FresnoBeehive.com

It’s time for me to take off my columnist/hard-news writer hat and put on my entertainment blogger/writer hat. Though I’ve spent a lot of time recently following the strike against Fresno Grand Opera, I also need to cover the company’s production of “Show Boat” — which opens Friday night at the Saroyan Theatre — like any other significant upcoming cultural event.

With that in mind, I have two pairs of good orchestra seats (each one with a face value of $62.50) to give away to the opera: one pair for 8 p.m. Friday and the other for 2 p.m. Saturday.

“Show Boat,” written in 1927, is a major part of theater history — it’s considered the first true “book” Broadway musical that seamlessly integrates storyline and music. The characters are far more three-dimensional than in vaudeville entertainments and operettas in the past, and creators Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II dared to tackle elaborate and unconventional topics.

To enter, leave a comment on this post telling us whether you’d like to attend the Friday performance, the Saturday performance, or either. These are paper tickets, so you’ll need to be able to come down to The Bee’s front lobby by 5 p.m. Friday to pick them up.

Deadline is 10 a.m. Wednesday.

I’ll notify the winner via e-mail — so please leave a real e-mail address and please check it. Duplicate entries are not allowed. I reserve the right to pick another winner if you haven’t responded to a notification email in a timely manner. You’re ineligible if you’ve won anything from the Beehive in the past 30 days. Full rules on the jump.

Only readers who submit a comment on this post are eligible. The winners will be picked at random. Recipients will be notified by e-mail at the end of each giveaway period. No substitutions or transfer of winners/prizes. Prizes are not redeemable for cash. Some prizes may have due dates for redemption/use. Employees and immediate family of The Fresno Bee, fresnobee.com and any/all of the participating giveaway sponsors, are not eligible to win. By accepting a giveaway, recipient consents to allow the use of his/her name and/or photograph for advertising or similar promotions without further compensation. Winner releases all sponsors of liability regarding use and enjoyment of the prizes. Tax liabilities and insurance, if any, are sole responsibility of the winner. No purchase necessary to win.