Jessikah Hackett

Opening this week at MercLab, the Mercury Players Theatre presents You've Ruined a Perfectly Good Mystery! A Choose Your Own Adventure Theatrical Tale. The production was written by Christian Neuhaus and Rick Stemm and is directed by Sam White.

As part of their 2011 season, Bower City Theatre Company will present the Tony and Pulitzer prize winning musical Rent. Rent, Jonathan Larson's rock opera, is based loosely on Puccini's opera La Boehme. The musical follows a group of friends living in New York during the 90's, and focuses on their struggles with the love, disease and the Bohemian lifestyle.

This September, M&I Bank Broadway at Overture will present Wicked, a modern musical that tells the classic story of The Wizard of Oz in a completely new way. The show will run at Overture Hall, and will open on Wednesday 22 and run through October 10.

This November, Madison Opera and the Overture Center presents The Marriage of Figaro, Mozart's comedic opera. The story follows Figaro and Susanna, two young lovers who intend to be married, but whose plans were interrupted by Count Almaviva.

This March, Madison Ballet and the Overture Center present A Midsummer Night's Dream, a unique dance interpretation of William Shakespeare's fanciful comedy. Peter Anastos' choreography brings the classic play into new perspective. The score, which serves as a driving force throughout the ballet, was written by Felix Mendelssohn.

October 13 the Meyer Theatre recognizes Breast Cancer Awareness Month with The D-Cup Diatribes, a one-woman comedy play which explores the lives of eight strong and feisty women dealing with their relationships with their bodies.

The Meyer Theatre, once known as the FOX Theatre, opened 80 years ago in 1930 and has been entertaining guests ever since. November 6, in celebration of their 80 years of entertainment, the Meyer Theatre will present the third annual 'Starstruck at the Meyer,' a fundraiser to keep the Meyer Theatre maintain its operations and support the building's restorations.

In response to the success of the musical comedy Church Basement Ladies, Troupe America is back with a sequel production-Church Basement Ladies 2: A Second Helping.

This week the Comedy Quarter hosts Shaun Jones, a comedian and Newark native whose comedic style blends his blunt opinions and quick wit with an original form. Shaun Jones will appear at the Comedy Quarter September 15-19.

September 15 through 18, comedian Collin Moulton will appear at the Skyline Comedy Café in Appleton, WI. Shows begin at 8pm and tickets range in price from $8 (for weekday shows) to $10 (for weekend shows).

Friday, September 17, Jeff Daniels will make his third visit to the Grand Opera House in Oshkosh, WI where he will perform original blues inspired music to celebrate the re-opening of Wisconsin's oldest operating theatre.

The Fox Cities Performing Arts Center will present the touring reinvention of the 2008 Tony Award winning musical, South Pacific. The show won seven honors including Best Musical Revival and Best Director (Bartlett Sher).

The Theater Department of Middlebury College has announced some of their upcoming events for the 2010-2011 season, including a unique discussion series which accompanies each of the featured shows. This season's events include Major Barbara, Hecuba, Eurydice and Victory.

The Middlebury Actors Workshop presents Shirley Valentine, a one-woman comedy centered around a middle-aged British woman whose disappointing life changes dramatically when an unexpected opportunity is offered to her. The show stars actress Karen Lefkoe as Shirley Valentine, and is directed by Douglas Anderson.

Lost Nation Theater presents The Complete History of America- Abridged, a comedic and family-friendly look at 600 years of American history, all presented in just 6,000 seconds. The show, described as 'the Daily Show meets the Marx Brothers' takes patriotism to a unique new level.

This September, the Saint Albans Society for the Performing Arts (SASPA) presents Camelot: The Musical. The musical, which was written by Alan Jay Lerner (book and lyrics) and Frederick Loewe (music) and is based on T. H. White's King Arthur legend from the novel The Once and Future King.

Vermont Stage Company, Burlington's year-round professional theatre company, has announced events for their upcoming season, featuring The Glass Menagerie, Oliver Twist and Underneath the Lintel.

Vermont's Flynn Center and Weston Playhouse Theatre Company will present 'Death of a Salesman' starring Christopher Lloyd on Saturday, October 9 at 8pm. Winner of the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize, Death of a Salesman tells the story of Willy Loman, a traveling salesman who struggles with the changes of time and his failure to reach success as he and his family pursue the 'American Dream.'

The Hale Centre Theatre is currently in the middle of its run of Gilbert and Sullivan's Tony Award winning musical comedy, The Pirates of Penzance. The show, which presents a group of pirates gleefully infiltrating a small village brings the audience into a world filled with colorful costumes, clever music, mayhem and plenty of tom-foolery.

September 18th, Generation A, along with the Grand Theater, brings together some of Utah's improv comedians on one stage for the 1st annual Battle of the Improvs at the Grand Theater in Salt Lake City. The event challenges these comedians to duke it out for the title of Utah's funniest, to be decided by the audience.