“The Producers,” Chocolate Church Arts Center, Bath

Oct. 17-20, Thursday-Sunday, 7:30pm/Thurs.-Sat, 2pm/Sun, “The Producers,” Once called “the King of Broadway”, theater producer Max Bialystock is down on his luck. He’s had a string of flops, all funded by “lonely little old lady investors” that gladly write him checks in return for “sexual favors”. His latest show “Funny Boy: A Musical Version of Hamlet” is so bad that it closes after one night. Mousy accountant Leo Bloom arrives the next day to audit Max’s books and discovers that under the right circumstances “a producer can make more money with a flop than a hit”. Max proposes a scheme: “Step 1: We find the worst play ever written. Step 2: We hire the worst director in town. Step 3: We raise two million dollars… One for me, one for you. There’s a lot of little old ladies out there! Step 4: We hire the worst actors in New York and open on Broadway, and before you can say Step 5: We close on Broadway, take our two million, and go to Rio.” Leo very reluctantly agrees. Everything seems to be going perfectly, except for one problem: the show turns out to be a smash hit. “The Producers” is in many ways considered Mel Brooks’ masterpiece, bursting at the seams with his signature brand of comedy made famous in classic films like “Blazing Saddles”, “Spaceballs”, and “Young Frankenstein”. Some adult language & situations, $15/advance, $18/door, Chocolate Church Arts Center, 804 Washington Street, Bath. FMI: 207-442-8455, www.chocolatechurcharts.org.

Oct. 18, Friday, 7pm, “Lynn Deeves in Concert,” Maine singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Lynn Deeves has released 3 independent solo CD’s and has performed with Cheryl Wheeler, Catie Curtis, Ellis Paul, Ferron and many others over a 40 year career on the rock/folk circuits of New England. Portland Press Herald says “…5 star stage presence…this gals’ got a set of pipes…”, $8, Brunswick UU Church, Pleasant Street, Brunswick. FMI: 207-841-5599, www.lynndeeves.com.

Oct. 19, Saturday, 12-8pm, “Camp Sunshine Pumpkin Festival,” a Maine tradition since 2003, the Camp Sunshine Pumpkin Festival transforms the streets of Freeport and L.L. Bean Campus into a sea of orange. Join us as we light nearly 10,000 jack-o-lanterns around Freeport. As always we have quite the schedule of activities and family fun planned – including live music, children’s activities, a costume parade, and family pumpkin carving (no purchase necessary), free, LL Bean 95 Main Street, Freeport. FMI: 655-3800, www.campsunshine.org.

Oct. 19, Saturday, 5-7pm, “Last Night at the Museum,” join the Nightwatch as they put the Museum to bed for the season and the portraits come alive to tell their stories. Family-friendly and all in good “spirit”. Tours leave every 15 minutes and last half an hour, $5/adults, $3/children, $12/families, Penobscot Marine Museum, Visitor Center, 40 East Main Street, Searsport. FMI: 207-548-2529, penobscotmarinemuseum.org.

Oct. 19, Saturday, 7pm, “Fiddle-icious,” tap your toes, stomp your feet, clap your hands as Fiddle-icious, a community fiddle-based orchestra with 100+ musicians from Kittery to Augusta, takes the stage to share their unique uplifting music! Fiddle-icious is a fun loving Maine orchestra playing fiddle, piano, harp, guitar, banjo, mandolin, flute, accordion, cello, tin whistle, concertina, upright bass and bagpipes. Their tunes are passed down from the Irish, Scottish, Quebecois and Acadian traditions and include reels, jigs, marches, hornpipes, waltzes, step-dancing and beautiful singing harmonies, $15, free/children, Orion Performing Arts Center, 66 Republic Avenue, Topsham. FMI: 207-590-4484, www.orionperformingartscenter.org.

Oct. 20, Sunday, 2:30pm, “The Midcoast Symphony Orchestra – ‘Delight & Despair’,” In our first series of the season the Midcoast Symphony Orchestra, under conductor Rohan Smith, presents “Delight & Despair,” a celebration of the carnival season, the tragedy of a love story, and every emotion in between. The program Includes: The Carnival Overture by Antonin Dvorak; Romeo and Juliet, Suite No. 2, by Sergei Prokofiev; Symphony No. 5, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Intermission at the Franco Center will feature refreshments and a performance by Lewiston High School’s popular Jazz Ensemble, $22/advance, $25/door, free/children, Orion Performing Arts Center, 66 Republic Avenue, Topsham. FMI: 207-590-4484, www.orionperformingartscenter.org.

Oct. 22, Tuesday, 2pm, “Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am,” this new documentary about novelist and storyteller Toni Morrison (1931-2019) examines her life, her work, and the powerful themes she confronted throughout her literary career. Woven together with art, history, literature, and personality, the film includes discussions about her many critically acclaimed works. One reviewer said of the film: “It doesn’t matter whether you’ve read all — or any — of Morrison’s books. Either way, you may leave the theater wanting to pick one up on the way home. The good news is there are so many to choose from.” Toni Morrison is the winner of many awards including the Nobel Prize for Literature, Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, $6, free/high school students, Lincoln Theater, 2 Theater Street, Damariscotta. FMI: 207-563-3424, lcct.org.