A dramatic play and a musical continues their runs this weekend at UC Davis:

• Some Things Are Private asks “What is art?” — drawing on the real story of photographer Sally Mann and the pictures she took of her young children in the nude and partially nude.

The intense controversy, including accusations of child pornography, forms the heart of the play, which premiered in 2008 at the Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, R.I. Trinity commissioned and produced the play, written by Deborah Salem Smith after she and Laura Kepley created the work.

Candice Andrews, a Master of Fine Arts candidate, is directing the UC Davis production, which is this year’s Director’s Showcase from the Department of Theatre and Dance.

Andrews also gets credit for the work that led to UC Davis’ becoming the first university to secure the rights to produce the play.

Andrews takes full advantage of the opportunity, bringing together various segments of the academic community — photography, sociology and psychology — for post-performance talk-back sessions (one took place May 5; another is set for May 8) during which the audience can join in the discussion of such questions as, “How do we determine the boundaries between art and exploitation.”

WHEN: 8 p.m. May 7-8 and 2 p.m. May 9

POST-PERFORMANCE TALK-BACK: May 8

WHERE: Main Theatre, Wright Hall

TICKETS are available in advance through the Mondavi Center box office: (530) 754-2787 or (866) 754-2787, or mondaviarts.org. Tickets also sold at the door starting a half-hour before curtain time (pending availability).

ADVISORY: nude images, brief loud noises and minimal profanity

• Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical, presented by Studio 301 Productions, the only student-run theatre group on campus.

More than 25 actors and singers are involved in the production, with Stephanie Hankinson as the director and Dave Moschler as the music director.

“We promise it will be Hair like never seen before, and, considering its strong theme of political activism, our production aligns symbolically with the recent protests and events concerning budget cuts affecting college students all over California,” said Alison Stevenson, publicity coordinator.

WHEN: 8 p.m. May 7-8 and 7 p.m. May 9

WHERE: Outdoors, in the arboretum’s gazebo area; playgoers should bring picnic blankets and-or lawn chairs.

TICKETS: $14 general admission, $12 students. To arrange reservations, send an e-mail to HairReservations2010@gmail.com.

ADVISORY: mature content and nudity.