SCERA

Reserved-seat tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for seniors (65+), students (w/ID) and children (3-11) and are available from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. weekdays and Saturdays from noon-6 p.m. at the SCERA Center, 745 S. State, Orem, by calling (801) 25-ARTS, online at www.scera.org or at the door 30 minutes prior to the show.

Director/Choreographer Shawn Mortensen has taken Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller's legendary 50's tunes and added touches he likes to call "glitter-tastic."

In SCERA's production, the set designed by David Whitlock will be one of the star players. It has a New Orleans French Quarter feel to it with pot belly rails, wraparound and upper balconies and wrought iron spilling with ivy and other plants. The street lights along the hand rails and brick adds to the Louisiana feel.

To add an especially professional and energetic element to "Smokey Joe's," SCERA is using the lead dancers from Center Stage Performing Arts Studios. They are directed by Stacey Johnson Bills, a national champion choreographer. A live band on stage will add to the atmosphere of being in a cafe.

Assisting Mortensen is Jeremy Showgren, music director; Danielle Berry, stage manager; David Whitlock, set and light design; Debbie Bowman, costume design; and Mike James, props.

Auditions for Summer 2008 Musical -- SCERA announces auditions for the world premiere of a new stage production of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice."

The production, directed by Jerry Elison, will play Aug. 1-16 on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and will tour to BYU Education Week Aug. 19-22.

Auditions for ages 16 and older will be April 22-23 from 7-9 p.m. All auditions will be held at the SCERA Center for the Arts, 745 S. State, Orem. All auditioners should prepare to sing 16 measures of a song of their choice. An accompanist or CD player will be provided.¬ 

For more information, contact SCERA at (801) 225-ARTS or visit www.scera.org.

Lehi Arts Council

"All I Really Need to Know..." opens -- The Lehi City Arts Council presents "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" on April 24-26, 28, May 1-3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Glen M. Smith Family Theatre, 685 N. Center Street.

Based on Robert Fulghum's best-selling books, "Kindergarten" takes a funny, insightful, heartwarming look at what is profound in everyday life. This tightly woven adaptation has earned standing ovations from L.A. to D.C. It's an evening of theatrical storytelling in revue format, with monologues, dialogues, and multiple voice narration, enhanced through the use of live piano underscoring, which provides fluidity, charm, and emotional texture.

The delightful stories feature colorful characters such as: a shy little boy who insists on playing the "pig" in his class production of Cinderella and steals the show; a man whose dream of flying carries him high over Los Angeles ... in a lawn chair buoyed by surplus weather balloons; a "mother of the bride" who's staged a perfect wedding -- until the bowling ball of fate rolls down the aisle; and a modern-day Greek philosopher who finds the meaning of life in a piece of broken mirror from World War II.

These stories celebrate our very existence, from the whimsy of childhood to the wisdom of old age.

Tickets are $8.00 and are available online at www.lehicityarts.org or by calling 369-8806. Reservations are recommended. Small children are discouraged in courtesy to the actors.

Utah Baroque Ensemble

Utah Baroque Ensemble to perform -- The Utah Baroque Ensemble directed by Martha Sargent, will present two concerts in north Utah County in anticipation of their upcoming tour to Italy and Switzerland, where they will perform at Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, among other locations.

Local concerts will be April 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the Grove Creek LDS meetinghouse, 475 N. 700 East, Pleasant Grove, and the Orem City Library, 58 N. State St., at 7 p.m. on May 5.

The ensemble will also perform April 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Assembly Hall at Temple Square in Salt Lake City.

In addition to the Vatican, the UBE will perform in cathedrals and churches throughout Italy and Switzerland during their June tour.

Based in Provo, the UBE has about 40 members from Utah County and has been directed by Springville resident Martha Sargent since 1987. Concerts during the regular season generally are offered for free in churches and other community venues.

The Italy/Switzerland tour will be the choir's third international tour and the fourth time it will participate in an international festival. Sargent notes that the choir has performed previously in Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's Cathedral in England and at the dedication of a statue of Karl G. Maeser in Dresden, Germany. The invitation to perform a mass at the Vatican in June is likewise an honor, she says, because it is a rare opportunity to represent Utah's strong choral tradition in a globally recognized and respected venue.

UVSC

Theater Department closes season with "Short Attention Span Theater" -- UVSC Theatrical Arts Department finishes its season with the student written 10-minute play festival, "Short Attention Span Theatre," now through Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Black Box Theatre on the UVSC campus in Orem. Tickets are $10 for general admission, $8 for faculty/seniors and $6 for UVSC students.

An annual production of the UVSC Theatrical Arts program that is now in its sixth year, "Short Attention Span Theatre" or "SAST," is an evening of eight student-written, student-directed and student-acted plays. Each play is 10 minutes or less in length and runs the gamut of performance from drama to comedy to farce and black comedy.

The show debuts eight plays which include "Delicate Discomposure" by Brandon Parks (Payson), "Dinner for Four" by Scott M. Stringham (Provo), "Going Up" by Jeremy Minagro (Orem), "Faye and Emma" by Ashley Brown (Springville), "Do You Validate?" by Christy Westover (Lehi), "Who Wants To Be A Survivor?" by Jessica Lapinski (Orem), "Missing Bishop" by Joe Heeb (Arvada, Colo.), "A Modern Day Samson" by Kirk Baxter (Riverton).

Pleasant Grove Arts

The Wizard of Oz -- Center Stage Youth Performers are opening with "The Wizard of Oz" on April 22-24 at 7 p.m. and April 25, 4 and 7:30 p.m. at the Ragan Theater at UVSC, located in the Student Center.

Cost is $6 at the door or online at www.plgrove.org/stage/productions. To purchase online, please select the performance you wish to attend.

The show is about 1 hour and 30 minutes in length and will include a meet-and-greet session for children to get autographs and photos with their favorite characters.

Hale Center Theater

The Miracle Worker to open¬ -- The inspiring story of young Helen Keller and her teacher, Annie Sullivan, is currently being performed through May 24 at the Hale Center Theater Orem, 225 W. 400 North, with performances nightly, except Sundays.

Evening performances begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday matinees are scheduled for May 10, 17 and 24 at 3:30 p.m. (The theater will be dark April 15, 16, 22, 23, and 26.)

Ticket prices range from $11.50 to $15.50, depending on night and seating location. Tickets may be purchased by calling the box office at 801-226-8600.

The play is directed by David Morgan, who single cast the play. Stephanie Foster Breinholt takes on the role of Annie Sullivan. Breinholt is a faculty member of the theatre department at Brigham Young University and has appeared in numerous plays in the Utah area as well as a handful of movies.

Handling the role of Helen is Hannah Earl. Hannah has performed in several plays at HCTO, including last year's production of A Christmas Carol where she played the Ghost of Christmas Past.

Auditions -- Auditions for the upcoming production of "Little Women, The Broadway Musical," at the Hale Center Theater Orem will be held April 22 and 23.

Those interested in auditioning should call the theater to make an audition appointment at 226-8600. Callbacks, by invitation only, will be held the morning of April 26. The play will run from May 3 to July 26, and will be directed by Chris Clark, with musical direction by Korianne Orton Johnson.

Those who audition are asked to come prepared with one 32 bar cutting of a musical theater song that shows a variety of colors. Please bring sheet music. An accompanist will be provided.

The theater is looking for women ages 18-30 and 40-70, and men ages 20-40 and 50-70.¬