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Arts & Entertainment

Why Can't a Woman Be More Like a Mann?

Broadway great Terrence Mann plays Higgins in CRT 'My Fair Lady,' there's a 'Royal Wedding' in Manchester and Gardens on Tour in Vernon.

“My Fair Lady” is classic musical entertainment, even if there were no Broadway stars involved. But that isn't the case in Connecticut Rep's star-studded production previewing Thursday night, July 7, and running through July 17 at UConn. No, in this case, Broadway talent Terrence Mann plays Professor Higgins. Mann, of course, originated some huge roles on the Great White Way – Rum Tum Tugger in “Cats,” Javert in “Les Miz” and the Beast in Disney's “Beauty and the Beast.” On film, he played Larry in “A Chorus Line.” He is a showman, through and through. And the guy can sing, so don't expect a Rex Harrison sendup.

Actress and dancer Charlotte d'Amboise, who is married to Mann, choreographs the show. She has regularly played Roxie Hart in “Chicago” on Broadway and will return to that show after finishing in Storrs. She also netted a Tony Award nomination as Cassie in the 2006 Broadway revival of “A Chorus Line.”

In addition, soap star Eileen Fulton, who portrayed Lisa Miller Grimaldi on “As the World Turns,” will play Higgins' mother.

Find out what's happening in Mansfield-Storrswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

This last production in the 2011 Nutmeg Summer Series introduces Alix Paige as Eliza Doolittle in a cast that includes Timothy Gulan as Colonel Pickering, Richard Ruiz as Alfred P. Doolittle and Conner Moore as Freddy Eynsford-Hill.

Lerner and Loewe's winning score is studded with “The Rain in Spain,” “I Could Have Danced All Night,” “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face,” and the show-stopping production favorite “Get Me to the Church on Time!”

Find out what's happening in Mansfield-Storrswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Evening performances start at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Matinee performances start at 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Single ticket prices range from $10 for children and students to $39.

The Harriet S. Jorgensen Theatre is located below Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of the University of Connecticut in Storrs. Free parking is in Lot 9 across from the Jorgensen Center; paid parking is available in the North Garage.

For tickets and more information, call 860-486-4226 or visit the Connecticut Repertory Theatre site.

If You're Into Royal Weddings...

Grab your tiara, fascinator or top hat – gender bending is up to you – and proceed to Little Theatre of Manchester at Cheney Hall on Friday, July 8, to see Fred Astaire and Jane Powell light up the screen in “Royal Wedding.” After William and Catherine shined on the world stage in May, “It seemed like the obvious choice,” Little Theatre Executive Director Joyce Hodgson said of the film series selection.

The film will start at 7 p.m. and is free, but donations will be accepted. And get this, wedding cake will be served at intermission, compliments of Cake Geek Tanya Hugnes.

For information, call 860-647-9824 or visit the Cheney Hall events calendar.

Urban Cowboy Plays Mohegan

Country star Keith Urban is known for his live concerts, and he's doing two – the second added due to overwhelming demand – this weekend at Mohegan Sun Arena. Urban is appearing with special guest Jake Owen on his “Get Closer 2011 World Tour” Saturday and Sunday nights at 7:30.

Urban is touring to boost his sixth studio CD “Get Closer,” released in late 2010 and following two Billboard Country and Pop No. 1 albums and five platinum-caliber CDs. His play list includes hits, such as “Better Life,” “ Somebody Like You,” “Days Go By,” “You'll Think of Me,” “Sweet Thing,” “Only You Can Love Me This Way,” and the more recent “Put You in a Song.”

Tickets are $85 and $65. For information, call 1-888-777-7922 or visit the casino entertainment Web site.

Vernon Garden Club Tour

Having trouble choosing between mophead and lacecap hydrangeas? Would you like to see options for backyard park, stonewall, dining room, potted vegetable and songbird gardens? You need go no farther than the “Garden Reflections” tour of eight private gardens in the Vernon area this Saturday, July 9, rain or shine.

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., you can revel in these garden designs showcasing plantings in full summer bloom and visit a plant sale and herb display at the Tolland Agricultural Center, Route 30, in Vernon. Master gardeners will be on hand to advise you, and free soil testing will be offered.

Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 on the day of the tour. Advance tickets are available at Rockville Public Library, Garden Barn in Vernon, Ellington Agway, Woodland Gardens and Garden Sales in Manchester. Get tickets on Saturday at the Tolland Agricultural Center.

Proceeds go to the club's projects, including its community gardens and Rockville High School scholarship fund.

For information call 860-872-3511, e-mail vernongardenclub@comcast.net, or visit the Vernon Garden Club site.

Free Play Reading at Little Theatre

“The Liberation of Jerome Gleason,” a new play by Wethersfield playwright Anne Pie, will be performed in a free reading Wednesday, July 13, at Little Theatre of Manchester in Cheney Hall. The play is set in 1930s Ireland, where Jerome Gleason and his wife Sybil struggle with their own lives and those that intersect with them.

Little Theatre has produced several of Pie's plays, including “Wild Mushrooms,” “Front Street,” and the world premiere of “The Remarkable Thing About Stardust.”

Toni Sadlak directs the new play, which includes a cast of Little Theatre veterans: Mike Zizka, Marge Patefield, John-Michael Whitney, Ginny Freese, Sara Logan and Trish Urso.

The reading is at 7 p.m. July 13. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. For information call 860-647-9824 or visit the theater Web site.

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