Looking for something cultural to do in the next week or so? Here’s our select list of recommendations. Pictured: Ellen McQueen as Molly in “Milvotchkee, Visconsin,” Synchronicity Theatre’s world premiere “comedy about a tragedy.” Photo: KVC Photography
RECOMMENDED
The Sleepy Hollow Experience. THROUGH OCT. 26. Serenbe Playhouse gets ghostly for its first-ever fall production. The storybook tale, based on the Washington Irving story, revolves around awkward schoolteacher Ichabod Crane, the coquettish Katrina and Ichabod’s brutish rival, Brom Bones. In this version, minstrel storytellers lead audience members through the haunted halls of Serenbe Stables. Beware the Headless Horseman and his thundering steed! The critics: “Like its predecessors this summer, The Velveteen Rabbit and Hair, Serenbe’s first fall production is an innovative, visually compelling, solid theatrical experience. You’d have a hard time finding a Halloween show [that’s] more fun” (Andrew Alexander, ArtsATL.com); “This so-called Experience hardly qualifies as a bona-fide theatrical production” (Bert Osborne, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution). $20; $50 VIP.Note: The run sold out, so Serenbe has added four 10:30 p.m. performances — this Friday-Saturday and Oct. 25-26. 9110 Selborne Lane, Chattahoochee Hills/Palmetto (about 30 minutes from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport). Details, tickets HERE or at 770.463.1110.
Milvotchkee, Visconsin. CLOSES SUNDAY. World premiere. Meet Molly. She has a hole in her head. Find out why in this comedy about a tragedy, staged by Synchronicity Theatre at the 14th Street Playhouse. Molly guides us through and beyond Wisconsin Concrete Park (a real place) and the vagaries of getting older with a sense of bewilderment and a can-do spirit. The script is by Laura Jacqmin (TV’s “Lucky 7”). Dementia expert Teepa Snow calls this production “powerful and rich” and said “anyone who has anything to do with dementia or Alzheimer’s or is in the Atlanta area should take time to attend.” 8 tonight-Saturday; 5 p.m. Sunday. $15-$45. 173 14th St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.484.8636. Discounted tickets at PoshDealz.com.
Third Country. EXTENDED. This Horizon Theatre world premiere, by Atlanta playwright Suehyla El-Attar, is inspired by real-life events in Clarkston and features a tour-de-force performance from Cynthia D. Barker as a refugee named Nura. Especially strong work also comes from Eric J. Little as Asad An-Naim. While you’re at Horizon, stop in the Blue Room downstairs and check out items crafted — and for sale — by refugee women. $20-$30. Through Oct. 25. 8 tonight-Friday; 3 and 8:30 p.m. Saturday; and 5 p.m. Sunday. Also at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 22, 24-25 (student and senior citizen matinees; $12 and $15) and 8 p.m. Oct. 23-24. 1083 Austin Ave. N.E. (at Euclid Avenue). Details, tickets HERE or at 404.584.7450. For more on Eric J. Little, see this Encore SNAPSHOT.
THIS WEEKEND ONLY
Fairytales for All Ages. 8 TONIGHT; 7:30 P.M. SATURDAY. American pianist Simone Dinnerstein joins the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for the world premiere of The Circle and the Child, a piano concerto by Philip Lasser, who teaches at the Juilliard School. Also on the program: Respighi’s Fountains of Rome and excerpts from Prokofiev’s Cinderella. Guest conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya, of the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, is on the podium. $24-$75. Atlanta Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.733.5000.
LAST CHANCE
Urinetown: The Musical. CLOSES SUNDAY. It’s a privilege to pee! So says Urinetown, the 2001 award-winning Broadway musical that tells a pointed tale of greed, corruption, love and revolution in the midst of a serious water shortage. This irreverent musical satire, opening Fabrefaction Theatre Company‘s professional season, is set in a Gotham-like city, where a 20-year drought has led to a government-enforced ban on private toilets. The critics: “Funky title and all, Urinetown nails its satirical humor lock, stock and barrel. There’s an intimacy and knowingly homespun quality at Fabrefaction that perfectly suit the show” (Andrew Alexander, ArtsATL.com). $13-$27. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; 3 p.m. Sunday. 999 Brady Ave. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.876.9468. Discounted tickets at PoshDealz.com. Meet Caroline Freedlund, this Urinetown‘s Hope Cladwell, in this Encore SNAPSHOT.
The Wizard of Oz. CLOSES SUNDAY. Frisch Marionettes of Cincinnati takes the trip down the Yellow Brick Road with Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion, the Tin Man and the Strawman. Recommended for ages 4 and up. 10 and 11:30 a.m. today-Friday; noon and 2 p.m. Saturday; and 1 and 3 p.m. Sunday. $16.50; under 2 free. Center for Puppetry Arts, 1404 Spring St. N.W. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.873.3391.
NOW PLAYING
All Childish Things. THROUGH OCT. 27. A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away … Cincinnati, actually, Dave and friends plan a risky maneuver from his mom’s basement. It will deliver them from the Darth Vader-like clutches of life’s dark side. Right? At Aurora Theatre. Contains adult language and situations. $20-$30. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 2:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday (also at 10 a.m. Oct. 23, $16; no evening show that day). Theater at 128 E. Pike St., Lawrenceville. Free, covered, attached parking available via entrance at 153 E. Crogan St. Details, tickets HERE or at 578.226.6222.
By the Way, Meet Vera Stark. IN PREVIEWS | OPENS OCT. 23. Hollywood in the 1930s was a place of glamour, humor, personality and screwball comedies. It was also a place that cultivated insecurity, cutthroat competition and scarce opportunities — especially for women of color. This is where you’ll meet a beautiful force of nature called Vera Stark, one of those women. By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, at the Alliance Theatre, is the newest play from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage (Intimate Apparel, at the Alliance in 2006). It was inspired by the life and career of Theresa Harris, a pioneering African-American movie actress. $30-$75. Through Nov. 10. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday; 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday. 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.733.5000. Discounted tickets (today-Nov. 20) at PoshDealz.com. For more on Nottage, read this Encore FEATURE.
Hamlet. THROUGH OCT. 27. Georgia Shakespeare gives the bard’s greatest murder mystery a fast-paced, muscular treatment — with a body count. Featuring Joe Knezevich as Hamlet, Carolyn Cook as Gertrude, Chris Kayser as Claudius and Ann Marie Gideon as Ophelia. The critics: “Georgia Shakespeare has created a swiftly moving, fluent, ‘no fear’ production of Hamlet” (Andrew Alexander, ArtsATL.com). $16-$48. 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Conant Performing Arts Center on the Oglethorpe University campus, 4484 Peachtree Road N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.504.1473. Discounted tickets at Poshdealz.com.
Waiting for Balloon. THROUGH NOV. 9. In this Alliance Theatre play for the very young, two childlike hobo-clown characters wait near railroad tracks for “balloon.” Neither, however, knows what exactly “balloon” is. This joyful, gentle riff on Waiting for Godot introduces clowning and puppets made from found objects. For ages 18 months to 5 years. Note: Seats for this innovative programming sell fast. $10. Black Box Theatre, 3rd Floor, Alliance Theatre at the Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.733.5000
LOOKING AHEAD
The Dragon King. OCT. 22-NOV. 3. Tanglewood Marionettes of Ware, Mass., deal with drought in this story about a Dragon King who’s holding back China’s precious rain and the Grandmother willing to go to the bottom of the sea to find out why. Recommended for ages 4 and up. 10 and 11:30 a.m. Tuesday-Friday; 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday; and 1 and 3 p.m. Sunday. $16.50; under 2 free. Center for Puppetry Arts, 1404 Spring St. N.W. Details, tickets HERE or at 404.873.3391.
Harabel: A Sparrow Over a Minefield. OCT. 23-NOV. 10. This one-woman triumph received its world premiere in a two-night run at Theatrical Outfit last winter and is back for a well-deserved three weeks. It’s written and performed in stunning fashion by Jonida Beqo (Yo-NEE-duh BAY-chow), known on the international slam/performance poetry scene as Gypsee Yo. The autobiographical piece is told in poetic snapshots that follow one brave girl’s journey from her home in war-torn Albania to the American South and her transition from stranger to American. $20-$50. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. 84 Luckie St. N.W. Details HERE or at 678.528.1500. For ticket discounts, visit Poshdealz.com.
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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. Full disclosure: She is affiliated with Synchronicity Theatre and Fabrefaction Theatre Company, both mentioned above. Please email: kathy@encoreatlanta.com.
