Get ready to enter a world of mischievous circumstances, bottomless love triangles — and nocturnal visions.
That’s what’s in store for audiences when Act Out Theatre Company’s production of William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” opens on Friday, July 28.
Under the moonlight in ancient Athens, Duke Theseus and the Amazon queen Hippolyta are ready to celebrate their marriage. When Theseus is confronted by Egeus demanding that his daughter (Hermia) marry Demetrius and not the man she really loves (Lysander), the two young lovers make a secret plan to escape into the forest. Here, they’ll encounter Helena, a woman who is in love with none other than Demetrius, the man who Hermia scorned.
Another plotline concerns the antics of the working men of Athens (called the “rude mechanicals”) who attempt to write and rehearse a play in honor of the duke and the queen. “Attempt” is the key word here.
Twists and turns abound, along with a hefty helping of magic and madness.
Join Long Beach’s Act Out Theatre Company in an intimate setting for its one-hour adaptation of this Shakespearean comedy, followed by delicious desserts.
There will be four performances: July 28 and 29, and Aug. 4 and 5. Each show begins at 8 p.m. and tickets cost $14.
A different cast will perform each weekend, so check out the company’s website to learn what actor is slated for which weekend.
For more information and to purchase tickets, go to actoutlb.com.
MOLAA’s ‘metamorphosis’
You’re almost out of time to experience a metamorphosis at the Museum of Latin American Art.
“Metamorphosis: the Evolution of Visions and Dreams,” the first in-depth exhibition of prolific Chicana artist Yolanda González, will end its nearly six-month run at MOLAA on July 30.
In this dazzling exhibition of works spanning González’s career, you’ll discover a curious mind in full bloom.
The stylistic movements of German expressionism, Japanese aesthetics and Chicano art blend together in vivid paintings, drawings, sculptures, installations and prints that explore the past and examine the present.
These pieces visually stunning, while also weaving concepts of femininity, identity and spirituality with elements of music, literature and dance.
For González — a world traveler who currently lives and works in Los Angeles — the personal and the universal share the same heartbeat.
Information: molaa.org.
All that jazz
The Summer Jazz on the Patio concert series will return to Grace First Presbyterian Church later this month and in early August
with returns with two jazz concerts: Dewey Erney on Saturday, July 29, 6:30PM and Maria Schafer on Saturday, August 5.
Vocalist Dewey Erney, an artist who has never stopped believing in the power of music, will perform at 6:30 p.m. July 29. After releasing two acclaimed jazz albums in the early 1980s with guitarist Ron Escheté, Erney has continued bringing his sincerity and warmth to audiences in Southern California and across the United States.
Jazz singer Mariah Schafer, on the other hand, takes a more adventurous, magpie-like approach to her musicianship. Schafer, who will perform at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 6, mixes influences from Brazilian, Afro-Cuban and folk music with standards from the Great American Songbook.
Her soaring vocal style coupled with a passion for self-discovery has taken her to Latvia as a finalist in the Riga Jazz Stage competition, as well as across North America and Japan as a singer with The Glenn Miller Orchestra.
Don’t miss this generous offering from Grace First Presbyterian Church, 3955 N. Studebaker Road.
Information: gracefirst.org.
High-octane production
Long Beach Playhouse’s latest production, which opens this weekend, is a quirky mashup of true crime drama, self-destructive romance and dark humor from a master playwright.
In “The (Expletive) with the Hat” by Stephen Adly Guirgis, Jackie has been released from prison and is striving to maintain sobriety. Soon, though, he’s entangled in a series of raw and unconventional challenges. With a title that can’t be printed in full in newspapers, including this one, the play, set in New York City, has been described as a “high-octane, verbal cage match about love, fidelity and misplaced haberdashery.”
While this play might not be quite as nuanced or philosophical as Guirgis’s “Between Riverside and Crazy,” which won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for drama), its impact is still powerful — as evidenced by its six Tony Award nominations, including for best play.
This adaptation is directed by Carl daSilva and will be presented in Long Beach Playhouse’s Studio Theater, 5021 E. Anaheim St. A special preview performance — which costs $10 — is scheduled for Friday, July 21. The play will officially open at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 22.
The show closes on Aug. 19.
Information: lbplayhouse.org.
Alt-country at Alex’s
The expressive immediacy of music by The Berries, Steve Marino and Glue Shoe will command the stage at Alex’s Bar next week.
The Berries, a Seattle project fronted by multi-instrumentalist Matt Berry, is a group whose sound is firmly rooted in the 1960s and ’70s — but with a jangly, grainy, contemporary heart.
Some critics have described this music as “alt-country,” “country-rock,” or simply, “American rock.”
But no matter what the music is called, The Berries are a stalwart of the West Coast underground scene.
Another artist on during the Wednesday, July 26, show at Alex’s Bar, 2913 E. Anaheim St., is Steve Marino — who is cut from the same cloth as The Berries.
Marino’s newest album, in fact, features guitar from Matt Berry himself. The new album, titled “Too Late To Start Again,” ends with a cover of Scottish alt-rock band Teenage Fanclub’s “I Don’t Want Control Of You,” further proving that Marino wears his musical influences proudly.
The final performance will be “Glue Shoe,” a solo project by Los Angeles native Tanner Duffy. His music is atmospheric and moody, but still has that ’90s old-school jangle sound at its core.
Tickets are $12.88 and doors open at 9 p.m.
Information: alexsbar.com.
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