10317579_10204108329655338_2216342392587062843_oIf you are a theater lover in Charleston this weekend, you’ve got a problem. Everything’s happening at once. Charleston’s Light Opera Guild is putting on their big summer musical, “Catch Me If You Can.” CYAC, as I told you about yesterday, is presenting “The Blob.” The Alban Arts Center in Saint Albans brings us Neil Simon’s “Lost In Yonkers.” The Limelight Theater Company will treat the city to “An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein” at Timothy’s Bar. The FestivAll Location plays return briefly. Kanawha Players is having their “Hail Mary” weekend of fundraising to stay afloat. And that’s not even taking visiting productions from out-of-town into account.

I get that everyone either wants to jump on the FestivAll bandwagon, or counter-program to it, or are forced by fate into bad timing, but there’s enough quality theater happening this weekend to fill up stages through the end of July. Hitting everything could be tricky.

It can be done, though. “The Blob,” playing at The WVSU Capital Center Theater, runs on Thursday nights, so if you miss it this weekend, you still have three more chances to see it next weekend. “Catch Me If You Can” and “Lost In Yonkers” also have runs that extend into next weekend, and all three of these shows have Sunday matinees this weekend.

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The FestivAll Location plays will present the best of past productions at The Good News Mountaineer Garage Gallery Saturday, June 21. Performances begin at 11 AM, 12 PM, 2 PM and 3 PM. Admission is free, and this doesn’t conflict with anything except for some of the KP fundraising events. The Trolley play, “A Streetcar Named Despair” will be performed next weekend.

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Kanawha Players is offering the Summer Semester Burlesque Classes from The Wayward Girls School of Burlesque Friday night only, and that’s followed by a showing of the cult movie, “Spider Baby.” If you want to attend those events, Friday June 20 is your only chance.

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Likewise, you will only have two chances to catch Limelight’s “An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein.” If you want to settle in for a fun evening of this great American poet and cartoonist’s works presented by a talented cast, then Friday and Saturday, June 20 and 21 are your only chances. Performances start at 9 PM and admission is free, but Limelight is accepting donation so don’t be chintzy and stiff them. This happens at Timothy’s Bar, below The Quarrier diner.

KP will also have all-day events Saturday and Sunday that you can read about HERE.

Jon Cavendish, wearing his official Theatre Beanie

Jon Cavendish, wearing his official Theatre Beanie

Then, if you want to make a full weekend of theater madness, you can attend one of the Sunday Matinees. “The Blob” and “Lost In Yonkers” begin at 2 PM, while “Catch Me If You Can” begins at 3 PM.

If your live theater-eating belly is not stuffed to bursting after all that, then you can attend “A History of Broadway from the Singer’s Perspective” Monday, at Kanawha United Presbyterian Church, starting at 7:30. Admission is free to hear Jon Cavendish spin tales and present songs tracing the history of the Broadway musical in this multi-media presentation.

You could possibly attend at least one event by each local theater troupe this weekend and still make it to some of the other FestivAll events. Maybe next year it’ll be time to spread some of the FestivAll theatrical events outside of the traditional ten-day extravaganza. This weekend is an embarrassment of theatrical riches, but it borders on the ridiculous.