monday
September 15
Ronnie Renfrow's Big Band Orchestra Tonight Cafe elysee offers something special: a 17-piece orchestra, complete with singers, playing in a room with space to dance. This evening with Ronnie Renfrow's Big Band Orchestra harks back to gentler times, when dinner was accompanied by the kind of dancing that requires you to snuggle up close. Come at 7 p.m., eat a long, leisurely dinner, then dance those potatoes away. 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Cafe elysee, 5055 Woodway, 840-1115. No cover.

tuesday
September 16
Borromeo String Quartet "Encore" must be one of the sweetest words to performers, a sign that the audience not only appreciated the gift of their talent, but wants more. The New England-based Borromeo String Quartet will return to the Chamber Music Series sponsored by the Houston Friends of Music and the Shepherd School of Music after wowing classical fans during the 199596 season. The Boston Globe called one of their concerts "heart-stopping," so perhaps paramedics will be standing by for the quartet's performances of works by Ravel, Copland and Schubert. 8 p.m. Rice University, Stude Concert Hall, entrance no. 8 off University Boulevard, 285-5400. $23-$35.

wednesday
September 17
Race for the Cure Dinner Most everyone knows someone who has had breast cancer. Perhaps that's why the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Race for the Cure series is the largest bunch of 5K runs in the United States. More than 400,000 runners and walkers are expected to participate in 78 cities this year. You can help start things off on the "right foot," so to speak, by taking part in the dinner and silent auction tonight. 7-10 p.m. Houston Museum of Natural Science, 1 Hermann Circle Drive. Tickets may be purchased at the door; for reservations or more information, call 850-9877. $50 includes a buffet dinner by Melange Catering.