Beware the ear worms! Can you think of another show that has as many insidious tunes as Man of La Mancha? (I ended up humming “Dream the Impossible Dulcinea in a Cinnamon Tree.”) However, the inventive staging of this play-within-a-play makes it worth enduring the tunefully torturous car ride home. The creative team on this show has pulled out all the stops, putting together a world of fantastical illusions including a windmill/monster, a castle/inn and a really cool chess game, all from cardboard. The cast brings a lot of energy and talent (vocal, dance and acting) and while this show is a little rough around the edges musically, I understand that the pit band had just under two weeks to learn the very challenging score. Again, I’m impressed with how big the King’s Theatrical Society dares to dream.

When: Through January 23
Where: The Pit, Arts and Administration Building, University of King's College, 6350 Coburg
Price: $5/$7

Faith Healer by Irish playwright Brian Friel is not what you might expect from the title. While the “Fantastic Francis Hardy” (Lewis Wynne-Jones) supposedly has an on-again-off-again healing touch, the audience never actually sees him in action. Instead, the story of life in Frank’s (AKA Francis) itinerant show is told in monologues by three terrific actors, from three very different points of view. Chloe Hung is Grace, Frank’s wife of many years who has been destroyed by her husband’s indifference and cruelty. (As an example, in Frank’s version of reality, he insists that Grace is merely his mistress.) Griffin McInnes is Teddy, Frank’s Cockney manager. Teddy, a funny little man who sees both humour and pathos in everything, is a stalwart friend who has put up with years of neglect, perhaps because he is a little in love with both Grace and Frank. Frank, as played by Wynne-Jones, oozes a seductive charm as well as a deep-seated self-doubt. This play requires more than the ability to listen. Come prepared to hear, and you will be amply rewarded.

When: Through January 23
Where: KTS Redroom on the second floor of the New Academic Building on King's College Campus 6350 Coburg
Price: $5/$7

At the heart of Montréal Danse’s piece On the Ice of Labrador is a real story. Actually, not just one story, but many old family tales, collected from the company’s seven dancers by choreographer Sarah Chase. According to MD artistic director Kathy Casey, “Chase loves to unearth stories and find the links and common themes.” It’s an eclectic collection: “Aviators, trombone players, mortality on railroad tracks, bodies washed in Hotel Dieu, blood sugar cycles of a young diabetic,” and the list goes on, but at the core of all this truth is one story that’s a fabrication, which Casey calls “the glue to the piece.” All these stories circle and ride around a character who has been diagnosed with a brain tumour, the treatment for which “could affect what defines your personhood…including your memory.”

Those who find the abstract nature of contemporary dance a challenge should watch out: you may get hooked before you know it, through narration and singing. Casey says, “It’s abstract on a movement level, but it’s gestural as body language. And the stories are concrete.”

Of course, singing and stories challenge the dancers to take on different skills too. Casey says that it becomes a very personal experience—-they’ve worked on telling their tales rather than reciting a script—-and even the lighting is turned up slightly to accommodate the intimacy of that performer-audience bond.

Montréal Danse’s On the Ice of Labrador, presented by Live Art Productions, runs Thursday to Saturday, 8pm at the Sir James Dunn Theatre. Tickets are $16.50-$24 (494-3820).

2b Theatre is in New York, remounting their acclaimed play Invisible Atom, directed by Ann-Marie Kerr and performed by Anthony Black, at the Public Theatre until January 17. Atom is one man's journey through the imagination, touching on brainiac topics like economics and classical physics. Dark and humourous, this one.

Black writes to say they're having a great time (it's New York!!) taking in shows and seeking out great restaurants (sigh). "A number of our performances have been sold out and we've had great response, including interest from presenters in places like Galway, Nashville, and Chicago. We've also been seeing some really remarkable work, including the Philadelphia-based company PigIron with their extraordinary show "Chekhov Lizardbrain", a verbatim text song cycle from Ireland called "Silver Stars", and a wonderful piece from France called "L'Effet de Serge." I wish Halifax had a presenter with enough money to bring in shows like this."

What Black doesn't mention is this incredibly ecstatic review: "I feel privileged to have been among Invisible Atom's audience members. Go see this show and be inspired, entertained and intellectually impressed."

When the curtain rises on the King’s production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, it’s immediately apparent that actress Sabrina Uswak looks the part of Maggie, the “cat” of the title. She’s a quivering ball of energy resplendent with glossy tresses and a lithe body. The same could be said of John Adams as Brick. He has the cool, handsome exterior of a young Paul Newman, right down the forelock of floppy hair. But do they have the acting chops to bring to life this damaged pair, and to dance the tricky tango of attraction (Maggie) and repulsion (Brick)? Yes and yes! Uswak ably skips across the high wire of Maggie’s deviousness and longing, and Adams is fully engaged and engaging as Brick, even during his many silences. The supporting cast is also remarkable. Genevieve Whelan as Big Mama is both larger-than-life funny and tragically human. Matt Baker as Big Daddy, while occasionally veering into over-the-top dramatics, had some very fine moments as Brick’s surprisingly loving father. Well-cast and well-acted, this is theatre to heat up these cold January nights.

When: Through Jan. 16, 8 p.m.
Price: $5/$7
Where: The Pit, Arts and Administration Building, University of King's College, 6350 Coburg

Although it’s been over 45 years since Roe v Wade was passed, and almost 22 years since abortion was decriminalized in Canada, women still face challenges to their reproductive rights—-in particular, abortion accessibility—-according to Jane Gavin-Hebert, producer of SMU Women’s Centre’s production of Jane Abortion and the Underground. This is the play’s first international performance and its 10th anniversary.

Directed by Pascale Roger-McKeever and originally written by American playwright Paula Kamen, the story follows Chicago’s Jane Collective, an early 1970s underground group that provided thousands of safe, accessible abortions at a time when the procedure was illegal. It was a “secret” service that received referrals from churches, hospitals, police and more. Nonetheless, seven members were arrested, but the charges were eventually dropped when Roe v Wade passed.

Kamen’s original script slightly fictionalized parts of this true story, but Gavin-Hebert says that Ruth Vollick, who adapted the screenplay for the Halifax production, stripped it down to the monologues, which are first-hand, verbatim accounts of the events. “This is solely the true story,” says Gavin-Hebert.

Jane Abortion and the Underground runs January 9-10, 7pm at Saint Mary’s McNally Theatre. Tickets are $7 in advance (496-8722) and $12 at the door. Also a fundraiser for Trust Women: A Conference on Reproductive Justice, scheduled for January 28 at the university, look for a silent auction and an art exhibition by Rebecca Roher.