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Theatre Notes


January is typically a slow month for theater. Stage folk have the same holiday distractions as the rest of us, and theater-goers tend to hesitate a bit before going out into the cold. January 2013, however, looks to be an unusually rich month for live performance, especially (with one notable exception this month) of the family-friendly variety. 

Speakeasy: The Oconee Youth Playhouse presents its run of the 2002 musical Thoroughly Modern Millie at the Oconee County Civic Center Friday–Sunday, Jan. 12–13 and 18–20. Based on the 1967 film, the play by Jeanine Tesori, Dick Scanlan and Richard Morris follows a young woman of the Jazz Age who moves to New York with the intention of marrying for money. Caught up in the world of flappers and gin joints, Millie soon runs into trouble of the worst sort. The play has enjoyed continuous popularity since its Broadway debut, and OYP’s production should please.

Showtimes for Friday and Saturday are at 7 p.m., and Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m. Tickets are $16 for adults, $14 for seniors and students, and $12 for children 12 and under at the door. Call 706-769-2677 for more information.

Decadence: While I believe wholeheartedly, and have stated as much many times in this column, in collaboration between the various arts communities in this town, it also means having more names to remember and mention. I left some people out of my mention of the first Insurrection Ball last October, and for that I apologize. The second event, Insurrection Ball V2.0: Nuclear Winter, will be brought to us by the fetish performance group Sirens of Sin and the DJ collaborative BeatmatchedHearts. For those who missed the first one, the Insurrection Ball combines live performance, cabaret, ambient art and dance mixes with a decidedly dark, alternative and sexy perspective. Performers will include the Sirens’ Preya, DJs Incubus and Lexus Luthor, and live synthwave by New Army, along with shiny things from a number of local artists. This is a grownup show with grownup things happening, and guests are encouraged to dress in their best fetish, goth, club or evening wear and accessorize with a very open mind.

Insurrection Ball V2.0 drops the bomb Saturday, Jan. 12, at 9 p.m at Go Bar. Admission is $5 at the door.

Master of His Domaine: This should be a two-sentence blurb—“Jerry Seinfeld is playing the Classic Center on Thursday the 24th. Go.”—but I’ve got newsprint to fill. Seinfeld, for decades the standup comic’s standup comic and star of a TV show so popular it introduced new words and phrases into the freaking English language, is making a whistle-stop at the Classic Center to do what he does best: wry, observational comedy delivered with the timing of a championship boxer. Seriously, the man really is one of the best in the world at what he does. Even if you prefer your subject matter with a bit more edge (and I must admit I do), a Seinfeld show is a tutorial in professional standup. Definitely worth going if you can get tickets. Showtime is 7 p.m. Tickets are $60 and $75 and available at www.classiccenter.com.

Shotgun Wedding: The UGA Theatre will kick off the new year with a perennial crowd-pleaser, the 1960 musical The Fantasticks by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones (not that Tom Jones). Officially the longest-running musical in theater history with a continuous off-Broadway run of 42 years, the show turns Romeo and Juliet on its head, being the story of two fathers who stage a feud between their families in order to get their son and daughter together. This promises to be a great production for fans of musicals and is certain to sell out.

The Fantasticks runs at the Seney-Stovall Chapel Tuesday–Sunday, Feb. 5–10, at 8 p.m., with a 2:30 p.m matinee on Sunday, Feb. 10. Tickets are $12 for the general public, $7 for students with ID, and can be ordered by phone at 706-542-4400 or 888-289-8497 (toll free), or purchased online at http://2012.pac.uga.edu/Calendar.aspx.

And One for the Kiddies: The Classic Center Theatre plays host to the touring company of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, the enormously successful Broadway version of the animated film about a girl trapped in a castle with an enormous man-dog and his coterie of talking, singing household knick-knacks, all bound by a curse that can only be broken by the power of true love. This will be lavish, high-end stuff and a great event for adults and kids, half of whom will already know the songs. The show is one night only, Friday, Feb. 8, at 8 p.m. Tickets run from $20 to $70 and are available at www.classiccenter.com.

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