The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 224

2003:11:05:15:18:35 CALENDAR WEEKENDLOS ANGELES E55 Varekai has an otherworldly grace and magnificence that astonishes. TIME Magazine Group sales and 1 800 450-1480 FINAL 2 WEEKSINLOSANGELES Get your tickets today! cirquedusoleil.com or 1800678-5440 Photo: Vial Costumes: Eiko Ishioka Cirque du Soleil Inc. CD available onCirqueduSoleil Victor. Proud Sponsors Media Partners Written and DirectedbyDominicChampagne NOWPLAYING THRU NOV.23 ONLY! STAPLESCenter (Parking lot Varekai has an otherworldly grace and magnificence that astonishes. TIME Magazine TONIGHT at 8 FRIDAY and SATURDAY at 4 8 SUNDAY AT 1 5 TUESDAY and WEDNESDAY at 8 debbie allen arturo STORY from the Debbie Allen Dance Academy The Kennedy Center 1 week Tickets on sale now at213 365-3500 for more information Call D.A.D.A.

at 310 280-9145 www.debbieallendanceacademy.com CHOREOGRAPHER TERRY night Wadsworth Theatre, brentwood SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22ND AT 8:30 PM GALA OPENING NOVEMBER 19 TH with special performance by Arturo Sandoval Show runs through November 23rd. Gala Tickets Sold Through DADA Only: 310 441-5500. 2 Shows on Saturday, 1 Matinee on Sunday. NOVEMBER 20, (SOLD NOVEMBER 21, NOVEMBER 22, NOVEMBER 23, Wadsworth THEATRE, brentwood www.wadsworththeatre.com 8DAYS: THEATER ends Sun. (310) 827-0889.

Dracula Gothic Production presents an ad- aptation of Bram classic tale of horror. Scherr Forum Theatre, Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks. 7:30 p.m.; 2:30 p.m.; ends Sun. $25.

(805) 449-2787. A Dream of Butterflies Acomedy about romantic possibilities, by Sol Saks, creator of Theatre West, 3333 Ca- huenga Blvd. West, L.A. 8 p.m.; 2 p.m. Dark Thanksgiving; ends Nov.

30. $20. (323) 851-7977. Fried Chicken and Latkas Rain hi- larious, irreverent account of growing up black, Jewish and Richard daughter provides an effective showcase for a ripe tal- Canon Theatre, 205 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills.

8 p.m.; ends Sat. (310) 859-2830. (213) 365-3500. Gunmetal Blues This chamber mu- sical goes down as easy as an apple martini, with knockout lead performances and seamless design and Colo- ny Theatre Company, 555 N. 3rd Burbank.

8 p.m.; 2 and 7 p.m.; ends Nov. 16. (818) 558-7000. Gypsy ABroadway classic staged by Repertory Theatre Company of Simi. Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center, 3050 Los An- geles Ave.

8 p.m.; 2 p.m.; ends Nov. 30. $18, $15 senior citizens and stu- dents, $12 ages 12 and younger. (805) 583- 7900. The Heiress Ruth and play based on the Henry James novel about an unworldly unmarried woman in 1850s New York who falls for a charming young fortune hunter.

West Valley Playhouse, 7242 Owensmouth Canoga Park. 8 p.m.; 2:30 p.m.; ends Dec. 7. $20. (818) 884-1907.

La Cage aux Folles Musical Theatre 51st season opens with Jerry mu- sical comedy inspired by the French film about the complications that arise when the son of a gay nightclub owner becomes engaged. Carpenter Performing Arts Cen- ter, 6200 Atherton Long Beach. 8 p.m.; 2 p.m., except this 2 and 7 p.m.; ends Nov. 16. (562) 856-1999 Ext 4.

The Miser As Harpagon, the grasping geezer of slight sitcom, actor Mark Bram- hall goes for broke, making us cringe as much as laugh. Director Craig Belknap sets the action in 1920s Paris, and despite a few duds in the cast and a little too much fuss, the good times roll (R.K.). A Noise Within, 234 S. Brand Glendale. Today-Fri.

and Nov. 19-20, 8 p.m.; Nov. 16, 7, 2 and 7p.m.; 2 and 8 p.m.; ends Dec. 7. $20- $40.

(818) 240-0910. The Phantom of the Opera The Cameron Useful Theatre Com- pany production of Andrew Lloyd blockbuster, directed by Harold Prince, with Broadway veteran Brad Little in the title role. Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand L.A. 8 p.m.; 7:30 p.m.; 2 p.m.

Also Nov. 26, 28, Dec. 4, 2 p.m.; Dec. 1, 8 p.m.; dark Thanksgiving Day; ends Dec. 6.

(213) 628-2772. Pieces The off-Broadway show made up of monologues dealing with the perks, prob- lems and pressures experienced by beauti- ful women. With special guests, short films and cocktails. Raleigh Studios, 650 N. Bron- son Hollywood.

8 p.m.; ends Nov. 25. $40. (323) 658-8531. The Price Arthur drama about es- tranged brothers whose reunion to dispose of their belongings turns into a bat- tle over the past.

With Len Lesser, Geoff El- liott, Robertson Dean and Deborah Strang. ANoise Within, 234 S. Brand Glen- dale. Thu.and Nov. 21, 29, Dec.

4, 8p.m.; Sun.and Nov. 30, 2 and 7 p.m.; Nov. 22, 2 and 8 p.m.; ends Dec. 4. (818) 240-0910.

The Producers Jason Alexander and Martin Short, as the scheming title characters, have yet to put their stamp on this adapta- tion of Mel cult film. Director- choreographer Susan Stroman and her cast struggle to energize the lackluster score and old-school slapstick (R.J.). Pan- tages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Holly- wood. 8 p.m.; 2 p.m. Also many 7:30 p.m.

shows. Thanksgiving and Christmas schedules will vary; ends Jan. 4. (714) 740-7878. (213) 365-3500.

The Rocky Horror Show The stage musical version of Richard darkly comic cult classic. Grove Theatre, 276 E. 9th Upland. 8 p.m.; ends Sat. $20.

(909) 920-4343. The Rocky Horror Show (See above)Per- formance Riverside, 4800 Magnolia Riverside. 8 p.m., except this 2and 8 p.m.; Nov. 14, 8 and midnight; also Nov. 16, 2 pm; ends Nov.

16. Nov. 14 midnight show, $20. (909) 222-8100. Steel Magnolias Robert stage and screen classic, about two years in the lives of six women who meet in a beauty shop.

Di- rected by D. Lynn Meyers. With Beth Grant, Madison Dunaway, Kathryn Joosten, Karen Valentine, Ruta Lee and Beth Anne Garrison. Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank. 8 p.m.; 4 p.m.; ends Nov.

23. (818) 955-8101. Tom Thumb Presented by Cal Lutheran Uni- Mainstage Theater. CLU, Preus- Brandt Forum, 60 W. Olsen Road, Thousand Oaks.

8 p.m.; Nov. 9, 2 p.m. free with university ID. (805) 493-3415. Voyage Japanese media and performance collective dumb U.S.

premiere of its examination of the unsettling effect of con- temporary shifting realities, using sonic environments and a large-scale reflec- CALENDAR WEEKENDLOS ANGELES E14 ier remembers, no, we were definitely not Fast-forward to 2003, when the band had an afternoon slot on the huge stage on abill headlined by the Dandy Warhols. that jokes guitarist Larry Schemel were just higher off the With the release of a six- song EP on fledgling Leftwing Recordings and a perch as the Mon- day-night residents this month at Spaceland (the packed club turned away patrons this week), Midnight Movies may go higher yet but not bigger. love be- ing a says Jason Hammons contributes guitars and keyboards to the atmospheric, Velvet Underground-influenced rock. bounce ideas off each other totally collaborative. We just get along really Fast forward Powerpop quartet Peachfuzz celebrates the release of a with a show Wednesday at the Big- foot Lodge; the Jupiter Affect whose likably quirky Restoration of Civilization After Genghis was re- leased in Sep- tember, joins the dripping Glaswegians the Cosmic Rough Rid- ers visit the Viper Room on The Band marks the release of Africas and the tonight at King Straylight Run the new project of ex-Taking Back Sunday members John Nolan and Shaun Cooper plays Chain Reaction tonight and the Roxy Theatre on ex- perimentalists Masera- ti and L.A.

shoegazers Run Run Run join Tsar for the second week of the Monday- night residency this month at the Silverlake Lounge. Bronson E-mail us at latimes.com Leftwing Recordings MOVIES: Jason Hammons, left, Larry Schemel, Gena Olivier. Midnight Movies elevates What Midnight Mov- first performance lacked in polish it made up for in indie spirit. Two summers ago the band plugged in on a sidewalk on Sunset Boulevard and played to passersby at the sprawl- ing Sunset Junction street fair. was about 5,000 drum- mer-vocalist Gena Oliv- By Lina Lecaro Special to The Times HINGS are go- ing to happen part of the first verse from the opening track of singer-song- writer Jason debut, ing for My Rocket to but for the 26-year-old native Virgin- ian, the swift pace of his success has been anything but natural.

somebody were to follow my road see that only a year ago I was a scared little kid just about to go on he re- calls humbly. But Mraz is no babe in the woods, at least not exactly why his fan base is growing so quickly. Thatand a combination of diligent touring and promotion. The nerdishly cute Web site is as vivacious as his much-talked-about live shows, with the aforementioned journals chronicling his weekly activities and observations, as well as contests to design merchan- dise, links to his fa- vorite sites (accompanied by personal witticisms about the moment, a char- ity auction for tick- ets and a meet-and- greet at this Wiltern show (with proceeds going to victims of the Southern California wildfires). Internet is huge.

Without it I probably would have never been Mraz says. on we noticed the word was out about us around the U.S.,and we even been out there yet. an amazing thing. You create a kind of an underground friend base all over the Of course, alot easier when got a major recording company, Elektra which signed him in May 2002 behind you, not to mention videos on MTV and song placement on TV shows such as O.C.” Still, Mraz says, people are responding to more than marketing. thing that found that Ibelieve has kind of made people stick with us, is that even with the videos and all the media and he says, try to keep people a part of it.

This is a way for you to Indeed, Mraz, who emerged from the San Diego coffeehouse circuit after a brief stint pursuing musical theater in New York, knows a thing or two about inter- acting with an audience, even if he been doing it very long. After frequenting San Diego open-mike nights for a year or so and hooking up with his current right-hand man-percussionist To- ca Rivera, his main haunt, Java gave him a weekly gig. The lively night of friends and fans soon became so popular, people often had to be turned away. With- in the next year, a local radio sta- tion had started playing a demo version of the current single and I and, before he knew it, the labels were in hot pursuit. Mraz did what he calls a ference room before signing with Elektra and immediately starting work on the debut with producer John Alagia (best known for his work with another Brooke Ismach WireImage.com WORLDWIDE WOW: Jason Mraz is on a fast road to success.

POP MUSIC His rocket is precisely on course THE ARTS BUZZ BANDS.