If you went to see the new movie "21" this last weekend, you weren't alone. It was No. 1 at the box office. But this mediocre film, which I gave a lukewarm review to in Friday's 7 magazine, certainly isn't No. 1 in terms of faithfulness to the source material. Lily Tung, writing on the ARTicles blog, reminds us that Hollywood took some big fat liberties with this story, detailed in a book titled "Bringing Down the House," of a bunch of uber-smart college students who figured out a way to outsmart the big Las Vegas casinos:

The real people profiled in Bringing Down the House are actually Asian American, and when Asian-American actors learned that the story was being made into a movie, they rejoiced. Finally, they would have the opportunity to play three-dimensional characters and branch out from their fine portrayals of nerds, waiters, kung fu artists, and refugees.

Studio executives dashed those hopes. They felt that Caucasian actors would make the film more marketable, despite the fact that the characters' ethnicity was essential to the story. The book states that the card-counting scheme was successful partly because the students used their ethnicity to their advantage; in the casinos, a young Asian man betting large amounts of money is less conspicuous than a young white man.

In its short tenure, Theatre Ventoux has elevated the Fresno theater scene by producing challenging fare. From the alluring depravity of "This Flattering Glass" (a heavily reworked adaptation of "Richard II") to the cerebral antics of "Childe Byron" (told from the point of view of the poet's daughter), the productions have been insightful, provocative and -- most important -- distinctively bold examples of storytelling.

The company's current production, "Lear," does not reach this level. It struggles not only in terms of voice and vision but also in just the basics of conveying the storyline of Shakespeare's "King Lear." The heavily truncated text (the show is over in little more than a brisk two hours, including an intermission) leaves big gaps in the narrative that, frankly, left the remaining plot extremely hard for me to follow.

My parents are in town this weekend, and it's always nice because visitors can nudge you into changing your routine a bit. Rather than go out to a movie or play, I decided to take them Saturday night to a small little concert called "Duets" staged by the Fresno City College Opera Workshop. Under the direction of Melissa Wolfmann, this program featured vocal students singing operatic and musical theater duets.

Staged in the intimate space of FCC's Recital Hall, the concert featured some very fine singing. Not all the students are at the same level, but what I liked was the camaraderie they displayed during several ensemble numbers. And there are some vocal standouts in this bunch: among them a very strong Jeran Brown and Jasmine Swalef, along with Jennie Gray, Kathleen Whiting and Amy George. One of my favorites, both from a vocal and musical theater standpoint, is an animated Derek Payne, whose lead role in the "Telephone" song demonstrated a strong stage presence.

And you know what? It's a pleasure just to listen to live singing. In an age of recorded-music perfection, the opera workshop is a reminder that for thousands of generations before CDs and records, people often wiled away their Saturday nights listening to each other sing. The opera workshop concludes with a 2:30 p.m. performance Sunday. Tickets are $10 general, $7 students/seniors.

In my Sunday Spotlight column I write about the upcoming San Joaquin Valley Color Guard and Percussion Review competition that will take place Friday and Saturday at the Clovis North Educational Center. Thanks to Marco Tovar, the official photographer for the SJVCGP, here are some excellent images from past competitions, including this pic from the Delano High squad, right. (You can check out his Web site here.)

Also, the folks at Clovis East wanted me to remind people that their squads are traveling to the Winter Guard International competition in Dayton, Ohio, one week following the local finals, and they're raising money for the event. (Any Clovis Easters out there who can fill us in on the fund-raising?)

On the jump: lots more pics.

Benjamin Boone is having quite a weekend. The Fresno State music prof, whose “Ascención: A Dramatic Ethno-Historical Cantata,” was performed Feb. 24 at Fresno State, gets some national recognition for the piece on NPR's "Weekend Edition" Saturday morning program on KVPR. (Go Sasha Khokha!) The cantata is the story of Ascencion Solorsano de Cervantes, pictured, the last known fluent speaker of the Mutsun language.

Also on Saturday, another of Boone's pieces, "Joropo Jam," will get its U.S. premiere at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Boone writes:

The piece being premiered is called "Joropo Jam" -- it was commissioned by my colleagues saxophonist Alan Durst and guitarist Corey Whitehead for their Centaur Records CD "Tangos y Serenades" (CRC 2901). They premiered the piece in Beijing this past summer, so their performance at the Kennedy Center Saturday is the US premiere. There will be a live feed on the Kennedy Center website at 3PM Sat PST. It's a big deal that they got the Centaur Records deal. Durst got a 3 CD deal -- they are a hard label to get on, and known for good new music. My colleague Ken Froelich has a piece on their CD as well, "Clockwork Automata," and it's also being played at the Kennedy Center.

On the jump: Read Boone's liner notes for the piece.

In Friday's 7 section I talk with Gregory Taber, director of Theatre Ventoux's "Lear," which is in its opening weekend at the Severance Building. Here's a continuation of the interview:

Why do you think Cordelia refuses to flatter her father when he asks how much his daughters love him? It would have been so easy to say, "Yep, Dad, I love you more than anything."

In our production, Cordelia is naïve to the workings of the court and the family. As the youngest, she has been sheltered and protected. When called upon to profess her love to her father, she gives the only answer she can: the truth, which she assumes is the right thing to do, not understanding the ramifications of her words.

Did you hear about the 22-year-old whose fledgling company -- operating out of an unmarked office in Miami Beach -- scored a $300 MILLION contract with the U.S. Army and became the main supplier of munitions to Afghanistan’s army and police forces? Only problem was that Efraim Diveroli, left, and his 25-year-old vice president, David Packouz (also a licensed masseur), right, provided 40-year-old ammunition, much of it salvaged from the aging stockpiles of the old Communist bloc, including China, the New York Times reports. And, it turns out that Diveroli got busted by the police for carrying a fake ID.

Now Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) wants Diveroli to testify before Congress to explain how he snagged a contract that big from the Pentagon -- and then wound up delivering bum ammo. (I'm sure those Afghan army guys really appreciated that commitment to quality in the heat of battle.) Hey, he was just being a young entrepreneur, right?

As one reader comments on Talking Points Memo, "Sadly, there's bound to be a movie about these two." You bet: this is the ultimate con-man story. Who should play the leads? I vote for Shia LaBeouf and Chris Daughtry in his acting debut.

Update: Via Raw Story, here's a link to Diveroli's MySpace page. On who he'd like to meet:

A sweet pretty girl with a good attitude and love for life , a woman that will stand by her man because she knows he would do the same for her no matter the circumstance.

Isn't it amazing that when some people read an item in print, they're more likely to believe it -- even when it's just on the Internet? Via Salon, here's a bizarre AP story about a guy in Oregon who came home to find people stripping his house of all belongings after a Craigslist post that falsely advertised the man's stuff -- including his horse! -- as free for the taking:

On his way home he stopped a truck loaded down with his work ladders, lawn mower and weed eater.

"I informed them I was the owner, but they refused to give the stuff back," he said. "They showed me the Craigslist printout and told me they had the right to do what they did...."

Once home he was greeted by close to 30 people rummaging through his barn and front porch.

The trespassers, armed with printouts of the ad, tried to brush him off. "They honestly thought that because it appeared on the Internet it was true," he said. "It boggles the mind.

It's a little unfortunate that "All Shook Up" opened at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater just a week after the national tour of "Mamma Mia" played the Saroyan Theatre. Both are so-called "jukebox musicals" that tell their stories by stringing together selected songs by a performer or group. With the memory of "Mamma Mia" so fresh in the minds of many theatergoers, it's hard when seeing "All Shook Up" not to compare the two.

While no one is claiming that "Mamma Mia" is classic literature, that long-running show based on Abba songs has emerged over the years as a clever and endearing powerhouse example of the genre. You can't really say the same thing for "All Shook Up," which uses Elvis Presley as its creative gimmick. At its best the show is a sweet little trifle, and at its not-so-best is just kind of bland.

The cast is very young in this Good Company Players outing, which on one hand imparts a freshness to the proceedings and on the other makes the production seem, well, very young. When a charismatic "roustabout" named Chad (played in an Elvis-like leather jacket by Jesse McCoy and driving a full-size motorcycle, albeit with training wheels) arrives in a 1955 small town in Middle America, he immediately attracts a lot of attention, including that of a tomboy girl mechanic named Natalie (Kaitlyn Nichols).

In my Sunday Spotlight column I take time not only to smell the flowers, but to wax philosophic about them, too. If you've never taken the time to actively seek out the explosion of spring color that takes place on the world-famous Fresno County Blossom Trail and the Wildflower Trail, I highly encourage you to do so. You'll wonder why it took you so long. Here's a pic I took from a scene I describe in my column:

On the jump: A close-up shot.

In Sunday's Spotlight section I have an interview with Laurie Pessano, director of the new Good Company Players production of "All Shook Up" at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater. Here's a continuation of the interview:

What's the most challenging part of directing this show?

I think my biggest challenge as a director has been to make sure we achieve an honesty of character and relationship but still retain the spirit of total playfulness inherent in the script and music.

Longtime Beehive reader and local theater fan Stephen Mintz writes that Tuesday night he saw a terrific (and underpublicized) performance of "Guys and Dolls" at San Joaquin Memorial Gardens:

Delicious theatre! Every once in awhile, Theatre happens away from the six or so companies floating around, and even more rare is a nice slice of pie like Guys and Dolls was last night at the San Joaquin Gardens!

... So the actual show consists of residents of the Gardens, and residents of the community theatre, um, community. Familiar names like Kenny White and Jon Masier and the too-pretty Lorraine Christiansen (all seen at CMT or GCP). Then the surprise hits...Paige Parker as Adelaide (I only knew she could do math and was gorgeous and made costumes and was hilarious, but she can sing and TOTALLY act and was hilarious, a very Lucille Ball-type portrayal.) And Paige’s significant other, Jeff White as Nathan Detroit. He was fantastic, would score this role anywhere. Their duet "Sue Me" was both touching and thigh-slappin’ funny.

The show opened Tuesday and continues 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday. For more of Stephen's review, read on.

So I had this dream last night, see: I was hanging out with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in the foyer of a 17th Century Scottish manor house with no indoor plumbing, and we were drinking tea and taking turns reading "Peter Rabbit" aloud to each other, and then I noticed that Jennifer Jason Leigh was scrubbing the floor with a toothbrush ...

OK, I just made that up. I am thankful to say that none of the three remaining presidential candidates has yet invaded my dreams. But they've apparently popped up in a lot of the dreams of other campaign-fixated people. Canadian novelist and blogger Sheila Heti last month began gathering and posting online e-mails from people who had dreamed about Clinton, Obama and McCain. (via Slate).

An example on I Dream of Hillary of an entry from a 42-year-old man with "no discernible politics":

The AP is reporting this morning that Anthony Minghella, the amazingly talented director who brought us such well-regarded films as "The English Patient" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley," has died. Variety says it was a brain hemorrhage. He was 54. Minghella had a particular knack for adapting literary novels into rousing big-screen epics. (I'm still a very big fan of his "Cold Mountain," which I thought was a particularly adept adaptation.) And even though lots of people didn't find "The English Patient" accessible enough for their taste -- it can be a very abstract film -- I think that Minghella was absolutely brilliant in the way he brought the non-linear tangle of the narrative into a cohesive whole. And it was such a beautiful movie in terms of visuals. Very sad news.

A while back I lectured to a Fresno State reporting class about covering ArtHop. The assignment was to find an interesting story, and I told the students that they should send what they came up with to me for possible inclusion on this blog. Joseph Edgecomb picked a great subject: the longtime Fresno artist Richard Silva, shown here in a 2004 Bee photo. I wrote a short review of Silva's new show at Fig Tree Gallery. Now here's Edgecomb's feature profile:

Richard Silva stepped out of his downtown art studio dressed in his work attire—a pair of pants and a shirt covered in paint splatter and multi-colored hand smears.

He was headed across the street to a row of thrift shops.

“I look for old decorative figurines or something eye catching,” Silva said. “Sometimes those things end up in my paintings.”

Halfway to the thrift shops, a vintage Volkswagen Beetle stopped in front of Silva in the middle of the road.

“You look like a real bum,” the driver said to Silva.

A reader left this via phone mail:

I'm just calling to offer a little complaint about the fact that your Mamma Mia review was available only by computer. I don't happen to have a computer. I guess I'm still living in the Dark Ages, but I enjoy it. I know I'm not the only one without a computer. Your review would have been very interesting to read, I'm sure. I think you have to remember that we who do not have computers do pay to read The Fresno Bee, and that would include, I think, your reviews.

AFTER THE JUMP: My answer, a new pic for "Joseph," a reader movie annoyance and other Donald Stuff.

After years of watching and listening to "Mamma Mia," including Wednesday's excellent opening night performance at the Saroyan Theatre, I'm convinced that the key to its success is simple: The show is a purveyor of unabashed joy. There's something about the particular chemistry of this jukebox-style musical -- and lest we forget, Broadway has pumped out a slew of mediocre and short-lived examples of the genre -- that creates a combustible result. No wonder it's been running for years.

Part of the show's successful equation is the sheer musicality of all those memorable Abba songs, of course. But it's more than that. "Mamma Mia's" plot, strung together from those songs, is more than silly. It's tremendously clever and moving. Out of all that froth comes touching themes: nostalgia, regret, the parent-child dynamic. Throw in an invigorating production design -- you can almost feel the brace of a sea breeze on the Greek-isle setting and revel in the sun-speckled lighting -- and terrific choreography, and it's a stellar experience.

In this age of Facebook, it must be hard for today's college students to grasp the fact that people used to look for dates by taking out personal ads in NEWSPAPERS. Yes, it's archaic sounding but true. And even more mind-blowing: Back in the 1970s, the whole personal-ad approach was actually considered cutting-edge. Revolutionary, even.

In the uneven and occasionally very clunky Single Black Female, Looking ..., the premiere of an original play by Jeannette Jackson-McNeil at Fresno State, the main character is a successful eye doctor in the 1970s who turns to the personals to pump up her social life. Unceremoniously dumped by her boyfriend without a word of explanation -- she can't even get him to return her calls -- she decides there has to be a better way. Hence she becomes "Dr. Pepper" and starts interviewing potential suitors.

My Beehive colleague Felicia Matlosz and I took some time out of an incredibly busy Thursday night last week to survey some of the March ArtHop shows.

Felicia writes:

At Arte Americas, the new exhibits include one with an environmental bent: "Future of Sequoias" by photographer Jeff Jones, who's based in Santa Barbara (thru April 22; the narrative is in Spanish and English). It features some exquisite, dramatic panoramic work (a few that must be about five feet wide) that capture the grandeur and majesty of the Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks. Curator Abelino Bautista says the cultural arts center wanted to remind visitors of the beautiful world "in our own backyard," not only to enjoy it but to be aware of the environmental concerns that could threaten these parks.

Classic plays have their place in a college theater repertory. But sometimes you crave a nice big dose of something contemporary.

With Living Out, about an upscale white Los Angeles woman who hires an undocumented worker from El Salvador as a nanny, Fresno City College delivers a well-made production that feels very much in the here and now. With its California setting and focus on the hot-button issue of immigration, the play has a ripped-from-the-headlines feel. But director Charles Erven also examines some deeper concerns, from the relationship between worker and employer to the question of how ethical it is to hire a caregiver to watch your kids even when it means she has to leave her own behind in another country.

A central tenet of the theater is that what happens backstage stays backstage. No matter the trials and tribulations that a company goes through putting on a show, it's all forgotten when the curtain rises. The responsibility is to the audience, which most of the time could care less about the back story of a show.

Of course, this is all in an ideal world, and sometimes external events do have the potential to impact a show's success. This seems to be the case with Musical Theaterworks Fresno's lackluster production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Fresno Memorial Auditorium. The company (which is the community theater arm of Children's Musical Theaterworks) had been planning to produce "Jesus Christ Superstar" until it lost the rights just before the rehearsal process began. (You can read my blog entry about the situation here.) Quickly shifting gears, the company instead decided to tackle "Joseph" using most of the same cast members and director (S. Eric Day). It was a hectic and I'm sure in some ways traumatic process. But I still had higher hopes for the substitute "Joseph."

The scene: KMPH's "Great Day" Friday morning show desk with hosts Kopi Sotiropulos and Kim Stephens chatting with a staffer about news of the day.

The story: Ingenious ways that college students are using technology to cheat, including using PhotoShop to create substitute soft-drink bottle labels with important test data instead of the ingredients. (Who knew?)

The confession: After talking about the way that today's college students cheat, the staffer (whose name we will kindly not print in case she's up for a network job anytime soon and her potential bosses are Googling her) admits: "We were having a discussion about that in the newsroom. Some of us were recalling the blue books or Scantrons. You write on them very very, very lightly and then you go back and erase. I'm not necessarily proud of that. I did it once. Science is not my strength, folks."

The expression on Kim's face: aghast. Isn't live TV sometimes so, well, honest?

In Friday's 7 section I have an interview with Fresno State theater professor Thomas-Whit Ellis about his new production of "Single Black Female, Looking ..." Here's a continuation of the interview:

Why pick this show?

A couple of reasons. First of all, as the only entity that does ongoing, African American Theatre in this area, I have to choose plays that represent a wide variety of ideas, themes and styles. And those which I think will sell to local audiences. So, I try to do "firsts." The first African American Musical, first African American satire, comedy, August Wilson play, etc. that is produced by a major theatre in this area.

As an educational theatre activity, I try to find plays that involve as many actors and beginning actors as possible. It's a training ground for African American actors to explore their creative potential through the work of others working in the field.

In Friday's 7 section I have an interview with Fresno City College theater professor Charles Erven about his new production of "Living Out." Here's a continuation of the interview:

Talk a little about the use of projections in the show.

The play calls for a number of locations in Los Angeles. Much of the action shifts back and forth between a home in East L.A. and a home in West L.A. Sometimes action occurs simultaneously in these locations. The projections certainly help define the different homes but they also serve as a wonderful way to have a very “present” feel to the play. The Los Angeles location is very important to the play and the projections evoke the feel of the city in all its moods and energy.

Project Runway's terrific fourth season FINALLY came to a conclusion last night (after a prolonged and amazingly tense march to whittle the final contestants down to three), and it really was a rousing conclusion. This was the chance to see the full collections designed by Christian, Jillian and Rami, and in various ways I thought all three were amazing. (I'm going to avoid mentioning the winner's name until after the jump in case you couldn't watch the finale live and you're planning to catch one of Bravo's ubiquitous repeats in the next few days.)

Salon has a very engaging wrap-up of the event, including spot-on critiques of some of the more out-there outfits thought up by the three designers. Here's a great description of Christian's line:

Christian's collection was nothing if not funereal froufrou, a little too ruffled to be fierce. It was as if his models had walked out of a parallel universe in which Victorian dominatrixes swanned around in spaceships.

Unsure of what to see as the Rogue revs up for its second weekend? In Wednesday's Life section we make our Top 10 picks:

All in the Timing
American Squatter
Art
Drummer Steve Mitchell
Dynamite Kablammo
Heavy Sugar Jazz Improv
Pentecostal Wisconsin
Sprawlzilla vs. Main Street
Along the Path of Larks and Swallows
I'm Sorry I Love You

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. John Nason and Jarod Caitlin have played brothers in a Neil Simon play before: a 2005 Good Company Players production of "Brighton Beach Memoirs" at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater, and a very fine job they did. Now they've teamed up successfully again as brothers at GCP's 2nd Space Theatre for a production of Simon's very first big Broadway hit: the genial Come Blow Your Horn.

Nason, as older brother Alan, and Caitlin, as younger brother buddy, have a nice rapport with each other on stage, which helps set the tone for this early Simon romp. The older and supposedly wiser Alan is the early 1960s version of a bachelor superstar: he's unmarried, owns great suits, has women falling all over him, keeps crazy hours and possesses a bulging little black book with names of eligible women. It's no wonder that his kid brother, who is as straight and narrow as a New York subway line, looks up to him so much.

Via Althouse, it seems that Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales broke up with his girlfriend (that's according to her, to him she was just a fling) ... and he did it on Wikipedia!

The London Times Online reported:

She was Rachel Marsden, 33, the Canadian right-wing political pundit used to airing the tangles of her personal life online. He was Jimmy Wales, 41, the co-founder of Wikipedia, the web encyclopaedia that aims to provide up-to-date “user-generated” information. On Saturday Ms Marsden logged on to discover that her own particular affair had also been updated. She had been dumped on Wikipedia.

So Marsden did the only obvious thing a scorned-yet-Internet-savvy lovebird could do: Sell Wales' clothes on eBay. From her listing:

It was such a classy move that I was inspired to do something equally classy myself, so I'm selling a couple of items of clothing he left behind, here in my NYC apartment, on eBay. Jimbo was supposed to come visit me in a couple of weeks and pick up some of his stuff, but obviously that won't be happening now.

And you thought Wikipedia was just for checking the gross domestic product of New Zealand or the names of the contestants on That's Amore.

Will writes:

Just wanted to let you know that due to either popular demand or just sheer coincidence, the oft-hilarious yet mostly mediocre Shakespeare Is an Idiot has been given a fifth performance. It is 8:30 p.m. Wednesday night, March 5, at The Starline (not Dianna’s South). (By the way, we had a sellout Saturday and a near-sellout Sunday.)

A reader named Karen writes:

The Makeshift Champions, a group of high school kids, put on a great show at the Spectrum Gallery on Sunday. They did several originals, including harmonies and tempo changes which were impressive indeed, and a few cover tunes. At times it was the whole band (2 guitars, drums, and two vocalists) and at other times it was smaller configurations, such as just two guitars, a guitar and one vocalist, etc.... Pretty mature variety for such young kids. They were nervous, and young, and cute... putting themselves out there to do something scary-fun. This is what I love about the Rogue; people taking risks to try participating in a performance. Check them out at their last show, Wednesday at 6pm.

To Agustin Lira, theater isn't just entertainment. It's a teaching tool. This Chicano theater icon, who now runs a Fresno company called Teatro Inmigrante along with collaborator Patricia Wells Solorzano, is heavily influenced by the tradition of the actos -- short sketches that could be performed in the fields -- that played such an important role in Cesar Chavez's farmworker movement in the turbulent 1960s.

For the Rogue Festival, Lira's company presents two of these short plays: Honest Sancha's Used Mexican Lot and The Two Faces of the Boss. They've been updated to reflect present-day issues, but the plays also have the heft of history behind them. Witty and fiercely political, Lira pointedly takes on such issues as racism, ethnic stereotypes and the current war in Iraq. It's well worth a trip down Van Ness Avenue to Arte Americas to experience a type of theater that wants to stretch your mind.

A reader named Dan writes:

Highway 41 Revisited is a collection of video works that explore the Fresno experience in an especially intriguing, personal, and evocative way. Memories of school hallways, late-night family gatherings, driving the freeway, and the stream of consciousness of everyday life.

Also playing are two short narratives, "Fish", by Teresa Flores and "Huron Blues", by Julia Martinez, the first a whimsical piece in the tradition of "Amelie", and the second a character study of a young man in the valley, a work that is deep in feeling yet handled with a light touch.

Playing: 9 p.m. Friday 3/7 and 7 p.m. Saturday at Javawava, 1940 E. Echo. Cost: $7.

Please note that because some members of the cast of "Shakespeare Is an Idiot" are employed at The Bee, we didn't have a Beehiver review the show. But, as with all the shows at the Rogue, we're asking readers to submit their own reviews of shows they see, and if they're long enough, we'll give them their own little "Rogue Reader Review" entry. So feel free to write! You can email us your reviews or post on the Reader Review link.

A reader named Chango writes:

Went to see Shakespeare Is an Idiot on Saturday night. Loved it!

It’s the type of show that you thank Rogue for: irreverent, homespun, fun even when not as funny.

A cast of four manage to razz the irrational plotlines of Shakespeare’s most well-known plays: Romeo & Juliet, Othello, Hamlet, and Macbeth.

Every year at the Rogue there should be a mystery performance -- one of those listings that you have absolutely no idea what you're getting into. For me, this was A Night of Musical Scenes staged by a group called Brass Ring Productions. Better yet, this mystery group is performing at a mystery place: a venue called "Superior ATM" way out on Blythe Avenue just north of Shaw. (It's one of the examples of a Rogue BYOV, or Bring Your Own Venue, though most of the off-site locations are closer to the Tower District and downtown.)

My interest was piqued. Would I arrive and find a bank of ATM machines ready to dispense cash in case I didn't have enough for a ticket? Would it be a full-fledged little theater smack in the middle of an office park? Any chance there'd be any spare $20 bills laying around?

In her solo-performance show Along the Path of Larks and Swallows, Mia Paschal bursts onto the stage clasping a long, red velvet streamer to her bosom. The implication is clear: We're in for some heartbreak. For those of us who saw Paschal's terrific solo show last year at the Rogue, the question is: Just how dark will this outing be? Last year, Paschal offered up a searing depiction of her repeated attempts to kill herself. A blend of aching realism and abstract digressions, it was a stormy glimpse at a very complicated mind.

"Along the Path of Larks and Swallows" is not as dark, although Paschal still brings more than a hint of melancholy to the proceedings. Focusing this time on matters of the heart, she delivers another beautifully written and performed show that might not be as philosophically dizzying as last year's but that still connects on several levels.

Mia writes:

I wanted to let you know that "Along the Path of Larks and Swallows" has added a performance: Sunday, March 2nd, at 5:30 pm at the Starline (831 E. Fern Ave.). It's short notice, but I hope it can make it in your Rogue blog.

Sure thing. Mia's performance Saturday night was almost sold out, by the way, so this is a great added opportunity to see her show.

Carrie (Kate McKnight) and Louise (Julia Reimer) are college buddies who haven't seen each other in years -- until a chance encounter at Bergdorf's department store in New York rekindles the relationship. In Lanford Wilson's affecting one-acter "The Great Nebula in Orion," we're plopped into a situation that is both distant and tremendously intimate, and it's a tribute to the playwright's texturing of his characters that it all seems very true to life.

Carrie, who has a perfect husband, kids, house and bank account, should be the happiest clam in the world. But she envies her classmate Louise, who has carved out a notable career as a fashion designer. When Louise invites Carrie back to her apartment for an afternoon visit -- which turns into an afternoon encounter with a bottle of brandy -- old tensions come to light.

In my Sunday Spotlight column I write about Fresno native Heidi Blickenstaff, who is currently appearing in "The Little Mermaid" on Broadway. In the first act of the show she sings and dances in the ensemble. (Yes, she had to learn to skate around on specially designed "mer-blades" while she's playing an eel.) In the second act of the show, she plays the role of Carlotta, who serves as a sort of maid/governess/confidante to Ariel. Here's a picture of her playing Carlotta in the show. The bustle on her dress weighs more than 40 pounds, making it one of the heaviest costumes on Broadway.

Heidi can be heard on the original cast album for "Title of Show," which became an off-Broadway hit when it played at the Vineyard Theater in New York.

Another recent project for her was a new musical called "Meet John Doe," which was staged in Washington, D.C. at the Ford Theater. She just found out last week that she received a Helen Hayes award nomination (given for Washington-area productions) for best leading actress in a musical for her role in the show.

What does a theater critic do on vacation? Go see more theater, of course. But this time, instead of Fresno, I found myself in New York City, where I saw a whopping eight plays in eight days. (Throw in three museums and the Westminster Dog Show at Madison Square Garden, and you could say that I managed to keep pretty busy.) I write in my Sunday Spotlight column about "The Little Mermaid," one of the shows I saw.

For musical theater fans out there, here's the list of all the shows I caught:

1. Curtains: a jovial "murder-mystery" starring David Hyde Pierce of "Frasier" fame. The pedigree of this show is impressive: It comes from John Kander and Fred Ebb, who wrote such Broadway biggies as "Chicago." The result is on the slight side, however. Hyde Pierce is personable and hard-working, and co-star Debra Monk, as a brassy and cynical producer, is terrific, but I wasn't that sorry when the curtain fell.

Dancers of different ages and skill levels are showcased in Elemental Dance, which serves as a preview to the spring concert at California Arts Academy. Some of the dances are nods to the earth and water elements. They are serene and almost meditative.

Among the highlights is "Glass Underwater," choreographed by Carla Stallings-Lippert, which begins with its contingent of dancers stretched out on the floor kicking their legs, as if they're in a water ballet. "La Papillon Blue," choroegraphed by Hannah Ozeran, has almost an Irish lilt feel to the music and dancing, while "Lullaby," choreographed by Noel Pryor has a sturdy sweetness to its movement that is effective. (Can anyone in the company tell me what music was used for this piece? It's beautiful.)

At the risk of sounding like judge Randy Jackson on "American Idol," what you select to perform at a fringe festival can be as important as how you perform it. In the case of Artists' Repertory Theatre, picking David Ives' All in the Timing for the Rogue was a great choice.

This jovial and thought-provoking collection of four short plays is a perfect match for the festival. The show is funny, fast-paced, engagingly philosophical and occasionally bizarre.

The last two plays of the collection, "Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread" and "Variations on the Death of Trotsky," are my favorites.

I can't recommend All's Red That's Riding Hood, an original play by Terrance V. McArthur that won the Woodward Shakespeare Festival's 2007 Playwright Competition. Conceived as a cross between a fractured fairy tale and a riff on Shakespearean tragedies, the play gives us a different perspective on the traditional Riding Hood tale. This time the Wolf is an exiled nobleman named DeWolf (played by James Sherrill) and Red Riding Hood (Alicia Buss) an opinionated near-adult who is quick to judgment. Written in blank verse, the play draws allusions to other fairy tales as well and then squeezes in a "Romeo and Juliet" motif.

Sherrill is well-cast physically in the role with his imposing height and long, flowing hair, and he offers a nice hint of the hurt and vulnerability that De Wolf feels within. Buss, as Riding Hood, has a strong stage presence and handles the blank verse nicely, while Randi Saul-Olson, as the Grandmother, injects some liveliness into the production with her character's brazen declarations. (It turns out that Grandma has, well, a little drinking problem.)