Chris Gibson - Page 29

The Sheldon presents Hudson and the Hoo Doo Cats, Saturday, April 16, 2011 at 11 a.m. in the perfect acoustics of the Sheldon Concert Hall. Self-described 'JumpSwinginRockinBoogieBluesaBilly' band Hudson and the Hoo Doo Cats are St. Louis favorites, performing swinging blues, 50's era rock and roll, rockabilly and dance music, as well as original songs penned by founder and songwriter, Hudson Harkins.

Next month, Washington University's Performing Arts Department (PAD) in Arts & Sciences will present ECLIPSED for six performances in the A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre. It is perhaps the unlikeliest community imaginable, and daunting territory for any dramatist. Yet ECLIPSED, a recent work by acclaimed actress and playwright Danai Gurira, is at once sharp-edged, humanizing and surprisingly funny - a portrait of resilience in even the most difficult of circumstances.

Citilites West presents their first production - ALMOST,MAINE. Join the citizens of Almost as they find and lose love underneath the magical Northern Lights. In eleven vignettes, a comical range of characters fall in and out of love in unexpected and often hilarious ways on a cold, clear, moonless night. Knees are bruised, hearts are broken. But bruises heal, and hearts are mended, almost, in this delightful midwinter night's tale.

Mustard Seed Theatre opens TILL WE HAVE FACES April 15 - May 1, 2011. A powerful Queen must surrender to invisible forces to rescue her sister and discover the secret of true beauty. From the novel by C.S. Lewis, this retelling of the Greek myth of Psyche has been adapted for the stage by Artistic Director Deanna Jent.

Blending stringed instruments and a myriad of musical styles, Swing DeVille creates a unique, 'unplugged' listening experience, drawing on musical influences from the early western swing sound, old-time fiddle and bluegrass, to big band, gypsy-jazz, New Orleans jazz, and pop music of the '20s through the '40s. The band also continues to compose original songs and add them to its repertoire. Performing a lively stage show on vintage instruments, Swing DeVille features Justin Branum, fiddle and mandolin; Clint Hasse, guitar and vocals; Gary Hunt, guitar and vocals; Glenn Meyers, bass and harmonica; and Matt Wyatt, violin.

It's easy to see why playwright Alfred Uhry's DRIVING MISS DAISY was so successfully adapted for the movies. The episodic structure of Uhry's work, along with its brevity (running a scant 75 minutes), make it a perfect candidate for the big screen. But, don't be content sitting at home watching the award-winning film on DVD, check out a stellar live staging by Dramatic License Productions, which features a very talented cast working under the guidance of an excellent director.

The idea of following the stories of four young gay men who are raised as members of a Baptist church in Texas is certainly fertile enough stuff for a play on its own. But, with SOUTHERN BAPTIST SISSIES, playwright Del Shores muddies this basic premise with a non-linear, and at times illogical, presentation that generates a modicum of laughs, but misses the mark dramatically. Although I'm usually a fan of unconventionality, I think Shores pushes too hard here, and the opportunity to create something truly memorable is lost in the process. However, Citilites Theatre has put together a fitfully funny and heartfelt production that makes the most of this decidedly uneven material, and it benefits greatly from a number of strong performances as well.

Playwright Sarah Ruhl has crafted a brilliantly funny and touching work with IN THE NEXT ROOM OR THE VIBRATOR PLAY, a piece that's as moving, in the end, as it is hilarious and erotic. While it concerns itself with the invention of the device mentioned in the title, it's also an amusing look at all things Victorian, and acts as a send-up of the kind of societal comedies that authors like Oscar Wilde made so famous. The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis has mounted an exceptional production of this arousing play that features a marvelous cast and savvy direction.

With TRAIL OF TEARS celebrated playwright Kathryn Schultz Miller once again brings history to life in this gripping drama. View 1800s America through the eyes of youthful and determined Chosen One as his people are forced to abandon their homeland in the Smoky Mountains. With his wife, Snow Owl, and his father, Walking Bear, he fights valiantly to save his people, but is overcome time and again by the attractive empty promises of the new settlers. This dramatic tale of one man's heartbreaking struggle to hold on to his Cherokee heritage is a fresh look at a painful chapter in American history.

Cellist Anne Fagerburg, violist Morris Jacob and violinist Erin Schreiber - all members of the St. Louis Symphony - will join pianist Martin Kennedy, assistant professor of music in Arts & Sciences, and mezzo-soprano Nöel Prince, instructor in voice, for a free performance at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 28. Sponsored by the Department of Music and the St. Louis Symphony Community Partnership program, the concert will take place in Washington University's E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall, located in the 560 Music Center, 560 Trinity Ave., at the intersection with Delmar Boulevard.

Grammy Award-winning vocalist Steve Tyrell has spent four decades in the music business, has achieved great success as an artist, producer, songwriter and performer and is a two-time Emmy nominee. Tyrell helped to re-invent and re-popularize classic pop standards for a modern-day audience and has worked with legendary artists such as Diana Ross, Ray Charles, Burt Bacharach and Stevie Wonder.

Auditions for The Muny's 2011 Adult Singing and Dancing Chorus will be Saturday, March 12 and Sunday, March 13. They will be held at the Performing Arts Center at St. Louis University High School, 4970 Oakland Avenue, between Kingshighway and Macklind. For further information, call The Muny at 314-361-1900, or visit www.muny.org.

The Presenters Dolan welcome Kay Love and her cabaret show Confessions of a Pom Pom Reject 8pm on Friday, April 15 & Saturday April 16 at the Kranzberg Arts Center. Lennie Watts directs and Steven Ray Watkins is the music director for this presentation. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at www.licketytix.com, or by calling 314-725-4200 ext 10.

Stray Dog Theatre presents YOU'RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN, a day in the life of your favorite PEANUTS characters as they sing, dance, and experience childhood. Does Charlie Brown finally get up the nerve to talk to that cute little red-haired girl? Will Linus give up his trusty blanket once and for all? And what about Snoopy's life-long feud with the Red Baron? Like the delightful comic strip on which it is based, this beloved musical is happiness for the kid in all of us! The Broadway Musical Revival based on the comic strip 'Peanuts' by Charles M. Schultz. Book, Music, and Lyrics by Clark Gesner. Directed by Gary F. Bell. Vocal Direction by Leslie Sikes. Choreography by JT Ricroft. Featuring Chrissy Brooks, James Cougar Canfield, C. E. Fifer, Mark Saunders, Ben Watts, and Marcy Wiegert.

Auditions for The Muny's 2011 Adult Singing and Dancing Chorus will be Saturday, March 12 and Sunday, March 13. They will be held at the Performing Arts Center at St. Louis University High School, 4970 Oakland Avenue, between Kingshighway and Macklind. For further information, call The Muny at 314-361-1900, or visit www.muny.org.

Muddy Waters Theatre opens their season devoted to playwright Paula Vogel with her OBIE award-winning work, THE BALTIMORE WALTZ, a play best described as a kind of farcical fever dream that satirizes AIDS hysteria. It was apparently written as a sort of literary 'AIDS quilt' that allowed Vogel to deal with the loss of someone close to her. Any play that can somehow corral together a slide show of downtown Baltimore, a shout out to John Waters, and a urine drinking scene is certainly interesting entertainment in my book.

Though Shakespeare's first play, TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA, is ungainly and raw at times, many of the devices and plot mechanisms that will soon become the playwright's stock in trade are present in its text. As such, it remains a crude example of an early work by a master still fine tuning his craft. In Galt MacDermot (music), John Guarre (lyrics) and Mel Shapiro's (who polished and 'corrected' the Bard's book) 1971 musical adaptation it becomes a light-hearted and enjoyable introduction to his work, full of the same pluck and irreverence that distinguished MacDermot's Hair, but fully capable of standing on its own merit too. New Line Theatre and director Scott Miller's current production of Two Gentlemen of Verona not only rocks, but it's hilarious as well, aided greatly by the spectacular efforts of an enthusiastic cast and a crack band. I honestly can't recall when I've ever witnessed an audience laugh at and enjoy Shakespeare more; the resident 'Bad Boy of Musical Theatre' has come through again.

Shakespeare Festival St. Louis has announced the cast of its May 25-June 19 production, THE TAMING OF THE SHREW. 'Once again the Festival has attracted top-tier talent from across the country, and we are in for a fantastic season,' says Executive Director Rick Dildine. As previously announced Sean Graney will direct the production with a design team that includes Scott C. Neale (Scenic Designer), Alison Siple (Costume Designer), John Wylie (Lighting Designer) and Robin Weatherall (Sound Designer).

New Line Theatre, 'The Bad Boy of Musical Theatre,' continues its Twentieth Anniversary Season of provocative, adult, alternative musical theatre with the rock and roll, Shakespearean sex comedy TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA, running March 3-26, 2011, at the Washington University South Campus Theatre (formerly CBC High School), 6501 Clayton Road, just east of Big Bend.

The Sheldon Art Galleries presents two free Gallery Talks with artists Gina Alvarez and Jana Harper, in conjunction with the exhibit Gina Alvarez and Jana Harper: Poems by Bobby Thiel, Saturday, March 19 at 1 p.m. and another at 2 p.m. Gina Alvarez and Jana Harper discuss their work and their collaborative process, Nancy Spirtas Kranzberg Gallery, admission free.