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Theater, Dance, and Opera
The Ann Arbor area plays host to several community and semi-professional
theater companies, with new shows going up every month. Ballet,
modern, and traditional dance concerts abound, along with musical
theater productions from Broadway to grand opera.
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"A Number": U-M Theatre Department/U-M Life Sciences Institute."
"The Rite of Spring": Compagnie Heddy Maalem (University Musical Society).
"The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe": Theaterworks USA (Michigan Theater Foundation "Not Just for Kids Series").
 Tuesday
October, 2008
 7 p.m.
"A Number":
U-M Theatre Department/U-M Life Sciences Institute." U-M drama professor Philip Kerr directs U-M drama students in the renowned English playwright Caryl Churchill's bracing 90-minute 2002 family drama, an exploration of the timeless debate over nature and nurture through the relationships between a father and his sons, 2 of whom are clones of the first. "It is not an easy work to understand at first sight but has a deep visceral effect and the immediate reaction as the curtain comes down is a desire to see it again," says Theatreworld (London) reviewer Philip Fisher. "It is also a play that you will want to discuss and debate long after you have left the theater." Followed by discussion.
Walgreen Drama Center Stamps Auditorium, 1226 Murfin, North Campus. Free. 763-5213, 615-4862.
 Wednesday
October, 2008
8 p.m.
"The Rite of Spring":
Compagnie Heddy Maalem (University Musical Society). This 14-member west African company, directed by Algerian Maalem, blends African-influenced choreography and African film clips in a unique interpretation of Stravinsky's original score. Maalem's training in boxing and aikido contributes to what the New York Times calls "an impassioned hourlong dance, with brutal and wrenching movement."
Power Center. Tickets $16-$38 in advance at the Michigan League Box Office and (if available) at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538 or (800) 221-1229.
 Thursday
October, 2008
"Apartment 3A":
Purple Rose Theatre Company. Every Wed.-Sun. (except Nov. 27), Oct. 16-Dec. 20, and Nov. 25 & Dec. 16. Guy Sanville directs Purple Rose founder Jeff Daniels's poignant, densely layered 1996 comedy. A public TV fund-raiser starts a new life in a new apartment after being dumped by her boyfriend. While she tries to sort out her feelings, she is preoccupied by the attentions of two very different men, the budget woes of public broadcasting, and the problem of evil in general. Cast: Matthew David, Michael Brian Ogden, Rhiannon Ragland, and Will David Young. 8 p.m., Purple Rose, 137 Park St., Chelsea.
Preview tickets $20 (Oct. 16, 22, & 23) & $25 (Oct. 17-19). After Oct. 23: tickets $25 (Sun. eves., Wed. & Thurs.), $33 (Sat. & Sun. matinees), & $38 (Fri. & Sat. eves.) in advance and at the door. 433-7673.
7-9 p.m.
Grupo Krapp:
U-M Dance Department. Lecture-demo by this experimental dance theater ensemble from Argentina.
Betty Pease Dance Studio, 1310 North University Ct. (behind the CCRB). Free. 763-5460.
7:30 p.m.
"Rent":
U-M Musical Theatre Department. Oct. 16-19 & 23-26. U-M musical theater professor Mark Madama directs musical theater students in Jonathan Larson's Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning 1996 musical, based on Puccini's La Boheme, about an impoverished community of artists in the East Village living under the shadow of AIDS. It features an inventive rock score with intricate choral work and dexterous lyrics.
Mendelssohn Theatre. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
8 p.m.
"Madmen and Specialists":
U-M Theatre Department. Oct. 9-12 & 16-19. U-M drama professor Mbala Nkanga directs U-M drama students in Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka's 1971 drama, written in the wake of Soyinka's 22-month detention during the Biafra war in Nigeria. A mix of sharp parody and deft verbal hijinks with Yoruba ritual song and dance, it is at once a critique of the abuse of power and an exploration of the human devastation of war.
U-M Walgreen Drama Center Arthur Miller Theatre, 1226 Murfin, North Campus. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
8 p.m.
"Romeo and Juliet":
EMU Theatre Department. Oct. 10-12 & 16-18. Chicago Shakespearean actor-director David Blixt directs Shakespeare's vividly poetic love story, a romantic tragedy about "star-crossed lovers" defying their feuding families. Initially lightheartedly comic, then dire, this perennially popular drama is the heart-wrenching tale of 2 impetuous young lovers destroyed by the intransigence of their feuding families, their own mistakes, and some incredibly bad timing.
Quirk Theatre, Ford St. (off Lowell from Huron River Dr.), EMU campus, Ypsilanti. Tickets $15 (students, $12; kids age 12 & under, $6) in advance and at the door. 487-2282.
8 p.m.
"The Diviners":
Concordia University Theater Department. Oct. 16-19. David Kusch directs Concordia students in James Leonard Jr.'s moving drama about the mythical small farming town of Zion, Indiana, and how its residents cope with the hardships of the Great Depression. The story focuses on a young boy with an uncanny ability to find water (desperately needed for the crops) whose fear of drowning makes him reluctant to use his gift.
Concordia University Kreft Center Black Box Theater, 4090 Geddes at Earhart. $10 (tonight: 2 for the price of one). 995-7300.
 Friday
October, 2008
7 p.m.
"Romeo and Juliet":
EMU Theatre Department. Oct. 10-12 & 16-18. Chicago Shakespearean actor-director David Blixt directs Shakespeare's vividly poetic love story, a romantic tragedy about "star-crossed lovers" defying their feuding families. Initially lightheartedly comic, then dire, this perennially popular drama is the heart-wrenching tale of 2 impetuous young lovers destroyed by the intransigence of their feuding families, their own mistakes, and some incredibly bad timing.
Quirk Theatre, Ford St. (off Lowell from Huron River Dr.), EMU campus, Ypsilanti. Tickets $15 (students, $12; kids age 12 & under, $6) in advance and at the door. 487-2282.
8 p.m.
"Madmen and Specialists":
U-M Theatre Department. Oct. 9-12 & 16-19. U-M drama professor Mbala Nkanga directs U-M drama students in Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka's 1971 drama, written in the wake of Soyinka's 22-month detention during the Biafra war in Nigeria. A mix of sharp parody and deft verbal hijinks with Yoruba ritual song and dance, it is at once a critique of the abuse of power and an exploration of the human devastation of war.
U-M Walgreen Drama Center Arthur Miller Theatre, 1226 Murfin, North Campus. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
8 p.m.
"Rent":
U-M Musical Theatre Department. Oct. 16-19 & 23-26. U-M musical theater professor Mark Madama directs musical theater students in Jonathan Larson's Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning 1996 musical, based on Puccini's La Boheme, about an impoverished community of artists in the East Village living under the shadow of AIDS. It features an inventive rock score with intricate choral work and dexterous lyrics.
Mendelssohn Theatre. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
8 p.m.
"How the Other Half Loves":
Blackbird Theatre. Every Fri.-Sun. (except Sept. 28), Sept. 26-Oct. 18. Barton Bund directs local actors in Alan Ayckbourn's farce about 2 married couples. Unaware of each other, the couples play out their daily interactions simultaneously. Cast: Laurie Atwood, Charles Sutherland, Kathy Waugh, Kate Orr, and Adam Rzepka.
Blackbird Theatre, 1600 Pauline. Tickets $20 (seniors 60 & over, $15; students, $10) in advance and at the door. 332-3848.
8 p.m.
"Exit the King":
Ann Arbor Civic Theatre. Oct. 10-12 & 17 & 18. David Andrews directs local actors in Eugene Ionesco's 1962 absurdist tragedy, a satiric farce about the hubris of the state. An arrogant king mismanages his kingdom to the extent that it has shrunk to the confines of his garden wall, his nation reduced to the 6 people in his throne room. Unable to command the movements of his own body, the king must face his mortality. Cast: Tom Underwood, Lesli Weston, Cindy Chu, Julie Speiser, Peter Richards, and David Widmayer.
AACT Studio, 322 W. Ann. Tickets $10 & $15 in advance and at the door. 971-2228.
8 p.m.
"The Diviners":
Concordia University Theater Department. Oct. 16-19. David Kusch directs Concordia students in James Leonard Jr.'s moving drama about the mythical small farming town of Zion, Indiana, and how its residents cope with the hardships of the Great Depression. The story focuses on a young boy with an uncanny ability to find water (desperately needed for the crops) whose fear of drowning makes him reluctant to use his gift.
Concordia University Kreft Center Black Box Theater, 4090 Geddes at Earhart. $10 (tonight: 2 for the price of one). 995-7300.
8 p.m.
"Apartment 3A":
Purple Rose Theatre Company. Every Wed.-Sun. (except Nov. 27), Oct. 16-Dec. 20, and Nov. 25 & Dec. 16. Guy Sanville directs Purple Rose founder Jeff Daniels's poignant, densely layered 1996 comedy. A public TV fund-raiser starts a new life in a new apartment after being dumped by her boyfriend. While she tries to sort out her feelings, she is preoccupied by the attentions of two very different men, the budget woes of public broadcasting, and the problem of evil in general. Cast: Matthew David, Michael Brian Ogden, Rhiannon Ragland, and Will David Young. 8 p.m., Purple Rose, 137 Park St., Chelsea.
Preview tickets $20 (Oct. 16, 22, & 23) & $25 (Oct. 17-19). After Oct. 23: tickets $25 (Sun. eves., Wed. & Thurs.), $33 (Sat. & Sun. matinees), & $38 (Fri. & Sat. eves.) in advance and at the door. 433-7673.
 Saturday
October, 2008
3 & 8 p.m.
"Apartment 3A":
Purple Rose Theatre Company. Every Wed.-Sun. (except Nov. 27), Oct. 16-Dec. 20, and Nov. 25 & Dec. 16. Guy Sanville directs Purple Rose founder Jeff Daniels's poignant, densely layered 1996 comedy. A public TV fund-raiser starts a new life in a new apartment after being dumped by her boyfriend. While she tries to sort out her feelings, she is preoccupied by the attentions of two very different men, the budget woes of public broadcasting, and the problem of evil in general. Cast: Matthew David, Michael Brian Ogden, Rhiannon Ragland, and Will David Young. 8 p.m., Purple Rose, 137 Park St., Chelsea.
Preview tickets $20 (Oct. 16, 22, & 23) & $25 (Oct. 17-19). After Oct. 23: tickets $25 (Sun. eves., Wed. & Thurs.), $33 (Sat. & Sun. matinees), & $38 (Fri. & Sat. eves.) in advance and at the door. 433-7673.
7 p.m.
"Odissi Mandala":
Srishti Dances of India Nationally acclaimed classical Indian dancer Sreyashi Dey, Leena Mohanty, and
Sandhyadipa Kar lead dance ensembles in the Odissi style of classical Indian
dance, which emphasizes subtle, fluidly sculpted movements through S-shaped
body positions.
WCC Morris Lawrence Bldg. Towsley Auditorium, 4800 E. Huron River Dr. $10.
769-4917.
7 p.m.
"Romeo and Juliet":
EMU Theatre Department. Oct. 10-12 & 16-18. Chicago Shakespearean actor-director David Blixt directs Shakespeare's vividly poetic love story, a romantic tragedy about "star-crossed lovers" defying their feuding families. Initially lightheartedly comic, then dire, this perennially popular drama is the heart-wrenching tale of 2 impetuous young lovers destroyed by the intransigence of their feuding families, their own mistakes, and some incredibly bad timing.
Quirk Theatre, Ford St. (off Lowell from Huron River Dr.), EMU campus, Ypsilanti. Tickets $15 (students, $12; kids age 12 & under, $6) in advance and at the door. 487-2282.
8 p.m.
"Madmen and Specialists":
U-M Theatre Department. Oct. 9-12 & 16-19. U-M drama professor Mbala Nkanga directs U-M drama students in Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka's 1971 drama, written in the wake of Soyinka's 22-month detention during the Biafra war in Nigeria. A mix of sharp parody and deft verbal hijinks with Yoruba ritual song and dance, it is at once a critique of the abuse of power and an exploration of the human devastation of war.
U-M Walgreen Drama Center Arthur Miller Theatre, 1226 Murfin, North Campus. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
8 p.m.
"Rent":
U-M Musical Theatre Department. Oct. 16-19 & 23-26. U-M musical theater professor Mark Madama directs musical theater students in Jonathan Larson's Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning 1996 musical, based on Puccini's La Boheme, about an impoverished community of artists in the East Village living under the shadow of AIDS. It features an inventive rock score with intricate choral work and dexterous lyrics.
Mendelssohn Theatre. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
8 p.m.
"Exit the King":
Ann Arbor Civic Theatre. Oct. 10-12 & 17 & 18. David Andrews directs local actors in Eugene Ionesco's 1962 absurdist tragedy, a satiric farce about the hubris of the state. An arrogant king mismanages his kingdom to the extent that it has shrunk to the confines of his garden wall, his nation reduced to the 6 people in his throne room. Unable to command the movements of his own body, the king must face his mortality. Cast: Tom Underwood, Lesli Weston, Cindy Chu, Julie Speiser, Peter Richards, and David Widmayer.
AACT Studio, 322 W. Ann. Tickets $10 & $15 in advance and at the door. 971-2228.
8 p.m.
"How the Other Half Loves":
Blackbird Theatre. Every Fri.-Sun. (except Sept. 28), Sept. 26-Oct. 18. Barton Bund directs local actors in Alan Ayckbourn's farce about 2 married couples. Unaware of each other, the couples play out their daily interactions simultaneously. Cast: Laurie Atwood, Charles Sutherland, Kathy Waugh, Kate Orr, and Adam Rzepka.
Blackbird Theatre, 1600 Pauline. Tickets $20 (seniors 60 & over, $15; students, $10) in advance and at the door. 332-3848.
8 p.m.
"The Diviners":
Concordia University Theater Department. Oct. 16-19. David Kusch directs Concordia students in James Leonard Jr.'s moving drama about the mythical small farming town of Zion, Indiana, and how its residents cope with the hardships of the Great Depression. The story focuses on a young boy with an uncanny ability to find water (desperately needed for the crops) whose fear of drowning makes him reluctant to use his gift.
Concordia University Kreft Center Black Box Theater, 4090 Geddes at Earhart. $10 (tonight: 2 for the price of one). 995-7300.
 Sunday
October, 2008
1:30 p.m.
"The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe":
Theaterworks USA (Michigan Theater Foundation "Not Just for Kids Series"). This renowned New York City-based children's theater troupe returns to the Michigan Theater with its critically acclaimed, lavishly staged adaptation of C. S. Lewis's allegorical novel about several children's adventures in Narnia, a magical land ruled by an evil witch with a heart of ice, who makes winter last year-round. The children fulfill an ancient prophecy by defeating the witch and returning the Lion King to his throne.
Michigan Theater. Tickets $14 (MTF members, $12) in advance at the Michigan Union Ticket Office & all other Ticketmaster outlets, and at the door. To charge by phone, call 763-TKTS.
2 p.m.
"Rent":
U-M Musical Theatre Department. Oct. 16-19 & 23-26. U-M musical theater professor Mark Madama directs musical theater students in Jonathan Larson's Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning 1996 musical, based on Puccini's La Boheme, about an impoverished community of artists in the East Village living under the shadow of AIDS. It features an inventive rock score with intricate choral work and dexterous lyrics.
Mendelssohn Theatre. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
2 p.m.
"Apartment 3A":
Purple Rose Theatre Company. Every Wed.-Sun. (except Nov. 27), Oct. 16-Dec. 20, and Nov. 25 & Dec. 16. Guy Sanville directs Purple Rose founder Jeff Daniels's poignant, densely layered 1996 comedy. A public TV fund-raiser starts a new life in a new apartment after being dumped by her boyfriend. While she tries to sort out her feelings, she is preoccupied by the attentions of two very different men, the budget woes of public broadcasting, and the problem of evil in general. Cast: Matthew David, Michael Brian Ogden, Rhiannon Ragland, and Will David Young. 8 p.m., Purple Rose, 137 Park St., Chelsea.
Preview tickets $20 (Oct. 16, 22, & 23) & $25 (Oct. 17-19). After Oct. 23: tickets $25 (Sun. eves., Wed. & Thurs.), $33 (Sat. & Sun. matinees), & $38 (Fri. & Sat. eves.) in advance and at the door. 433-7673.
2 p.m.
"Madmen and Specialists":
U-M Theatre Department. Oct. 9-12 & 16-19. U-M drama professor Mbala Nkanga directs U-M drama students in Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka's 1971 drama, written in the wake of Soyinka's 22-month detention during the Biafra war in Nigeria. A mix of sharp parody and deft verbal hijinks with Yoruba ritual song and dance, it is at once a critique of the abuse of power and an exploration of the human devastation of war.
U-M Walgreen Drama Center Arthur Miller Theatre, 1226 Murfin, North Campus. Tickets $18 & $24 (students, $9) at the Michigan League Box Office in advance and at the door. To charge by phone, call 764-2538.
2:30 p.m.
"The Diviners":
Concordia University Theater Department. Oct. 16-19. David Kusch directs Concordia students in James Leonard Jr.'s moving drama about the mythical small farming town of Zion, Indiana, and how its residents cope with the hardships of the Great Depression. The story focuses on a young boy with an uncanny ability to find water (desperately needed for the crops) whose fear of drowning makes him reluctant to use his gift.
Concordia University Kreft Center Black Box Theater, 4090 Geddes at Earhart. $10 (tonight: 2 for the price of one). 995-7300.
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