This competition, through which pupils from 81 secondary schools produce and stage an eight-minute music and dance extravaganza, is well under way. Themes can be anything from political commentary to social satire, and entrants must adopt healthy lifestyles free from alcohol, tobacco and drugs. The remaining venues are: the Portsmouth Guildhall, Hull New Theatre, Leeds Grand Theatre, Grimsby Auditorium, Oxford Apollo and Brighton Dome. The southern grand final is at Portsmouth Guildhall, March 31, and the northern at York Barbican Centre, April 3. Tickets: 01962 842694.

FROM MARCH 9 SHAKESPEARE AND THE JEWS

Professor James Shapiro from Columbia University launches a lecture season at the Globe Education Centre, Southwark, London SE1, 7pm, with the Sam Wanamaker fellowship lecture. He will discuss whether there were Jews in Elizabethan England, whether they were black, whether the scattered Jews were a nation, and much more. Details: GEC, 0171 902 1400.

MARCH 10,17,24 INAUGURAL LECTURES

Members of the public are welcome to these free lectures at Goldsmiths’ College, New Cross, London SE14. They are first, “1834 - dawn of the English musical renaissance?” to be given by Professor Simon McVeigh; the second, “Out of the ruins of memory: modernity, Judaism and the Holocaust” by Professor Victor Jeleniewski Seidler; and the third, “Terra infirma - geography’s visual culture” by Professor Irit Rogoff. Details: 0171 919 7970.

MARCH 11 OPENING THE MAGIC DOOR: CHILDREN, BOOKS AND READING

Inaugural professorial lecture by Gervase Phinn at the University of Teesside’s open learning technology centre, Woodlands Road, Middlesbrough, 6.30pm (refreshments from 6pm). Professor Phinn, who has been described by The Observer’s William Leith as “a charismatic schools inspector . . . and a good storyteller”, is also principal education adviser for North Yorkshire and a consultant to the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and the Open University. Details: Judith Nellist, 01642 342933.

MARCH 13-22 SET WEEK

A selection of events organised during the National Week of Science, Engineering and Technology follows: ANNUAL PHYSICS FESTIVAL Formula 1 racing, recreating the Big Bang and advances in surgical materials are among the topics to be covered at the Institute of Physics’ annual congress at the Brighton Centre, March 16-19. It comprises 14 separate conferences, Physics World Expo 98, public lectures and student activities. Details: 0171 470 4800.

CROYDON CLOCKTOWER

Events linked to Croydon Clocktower’s exhibition of automata include a technology challenge; “Motorheads” (create your own motor-operated piece); and “Devious devices” for under-fives. Tickets: free-pound;5. Details: 0181 253 1030.

THE ROYAL INSTITUTION

Events at 21 Albemarle Street, London W1, include: lectures for schools; “The Doomed Space Station”, March 17, 7pm, a public debate about which one out of four Nobel-winning scientists should be saved; and “Energy, the environment and you”, a talk by Professor Ian Fells, Newcastle University, on the changes in social attitudes needed to return the environment to its former state. Details: 0171 629 3669;e-mail: schools@ri.ac.uk Website: http:www.ri.ac.uk

THE OLD OPERATING THEATRE, MUSEUM AND HERB GARRETT

Reconstructions and hands-on activities at 9a St Thomas’s Street, London SE1, include: “The blade and the bone - surgery without anaesthesia”, and “The carbolic acid fuss - asepsis and putrefaction, a Victorian amputation”, all at 2.30pm. In “Forgotten medicine: worms and snails and hospital tales”, on March 20 at 6pm, visitors will discover how blood leeches were a common treatment for fever, syphilis was purged with mercury and wormwood was a cure-all. Details: 0171 955 4791.

THE OLD ROYAL OBSERVATORY, GREENWICH

Events include an opportunity to view the stars through the UK’s largest refracting telescope, a chance to meet the last astronomer to use the telescope which defines the prime meridian of the world, and Planetarium shows. Details: 0181 312 6565 (24 hours) or 0181 858 4422.

WEST SUFFOLK COLLEGE

Talks on “The search for life on Earth - an alien’s viewpoint”, “The world of the forensic scientist” and “The Little Bang and the science of nursery and primary education”, taster sessions and noisy, fun exhibitions have been organised by the Bury St Edmundscollege. There will also be a science and general knowledge quiz between student teams and Suffolk sixth-formers. Details: Brian Crossland, 01284 716269.

MARCH 19 REUVEN FEUERSTEIN

The Israeli psychologist is giving a training session for teachers, lecturers and educational psychologists at Chichester Institute of Higher Education (Bognor Regis campus), 1-4pm. He will introduce his techniques, including instrumental enrichment and the learning potential assessment device, and will also talk about his life and work, at a wine and cheese reception, 7-9pm. pound;25 per session. Details: Abby Park, 01243 816277.