A party celebrating William Shakespeare's 441st birthday and the world premiere of a new musical are among this week's theatrical events in the region.
"RUMORS," Neil Simon's 1990 farce about gossip running amok, is being staged from Wednesday through April 30 by Salt Lake Community College's Department of Performing Arts.
Directed by Frank Gerrish, the comedy will be performed in the Black Box Theatre (Room W-381) on the school's South City Campus, 1575 S. State.
The plot revolves around four couples gathering to celebrate the 10th wedding anniversary of one of their best friends, only to discover that their host has been shot. The rumors start flying as guests keep adding juicier bits to what they've heard.
The cast includes Mike Kluthe, Summer Gerrard, Becky Johnson, John Lawrence, Della Rae Riker, David Bates, Matt Whittaker, Asseneth Sosa, Juan David Diaz and Becky Carnahan.
Performances are Wednesday-Saturday of this week and Thursday-Saturday the following week, all at 7:30 p.m. (Room W-381 is on the third floor, reached by an elevator adjacent to the Grand Theatre foyer.) Tickets are $5 for the general public and students (957-3322). SLCC faculty and staff are admitted free of charge.
THE WORLD PREMIERE of Tony Cobb's pop-rock-jazz musical version of "Tristram and Isolde" is playing through May 2 at Emerson-Smith College's Villa Theatre, 254 S. Main, Springville.
Based on the mystical Arthurian legend, this story of star-crossed lovers has been shaped into a variety of stage productions, including Wagner's classic opera. It is also believed to be the basis for William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet."
Cobb lives in Las Vegas but has been involved in many Utah productions. He was the librettist for Emerson-Smith College's production of "Robin Hood: The Musical," which played last summer. Cobb was impressed with the quality of that production and felt that the Villa was the right place to premier his newest show, for which he wrote both the book and the music.
The cast includes Charley Gardner, seen recently as Snoopy in "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" and Frederick in "The Pirates of Penzance," has the role of Tristram.
Katie Young, a veteran of more than 70 stage productions, will play Raghnah, the Sorceress.
Isolde will be played by Penny Pendleton, with Eric Mikkelsen as King Mark.
Curtain is 8 p.m. nightly except Sunday. All seats are $8 (471-7193).
THE UTAH SHAKESPEAREAN FESTIVAL is gearing up for its fifth annual Bard's Birthday Bash — two days of Shakespearean scene performances, stage combat demonstrations, jousting contests (using padded royal bathroom plungers), dancing, maypole festivities and even sharing cake with Queen Elizabeth I.
Events will be 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday on the grounds surrounding the Adams Shakespearean Theatre. Nearly 2,500 youngsters from throughout southern Utah are expected to help celebrate William Shakespeare's 441st birthday.
Meanwhile, the festival's touring production, "The Taming of the Shrew," is winding down its regional trek, with two performances at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday at the Ellen Eccles Theatre in Logan. Tickets are priced at $10, $13 and $15 (435-752-0026 or www.centerforthearts.us).
SALT LAKE ACTING COMPANY has three consecutive events scheduled around the current world premiere of Julie Jensen's "Dust Eaters."
On Saturday, 2-5 p.m., there will be a free symposium on political theater, "Plays That Can Change the World," featuring SLAC's two playwrights in residence — Jensen and New York-based J.T. Rogers. The panel discussion will be moderated by Mike Dorrell, the company's dramaturg.
On April 24, following the 2 p.m. matinee of "Dust Eaters" (approximately 4 p.m.), there will be a panel discussion on issues raised in the play itself. Panelists include Forrest Cuch, director of the Utah Division of Indian Affairs; Will Bagley, Utah historian; Jensen and Dorrell.
On April 25, at 7:30 p.m., SLAC's "New Play Sounding Series" will spotlight J.T. Rogers' newest work in progress, "The Overwhelming," about an American family traveling to Rwanda on the eve of the horrific conflagration of civil war, finding themselves embroiled in events beyond all understanding.
The staged reading will be followed by a talk-back session with the audience.
All three events are free and will take place in SLAC's Upstairs Theatre, 168 W. 500 North.
STAGERIGHT THEATERCOMPANY has scheduled another in its series of staged readings — Oscar Wilde's "Salome" — for Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at the theater, 5001 S. Highland Drive (the former Carmike Cinemas just south of Cottonwood Mall).
Directed by Beth Bruner and Rob Luckau, the cast includes Candace Christensen as Salome, Louis Schaefer as Herod, Gordon S. Jones as Iokanaan and Leisl Bonell as Herodias.
Tickets are $5 each (272-3445 or info@stageright.org).
WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY will hold its annual One-Act Play Festival from Tuesday-Saturday, 7:30 p.m. nightly, in the Eccles Theatre of the Browning Center, Ogden. There will also be one matinee at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Nine plays, directed by second-year directing students, will be staged in repertory during the six performances.
The schedule is: "The Love Course," "Jolly" and "The 4-H Club" on Tuesday and Friday."
"Wiley and the Hairy Man," "Siren Song of Stephen Jay Gould" and "A Kind of Alaska" on Wednesday and Saturday (matinee).
"Odei," "Tone Clusters" and "Live Spelled Backward" on Thursday and Saturday (evening).
Tickets are $8.50 for adults and $5.50 for students, senior citizens and military personnel (626-8500).
E-mail: ivan@desnews.com