Get! Out!

GET OUT! June 29 to July 1

By PAM HARBAUGH

You’ve been waiting for something unusual. Well, here are three unusual shows…ones you’ve never seen around here at any rate. You’ve waited a year since it was announced, now…you’ve got HEDWIG tonight and tomorrow at CVP. There’s an original play at Surfside. Don’t forget that gut-wrenching drama for those who like their theater with a strong dose of great acting. Check below for more info.

Be sure to click on ads for the organizations supporting Brevard Culture. Thank you.

Theater:

HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH is something you probably never expected to see in this area. But it will play tonight and Saturday at Cocoa Village Playhouse. It stars Benjamin Cox as the gender fluid man who receives botched up sex reassignment surgery. Lotsa rock ‘n roll. Tickets are $18 to $34. This is adults only stuff, also something very unexpected given the mainstream-mindedness of area theater. Cocoa Village Playhouse is at 300 Brevard Ave., Cocoa, FL. Call 321-636-5050, visit CocoaVillagPlayhouse.com or click on their ad.

Ben Cox as Hedwig in HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH at Cocoa Village Playhouse

GIDION’S KNOT runs through July 8 at Theater on the Edge in Orlando. If need a drama fix, this is it. I am humbled to be directing the production at Theater on the Edge and thrilled to have worked with two powerful Meisner-trained actors — Kyrstal Glover and Natalie Bulajic. The setting is a fifth grade classroom and the action starts when a mother visits the teacher who suspended her son for something he wrote. A mystery quickly unfolds. The play is muscular enough to hold many themes, including censorship, responsibility, honesty, cowardice, bullying and more. Read the review by clicking here. Although set in a classroom, this play is intended for adults, so leave the children home. Tickets are $18 to $26. Theater on the Edge is at 5542 Hansel Avenue, Orlando, FL. Email info@theaterontheedge.org, visit TheaterOnTheEdge.org or click on their ad.

From left: Natalie Bulajic and Krystal Glover in GIDION’S KNOT at Theater on the Edge. Photo by Theater on the Edge.

KALISPELL runs this weekend at Surfside Playhouse. Written by Kim E. Ruyle, this is the winner of Surfside’s 2018 Full Length Play Competition. It revolves around an aging father in a Montana logging business and concerns his sons and daughter — his only child interested in running the family business. Curtain is 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $10 plus $1.75 handling fee. Surfside Playhouse is at 301 Ramp Road (5th St. South), Cocoa Beach, FL. Call 321-783-3127, visit SurfsidePlayers.com or click on their ad.

Fur die TEENAGE Kinder:

CHESS runs through Saturday at Satellite High School Performing Arts Center. This musical is set during the Cold War and concerns two chess masters competing in a world tournament. With music by ABBA and lyrics by Tim Rice, it is said to be loosely based on American chess whiz Bobby Fischer. This is a part of the Brevard School District’s recently reborn Summer Fine Arts Workshop, which presents some pretty spirited performances. Tickets are $10 to $12. For more information, visit SeatYourself.biz/brevardsummersouth.

BARNUM runs through Saturday at Titusville High School Performing Arts Center. The musical is based on the life of showman P.T. Barnum. This is a part of the Brevard School District’s recently reborn Summer Fine Arts Workshop, which presents some pretty spirited performances. Tickets are $10 to $12. For more information, visit SeatYourself.biz/brevardsummer.

Nightlife and Music:

COMEDY ZONE features stand up comics Shaun Jones and Cam Bertrand Friday and Saturday evenings at Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach. Shows begin at 7:30 and 9:30 tonight and Saturday. Patrons to the Comedy Zone can also enjoy free music before the shows and casino games in the lobby. Riverside Theatre is at 3250 Riverside Drive, Vero Beach. Get there early and buy a burger and a beer if you like. Tickets are $12 and $18. Call 772-231-6990, visit RiversideTheatre.com or click onto their ad.

HEIDI’S JAZZ CLUB presents Steve Kirsner and Friends 5 – 8 p.m. today followed by the Ron Teixeira Trio. Hella performs Saturday night with the Ron Teixeira Trio. In addition to great entertainment, Heidi’s offers a wonderful bar and a super bar menu. This is definitely a favorite sophisticated night spots in Brevard. It’s warm and inviting and has a dance floor and impeccable service. Read more by clicking here. Heidi’s is at 7 N Orlando Ave, Cocoa Beach, FL. Call 321-783-4559 or visit HeidisJazzClub.com or click on their ad.

Exhibits:

A LOOK BACK: FORTY YEARS OF THE FOOSANER COLLECTION exhibit runs through Nov. 3 at the Foosaner Art Museum. Selections come from the Foosaner’s wonderful 5,000-piece collection, which includes works by big name Pop artists Jim Dine, Robert Rauschenberg and John Chamberlain, celebrated photography of Clive Butcher, fabulous women artists Jennifer Bartlett and Viola Frey and award winning artists with a Brevard connection Larry Leach, Frits van Eeden and George Snyder. Also selected will be pieces from the Foosaner’s ancient American pottery and art deco objects collection. The Foosaner is at 1463 Highland Ave, Melbourne, FL. Hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Admission is free. Call 321-674-8916 or visit FoosanerArtMuseum.org.

A detail from “Railroad Vines III,” a 1997 oil on canvas by Larry Leach that will be featured in the new exhibition, “A Look Back: Forty Years of the Foosaner Collection.”

MAGGY ROZYCKI HILTNER: NOT QUITE SEW and APRON STRINGS: TIES TO THE PAST exhibits run through Aug. 11 at the Ruth Funk Center for Textile Arts. Ms. Hiltner has exhibited in important museums around the country, has been featured in publications and is a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts’ Artist’s Innovation Award for the state of Montana. The Ruth Funk is on the campus of Florida Tech, 150 W. University Blvd., Melbourne. Hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. Free admission. Call 321-674-8313.

Maggy Rozycki Hiltner, Memorial Wreath: Damnation, 2017. Hand-stitched cotton and found embroidery, 14 x 16 inches. Courtesy of the artist.

PREOCCUPATION is a solo show by 2017 100% Pure Florida winner, Vanessa Bates. This exhibit runs through June 30 at Fifth Avenue Art Gallery. On Saturday, June 9, at 2 pm, Vanessa Bates will be speaking about her ironic work. The Fifth Avenue Art Gallery is at 1470 Highland Ave., Melbourne. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays. Call 321-259-8261 or visit FifthAvenueArtGallery.com.

Something Different:

MIMING/CLOWNING WORKSHOP will join BOOTS ON THE GROUND THEATER and the NOT QUITE RIGHT PLAYERS for a one-day session 1 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday in miming and clowning. It will be led by Dalton Hedrick who studied mime in Italy. The workshop is designed to improve spacial work and physicality in scenes and will be held at the Derek Gores Gallery. Registration is $150 plus fees for general public and $100 plus fees for current NQR students. Space limited. Pre-registration is required and non-refundable. For more information or to register, click here.

Plan Ahead:

COCOA VILLAGE PLAYHOUSE SEASON ANNOUNCEMENT shindig takes place July 7 at the King Center.