By Wayne Towner
Special to the Times
PARKERSBURG - The Smoot Theatre will open its 21st season of entertainment in September with the Live Entertainment Series, featuring a variety of music and drama.
For information and tickets regarding any of the Smoot's shows through the 2010-2011 season, call (304) 422-PLAY (7529) or go online to www.smoot-theatre.com.
For the past several years, the Smoot has opened each season with a "party in the alley" followed by an indoor performance at the theatre at 213 Fifth St. in downtown Parkersburg, said Smoot director Felice Jorgeson.
This year's opening program is called "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" featuring the musical group M-PACT.
The event will be Sept. 11, with the ally party at 6 p.m. and the concert at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $39 (inclusive) for adults. There will be food, drinks and live entertainment. M-PACT is known for performing the music of Motown, disco, doo-wap and more. The group has performed at jazz festivals and performing arts centers around the globe.
The second show of the season, "Chaplin: A Life in Concert," will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 5 at the Smoot. Tickets are $27 for adults and $15 for students, high school and younger.
In a unique and special multi-media event, the show dramatizes, through song, the life story of the brilliant and controversial artist, Charlie Chaplin, with award-winner David Pomeranz in the title role, along with many other roles in the production.
The next show in the Live Entertainment Series will be "The Music Man" at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 25, 2011, in a show for the entire family. It will be presented by Windwood Productions, which has presented other popular shows at the Smoot over the years.
Tickets will be $39 for adults and $20 for students, high school and younger.
"The Music Man" follows fast-talking traveling salesman Harold Hill as he cons the people of River City, Iowa, in 1912 into buying musical instruments and uniforms for a boy's band he vows to organize despite the fact he doesn't know a trombone from a treble clef. His plans to skip town with the cash are foiled when he falls for Marian, the town librarian, with chaos ensuing as the townsfolk get wind of his scheme.
The musical features familiar classics like "Ya Got Trouble," "Seventy-Six Trombones," "Goodnight My Someone," "Gary, Indiana" and "Till There Was You."
On Feb. 17, 2011, Barrage will take the Smoot stage at 7:30 p.m. for a high-octane fiddle-fest that features an international, multi-talented cast performing an eclectic mix of music, song and dance.
Tickets will be $27 for adults and $15 for students.
Barrage's performance offers a diverse fusion of cultures, musical styles and incredible performance vitality. The group was formed in 1996.
