New Year's Eve is more than funny hats and noisemakers.
Theatergoers along the Wasatch Front have at least nine stage productions from which to choose, all involving New Year's Eve festivities.The trend started a few years back with Hale Center Theater, which will stage two performances of "See How They Run" on Saturday night, both including light refreshments and party favors.
Hunt Mystery & Company will have three simultaneous productions going on - "As the Machiavellis Turn" at the Red Lion Hotel and at Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort and "Godfather of the Bride" at the Holiday Inn.
Here's a list of the theater events scheduled around the region for New Year's Eve:
- "See How They Run," Hale Center Theater, 2801 S. Main, South Salt Lake; 6:30 and 10 p.m. All seats reserved ($13 for the early show and $15 for the later performance). The evening will include preshow entertainment, noisemakers and light refreshments. Call 484-9257 for reservations.
- "The Pirates of Penzance," Pages Lane Theater, 292 E. Pages Lane, Centerville; 7:30 p.m. performance followed by dancing until midnight to the music of Ken Foster's band and the theater's famous Ten Million Calorie Dessert Bar (with even some . . . ugh! . . . healthy food like fruit and cheese). Plus noisemakers and party hats. All seats $18 per person ($10 for season subscribers). Call 298-1302 for reservations.
- Quick Wits, the Off Broadway Theatre's hilarious "improv" troupe, at 10 p.m. (following the regular 7:30 p.m. performance of OBT's current stage production, "Star Twek: The Search for Spoof"). Tickets will be $2 for that evening's "Star Twek" patrons or $5 for those coming later for just the Quick Wits performance. The show will end in time for toasting the New Year and seeing the First Night fireworks display across the street in the Gallivan Plaza. Box office: 355-4628.
- "As The Machiavellis Turn" is a do-it-yourself "whodunit" and soap-opera spoof. One Hunt Mystery & Company cast will perform at the Red Lion Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City while another cast will present the same show at Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort. Both productions involve the patrons asking questions and doing their own sleuthing to solve the mystery.
Snowbird's package, at $40 per person, includes prime rib dinner and show. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and dinner starts at 8 p.m. Doors at the Red Lion open at 7:30 p.m. for a social, and dinner begins at 8 p.m.
The Red Lion package, at $110 per couple, includes show, prime rib dinner, dancing until 1 a.m., party favors, complimentary parking, coat checks and midnight toast. Red Lion also is offering a special overnight lodging rate in conjunction with the mystery dinner of $65 plus tax.
- "Godfather Of The Bride," Salt Lake Downtown Holiday Inn. Doors open at 7:30 p.m., and the dinner begins at 8 p.m. The $78-per-couple package includes the mystery, steak and shrimp dinner, dancing until 1 a.m., midnight toast and party favors. The inn is also offering a special overnight mystery-dinner and lodging rate of $155 per couple, which also includes breakfast for two.
- "Auntie Mame," Terrace Plaza Playhouse, 99 W. 4700 South, Ogden (Washington Terrace); 7:30 p.m. performance of the Broadway comedy, after which patrons can dance to a live orchestra or belly up to the potato bar, the soup bar, the finger-food bar and and banana-split bar. (One of Auntie Mame's famous remarks from the show is "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death." That shouldn't be the case on New Year's Eve.) Tickets are $7.50 for just the show, $10 for just the postshow feast and entertainment or $17.50 for both. Call 393-0070 to reserve seats.
- "The Foreigner," StageStop Theatre, Collinston (between Tremonton and Logan): a 6 p.m. performance for those who want to see the show and head on to other activities and a second show at 9 p.m. followed by the StageStop's annual New Year's Eve party. Regular admission for the earlier show is $7 for adults and $6 for children, and $10 for the 9 p.m. show. Call 1-800-248-2530 for reservations.
- "The Nerd," Hale Center Theater/Orem, 225 W. 400 North, Orem; performances at 6 and 10 p.m., both followed by light refreshments and party favors. Tickets are $10 for the early performance and $11 for the later show. Call 226-8600 for reservations.