…BLINK AND THEY’RE GONE

ARSENIC AND OLD LACE

Mason Community Players

The Story: A farcical black comedy revolving around Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic who must deal with his crazy, homicidal family and local police in Bronx, NY, as he debates whether to go through with his recent promise to marry the woman he loves. His family includes two spinster aunts who have taken to murdering lonely old men by poisoning them; a brother who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt and digs locks for the Panama Canal in the cellar of the Brewster home; and a murderous brother who has received plastic surgery performed by an alcoholic accomplice, Dr. Einstein a german guy that is is a Nazi to conceal his identity and now looks like horror-film actor Boris Karloff.
The Dates: March 29-April 1, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Mason Community Players | BTC listing

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: DRALION

Bank of Kentucky Center

The Story: Fusing the 3000 year-old tradition of Chinese acrobatic arts with the multidisciplinary approach of Cirque du Soleil, Dralion draws its inspiration from Eastern philosophy and its never-ending quest for harmony between humans and nature. The show’s name is derived from its two emblematic creatures: the dragon, symbolizing the East, and the lion, symbolizing the West.
The Dates: March 28-April 1, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cirque Du Soleil | BTC listing

…NEW THIS WEEK

Photo by Jeremy Daniel.

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

Broadway in Cincinnati

The Story: It’s every parent’s nightmare. Your little girl has suddenly become a young woman, and what’s worse, has fallen deliriously in love with a sweet, smart young man from a respectable family. Yes, Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has a “normal” boyfriend, and for parents Gomez and Morticia, this shocking development will turn the Addams house downside up.
The Dates: March 27-April 8, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Broadway in Cincinnati | BTC listing

BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON

Know Theatre of Cincinnati

The Story: BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON uses the story of America’s controversial seventh president, “the man who invented the Democratic Party, doubled the size of our nation, and signed the Indian Removal Acts that started the Trail of Tears,” to investigate the attraction and terrors of American populism, using a raucous blend of outrageous comedy, anarchic theatricality and an infectious rock n’ roll soundtrack.
The Dates: March 31-May 12, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Know Theatre of Cincinnati | BTC listing

THE GRAPES OF WRATH

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company

The Story: Frank Galati’s Tony Award-winning adaptation of The Grapes of Wrath tells a timeless tale of endurance and hope in a time of hardship. Having survived the drought of the 1930s only to see their home repossessed, the Joad family embarks on a harrowing journey from the Dust Bowl fields of Oklahoma to the fertile orchards of California. But the “promised land” isn’t exactly what they imagined. Can the Joads overcome the injustices that plague a nation in crisis?
The Dates: March 28-April 29, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Shakespeare Company | BTC listing

THE STAR SPANGLED GIRL

Cedarville University

The Story: In this uproarious comedy, we are introduced to Andy and Norman, producers of a protest magazine. Sophie, an Olympic swimmer and all-American girl who just moved into the apartment next door, pays the young men a good-neighbor visit. From that moment on, Norman is hopelessly smitten. His love for Sophie becomes an obsession, and he literally drives her crazy by ignoring her rejection and constantly interfering in her life. Meanwhile, Andy is preoccupied with fending off creditors and charming the landlady to avoid being evicted for not paying the rent. The situation is eventually resolved through a series of hilarious happenings set forth with the masterly skill and inventiveness that are the hallmarks of Neil Simon.
The Dates: March 29-April 15, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cedarville Universtiy | BTC listing

…CONTINUING

TIGERS BE STILL

Photo by Sandy Underwood.

Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park

The Story: “This is the story of how I stopped being a total disaster,” announces the heroine of this darkly funny and moving new comedy. Having recently earned her master’s degree, Sherry Wickman finds herself still living at home with a mother who won’t come downstairs and a depressed but smart-alecky sister. Follow Sherry’s quirky misadventures as she lands her first job and tackles her two biggest challenges … getting her mother out of bed and her sister off the couch.
The Dates: March 17-April 15, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park | BTC listing | BTC Review

…ENDING THIS WEEK

CRYSTAL CLEAR DEATH

P.L.O.T.T. Performers

The Story: Be forewarned, if you are not a psychic, the visions you see may cause more than sugar plums to dance in your head. Welcome to Madame Simone’s parlor where strange things happen and the vibes are pulsating. There is a ghost of a chance that not all things are as they appear. Interactive dinner theater.
The Dates: March 23-31, 2012
Tickets and More Information: P.L.O.T.T. Performers | BTC listing

The cast of MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG presented by Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Photo by Sandy Underwood.

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG

Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park

The Story: Stephen Sondheim’s remarkable Broadway fable of friendship and the high price of success opens in the present and moves backward in time. The triumphs and failures of a jaded composer and his two closest friends are traced from their estranged ending to their idealistic beginning. Directed by John Doyle, who led Playhouse’s Tony Award-winning production of COMPANY, the performers in this highly anticipated revival will play all of the instruments as they act and sing in one of Sondheim’s most melodic scores. Ages 13 and up.
The Dates: March 3-31, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park | BTC Listing

Photo by Mikki Schaffner.

OUR COUNTRY’S GOOD

Northern Kentucky Univeristy

The Story: Australia is the perfect dumping ground for the worst British convicts in the 1780’s, but with only a few guards to keep the unruly inmates in line the Governor suggests a simple but bizarre solution to create order — have the inmates put on a play. Much to the dismay of both the prison workers and the prisoners themselves, the plan takes to the stage.
The Dates: March 22-April 1, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Northern Kentucky University | BTC listing

PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES

Brieabi Productions

The Story: On Highway 57, somewhere between Frog Level and Smyrna, stands a gas station. Across the blacktop is a roadside eatery called the Double Cupp Diner. The three guys at the station, Jim, Jackson, and L.M., have been known to do some auto repairs, but only when aided by quantities of time and beer. The Cupp sisters, Prudie and Rhetta, celebrate their home cooking with the same zeal they bring to being neighborly with the boys. This feel good, toe-tapping musical is a tribute to life by the roadside!
The Dates: March 23-31, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Brieabi Productions | BTC listing

Emily Kissela as Rapunzel.

RAPUNZEL! RAPUNZEL! A Very Hairy Fairy Tale

The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati

The Story: The classic fairy tale of Rapunzel comes to life in an exciting new musical featuring that beautiful princess with the long, long, long hair trapped in the tower, a handsome young suitor who doesn’t quite know what he’s searching for – of course, an evil witch who has her eye on what should be Rapunzel’s kingdom, and a tired, yet philosophical, old dragon who tries to make sense of it all!
The Dates: March 23-30, 2012
Tickets and More Information: The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati | BTC listing

Burgess Byrd as Clairee Belcher & Christine Dye as Ouiser Boudreaux in CCPA's STEEL MAGNOLIAS.

STEEL MAGNOLIAS

Covedale Center for the Performing Arts

The Story: Welcome to Truvy’s beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, where all the ladies who are “anybody” come to have their hair done. Filled with hilarious repartee and not a few revealing verbal collisions, the play invokes knowing laughter and certain tears when the spunky Shelby risks her life for a child of her own. The realization of mortality affects the others, but also draws on the underlying strength—and love – in these uniquely American women.
The Dates: March 8-April 1, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Landmark Productions | BTC listing

Jen Johansen* as Sarah Goodwin. Photo by Ryan Kurtz.

TIME STANDS STILL

Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati

The Story: This explosive new drama examines the relationship between headstrong Sarah, a star photojournalist, and James, a foreign correspondent, who were once addicted to the adrenaline of documenting the realities of war and are now grounded in their Brooklyn loft. Now, James writes online movie reviews while Sarah recovers from being injured by a roadside bomb in Iraq, itching to get back behind the camera. But, when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life…and everything changes-in a flash.
The Dates: March 14-April 1, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati | BTC listing | BTC Review