…BLINK AND YOU’LL MISS

THE TEMPEST

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company

The Story: The rightful Duke of Milan, Prospero, has been stuck on an island for twelve years with his daughter, Miranda, because he was overthrown by his brother, Antonio, and the King of Naples, Alonso. Gonzalo, counselor to the King, sends them provisions in secret. Prospero is a magician, and he has the spirit Ariel as a servant as thanks for saving her. Also on the island is a deformed slave, Caliban, who at first was raised by Prospero until he tried to rape Miranda. When Prospero discovers that Antonio is on a ship nearby, he starts up a storm to cause the ship to sink. Antonio, Alonso, Gonzalo, and Alonso’s two brothers, Sebastian and Ferdinand, are stuck on the island, and Prospero starts to separate them. Caliban allies himself with Stephano and Trinculo, servants of Alonso, in an attempt to overthrow Prospero. Prospero gets Ferdinand and Miranda to fall in love, but he keeps Ferdinand as a servant to make their courting more difficult. Antonio and Sebastian plot to kill Alonso, but Ariel appears as a harpy to thwart them.
The Dates: Sept. 9, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Shakespeare Company | BTC page |

…OPENING THIS WEEK

Katie Hamilton Meyer as Maggie & Cliff Nunley as Brick in CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF.

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

Covedale Center for the Performing Arts

The Story: In a plantation house, a family celebrates the sixty-fifth birthday of its patriarch, Big Daddy. But the mood is tense, despite the festivities, as long-simmering evils poison the party. Greed, sins of the past and desperate clawing hopes for the future spar with one another as the knowledge that Big Daddy is dying slowly makes the rounds.
The Dates: Sept. 6-30, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Covedale Center for the Performing Arts | BTC page |

THE FOX ON THE FAIRWAY

Mariemont Players

The Story: Bingham, president of the Quail Valley Country Club, discovers that the golfer he thought would play for his club has switched sides, and the huge bet he had foolishly wagered will likely to be lost. You’ll never look at golf the same way again as this fast-moving farce twists and turns from one laugh surprise to another.
The Dates: Sept. 7-23, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Mariemont Players | BTC page |

Annie Fitzpatrick, Kate Wilford & Deb G. Girdler in GOOD PEOPLE. Photo by Ryan Kurtz.

GOOD PEOPLE

Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati

The Story: In this humor laced drama, Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole) explores the struggles, shifting loyalties and unshakeable hopes that come with having next to nothing in America. Margie Walsh can’t catch a break. Laid off from her job at the dollar store, Margie is faced with the reality that South Boston is providing her the same level of opportunity it always has: none. Wry, rough around the edges and ready to make a change, she goes to seek out the one who got away—both from “Southie” and from her. Instead, she finds herself in the ‘burbs and out of her element, facing the question: is opportunity granted or earned? Good People takes an affectionate look at the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ through the eyes of characters who won’t be ignored.
The Dates: Sept. 5-23, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati | BTC page |

AN INSPECTOR CALLS

Lebanon Theatre Company

The Story: This three-act drama takes place on a single night in 1912 focusing on the prosperous middle-class Birling family, who live in a comfortable home in Brumley, “an industrial city in the north Midlands.” A man calling himself Inspector Goole arrives and questions the family about the suicide of a young working-class woman Eva Smith (also known as Daisy Renton). He interrogates each family member and reveals that each has been responsible for the young woman’s exploitation, abandonment and social ruin, effectively leading to her death.
The Dates: Sept. 7-16, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Lebanon Theatre Company | BTC page |

A SHORT STAY AT THE WHISPERING PINES

Xenia Area Community Theatre

The Story: Part comedy, part mystery, part confusion and all fun. The story centers around Whispering Pines, a boarding house run by two sisters. When a new face rolls into town, we meet the two sisters, one of whom believes herself to be a reincarnated American Indian, and a host of their boarders as they try to convince the newcomer to lengthen his stay.
The Dates: Sept. 7-16, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Xenia Area Community Theatre | BTC page |

THE THREE MUSKETEERS

Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park

The Story: Young Frenchman D’Artagnan and his plucky sister Sabine aspire to join the famed Musketeers. But they get more than they bargained for when they stumble into the center of a bitter rivalry between King Louis and the evil Cardinal Richelieu. The stakes have never been higher for our favorite swashbucklers in this action-packed update of one of the greatest adventure stories of all time.
The Dates: Sept. 1-29, 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park | BTC page |

Bruce Cromer as Atticus Finch & Alyssa Mehnert as Jean Louise Finch asScout. Photo by Jeanna Vella.

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company

The Story: In 1932 Alabama, Atticus Finch challenges the conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence, and hypocrisy. This story is a powerful portrait of a south poisoned by prejudice and the one man with the courage to fight against an injustice, but like the novel from which it comes, is filled with warmth and humor.
The Dates: Sept. 7-30. 2012
Tickets and More Information: Cincinnati Shakespeare Company | BTC page |