Looking for something cultural to do this weekend and beyond? Our recommendations include “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” (with Park Krausen and Paul Hester) at Actor’s Express. Photo by BreeAnne Clowdus.
RECOMMENDED
Cloth. THROUGH SUNDAY. This one-of-a-kind multimedia collaboration features choreographer Lauri Stallings and the dancers of gloATL, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Music Director Robert Spano (pictured, at left) and filmmakers Micah & Whitney Stansell. It combines music, dance, film and sculpture in a customized environment built inside an old factory at the Goat Farm Arts Center. 8:30 nightly. $10. 1200 Foster St. N.W. Details, tickets HERE.
Driving Miss Daisy. OPENS TONIGHT | THROUGH OCT. 19. The Alfred Uhry masterwork comes to Aurora Theatre with Jill Jane Clements as Daisy Werthan and Rob Cleveland as Hoke Colburn. Justin Anderson directs. Set in 1948 Atlanta, this simple, profound and much-honored drama details the growing friendship between a Jewish widow and her African-American chauffeur. Note: Geoffrey Williams takes over the role of Hoke in October. $20. 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday; 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Harvel Lab, 128 E. Pike St., Lawrenceville. Free, covered, attached parking in city of Lawrenceville deck at 153 E. Crogan St. Details, tickets HERE or at 678.226.6222.
White Rabbit Red Rabbit. THROUGH NOV. 23. Out of Hand theater brings us another out-of-the-box experience with the one-actor piece done with no rehearsals, no director, no set and by a different actor each time. It’s being done in 12 private homes and 12 theaters. September’s schedule: 8 p.m. Saturday at 7 Stages (actor Michael Haverty); 8 p.m. Sept. 19 at the Inman Park home of actor Tim Black; 7:30 p.m. Sept. 23, hosted by the Weird Sisters Theatre Project at the Shakespeare Tavern (actor Tiffany Porter); 8 p.m. Sept. 26 at the Atlanta International School (actor Isma’il ibn Connor); 6:30 p.m. Sept. 27 at Aurora Theatre (actor Anthony Rodriguez); 8 p.m. Sept. 29 at Actor’s Express (actor Freddie Ashley). $20 plus fees. Details, tickets and a complete schedule HERE.
OPENING THIS WEEKEND
Beulah Creek. OPENS FRIDAY | THROUGH SEPT. 21. The new company Found Stages Theater goes where Saiah International, Serenbe Playhouse and 7 Stages have gone before — into the great outdoors. This immersive theater experience takes you to an outdoor Baptist camp meeting in 1936, where Ruth, the pastor’s wife, meets a WPA photographer named Iris. Written by Neeley Gossett for the natural space at the Dunwoody Nature Center. Cast: Daryl Fazio, Mary Saville, Julie Puckett, Liz Schad, Rachel Frawley and Elin Rose Hill. $10 plus fees. Dunwoody Nature Center, 5343 Roberts Drive, Dunwoody. Details HERE or at 770.394.3322. Tickets HERE.
Bull Durham. IN PREVIEWS | OPENS SATURDAY. Baseball and romance go toe to toe at the Alliance Theatre in this world premiere musical based on the 1988 movie. The script is from writer (and former ballplayer) Ron Shelton, the music by Susan Werner. The big three in the cast are Will Swenson (Broadway’s Hair and Les Miz) as “Crash” Davis, John Behlmann as “Nuke” LaLoosh and Melissa Errico (Broadway’s White Christmas, High Society, My Fair Lady) as Annie Savoy. Recommended for ages 16 and up. $30-$75. Through Oct. 5. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday; 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Alliance mainstage, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.733.5000. (Pictured: Composer Susan Werner. Photo by Scott Montgomery)
Pump Boys and Dinettes. OPENS TONIGHT | THROUGH SEPT. 28. A high-octane blend of country music, bluegrass and rock ‘n’ roll propels this down-home show about the folks who frequent the Double Cupp Diner on North Carolina’s Highway 57. The Cupp sisters will serve you a nice slice of pie or an ice-cold beer. And the boys from the gas station next door stop will likely stop by to say hi. $15-$39. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, 8 p.m. Thursday-Friday; 4 & 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Georgia Ensemble Theatre at the Roswell Cultural Arts Center, 950 Forrest St., Roswell. Details, tickets HERE or at 770.641.1260. Discount tickets at PoshDealz.com.
CLOSING THIS WEEKEND
Chainz/Broken. THROUGH SEPT. 14. Rising Sage Theatre ends its first season with this pair of one-acts by playwright/co-founder Paris Crayton III. In Chainz, four men come together in a police holding cell, learning about each other and how they’re an endangered species in America. In Broken, five women talk about children they’ve lost to gun violence. $20-$30. 8 p.m. Friday; 2 & 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Porter Sanford III Performing Arts Center, 3181 Rainbow Drive, Decatur. Details, tickets HERE.
THIS WEEKEND ONLY
Doxology Ring Shout: A Praise Dance for the Doxy. SATURDAY-SUNDAY. Experience the ecstatic, transcendent ring shout tradition in this world premiere commissioned by the National Black Arts Festival and Spelman College. It combines dance, text, video and music created by choreographer Dianne McIntyre and playwright Paul Carter Harrison, with an assist from video artist Phillip Mallory Jones and musician Dwight Andrews. 8 p.m. Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday. $15. Baldwin Burroughs Theatre at Spelman College. Details at 404.270.5471. Tickets HERE.
NOW PLAYING
Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Two rivals and ex-lovers play a dangerous game of sexual conquest in pre-revolutionary France. This season opener at Actor’s Express is based on a scandalous 1782 novel and is familiar, perhaps, from the Oscar-winning movie. Melissa Foulger (Pluto, Wolves) directs a nine-person cast that includes Park Krausen (Théâtre du Rêve), Edward McCreary (Serenbe’s recent Oklahoma!) and AE favorite Kathleen Wattis (Pluto). The critics: “Salacious fun — the plot and characters feel compellingly alive and contemporary, even zeitgeisty — though the length of the play and memories of the classic film may have viewers wondering why we should be returning to this story at the theater” (Andrew Alexander, ArtsATL). Through Oct. 5. $26-$45 (buying online saves $2). 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. 887 W. Marietta St. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.607.SHOW. Discount tickets at PoshDealz.com.
LOOKING AHEAD
Lasso of Truth. PREVIEWS SEPT. 25 | OPENS SEPT. 26. Put Wonder Woman, film noir, Gloria Steinem and Gen X comic-book lovers in the blender that is playwright Carson Kreitzer’s imagination and what you get is a smart, seductive and wild romp through generations of sexual politics. This story of Wonder Woman’s origin is told with actors, voiceovers and comic-book-styled video. Synchronicity Theatre presents this National New Play Network rolling world premiere at its new home on Peachtree Street. Through Oct. 19. $25-$35 (Preview $10). 1545 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.484.8636. (Pictured: Bryn Striepe. Photo illustration by BreeAnne Clowdus)
O for a Muse of Fire: A Benefit for Georgia Shakespeare. SEPT. 22 ONLY. Join Georgia Shakespeare and the Atlanta theater community for an evening of performances from some of your favorite artists and highlights from Georgia Shakespeare’s 29 years of productions. Concessions and merchandise will be on sale, and there will be drawings for prices. This fundraiser is intended to raise money for the endangered company’s debt and future. The picnic grounds open at 6 p.m. The performance is at 7:30 p.m. $100 (only 509 seats available). 4484 Peachtree Road N.E. (on the Oglethorpe University campus). Details, tickets HERE or at 404.504.1473. For more on Georgia Shakespeare’s future, see this ENCORE FEATURE.
Philadelphia, Here I Come. OPENS SEPT. 26 | THROUGH OCT. 5. Atlanta’s newish Arís Theatre celebrates the 50-year anniversary of this Brian Friel piece set in his fictional Ballybeg in Donegal. It’s the night before Gar O’Donnell is to leave Ireland for America and his life flashes before him as he contemplates what he’ll miss — his friends, his lost love Katie, his housekeeper and his aging father. Note the short run; get tickets now. $15-$25. Studio B, Georgia Public Broadcasting, Studio B, 260 14th St. N.E. Free, covered parking. Details, tickets HERE. Directions HERE. (Pictured, from left: Kyle Brumley, Benjamin Davis, Theo Harness)
Wabi Sabi: Cocktails in the Garden. SEPT. 18. Atlanta Ballet’s modern dance branch returns to the Atlanta Botanical Garden for an hourlong performance on the night the cash bar just happens to be open. Free with Garden admission of $18.95. 7:45 p.m. 1345 Piedmont Ave. N.E. Details HERE. Tickets HERE.
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Kathy Janich, Encore Atlanta’s managing editor, has been seeing, working in or covering the performing arts for most of her life. Please email: kathy@encoreatlanta.com.
