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BEST BETS: May 28 to June 3

Puzzling world

Get ready to test your brain power and problem-solving skills when you unlock the door to the wonderfully puzzling world of Mindbender Mansion, a new exhibit opening Saturday at the Strong National Museum of Play. It runs through Sept. 6. Explore a quirky mansion filled with puzzles, brainteasers and interactive challenges that are sure to engage and entertain the entire family. The brainteasers and activities will test the problem-solving skills of even the most experienced puzzle lovers. Interactive challenges, hidden clues and secret passwords are scattered throughout each "room" in the mansion. Shown here is the Amazing Maze, a version of the classic steel ball labyrinth game, in which visitors must work together in the map room to tilt a table in different directions, guiding a ball into six holes as quickly as possible. For details, visit museumofplay.org.

Finger-lickin' festival

The 2010 Roc City Rib Fest is this holiday weekend at Ontario Beach Park. The professional state championship BBQ competition features live music and a kids' zone. Events are planned Friday through Monday. New this year is a grilling competition. BBQ vendors will be on hand along with live music and family-oriented activities each day. A portion of the $5 admission benefits Golisano Children's Hospital at Strong. Four-day weekend passes are available at the door for $10. Visit roccityribfest.net for the full lineup.
 

On the big screen

"Sex and the City 2" brings back our old pals Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda. It opened Thursday, and some die-hard fans of the HBO series likely have already seen it. The film catches up with the uber-fashionable four friends, who are finding themselves in the traditional roles of marriage, motherhood and more. Opening Friday is "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time," based on the video game, which follows an adventurous prince (Jake Gyllenhaal) who teams up with a rival princess to stop an angry ruler from unleashing a sandstorm that could destroy the world. Find movie times.

Murder mystery farce

Michael Steck, the local entertainer whose drag persona Pandora Boxx was a cast member of RuPaul's "Drag Race" this season, is bringing his murder mystery, "The Lipstick Massacre," to Geva Theatre Center. The show stars Pandora as Daphne Von Hausenpfeffer, the "it" girl of local TV commercials, who comes under scrutiny when her competition starts getting picked off one by one. The farce is directed by David Henderson and produced by Method Machine. Part of Geva's SpringFest, it opens today and runs through June 6. Visit gevatheatre.org. 
 

The holiday's history

The first observance of Memorial Day was in Waterloo on May 5, 1866. In 1966, Waterloo was officially recognized as birthplace of Memorial Day by the state, the U.S. Congress and a proclamation by President Lyndon B. Johnson. A full slate of historical and family-themed entertainment in Waterloo is set for this weekend. The full schedule for the 144th consecutive observance is at WaterlooNY.com. And while you're out that way, the Waterloo Premium Outlets are having sidewalk sales. Of course, most communities plan their own Memorial Day parades and ceremonies to honor the U.S. men and women who died in military service.

RPO honors Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman

Jeff Tyzik conducts a centennial tribute to clarinetists Artie Shaw and Benny Goodman featuring 26-year-old clarinetist Dave Bennett, the Dave Bennett Quartet and vocalist Carol McCartney. Shaw and Goodman were born a year apart, and within two decades both were considered musical giants in a new world of swing and big bands. Bennett and his quartet, with McCartney, will perform with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. Visit rpo.org. At 7 p.m. Sunday, Tyzik conducts the RPO with a gospel choir in "The Glory of Gospel."

RPO presents 'duet' of homes

Designers have decked out two new English cottages for the 2010 Symphony Showhouse, the biannual fundraiser for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. Some 8,500 square feet in two homes in the Cottages at Malvern Hills development in Pittsford will be open to the publicthrough June 13. Visitors can pick up ideas from 40 designers from Rochester to New York City.

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