Nick Rose in 'The 39 Steps' at Cincinnati Shakespeare Company
Finally, a weekend with some theater choices for your entertainment, even though the weather is beautiful enough to keep us outdoors. But you want to see a curtain go up somewhere, right?
You'll have fun for sure if you go to see The 39 Steps at Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. If that title sounds vaguely familiar, it's because Alfred Hitchcock made a classic film that's at the root of this very amusing piece of theater. Four actors play all the roles of what was a taut tale of murder and espionage. The story's still there, but the telling of it makes it a new experience. It's a chance to see four of CSC's best comic actors at work, too. Through Aug. 11. Tickets: 513-381-2273.
Speaking of vaguely familiar, this weekend is your first chance to check out a virtually brand-new show at Know Theatre, Toil and Trouble. It's a contemporary take on Shakespeare's Macbeth, but the characters are two slackers and an over-the-top ambitious girlfriend. It opens tonight (running through Aug. 24); so I haven't seen it yet, but I've read the script, and this one shows promise. It's only had one production,it's world premiere at Impact Theatre in Berkeley, Calif., last November.
If you prefer something definitely familiar, head to the Covedale for the 32nd annual summer musical by Cincinnati Young People's Theatre, which opens tonight. It's Grease, a show about rowdy teens in the 1950s. I suspect that local teens from all over Cincinnati will have a blast with this one. It has a short run, just through Aug. 4. Tickets: 513-241-6550.
One last suggestion: The Showboat Majestic is presenting Big River, a musical based on Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. Since it's about the adventures of Huck and Jim, a runaway slave, escaping on the mighty Mississippi (a river that wouldn't be much without the contributions of the Ohio), the 'boat seems like the perfect setting. Tunes by Pop composer Roger Miller make for a rollicking evening of music. It's one of my favorite shows; I've never been disappointed by a production of it. It wraps up this weekend on Sunday. Tickets: 513-241-6550.
