Arts Hound

The Hult Center is reviving its former Wildly Wicked Women of Comedy series, kicking off July 19 with comedian Suzanne Westenhoefer, an LGBT pioneer who starting doing standup in New York City in the early ’90s. Raised in Pennsylvania Amish country, Westenhoefer is definitely a trailblazer: She was the first openly gay comedian to land an HBO special and the first to appear on Late Night with David Letterman.

Maude Kerns Art Center is narrowing in on art and nature with Natural Interplay, featuring the work of three artists — pen and ink and laser-cut acrylic wizard Jenny E. Balisle, organic metal sculptor Ned Block and flora and fauna silhouette master Ann Chadwick Reid — through Aug. 29. Meet the artists at an opening reception 6 to 8 pm Friday, July 18.

Yet another art exhibit opens this week: 5 Artists at Schrager & Clarke Gallery, which runs through Aug. 16 with a July 19 opening reception 4 to 6 pm. See the work of Susan Applegate, Thanhbinh Duong, Susan Lowdermilk, Craig Spilman and Betsy Wolfston, each working in a different medium, from graphite drawing to ceramics.

The Phoinix Players put on another whimsical wackadoo adaptation of a classic fairy tale, Snow White … and the Dudes. The musical comedy directed by Mary Huls runs Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening through Aug. 2 at The Red Cane Theatre, 1077 Chambers.

In the dog days of summer, what’s better than a dip in a lake? Well, when it’s 90 degrees and counting, perhaps viewing paintings of warm swims in the cool comfort of your local library. Eugene artist Melissa Sikes invites us into her tranquil endless summer with The Back Dock — a series of 16 wood-panel paintings composed of rich and ruddy brushstrokes on view through August on the second floor of the Eugene Public Library.