NOTES ON THE NEW AND IN VOGUE

Arty film stills

: In the past, artist Cindy Sherman has portrayed everyone from sultry film-noir heroines to grotesque Elizabethan gentlemen in her revealing and sometimes historical self-portrait photos. This time, the mistress of disguise plays women who are struggling to make it in show business. At the Gagosian Gallery in Beverly Hills through April 29. Information: (310) 271-9400.

East meets West

: Legendary sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar celebrates his 80th birthday with the L.A. Philharmonic in “Full Circle” on May 1 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Information: (323) 850-2000.

Ruffles and swords

: Who’s the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel and his Bounders? Fashion mavens or defenders of the crown? The elusive French swashbuckler is back in “The Scarlet Pimpernel,” opening at the Ahmanson Theatre on April 25 and running through June 18. Information: (213) 628-2772.

Blonde on blonde

: American Cinemateque’s week-long festival of Marilyn Monroe films kicks off April 26 with a double feature of “Niagara” and “River of No Return” at the Egyptian Theater. The series closes April 30 with a “Special Seminar on Marilyn Monroe and the Culture of Celebrity,” with Joyce Carol Oates celebrating the publication of her new book about Monroe, called “Blonde.” Information: (323) 466-3456.