Tempo

By PHYLLIS MORAITIS The Dearborn Symphony, under the swanky baton of conductor Steven Jarvi and the swell stylings of guest pianist Melissa Coppola opened its 60th Diamond Jubilee season Oct. 8 with moxie. With a tribute to the music of the Roaring Twenties, the symphony, guest artist, and solo performers made performing look like duck soup. The musical celebration began with a wingding in Studio A. The joint hopped with talented hoofers from the Noretta Dunworth School of Dance. It was the bee’s knees when tomatoes dressed in … [Read more...] about Dearborn Symphony ‘Roaring Twenties’ opening night was the cat’s pajamas

  Everything old is new again, whether one is facing a moral dilemma in ancient Greece, in Sophocles’ “Antigone” with the Detroit Mercy Theatre Company, or fearing an alien invasion in Barefoot Production’s adaption of Orson Welles’ “War of the Worlds.” BAREFOOT PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS ‘WAR OF THE WORLDS’ Orson Welles’ 1938 “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast, which caused a UFO panic among its listeners, who feared a Martian invasion was occurring, comes to life on the Barefoot Productions’ stage, with an expanded script … [Read more...] about Theatrical time travel takes one from ‘Antigone’ in ancient Greece to Orson Welles’ ‘War of the Worlds’

  With the optimism and longing borne by thespians yearning for the footlights, the Players Guild of Dearborn and Wayne State University have launched their first shows and announced their seasons. The Players Guild of Dearborn, which opened its season with Brian Townsend’s “Murder Comes to Uptight Abbey,” will close its two-weekend run at with an 8 p.m. Oct. 9 and a 2:30 p.m. Oct. 10 performance at the playhouse, 21730 Madison, Dearborn. Musical show tunes are on tap as PGD continues its season with “The Players Guild: … [Read more...] about Players Guild, Wayne State announce theatre seasons

Whether or not you’re a fan of a certain boy wizard who lived, you’ll be enchanted by Matt Cox’s “Puffs,” an unauthorized parody of “seven increasingly eventful years at a certain school of magic,” running live onstage Oct. 15 to Nov. 1 at the Ringwald Theater’s new location at Affirmations LGBTQ+ Community Center, 290 W. 9 Mile Road, in Ferndale. Puffs, (which is short for Hufflepuffs), follows an ordinary boy who discovers he is a wizard, and is whisked away to a mysterious school of magic, where he and his two best friends … [Read more...] about Ringwald returns to live theater with ‘Puffs,’ set at a certain wizarding school

  Live performances and audiences return to the Players Guild of Dearborn theater Oct. 1 with playwright and director Brian Townsend’s original murder mystery comedy “Murder Comes to Uptight Abbey.” Set a century ago in England, the story combines Downton Abbey and Agatha Christie to play Clue, after the body of Lord Horatio Uptight is found on a dark and stormy night with a large knife in his back. The Uptight family and staff attempt to discover the murderer before the Dowager Duchess arrives for dinner, with a … [Read more...] about PGD presents ‘Murder Comes to Uptight Abbey’ live onstage

  Strict pandemic protocols to be enforced The 25th anniversary farewell tour of “RENT,” running Oct. 19 to 24 at the Fisher Theater, will bring Broadway musicals back to the Motor City this fall, with strict pandemic protocols in place. The second show on tap at the Fisher is the musical “Pretty Woman,” which runs Nov. 2 to 14. “In October it will be 60 years since the Fisher Theater reopened as a legitimate Broadway Theatre,” Alan Lichtenstein, Broadway in Detroit executive director said. “And now, 842,400 minutes … [Read more...] about ‘Rent’ to reopen Fisher Theater, followed by ‘Pretty Woman’

Pandemic precautions take center stage The Open Book Theatre Company launches its new season this weekend with “This Random World: The Myth of Serendipity,” the first of five contemporary plays which Artistic Director Krista Schafer Ewbank hopes will resonate with audiences. “I tend to be drawn to plays about what makes us human,” she said. “Our need for personal connection has never felt more pressing than after our collective trauma of this past year.” “This Random World,” by Steven Dietz, which opened Sept. 10 and runs … [Read more...] about ‘This Random World’ launches OBTC’s new five-show season

  A live improv comedy show, featuring the Metro Detroit Improv troupe, will perform at 8 p.m. Sept. 18 at Barefoot Productions, 33735 Five Mile Road, in Livonia, with the proceeds supporting the community theater. The group includes Madeleine Bien of Royal Oak as the host, with Steve Ainsworth of Ferndale, Paula Dirkes of Berkley, Stanley Guarnelo of Melvindale, Anne Harris of Detroit, Timothy Majzlik of Canton Township, Brian McFarland of Dearborn, Michael Micheletti of Livonia, Scott Ryan of Southgate and Jim Snideman of … [Read more...] about Barefoot Productions to host Improv Comedy fundraiser

  Trenton’s Open Book Theatre Company will launch its sixth season with Steven Dietz’s “This Random World: The Myth of Serendipity” Sept. 10, amid artistic excitement and pandemic precautions. OBTC Artistic Director Krista Schafer Ewbank, who directed, “This Random World,” which was originally slated for 2020, said it was initially canceled after only two rehearsals when the pandemic struck. “The play mines the comedy of missed connections, asking the serious question of how often we travel parallel paths through the … [Read more...] about Back in the spotlight: Open Book Theatre Company launches 6th season with ‘This Random World’

  “Grease” is the word as the Jewish Ensemble Theatre presents the high-energy, ’50s-flavored musical at 7 p.m. Aug. 27 to 29 at the Walled Lake Farmers Market, 1499 E. West Maple Road. The show is being presented in cooperation with the Walled Lake Downtown Development Authority. Set in 1959 in the fictional Rydell High School, it follows 10 teens as they navigate peer pressure, personal problems and romance woes. Sandy and Danny, who had a summer romance, are unexpectedly reunited in high school, and discover … [Read more...] about JET presents ‘Grease’ at outdoor farmers market