Las Cruces Theatre

This week in Las Cruces we're making plans for the upcoming theatrr season, and if you love the theatre as much as we do you should join us. But let me warn you, it will take some time because this season is packed with exciting shows.

Here's a break-down of the 2011-2012 season by theatre according to a recent article by S. Derrickson Moore in the Las Cruces Sun News:

American Southwest Theatre Company at NMSU

Where: Hershel Zohn Theatre, NMSU campus
How much: $15, $13 seniors 65 and up, NMSU faculty/staff, $10 NMSU students, $5 high school students
Info: (575) 646-4515, theatre.nmsu.edu/astc/. For season tickets: www.ticketmaster.com 

"Miss Julie," by August Strindberg, Sept. 23 to Oct. 9. Miss Julie, mistress of a country manor, struggles against the restlessness of her social station and her burgeoning passions.

"hard 2 spel dad," by Linda Daugherty and Mary Rohde Scudday, Oct. 21 and 22. Pamela and Zac navigate their way through the challenges and struggles of growing up with dyslexia.

"Once in a Lifetime," by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman, Nov. 18 to Dec. 4. Three vaudevillians head to California to conquer Hollywood's newest advancement: talking pictures.

"Brighton Beach Memoirs," by Neil Simon, Feb. 24 to March 11. It's 1937 and 14-year-old Eugene Morris Jerome must face a demanding mother, liver for dinner, a house over-filled with relatives, and puberty.

"SHOUT! The Mod Musical," by Phillip George, David Lowenstein, and Peter Charles Morris, April 20 to May 6. Flipping through the years like a musical magazine of the '60s, this smashing revue tracks five groovy gals as they come of age during those liberating days that made England swing.

Plus: Benefits and special events:

"DIVAS!" 7:30 p.m. Aug. 20. The musical cabaret features Della Bustamante (Country Diva), Thea Cordova (Opera Diva), Carrie Klofach (Comic Diva), Janet Mazdra (Belter Diva) and Megan McQueen (Sassy Diva).

Rocky Horror Picture Show screening, 8 p.m. Aug. 26, $6, prop bags available for $4.
Mardi Gras, 7 to 11 p.m. Feb. 18, New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum.

Las Cruces Community Theatre

Where: Las Cruces Community Theatre, 313 N. Downtown Mall
How much: $10 adults, $9 students, seniors & military, $8 each for groups of ten or more, $7 kids 6 and under. Season tickets: $50, Senior/Student/Military: $45
Info: (575) 523-1200, www.lcctnm.org

"Plaza Suite" by Neil Simon, Aug. 26 to Sept. 11, directed by Les Boyse. Three short plays tell the adventures of three couples successively occupying the same suite at the Plaza Hotel.

"A Thousand Clowns," by Herb Gardner, directed by Marcus Vickers, Oct. 14 to 30. Unconventional Murray, uncle and custodian of precocious nephew Nick, is tired of writing cheap comedy gags for Chipper the Chipmunk, a children's TV star. Murray finds himself unemployed. Lectured by his conventional brother and hounded by "the system," Murray is paid a visit by bickering, uptight social workers, and finds himself solving their problems as well as most of his own.

"Nuncrackers," musical by Dan Goggin, directed by Art Haggerton, Dec. 2 to 18. The Little Sisters of Hoboken are back, bringing us their annual Christmas pageant - and this year, it's being televised live from the basement of Mount St. Helen's Convent. The highlight of the pageant will be an original ballet based on The Nutcracker, along with a "Secret Santa" drawing by Sister Amnesia.

"Shadowlands," by William Nicholson, directed by Patrick Payne, Feb. 3 to 19. Famed author C.S. Lewis meets his American fan, Joy Gresham, whom he befriends and eventually marries. The story also deals with his struggle with personal pain and grief: Lewis preaches that one should endure suffering with patience but finds that the simple answers he had preached no longer apply when Joy suffers from cancer.

One-Act Play Festival, March 8 to 11. LCCT's annual one-act festival provides opportunities for new directors, new actors, and new works.

"Belles," by Dan Thornton, directed by Gail Wheeler, April 13 to 29. An intriguing play "in 2 acts and 45 phone calls" chronicles vivid characters and conflicts in the phone calls among the six Walker sisters who hail from Memphis, but now are scattered all over the country. Only Peggy still lives in Memphis, where she cares for Mama. When the play begins, Peggy is phoning her sisters to tell them that Mama is in the hospital.

"Piecemeal," musical by Howard Odentz, directed by Autumn Gieb, June 1 to 17. Described by critics as "imaginative, dark and funny," this musical comedy takes a new look at Mary Shelley's classic novel about the events leading to the creation of the Frankenstein monster. Igor, the hunchbacked son of the local undertaker, who yearns to be a doctor, crosses paths with Victor Frankenstein, who is expected to uphold family tradition and attend medical school, but would prefer to pursue a career in fashion. The two swap identities to get what they want, and complications ensue.

Black Box Theatre/No Strings Theatre Company

Where: Black Box Theatre, Downtown Mall
When: 8 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays
How much: $10 regular and $9 students and seniors (over 65). Preferred Patron Package season ticket: $50 and $45. Info and reservations: (575) 523-1223,

no-strings.org

"The Iris Incident," by Amy Lanasa, directed by Mark Medoff, weekends Aug. 21 through 28.

"The 39 Steps," adapted by Patrick Barlow, from the novel by John Buchan, the movie by Alfred Hitchcock and an original concept by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon, directed by Ceil Herman, Sept. 16 to Oct. 2. New York Times critic Ben Brantley called the play, "Absurdly enjoyable! This gleefully theatrical riff on Hitchcock's film is fast and frothy, performed by a cast of four that seems like a cast of thousands."

"Wait Until Dark," by Fredrick Knott, directed by Karen Caroe, Oct. 28 to Nov. 13. This masterfully constructed thriller moves from one moment of suspense to another as it builds toward an electrifying, breath-stopping final scene.

"Private Fears in Public Places," by Alan Ayckbourn, directed by Ceil Herman, Dec. 2 to 18. Six people with six very separate lives are strangely linked by circumstance. Does Nicola still love Dan? Can Stewart be on the verge of an office romance? Will Imogen ever find true love? Does Ambrose have a secret life? And what on earth is Charlotte up to?

"The Sisters Rosensweig," by Wendy Wasserstein, directed by Nikka Ziemer, Jan. 20 to Feb. 5. "A captivating portrait of three disparate sisters reuniting after a lengthy separation and coming to terms with their differences, respect and love for one another. The laughter is all but continuous." -The New Yorker

"Becky's New Car" by Steven Dietz, directed by Ceil Herman, March 9 to 25. Have you ever been tempted to flee your own life? This play, according to Variety, "takes the audience on a smart, comic cruise through the perils of middle-aged longing and regret."

"Tick, Tick Boom!," book, music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson, directed by Dale Pawley, May 4 to 20. A musical look at the courage it takes to follow your dreams, "Tick, Tick Boom!" is Jonathan Larson's autobiographical tale of a young composer on the brink of turning 30 and falling into oblivion.

In addition to all these shows, the 2011 White Sands International Film Festival is scheduled for August 25 - 28. Stay tuned for more information.