7 pm: Pop Music

Romantically inclined, classically influenced keyboardist and former celebrity talking head John Tesh has performed in some lofty places: Remember his appearance on top of a desert mesa during his PBS special “One World” earlier this year? Here, he supplements his nine-piece One World band with a symphony orchestra to stir hearts with music from an upcoming CD, “John Tesh: Double Live!”

* John Tesh “One World” with Symphony Orchestra, the Greek Theatre, 2700 Vermont Canyon Road, Los Angeles, 7 p.m. $21 to $51. (213) 480-3232.

all day: Museums

On Aug. 24, AD 79, the doomed city of Pompeii was buried following the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. Unearthed 17 centuries later, artworks and buildings were found beautifully preserved thanks to volcanic ash and other debris. Continuing to fascinate scholars, Pompeii is the focus of “Pompeii: Life in a Roman Town,” opening Sunday at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. In an attempt to illustrate daily life in Pompeii, the exhibition will focus on nature, science and technology through more than 400 objects such as frescoes, ancient glass, tools and decorative objects.

* “Pompeii: Life in a Roman Town.” Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Ends Jan. 9. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, noon-8 p.m.; Fridays, noon-9 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Adults, $7; students and seniors, $5; children and younger students, $1; children, 5 and younger, free. (323) 857-6000.

7 pm: Theater

“Sweet Bird of Youth,” Tennessee Williams’ portrait of an aging film goddess and an ambitious young hustler, features accomplished theater veterans Pamela Payton-Wright, M. Emmett Walsh and Patrick Wilson. It marks La Jolla Playhouse’s departing artistic director Michael Greif’s final production.

* “Sweet Bird of Youth,” La Jolla Playhouse, La Jolla Village Drive and Torrey Pines Road, 7 p.m. Regular schedule: Tuesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m.; Saturdays-Sundays, 2 p.m. Ends Nov. 14. $21 to $39. (619) 550-1010.

8 pm: Pop Music

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band played their last show in Los Angeles at the Memorial Coliseum as part of the 1988 Amnesty International tour. Eleven years later and up the road apiece, the reunited crusaders give the new Staples Center its shakedown cruise, testing its potential as both rollicking roadhouse and rock ‘n’ roll cathedral.

* Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Sunday, Monday, Oct. 21 and 23 at the Staples Center, 1111 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles, 8 p.m., Sold out. (888) 305-1111.

7 pm: Comedy

George Carlin takes the stage at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa. Carlin is the star of an unprecedented 11 HBO specials; his last, “You Are All Diseased,” was seen earlier this year after the comedian workshopped material at the Comedy Store on the Sunset Strip. Carlin’s latest book, “Braindroppings,” is a continuing reflection of the comedian’s ability to mine humor from social issues and everyday life.

* George Carlin. Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, 7 p.m. $36.50 and $29.50. (714) 740-7878.

all day: Art

A mid-career survey devoted to artist Barbara Kruger, well-known for reinventing early Russian Modernist graphics as an idiom for socially and politically effective art, opens Sunday at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. More than 70 works tackling issues of power, sexuality and representation will be featured, including photographic prints on paper and vinyl, lenticular images, etched metal plates, audio, video, installation and sculpture works, sign-painted texts, billboards, and new works made especially for this exhibition.

* “Barbara Kruger,” Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, 152 N. Central Ave., Little Tokyo, downtown Los Angeles. Ends Feb. 13. Tuesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thursdays, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Adults, $6; students and seniors, $4; Museum of Contemporary Art members and children younger than 12, free. (213) 626-6222.

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FREEBIES

The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum honors Herta Ware, Geer’s widow, with an open house and potluck with plays and singing from noon to 2 p.m. 1419 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga. (310) 455-3723.

The Los Angeles Piano Quartet plays quartets by Mozart and Brahms, Performing Arts Center at Sunny Hills High School, 1801 Warburton Way, Fullerton. 3:30 p.m. (714) 525-5836.