A musical explores a pop diva’s storied life, a renowned classical guitarist joins the Symphonia, and a homegrown comedic play premieres in Mizner Park. Plus, political theatre in Miami and more in your week ahead.
TUESDAY
What: Opening night of “The Cher Show”
When: 7:30 p.m.
Where: Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach; 561/832-7469, kravis.org
Cost: $39-$131
Contact: 561/832-7469, kravis.org
The theatricality, the soaring pipes, those sequined and phantasmagorical Bob Mackie dresses—everything about Cher has for so long seemed tailored for Broadway that it was inevitable somebody would put two and two together. That somebody is Rick Elice, who wrote the books for Broadway’s “Jersey Boys” and “The Addams Family” and, in “The Cher Show,” celebrates another cultural touchstone. Three actresses, referred to in the show as Babe, Lady and Star, portray different eras of Cher’s life, and occasionally interact with each other, temporal logic be damned (she did write “If I Could Turn Back Time,” after all). The music, 35 songs deep, is nearly all Cher’s, and Mackie himself contributed the show’s dazzling costumes, which won “The Cher Show” a Tony in 2019. Its Kravis Center run continues through Sunday, Jan. 12.
THURSDAY
What: Opening night of “From Brooklyn to Boca”
When: 7:30 p.m.
Where: The Studio at Mizner Park, 201 Plaza Real, Boca Raton
Cost: $50-$75
Contact: 561/203-3742, thestudioatmiznerpark.com
The trek from Brooklyn to Boca is perhaps a common one for our region’s countless snowbirds. But hopefully the circumstances of the unorthodox family at the heart of this world-premiere play are less prosaic. In this wry comedy from Sharon Pfeiffer and Deni B. Sher, New York mob wife Regina Rifiuto, her husband Frank and their son Carmine are forced into witness protection after Frank decides to rat on his fellow gangsters. The brash Catholic trio is assigned to Boca Raton, where they take cover as just another of the many Jewish families in the area—a transition not without its challenges and its knowing, cross-cultural humor. The production runs through Jan. 19.
What: Opening night of “POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive”
When: 7:30 p.m.
Where: Adrienne Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami
Cost: $56-$61
Contact: 305/949-6722, arshtcenter.org
Nothing is sacred in the not-so-hallowed halls of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in this gleefully vulgar farce from up-and-coming playwright Selina Fillinger. Despite the acronym in the title, the (male) president of the United States doesn’t have a speaking part in Fillinger’s all-female satire, but his louche actions—calling his wife the “c” word while caught on camera—set in motion the zany antics of a rogues’ gallery of Beltway archetypes. The president’s convicted-felon sister, his mistress, his press secretary, his chief of staff, and aforementioned humiliated wife, as well as a White House intern and an eager reporter, converge in an effort to quell an escalating crisis. “POTUS” received two Tony nominations upon its 2022 Broadway premiere, and earns its regional-theatre debut this month from Miami’s Zoetic Stage. It runs through Jan. 26.
FRIDAY
What: Emilie-Claire Barlow
When: 8 p.m.
Where: Arts Garage, 94 N.E. Second Ave., Delray Beach
Cost: $45-$50
Contact: 561/450-6357, artsgarage.org
Those not entrenched in the passionate but insular world of birding may not be familiar with the term “spark bird”—shorthand for the particular avian that sparked one’s lifetime curiosity for our feathered friends. Dive into the latest material from two-time Juno Award-winning Canadian jazz singer Emilie-Claire Barlow, and you’ll hear the phrase a lot: Her 13th album, Spark Bird, dropped in 2023, with songs inspired by all things ornithological, and with a different bird illustration to accompany each track. Whether or not you can identify a goldfinch from a sparrow, you’ll doubtless by enchanted by Barlow’s multilingual material, which spans American Songbook standards, bossa nova classics and rearranged pop-folk favorites, aided by her signature warmth and humor.
SUNDAY
What: Symphonia Concert II
When: 3 p.m.
Where: St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church, 100 N.E. Mizner Blvd., Boca Raton
Cost: $55-$90
Contact: 561/376-3848, thesymphonia.org
Anytime the Symphonia can book a guest appearance from renowned classical guitarist Jason Vieaux is a coup for Boca’s signature orchestra. A musical omnivore, Vieaux boasts a repertory that stretches from Spanish, Argentine and West African music to blues and rock forms. A true crossover artist, Vieaux was the first classical guitarist to perform a Tiny Desk concert at NPR, and jazz virtuoso Pat Metheny wrote an entire suite for Vieaux to play. He joins the Symphonia as a soloist for “Concerto For Guitar and String Orchestra” from modern Mexican composer Samuel Zyman. Continuing the theme of still-living composers, the Symphonia’s Concert II also includes “Souvenirs” from Richard Danielpour, a composer raised here in Palm Beach County. Beethoven’s stirring Symphony No. 7 completes the program.
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