Patty cakes, this ain't. Although that doesn't sound bad as a name for a female mud wrestler. Each Wednesday buxom babes grapple in a mud pit on the back stage of Churchill's (5501 NE 2nd Ave.). What makes this battle different is that the girls are real rock n' roll mammas, not bubbly silicone chicks who fake-wrestle in strip joints. No, Churchill's girls are bawdy and they are tough. They love to get dirty, and if you're lucky they might do their infamous peanut butter and jelly wrestling. While gathering some deep meaning from these bouts is a challenge, there is a certain freedom being expressed in the wrestlers' muddy boobs and panties. The wrestling starts around 9:00 p.m. Admission ranges from free to $10. Call 305-757-1807. -- By Juan Carlos Rodriguez
Thursday July 10
Undulating Rhythms
Every day something is shaking on Lincoln Road. It could be a bunch of palm fronds wiggling in the wind, or the energy of gay boys cruising one another near Score. Often it's somebody's boob job jiggling while she's skating down the promenade. But nothing will shake with as much finesse and artistry as the performers of the Mid-Eastern Dance Exchange and their special guest Noura Aphrodite. (With a name like that, you can bet on watching something fabulous.) The group of more than 30 dancers will be performing tonight at the Lincoln Road Bandshell (at Euclid Avenue) in Orientalia, a flourishing festival of Middle Eastern dance. The divine Aphrodite specializes in the classical style of Egyptian belly dancers of the 1940s. The performance begins at 7:00. Admission is free. Call 305-538-1608. -- By Juan Carlos Rodriguez
Thursday July 10
Poetry - A Tongue Untied
Peter Hargitai's poems speak of longing. The Hungarian native fled to the U.S. after the Iron Curtain was draped and has been teaching literature and writing ever since. Now on faculty at FIU, Hargitai reads from his latest book of poems, Mother Tongue: A Broken Hungarian Love Song, at the Bass Museum (2121 Park Ave., Miami Beach). The Florida Fellowship in Poetry recipient also won a Landon Translation Prize for Attila Jozsef's Perched on Nothing's Branch. An open poetry mike follows. The reading starts at 7:00 p.m. Admission is free. Call 305-673-7530. -- By John Anderson
Sunday July 13
Ah, Gee
Barton G gets black and white and ivory
Buckets overflowing with fried chicken, Flintstone-sized portions of beef weighing down sturdy platters, lobsters so large they might deliver a knockout punch with their claws. As if the Barton G The Restaurant experience weren't decadent enough, something new has been added to the menu to accompany a meal or conclude it. Not another enormous root-beer float, sky-high chocolate cake, or poufy cotton-candy cloud. More aural than edible, it's music. From a piano. The pleasant sounds of tinkling keys will waft through the sultry summer air during Piano Nights, kicking off at 8:30 this evening. But the instrument won't play itself. A star-studded roster of cabaret crooners scheduled in months to come will be led tonight by Billy Stritch. Coming off a role in the Broadway revival of 42nd Street, Stritch is renowned for gigs in the swankiest jazz joints and concert halls. He's also written, produced, and arranged music for big names, most notably Liza Minnelli. With Michael Jackson haunting our shopping malls, who knows? Minnelli might just visit our restaurants too. Just don't expect Barton G to don top hat and tails à la Joel Grey in Cabaret! -- By Nina Korman
Piano Nights begin at 8:30 p.m. and run through Thursday, July 17, at Barton G The Restaurant, 1427 West Ave, Miami Beach. Call 305-672-8881 for reservations.
Friday July 11
Literary Sounds
Music fills bookstore courtyard
The perfect soundtrack for enjoying a book, magazine, glass of wine, or tasty meal under the stars in the courtyard of Books & Books' (265 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables) historic 1920s structure? Live music, of course, nothing piped in. Classical, Caribbean, and Latin sounds are on the program in coming weeks. Tonight, however, some jazz the way celebrated Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt used to play it is on tap. For the second time in recent weeks, the popular Federico Britos Trio (Federico Britos on violin, Eric Bogart on guitar, and Rick Harris on piano) will serenade folks with its own brand of infectious hot jazz, swing, and Gypsy tunes at 7:00 p.m. Admission is free. Call 305-442-4408. -- By Nina Korman
