A traditional office hours discussion will escalate into an impassioned debate on the fundamentals of American society Tuesday. “The Niceties,” a play running through May 12 at the Geffen Playhouse, showcases this debate to illustrate the reverberations of racial injustice. Read more...

Photo: Jordan Boatman portrays Zoe in “The Niceties,” which runs at the Geffen Playhouse until May 12. Her character seeks advice from her professor, and the two disagree on her thesis, laying the framework for a much larger conversation about racial demographics and discrimination on both college campuses and society at large. (Courtesy of T. Charles Erickson)

Going as far back as the precolonial era, Guatemalan communities performed masked dances on important religious holidays. This tradition exists even today after the Spanish colonization of the Mayan people. Read more...

Photo: Jim and Jeanne Pieper’s collection of Guatemalan masks from the late 18th to the mid-20th century will be at the Fowler Museum from Sunday to October. The opening event Saturday will celebrate Guatemalan culture through performances and a preview of the collection. (Courtesy of Jim Pieper)

A portion of the audience will take the stage at the Freud Playhouse this weekend, partying behind glass panels. The panels are part of a structure meant to resemble journalist and novelist Joan Didion’s 1960s home. Read more...

Photo: “The White Album,” a multimedia performance of Joan Didion’s essay of the same title, will take place at the Freud Playhouse. It includes a regularly seated outer audience as well as an inner audience that will participate in the performance. (Courtesy of Lars Jan)

This post was updated April 3 at 3:53 p.m. The second of four final MFA showcases by the UCLA department of art will take place Thursday through April 12 at the New Wight Gallery in the Broad Art Center. Read more...

Photo: Graduate student Brannon Rockwell-Charland will showcase a variety of artistic pieces to relate black history and feminism to her personal life for her exhibit in the MFA showcase. (Anirudh Keni/Daily Bruin)