Shows opening and continuing in Eastern Iowa this week

OPENING

BRIGADOON

Today (6/14) to Sunday (6/17) @ Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre

The opera theater's Young Artists present the story of a mystical Scottish village that only appears for one day every 100 years and a romance that must bridge the magical mists of time. Times: 7:30 p.m. today (6/14) to Sunday, Brucemore's outdoor amphitheater, 2160 Linden Dr. SE, Cedar Rapids; bring seating, picnics; gate opens at 6:30 p.m. Tickets: $25 adults, $15 students and Brucemore members in advance, $30 day of show, Brucemore.org or (319) 362-7375; information Cr-opera.org/content/Tickets.aspx

FREEDOM STAR

Today (6/14) @ Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre in Cedar Rapids

Near life-size handheld puppets, rod puppets, shadow puppets and hand-dyed scenery tell a dramatic moving story, based on local history of a young girl who escapes from a farm in Missouri and makes her way through Iowa on her way to freedom. 'Freedom Star: Gertie's Journey of the Underground Railroad” uses local and regional history references, including John Brown's years spent in Iowa, with topical songs written and played by Iowa musician Ron Hills. Time: 6 p.m. today (6/14), African American Museum of Iowa, 55 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids. Admission: $5; Blackiowa.org

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

Friday (6/15) to June 24 @ Riverside Theatre in the Park, Iowa City

Set in the back lots of MGM Movie Studios right after World War II, love and frivolity are in the air in this Shakespearean comedy. Times: 7:30 p.m. June 15 to 17 and 21 to 24, Lower City Park, 200 Park Rd., Iowa City. Admission: free, donations accepted. Extras: bring picnics, food trucks on-site, drinks, ice cream and popcorn at the concession stand, family-friendly activities; Green Show, 6:30 p.m. each night, with a contemporary retelling of the play, performed by Andrew Carlile, Hannah Spina and Genevieve Wisdom. Information: Riversidetheatre.org/riverside-s-summer-2018

RETURN TO THE FORBIDDEN PLANET

Friday (6/15) to Sunday (6/17) @ City Circle Acting Company, Coralville

City Circle's annual teen show is a jukebox musical by playwright Bob Carlton based on Shakespeare's 'The Tempest” and the 1956 science fiction film 'Forbidden Planet.” The score includes pop hits from the 1950s and '60s. Times: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.nm. Sunday; Coralville Center for the Performing Arts, 1301 Fifth St., Coralville. Tickets: $12 to $27, venue box office, (319) 248-9370 or Coralvillearts.org

THE WOODS OF OLD BOHEMIA

Saturday (6/16) @ National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library, Cedar Rapids

Join Playtime Poppy, the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library and an all-kid cast for Summer Theatre Adventure 2018, going into the woods to explore characters from traditional folk tales of Czech and Slovak tradition. Time: 10 a.m. Saturday (6/16); National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library, 1400 Inspiration Place SW, Cedar Rapids. Admission, donations accepted: free.

ONGOING

FUDDY MEERS

To Sunday (6/17) @ Grandon Studio, Theatre Cedar Rapids

This poignant and wicked new comedy by Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Lindsay-Abaire traces one woman's attempt to regain her memory while surrounded by a curio-cabinet of alarmingly bizarre characters, including her chipper husband, her so-called-brother, a dimwitted thug with a foul-mouthed hand puppet, and her perpetually stoned son. It's a roller-coaster ride through the day of an amnesiac trying to decipher her fractured life. Rated: R. Times: 7:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday; Grandon Studio, Theatre Cedar Rapids, 102 Third St. SE. Tickets: $19 to $24, TCR Box Office, (319) 366-8591 or Theatrecr.org

THE SAVANNAH SIPPING SOCIETY

To June 24 @ Old Creamery Theatre, Amana

After a hot yoga class brings together four women 'of a certain age,” they decide their sassy humor and Southern charms are better suited for solving life's problems over cocktails. Rated PG. Times: 2 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday; Old Creamery Theatre, 39 38th Ave., Amana. Tickets: $31.50 adults, $19.50 students, box office, (319) 622-6262 or Oldcreamery.com

THE SECRET GARDEN

To July 1 @ Giving Tree Theater, Marion

Orphaned in India, 11 year-old Mary Lennox returns to Yorkshire to live with her embittered, reclusive uncle Archibald and his invalid son, Colin. The estate's many wonders include a magic garden which beckons the children with haunting melodies and the 'Dreamers,” spirits from Mary's past who guide her through her new life, dramatizing story's tale of forgiveness and renewal. Musical. Times: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday; Giving Tree Theater, 752 10th St., Marion. Tickets: $26, box office, (319) 213-7956 or Givingtreetheater.com

upcoming

THE MISS FIRECRACKER CONTEST: June 22 to July 1, Starlighters II, 200 E. Main St., Anamosa; $15 to $16, Starlighters.org/missfirecracker

MARK TWAIN: 1:30 p.m. June 24, Dubuque Museum of Art, 701 Locust St., Dubuque. The popular 'Famous Dead Artist” series returns with actor Doug Donald playing the role of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known by his pen name, Mark Twain. The event will explore his long and colorful life, which was filled with spectacular triumphs and heartbreaking tragedies. Based on 'Inside the Actor's Studio with James Lipton,” the program will be moderated by Kevin Firnstahl. Admission: free, first-come, first-served seating, doors open at 12:45 p.m.

HEATHERS: THE MUSICAL: June 29 to July 15, Theatre Cedar Rapids, 102 Third St. SE; 7:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday; $28 to $36, TCR Box Office, (319) 366-8591 or Theatrecr.org

THE 39 STEPS: June 29 to July 22, Riverside Theatre, 213 N. Gilbert St., Iowa City; 7:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday; $30, (319) 338-7672 or Riversidetheatre.org/buytickets/

DISNEY'S ALADDIN JR.: Young Footliters, June 29 to July 1, Coralville Center for the Performing Arts, 1301 Fifth St., Coralville; 7 p.m. Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday; $13 to $19, venue box office, (319) 248-9370 or Coralvillearts.org

PICNIC: Classics At Brucemore: 7:30 p.m. July 12 to 14 and 19 to 21, Peggy Boyle Whitworth Amphitheater, Brucemore, 2160 Linden Dr. SE, Cedar Rapids; bring seating and picnics, gates open 6:30 p.m.; $15 to $25, Brucemore.org/events/annual-events/calendar

THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE: Brucemore Outdoor Children's Theater: 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. Aug. 1 to 4, Peggy Boyle Whitworth Amphitheater, Brucemore, 2160 Linden Dr. SE, Cedar Rapids; bring seating, snacks; $5 ages 1 and up, at the gate; Brucemore.org