thursday, june 21
Harmony, Kansas
With a lively, soulful score, Harmony, Kansas tells the story of Heath, a gay farmer making his way in a rural community where homogeneity rules. When his city-born partner, Julian, talks him into joining a spirited group of gay guys who meet once a week to sing, Heath discovers a love for making music and a kinship he didn’t expect. But his world is turned upside down when the group considers performing in public, threatening everything that matters to him, including the life he’s made with the man he loves.
Diversionary Theatre, 4545 Park Blvd. in San Diego, 8 p.m., preview tickets $27, 619-220-0097, diversionary.org.
friday, june 22
Rent
The musical Rent , inspired by Puccini’s La Bohème, is a joyous, breathtaking and often heartbreaking musical that celebrates a community of young artists in downtown New York looking for love and success and struggling to make their mark on the world. The most honored musical since A Chorus Line in 1976, Rent is only the fifth musical to ever win both the Pulitzer Prize and the Tony Award for Best Musical. Critics have called Rent “the best thing that has happened to the Broadway musical in a long time!”
San Diego Musical Theatre, Birch North Park Theatre, 2891 University Ave. in San Diego, 8 p.m., tickets from $13, 858-560-5740, sdmt.org.
saturday, june 23
Art & Soul
Being Alive San Diego presents their benefit event, Art & Soul (formerly known as SoulPlates). Enjoy an amazing evening featuring stunning works of art by well-known celebrities and local professional artists, live and silent auction with weekend getaways, spa treatments, professional services and much more. There will also be live performances by Jennifer Curry Wingrove and friends of Aerial Revolution and a magic drag show by Candy Samples.
Sunset Temple, 3911 Kansas Street in North Park, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m., tickets $60 in advance, $65 at the door, 619-291-1400 ext 324.
sunday, june 24
The Queen Extravaganza
A spectacular touring concert show designed to take the glorious music and the live experience of legends of rock Queen to generations of fans in cities coast-to-coast. Behind the show is Queen’s iconic drummer Roger Taylor, who’s idea it was to the create the ultimate Queen concert experience in an electrifying road show that celebrates the band’s music and legacy performed by some of the best new music talent working today.
Humphrey’s Concerts by the bay, 2241 Shelter Island Drive in San Diego, 8 p.m., tickets $40, 800-745-3000, humphreysconcerts.com.
monday, june 25
Summer International Organ Festival
The Spreckels Organ Society presents the 25th anniversary Summer International Organ Festival, featuring internationally celebrated organists playing each Monday evening from June 25 through August 27at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park.
Robert Plimpton, San Diego civic organist emeritus launches the silver anniversary season with musicians conducted by Shannon Kitelinger, director of bands at San Diego State University.
Spreckels Organ Pavilion, Pan American Road E. in Balboa Park, 7:15 p.m., free, 619-702-8138, sosorgan.com.
tuesday, june 26
Blood and Gifts
La Jolla Playhouse presents a play that tells the story of the secret spy war behind the official Soviet-Afghan war of the 1980s. Spanning a decade and playing out in Washington, D.C., Pakistan and Afghanistan, the play offers up a slice of historical fiction laced with dark humor, as it follows the character of CIA operative Jim Warnock and his struggles to stop the Soviet army’s control of Afghanistan. The ground constantly shifts for Jim and his British, Russian and Pakistani counterparts as the political and personal alliances between the men keep changing.
Mandell Weiss Forum, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive in San Diego, 7:30 p.m., tickets from $26, 858-534-4574, lajollaplayhouse.org.
wednesday, june 27
The Imaginary Invalid
The Imaginary Invalid , Moliere’s last and, considered by many, best comedy is a satire of the medical profession. This farce, written to amuse King Louis XIV, is a hilarious send-up of not only the buffoonish doctors but conniving, unscrupulous lawyers, greedy scheming wives, and, of course, miserly hypochondriacs. Add in young lovers and a maid manipulating everyone and you have an evening of uproarious comedy that everyone will enjoy.
Talent to aMuse Theatre Company, Liberty Hall Theatre in the Paradise Village Plaza, 2700 E. Fourth Street in National City, 8 p.m., tickets $25, 619-233-9407, talenttoamuse.com.
