WHAT'S HAPPENING: MUSIC.

Love doesn't come cheap: Courtney Love's interest in yoga and meditation is well-known, so it's no surprise she'd perform at a benefit in conjunction with the discipline.

The bad news is tickets cost $200.

Proceeds from the event Saturday at the Viper Room will benefit the Center for Living, also known as Golden Bridge Night Moon, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization that teaches Kundalini yoga and meditation.

Love will perform with fellow Hole guitarist and yoga aficionado Eric Erlandson in a rare acoustic show.

The Viper Room, owned by actor Johnny Depp, was closed for six weeks while major renovations in decor and structure took place.

Love's Grammy-nominated current album, ``Celebrity Skin,'' along with the radio hit ``Malibu'' turned up on quite a few year-end best-of lists.

Hole, which played a secret show at the Roxy last month, will go on tour in the spring.

The Viper Room is at 8852 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. Show time is 10 p.m. Information: [phone].

- Fred Shuster

Dance

Tango time: In writing about Tango Buenos Aires, reviewers from north of the border tend to use words like ``torrid,'' ``sizzling'' and ``sensual.'' Of course, it's hard to avoid baroque terminology when describing a form of dance that originated in Argentine brothels and which expresses a darker side of the sexual equation.

Since the tango renaissance took off a few years ago, the number of touring tango companies has multiplied quickly, making it harder to separate the wheat from the chaff. But whether you're a tango connoisseur, or seeking an introduction to this kinetic art form, you'll be well-served and well-entertained by Tango Buenos Aires, which performs at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Fred Kavli Theatre for the Performing Arts at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. Led by musical director/composer Osvaldo Requena, this well-traveled company of 25, backed by live musicians, blends exceptional skill with a deep appreciation of tango's historic richness and versatility.

The theater is at 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd. Tickets are $15, $25 and $35. Call Ticketmaster at [phone] or [phone]. Tickets also may be purchased at the Thousand Oaks Civic Plaza box office.

- Reed Johnson

Music

Sounds of Russia: The end of the millennium soon will be upon us, but the Los Angeles Philharmonic is ringing in the New Year with a good shot of 20th-century Russian Romanticism. Japanese conductor Junichi Hirokami makes his Music Center debut leading the Phil in a program that includes works by two Russian masters that were written and premiered just a year apart. Concertmaster Alexander Treger will be featured soloist in a performance of Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 63, which was commissioned by a group of French admirers for violinist Robert Soetens, who gave the premiere in Madrid in 1935.

Following will be Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44, first performed in 1936 with Leopold Stokowski directing the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Opening the program at 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, will be ``Twill by Twilight'' by Hirokami's countryman Toru Takemitsu. Steven Stucky, the Phil's new music adviser, will give preconcert lectures at 7 tonight and Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday.

Tickets ($11 to $65) are on sale at the Music Center and Hollywood Bowl box offices, all Ticketmaster outlets and by phone at [phone]. For information, call [phone].

- Reed Johnson

Television

Mob rules: He's a high-anxiety head case. And no wonder. These days in New Jersey, respectable middle-class mob life just ain't up to snuff.

So stressed-out mob captain Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) reluctantly sees a shrink on sly new series ``The Sopranos,'' premiering 9 p.m. Sunday on HBO. Part drama, part comedy, ``The Sopranos'' takes a trenchant look at morally corroded America - through a wonderfully warped wiseguy eye.

Soprano is one put-upon hit man. His passive-aggressive mother (Nancy Marchand) dominates him, his uncle and boss Uncle Junior is a psychopathic nut, and younger mob punks show no respect.

As traumatized Tony, Gandolfini is tops. Lorraine Bracco is delicious as his wary shrink. And Edie Falco is a treat as Soprano's social-climbing suburban wife. Smart, sophisticated and beautifully written by creator David Chase, ``Sopranos'' feels like a whole new breed of genre-bending TV.

- Kinney Littlefield

Orange County Register

Film

Animated excellence: ``The Prince of Egypt'' is an astounding-looking spectacle. Based on Exodus, the animated feature has a rich visual scope and an imposing, architectural sweep befitting its ancient Egyptian setting. From massive monuments and hieroglyphics that come alive to God's awesome miracles, the movie never fails to dazzle.

On the story front, religious specifics are downplayed while personal relationships are emphasized. Moses (voiced by Val Kilmer) and Pharaoh Rameses (Ralph Fiennes) are portrayed as loving brothers forced to become enemies; there's also more between Moses and his wife (Michelle Pfeiffer) and his blood siblings (Sandra Bullock and Jeff Goldblum) than DeMille's ``The Ten Commandments'' bothered with.

Some may quibble with this approach, but the film nonetheless seems inspired by its subject matter - like much of the world's great art. ``Prince of Egypt'' is a beautiful tribute to faith and freedom.

- Bob Strauss

CAPTION(S):

5 photos

PHOTO (1) Courtney Love's acoustic performance Saturday benefits the Center for Living.

(2) Junichi Hirokami

(3) James Gandolfini

(4) ``The Prince of Egypt'' recounts the Bible's Exodus with breathtaking animation.

(5) Amid the explosion in touring tango companies, Tango Buenos Aires stands out. The dancers appear Sunday in Thousand Oaks.