Looking for something cultural to do in the next week or so? Here’s our select list of recommendations. Pictured: The work of The Object Group, part of “Curious Encounters” on Friday and Saturday at 7 Stages in Little Five Points.
RECOMMENDED
The Velveteen Rabbit. THROUGH JULY 27. Travel to a time when toys were sewn by hand and modern technology was not all the rage. Serenbe Playhouse begins its third season with this original adaptation of the Margery Williams classic about a toy rabbit that longs to be real. All Serenbe shows are performed outdoors. This event takes place in the Grange Creek area, behind Fern’s Market. Please bring your own seating. $15; age 13 and under $10. 11 a.m. Friday-Saturday. 9110 Selborne Lane, Palmetto. Details, tickets HERE or at 770.463.1110. Half-price tickets (June 15-July 20 shows) at PoshDealz.com.
Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat. OPENS TODAY | THOUGH JULY 28. The Center for Puppetry Arts teams with the king of rhyme for this Atlanta premiere. Indulge in all things Seuss with the Cat in the Hat, Sally, her brother, their pet fish, and Thing 1 and Thing 2. Told with rod puppets and animation. Originally produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain. Directed here by Jon Ludwig, leading a cast of six. $16.50 non-members; $9.25 members. 10 a.m. and noon Tuesday-Friday; 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday; and 1 and 3 p.m. Sunday. Closed July 4. 1404 Spring St. N.W. at 18th Street. Details, tickets HERE, at tickets@puppet.org or 404.873.3391.
THIS WEEKEND ONLY
Close Encounters! Rocket fuel for music lovers from the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Music director Robert Spano leads the orchestra in R. Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra and Holst’s The Planets. $24-$75. 8 p.m. Thursday and Saturday. Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.733.5000.
Curious Encounters. FRIDAY-SATURDAY. Multiple performances at one place for one price. 7 Stages and Out of Hand Theater curate this collection of Atlanta artists and ensembles who will do short, interactive performances throughout 7 Stages’ nooks and crannies. The lineup: interactive music by Klimchak; Optimiste by Saiah; Round by Red Cabinet Theater, a world premiere inspired by Gertrude Stein’s children’s novel The World Is Round; Obscura III by Tera Beurkle, who looks at the line between what’s real and what’s illusion; The Break Up by Out of Hand, which invites you to hop into a car with a stranger, fall in love, fall out of love and get on with your life in a mere minute or two; and Chapel Perilous by The Object Group, in which eight individuals enter a small, spinning chapel structure to ride an intoxicating, surreal roller coaster of images and sounds. $10 advance; $15 at door. 7-10 p.m. (arrive at any time). 1105 Euclid Ave. N.E. Details, tickets HERE.
Playmaking for Girls. SATURDAY ONLY. Synchronicity Theatre presents its annual, powerful — and one-night-only — lineup of short plays written and performed by formerly detained young women. The event includes the show, a vibrant dialogue with participants and teachers afterward, and a post-show reception. Free, but seating is limited and often runs out. Reservations required. (The 6 p.m. performance is FULL, but you’re welcome to attend the 2 p.m. dress rehearsal). Dahlberg Hall at Georgia State University, 30 Courtland St. N.E. Details HERE. Tickets/reservations at 404.484.8636.
STILL PLAYING
Hamlet. THROUGH JUNE 23. In repertory with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. Jonathan Horne plays the melancholy Dane in this New American Shakespeare Tavern staging. $15-$36. 499 Peachtree St. N.E. Details (including show dates), tickets HERE. Get a $50 Tavern gift card good for tickets and food, at PoshDealz.com for only $25.
The Great McAnigan. THROUGH JUNE 22. This Collective Project world premiere tells a tale of the amazing, the astounding and the poetically disabled Andrew McAnigan, who excels at almost everything. The script is by Atlanta writer-actor-teacher-director Dave Lauby. The critics: “A lot that goes on is clever and inventive” (Jim Farmer, ArtsATL.com). The Collective is experimenting with a “see the play before you pay” system. Patrons can reserve a priority seat HERE or by calling 678.680.3853, see the play and pay for the performance afterward. Anyone wishing to opt out of this system can buy tickets at the regular price at the door or ONLINE ($20; $15 age 25 and younger). Goat Farm Arts Center’s Rodriguez Room, 1200 Foster St. Directions HERE. (Pictured: Weston Manders as Andrew McAnigan and cast. Photo by Dylan York.)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. THROUGH JUNE 22. In repertory with Hamlet. A hilarious inversion of the tragedy, as seen through the eyes of bumbling gravediggers R&G and the imagination of playwright Tom Stoppard. $24-$36. New American Shakespeare Tavern, 499 Peachtree St. N.E. Details (including show dates), tickets HERE. Get a $50 Tavern gift card, good for tickets and food, at PoshDealz.com for only $25.
Samurai Davis Jr. and Dim Sum’s Super Mega Happy Fun Time Improv Show. THROUGH JULY 26. Dad’s Garage Theater Company‘s improvised Japanese game show returns with peanut butter lap dances, cheeseburger milkshakes, karaoke flash mobs, non-English-speaking hosts and sassy sailor girls. $14-$26. 10:30 p.m. Friday. Dad’s Garage mainstage, 280 Elizabeth St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.523.3141. Buy online and save. Read more about Dad’s move from Inman Park in this Encore FEATURE.
LOOKING AHEAD
Metamorphoses. PREVIEWS JUNE 20 | OPENS JUNE 21. Georgia Shakespeare reprises its 2005 hit, 10 stories about what it means to be human, fallible and love someone. Creator Mary Zimmerman’s 2002 Broadway hit is based on the myths of Ovid, an ancient Roman poet — and set in a pool. Contains brief nudity. $13.08-$44.86. Through July 21. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Additional shows: 8 p.m. June 25; 2 p.m. June 29 and July 6; 7 p.m. June 30 and July 7. No show July 4. Conant Performing Arts Center, Oglethorpe University, 4484 Peachtree Road N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.504.1473.
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Kathy Janich, Encore Atlanta’s managing editor, has been seeing, covering or working in the performing arts for most of her life. Full disclosure: She’s affiliated with Synchronicity Theatre mentioned above. Please email: kathy@encoreatlanta.com.
