Briefs: Theater, dance and music events
Theater
‘BETRAYAL’ BRINGS
PINTER BACK TO LV
One of the theater’s most celebrated playwrights, Nobel Prize winner Harold Pinter, hasn’t been represented on local stages for five years.
But that changes tonight when Pinter’s “Betrayal” opens a three-weekend run at Las Vegas Little Theatre’s Studio.
The action of the play runs backward in time, detailing the numerous ties (and betrayals) that bind three characters: best friends Robert (Joe Hynes) and Jerry (Shane Cullum ), plus Emma (Sarah Spraker ), Robert’s wife, who had a seven-year affair with Jerry.
Although “the plot is probably the most accessible of any Pinter play,” in director David McKee’s view, “there are layers and layers of betrayal in the play.”
For example, “characters give contradictory versions of events,” he notes, and “it’s left for the audience to sort that out.”
That sort of psychological depth — along with “the elegance and precision of the writing” — has always been a Pinter hallmark, according to McKee.
“He trusts the audience to do its thinking,” he says.
Although “Betrayal” (reportedly inspired by Pinter’s adulterous affair with a BBC broadcaster) was originally written in the 1980s, and set in the ’70s, the LVLT production is set in current times — in part because, as McKee explains, “it’s something that could be going on in any household today, and it probably is.”
The production (which includes adult language and situations) will be staged at 8 p.m. to day and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Las Vegas Little Theatre Studio, 3890 Schiff Drive; additional performances are 8 p.m. March 22-23 and 29-30 and 2 p.m. March 24 and 31. For tickets ($12 adults, $11 for seniors and students), call 362-7996 or go online to www.LVLT.org.
Dance
‘SHEN YUN’ SALUTES
CHINESE CULTURE
Centuries of Chinese civilization comes to life through music and dance in “Shen Yun,” which opens a four-performance run tonight in The Smith Center’s Reynolds Hall.
Almost a hundred artists — wearing 400 costumes — present a cavalcade of 5,000 years of Chinese culture, bringing to life various regions, dynasties and legends. In addition to ethnic and folk dances, “Shen Yun” spotlights classical Chinese dance, which has its own postures, leaps, flips, spins and other tumbling techniques.
Singers and battle drummers also perform against animated backdrops that transport audiences to another world. An orchestra featuring both Western and Chinese instruments provides accompaniment.
“Shen Yun” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. today, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday in Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, 361 Symphony Park Ave. For tickets ($50-$180), call (855) 463-6779 or go online to www.ShenYun.com/Vegas.
Theater
COCKROACH DEBUTS
‘YOU MAY GO NOW’
Grief may not sound like a laughing matter — except, perhaps, in “You May Go Now,” which begins a three-weekend run tonight at downtown’s Art Square Theatre.
The Cockroach Theatre production of Bekah Brunstetter’s play, which focuses on “how we deal with grief,” is a Las Vegas premiere, according to director Erik Amblad , who’s also Cockroach Theatre’s artistic director.
“Bekah Brunstetter’s take on how we cope with the tragedies life throws at us leaves me laughing at its audacity and crying at its” poignancy, Amblad says, “sometimes in the same moment.”
In the play, Dottie (Anita Bean) reacts to her husband’s death by retreating to an unfamiliar world that looks eerily like the ’50s, living in her imagination with her “daughter” (Brenna Folger) — until that world begins to unravel.
Cast members Bean, Folger, Alex Olson and Joe Basso make their Cockroach Theatre debuts; it’s also the Las Vegas stage debut for Basso, a Chapparal High School classmate of Amblad’s who returns to Southern Nevada after 20 years as an actor in Los Angeles.
“You May Go Now” will be presented at 8 p.m. today and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Art Square Theatre, 1025 S. First St. Performances continue at 8 p.m. March 21-23 and March 28-30 and 2 p.m. March 24 and 31.
Tickets ($18 general admission, $15 students and seniors) are available at the door or online a www.cockroachtheatre.com.
Music
COURTHOUSE, LIBRARY
HOST FREE CONCERTS
Two free concerts beckon music lovers today and Sunday.
At noon today, Las Vegas’ Downtown Cultural Series presents acoustic singer-songwriters Bill and Kate Isles in the jury assembly room of the Lloyd D. George Federal Courthouse, 333 Las Vegas Blvd. South.
Based in Minnesota, the duo tours nationally, performing in a wide variety of musical styles.
For more information, call 229-3515 or go online to www.billandkateisles.com or www.artslasvegas.com.
And at 3 p.m. Sunday, young musicians team up with the Nevada Chamber Symphony for “Orquestra Futura” at the Clark County Library, 1401 E. Flamingo Road.
The free concert marks the conclusion of the chamber symphony’s 26th season as Rodolfo Fernandez conducts a classical program spanning various cultures and time periods.
For more information, call 507-3400.
Dance
WINCHESTER HOSTS
FOLKLORICO TROUPE
Mexico is as close as the Winchester Cultural Center on Saturday when the center welcomes the Xochipilli Folklorico dance troupe.
Named for the Aztec god of art, dance and flowers, Xochipilli Folklorico leads its audiences on a journey through Mexican culture via folklore and dance, performing in traditional costumes to time-honored music.
The performance begins at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Winchester Cultural Center, 3130 McLeod Drive. For tickets ($10 in advance, $12 on the day of the show), call 455-7340.
Dance
STUDENTS PRESENT
CONCERT AT CSN
The wide world of dance comes home to the College of Southern Nevada tonight when the CSN Dance Club presents its 14th annual concert.
The performance, which is entirely student-generated, features various forms of dance.
The concert will begin at 7 p.m. in CSN’s BackStage Theatre, 3200 E. Cheyenne Ave., North Las Vegas.
Tickets ($8 for adults, $5 for students and seniors) are available by calling 651-5483.
— By CAROL CLING
