fallout expected from the concert is the enhanced rhythm appreciation of its attendees — and there's nothing disastrous about that.
Tue., March 20