BWW Blogs: California Central Coast February Theatre & Live Entertainment Opportunities

BroadwayWorld.com brings you theater recommendations from San Luis Obispo's own Curt Miner.

As February begins, it looks as if a goodly amount of rather inhospitable weather is the order of the day for many parts of the country - but there's nothing inhospitable about our Central Coast live entertainment and theatre offerings!

The Santa Maria Civic Theatre's (www.smct.org) is proud to present Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap, with performances through February 27.

The author comes forth with another hit about a group of strangers stranded in a boarding house during a snow storm, one of whom is a murderer.  The suspects include the newly married couple who run the house, and the suspicions that are in their minds nearly wreck their perfect marriage.  Others are a spinster with a curious background, an architect who seems better equipped to be a chef, a retired Army major, a strange little man who claims his car has overturned in a drift, and a jurist who makes life miserable for everyone.  Into their midst comes a policeman, traveling on skis.  He no sooner arrives, than the jurist is killed.  Two down, and one to go.  To get to the rationale of the murderer's pattern, the policeman probes the background of everyone present, and rattles a lot of skeletons.  Another famous Agatha Christie switch finish!  Chalk up another superb intrigue for the foremost mystery writer of her time.

The Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts (www.pcpa.org), the Central Coast's Resident Professional Theatre Company, located on the Allan Hancock College Campus in Santa Maria, will present William Shakespeare's Macbeth, opening on February 18.

In Oceano, The Great American Melodrama & Vaudeville (www.americanmelodrama.com) presents I Hate Hamlet through March 7, including their ever popular Vaudeville Revue following each performance.

At the Clark Center (www.clarkcenter.org) in Arroyo Grande, Colbie Caillat brings her acoustic guitar and dusky vocals to the stage on February 25, the Wailin' Jennys will be in town on February 26, and then the Preservation Hall Jazz Band makes an appearance on March 5.

The San Luis Obispo Little Theatre (www.slolittletheatre.org) will present their next installment of the theatre's ongoing Legend Series, Swingin' with Sinatra, February 19 through March 21.   

Kelrik Productions (www.kelrikproductions.com), also located in San Luis Obispo, will present Seussical February 20 - March 14 at Unity in San Luis Obispo.  Additionally, Bye Bye Birdie will be on stage at the Spanos Theatre on Cal Poly campus March 26 - April 3.

The God Is Still Speaking Players (check them out on Facebook or at www.sloucc.org) is proud to be working with Bent Angel Productions on a readers' theatre production of 12 Angry Men, which is being directed by Chrys Barnes, with performances scheduled for February 19-21 at the United Church of Christ in San Luis Obispo.

Performances at the Cal Poly Performing Arts Center (www.pacslo.org) include Teatro Lirico d'Europa's production of Die Fledermaus on February 10, An Evening With Craig Ferguson on February 13 (2 shows), the Vagina Monologues February 19-21, and Camelot February 22.

The Pewter Plough Playhouse (www.pewterploughplayhouse.org), located in Cambria, is currently presenting a production of Finishing Touches through February 28.

The Houselights Theatre (www.houselightstheatre.org) completed a successful remount run of their popular summer musical Always ... Patsy Cline at the Spanos Theatre on the Cal Poly campus this past August.  Stay tuned for details concerning their next show (and where it will be held ... possibly somewhere in Paso Robles?).

And then from up Paso Robles way, the Pioneer Players (www.pioneerplayers.org) have just finished a successful run of Oliver at the Templeton Performing Arts Center [PERSONAL NOTE: attended a Saturday matinee performance - HIGH energy, UP tempo, and WONDERFUL music by Stephen Tosh and his six piece orchestra!].  Next up is a summer musical production of Fiddler on the Roof.  Stay tuned for audition and performance dates.

So there ya' have it - a whole lot of Central Coast theatres just waitin' to roll out the red carpet and show you some entertainment hospitality ... why not take them up on their offer? 

Curt Miner ... your BroadwayWorld.com guy on the ground with the California Central Coast theatre "news & views" 

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