This week in the Arts

Oakley Boyett saw "Cabaret" when she was young, and she was fascinated.

She did a scene study of Sally, one of the linchpin characters, for a school assignment.

She immersed herself into Sally for a time.

"I got to know it really well before I went in and auditioned for it," Boyett said of the role, which she'll perform in the Broadway in Columbia production of "Cabaret" which hits the Koger Center stage Wednesday and Thursday.

It's like she's been working most of her life to get to Sally.

"I think it's always been a role that I wanted to do," she said. "It was always kind of in the back of my mind."

"Cabaret," a musical set in 1930s Germany, centers around the less-than-reputable Kit Kat Klub and a 19-year-old performer named Sally Bowles who has an affair with an American writer. (The story is based on a play, "I Am a Camera," which itself was adapted from the novel "Goodbye to Berlin.") The 1966 Broadway debut was a resounding success, and it was made into the 1972 film that inspired Boyett.

At 20, Boyett is close to Sally's age. "Cabaret" is her first regular stage gig since the Wyoming native moved to New York to study in 2007.

"This is like the first really long-term thing I've been able to do," she said. "It beats being Princess Leia."

Excuse me?

Before Boyett got the "Cabaret" job, she was handing out fliers dressed as Princess Leia to promote Carrie Fisher's one-woman play.

For 10 hours a day in Times Square.

"You're dressed up in a Halloween costume. And you're wearing a sandwich board," she said. "You look really stupid.

"And you can only hear so many 'Star Wars' jokes."

Even though this is her first tour as an actress, Boyett isn't a stranger to touring. She toured with her parents, once known as the singing duo The Grizzlies. Her dad still plays shows in the Northwest as Buffalo Bill Boycott.

"I spent a lot time in vans and planes and cars," Boyett said. "It's like my childhood revisited. Only I'm on a bus. With a lot of people."

For the next five months, she added.

"I've been living out of a suitcase for almost a year," she said.

The rigors of the road haven't affected Boyett's voice, which is a focal point of the production.

"I haven't had any problems yet," she said. "I don't really talk very much during the day. And I don't party at night."

But she has to give interviews, and answer questions such as: Do you wear Oakley sunglasses? She doesn't.

"My aunt used to buy me Oakley T-shirts to wear," she said. "I thought it was weird to wear shirt with my name on it."

Now her name is on a program. She's a star, playing a role she was destined to act.

"It's surreal, because it's why would anybody want to talk to me," Boyett said. "Oh yeah, that's why."

"But if you're coming to show to see Liza Minnelli," she added, referring to the star of the 1972 film, "you're not going to see Liza Minnelli."

That's something Sally would say.

Showtime is at 7:30 p.m. both nights. The Koger Center is at 1051 Greene St. $46 to $56; (803) 251-2222

Opera at USC will stage two one-act performances Saturday and Feb. 7 at the USC School of Music Recital Hall. The performance will include "Riders to the Sea" and "Il Ciarlatano." Both performances - at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 3:30 p.m. Feb. 7 - are free. The school of music is at 813 Assembly St. For more information, call (803) 777-4280.

The USC Dance Company will present "Innovative Works" Thursday through Saturday at Drayton Hall Theatre. The performances will feature original works by Susan Anderson, the USC Dance artistic director; Thaddeus Davis, a USC contemporary dance instructor; and choreographer Ivan Pulinkala, among others. Each show is at 7:30 p.m. Drayton Hall is at 1214 College St. $10 to $16; (803) 777-5112

Several artists, including Cindy Saad, Penny Baskin, Mana Hewitt, Betty Holland and Becky Blair, will show their jewelry at City Art from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday. The main gallery will be set up for shopping and to meet the artists. As if there needed to be a reminder, Valentine's Day is Feb. 14. City Art is at 1224 Lincoln St. For more information, call (803) 252-3613.

"Crowns" was a hit at Trustus Theatre in 2005 and 2007. It will be a hit again when it opens Friday. On the surface, the gospel-flavored production is simply about hats. But there is tradition - and etiquette - involved with the particular hats the women in the play wear. Headgear is seldom this fascinating. The play opens at 8 p.m. Friday and runs through March 6. Trustus is at 520 Lady St. $15 to $20; (803) 254-9732 or http://www.trustus.org

The South Carolina Philharmonic will perform its fifth Masterworks concert of the season, "From Russia with Love," Saturday at the Koger Center. The repertoire will include Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Ravel. Sean Yeah, the first prize winner of the 2009 Arthur Fraser International Concerto Competition, will play the Ravel piece, "Piano Concerto for the Left Hand in D Major," with the orchestra. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m., but before the show, at 6 p.m., the orchestra will host its annual silent auction. Tickets cost $17 to $51. For more information, call (803) 251-2222 or visit http://www.scphilharmonic.com.

Vibrations Dance Company will perform "Musicality," a show separated into three movements based on the different rhythmic vibes of the contemporary dance company's choreographer Terrance Henderson. The shows will be performed Friday and Saturday at the CMFA ArtSpace. The dance inspirations range from hip-hop to house. Showtime for both performances is at 7:30 p.m. CMFA ArtSpace is at 914 Pulaski St. $10 to $30; (803) 361-5262 or visit http://www.vibrationsdancecompany.org

"Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art" will open at McKissick Museum Saturday. The exhibition will detail how the coiled sweetgrass baskets of the Lowcountry are connected to Africa. The museum is at 816 Bull St. For more information, visit http://www.cas.sc.edu/Mcks/ or call (803) 777-7251.

Read more about the show in Thursday's Life & Style.

On Thursday Charles Wadsworth, who originated the Wadsworth & Friends concert series at the Columbia Museum of Art, will return as a guest of the series' new artistic director, Edward Arron. Wadsworth, a pianist, retired from directing last year. He'll be joined by accomplished musicians, including pianist Jeewon Park, violinist Chee-Yun, flutist Angela Jones-Reus and soprano Courtenay Budd. Compositions by Bach, Brahms, Rachmaninoff and, of course, Wadsworth himself, will be performed.

The performance is at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $30 and $35. For more information, call (803) 343-0482 or visit http://www.columbiamuseum.org.