Chuck's Choices for the weekend of March 7, 2014

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

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The Presenters Dolan present Connie Fairchild: Down by the River on Saturday, March 8, at 8 PM as part of the Gaslight Cabaret Festival. "As the lead singer of Fairchild, one of the most popular bands ever to call St. Louis home, Connie Fairchild was recognized by the RFT as Best Female Vocalist several times. A few years on, and Connie makes her cabaret debut in a show entitled Down By The River. Connie was mesmerized by the rhythms of the rivers that surrounded her home towns. Growing up in Kentucky on the Ohio and Tennessee Rivers, in Louisiana on the Mississippi, and then following the river up to St. Louis, her voice was chiseled from other voices she listened to from these lush environments, such as Irma Thomas and Rosemary Clooney." The performance takes place at the Gaslight Theater, 358 North Boyle. For more information: gaslightcabaretfestival.com.

My take: Here's yet another example of the diversity of cabaret and a genre and of the local cabaret scene. Judging by Ms. Fairchild's background and the title of this show, we can expect something with more than a little rock flavor to it, which is fine by me. As I wrote in my review of rocker Barb Jungr's show at the Kranzberg back in 2010, there are many mansions in cabaret's house, and there's no reason rock can't be one of them.

The Presenters Dolan present Joe Dreyer and Rosemary Watts: Swing Into Spring on Friday, March 7, at 8 PM as part of the Gaslight Cabaret Festival. " Music from the masters of musical theatre makes up the heart of the show, with a few Dreyer originals too. The first couple of St. Louis cabaret brings a brand new show to the Gaslight stage." The performance takes place at the Gaslight Theater, 358 North Boyle. For more information: gaslightcabaretfestival.com.

My take: The Dreyer/Watts team has been a fixture of the St. Louis cabaret scene for a while now, and Joe has solid credentials as an arranger and music director for a number of local artists. "With this first song," wrote KDHX's Laura Kyro in her review of the duo's February 2011 show at the Kranzberg, "they set the tone for the night, which was an obvious affection for each other and a joy in singing songs that were special to them."

Winter Opera St. Louis presents Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor Friday at 8 PM and Sunday at 3 PM, March 7 and 9. Performances take place at The Skip Viragh Center for the Arts at Chaminade College Preparatory School, 425 S. Lindbergh. The opera is sung in Italian with project English supertitles. For more information, visit winteroperastl.org.

My take: It's easy to forget that Opera Theatre of St. Louis is not the only opera company in town. Union Avenue Opera and Winter Opera don't have OTSL's budget, but Winter Opera does have the advantage of an auditorium designed for musical theatre, complete with a respectable orchestra pit, and their shows generally feature fine singers and a decent orchestra. As a bel canto classic, Lucia should be exactly the sort of piece to play to Winter Opera's strengths.

Dramatic License Productions presents the comedy Shirley Valentine through March 16. Performances take place at Dramatic License Theatre located at the upper level of Chesterfield Mall (near Sears and across from Houlihan's Restaurant). For more information, call 636-220-7012 or visit dramaticlicenseproductions.org.

My take: One-actor shows are always a risk, but actress and costume designer Teresa Doggett (a.k.a. "the hardest-working woman in show biz") has done this role before, to considerable acclaim. In her review of the current production for KDHX, Tina Farmer praises Ms. Doggett's "warm, spirited performance" as well as "the capable direction of Lee Anne Mathews." She has good things to say about the technical aspects of the show as well, including the costume design by Ms. Doggett.

Held Over:

Photo: Jerry Naunheim, Jr.

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents Other Desert Cities through March 9. “Things get bumpy when promising young novelist Brooke Wyeth returns home to Palm Springs to get her family's approval of her newest work - a tell-all memoir dredging up long-kept family secrets. Daring her conservative parents to oppose her, Brooke draws a line in the sand, and when it is crossed, the result threatens to undo them all. Politics, lies and regrets collide in this biting, sharp and fiercely funny Pulitzer Prize finalist.” Performances take place on the mainstage at the Loretto-Hlton Center, 130 Edgar Road in Webster Groves, MO. For more information, call 314-968-4925 or visit repstl.org.

My take: This production has gotten very good press so far. In her review for 88.1 KDHX, for example, Tina Farmer says it's "an intense and deeply personal examination of love and family loyalty that twists audience expectations and still manages to deliver a surprisingly satisfying resolution."