The Draper Historic Theatre's annual "Broadway Kidz" revue, an Easter season passion play and two musicals based on popular Charles Schulz' characters are among new events on this week's regional theater calendar.
"THE VICTOR PASSION PLAY" is being presented for the fourth year by the Salt Lake Christian Center, 4300 S. 700 East. The musical drama has a cast of 125. All performances are free of charge, but tickets are required in advance to control the number of visitors at each performance. Curtain is 7 p.m. on April 6 and 13, and 3 and 7 p.m. on April 7, 8, 14 and 15. For reservations, call 268-2178, or order tickets online at www.slchristiancenter.org.
"BROADWAY KIDZ 2001," the fourth-annual youth musical revue at Draper Historic Theatre, is scheduled April 5-23. Nearly 70 youths, from 6-18 years of age, will perform a salute to the movies in "Hooray for Hollywood." Performances are 7:30 p.m. on April 5, 6, 13, 14, 16, 20, 21 and 23. For reservations, call the theater at 572-4144.
TWO FAMILY MUSICALS, "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" and "Snoopy," will be presented in repertory April 4-10 by Eastern Utah Theatre in the Geary Theatre at College of Eastern Utah, Price. Both are being directed by Todd Olsen. Scott Westwood will play Charlie Brown, and Morgan Fry is cast as Snoopy. Rounding out the ensemble are Katie Scott, Jessica Perry, Topher Mehelhoff, Holly Gates, John Rowland and Amber Hansen. "Charlie Brown" plays April 4, 6 and 9, with "Snoopy" staged on April 5, 7 and 10. Curtain for all performances is 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $7 for adults, $5 for senior citizens and high school students, $2 for CEU students and $3 for CEU faculty and staff. Group rates, for 10 or more, are $4 each. For reservations, call 1-435-613-5334.
THE MISSOULA CHILDREN'S THEATRE will present an original musical adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel "Treasure Island" on Saturday, April 7, at 3 and 7 p.m., in Hillcrest Junior High School auditorium, 126 E. 5300 South. The performances are being sponsored by the Murray Arts Council. MCT is acclaimed for its unique production technique. A small team of directors from Montana spend one week of intensive rehearsal with nearly 50 local youths in each community they visit. The team, which provides costumes and scenery, conducts acting workshops involving the local students. By the end of the week, the production is ready for an audience. Tickets, available only at the door, are $5 for adults, $3 for students and senior citizens or $15 per family. Also, any number of children 12 and under are admitted free of charge with one paid adult. There is also a $25 "group rate" admitting any size of group of any age.
"FOOTLOOSE," the recent Broadway musical version of the 1984 filmed-in-Utah movie, will play April 2 in Logan. The Capitol Arts Alliance will present Big League Theatrical's production of "Footloose" at 8 p.m. at the Ellen Eccles Theatre, 43 S. Main. "Footloose" is the tale of teenage rebellion and the struggle to overcome well-intentioned but misguided oppression juxtaposed with the theme of coming to terms with a loss. Hit songs from the original movie include "Let's Hear it for the Boy," "Holding out for a Hero," "Almost Paradise" and the title song. Nine new songs were added for the Broadway score, a collaboration involving such music-industry greats as Kenny Loggins, Sammy Hagar, Eric Carment, Jim Steinman, and Academy, Golden Globe and two-time Grammy Award winner Dean Pitchford (writer and lyricist), and two-time Academy and Grammy Award-nominee Tom Snow (composer). Pitchford and Snow collaborated on all of the new songs for the stage production. Tickets, priced at $22, $25 and $28, are available from the Ellen Eccles box office or by calling 1-435-752-0026.
"OF MICE AND MEN," John Steinbeck's 1937 drama about the need and devotion between an unlikely pair of itinerant farmhands, will be presented April 4-7 by Southern Utah University's Stage II student production company. Performances will be 7:30 p.m., Wednesday-Saturday, in the Randall Jones Theatre, with one matinee at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets are $6 for adults, $5 for senior citizens and $2 for students. For advance reservations, call 1-435-586-7746.
EXTENDED — Due to public demand, four additional performances of Rodgers Memorial Theatre's production of "The Sound of Music" have been scheduled. The newly added performances will be 7:30 p.m. on April 9, 13 and 14, with one matinee at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 7. For reservations, call 298-1302.
HUNT MYSTERY & COMPANY will present "Godfather II: Night of the Don" on Friday, April 6, at 7:30 p.m., at the Salt Lake Hilton, 255 S. West Temple. Tickets are $35 per person, including dinner and audience-participation mystery. Advance reservations are required. Call 569-1482.
Information on stage productions or auditions must be submitted at least three weeks in advance. Compiled by Ivan M. Lincoln, Deseret News theater editor, 236-6017. Send material to Deseret News, P.O. Box 1257, Salt Lake City, UT 84110 (Attn: Ivan Lincoln), or send it via e-mail: ivan@desnews.com or fax to 237-2550.