In addition to Pioneer Theatre Company's "Richard III" , other productions opening this week in the region include such thought-provoking fare as Scott McPherson's award-winning "Marvin's Room," Tom Griffith's "The Boys Next Door" and the rarely produced Bertold Brecht-Kurt Weill classic, "The Threepenny Opera," among others.
The SCERA in Orem is also premiering a production of a new musical drama by Orem playwright Tye Noorda.
MARVIN'S ROOM, directed by Edward J. Gryska, will play Feb. 11-March 20 at Provo Theatre Company, 105 E. 100 North.
Winner of both the Drama Desk Award for Best New Play and an Outer Critics Circle Award, Scott McPherson's play is a poignant comedy intermingling themes of death, love, duty, care and service.
According to Gryska, the play "captures the best of human emotions. . . It has a beautiful, universal message of love, hope and perseverance."
The story revolves around Bessie, who is caught up in caring for her disabled father and soap opera-loving aunt, while dealing at the same time with her own recent diagnosis of leukemia, plus the surprise arrival of her long-absent sister, Lee, and Lee's two sons, Hank and Charlie.
The cast includes Debra Shepard, Terra Allen, Brandon Klock, Nathan Broberg, Ruth Allred, Jillian Jolley, Lesli Manning and Paul Walstad.
Performances will be 8 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays-Saturdays. Tickets are $12.50 and $15. All seats are reserved. For reservations, plus information on group and student discounts, call the PTC box office at 379-0600.
THE BOYS NEXT DOOR, Tom Griffith's acclaimed comedy-drama about four mentally handicapped men living in a "group home," will have five performances Feb. 11-14 in the intimate Lab Theatre of the University of Utah's Performing Arts Building, located directly west of the campus book store.
First produced in 1987 and later transferred to TV as a Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, this all-student stage version will be directed by Chad Cheek, who is completing work on his BFA degree at the U. of U. and is the recipient of a four-year full theater scholarship.
Cheek selected this play to direct after doing volunteer work with the South Jordan Middle School for the mentally and physically disabled.
Performances will be 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 11-13 and 7 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14, with one matinee at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. General admission seating is $5 for adults and $3 for all students. Tickets may be purchased at the door or reserved in advance by calling 581-6961.
THE THREEPENNY OPERA, being sponsored by a generous grant from the Kurt Weill Foundation, is playing Feb. 11-20 in the Morgan Theatre of Utah State University's Chase Fine Arts Center.
Don Cate, a guest director and set designer from San Francisco's City College, says "This particular production says a lot of very dark, serious things about society with some very pleasant music."
Based on John Gay's 1728 drama, "The Beggar's Opera," Brecht and Weill's musical collaboration in 1928 gave the story a smoky, pulsating jazz sound and shifted the emphasis to cynical look at German society in the 1920s. The score includes the well-known song, "Mack the Knife."
The original German production ran for five years -- until it was banned by Adolf Hitler. In the mid-1940s, Marc Blizstein's new English version premiered in New York. It received rave reviews but closed after only 12 performances due to a previous booking. Later, due to overwhelming critical support, it was revived -- and ran for six years.
Principal roles have been double-cast, with Christopher Glade and David Nickle alternating as Macheath, Kelsey Anderson and Amy Fuller as Polly, and Arika Schockmel and Chelsi Stahr as Jenny. Rachel Luna is single-cast as Lucy.
Performances will be at 8 p.m. on Feb. 11-13 and 18-20. Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for USU faculty/staff and senior citizens, and $5 for youths and non-USU students. (USU students are admitted free of charge, with valid identification.) For reservations, call the USU Spectrum ticket office at 1-435-797-0305. Tickets are also available at the information desk of the Taggart Student Center.
ANDROCLES AND THE LION, adapted for the stage by Artistic Director Joanne M. Parker from several classic Aesop fables, will have 16 public performances, Feb. 13-April 5, at City Rep's Family Theatre, 638 S. State.
Among the fables being dramatized are "The Tortoise and the Hare," "The Boy Who Cried Wolf," "The Fox and the Grapes" and "Androcles and the Lion."
Nigel James will portray Aesop, with other cast members taking multiple roles as a Greek chorus. They include Courtney Bello, Ben Ballesteros, StayCie Gabrielson, John Gagnier, Kelly Glover, Ron Higgins, Emily Holmgren, Nancy Jensen, David Moffitt, Emily Trulson Parker, Becky-Lee Reynolds, Barbara Romano and Warren Woodbury.
Evening performances will be at 7:30 on Feb. 13, 22 & 26; March 5, 13, 15, 19, 27 & 29 and April 2 & 5. There will also be five Saturday matinees at 2 p.m. (Feb. 20 & 27, March 6 & 20 and April 3). Tickets for these performances are $7 per person.
In addition, daytime school performances are scheduled at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for special, prearranged field trips. Tickets are $3.75 (some restrictions apply).
Call 532-6000 for reservations.
EXPERIENCE, an original play by Orem playwright Tye Noorda, is premiering Feb. 12 on the SCERA's new Showhouse II stage, 745 S. State, Orem.
Director/actor David Whitlock is directing the production. The theme for the play is taken from the scripture,
"All these things shall give thee experience and shall be for thy good."
The plot is centered on the victims of a plane crash -- an NFL football player, a boy with a speech impediment, a "romance novel" writer, an unscrupulous Hollywood producer and a revered Sunday School teacher -- to tell a story of the consequences that result from choices people make.
The six scenes contain several vignettes, all linked by brief musical interludes.
Performances are 7:30 p.m., Feb. 12, 13 and 15-20. Tickets are $8. They can be reserved in advance by calling 225-2569 or 225-2787. Tickets will also be available at the door.
POETRY POTPOURRI, an annual evening of audience participation, is being presented by the Babcock Performing Readers on Thursday, Feb. 11, at 7:30 p.m., in the Art Barn, 54 Finch Lane (in Reservoir Park, between South Temple and 100 South, just below University).
Poetry lovers are invited to read poems by their favorite authors, or bring original or unpublished poetry to enjoy. The program will be directed by local actor Boyer Jarvis.
There is no charge, and refreshments will be served.
THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK is being staged as the second annual Ragan Theater Showcase presentation, Feb. 12-20, at Utah Valley State College, Orem.
The purpose of the showcase is to spotlight talent and achievement in the arts. On closing night, Feb. 20, director Syd Riggs will be presented with the school's Showcase Merit Award for her contributions to the arts community.
The cast, hand-picked by Riggs, includes actors from college, the community and local high schools. Natalie Hill is featured in the title role, with Nancy Stewart-Douglas, Larson Holyoak, Jolene Sayers, M'Lisa Bailey-Hansen, Rex Kockerhans, Amy Norris, Claron Palmer and Jason Celaya in other roles.
Regular performances will be Feb. 12, 13 and 15-20 at 8 p.m. in the Ragan Theater. Optional dinner-theater packages are available for Feb. 12, 13, 19 and 20 with dinner beginning at 6 p.m. in the school's Valley View Room. Tickets for the performance only are $3 for UVSC students, $4 for students and senior citizens and $6 for general admission. Dinner theater tickets are $15 for both the dinner and the production. Tickets will be available at the door or may be reserved in advance by calling 222-8797.
FOREVER PLAID, the popular off Broadway musical revue (currently playing in two other Wasatch Front venues as well), is being presented Feb. 12-27 by the Draper Arts Council. . . with a "dessert theater" option (instead of a full-fledged "dinner theater" program).
Performances will be 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 12, 15, 17, 19, 20, 22, 26 and 27 in the Draper City Hall auditorium, 12441 S. 900 East.
Directed by Cindy Schwann and adapted by Walt Price, the cast includes Dean Kaelin, Jerry Graves, Bruce Craven and Eric Richards.
Tickets for the performance alone are $7 for adults and $4 for children. For those who want the optional dessert buffet, tickets are $9 for adults and $5 for children for the combined performance/dessert.
Tickets may be purchased in advance at Albertson's in Draper. They will also be available at the door. For further information, call 523-2103.
HERE IN AMERICA, Robert Post's acclaimed one-man performance of physical comedy, absurdist theater, mime and spontaneous dialogue and dialects, will be presented Feb. 10-13 as part of Brigham Young University's Entr'Acte series.
Performances are at 7:30 p.m. in the Pardoe Theatre of the Harris Fine Arts Center. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $8 for BYU students and faculty. For reservations, call 378-4322.
FIELDWORK is a new, 10-week series of workshops for performing artists in the region, designed to help them gain insight and supportive, specific feedback about their work.
The fee for the entire series is $50. The group will meet Wednesdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at Rose Wagner Hall's East Studio, from Feb. 10 through April 14. The project, being facilitated by Mary-Johnston Coursey, is geared to performers who have either completed works or a work-in-progress to show during the first session.
At the end of the series, all participants will be invited to perform up to 10 minutes of the work being developed.
THE MIKADO, Gilbert and Sullivan's classic operetta, will be presented Feb. 11-13 and 17-20 at 8 p.m. in the Joseph Crane Theatre at Snow College, Ephraim. Tickets are $6.50 for adults and $6 for senior citizens and children.
For telephone ticket orders, call 1-435-283-7411 (Visa and MasterCard only).
Information on stage productions or auditions must be submitted at least two weeks in advance. Compiled by Ivan M. Lincoln, Deseret News theater editor, 1-801-236-6017. Fax: 1-801-237-2550. Ivan has a strong aversion to all things technical, so e-mail is out of the question.