Matinees

This box was left off a review in yesterday's Today section. Where: Totem Pole Playhouse, 9555 Golf Course Road, Caledonia State Park, Fayetteville, Pa. When: 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays; matinees at 2:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Through Aug. 12 Tickets: $18-$25 Call: 1-888-805-7056

"The Teahouse of the August Moon," a Broadway hit of 1953, opens Friday, Feb. 1, at 8 p.m., at Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St. The play pursues the career of an army of occupation officer stationed in a remote town on Okinawa. Sent there to teach democracy to the townspeople, the young officer, within a few days, gets sidetracked. Find out what happens when a colonel comes to inspect the village and what the officer has accomplished. Performances run through Feb. 24, on Fridays and Saturdays, at 8 p.m., with Sunday matinees on Feb. 10 and 24, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15, general admission; $12, students, age 18 and younger, and seniors, age 65 and older.

The Datebook in the Howard County edition of The Sun has given incorrect information about performances of "The Nutcracker" by the Ellicott City Ballet Guild. Performances will be at 7: 30 p.m. Dec. 18, 19, 20 and 21 with 2: 30 matinees on Dec. 20 and 21. Tickets are $10 to $15.The Sun regrets the errors.Pub Date: 12/12/97

Harford County school officials have announced the Bel Air Drama Company's (Bel Air High School) fall production dates and times for "13: The Musical" have changed, as a result of this week's storm-related school closings. Thursday's night performance has been canceled in order to allow the group to have a final dress rehearsal. As a result, the show will open Friday at 7 p.m. There will be two performances on Saturday, a 2 p.m. matinee and 7 p.m. In addition, a 2 p.m. matinee show has been added on Sunday.

Lyric show features gospel music"Joshua Fit De Battle of Jericho," "Jezebel" and other traditional gospel songs will be featured in "Golden Gate," a musical celebration at the Lyric Opera House Tuesday through Sunday. The show is directed and choreographed by George Faison, who won a Tony Award for his work on "The Wiz."Evening performances are at 8 p.m. and 7:30 p.m Sunday. Matinees are at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $23.50 and $15 for Tuesday evening; $23.50, 21.50 and $12.50 for Wednesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday matinees; $26.50, $23.50 and $14.50 for Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings and Sunday matinees.

Toby's Dinner Theatre is Toby.It's Toby Orenstein, producer and director for 12 years of the 39 shows in her Columbia showcase.It's Toby, scurrying between phone calls to advertising reps and impromptu meetings with production people, who is preparing evening auditions for a late spring production of "The Music Man" while working on the theater's current 14-week run of "On The Town."It's Toby, recipient of last year's "Howie Award" from the Howard County Arts Council for furthering the arts, who has featured productions that run the gamut from the flamboyant and familiar "Hello Dolly" to the somber and offbeat "Sweeney Todd."

New theater group debuts FridayBaltimore's newest theater group, Performance Workshop Theatre Company, debuts Friday with the local premiere of Gilles Segal's "The Puppetmaster of Lodz," in the Fine & Performing Arts Center at Catonsville Community College, 800 S. Rolling Road. Set in the 1950s, the play tells the story of a Holocaust survivor who does not believe the war is over. Under the direction of Marlyn G. Robinson, the show will star Marc Horwitz in the title role and feature puppets designed by Pennsylvania's Mum Puppettheatre.

"The Teahouse of the August Moon," a Broadway hit of 1953, opens Friday, Feb. 1, at 8 p.m., at Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St. The play pursues the career of an army of occupation officer stationed in a remote town on Okinawa. Sent there to teach democracy to the townspeople, the young officer, within a few days, gets sidetracked. Find out what happens when a colonel comes to inspect the village and what the officer has accomplished. Performances run through Feb. 24, on Fridays and Saturdays, at 8 p.m., with Sunday matinees on Feb. 10 and 24, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15, general admission; $12, students, age 18 and younger, and seniors, age 65 and older.

AXIS Theatre opens its 1997-1998 season tonight with the Baltimore premiere of Terrence McNally's 1995 Tony Award-winning play, "Love! Valour! Compassion!"The poignant drama, about a group of gay men who spend three summer holiday weekends at an upstate New York country house, features a cast headed by Stephen Antonsen, Brian Jacobs, Mark Bernier and Patrick Martyn. Direction is by Terry J. Long, who has staged several other local productions of McNally plays. (The theater cautions that the show includes some nudity and profanity.

When a car driven by a young executive nearly runs into an octogenarian pedestrian, a judge sentences the executive to pay weekly visits to the elderly man. The relationship that develops between this unlikely pair forms the core of Jeff Baron's off-Broadway hit, "Visiting Mr. Green," which begins its Baltimore premiere at Everyman Theatre tomorrow. The final production of the Everyman season is directed by Vincent Lancisi and stars company members Kyle Prue and Stan Weiman. Show times at Everyman, 1727 N. Charles St., are 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, with matinees at 2:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, through June 3. Tickets are $15-$20, except tomorrow's opening, which is $25, and tonight's pay-what-you-can preview.

In an unusual early start time - due to the pending Grand Prix of Baltimore - the Orioles' first pitch is scheduled for 12:35 p.m. If you are coming here, I hope you left early. Like Tuesday or last weekend. The streets are already a mess (and the Russell Street ramp is closed, though it wasn't supposed to be). The lineups are out and Matt Wieters is getting a day off, just protocol for the starting catcher for a day game following a night game. Mark Reynolds is batting cleanup for the first time this season.

Don't miss the last weekend for "Miracle on 34th Street" at Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St. A special holiday lunch and afternoon matinee is planned for Saturday, Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. Lunch is at noon at Salute Italiano Ristorante, 504 Main St., next door to the theater. Lunch and show for adults is $35, which includes tax and tip; cost for children 10 and under is $25 for lunch, tax and tip and show. Call Maureen Rogers, 301-452-2557, for menu and to make reservations. Other shows are Friday, Dec. 16 and Saturday, Dec. 17 at 8 p.m., with Sunday matinee on Dec. 18 at 2 p.m. Everyone will remember the story from the popular movie, where Kris Kringle, an old man in a retirement home, gets a job working as Santa at Macy's.

If you can't get enough of Kris Kringle and "Miracle on 34th Street" during the holiday season, you are in luck because the show opens Saturday, Dec. 3 at 8 p.m. at Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St. Performances run weekends, Dec. 3 through 18, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. amd Sunday matinees at 2 p.m., and a special Saturday matinee Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $13 general admission, students (age 18 and under), active duty military and seniors (age 65 and over) are $10. For reservations, call 301-617-9906 and press 2. http://www.laurelmillplayhouse.org .

Playing at a multiplex more or less near you: monarchs, scoundrels, illicit lovers and the occasional fighter. And every one of them is singing. Welcome to opera in the 21st century, which you can now enjoy while munching from vats of buttered popcorn and slurping oversized soft drinks. For 75 years, the Metropolitan Opera has extended its reach with live radio broadcasts of Saturday-afternoon performances. Late last month, the company went a giant step further by introducing high-definition, surround-sound satellite simulcasts of select matinees to movie houses throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and, by delayed transmission, Japan.

With Edward Norton, what you see is what you get." At least that's what John Curran, the director of The Painted Veil, said of his unconventional star. Neil Burger, the director of The Illusionist, sees more shadows. "Edward's an actor of amazing stature, intensely smart and, at times, I'd guess, an enigma even unto himself."

Philadelphia -- After rallying to win a pair of one-goal games, the Blast made sure it took early control of yesterday morning's game against the Philadelphia KiXX, and needed less than a minute to do it. Giuliano Celenza scored the first of his two goals 55 seconds into the game, Joel Bailey had two goals and P.J. Wakefield added three assists to power the Blast to an 8-4 victory before 9,356 at the Wachovia Spectrum. Robbie Aristodemo, Adauto Neto, Carlos Garcia and Sumed Ibrahim also scored for the Blast (12-6)

If you can't get enough of Kris Kringle and "Miracle on 34th Street" during the holiday season, you are in luck because the show opens Saturday, Dec. 3 at 8 p.m. at Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St. Performances run weekends, Dec. 3 through 18, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. amd Sunday matinees at 2 p.m., and a special Saturday matinee Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $13 general admission, students (age 18 and under), active duty military and seniors (age 65 and over) are $10. For reservations, call 301-617-9906 and press 2. http://www.laurelmillplayhouse.org .

Shakespeare's last tragedy, "Coriolanus," currently in previews at Washington's Shakespeare Theatre, traces the journey of an arrogant Roman military leader from hero to traitor. The production, directed by Michael Kahn, stars Andrew Long. It features the largest cast in the Shakespeare Theatre's history. The updated design features costumes by Jess Goldstein that suggest the fascist regime of Mussolini and a set by Walt Spangler highlighted by a giant staircase that combines the feel of both classical Rome and art deco.

`Movin' Out' Movin' Out, the dialogue-free musical that combines Billy Joel's songs with Twyla Tharp's choreography, begins a monthlong run at the National Theatre in Washington tomorrow. Conceived by Tharp - who won a 2003 Tony for choreographing the show - Movin' Out uses two dozen Joel songs, including "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant," "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me," "She's Got a Way" and "The Stranger," to tell the story of the relationships among five friends, beginning in the 1960s.

On any given Friday, their names turn up on the posters at the neighborhood cineplex - at the bottom, billed well after the stars. They're the cop mistakenly tracking down the hero, the good-looking eye candy in the middle of an ensemble, a victim or the heroine's love interest. Unless, of course, they find a home in an indie drama or comedy. Then, they're the lead, the star. Maybe even a producer, because their name, such as it is, got the movie financed and released. They are the nonleading leading men, movie stars with the talent and good looks to be top-billed but who don't necessarily choose to go that route.