theater

Opening

Banyan New Langton Arts Theater, 1246 Folsom; 1-800-838-3006, www.asianamericantheater.org. $8-20. Previews Thurs/3, 8pm. Opens Fri/4, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Nov 20. Asian American Theater Company performs the world premiere of Jeannie Barroga's Pinay spin on The Wizard of Oz.

The Drug Diaries Dark Room Theatre, 2263 Mission; 517-3581, www.darkroomsf.com. $13. Opens Fri/4, 8pm. Runs Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 26. Tech Slave Productions presents this performance subtitled From Those That Barely Remember.

The False Servant, or the Business of Love Exit on Taylor, 277 Taylor; 386-2373, theatreabydos@aol.com. $18-25. Previews Fri/4, 8pm. Opens Sat/5, 8pm. Runs Fri-Sat, 8pm (no shows Nov 25-26). Through Dec 17. Abydos Theater performs Ann and George Crowe's new translation-adaptation of the Pierre Marivaux comedy.

'Fury Factory' Traveling Jewish Theatre, 470 Florida; 1-866-GOT-FURY, www.foolsfury.org. $10. Opens Thurs/3, 7 and 9pm. Runs Thurs-Sun, 7 and 9pm (works in development run Tues-Wed, 8pm). Through Nov 20. New works rotating in this festival (check Web site for schedule) include The Strange Case of the Jenson Files, by FoolsFURY; The Sewers, by Banana, Bag, and Bodice; Symphony of Frogs, by Mugwumpin; and Solo, by Under the Table.

Killing My Lobster: Nothing Is Original Thick House Theatre, 1695 18th St; 558-7721, www.killingmylobster.com. $12-17 (opening night and Sat, 10pm, pay what you can). Opens Thurs/3, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Fri, 8pm; Sat, 7:30 and 10pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Nov 20. The sketch comedy troupe opens a new show inspired by "found" and previously written text.

'One4All: Asian American Theatre Festival' Jon Sims Center for the Performing Arts, 1519 Mission; 554-0402, www.jonsimsctr.org. $10-15. Opens Fri/4, 8pm. Runs Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 26. This week's plays in this showcase of Asian American theater are Mishima Speaks to Beauty, by Christopher Chen and In the Dark, by Viet Nguyen.

Phaedra Climate Theater, 285 Ninth St; 621-1503, www.horrorunspeakable.com. $10. Opens Thurs/3, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 19. No Nude Men Productions performs Racine's version of the myth, set in 19th-century Europe.

Porcelain Exit Stage Left, 156 Eddy; 675-5995, www.crowdedfire.org. $18-30. Preview Fri/4, 8pm. Opens Sat/5, 8pm. Runs Fri-Sat, 8pm (no shows Nov 25-26). Through Dec 17. Crowded Fire Theater company performs Chay Yew's drama about a young gay man's crime of passion.

Romeo and Juliet: A Contemporary Adaptation Off-Market Theater, 965 Mission; 338-2467, www.ticketweb.com. $8-12. Opens Fri/4, 7pm. Runs Thurs-Fri and Nov 12, 7pm; Nov 19, 2pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Nov 20. San Francisco State University students and alumni perform Roy Conboy's fresh take on Shakespeare's classic.

Uncertainty Avoidance: Ain't it Good to Be in the kNOW Exit Theatre, 156 Eddy; 824-1403, www.cultureworksinc.org. $12-17. Opens Fri/4, 8pm. Runs Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 19. Performance artist Brian Shapiro presents a new show that looks at how different cultural groups deal with the inherent uncertainty of life.

Bay Area

Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake) La Val's Subterranean, 1834 Euclid, Berk; (510) 464-4468, www.impacttheatre.com. $10-15 (Thurs pay what you wish). Opens Fri/4, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through Dec 10. Impact Theatre performs Sheila Callaghan's new drama about a mother and daughter who have difficulty moving on when the girl's father dies. See 8 Days a Week, page tk.

Cry Don't Cry Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby, Berk; (510) 841-6500, www.shotgunplayers.org. $10. Opens Tues/8, 8pm. Runs Tues-Thurs, 8pm. Through Nov 17. Shotgun Players Theatre Lab presents Balé Techlorico in this multidisciplinary look at life and death.

Happy End Luka's Taproom and Lounge, 2221 Broadway, Oakl; (510) 420-0813, www.womanswill.org. $15-25. Opens Thurs/3, 7pm. Runs Thurs and Sat, 7pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Dec 4. Simultaneously, runs Fri, 8pm, Original Joe's, 144 Taylor, SF. Same phone and price. All-female Shakespeare company Woman's Will performs the Bertolt Brecht-Kurt Weill-Dorothy Lane musical.

Ongoing

The Ballad of Pancho and Lucy Intersection for the Arts, 446 Valencia; 626-3311, www.theintersection.org. $9-15. Thurs-Sun and Nov 21, 8pm. Through Nov 21. Campo Santo + Intersection performs the world premiere of Octavio Solis' play about a real-life "Latino Bonnie and Clyde."

Beyond Therapy Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter; 433-1226, www.jeanshelton.com. $20-25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. The Shelton Theater presents Christopher Durang's comedy about therapists and their patients.

California Palm Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter; 1-800-838-3006, www.sheltontheater.com. $20. Extended run: Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 12. In Michael Struthers's sitcom-like homage to small-town America, the employees of a car dealership in fictitious Hamilton City, Calif. are plunged into a sales contest by a manipulative new owner (a sultry Maggie Grant) from Los Angeles. The losers receive unemployment checks, and the winner – whoo hoo – gets to sell Pollocks in her Tinsletown gallery. But the contest threatens more than jobs. The smarmy Jake (Eric Fraisher Hayes) and naïve but kind Jason (Kevin Tierney), coworkers and brothers, try to cope with their mother's death, while Jason's fiancée Sarah (a likeable but self-conscious Grace Lee) realizes her ambitions stretch beyond city limits. Under Virginia Abascal's capable direction, the play is at times very funny, but degenerates into clichéd plot points painfully twisted into resolutions. (A character shouldn't have to explain, for the audience's sake, exactly how another character screwed him over.) But Hayes and Tierney, along with Stu Klitsner as a con artist- salesman, turn in terrific performances that overcome these flaws. (McKevitt)

*Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Geary Theater, 415 Geary; 749-2228, www.act-sf.org. $12-76. Tues-Sat, 8pm (also Sat and Nov 9, 2pm); Sun, 2pm. Through Nov 13. American Conservatory Theater presents Tennessee Williams' powerhouse drama, featuring a sharp and vibrant performance by core company member René Augesen as Maggie, the proverbial cat fighting to stay atop a disintegrating marriage and a scheming pair of in-laws. The marriage suffers from the unspoken presence of a dead man – her husband's former college football comrade, whose intense friendship now plagues Brick (Michael James Reed) with guilt and repressed longing. Having retreated into the bottle with antipathy toward his wife, Brick sits passively by as his brother (Rod Gnapp) and sister-in-law (Anne Darragh) maneuver to take over the huge Mississippi estate of his self-made father, the dying yet larger-than-life Big Daddy (a powerful and graceful Jack Willis), for whose 65th birthday all the family have gathered. Director Israel Hicks's use of the 1974 version – revised by Williams in line with his original conception before the changes that preceded 1954's successful Broadway premiere – more than ever underscores Maggie's triumphant vitality in the face of Brick's "charm of the defeated." Although a fine cast doesn't prevent a certain mechanical aspect around the edges of this albeit smooth production, and the smoldering dynamic between Brick and Maggie takes probably too long to begin to work, the play's unstoppable momentum sweeps forward like the storm in the final act to beat insistingly at the door. (Avila)

Crucifixion New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness; 861-8972, www.nctcsf.org. $20-38. Extended run: Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Nov 20. Three Jesuit priests, two TV producers, one male escort, and a Bay Area weatherman don't walk into a bar. And their relationship to one another, for all the satiric humor in Terrence McNally's new play, is no joke either. But they, and several other characters besides, do all inhabit the same semi-abstract space – brightly lit, monochromatic room in immaculate white, ordered by a series of horizontal and vertical lines – promising some definite point to the intersection of stories crisscrossing several years and three cities. (Namely a reason for the brutal murder we witness at the outset.) Unfortunately, that point remains at once obvious and frustratingly out of reach as Crucifixion devotes unequal attention to the network of (almost) entirely gay characters around Father Giraud (Colin Stuart) and his murder victim, the obnoxious producer and rather indignant corpse Don Capps (Scott Cox). Developed at New Conservatory Theatre Center, and tailored to the talented but often under-utilized 11-member cast, the world premiere of Crucifixion's single act contains a number of engaging moments confidently helmed by NCTC artistic director Ed Decker, but its pointed assault on dogmatic power and repression still seems overwhelming preoccupied with drawing together into a coherent drama. (Avila)

Dark Horse, Indiana New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness; 861-8972, www.nctcsf.org. $15-24. Fri/4-Sat/5, 8pm; Sun/6, 2pm. The first scene of this US premiere features two nude men simulating anal sex. Now, that's probably not shocking to many New Conservatory Theatre Center regulars. Actually, it's not supposed to be shocking at all, for in this social satire by Eric Barry and Punch Theatre, homosexuality is mandated by church and state and heterosexuality is a capital offense. Allegorical, fantastical, and realistic vignettes reveal the story of a closeted heterosexual (played by Barry) whose father, the governor of Dark Horse, Ind., is running for reelection on a platform of antihetero hysteria. Directed by Barry and the ensemble, the play has the potential to be the biting and funny satire it's billed as, but instead falls victim to unfocused writing and stage direction (the black "set" composed only of cubelike pedestals doesn't help). Filled with political and philosophical platitudes like "My existence is predicated on an emotional ideology," the play doesn't invite the audience to sympathize with the characters or their situations. But these are classic problems that plague many playwright- and ensemble-directed new plays. With time and experience, Barry and Punch Theatre may wrestle their ambitious ideas into compelling work. (McKevitt)

Good Luck With It Marsh, 1062 Valencia; 1-800-838-3006, www.themarsh.org. $15-22. Opens Sat/5, 8:30pm. Runs Sat, 8:30pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Dec 3. Comedian Will Franken performs his new solo satire.

Love Scenes New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness; 861-8972, www.nctcsf.org. $15-25. Wed/2-Sat/5, 8pm; Sun/6, 2pm. The New Conservatory Theatre Center performs David Pumo's SF Fringe Festival hit, a comedy about gay New Yorkers in love.

Matt and Ben Off-Market Theater, 965 Mission; 771-4806, www.unidentifiedsf.org. $20-25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 10pm). Through Dec 3. Unidentified Theatre Company performs a play about Matt Damon and Ben Affleck (both portrayed by women) in their pre-Good Will Hunting days.

Menopause the Musical Theatre 39 at Pier 39, Two Beach St; 433-3939, www.menopausethemusical.com. $46.50. Tues-Sat, 8pm (also Wed, 2pm and Sat, 4pm); Sun, 2pm. Open-ended. Jeanie Linders's musical comedy celebrates women who are facing "the change."

Missives Theatre Rhinoceros, 2926 16th St; 861-5079, www.therhino.org. $15-25. Wed-Sat, 8pm (no show Nov 24); Sun, 3pm. Through Nov 26. Theatre Rhinoceros presents the world premiere of San Francisco playwright Garret Jon Groenveld's epistolary comedy-drama about an African American straight woman (Dawn-Elin Fraser) and a white gay man (Kevin Crook) who strike up an intense friendship entirely via letters slipped under their neighboring doors. Midway between the open-ended anonymity of e-mail and the too-tangible definition of a face-to-face relationship, Ben and Lia's lovingly personalized, handwritten missives (which form the bulk of the narrative) act as the much-needed space in which each can, in a sense, rewrite themselves anew – even as they share the trials of modern life, including the intimate details of new and broken relationships, Ben especially maintains a certain mysterious distance. Groenveld underscores the ambiguity by working in the star of Ben and Lia's favorite soap, Trixie Evans (Alexandra Creighton). Moreover, we sense something risky in all this from the outset: Ben is an officially "missing person" when the play begins. Willful self-invention indeed takes a sinister turn as someone else's far-less friendly fantasy life starts showing up unbidden on postcards outside Ben's door. Still, the play, directed by Tracy Ward, seems unsure of what questions it wants to ask through all this, while its humor and pathos can alternately fall flat or sit awkwardly together. Not unlike the evolving identities of its central characters, Missives can seem a promising construct that's still trying to decide what it's about. (Avila)

*Not a Genuine Black Man Marsh, 1062 Valencia; 826-5750. $15-22. Extended run: Thurs-Fri, 8:30pm; Sat, 5pm. Through Nov 19. What, the unapologetically middle-class Brian Copeland asks, is the real meaning behind the phrase "a genuine black man"? By way of an answer, the stand-up comic and KGO radio host offers up a simultaneously funny and disarmingly frank story about growing up African American in the racist suburb that was San Leandro in the early 1970s. Letting his narrative bounce back and forth between his boyhood memories and a period of depression that overtook him as a parent in 1999 – and interlacing the autobiography with verbatim utterances from both sides of the fight his family joined to desegregate the city – Copeland brings admirable chops as a comedian to bear on some difficult and disturbing, if ultimately hopeful, material. (Avila)

Phaedra Last Planet Theatre, 351 Turk; 440-3505, www.lastplanettheatre.com. $10-18. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Nov 13. Last Planet Theatre performs Matthew Maguine's reimagining of the stepmother-son myth.

Pvt. Wars Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter; 433-1226, www.jeanshelton.com. $25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 19. Shelton Theater performs James McClure's comedy about three men, all of whom are involved in "private wars" with themselves.

Shocktoberfest 2005: Sissies Stay Home! Hypnodrome, 575 Tenth St; 248-1900, www.hypnodrome.com. $18-69. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Nov 13, 7:30pm. Through Nov 13. If you didn't get your fill this Halloween, or if you just have a penchant for that particular combination of scary-silly-sexy that goes with any good cult horror phenomenon, then Thrillpeddlers' sixth annual "pageant of terror and titillation" might be just what you're looking for. Reanimating the popular early-20th century Grand Guignol, the five short vignettes presented here run the gamut from bloodless, psychological spine-tingler to blood-spurting horror-spoof, culminating with a haunted house thrill-ride that plunges the audience into complete darkness while glowing spirits fly through the space. Director Russell Blackwood's dramatic delivery of a 19th-century limerick bemoaning the English practice of schoolboy flagellation is one highlight; and Mary Knoll's spot-on performances as a realtor trying to sell a house after a grisly crime – and as an offensive wine-maker trying to marry off her disabled daughter to the son of a bottle-maker – will leave you delightfully nervous, uncomfortable, and laughing all at once. (Shalson)

There Be Monsters! Exit Cafe, 156 Eddy; 673-3847, www.sffringe.org. $10-20. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 19. At the moment, Exit Cafe is haunted by the frankly strange intensity of performer-playwright Dan Carbone and a trunkful of inanimate objects possessed by his fervid imagination. Carbone has been offering admittance to his modest little universe since 1995, and there's no denying the carefully crafted nature of these quietly outlandish vignettes (directed with loving attention by Joseph Graham), or the fiercely offbeat talent behind their secret stories, private little songs that must be sung, pussyfooting choreography, slide projections, and (with Malcolm Sherwood and Eliza Perkins) choice sound cues. Most of the promised menagerie in There Be Monsters! either gets drawn from the mysterious trunk at the foot of the stage (Wolf Baby, for instance) or walks through the door, like special guest Cow Man (John Bauman) – a surprisingly expressive figure in a plastic novelty head and flesh-colored unitard. If There Be Monsters! can create its own special monotony, there come fairly regularly and full-bore some gloriously off-key moments that match words and images in a heightened, koanlike banality. (Avila)

*Things You Shouldn't Say Past Midnight Phoenix Theatre, 414 Mason, Sixth Flr; (510) 326-8197, www.theatreq.org. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Nov 20. Theater Q, the Chicago-born theater company that has more recently been staging gay and lesbian-themed theater in the greater Bay Area, makes its San Francisco debut with a sharp and funny production of New York playwright Peter Ackerman's successful off-Broadway sex farce. It begins with an intimately delivered epithet, in the heat of passion, after an otherwise perfect night out in Manhattan for Nancy (Sally Clawson) and boyfriend Ben (David Neufeld). The shock of it leads its recipient, Ben, to unleash a few repressed impulses of his own as the couple pause in lovemaking to discuss the matter – a sort of Russian doll effect that only gets worse as the night goes on. Sally soon arrives at friend Grace's apartment, where Grace (Darcy Brown-Martin) is carrying on what she'd like to be a torrid affair with a hit man, Gene (Robert Anthony Peters), who'd rather settle into something steady and clean and intellectually stimulating with his first college-educated girlfriend. That dynamic snowballs too – it's a veritable cascade of Russian snowballs, scooping up Grace's therapist, Mark (Chris Yule), and his geriatric boyfriend, Mr. Abramson (Remi Barron), along the way. Bobby Weinapple's astute direction draws rich comic performances from a skillful and charming cast in this consistently witty, if somewhat predictable, diversion. (Avila)

*The Tribute to Frank, Sammy, Joey, and Dean Post Street Theatre, 450 Post; 771-6900, www.ticketmaster.com. $37-69. Tues-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 3pm); Sun, 3pm. Open-ended. You know you've made it when God is your warm-up act. And while it may be little more than a convenient, tossed-off premise, God (voice of the late Buddy Hackett) recalling the Rat Pack from their heavenly lounge to play one last gig has about the right ring of latter-day hokeyness and chutzpah to it. If it sounds cheesy, as soon as the sizzling band strikes up the first tune and Frank (Tom Tiratto), Sammy (Louie Velez), and Dino (Andy DiMino) belt out a flawless "Where or When," you realize it's also very much the real deal. The brainchild of Hackett's son Sandy (who, in addition to writing and directing, holds his own alongside veteran performer-impersonators as an excellent Joey Bishop), The Tribute infectiously recreates those storied Las Vegas evenings of the early 1960s when Sinatra, Davis, Martin, and dead-pan comedian Bishop (who, incidentally, dwells not in heaven but in Santa Monica) sang, joked, horsed around, boozed up, and caroused, while making their audience feel like they were partying with the Rat Pack. Notwithstanding a certain concession to the session (toning down the decidedly off-color humor and raunch of an earlier era), this is hep history come alive. (Avila)

V the Ultimate Variety Show V Theater, Pier 39; 39-VSHOW, www.vtheshow.com. $24-44. Nightly, 6 and 8pm. Ongoing. A revolving array of variety acts highlight this family-friendly show, originally produced in Las Vegas.

Bay Area

Achilles and Patroklos Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant, Berk; (510) 558-1381, www.centralworks.org. $9-25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through Nov 20. Central Works performs Gary Graves' new play that re-casts characters from The Iliad in a new Middle Eastern conflict.

The Arab-Israeli Cookbook Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut, Berk; (510) 436-5085, www.theatrefirst.com. $10-22. Thurs/3 and Sat/5, 8pm; Sun/6, 7pm. Also: Nov 10-20, Old Oakland Theatre, 461 Ninth, Oakl; Dec 1-4, Traveling Jewish Theatre, 470 Florida, SF. Shows run Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 3pm. Same phone and price. TheatreFIRST performs Robin Soans' play about ordinary people caught up in the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Finn in the Underworld Berkeley Rep's Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison, Berk; (510) 647-2949, www.berkeleyrep.org. $30-59. Wed/2 and Sun/6, 7pm (also Sun/6, 2pm); Thurs/3-Sat/5, 8pm (also Sat/5, 2pm). Sisters Rhoda (Randy Danson) and Gwen (Lorri Holt) sort through the remaining loose items in their dead father's house, making small talk as they do. It's clear from the siblings' body language and strained conversation that the big and nearly empty house (which still sports an imposing grandfather clock) is brimming with things not said. That's the case in many families, but when Gwen's 20-year-old son, Finn (Clifton Guterman), draws a red baseball cap from one of the storage boxes and puts it on, the sisters' ghost-white horror tells you there's a little more to it than that. Twenty-seven-year-old up-and-coming playwright Jordan Harrison's Finn in the Underworld – now enjoying a slick world premiere at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre under associate artistic director Les Waters – ingeniously mingles dark family secrets with the barely repressed, buttoned-down violence of the modern age, all under the roof of one cold war-era haunted house. Excellent performances and generally sharp dialogue are impeded only by some vagueness in the play's otherwise appealingly, hallucinatory final crescendo, making the ending note especially less than effective. (Avila)

Loot Altarena Playhouse, 1409 High, Alameda; (510) 523-1553, www.altarena.org. $12-15. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Nov 13, 20, 2pm. Through Nov 26. Altarena Playhouse performs Joe Orton's farcical comedy.

Six Degrees of Separation Live Oak Theatre, 1301 Shattuck, Berk; (510) 649-5999, www.aeofberkeley.org. $10. Fri-Sat and Nov 17, 8pm. Through Nov 19. Actors Ensemble performs John Guare's play about a con man who tricks a wealthy New York couple.

dance

Alonzo King's LINES Ballet Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theatre, 700 Howard; 978-ARTS, www.ybca.org. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Nov 13. $20-50. The company opens their fall 2005 home season with the world premiere of The Moroccan Project.

Katsura Kan Noh Space, 2840 Mariposa; 621-7978, www.theatreofyugen.org. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. $15. See 8 Days a Week, page tk.

'Manifesti-val: Dance Brigade's Festival for Social Change' Dance Mission Theater, 3316 24th St; 273-4633. Sat/5, 7pm; Nov 11-12 and 18-19, 8pm; Sun, 6pm (also Nov 20, 2pm). Through Nov 20. $20-22. This weekend's performers respond to global warming in Meltdown, featuring Dance Brigade, Ferron, Barbara Higbie and Krissy Keefer, and Margie Adam and Labyrinth Project.

Nancy Karp + Dancers ODC Theater, 3153 17th St; 863-9834, www.odctheater.org. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Nov 13, 7pm. Through Nov 13. $16-35. The company celebrates its 25th season wth a retrospective of signature works, plus the world premiere of the night's mascara.

'Retail Dance Festival' Various Union Square locations; www.retaildance.org. Sat, noon-9:30pm; Sun, noon-4:30pm. Free. Retail store windows and showrooms come alive with works by Bay Area choreographers and companies: Company Chaddick, AXIS Dance Company, Facing East Dance and Music, Counterpointe, Atelier 5, U Dance Electra, Aura Fischbeck, and Run For Your Life...It's a Dance Company.

Bay Area

Bill Shannon Headlands Center for the Arts, 944 Fort Barry, Marin Headlands, Sausalito; (415) 331-2787, www.headlands.org. Sun, 4pm. $8-10. Shannon presents Dances, Drawings, and Ideas About Space, a hip hop and street dance-influenced work performed on crutches.

performance

'Apartment'TJT, 470 Florida; 1-800-got-fury. Tues, 8pm. $10. Through Nov 15. Mia Rovegno directs her piece about urban life, presented by HummingbirgWORKS.

*'Bat Boy: The Musical' Victoria Theater, 2961 16th St; 1-800-838-3006, www.roltheatre.com. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. $15-20. It's too bad that Ray of Light's production, a San Francisco premiere, is scheduled to close this weekend after only two weeks, because this cult hit has enough guilty pleasures to keep audiences coming for months. Ripped from the Weekly World News-esque tabloids, this "antimusical" follows a fanged and pointy-eared teenage boy (Eli Newsom) discovered in a redneck country cave and brought to Doctor Parker, whose wife begs him to spare the boy's life in exchange for, basically, sex. Edgar, as the mutant's been dubbed, soon falls in love with their sweet but airheaded daughter Shelley (Christy McIntosh), and all sorts of sordid family secrets emerge. Filled with wonderfully cheesy choreography (think "Thriller,") and cross-dressing, this campy romp spoofs everything from Christian fundamentalism and Disney to Broadway hits like My Fair Lady and West Side Story. The production has its rough spots: Some faltering transitions and awkward staging reveal an amateurish quality, and the excellent singing deserves a better sound system. But these problems are overshadowed by the sheer fun of the evening, with highlights like a church revival number featuring DaRon Lamar Williams's show-stopping singing and dancing. Maybe we'll get lucky and the show will extend, but why take a chance of missing it? (McKevitt)

BATS Improv Bayfront Theater, Fort Mason Center, Bldg B, Marina at Laguna; 474-8935, www.improv.org. Fri-Sat, 8pm: "True Fiction Magazine Halloween Shows," $12-15. Sun, 8pm: "Sunday Player Specialty and Micetro," $8.

Big City Improv Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter; (510) 595-5597, www.bigcityimprov.com. Fri, 10pm. Ongoing. $15. The improv troop performs.

'Dirty Little Secret' Empire Plush Room, 940 Sutter; 885-2800, www.empireplushroom.com. Ongoing. Fri-Sat, 11pm. $25. This evening of performance is a "roaring twenties revue."

'A Handful of Dust' Xenodrome, 1320 Potrero; 285-9366, www.xenodrome.com. Fri-Sat, 9pm. $15-20. Through Nov 19. Xeno theatrical dance troop performs.

'Group Therapy' SF LBGT Communtiy Center, 1800 Market. 861-7067, www.lgcsf.org. Thurs-Sat, 7:30pm. $15. The Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco performs a musical comedy by playwright June Bonacich about a woman's foray into gay group therapy.

'Improv Revolution All-Star Jam' Off-Market Studio, 965 Mission; 897-6477, www.cafearts.com. Thurs, 8pm. $5-10. Christopher Hayes hosts.

'Open Process Series: Blood in the Brain' Intersection for the Arts, 446 Valencia; 626-3311, www.theintersection.org. Mon, 7:30pm. $5-15. Naomi Lizuki's work-in-progress adaptation of Hamlet is set in 1980s Oakland.

'Pinguero'ed' Jon Sims Center for the Arts, 1519 Mission; 554-0402. Sat, 7:30pm. $7-15. Catch a reading of Cedric Brown's play about a black Cuban man and a black American man in Havana.

'Purple Wednesdays' Purple Onion, 140 Columbus; 217-8400, www.caffemacaroni.com. Wed, 7-11pm. Call for price. Through Geoff Foster and Guy J. Jackson host a "throwback variety show."

SuicideGirls Independent, 628 Divisadero; www.theindependentsf.com. Wed-Thurs, 9pm. $13-15. The online ladies of the SuicideGirls perform live burlesque.

'Three Drops of Blood: Installment VIII' Project Artaud Theater, 450 Florida; 561-1444. Fri-Sat, 8pm. $17-20. Nanos Operetta, Cyro Baptista, Shinichi Momo Koga, and others perform.

'Uphill Both Ways' Dark Room Theatre, 2366 Mission; www.darkroomsf.com. Fri, 10pm. $10. The sketch comedy troop performs.

'Twelfth Night' Presentation Theatre, USF, 2350 Turk; 422-2186, www.usfperformances.com. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. $5-12. Through Nov 10. Deaf actors Megg Davis and Crom Saunders star in a production of the Shakespear classic that will be performed in American Sign Language and voiced in English.

Bay Area

'The Teahouse' Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, Bangcroft at Telegraph; (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu. Sat, 8pm; Sun, 3pm. The Beijing People's Art Theatre performs a play by Lao She.

comedy

Brainwash 1122 Folsom; 861-3663. Thurs, 7pm: "Brainwash Comedy Open Mic," with host Tony Sparks, free.

Canvas Gallery 1200 Ninth Ave; 504-0010. Tues, 8pm: "Comedy Open Mic Night," free.

Club Deluxe 1511 Haight; 552-6949. Mon, 9pm: "Stand-Up Showcase," with rotating hosts Leah Eva and Sam Arno, free.

Cobb's Comedy Club 915 Columbus; www.cobbscomedyclub.com, www.ticketweb.com. Wed, 8pm: "All-Pro Comedy Showcase," $10. Thurs-Sun, 8pm (also Sat-Sun, 10:15pm): "Stand Up for Your Rights IV" with Will Durst, Marc Maron, and A. Whitney Brown, $15-20.

Luggage Store 1007 Market; www.luggagetuesdays.blogspot.com. Tues, 8pm: Comedy open mic, free.

Mock Cafe 1074 Valencia; 826-5750, ext 5, www.themarsh.org. Sat, 9:30 and 11pm: Stand-up comedy, $7.

Off-Market Theater 965 Mission; dana@sfimprov.com. Sat, 8:30pm: "Improv Slam Singing Contest," $5-10.

Our Little Theater 287 Ellis; 928-4060, www.celebrateclitoris.com. Wed, 8pm" "Bay Area Comedy Showcase," $15-20.

San Francisco Comedy Club 50 Mason; 398-4129, www.laughalotproductions.com. Wed, 7:30pm: "Laugh Dammit!," $10.

San Francisco Comedy College Clubhouse 414 Mason, Ste 705; www.sfcomedycollege.com. Sat, 6pm: "The Petri Dish," free. Sat, 8pm: "The Stand-Up Project," free.

Uptown 200 Capp; 206-9997. Wed, 8:30pm: "Uptown Comedy Open Mic," hosted by Eric Peterson, free.

spoken word

Open mics take place almost every night in cafés throughout the Bay Area. If you want to perform, show up about half an hour before start time to put your name on the list. A day-by-day guide to spoken word events and featured readers:

Wednesday: Canvas Gallery 1200 Ninth Ave, SF; (415) 504-0060, mike@westcoastvideo.net. "Open Mic Talent Showcase," 7:30pm, free. Starry Plough 3101 Shattuck, Berk; (510) 841-2082. "Berkeley Poetry Slam," 8:30pm, $5-7. Mechanics' Institute 57 Post; (415) 393-0119 ext 192. "Experience," with the Mechanix Poets, 6-7:30pm, free.

Thursday: 16th Street and Mission BART plaza 16th St at Mission, SF; (415) 255-9881. "CAI Street Arts Workshop," open mic, 9:30pm, free. EastSide Arts Alliance 2587 International Blvd, Oakl; (510) 533-6629. "Holla Back," open mic, 8:30-10:30pm, donations accepted. Mediterraneum Cafe 2475 Telegraph, Berk; (510) 526-5985. "Word Beat Reading Series," with featured readers Julia Vinograd and Richard Silberg, 7pm, free. Unitarian Center 1187 Franklin, SF; (415) 338-3401, www.sfsu.edu/~poetry. Poetry Center presents Lewis MacAdams and Duncan McNaughton reading, 7:30pm, $5. Morrison Library UC Berkeley, Bangroft at Telegraph, Berk; lunchpoems@berkeley.edu. "Lunch Poems," with featured reader California Laureate Al Young, 12:10pm, free. BadŽ Museum Pacific School of Religion, 1798 Scenic Ave, Berk; (510) 849-8232, www.psr.edu. "Zero Hour," with poet Ernesto Cardenal, 6:30pm, free.

Friday: Black Coalition on AIDS 2800 Third St, SF; (415) 615-9945, www.bcoa.org. "The Audrey and Langston Salon: Our Night, Our Place," with poet Jewelle Gomez and author Marvin K. White, 7pm, free. Escape From New York Pizza 333 Bush, SF; (415) 421-0700. "Poetry and Pizza," with Kitchen Sink editors and contributors, 7:30pm, free.

Saturday: Red Vic Peace Center 1665 Haight, SF; (415) 864-1978. "Open Mic and Hot Tamales," 5pm, free. Java Source 343 Clement, SF; (415) 387-8025. Open mic, 9pm, free. Strawberry Creek Lodge 1320 Addison, Berk; (510) 527-9905, poetalk@aol.com. Bay Area Poets Coalition open reading, 3-5pm, free.

Sunday: Cafe Prague 584 Pacific, SF; (415) 905-8837. Tony Vaughan reads, plus open mic, 4-5:30pm, free. Cody's Books 2454 Telegraph, Berk; (510) 845-7852. "Poetry Flash," with Denise Duhamel and Virgil Su‡rez, 7:30pm, $2. CafŽ Melt! 700 Columbus, SF; (415) 392-9290. "A Literary Obsession," open mic with Raucous Rhetoric, 6pm, free.

Monday: Purple Onion 140 Columbus; 217-8400, www.caffemacaroni.com. "Live at the Purple Onion," open mic hosted by the Kitchenettes, 7-10pm, $5. Priya Indian Cuisine 2072 San Pablo, Berk; berkeleypoetryexpress@yahoo.com. "Poetry Express" with featured readers, Sandra Gey and Leah Steinberg, 7pm, free. Canvas Gallery 1200 Ninth Ave, SF; www.lilycat.com. "Remember When," open mic, 7:30pm, free. Presentation Theatre USF, 2350 Turk, SF; www.sfsu.edu/~poetry. "Robert Creeley: A Memorial Tribute," with featured readers Bill Berkson, Avery Burns, Clark Coolidge, and more, 7pm, free.

Tuesday: Black Repertory Group Theatre 3201 Adeline, Berk; (510) 652-2120. "Twilight Tuesdays," open mic, 7-9pm, $5. Club Deluxe 1511 Haight, SF; www.thewordparty.com. "Poetry and Jazz Tuesdays," open mic hosted by Jennifer, Ingrid, and Daniel, 8pm, free. The Beanery Cafe 2925 College, Berk; (510) 665-1404. "The Whole Note Poetry Series," with featured readers Julia Vinograd and Debra Khattab, 7pm, free.