Chuck's Choices for the weekend of May 25, 2012

As always, the choices are purely my personal opinion. Take with a grain (or a shaker) of salt.

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New this week:

The Slightly Askew Theatre Ensemble presents Lanford Wilson's Burn This through Saturday at 8 PM. Performances take place at Black Cat Theatre, 2810 Sutton in Maplewood. SATE is a small but ambiltious theatre company that doesn't appear to shy away from the unusual. In his review for 88.1 KDHX, Bob Wilcox describes Burn This as "a strong production of a strong script." For more information, call visit slightlyoff.org.

Opera Theatre of St. Louis presents Sondheim's Sweeney Todd in rotating repertory with three other operas, May 26 through June 24. Performances take place at the Loretto-Hilton Center at 135 Edgar Road on the Webster University campus. I've been waiting for many years for Opera Theatre to take a crack at this most operatic of all Sondheim's musical theatre works. Director Ron Daniels has plenty of legit opera experience (unlike the director for A Little Night Music last season), so my expectations are high. All performances are sung in English with projected English text. For more information, you may visit experienceopera.org or call 314-961-0644.

Held over:

Kendall Gladen

Opera Theatre of St. Louis presents Bizet's Carmen in rotating repertory with three other operas through June 23. Performances take place at the Loretto-Hilton Center at 135 Edgar Road on the Webster University campus. The production is set in the 1940s, with the look of classic film noir, all the way down to the black and white costume and set designs and an opening cinematic credit sequence. The concept doesn't always work, but it succeeds often enough to be worth seeing.  Besides, ou won't want to miss St. Louis's own Kendall Gladen's smoky performance in the title role and the great work by conductor Carlos Izcaray and the St. Louis Symphony musicians. For more details, check out my review for 88.1 KDHX. All performances are sung in English with projected English text, although the chorus enunciates so clearly it's rarely necessary. For more information, you may visit experienceopera.org or call 314-961-0644.

Rounding Third

HotCity Theatre presents Richard Dresser's Rounding Third, “a comedic and scary look at raising kids in a world where winning is everything,” through Saturday. Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, visit www.hotcitytheatre.org or call 314-289-4063. In her review for 88.1 KDHX Andrea Braun has plenty of praise for the acting, direction, and for the script itself.