Theater Buzz

        Picket signs: Local members of Actors Equity will picket The Sound of Music on opening night Nov. 28. According to union president Patrick Quinn, “the union is protesting the fact that the tour is part of the Fifth Third Bank Broadway Series, yet no one, except the scab star (Barry Williams of The Brady Bunch), has ever appeared on Broadway.

        “We believe the Cincinnati theater-going public is entitled to its money's worth and should see professional productions where actors earn a living wage.”

        Equity also has named Cincinnati-Louisville as the sixth “Equity liaison area” in its Central region, joining Chicago, Minneapolis, Detroit, St. Louis and Milwaukee.

        “It's a good thing,” says Bob Rais, a local Equity actor. “It's a first step to getting things like a hot line with job announcements.”

        Cinderella cast: Principal players have been set for theBroadway Series run of Cinderella Feb. 20-March 4.

        Joining the previously announced Eartha Kitt (Fairy Godmother) are Deborah (formerly known as Debbie) Gibson in the title role, and Paolo Montalban, reprising his princely duties from the TV movie with Brandy and Whitney Houston.

Countdown

        Rare appearance: Mandolinist David Grisman has played honky tonks with Dayton bluegrass great Red Allen and Carnegie Hall with jazz violin master Stephane Grappelli. He's performed on some of be best records of the '60s and '70s, including the Grateful Dead's American Beauty, and was a longtime musical partner of Jerry Garcia.

        More than 20 years after he helped create the “new acoustic music” revolution, he continues to blend bluegrass, jazz, world music and even rock into a seamless personal sound. Sunday, the David Grisman Quintet makes a rare area appearance at Parrish Auditorium on the Hamilton campus of Miami University. Show time is 7:30 p.m., and tickets are $22.50. Parrish Auditorium box office: (513) 785-3000.

Countdown

        Blues on Main: Sunday, Texas guitarist Mike Morgan leads his band the Crawl into Jefferson Hall (1150 Main St.; Over-the-Rhine; 723-9008). Music starts at 9:30 p.m.; $8 cover.

        Classic folktale: Madcap Productions Puppet Theatre presents its Caps for Sale show that features a dramatization of the classic folktale about a merchant who must capture the crazy monkeys that steal his goods. The second half of the performance is a story of a princess who eats too many tarts entitled “Many Moons.” Shows are 1 and 3 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, Cincinnati Art Museum. $8, $6 children. 721-2787.

        Book signing: Cincinnati illustrator C.F. Payne has drawn some local color into a new children's tale about a musical prodigy, The Remarkable Farkle McBride by John Lithgow (Simon and Shuster Books for Young Readers; $16).

        For his inspiration, the illustrator sat in on Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra rehearsals. Music lovers will recognize Music Hall, CSO music director Jesus Lopez-Cobos, concertmaster Timothy Lees and associate concertmaster Rebecca Culnan in the pictures. Mr. Payne will be at Music Hall to sign copies at 7 p.m., prior to the CSO's Saturday concert and during intermission.
       

Movies opening Friday

    • Billy Elliot
    • Little Nicky
   • Men of Honor
   • Red Planet
   • Solomon and Gaenor
Coming Friday in Weekend

       The Tristate is rich in lovingly preserved historic sites that offer a glimpse of bygone eras.

Beholding beauty
KIESEWETTER: Right or wrong, it was dramatic TV
Violinist takes on extra string work
'I Love You' strikes chord with homegrown director
Pig Parade / When Irish Styes Are Smiling
Pigs on the Block
A City in the Making/20th in a series
KNIPPENBERG: Taft grad returns for debut of novel
The Early Word
Theater review: Account Me Puppet
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