There’s the Broadway crowd, comprised of folks who actually go to New York at least once a year to take in a few shows, and then there’s the Broadway Across America crowd, comprised of folks who go the BJCC at least once a year to take in the touring productions of whatever their OTM friends saw two seasons ago on The Great White Way. And there are still other crowds, albeit significantly smaller ones, who support local theatre companies whose productions never, ever include anybody breaking into song. Of course, I can’t know for sure which of these crowds would boast the greatest number of Monty Python fans, but I’d bet on the latter — and my purpose in this post is to encourage that very group to go see Spamalot. I’m as snobby a theatergoer as lives in this area code and I enjoyed the show, which surely means you will – or should.

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Popularity: 38% [?]

Last summer I wrote a story about the CenterStage production of the 1998 sexually charged revival of Cabaret. At the time, it seemed a lot of people wondered if Birmingham was ready for such a show - a show filled with cross dressing, sexual promiscuity, alcohol abuse, and issues such as abortion, homosexuality and racism. “I think Birmingham audiences have been ready and are ready for something a little edgier than let’s say, Oklahoma,” Birmingham theatre favorite Kimberly Kirklin said at the time.

The show went over well; in fact, during the Saturday evening performance I sat beside an elderly couple who professed to me just how wonderful and scandalous they thought it was.

One thing is for certain: If Birmingham wasn’t ready for that show then, they better brace themselves for what’s to come as we approach a month’s-end full of exciting local theatre. The Birmingham theatre docket is chock full of cutting edge, provocative and, in some cases, scurrilous shows. Check them out below:

Theatre UAB presents The Laramie Project, a show about the 1998 homophobia-motivated murder of student Matthew Shepard written by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project. Writers of the play interviewed and observed hundreds of people in the town of Laramie, Wy. and based the play on these interviews and news reports. The play was first performed in 2000 and was turned into an HBO movie in 2002. UAB student Luke Harlan directs; this is the first time a student has directed a Theatre UAB performance. The show opens Wednesday, Feb. 20 and runs through Sunday, Feb. 24 at the Alys Stephens Center. Tickets are $6-$15. Call 975-2787.

Did you ever wonder what happened to your favorite Peanuts characters? Find out when Theatre Downtown presents the off-Broadway hit, Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead. Snoopy meets an untimely death and Charlie Brown and the rest of the gang are left to deal with typical teenage issues: sex, drugs, and general rebelliousness. The show opens Thursday, Feb. 21 and runs through March 1 at the Playhouse. Tickets are $12-$17. Call 306-1470.

Get ready to see The Full Monty at the Red Mountain Theatre Company’s Cabaret Theatre Thursday, Feb. 21 through March 2. You remember the movie: unemployed steelworkers strip for money. This is the musical version of the same story. Remember to leave the kiddies at home, because this one is for “mature” audiences. Tickets are $30. Call 324-2424 or visit www.redmountaintheatre.org.

Also opening Thursday, Feb. 21, is Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens at the Birmingham Festival Theatre. The show features a collection of songs and poems dedicated to people who have died from AIDS. Inspired by the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, which has been on display a couple of times in Birmingham, and the Spoon River Anthology, the show debuted in the late 1980s in New York City and features music by Janet Hood and lyrics by Bill Russell. Tickets are $30 and proceeds benefit Birmingham AIDS Outreach. Show runs through Feb. 24. Call 933-2382 or visit www.bftonline.org.

Also playing around town:
Cry Havoc - Through Feb. 17 at the Alabama School of Fine Arts
Fame - Through Feb. 24 at the Levite Jewish Community Center
I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change - Through Feb. 24 at the Virginia Samford Theatre

Upcoming around town:
Raisin in the Sun - Opens Feb. 28 at The Altamont School
As You Like It - Opens March 1 at the Alys Stephens Center
Into the Woods* - Opens March 7 at the Virginia Samford Theatre
*This show is a personal favorite of mine. It’s a witty, dramatic and inspirational combination of favorite Brothers Grimm fairy tales by Stephen Sondheim. It’s full of useful maxims such as, “A slotted spoon doesn’t hold much soup.” You won’t be disappointed.

Popularity: 31% [?]

There was a time when the coolest of the cool wore tuxes, sang, danced, drank and told off-color jokes, usually all in the same performance. The men forever known as “The Rat Pack” - Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Dean Martin - ruled the stage and screen with style and showmanship. Whether you recall these days by firsthand account or by stories and legends, The Birmingham Broadway Series’ presentation of The Rat Pack - Live At The Sands will return you to the era of cool.

From Thursday, January 31 to Sunday, February 3, the BJCC Concert Hall will be transformed into Las Vegas’ legendary Sands Hotel circa early 1960s. Accompanied by an onstage orchestra and the voluptuous trio The Burelli Sisters, Frank, Sammy and Dean will sing, dance, laugh and booze their way into your heart. Featuring an endless supply of timeless songs and sharp dialogue, The Rat Pack is a lively performance with a spontaneous feel.

Show times are Thursday - 8 p.m., Friday - 8 p.m., Saturday - 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Sunday - 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling 715-6000.

Popularity: 24% [?]

WHODUNNIT? Was it Ms. Peacock in the library with the candlestick, or Colonel Mustard in the kitchen with the knife? Chances are, if you like Clue (the game or the movie) you’ll enjoy Theatre Downtown’s production of Agatha Christie’s Ten Little Indians. It’s a classic murder mystery featuring a cast of servants and stuffed-shirts attending a dinner party thrown by an elusive host. The multifarious crew eventually ends up with more bodies than they have excuses. Meanwhile, with each victim, one of 10 Native American (that is, in fact, the proper term for the people commonly referred to as Indians) statues disappears from the mantle. It probably is a little much to assume the play would be PC, it is, after all, based on Christie’s novel from 1939, originally released in England as Ten Little Niggers. It was later renamed to And Then There Were None, because the original title offended the American public, and later changed to Ten Little Indians. Funny no one was offended by that title. Maybe they thought they meant real Indians — you know, people from India. At any rate, something is amiss and the game is afoot, so check out the play Nov. 1-3 and 8-10, 8 p.m. at The Playhouse, 1816 Third Ave. North. Tickets are $17, $12 for students and seniors, and Thursday nights are pay-what-you-can with a $5 minimum. Dinner theatre is available Friday and Saturday nights for $15 per individual or $25 per couple. To purchase tickets, call 306-1470. For more information on Theatre Downtown, visit www.myspace.com/theatredt.

Popularity: 8% [?]

DRINK IT UP, DRINK IT IN: Add a little romance and horror to the month of October when Broadway Across America brings Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic The Phantom of the Opera to Birmingham starting Wed. Oct. 10 at the BJCC Concert Hall. Filled with extravagant costumes and awesome special effects, director Harold Prince brings to life the love story of a beautiful opera singer and a deformed musical composer that takes place in the Paris Opera House. Show time is 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 7:30 p.m. on Sunday. Matinee performances begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday through Oct. 28. Tickets are $25 to $75. For more information, call (800) 214-7469 or visit www.broadwayacrossamerica.com/birmingham.

Popularity: 7% [?]