Alternative comedy, a celebration of Kurt Weill's music, staged readings and radio drama are among the forthcoming cultural events announced by the Skirball Cultural Center for its Winter 2000 season.

Comedy and Commentary for the New Millennium is a public program that will run Jan. 22-Feb. 11. The comedy festival, produced by Beth Lapides and Greg Miller of Un-Cabaret Productions (which was hailed by the LA Times as "the mother-show of alternative comedy") will offer performances by the likes of Dan Savage ("Savage Love"), Andy Dick ("NewsRadio"), Larry Charles ("Seinfeld"), Bruce Wagner ("I'm Losing You") and others. Un-Cabaret will also conduct a one-day intensive performance workshop on Sat. Jan. 29 at 1 PM.

East Side Sinfoniette will celebrate Kurt Weill's centennial on Jan. 12 at 8 PM with A Celebration of Kurt Weill's Music.

"The American Century: A Cultural Dialogue" will run from Jan. 29-March 18, led by playwright Donald Freed, who will moderate a series of panels dealing with major American issues of the past century. The course will culminate with a staged reading of Freed's new work, American Iliad, a dramatic and mythic history of the American empire.

L.A. Theatre Works' radio-drama series will continue in the new year with productions of Neil Simon's The Prisoner of Second Avenue (Jan. 19-23); Cakewalk by Peter Feibleman (Feb. 2-6); and A Huey Newton Story, by and starring Roger Guenveur Smith (Feb. 16-20). Call the L.A. Theatre Works box office at (310) 827-0889.For Skirball Center information and tickets call (310) 440-4500 or visit http://www.skirball.org

-- By Willard Manus
Southern California Correspondent