Performing Arts Guide-Theatre

Sept 8- Oct 10 THE WEDDING SINGER In this musical stage version of the Adam Sandler movie, a jilted wedding singer and a waitress who discover what love and marriage should be. The show has a brand new score that pays loving homage to the pop songs of the 80s. Alhambra, 641-1212, www.alhambradinnertheatre.com

Sept 10- 25 THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE In its Jacksonville community theatre premiere, the musical centers around a fictional spelling bee set in a geographically ambiguous Putnam Valley Middle School. Thursdays, Fridays & Saturday at 8 pm, Sundays at 2 pm. Atlantic Beach Experimental Theatre, 249-7177, www.abettheatre.com

Sept 17- Oct 3 ROMEO AND JULIET Shakespeare’s classic, tragic story of young love. Theatre Jacksonville, 396-4425, www.theatrejax.com

Sept 17- Oct 9 THE FULL MONTY In this Americanized musical stage version adapted from the 1997 British film, six unemployed Buffalo steelworkers, low on both cash and prospects, decide to present a strip act at a local club after seeing their wives’ enthusiasm for a touring company of Chippendales. Players by the Sea, 249-0289, www.playersbythesea.org

Sept 24- Oct 17 THE CRUCIBLE Arthur Miller’s classic dramatization of the Salem witch trials cleverly framed McCarthyist America of the 50s, and still rings with some relevance today. Limelight Theatre, St. Augustine, (904) 825-1164 #10, www.limelight-theatre.org

Sept 30- Oct16 OUR TOWN This play remains a slice of Americana, with courtship, life and death all represented. Amelia Community Theatre, Fernandina Beach, 261-6749, www.AmeliaCommunityTheatre.org

Oct 13- Nov 28 THE KING AND I This famous Rodgers and Hammerstein musical tells the tale of Anna Leonowens, a young widow who moves from England to Siam with her son to become a teacher for the children of the king. She finds Siamese customs to be quite different from English ones, which brings her conflict with the king. Alhambra, 641-1212, www.alhambradinnertheatre.com

Oct 14- 17 MYTHS AND HYMNS MUSICAL THEATRE PROJECT Florida School of the Arts/St. Johns River Community College, (386) 312-4300, www.floarts.org

Oct 15- 31 DRACULA Get Halloween going by watching this stage adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Studio Theatre, Players by the Sea, 249-0289, www.playersbythesea.org

Oct 15- Nov 7 DRACULA by Mac Wellman This offbeat, wildly seductive and fantastical tale takes us into the lives of two young women who find passion and freedom in the vampire world. It’s sexy and wickedly new vampire territory filled with extremely star-crossed lovers, dangerous relationships and erotic tension with a light nod to the Bram Stoker story. Hippodrome Theatre, Gainesville, (352) 375-HIPP, www.thehipp.org

Oct 20- 24 THE APPLE TREE This is a series of three musical playlets with each act having its own storyline, but tied together by a common theme (someone who believes that they want something, but once they get it they realize it wasn’t what they wanted). The first act is based on Mark Twain’s The Diary of Adam and Eve; the second act is based on Frank R. Stockton’s The Lady or the Tiger?; the third act is based on Jules Feiffer’s Passionella. JU’s Swisher Theater, 256-7345, www.ju.edu/programs/music/events.aspx

Oct 22- Nov 6 SUGAR BEAN SISTERS Set in the fictional town of Sugar Bean, Florida, this comedic Southern Gothic folktale of romance, murder and alien abduction tells the story of the Nettles sisters, who are visited one summer night by a traumatized stranger. Thursdays, Fridays & Saturday at 8 pm, Sundays at 2 pm. Atlantic Beach Experimental Theatre, 249-7177, www.abettheatre.com

Oct 22 at 7:30 pm IN HIS OWN WORD Stage and screen actor Bill Oberst’s portrayal of the iconic Southern journalist Lewis Grizzard is the closest thing to seeing the late great spokesman of the South on stage again since his heartbreaking death at age 47. For anyone who grew up in, or loves the South, it is a sweet and funny evening of theater, with lots of laughs and a few tears…just the way Lewis would have liked it. Thrasher-Horne Center, Orange Park, 276-6750, www.thcenter.org

Oct 29- Nov 20 THE ODD COUPLE, The Female Version Neil Simon’s update of this classic starts with a group of female friends playing a game of Trivial Pursuit. The coterie is meeting at the apartment of Olive Madison, who freely admits to being a slob. Late to arrive is Florence Unger, a stickler for detail who would try the patience of a saint. As life would have it, the slob and the fuss-budget decide to room together – with hilarious results. Orange Park Community Theater, 276-2599, www.opct.org

Oct 31 at 7:30 pm WAR OF THE WORLDS In 1938 Orson Welles and his Mercury Theater on the Air caused America to panic with news reports of a Martian invasion. JU’s College of Fine Arts teams up to recreate the famous CBS radio broadcast, live on stage with an orchestra playing Bernard Hermann’s original music and live sound effects. JU’s Terry Concert Hall, 256-7345, www.ju.edu/programs/music/events.aspx

Nov 5- 20 GEM OF THE OCEAN The play is set in 1904 in Pittsburgh’s Hill District. Aunt Ester, the drama’s 285-year-old fiery matriarch, welcomes into her home Solly Two Kings, born into slavery and scouted for the Union Army, and Citizen Barlow, a young man from Alabama searching for a new life. Players by the Sea, 249-0289, www.playersbythesea.org

Nov 5- 20 A VAMPIRE REFLECTS Twilight’s Edward Cullen has nothing on zany Count Zescu. The Count has taken up residence in the American southwest accompanied only by his coffin and Mattie, an all too amorous co-ed he can’t seem to lose. The Count finds a mission: the secret nearby military base is doing awful things with an experimental bomb and the local bat habitat- and he must stop the carnage. Theatre Jacksonville, 396-4425, www.theatrejax.com

Nov 10- 13 MY NAME IS ALICE The revue was written by many hands and performed by five fizzy song-and-dance women. The subject is also women- but the show’s feminism is worn lightly. If anything, women are as likely to be satirical targets as men. JU Fine Arts Hall, 256-7345, www.ju.edu/programs/music/events.aspx

Nov 18-20 AIDA Douglas Anderson School Of The Arts Music Theatre. Douglas Anderson Theatre, www.da-arts.org

Nov 18- Dec 4 RED HERRING It’s 1952, and Senator McCarthy’s daughter has just become engaged to a Soviet spy in this comic tale that weaves together three love stories, a murder mystery and an espionage plot. Amelia Community Theatre, Fernandina Beach, 261-6749, www.AmeliaCommunityTheatre.org

Nov 26- Dec 19 THIS WONDERFUL LIFE Superbly adapted from the most captivating “what if” story of all time. Revisit Bedford Falls for a humorous and captivating staging of Frank Capra’s Hollywood classic. This tour de force production has one actor playing 32 characters, from George Bailey to Zuzu, and delivers a witty and moving story that is sure to capture your heart and captivate your spirit. Hippodrome Theatre, Gainesville, (352) 375-HIPP, www.thehipp.org

Nov 26- Dec 19 A CHRISTMAS CAROL A Gainesville holiday tradition for the entire family! Hippodrome Theatre, Gainesville, (352) 375-HIPP, www.thehipp.org

Dec 1- 24 IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE This classic film has become a holiday musical! George Bailey, a small town banker with big dreams, sacrifices his own ambitions for those around him, continually showing kindness through out his life. After a devastating mishap he must try to realize that success is defined in many ways. With a joyous score, the story is elevated to another level. Alhambra, 641-1212, www.alhambradinnertheatre.com

Dec 3- 11 THE HOUSE OF BERNARDA ALBA A tragicomedy by Spain’s greatest 20th poet/playwright. Bernarda Alba is a domineering widow in a small Spanish village in 1936 who is determined to enforce seven years of mourning and seclusion in her household. Her five daughters, ranging in age from 20 to 39, have other ideas. Their desire for life inevitably collides with their mother’s iron will, in a battle to the death. Players by the Sea, 249-0289, www.playersbythesea.org

Dec 3- 18 LITTLE WOMEN A dramatization of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel about a mother’s love for her children and their appreciation. Thursdays, Fridays & Saturday at 8 pm, Sundays at 2 pm. Atlantic Beach Experimental Theatre, 249-7177, www.abettheatre.com

Dec 9 & 11 FINAL SCENE PERFORMANCES Florida School of the Arts/St. Johns River Community College, (386) 312-4300, www.floarts.org

Jan 7- 20 END DAYS Meet the Steins in this outrageously quirky comedy. Mom has taken Jesus into her life literally- he’s in the kitchen making coffee. Dad hasn’t been out of his pajamas in a really long time and daughter Rachel has gone goth. And the Rapture is coming on Wednesday! Enter new neighbor Nelson, a science genius with a crush on Rachel and a penchant for dressing like Elvis. Will he save the day along with Stephen Hawking, his spirit guide? Hippodrome Theatre, Gainesville, (352) 375-HIPP, www.thehipp.org

Jan 11- 16 LEGALLY BLONDE The Musical Sorority star Elle Woods is an underestimated blonde who doesn’t take “no” for an answer. When her boyfriend dumps her for someone more “serious,” Elle puts down the credit card, hits the books and sets out to go where no Delta Nu has gone before: Harvard Law. Times-Union Center, Moran Theater, 632-3373 or 1-888-860-BWAY, www.artistseriesjax.org

Jan 21- Feb 5 RABBIT HOLE As improbably funny as it is heartbreaking, this story of a family in crisis won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Becca and Howie had the perfect life- a great marriage, a beautiful house and a lovely son. But after a tragic accident, the couple faces the challenges of surviving great loss and making a life with the family that remains. Theatre Jacksonville, 396-4425, www.theatrejax.com

Jan 21- Feb 5 FULL GALLOP A play based on the life of Diana Vreeland, who stood at the center of American style for five decades. As editor of Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue magazines, and as a member of the International Café Society, she chronicled the extraordinary people and events of her time. Thursdays, Fridays & Saturday at 8 pm, Sundays at 2 pm. Atlantic Beach Experimental Theatre, 249-7177, www.abettheatre.com

Feb 4- Mar 6 GYPSY In this classic musical, overbearing Mama Rose is determined to break into the big time by pushing the vaudeville career of younger daughter June, all the while not realizing the hidden talent in June’s elder sister Louise. Based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, a famous burlesque stripper. Limelight Theatre, St. Augustine, (904) 825-1164 #10, www.limelight-theatre.org

Feb 10- 26 CABARET The 1920s are drawing to a close and the Master of Ceremonies invites us to forget our troubles at the Kit Kat Klub in this Tony Award winning musical. Amelia Community Theatre, Fernandina Beach, 261-6749, www.AmeliaCommunityTheatre.org

Feb 11 at 7:30 pm THE MUSIC MAN In 1912 fast-talking traveling salesman Harold Hill cons the people of River City, Iowa into buying musical instruments and uniforms for a boy’s band he vows to organize – despite the fact he doesn’t know a trombone from a treble clef! His plans to skip town with the cash are foiled when he falls for Marian, the town librarian, with chaos ensuing as the townsfolk get wind of his scheme. Thrasher-Horne Center, Orange Park, 276-6750, www.thcenter.org

Feb 16- Apr 3 HAIRSPRAY This big Tony Award winning musical comedy takes us back to the days of big hair, the big heart and the big passion to dance. Alhambra, 641-1212, www.alhambradinnertheatre.com

Feb 17- 20 LITTLE WOMEN Florida School of the Arts/St. Johns River Community College, (386) 312-4300, www.floarts.org

Feb 25- Mar 20 SERENDIB The witty, comical hit of the First Light Festival. When a team of scientists studying toque macaques in Sri Lanka are invaded by a crew of documentary filmmakers, sexual tensions erupt and egos collide. Incorporating puppet work to create a uniquely theatrical world of primate behavior, the show ponders the line between empathy and anthropomorphism. Hippodrome Theatre, Gainesville, (352) 375-HIPP, www.thehipp.org