GO TO HARTFORD STAGE TO HELP "SIMONA'S SEARCH"

Life is complicated and messy, even if you believe there are no deep secrets to discover in your family’s past. For a young girl Simona, a curiously obsessed Alejandra Escalante, an incident at the first sleepover for her girl friends starts her on a journey of unfolding all the secrets that her father Papi, a stubbornly silent Al Rodrigo, is shielding her from. His past in Latin America is his business and not hers, as he guards it from her prying eyes. Hartford Stage is offering this world premiere production “Simona’s Search” by Martin Zimmerman until Sunday, February 11and you will be quickly swept along in her imagination and trauma.

Simona and Papi share a dedicated love for all things science, as he compulsively clips articles he thinks will spark her love of learning. Their tiny apartment is stacked with boxes meant to inspire her knowledge. While he openly offers Simona these educational moments to treasure, he is compulsively quiet about any facts of his childhood before he immigrated to America.

With her scientific mind on high alert, Simona knows that dark shadows frame his past, disturbing events that are affecting him emotionally and physically and she feels compelled to know the answers. Along the way she meets Christopher Bannow’s Jake who shares her love of learning and tries through his love for her to help her through the mental health crisis she has created for herself.

This is a compelling tale that will capture your sympathy and concern as you watch Simona risk everything for the answers. Her genetic research threatens to overwhelm her mind as she refuses to stop her search. Go on this journey with her and learn if she ever unlocks the mysterious clues she seeks so compulsively, thanks to the fine direction by Melia Bensussen.

For tickets ($30 and up), call the Hartford Stage, 50 Church Street, Hartford at 860-527-5151 or online at boxoffice@hartfordstage.org. Performances are Tuesday to Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., with matinees on Saturday and Sunday and a select Wednesday at 2 p.m.

We are all curious about our family’s history and heritage but Simona carries that quest to great lengths to help her Papi deal with his demons and finally put them to rest.

SKI INTO GOODSPEED FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS FOR WINTER DELIGHTS

For some people, winter signals a time for sledding, skating, snowboarding and snowman making. For others, like me, the highlight of the cold weather months is a special weekend, this year Friday to Sunday, January 12-14, when music theater lovers gather in East Haddam for the 2024 Goodspeed Festival of New Musicals. Come join this magical celebration. Hopefully the weatherman will cooperate and there will be no need for snow shoes or skis, just for open hearts and minds to the wonders that musical theater offers in abundance.

For the 18th year, Goodspeed is presenting a weekend with a trio of new musicals in play reading form, a pair pf exciting cabarets, and a whole day, on Saturday, stuffed with seminars, a symposium, a special announcement about the Terris Theatre season in Chester, and a festive dinner at the Gelston House next door as an added option.

First up at 7 p.m. Friday is a staged reading with book. music and lyrics by Claudine Mboligikepelani Nako. Enter the plant world created by Nike, a hard working Black owner of Miss Nika’s Awesome Blossoms, who feels pressure and a growing resentment maintaining her status as a community role model in “Photosynthesis.” When her ancient Volkswagen Beetle desperately needs repairs, she discovers that her car is not the only one with broken parts.

At 9:30 p.m., come listen to the compositions of Nevada Lazano, a pianist, lyricist, composer, professional music director, arranger, and orchestrator, who will share some of his latest works in a cabaret at the Gelston House.

On Saturday, gather at the Gelston House from 9 a.m. to noon, to select your tickets for three seminars at 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. that are sure to feature talks by people significant in the musical theater world. At 3:30 p.m. there will be the Terris Theatre announcement followed at 4:30 p.m. by a special presentation and at 5:30 p.m. a Festival Dinner at the Gelston House.

At 7:30 p.m. prepare to be entranced by “Letters to the President” conceived by Michael Bello and Jessica Kahkoska, the latter the researcher and letter curator of the piece. A tradition began in 1783 when George Washington took office for citizens to send missives no matter their political party, race, age or background of their hopes, dreams and fears for our country. These letters have been enhanced by the works of multiple composers for inspiration.

With an emphasis on mental health, and her own personal experiences, Nikki Lynette will share excerpts from her autobiographical musical “Get Out Alive” at the Gelston House in a 9:30 p.m. cabaret. She will also debut selections from her new documusical “Happy Songs About Unhappy Things” which she just finished filming and is currently adapting into a live theatrical experience.

On Sunday, at 1 p.m., enter a world created with book and lyrics by Scott Gilmour with music by Claire McKenzie, based on a novel by Paul Gallico. An injured animal, "The Snow Goose," unites two unlikely people in friendship as they try to restore it to flight. A young girl Fritha bonds with Rhayader, a recluse, as the threat of a world war looms ever closer.

At 3:30 p.m., the weekend will culminate in a fascinating discussion by the three sets of composers on the sources of their work, the inspirations and challenges in a question and answer forum.

A Festival Package for $100 can be purchased that includes a ticket for all three staged readings, three seminars, a symposium, the Terris Theatre announcement, and meet the writers. You can add the festival dinner at Gelston House for $42, and either of the cabarets for $15. Single tickets for the readings are $30, students $15. Call the Goodspeed box office at 860-873-8668 to order. Friends of the Festival can also be purchased for $500 by calling 860-873-8664, ext. 366.

Make the Goodspeed Festival of New Musicals the highlight of your winter season as you ski, sled, snow shoe or snowboard into musical theater heaven.

LET THE MUSICAL MAGIC OF "HAIRSPRAY" ENVELOPE YOU AT THE PALACE THEATER

Can you imagine a whole generation being defined by its hair styles? If you can, then you are ready to make the acquaintance of a special teenager from Baltimore.

With a hairdo that looks like it was inflated by a bike tire pump, teenager Tracy Turnblad has a heart big enough to take over the whole world. She recognizes fairness and inequality and would ban prejudice if she had it in her power. When she gets a chance to dance as a regular on the Corny Collins TV Show, she ignores the fact that she doesn't fit the svelte image of the other kids already chosen and dances her Baltimore best.

The 1960's come alive in this sparkling musical comedy "Hairspray" based on the movie by John Waters, and the award-winning show has a book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, with music by Marc Shaiman and lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman. The Palace Theater in Waterbury will be injecting energy and enthusiasm Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, January 16-18.

Even if you don’t have a weekly hair appointment at your local salon, you’re not a certified cosmetologist, you’ve never spent three hours teasing and pouffing your hair into a football helmet-like coif, you’ll still find a lot to love about the musical “Hairspray.” Caroline Wiseman is a terrific and tremendously talented Tracy Turnblad who may be just a teenager but one on the verge of big-sized discoveries about life.

Tracy and her teen friends, including her BFF Penny, an adorable Scarlett Jacques, will be dancing their bobby socks off and making their poodle skirts bark and howl. When Tracy, a plump dance queen wannabe, wins a coveted spot on the Corny Collins Show, a local television program, she becomes an overnight sensation. Her adoration for the show's teen heart throb Link Larkin, a hunky Skyler Shields, puts her in direct competition with the snobby star of the show Caroline Portner as the opinionated Amber Von Tussle. Amber with her mom Velma, a manipulative Sarah Hayes, have been in control of all the goings on and like it that way. Corny Collins, an open-minded Andrew Scoggin, and the show's sponsor, the owner of Ultra Clutch Hairspray, played by Micah Sauvageau in a variety of roles, are steam rolled by Velma's bossy attitude.

Tracy uses her new fifteen minutes of fame to launch a campaign to allow colored and white students to bogey on the show at the same time, an unheard of reality in 1960’s American society and one that Baltimore is not quickly or easily going to accept. Her friendship with a fellow student Seaweed, a versatile Josiah Rogers, and his impressive mom Motormouth Maybelle, a charismatic Deidre Lang, help her mount her platform against prejudice.

All kids should have supportive parents like Tracy, her mom Edna, portrayed with skillful fun by Greg Kalafatas, and her dad Wilbur, brought to life by a caring Ralph Prentice Daniel, are in direct contrast to Penny's worrisome mother who fears everything in her daughter's life, played by Emmanuelle Zeesman, who also tackles all the female authority figures. Jack O'Brien directs this bursting at the seams happy fest of a show that is stuffed with great songs like "Good Morning, Baltimore," "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now," "I Can Hear the Bells" and "You Can Hear the Beat.” Watch for Kaila Symone Crowder as Little Inez.

For tickets ($47and up), call the Palace Theater, 100 Main Street, Waterbury at 203-346-2000 or online at palacetheaterct.org. Performances are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Follow this enthusiastic and principled girl as she questions the rules and is willing to risk everything, even being imprisoned, for her beliefs. With the help of her parents and her best friends, Tracy inspires a conga line of loyal followers as she makes all her dreams come true.

Let your hair down or bouffant it up, your choice, as you cha-cha to Waterbury for a turn around the dance floor with that most trustworthy and talented teen Tracy Turnblad.

"HIP HOP NUTCRACKER" JUMPS INTO THE PALACE THEATER IN WATERBURY

Are you ready to literally shake up your holiday season with something vibrant and new, unusual and different? If so, the Palace Theater in Waterbury has quite the surprise package for you to open. for one day only,Saturday, December 30 at 7 p.m.

Since 1892, “The Nutcracker,” a charming ballet by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, has had the ability to enchant families. But it wasn’t until the late 1960’s that it became a Christmas tradition, especially in North America. The magical tale of a young girl Clara is set on Christmas Eve when her godfather surprises everyone gathered around a beautiful Christmas tree with toys, including four life-size dolls who dance to the delight of the guests. He also has a special Nutcracker that Clara is drawn to, fascinated, but her brother Fritz accidentally breaks it.

Her godfather fixes it and Clara returns during the night to assure herself all is well. After an army of mice appear, the Christmas tree grows taller as well as the Nutcracker assumes a greater presence. A battle ensues, the Nutcracker becomes a Prince and he and Clara travel through the forest to the Land of the Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy and have wild adventures. That was then, this is now and “The Nutcracker” has gone to amazing new heights as it goes, are you ready, Hip Hop!

Be prepared to be wildly entertained as Tchaikovsky’s classic tale is reimaged into a contemporary dance spectacular with a dozen all-star dancers, a DJ, a violinist and Mr. Kurtis “The Breaks” Blow, a founding father of hip hop and the first rapper to be signed to a major label in 1979. “I love taking this show on the road each year and creating lifelong memories for our audiences,” says Kurtis Walker, known professionally as Kurtis Blow. “And to be celebrating our 15th season this year is such a big accomplishment for the show.” It’s a big accomplishment for Blow as well; who on December 6, 2020, had a heart transplant that has given him a new life. He paved the way for generations of hip hop artists and fans after scoring the first certified gold record rap song in 1980, “The Breaks.”

Called an “electrifying dance experience,” this is "The Nutcracker” as you’ve never seen it before. Clara and her Nutcracker still go on a dream adventure, they battle the mice gang, travel to the Land of the Sweets and learn the lessons of the holiday season, all while transforming the 130 year old story from 19th century Germany to a diverse, colorful, and dramatic New York City in the most magical way possible.

If you are in the Waterbury area, head to the Palace Theater, 100 East Main Street, on Saturday, December 30 at 7 pm for tickets $39-69, by calling 203-346-2000 or online palacetheaterct.org. Bring a new tradition to the family holiday celebration by experiencing the magic of "The Nutcracker” in a unique and fantastic way as a dancing Hip Hop trip into time.

FLY INTO THE HARTFORD STAGE UNTIL DECEMBER 24 FOR A SPIRITED " A CHRISTMAS CAROL"

What would this time of year be without a retelling of Charles Dickens’ immortal tale about forgiveness, redemption and change of heart? Have no fear as the Hartford Stage is ready and most willing to welcome you with a spirited version for your family’s pleasure.

Christmas is a holiday for people who are open hearted and generous, joyful and grateful. But what if you are mean spirited, grumpy and greedy, with a heart as closed up tight as the Pharaoh of Egypt or a miserable miser who never learned how to share. The epitome of ingratitude and selfishness is surely Ebenezer Scrooge and he is ready and willing to defend his sullen attitude until Sunday, December 24 in the Hartford Stage’s glorious and ghostly adaptation by Michael Wilson of Charles Dickens' “A Christmas Carol A Ghost Story of Christmas,” a family tradition since 1998. It is now back livelier then even after a three year absence due to the pandemic.

For the first time Allen Gilmore will be donning his night cap and assuming the persona of our favorite bah humbug curmudgeon, old Ebenezer Scrooge, who refuses to acknowledge the Christmas holiday and begrudges his faithful and hard working employee Bob Cratchit, the loyal Ryan Garbayo, even one day off a year with pay. This year, however, on Christmas Eve, Scrooge’s old partner in business Jacob Marley (Noble Shropshire), dead as a door nail lo these seven years, comes back to warn Scrooge to mend his ways or he is fated to join Marley in a place of deep regrets.

To help and encourage Scrooge to change, Marley is sending him three spirits, the Spirit of Christmas Past (Rebecca Jones), the Spirit of Christmas Present (John-Andrew Morrison) and the Spirit of Christmas Future on Christmas Eve at 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. Scrooge will be given the opportunity to review his past life and see what he had in life and what he lost and what he can still regain if he is willing to change. The vendors like the inventor of watchworks (Mauricio Miranda) certainly hope Scrooge can mend his ways.

Along the way, our cranky businessman visits a former employer Mr. Fezziwig (Stuart Rider) and his wife (Sarah Killough), his fiancee Belle (Vanessa R. Butler), his nephew Fred (Erik Bloomquist) and the home of his clerk Bob who has a crippled son Tiny Tim (Calin “Cali” Butterfield or Aria Pierce). At each step of the journey, Scrooge has his eyes opened wider to see what the world has to offer if he only opens his heart to the possibilities. Meanwhile ghosts swirl and fly in a masked ball of supernatural steps. They are here to scare a little sense into Mr. Scrooge and help him to avoid Marley’s disasterous fate.

By the end of Christmas Eve, Scrooge declares “I am not the man I was. I will learn the lessons I have been told. I will dispel the shadows.” When he sends for the prize turkey, he has clearly come to his senses and begs forgiveness from the town’s people in general and his family in particular. Michael Wilson has returned to direct this heartwarming production that has so much to offer.

For tickets ($30 and up), call the Hartford Stage, 50 Church Street, Hartford at 860-527-5151 or online at HartfordStage.org. Performances are Tuesday to Sunday at 7:30 p.m. with matinees Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.

Don’t let the holiday season escape without a visit to that most famous of cantankerous curmudgeons, Ebenezer Scrooge, who transforms himself into a new man thanks to the visitations of a trio of ghosts who help him see the errors of his ways.

FOR MYSTERY AND MAGIC GO SEE "A SHERLOCK CAROL" AT WESTPORT COUNTRY PLAYHOUSE

What do you get when you combine a mystery with some ghosts and a heartwarming family holiday story? Just ask writer and director Mark Shanahan of the Westport Country Playhouse where his new play “A Sherlock Carol” will be playing from Tuesday, December 19 to Saturday, December 23 how it all came to pass. To Shanahan, Charles Dickens wrote the best ghost story ever, calling it "astounding.” He combined that love with an admiration for the old Basil Rathbone movies starring that great detective Sherlock Holmes that his dad took him to when he was a child growing up in New York’s East Village.

Fortuitively, he has mixed these two favorite characters together into a holiday play for the whole family to enjoy. He likens it to "a dinner party, inviting friends from different social circles…and hoping like heck they’d get along.” To that end, he has placed these iconic characters by Doyle and Dickens in a new inventive stage mystery.

Come see such unique innovations as a talking door knocker, the spooky elements that resonate throughout, a reimagined holiday classic, a murder mystery set in London in 1894, the deaths of two famous characters like Holmes’ great enemy Professor James Moriarty and, unexpectedly, Ebenezer Scrooge. Can Holmes follow the clues to find the dastardly perpetrator or is he doomed to become the town's new miser himself? How will a grown-up Tiny Tim, now a doctor and Scrooge’s benefactor, influence the outcome?

Also playing a huge part in writing the play, Shanahan was intrigued by the mission of Paul Newman’s The Hole in the Wall Camp created in Ashford, Connecticut in 1988 to serve children with serious illnesses. Newman established a special place, a wonderful and free camping experience that is now in many places around the world. Donations to the camp and to the Westport Home with Hope food pantry drive will be benefactors from the production. Patrons are also encouraged to take a photo in the lobby at Sherlock Holmes' house, 211B Baker Street, London.

Shanahan was inspired to envision Tiny Tim as “someone with a little help from a certain benefactor, who battled illness and went on to help others do the same. Just like Scrooge did, we can all keep Christmas in our hearts throughout the year by donating to these remarkable organizations.”

For tickets ($35-70, students call the box office for $20 tickets), call the Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, Westport, off route 1 at 203-227-4177 or 888-927-7529 or online at www.westportplayhouse.org. Performances are Tuesday-Thursday at 7 p.m., Friday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Bring the family to the Westport Country Playhouse for a novel look at two classic tales with all the mystery and magic that the Christmas holiday demands.

PANTOCHINO PRODUCTIONS IS BAKING UP "CHRISTMAS COOKIES! THE MUSICAL" TIL DEC. 23

What better way to welcome the happy jolly season of Christmas then with a silver platter stacked with snow ball crinkles, candy cane cookies, rum balls, fruit cake bars, chocolate kisses, pinwheels and gingerbread men, or whatever confection rings your culinary bells. But what if your favorite bakery, Sweet’s. is facing hard times and the owner, Mrs Baker, a hard working Maria Berte, may be forced to end the generations of her family who have supplied the town of Mayfield with delicious treats.

Master chefs Bert Bernardi, for recipe book and clever lyrics, and Justin Rugg, for merry music, have concocted a delicious holiday surprise, with Pantochino Production's "Christmas Cookies! The Musical." The Milford Center for the Arts will be festooned in red and green and silver finery weekends until Saturday, December 23 and what an appetizing way to treat the family to some tasty fun.

For many years, Pantochino has been delivering original musicals and this one may be the most delectable ever. What do you do when a wonderful old-fashioned bakery falls on "crummy" times? A little girl Kris, a sweet Ella Bedenbaugh, writes a sincere letter to Santa asking for help and that assistance comes in the perfect package of a trio of gingerbread girls, Mary Mannix, Shelley Marsh Poggio and Rachelle Ianniello, who come to life to sing their way to save the bake shoppe. It doesn’t help that a villian Dexter Dell-Dubis, Jimmy Johansmeyer, the ambitious and meanly aggressive owner of a coffee empire wants to swoop in and buy the bakery for his own selfish desires, challenging the good intentions of George Spelvin’s Mister Kay and Justin Rugg’s Murray the Mailman.

Once again Jimmy Johansmeyer has gone fashionably wild to dress the cookie girls in holiday happiness, with colorful sets by Von Del Mar, sparkling lighting by Jeff Carr and smashing sound by Richard Ives, all under the careful care of stage manager Christina Ronquillo and cheerful direction by Bert Bernardi. Justin Rugg’s tunes like “Christmas Cookie Time,” “A Little Bit if Baking Powder,” The Best Little Bakery in Town,” and “This Christmas” make the action move happily along.

The ensemble cast also includes Wyatt Hughes, Katie Durham, Christy Chiaramonte, Valerie Solli, Aria Chiaramonte and Sydney Maher.

For tickets ($30), go online to www.pantochino.com or visit 40 Railroad Avenue South, Milford for performances Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. These are cabaret style with tables and chairs, so you can enjoy your own foods and drink during the show.

Come take a big bite out of this heavenly confection as a trio of adorable Christmas cookies Ginger, Blondie and Rosette come to the rescue in a most delicious and magically musical way.