Next Onstage ...

What's the future look like? Only our theater critic knows for sure.

A A A Comments (0) By Ronald Mangravite Thursday, Aug 22 2002

Also in Coral Gables, the Actors Playhouse (305-444-9293, ext. 600) continues to offer sometimes ho-hum mainstream programming, but also slips in more adventurous musical fare. The season opens with Alan Ayckbourn's romp, Comic Potential, followed by the Broadway classic The Sound of Music, and a new take on the detective yarn, Sherlock's Last Case. Three musicals follow -- the intriguing but little-known Floyd Collins, a Broadway-bound revival of The Little Shop of Horrors, and an off-Broadway tuner, The Big Bang, is the summer closer.

Talk about high drama: Gablestage (305-445-1119) has yet to announce its new season, but artistic director Joe Adler offered his subscribers a startling proposition: sign up for a "blind" subscription and receive deep discounts. To date over 60 percent of last year's subscribers took his dare, paying into a season that as of yet lacks plays or schedules. That's quite a vote of confidence in Adler's leadership. So come on, Joe, pick 'em already!

Alvaro Diaz-Rubio

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The Juggerknot Theatre (305-519-5438) also presents a season of innovative world premieres beginning with Bump (October 3-4), followed by Mario Diament's Houseguest, and a multimedia project, Fresh, featuring three South Florida playwrights and three New York playwrights. Michael John Garces's Customs rounds out the season.

Finally there's the new (or reformed) kids on the block, theCuban American Repertory Theater (305-666-8231), which will follow up its summer inaugural hit Lenin's Omeletwith more fresh works: Domino by Marco Ramirez and two plays by Rogelio Martinez, Illuminating Veronicaand They Still Mambo in Havana, a site-specific experiment that may well be -- you heard it here first -- the sleeper smash of the season.