Performances

                
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Live Theatre   Concerts   Symphony   Opera   Comedy



Live Theatre

                         

"The Importance of Being Earnest"
Jan 27-Feb 18
7:30 pm Thursday, Friday & Saturday
2:30 pm Sunday
This masterpiece is probably the most famous of all comedies. It revolves wittily around two young gentlemen living in 1890′s England who use the same pseudonym (“Ernest”) on the sly, which is fine until they both fall in love with women using that name, which leads to a comedy of mistaken identities.







"Gross Indecency"
Feb 10-Mar 3
7:30 pm Thursday, Friday & Saturday
2:30 pm Sunday
In early 1895, the Marques of Queensberry, the father of Wilde’s young lover, left a card at Wilde’s club bearing the phrase “posing sodomite.” Wilde sued the Marques for criminal libel. The defense denounced Wilde’s art and literature as immoral, leading the prosecuting attorney to declare, “It would appear that what is on trial is not Lord Queensberry but Mr. Wilde’s art!” In the end Queensberry was acquitted, and evidence that had been gathered against Wilde compelled the Crown to prosecute him for “gross indecency with male persons.” With Wilde’s arrest, his hit plays running in London’s West End were forced to close, and Wilde was reduced to penury. A second trial ended in a hung jury with Wilde’s impassioned defense of “the love that dare not speak its name,” prompting a third trial. In the third and decisive trial, Wilde was convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment at hard labor. He was separated forever from his wife and children, and wrote very little for the rest of his life. In addition to Wilde, Douglas and Queensberry, characters ranging from Queen Victoria to a present-day academic explore how history is made and how it can be so timely revisited in the theatre.



"The Wedding Singer"
Mar 9-31
7:30 pm Thursday, Friday & Saturday
2:30 pm Sunday
It’s 1985 and rock-star wannabe Robbie Hart is New Jersey’s favorite wedding singer. He’s the life of the party, until his own fiancée leaves him at the altar. Shot through the heart, Robbie makes every wedding as disastrous as his own in this wild new, Tony-nominated musical based on the hit movie.










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Starlighters II Theatre
136 East Main St, Anamosa  319-462-4793
starlighters.org




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Ushers Ferry Historic Village
www.cedar-rapids.org/ushers 

Coe College Dept of Theatre Arts
Dows Theatre  1220 1st Ave NE
public.coe.edu

"Drood"
Mar 23, 24, 29, 30, 31  7:30 PM
Mar 25  2:30 PM
Drood, based on the last literary work by Charles Dickens, is a musical whodunnit. But because Dickens died before finishing his novel, the identity of which character he actually intended to have "dunnit" remains to this day a tangled web of mystery. The action takes place in a Victorian music hall, where a troupe of actors from that era try to work it all out, with a little bit of assistance from their audience.



 

"End Game"
Feb 9-12  7:30 PM w/Sun Matinee 2:30 PM
"Endgame has outraged the Philistines, earned the contempt of the half wits and filled those who are capable of telling the difference between a theatre and a bawdy house with a profound and somber and paradoxical joy ... A magnificent theatrical experience."-London Times

The play focuses on Hamm, an aged master who is blind and not able to stand up, and his servant Clov, who cannot sit down. They exist in a location by the sea, although the dialogue suggests that there is nothing left outside—no sea, no sun, no clouds. The two characters, mutually dependent, have been fighting for years and continue to do so as the play progresses. Clov always wants to leave but never seems to be able. Also present are Hamm's legless parents Nagg and Nell, who live in rubbish bins downstage and initially request food or argue inanely.

"Lemon Sky"
Apr 12-15  7:30 PM w/Sun Matinee 2:30 PM
Critically hailed in its New York production as a major work by one of our theatre's most important writers, this powerful and moving play explores the alienation between a son and his father with rare perception and honesty:
"Mr. Wilson can write; his characters spring alive on stage; he holds our attention, he engages our heart." —NY Times.
"…Wilson at his loveliest and most true. He is one of the very most talented writers in all the American theatre…" —Women's Wear Daily.
"His language is rich and forceful, yet conveys a sense of graceful ease and breezy humor." —Cue Magazine.
At seventeen, Alan visits the California home of his father and his father's former mistress turned wife. His father's life now centers around his two young sons, a tiresome job at an aircraft plant, and two teenage girls who are boarded with the family by the state. Alan has come expecting to go to school full time and work part time at the plant, having accepted his father's encouragement to do so. But the older man is incapable of honesty, least of all emotional honesty, and his lies about school are worth about as much as his lies about love. In the end, his cruelty, insecurity and lechery bring on an inevitable collision that destroys all that the father and son had hoped for. Alan is driven away once more, embittered by the knowledge that he must live without the father he so desperately wants and needs.

McKinley Middle School
620 10th St SE



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Center Point-Urbana Childrens Theatre

Bigger Than Life
Feb 20  5:30    
Knox Presbyterian Church  1525 Hollywood Blvd NE, CR
Center Point-Urbana Children's Theatre will be presenting their production of "Bigger Than Life" at Knox Church! The production is geared toward elementary aged children – show runs approximately 40 minutes. FREE and open to all in the community to attend! 5:30pm - light meal served Show will start approximately at 5:45pm! 

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Wilson Middle School
2301 J St SE



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CR Public Library
Westdale Mall   398-5123


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SPT Theatre Company
Cedar Rapids Museum Of Art, 319-361-5297
spttheatre.org

SPT Theatre's Tales from the Writers' Room: Games People Play

SPT Theatre’s Writers’ Room series comes to CSPS Hall for a series of shows set around the theme “Games People Play.” Each show explores life’s twists and turns through the lens of popular board games.

The first, “Twister,” deals with what we all feel at the beginning of our lives: we are all Twisted around, trying to figure out what the hell is going on. Sometimes people get in the way of that; sometimes they help; sometimes we all crash down together trying to figure things out.

"Trivial Pursuit"
Dec 2-3

The second, “Trivial Pursuit,” deals with the “salad days,” when we chase things we think we want. The days we look back on are perhaps trivial, but mostly we look back with a sense of nostalgic fun. After all, at this time, it is the chase, the pursuit that gives us the thrill.

The Writers’ Room format features music interspersed with humorous and reflective stories performed by professional local actors. Performances feature Janelle Lauer, Jane Pini, Doug Elliott and Gerard Estella as well as material from writers Jason Alberty, Akwi Nji-Dawson, Dave Martino, Mary Sullivan and Adam Witte.

The Cedar Rapids-based SPT Theatre (Small Professional Theatre) has entertained area audiences with music, song, humor and wit since its establishment in 2006. SPT’s mission is to support, provide for and expand the artistic opportunities available to performers and arts patrons in the greater Cedar Rapids/Iowa City community. SPT strives to coordinate performances with existing organizations and create new opportunities for actors, musicians, writers and artists.

"Monopoly"
Feb 17-18

The third, “Monopoly,” deals with the “age of acquisition,” when, for some reason, gain equals status. We must have what we want, and the chase is no longer the end, but the means, to have more than others.

The Writers’ Room format features music interspersed with humorous and reflective stories performed by professional local actors. Performances feature Janelle Lauer, Jane Pini, Doug Elliott and Gerard Estella as well as material from writers Jason Alberty, Akwi Nji-Dawson, Dave Martino, Mary Sullivan and Adam Witte.

The Cedar Rapids-based SPT Theatre (Small Professional Theatre) has entertained area audiences with music, song, humor and wit since its establishment in 2006. SPT’s mission is to support, provide for and expand the artistic opportunities available to performers and arts patrons in the greater Cedar Rapids/Iowa City community. SPT strives to coordinate performances with existing organizations and create new opportunities for actors, musicians, writers and artists.

"Clue"
Apr 13-14

The fourth, “Clue,” deals with the time when we finally “get a clue,” when we come to understand what is truly important in our lives.

The Writers’ Room format features music interspersed with humorous and reflective stories performed by professional local actors. Performances feature Janelle Lauer, Jane Pini, Doug Elliott and Gerard Estella as well as material from writers Jason Alberty, Akwi Nji-Dawson, Dave Martino, Mary Sullivan and Adam Witte.

The Cedar Rapids-based SPT Theatre (Small Professional Theatre) has entertained area audiences with music, song, humor and wit since its establishment in 2006. SPT’s mission is to support, provide for and expand the artistic opportunities available to performers and arts patrons in the greater Cedar Rapids/Iowa City community. SPT strives to coordinate performances with existing organizations and create new opportunities for actors, musicians, writers and artists.

"Sorry"
June 1-2











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Paul Engle Center
1600 4th Ave SE



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US Cellular Center
uscellularcenter.com

 



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Mt Mercy College
McAuley Theatre   133 Elmhurst Dr NE  363-8213
mtmercy.edu

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Cornell College
Kimmel Theatre
cornellcollege.edu

"In The Next Room" or "The Vibrator Play"
Feb 17, 18, 24, 25  7:30 PM  Feb 26  2 PM
A 2010 Pulitzer Prize finalist and Tony nominee for Best Play, Sarah Ruhl's provocative and sometimes tender comedy is set in the 1880s -- a time when doctors believed that "hysterical" women (and men) could be treated with vibrators, and electricity was a brand new technology. The play finds a Victorian-era doctor in New York championing the effects of this new electronic device, while in the adjoining room, the doctor's wife is yearning for a different kind of intimacy. IN THE NEXT ROOM or THE VIBRATOR PLAY is a sex comedy with a head on its shoulders and a heart on its sleeve.

"Defying Gravity"
Apr 20, 21, 22, 27, 28
Written by Jane Anderson and directed by Jody Hovland. The show runs April 20, 21 and 27, 28 at 7:30 p.m. and April 22 at 2 p.m. in Kimmel Theatre. For tickets contact the Box Office at 895-4293. Part of the inaugural celebration welcoming President Brand.


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Brucemore
2160 Linden Dr SE  362-7375




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Mt Vernon/Lisbon Community Theatre
1st Street Building in Mount Vernon (221 1st Street E), Mt Vernon
mvlct.com

 


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Clarion Hotel
525 33rd Ave SW

 

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CSPS/Legion Arts

Greene Square Park
400 4th Ave SE

Lowe Arts Center
4500 10th St  Marion

ARA Gallery
Ara Gallery & Interiors  4850 Armar Dr SE

Lisbon Heritage Hall
101 E Main Street, Lisbon

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Harmony Hawks
Theatre Cedar Rapids  4444 1st Ave NE
harmonyhawks.org

Orchestra Iowa
orchestraiowa.org

Eastern Iowa Brass Band
Mt Vernon District Auditorium

Five Seasons Chamber Music
fiveseasonschambermusic.org

Marion Square Park
7th Ave & 10th St

CR Public Library
Westdale Mall 398-5123

Jazz In The Stacks
Feb 10  7 & 8:30 PM
The Cedar Rapids Public Library invites you to attend a swinging songbook of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart with the Dennis McPartland Quintet in 781.65: Jazz in the Stacks. This free musical performance will be held on Friday, February 10, at the Cedar Rapids Public Library West, Seuss Room. Performances are held at 7:00 pm and 8:30 pm and space is limited. Light refreshments will be provided. Tickets will be available for pick-up at the Cedar Rapids Public Library West beginning Monday, January 30, on a first-come, first-serve basis with a six ticket maximum per person

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Groundswell
225 K Ave SW Suite G

Cedar Rapids Municipal Band
crmuniband.org

Coe College
1220 1st Ave NE, Sinclair Auditorium

Linn-Mar
3111 N 1t St  Marion

McKinley Middle School
620 10th Street SE

Xavier High School
6300 42nd St NE

Prairie High School
401 76th Ave SE

CSPS/Legion Arts
legionarts.org

The Pines CD Release Show
Feb 4  8 PM
Join David Huckfelt, Benson Ramsey and company in celebrating the release of their brand new CD, Dark So Gold. Hitting the streets just a few days prior, Dark So Gold is one of the most highly anticipated releases of the new year. It follows their radio-charting Tremolo, which received rave reviews and was highlighted in PopMatters and CMT.com as one of the top Americana albums of the year. Showcasing a distinct blend of dark atmospheric indie-folk, rock and blues, the new album shows a young band that has fully arrived with a sound and song craft that stand apart on the indie music landscape. Frontmen Benson Ramsey (vocals, guitars, keyboards) and David Huckfelt (vocals, acoustic guitar) lead up the expanded seven-piece band that includes Alex Ramsey (keyboards, vocals), J.T. Bates (drums), James Buckley (bass), Michael Rossetto (banjo) and Jacob Hanson (guitar).
From the haunting opening track “Cry, Cry, Crow,” The Pines conjure up rural specters from the farms slowly disappearing throughout their native Midwest. Exploring the tension between city and small town and the loneliness that can exist in both, they move through breakups and new beginnings on songs like “If By Morning,” “All the While,” “Dead Feathers” and the radio-friendly “Chimes.” Whether rocking out (“Rise Up and Be Lonely”) or playing contemplative instrumentals (“Moonrise, IA” and “Losing the Stars”), The Pines cook up a diverse palette of musical flavors and songs that reflect on cold days, dark nights and the hope that shines in between.
Raving on the band’s last CD, PopMatters.com wrote, “These Minneapolis-via-Iowa boys pick delicate, spare acoustic guitars wrapped in glass-slide reverberations and gentle, haunting organ embellishments… The CD captures a spectral single effect throughout, evoking an otherworldly landscape of fallen moons and dead valleys, campfires and ghost towns…”
$11 advance | $15 door 
 

Comics In Action
Bohemian Cafe & Pub  95 16th Ave SW
comicsinaction.com

 

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Heartland Youth For Christ Comedy Cafe
The Hotel @ Kirkwood   7725 Kirkwood Blvd SW

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Bustin Dustin
myspace.com/bustindustincomedian


A combination of Chris Farley, Red Bull and Barney The Dinosaur, makes up Bustin Dustin. A physical comedian who has brought his own brand of insanity to the unsuspecting. Four years in the making, Bustin Dustin is only an amateur, but with his passion and desire to follow his dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian, many are fooled to thinking he’s a corporate comic as well as a professional night club comic.

Jan 27  7-10 PM
Gwens Restaurant proudly presents..."All-You-Can-Eat" Buffet and Comedy Show for only $20. 119 W Main St, Lisbon, IA. 319-455-2843
WARNING: PG13 to R-rated comedy material (adult theme but not raunchy nor vulgar) for ages 18 and older. So leave the kids outside in the car with grandma.
Opening act:
Don Hepner - from Los Angeles California, has been in show business for over 30 years, a stand-up comedian for over 14 years, appeared on many television shows such as the John Lorequete Show, Hillstreet Blues, The Gong Show and General Hospital. In 2010 he was on CNN and FOX News for being the "Off Ramp Comic" in Davenport, IA
Headliner:
Bustin Dustin - from Cedar Rapids Ia, almost 9 years in the making and selling out shows across the nation, he's known as the bad boy of the Iowa comedy scene. He's never been on HBO, Comedy Central or the Bob & Tom Show, but in 2007 he made a big enough impression to get banned from the only comedy club in town. Dustin is Witty, Dangerously Funny, Fully Animated and Highly Explosive from start to finish!
This will be Bustin Dustins 3rd performance at Gwens Restaurant in Lisbon, IA, we are predicting another sold out show, so call 2 weeks in advance to reserve your seats. 319-455-2843




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Penguins Comedy Club
The Piano Lounge
penquinscomedyclub.com


April Macie
Jan 27-28









Loni Love
Feb 3-4


















Heywood Banks
Feb 10-11






















Brad Wollack
Feb 17-18















Sean Morey
Feb 24-25

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