Looking for something cultural to do in the next week or so? Here’s our select list of recommendations. Pictured: Brad Raymond as Elder in Horizon Theatre’s staging of the Southern whodunit “Every Tongue Confess.” Photo by BreeAnne Clowdus
RECOMMENDED
5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche. LAST CHANCE. Weird Sisters Theatre Project, a company committed to creating theater by women, for everyone, will make you laugh with this clever comedy by Evan Linder and Andrew Hobgood. It’s 1956 and the Susan B. Anthony Society for the Sisters of Gertrude Stein is having its annual quiche breakfast. Will a Communist strike interrupt their idyll? The cast: Jaclyn Hofmann, Bryan Lee, Tiffany Porter, Megan Rose and Annie York. Kelly Criss directs. $15. 10:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday; and 7:30 p.m. Monday (limited menu available). New American Shakespeare Tavern, 499 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.874.5299. Read more about the Weird Sisters in this Encore FEATURE.
Metamorphoses. THROUGH JULY 21. Put Georgia Shakespeare‘s reprise of this 2005 hit on your must-see list. This beautiful, bawdy, raucous and heartbreaking piece tells 10 stories about what it means to be human. The Broadway hit from creator Mary Zimmerman, based on the myths of the ancient Roman poet Ovid, does, indeed, take place in and around a pool, as you may have heard. The critics: “Theatrical lightning does indeed strike twice” (Bert Osborne, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution); “As Atlanta audiences saw when the company did the show in 2005 and again in 2007, it’s a gorgeous, smart, funny, sexy production” (Andrew Alexander, ArtsATL.com). Contains brief nudity. $13.08-$44.86. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Conant Performing Arts Center, Oglethorpe University, 4484 Peachtree Road N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.504.1473. (Pictured: Chris Kayser, top, and Barrett Doyle. Photo by Greg Mooney.)
LAST CHANCE
A Walk in the Woods. CLOSES SUNDAY. Can major change happen with a simple walk in the woods? That’s the question asked in this Serenbe Playhouse drama, in which two superpower arms negotiators — a Russian and an American — meet outside Geneva, Switzerland, to negotiate nuclear disarmament. Cast: Robin Bloodworth and Allan Edwards. Lee Blessing’s 1987 drama was a Pulitzer Prize nominee and is based on a real-life series of meetings in 1982. Performed in the clearing at the Serenbe Farmers and Artists Market. The critics: “The spread of the natural environment provides a powerful and symbolic contrast to this otherwise intimate personal story about a pair of basic Everymen and the global issues surrounding them” (Bert Osborne, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution). $25 plus fees; $20 students. 8:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. 9110 Selborne Lane, Palmetto, about 30 minutes from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Details, tickets HERE. Half-price tickets at PoshDealz.com.
THIS WEEKEND ONLY
Alliance Theatre Collision Project. FREE. Today’s teens take on the Civil War in this original piece created under the guidance of playwright Pearl Cleage, the company’s artist in dialogue. The piece is a “collision” with Civil War documents shaped through the students’ contemporary lens, improvisational exercises, oral history and choreography. 7 p.m. Friday and 2:30 p.m. Saturday. Hertz Stage, Alliance Theatre, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. Please reserve tickets at 404.733.4749.
OPENING THIS WEEKEND
Every Tongue Confess. OPENS FRIDAY. The summer heat is rising and flames are flying high in this fantastical whodunit at Horizon Theatre. The citizens of Boligee, Ala., are trying to find who’s behind a string of church fires and, as the churchgoers start gossiping, secrets begin to slip out. The script is by poet-playwright Marcus Gardley, whose work is rooted in history and magic realism. The cast: Deborah Bowman, Lauren Boyd, Richard Hatcher, Enoch King, Brian Kurlander, Victor Love, Bernardine Mitchell, Brad Raymond and Minka Wiltz. Features original blues and gospel by music director S. Renee Clark. $20-$30 plus tax. Through Aug. 25. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 3 and 8:30 p.m. Saturday; and 5 p.m. Sunday. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.584.7450. Half-price tickets (selected performances) at PoshDealz.com.
Mysterious Connections. OPENS FRIDAY. World premiere. Essential Theatre launches its annual summer festival with this fantasy-drama about love and terror, forgiveness and second chances. And it’s funny. The script, by Essential Producing Artistic Director Peter Hardy, features two lonely women haunted by their pasts yet drawn to one another from the first time they meet. They soon find themselves able to enter one another’s dreams. $18-$23. Through Aug. 9. 8 tonight (preview), Friday-Saturday, July 19, 27 and Aug. 2, 5 and 9. Also at 2 p.m. July 28 and 7 p.m. Aug. 4. Note: For mature audiences. Includes sexual situations, smoke and fog effects. Coming soon: Stray Dogs by Matthew Myers, the winner of the 2013 Essential Playwriting Award, opening July 17, and Swimming With Jellyfish by Katie Grant Shalin, the third offering in the three-show festival, opening July 24. Actor’s Express, 887 W. Marietta St. Note: The King Plow Arts Center parking lot is under construction. Alternate parking options HERE. Details, tickets HERE or at 1.866.811.4111. Read more about the Essential Theatre festival in this ENCORE FEATURE. (Pictured: Celia Gunn-Zaboli and Ben Silver. Photo by Nancy Johnson)
Shakin’ the Rafters. OPENS FRIDAY. World premiere. True Colors Theatre Company presents this new gospel musical by Robert Deasons and one-time Alliance Theatre associate David H. Bell. The gospel-singing Davis Sisters tour the Jim Crow-era South as they try to find a foothold in the music industry. Cast: Chandra Currelley, LaTrice Pace, Adrienne Reynolds, D. Woods, Jevares Myrick and LaParee Young. $35; $25 age 65+; $20 students. Through Aug. 9. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Additional show at 11 a.m. July 17. 14th Street Playhouse, 173 14th St. N.E. Details HERE. Tickets HERE.
Dementia Juice. THROUGH JULY 27. Dad’s Garage Theatre Company says goodbye to its memory-filled mainstage with this off-kilter, puppet-filled ride to hell, aka the in-laws’ house. This scripted comedy uses moving set pieces, masks and puppets to help the audience experience what the main character is going through. Written and directed by Dad’s Artistic Director Kevin Gillese and 7 Stages’ Associate Artistic Director Michael Haverty. $7-$28. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. 280 Elizabeth St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.523.3141. Buy online and save. Read more about Dad’s imminent, involuntary move from Inman Park in this Encore FEATURE.
Mighty Myths and Legends. THROUGH JULY 20. In this family play at Georgia Shakespeare, a Nordic god puts his strength to the test, a magical mermaid wanders too far from home and a young man learns the meaning of trust. The greatest legends of human history come together in this action-packed original play adapted from international myths and legends, telling very modern stories about love, consequences and transformation. 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Tuesday; 11 a.m. Wednesday-Saturday (no 7 p.m. show July 16). $13.08. Conant Performing Arts Center, Oglethorpe University, 4484 Peachtree Road N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.504.1473.
Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat. THOUGH JULY 28. The Center for Puppetry Arts teams with the rhythm doc for this Atlanta premiere. Told with rod puppets and animation. Originally produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain. Directed here by Jon Ludwig. $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. 1404 Spring St. N.W. at 18th Street. Details, tickets HERE, at tickets@puppet.org or 404.873.3391.
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 sets the Margery Williams classic in post-Civil War Savannah. It’s still about a toy that longs to be real. The critics: “Imaginative, playful and often interactive” (Jim Farmer, ArtsATL.com). All Serenbe shows are performed outdoors. This one is in the Grange Creek area, behind Fern’s Market. Please bring your own seating. $15; $10 age 13 and under. 11 a.m. Friday-Saturday. 9110 Selborne Lane, Palmetto, about 30 minutes from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Details, tickets HERE or at 770.463.1110. Half-price tickets (July 12, 19, 26 only) at PoshDealz.com.
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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 Weird Sisters Theatre Project listed above. Please email: kathy@encoreatlanta.com.
