OPENING THIS WEEK
The Tinker's Wedding and In the Shadow of the Glen
Paula Productions commences its 14th season with two short plays by John Millington Synge, the first about a wedding day squabble among travelling gypsies, the second a Ryan's Daughter style tale of a May-September marriage. PAULA PRODUCTIONS, AT THE JACK OAKES THEATER, 2820 NE Sandy Blvd, 238-9692, Thur-Sat, 8 pm, through Oct 28, $10
ONE WEEK ONLY
Cabaret Boris & Natasha
Two evenings of variety acts, including videos, dance (by Joan Findlay, Mary Oslund, and others), and puppetry, to benefit the opening of Performance Works NorthWest. PERFORMANCE WORKS NORTHWEST, 4625 SE 67th Ave, 777-1907, Sat-Sun, 8 pm, $18
September September
Seattle's 33 Fainting Spells dance-drama quartet combines a sense of reality and deceiving simplicity with some of the most unique choreography today, earning them world-wide acclaim. This is the debut of their newest full-length piece, which combines "vaudevillian performance vocabulary with cinematic shadings." (Julianne Shepherd) PICA AT PCC-SYLVANIA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, 12000 SW 49, 244-6111, 242-1419, Sept 28-30 $13-15
CLOSING THIS WEEK
* Suburban Motel Part 1
See My, What A Busy Week p 15 STARK RAVING THEATER, AT THEATER! THEATRE!, 3430 SE Belmont St, 232-7072, Thurs-Sun, 7:30 pm, ends Sept 30, $13.50-17
The Fantasticks
Jones and Schmidt's musical about the young love that remembers that time in September. OLD SLOCUM HOUSE, 605 Esther Street, 360-697-8383, through Sept 30
CURRENT RUNS
Ain't Nothin' but a Bunch of Bull
Race relations in Eastern Oregon town are explored in this play by Will Sharp. SHARP THEATRICS AT THE WILSON CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS, YWCA, SW 10th and Main, 788-7390, Thur-Sun, 8 pm, ends Oct 8, $10-12
The Beauty Queen of Leenane
An incessantly bickering mother/daughter duo lives in poverty in Leenane, a tiny town in Ireland. The cast is largely excellent in their roles, and hit the comic elements (which are many) with perfection. However, while the script (penned by Martin McDonagh) sweats to be clever, it's really just a mish-mash rehash of plays written 20 years ago by the likes of Sam Shepard and Marsha Norman. ARTISTS REPERTORY THEATER, 1516 SW Alder St, 241-1278, Sun 7 pm, Tues-Thurs 7 pm, ends Sun, Oct 15, $13.50, 241-1ART
A Careless Rage for Life
A theatrical biography of British mystery writer and Dante translator Dorothy L. Sayers. TAPESTRY THEATRE COMPANY AT THE LITTLE THEATER, PCC-SYLVANIA, 12000 SW 49th Ave, 452-0818, Fri-Sat, 8 pm, ends Oct 14, $10-12
The Devils
New artistic director Chris Coleman makes his debut with this adaptation of Dostoevsky's novel about revolutionaries. PORTLAND CENTER STAGE, 1111 SW Broadway, 274-6588, daily except Mondays, through Oct 22, $10-17
The Duck Variations
See review. AASYLUM THEATRE, AT THE RUSSELL STREET THEATRE, 116 NE Russell, 775-4324, Fri-Sat, 10:30 pm, ends Oct. 14, $8
Life is a Dream
Pedro Calderon de la Barca's play from the 1600's embraces magical realism as it tells of kings and imprisoned heirs. MIRACLE THEATER, 525 SE Stark Street, 236-7253, Fri-Sat, 8 pm, through Oct 14, $12-16
* Middlemove
The Brody Theater's fifth season opens with this improv evening in which audience suggestions are used to start scenes in media res. BRODY THEATER, 1904 NW 27 Ave, 224-0688, Fri-Sat, 8 pm, through Oct 21, $8
* No Exit
Imago revives its popular and award winning 1998 production of Jean-Paul Sartre's play about Hell being other people-and a rising, dipping unsteady stage. IMAGO THEATER, 17 SE 8th Ave, 231-9581, Thurs-Sun, through Oct 15, $14-16
Paint Your Wagon
Lerner and Loewe's musical about a marriage triangle in the old Northwest. MUSICAL THEATER COMPANY, EASTSIDE PERFORMANCE CENTER, 531 SE 14th Avenue, 916-6592, Fri-Sun 8 pm, and Sun 2 pm, through Oct 15, $16-28
Pigs...Three Short Plays about Men
Comic sketches about men and relationships by Frederick Stroppel and Peter Tolan. OUTSIDE THE BOX PRODUCTIONS, AT IT'S A BEAUTIFUL PIZZA, 3341 SE Belmont St, 232-9435, Fri-Sat 8 pm, ends Oct 21, $8-10
* Popcorn
British comedian turned playwright Ben Elton has fashioned a tale of a Quentin Tarantino style film director who, on Oscar night, is confronted with characters inspired by his violent movies. Though not as intellectually challenging as it could have been, the play is funny, and the cast of this production does it justice. THEATRE VERTIGO AT THE RUSSELL STREET THEATER, 116 N Russell, 306-0870, Thurs-Sun, ends Oct 15, $10-12
The Woods
David Mamet's play about two lovers who use a weekend getaway to learn about each other. DEFUNKT THEATRE, AT THE BACK DOOR THEATER, 4319 SE Hawthrone Blvd, 235-8779, Thur-Sat, 8 pm, Sun, 4 pm, through Oct 21, $5-15
