| theater opening |

Quilters Opens Fri 8pm, continues Sat 8pm, Sun 2pm. In this story of a pioneer woman and her six daughters, a series of interrelated scenes becomes a rich mosaic capturing the sweep and beauty, the terror and joy, the harsh challenge, and the abiding rewards of frontier life. Illuminating stories are contained in various patches or “blocks” with music, dance and drama, while the action depicts the lot of women on the frontier: girlhood, marriage, childbirth, spinsterhood, twisters, fire, illness and death. But, with this, there is also love, warmth, rich and lively humor, and the moving spectacle of simple human dignity and steadfastness in the face of adversity. In the end, when the various patches are assembled into one glorious, brilliantly colorful quilt, the effect is breathtaking. Morgan Stock Stage, Monterey Peninsula College. $25/general admission, $20/seniors and students. 646-4213 or www.TicketGuys.com. Ends 10/24.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show Opens Fri 8pm, continues Sat 8pm, Sun 7pm. After Janet accepts Brad’s marriage proposal, the happy couple drive away from Denton, Ohio, only to get lost in the rain. They stumble upon the castle of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite who is holding the annual convention of visitors from the planet Transsexual. Frank-N-Furter unveils his creation, a young man named Rocky Horror, who fears the doctor and rejects his sexual advances. When Frank-N-Furter announces that he is returning to the galaxy Transylvania, Riff Raff the butler and Magenta the maid declare that they have plans of their own. Audience participation encouraged, umbrellas optional. The Fox Theatre, 243 Main Street, Salinas. $17. 675-0521.www.paperwingtheatre.com. Ends 10/31.

Second Nature: A Human Tribute to the Living Earth Opens Fri 8pm, continues Sat 8pm, Sun 2pm. Seven actors under the direction of Rosemary Luke deliver an original multi-media performance steeped in passion for the natural world. Leave civilization behind and remember the wild as human voices conjure hawk and salmon, blood and moon, ice, gold and gangs, shapeshifters and crop circles. Carl Cherry Center, 4th & Guadalupe, Carmel. $15/general admission, $8/seniors and students. 484-9346. Ends 10/31.

Seussical The Musical Opens Fri 7pm, continues Sat 2pm. The celebrated books by Dr. Seuss have been turned into a musical which follows the adventures of Horton, an elephant who discovers a tiny race of creatures known as Whos! Although ridiculed by the other animals in the Jungle of Nool for believing in something he cannot see, Horton stubbornly persists in his belief that the Whos exist. Meanwhile, the citizens of Who are having some adventures of their own, including a war over which side of the bread gets buttered. Jojo, the smallest child in the city of Who, parallels Horton’s journey as he is ostracized for the unpopular act of thinking—an activity not encouraged by the parents and teachers of Whosville. Horton must convince the other animals of the Jungle that “a person’s a person, no matter how small.” The Wilson Children’s Theatre, 320 Main Street, Salinas. $8/adults; $5/children 3-12; children under 3 free. 775-0976 or www.arieltheatrical.org. Ends 10/23.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Opens Sat 8pm, continues Sun 2pm. After fifteen years in Australia, the unjustly exiled Benjamin Barker returns to Victorian London seeking revenge against the corrupt judge who framed him and ravaged his wife. Now calling himself Sweeney Todd, Barker sets up a barber’s shop in Fleet Street, where his thirst for blood soon extends to his unsuspecting customers. Fortunately his accomplice, Nellie Lovett, owns a pie shop and hits upon a novel way of disposing of the bodies. As much a tale of love as of revenge, Sweeney Todd cleverly blends tragedy with comedy, managing the deft trick of being hilariously funny one moment and dark and suspenseful the next. Main Stage, Hartnell College Performing Arts Center. Hartnell College, Salinas. $25/adults, $16/seniors (+65), juniors (under 25) and military. 755-6816 orwww.westernstage.com. Ends 10/30.

| theater now playing |

Henry VI, Part 3 Fri 7:30pm; Sat 2pm. The Duke of York seizes the crown only to lose it…and more. War rages and heads roll as a crookbacked Richard plots to seize the throne. Circle Theatre, Monte Verde and 8th, Carmel. $20-$35/adults; $15-$25/seniors and students; $6/children under 12. 622-0100 orwww.pacrep.org. Ends 10/16.

Love Letters Sat-Sun 4pm. The Staff Players Repertory Company kicks off its 35th Anniversary season with A.R. Gurney’s poignant and romantic Love Letters. Tracing the lifelong correspondence of staid, dutiful lawyer Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and lively, unstable artist Melissa Gardner, the story of their bittersweet relationship unfolds from what is written—or left unsaid—in their letters. Part of SPRC’s High Tea Series. Indoor Forest Theatre, Santa Rita and Mountain View, Carmel. $16/general; $12/students and seniors; $6/children 12 and under. 624-1531. Ends 10/10.

Meadow Muffin Mafia Fri-Sat 8pm. Western vaudeville hijinks from the Barbary Players. A villain, Osama Bendover, rolls into the town of Meadow Muffin and disrupts life for the colorful community, which includes a female sheriff named Charley Parker, a bar named Dolly Partson’s, town fathers Chief Big Bird and Chop Stix, and a loose mail girl named Easy Pleasures. Barbary Coast Theater, 320 Hoffman Ave., Monterey. $14/regular admission; $13/seniors; $8/students; $6/active military. 655-4992. Ends 12/18.

Richard III Sat 7:30pm; Sun 2pm. Richard III is a schemer, a liar, a manipulator and a ruthless murderer, yet his winter of discontent is indeed made glorious for the audience by this son of York. Monstrous he may be, but Richard’s charm is nearly irresistible. Circle Theatre, Monte Verde and 8th, Carmel. $20-35/adults; $15-$25/seniors and students; $6/children under 12. 622-0100 orwww.pacrep.org. Ends 10/16.

Twelfth Night Fri-Sat 7:30pm, Sun 7pm. Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night tells the story of Viola and Sebastian, identical twins who are separated in a horrible shipwreck. Each, believing the other dead, manages to reach Illyria, an enemy state of their homeland, ruled by the lovesick Duke Orsino, who is pursuing Countess Olivia, who in turn is mourning her brother’s death. Some confused genders, some confused lovers, some class crossing and some trickery, some dueling and some rivalry, and you have quite a mix-up in this bewildering tale, appropriately named after one of England’s most outlandish topsy-turvy carnival days. Outdoor Forest Theatre, Santa Rita and Mountain View, Carmel. 20-$35/general admission; $15-$25/seniors and students; $6/children under 12. 622-0100 orwww.pacrep.org. Ends 10/17.