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Outdoor ballet performances set

Ballet Arizona will present six free performances for the public during its annual “Ballet Under the Stars” community event.

The September presentations will mark the tenth anniversary of the popular program. All shows start at 7 p.m.

Sept. 20 at Sahuaro Ranch Park at 59th Ave and Mountain View Road in Glendale; Sept. 21 at Center for the Arts Amphitheater, 700 W. Rio Salado Pkwy. in Tempe; Sept. 22 at César Chávez Park, 35th Avenue at Baseline Road in Phoenix; Sept. 27 at Fountain Park, 12925 N. Saguaro Blvd. (El Lago and Palisades boulevards) in Fountain Hills; Sept. 28 at Red Mountain Park, East Brown Road at Sunvalley Road in Mesa: and Sept. 29 at Steele Indian School Park, Indian School Road and Third Street in Phoenix.

Visit www.balletaz.org.

Courtesy photo

Cactus Shadows High School Shadowbox Players Evan Bisbee (left), Chris Bello and Griffin Goldsmith rehearse lines for the troupe’s season‑opening production.

Shadowbox Players to host improv

Cactus Shadows High School's Shadowbox Players are hosting an improv show at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Cactus Shadows Fine Arts Center Shadowbox Theatre, 33606 N. 60th St. in Cave Creek.

The show will feature students performing different improvisation games and will be conducted in a format similar to the popular television show, “Whose Line is it Anyway?” Audiences can enjoy an interactive and personal coffee shop experience with the actors while watching the show.

Admission is $4 at the door.

The suggested age range for the performance is middle school students and older as some material may be inappropriate for younger students.

For information call Linda Garvin at (480) 575‑2464.

Young musicians schedule encore

Due to the popularity of the Young Musicians Showcase concerts last season, the Barnabas Society and Arizona Musicfest are collaborating again in 2007‑08.

They will present a series of four, free, Friday evening concerts at St. Barnabas in the Desert Episcopal Church.

The concerts feature gifted young musicians from throughout the Valley.

The first concert will take place at 7 p.m. Sept. 21.

Kristen Whitworth, piano; Chaz Salazar, flute; and Victor Beyens, violin; will be among the featured performers.

Whitworth and Salazar won medals and were recognized as artists of merit in 2005 through 2007 at the Arizona Musicfest Young Musicians Competitions.

Beyens is in his sixth year with the Phoenix Youth Symphony and has served as concertmaster of the Phoenix Youth Symphony String Orchestra and the Symphonette Orchestra.

Subsequent concerts in the series are scheduled for 7 p.m. Nov.16; Jan.18 and April, 18, 2008, in Lincoln Hall at St. Barnabas in the Desert Episcopal Church, 6715 N. Mockingbird Ln. in Scottsdale.

The concerts are free and open to the public.

Each concert will last about an hour and will be followed by a “Meet the Musicians” reception.

For more information call (480) 488‑0806 or (480) 948‑5560.

Starlight to conduct auditions

Starlight Community Theatre will conduct auditions for its upcoming production, “University,” a drama comprised of 10 mini‑plays centered around university life.

This casting call is open to ages 13–30 for the approximately 20‑member cast of Starlight’s only non‑musical of the season.

Auditions will begin at 5 p.m. Sept. 24 and 25 at Diamond Canyon School, 40004 N. Liberty Bell Way in Anthem.

For information call producer Ann Olsen at (623) 533‑4826. Callbacks only will be at 5 p.m. Sept. 26.

Artist reception at el Pedregal

Es Posible Gallery will host a reception for contemporary artist and musician Jim Van Deman from 7 to 9 p.m. Sept. 28 at El Pedregal Shops and Dining at the Boulders in North Scottsdale.

Van Deman will share information about his talent as a painter and a maker of handmade wooden flutes. He will also entertain with selections on his instruments.

El Pedregal is located at 34505 N. Scottsdale Road in North Scottsdale.

“La Boheme” at inaugural season of the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera.

Opera ducats on sale

Tickets are currently on sale for the inaugural season of the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera.

PMO will debut with performances of “La Boheme” on Dec. 21 and 23 at Orpheum Theatre , 203 W. Adams St. in downtown Phoenix.

Tickets begin at $50 and are available at the Orpheum Theatre Box Office or through Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.com.

“It’s our goal to bring the grandeur of European opera to Phoenix, while at the same time keeping it affordable for families,” John Massaro, PMO’s creative director, said. “Our traditional staging of ‘La Boheme,’ coupled with our international cast, is one we hope people will never forget.”

“La Boheme” is the most popular of all of Pucinni’s operas.

Puccini wrote three operas before La Boheme, but it was only with this work that the public really appreciated that Verdi’s successor had arrived.

It is based on a novel about bohemian life in Paris in the 1830s.

For more information call (866) 673‑7248 or visit phoenixmetropolitanopera.org.

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