The 1 thing you must do, see, or hear this week
THE 1 AERIAL AUSTRALIAN PERFORMANCE TROUPE
Fusing theater, dance, and circus, the Strange Fruit company performs atop 15-foot-tall flexible poles. A French critic says the group evokes Michelangelo, Mary Poppins, and Magritte. Weirdly brilliant or just weird? See for yourself with the brief spectacle "Swoon" at Mass MoCA in North Adams; performances at 1, 3, and 5 p.m. this Friday through Sunday. $8, reservations required. 413-662-2111, www.massmoca.org - LOUISE KENNEDY
THE 1 TV CRUSH
I'm no foodie, but I'm fascinated by Jenny Johnson, Billy Costa's better-looking sidekick on NECN's "TV Diner." Truth is, I have a crush on "Jenny Cam," Johnson's generally uncritical segments about boat drinks and cookie creations. (So what if she gives everyone a rave, she looks great in those glasses!) If the likes of the dowdy Paula Deen and raspy Rachael Ray can find fame on the Food Network, can Johnson be far behind? - MARK SHANAHAN
THE 1 SLAPSTICK SERIAL KILLER
Possibly the strangest film Charlie Chaplin ever made, "Monsieur Verdoux" hit audiences like a poisoned pie in the face when it came out in 1947. It's a pitch-black comedy about a dapper little man who marries rich ladies and murders them, and it teeters breathlessly between farce and misogyny, especially when the riotously unkillable Martha Raye is involved. "Verdoux" is available on DVD, but big-screen showings are rare, and the Brattle Theatre's fresh print gets its final airing tonight. Dare you to bring a date. 617-876-6837, www.brattlefilm.org - TY BURR
THE 1 BEST LESBIAN COMIC'S PLAYLIST
Thanks to iTunes and its celebrity playlists, I know that Margaret Cho makes a great mix tape. Her recent playlist is addictive, unlike others by the rich and famous (come on, Chris Noth, you can't do better than Everlast and Pat Metheny?). Cho's 12 tracks include Rihanna's "Umbrella" (which Cho says she lip synchs when she does drag), Crowded House's "Fall at Your Feet," and Ryan Adams's "Come Pick Me Up," a song Cho says makes her want to move to Austin. If you make a CD for the car, Margaret, I'll come with. - MEREDITH GOLDSTEIN
THE 1 FUZZY ART EXHIBIT
Some adults, myself included, never got enough of "Pat the Bunny," Dorothy Kunhardt's 1940 touch-and-feel children's book. Its fuzzy, pattable bunny and immortal lines like ("Now YOU pat the bunny" and "Now YOU feel Daddy's scratchy face") have made it the country's sixth all-time best-selling kids' book. Now the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst has mounted an exhibition about the book's history. Now YOU can learn more about "Pat the Bunny"! Through Dec. 7. 413-658-1100, www.picturebookart.org - LINDA MATCHAN
THE 1 THRILLER BY THE WATER
Forget "The Dark Knight." If you haven't checked out a free moonlit movie at Rowes Wharf outside the Boston Harbor Hotel, there are only a few lazy summer evenings left, and here's your chance. Alfred Hitchcock's "Rebecca" - a psychological thriller starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine - is sooooo good, it is sure to give you goosebumps. Don't miss it - and get there early. Movies by Moonlight, Aug. 15 at 6 p.m. www.bhh.com - MEGAN TENCH.
