Out and About for the Bangor Lakes Region of Maine Dec. 3-9

Out and About for the Sebago Lakes Region of Maine Nov. 27-Dec. 2
November 27, 2015
Out and About for the Mid Coast Lakes Region of Maine Dec. 3-9
December 2, 2015

Out and About for the Bangor Lakes Region of Maine Dec. 3-9

Out and About for the Bangor Lakes Region of Maine Dec. 3-9

“It’s a Wonderful Life: Radio Play,” Penobscot Theatre, Bangor

Dec. 3-6, Thursday-Sunday, 7pm/Thurs.-Sat, 3pm/Sun, “It’s A Wonderful Life-A Live Radio Play,” this interactive adaptation of Frank Capra’s cinematic classic enfolds the audience in the life and times of George Bailey, a good man who changed the world — not in the way he expected, but in ways that mattered. Surely “no man is a failure who has friends” and no Christmas is complete without a trip to Bedford Falls. Travel back to the 1940s with us. Hear the bells and open your heart to the magic of the season. Experience a music-filled, holiday tradition in unforgettable fashion, see site for ticketing details, Penobscot Theatre Company, Bangor Opera House, 131 Main St, Bangor. FMI: 207-942-3333, www.penobscottheatre.org.
Dec. 3, Thursday, 7pm, “The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis,” comprising 15 of the finest jazz soloists and ensemble players today, has been the Jazz at Lincoln Center resident orchestra since 1988. Featured in all aspects of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s programming, this remarkably versatile orchestra performs and leads educational events in New York, across the U.S. and around the globe; in concert halls; dance venues; jazz clubs; public parks; and with symphony orchestras; ballet troupes; local students; and an ever-expanding roster of guest artists. Under Music Director Wynton Marsalis, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra performs a vast repertoire, from rare historic compositions to Jazz at Lincoln Center-commissioned works, including compositions and arrangements by Duke Ellington; Count Basie; Fletcher Henderson; Thelonious Monk; Mary Lou Williams; Billy Strayhorn; Dizzy Gillespie; Benny Goodman; Charles Mingus; Chick Corea; Oliver Nelson; and many others, $30-$72, fees may apply, Collins Center for the Arts, UMO, 2 Flagstaff Rd, Orono. FMI: 207-581-1755, www.collinscenterforthearts.com.
Dec. 4-6, Friday-Sunday, 7pm/Fri. and Sat, 2pm/Sun, “William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night,” this production is completely directed, designed and performed by Husson University students. Twelfth Night is the story of fraternal twins Viola and Sebastian. After the twins are separated, Viola thinks her brother is dead. Concerned about being in a new place she knows nothing about, she disguises herself as a man to conceal her identity. Dressed as a man, Viola becomes a messenger for Duke Orsino. The Duke is passionately in love with Olivia. When Viola tries to woo Olivia for the Duke, Olivia ends up falling for Viola. Filled with gender misidentification and the foibles of love, this Shakespearean comedy is sure to please, $5, Gracie Theatre, Husson University, 1 College Circle, Bangor. FMI: 207-941-7888, www.gracietheatre.com.
Dec. 4, Friday, 8pm, “The Focus Group,” Come out to see Brewer’s premier local improv. troupe, performing their own unique style of improvisational comedy. For Mature Audiences Only. Beer and wine are available for purchase for those 21+, $5, Next Generation Theatre, 39 Center St, Brewer. FMI: 207-989-7100, www.nextgenerationtheatre.com.
Dec. 5, Saturday, 12-4pm, “Homes for the Holidays Christmas House Tour,” this year the tour will include five historic homes all located on the East Side of Bangor. A pamphlet will be available that describes the historic and architecturally significant details of each house. Seasonal refreshments will be available at each site. The Bangor Area Children’s Choir and the St. John’s Episcopal Church choir will visit each home to sing seasonal carols, $25, St. Johan’s Episcopal Church, 225 French St, Bangor. FMI: 207-947-0156, www.stjohnsbangor.org.
Dec. 5, Saturday, 1-3pm, “Met Opera Live in HD! Lulu,” one of the most important—not to mention notorious—stage works of the 20th century, Lulu is the drama of a young woman who sexually and emotionally dominates a wide range of willing victims, both male and female. Herself a victim of society, she seems to embody all the frightening aspects of the human condition, a combination of primal instinct and distinctly modern amorality. Berg’s score employs the twelve-tone technique pioneered by his teacher Arnold Schoenberg but in a keenly dramatic way that makes it accessible to all kinds of audiences. Berg died before completing Act III of the opera, and Lulu was first performed as a fragment. Efforts to finish the score based on Berg’s notes were hindered by his widow and only realized, after her death, by the Austrian composer Friedrich Cerha, in 1977, $23/adults, $18/seniors, $8/students, fees may apply, Collins Center for the Arts, UMO, 2 Flagstaff Rd, Orono. FMI: 207-581-1755, www.collinscenterforthearts.com.
Dec. 6, Sunday, 2-3:30pm, “Yuletide Concert,” presented by The University of Maine School of Performing Arts, The holiday tradition features all the UMaine choirs including the Oratorio Society, University Singers, Collegiate Chorale and Black Bear Men’s Chorus. This year, the choral ensembles will be joined by the University Orchestra in a program that ranges from Christmas music by Johann Sebastian Bach and Felix Mendelssohn, to arrangements of many favorite carols, to George Frideric Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus” and a new orchestration of “O Holy Night” by UMaine graduate student Ben McNaboe. About 200 singers and 45 instrumentalists are expected to take part in the performance that will be conducted by School of Performing Arts faculty Francis John Vogt, Anatole Wieck, Danny Williams and Justin Zang, $12, Collins Center for the Arts, UMO, 2 Flagstaff Rd, Orono. FMI: 207-581-1755, www.collinscenterforthearts.com.

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