At GableStage in the Biltmore Hotel (1200 Anastasia Ave., Coral Gables) is Terrence McNally's funny and brash 1987 play, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune. The show, which enjoyed a successful Broadway revival last year and a Hollywood movie based on it as well, is the voyeuristic tale of a bickering waitress and short-order cook set to Claude Debussy's piano nocturne, Clair de Lune. In the title roles are real-life husband and wife Laura Turnbull and Avi Hoffman. Turnbull has performed on- and off-Broadway and starred with the likes of Sid Caesar, Fyvush Finkel, and Imogene Coca. In addition to being the recipient of numerous acting awards, Hoffman stars in Too Jewish?, which PBS is broadcasting nationally. Directed by Joseph Adler, the play is recommended for mature audiences due to adult themes and nudity. Showtimes are 8:00 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 2:00 p.m. Sundays. This production runs through Sunday, August 31. Tickets cost $35. Call 305-445-1119 or visit gablestage.org.-- By Margaret Griffis
Saturday August 9
Helping Folk
Singers gather for good
In 1961, at age 20, Bob Dylan moved to New York to pursue a musical career and especially to meet his idol, folk singer Woody Guthrie -- writer of "This Land is Your Land" -- who was hospitalized with Huntington's chorea, a degenerative disorder that kept him in bed until he died in 1967. Guthrie's legacy can be heard in Dylan's work and that of almost every folk singer since, including Guthrie's son Arlo, who made his own mark on the folk circuit with "Alice's Restaurant." In addition to a taped greeting from Arlo and signed memorabilia to auction, the 8:00 p.m. Woody Guthrie Tribute at the Unitarian Universalist Church (3970 NW 21st Ave., Fort Lauderdale) will include local folk favorites Ellen Bukstel, Grant Livingston, and Amy Carol Webb. The idea: to raise funds for the Broward Cooperative Feeding Program. Suggested donation is $15. Call 954-240-6313. -- By Javier Andrade
Friday August 8
Sounds of Son
Although its name may remind of a certain popular brand of canned Italian foods, Conjunto Progreso has nothing to do with minestrone soup or garbanzo beans. It's a band and it's all about playing authentic Cuban son. So if you happen to stop by Books & Books (265 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables) between 7:00 and 11:00 this evening and see the masses joyfully dancing in the courtyard, an Italian wedding reception isn't in progress. It's just that the Conjunto has taken up its instruments and is blasting out its specialty: African-influenced dance music punctuated with a multitude of instruments including percussion, bass guitar, tres, claves, and plaintive voices offering call-and-response vocals. Admission is free. Call 305-442-4408. -- By Nina Korman
