As someone who bought into the world of Harry Potter, I don't expect to be wowed by practitioners of magic in our Muggle world. After all, there's always a trick, right? Something up the sleeve, in a hidden pocket, or an illusion in the lighting. And yet, I was absolutely awed by Trigg Watson Burrage when he came to The Dallas Morning News.
The 22-year-old SMU senior tore up a copy of the Morning News right in front of me -- then handed it over whole and untouched. He had me hold a coin in my hand, and when I opened my hand, it was a different coin.
You can catch him in person Feb. 4 and ongoing Saturdays at Spaghetti Warehouse and at the Improv in Addison and the Improv in Arlington later this month. I've got all the details in my Family Fun Kids' Corner column here.

Want more? Here's a video where Trigg shows kids how to do a couple of magic tricks -- followed by one of his super tricky ones!

While most area theaters have given up on great names from world literature, the off-beat MBS Productions keeps doing its bit. Most of the company's shows are original scripts with sexy, often gay, themes. But occasional MBS does an original take on a Greek or even Roman tragedy. This time, though, the great writer it's tackling is pretty sexy himself, for a 300-year-old Frenchman. Pierre de Marivaux wrote comedies about mismatched love, mistaken identities and broken hearts. MBS opens a new translation of his The Game of Love and Chance on Feb. 2.

Through Feb. 18 at the Stone Cottage Theatre, Addison Theatre Centre, 15650 Addison Road, Addison. $18 to $26. 214-477-4942. mbsproductions.net.

-Lawson Taitte/Guide

Fantastic free fun for kids this week: You can take them to watch fresh bread being prepared at Mrs Baird's, watch money being printed at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, catch the antics of Kellogg the Clown, enjoy the music and stories of award-winning Jim Gill and take a new parents tour at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. I've got all the details in my Family Fun Free Fun column here.

PHOTO: Kids can learn how master plates are engraved for printing money at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing's facility in Fort Worth.

I found some great free fun for the kids this week for a wide range of ages. There's a Martin Luther King Jr. multimedia exhibit at Frisco Public LIbrary, Chinese New Year activities at Plano Public Library, Spaghetti Eddie presented by Bookmarks at NorthPark Center, Slappy & Monday at Galleria Dallas and best-selling young adult authors at the Young Adult Keller Book Festival. You can get all the details in my Family Fun Free Fun column here.

PHOTO: Married clowns Tiffany 'Slappy' Riley and Dick Monday will perform at Showtime Saturdays at Galleria Dallas Jan. 14.

If you think Kathy Griffin has rampant potty-mouth on her HBO specials or when she's bantering with Anderson Cooper, you have no idea what you're in for in person. Just take whatever you expect, both naughty- and comedy-wise, mentally ramp that up as high as you can possibly imagine, then add 50 percent, and you might get close. You'll blush so much your cheeks might go permanently pink, but you'll also laugh so hard your ribs will still hurt three days later.

The 51-year-old comedian-actress -- who has two Emmy Awards for her Bravo reality show -- leaves no topic unscathed, and she's fierce in her commitment to gay rights (she will undoubtedly gush about "her gays" in the audience). She gained both gay and teen cred when she appeared on Glee last March as a Sarah Palin-esque "Twitterer and former Tea Party candidate" who judged a singing competition, pooh-poohing New Directions' performance of "Loser Like Me" with her remark: "When I lost my last election, and there will be a re-count, I didn't go around singing about being a loser; I Twittered that Obama is a terrorist." That's Griffin in a nutshell -- unabashedly political, fearless on any subject, wholehearted shredder of sacred cows.

Jan. 6 at 8 p.m. at Verizon Theatre, 1001 Performance Place, Grand Prairie. $39.75-$59.75. axs.com.

Joy Tipping

I was feeling a little guilty about taking so long to get up this blog post about Cirque Banquiste!. The international circus experience put together right here in Texas by Fanny Kerwich, an eighth generation circus artist and married Dallas mom of two, opened Thursday.

But then I found out that the Thursday AND Friday performances are sold out. So I'm feeling a little better about that. But I still want to alert you that there are only four performances left of this astonishing celebration that will feature international stars like Luciano Anastasini and his irresistible dogs and juggler extraordinaire Rejean St. Jules alongside homegrown Lone Star talent such as the remarkable Raphaele Daubois with her all-new Hula-Hoop routine. It's all happening at the Dallas Children's Theater's Rosewood Center for Family Arts (where Fanny will be coming back to coach veteran actor Karl Schaeffer in some circus moves for his Mouse in If You Give A Mouse A Cookie opening Jan. 20). I've got all the details on Cirque Banquiste here. And there'll be more Mouse tales in an upcoming Family Fun column.

PHOTO: Raphaele Daubois, 20, of Dallas, a graduate of Fanny Kerwich's Lone Star Circus school, is debuting her new Hula-Hoop routine at Cirque Banquiste! at the Rosewood Center for Family Arts through Sunday.

KATHY GRIFFIN The socially incorrect, boisterously witty comedian brings her act to town. Jan. 6 at 8 p.m. at Verizon Theatre, 1001 Performance Place, Grand Prairie. $39.75-$59.75. axs.com.

THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK Terry Martin directs the stage adaptation of the moving tale about a young girl in hiding in Amsterdam during the Holocaust. Jan. 6-29, presented by WaterTower Theatre at the Addison Conference and Theatre Centre, 15650 Addison Road, Addison. $20-$40 (Jan. 8 is pay-what-you-can). 972-450-6232. watertowertheatre.org.

BRIAN REGAN The comedian, whose second album All By Myself came out in November, is a fan favorite on The Late Show With David Letterman and Comedy Central Presents. Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. at Fair Park Music Hall, 909 First Ave., Dallas. $61.58-$73.20. Ticketmaster.

CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY OF FORT WORTH Pianist Támas Ungár will appear as guest artist in a program of works by Mozart and Schubert. Ungár, a member of the Texas Christian University piano faculty, has performed in the U.S., Australia, Brazil, Columbia, England, Hong Kong and China. Jan. 7 at 2 p.m. at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, 3200 Darnell St., Fort Worth. $28. 817-877-3003. chambermusicsocietyoffortworth.com.

If your office is as busy as mine in hopes of working ahead for a few days off over the holidays, and your personal life consists solely of holiday parties and Christmas shopping, you could probably use a break. Some lighthearted entertainment might be just the thing to ease your stress.

The Texas Ballet Theater is performing their third annual rendition of "The Nutty Nutcracker." This show is a parody on the traditional story, and involves celebrity impersonations and comedic pop culture references galore.

"The Nutty Nutcracker" is next Friday, December 23, at Bass Performance Hall, but there is only one performance, and it usually sells out. Tickets are available on the Texas Ballet Theater's website.

Just to be clear this is not "The Nutcracker" you are used to, the Texas Ballet Theater's website describes the show as "a little naughty" and "adults only."

For more of what to expect, check out the photos and a review of the 2009 show.

I still remember the first time I took my boys, who were so little at the time, to our first panto put on here by Theatre Britain in 2002. "Remember to sit still and not to say a word during the show," I told them on our way to the theater. So what was the first thing that happened? The narrator starts talking directly to the kids, urging them to boo the villain and cheer the hero. And then there was the singalong!

A panto, I soon realized, is all about letting go, having fun and sharing an experience with the actors. "Bring your lungs and check your manners at the door for a raucous and engaging production of The Sleeping Beauty that no one will be able to sleep through," I wrote back then. No wonder it's such a holiday must in England, where it brings parents and kids and the community together in common merriment. Years later, when I interviewed Daniel Radcliffe about Harry Potter, he told me that going to the pantos is what spurred his love of theater.

It's also become a holiday tradition of our own as one of my boys returns with me every year to see Theatre Britain's new panto. This year we had a blast at Dick Whittington, which continues through Dec. 28 at the Cox Building Playhouse in Plano. You can read my review here.

PHOTO: Michael Speck plays Jack Of All Trades in Theatre Britain's performance of "Dick Whittington." Photo by DMN Special Contributor Matt Strasen.

Theatre Three has always specialized in Molière's comedies from the 17th century, so it makes sense that the company should program a postmodern American salute to the great French playwright.

David Hirson's La Bête attracted notice in New York in 1991 and won London's Laurence Olivier Award for best comedy the next year. A major revival hit both cities in 2010. Now Jac Alder, still a very busy guy 50 years after he co-founded Theatre Three, is directing this Dallas production.

Like Molière himself, the hero of La Bête, Elomire, runs a prestigious theater company that caters to the French aristocracy. The Princess Conti insists that an interloper, Valere, join the troupe. His crude humor, indeed everything about him, offends Elomire. Does the artist compromise and keep his job or stay true to his ideals?

Jakie Cabe plays Elomire, and Bradley Campbell is Valere. Two actresses long absent from the stage make a welcome return: Georgia Clinton plays the Princess, and Sara Weeks is Catherine de Brie.

-Lawson Taitte / Theater Critic

Dec. 9-Jan. 14 (no performances Dec. 19-28) at Theatre Three in the Quadrangle, 2800 Routh St., Dallas. $10-$50. 214-871-3300. www.theatre3dallas.com.

Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Schmidt: Jakie Cabe and Georgia Clinton appear in La Bete.

Twelve-year-old Olivia Wilkerson of Plano had no idea what to think when her parents too her to her first panto -- a British holiday tradition presented by Theatre Britain here. "I didn't know what a panto was," she told me. "It surprised me that in one of the parts a man played a woman, a ghost pops out for some random reason and they make you sing along. I was like, 'Hey, why are they doing this?' "
But Olivia and her family loved it and now they can't wait to check out Theatre Britain's latest panto, Dick Whittington, at the Cox Building Playhouse in Plano. You can read my story about how some homesick British transplants helped turn a British holiday tradition into a Texas one here.

PHOTOS: (top) Twelve-year-old Olivia Wilkerson of Plano loves to take pictures with actors at Theatre' Britain's pantos -- part of her family's annual holiday tradition. (bottom) Kate Rutledge as Queen Rat in Theatre Britain's new world premiere panto, Dick Whittington.

Tons of free fun this week! Slappy's Holiday Circus at Galleria Dallas, horse-drawn carriage rides at Watters Creek, Mrs. Claus' puppet tales at the Parks at Arlington and Jumpstart: Stories and Art at the Irving Arts Center. Check it out in my Family Fun Guide Picks; Free Fun column here.

PHOTO: Lily Monday, daughter of married clowns Tiffany 'Slappy' Riley and Dick Monday, performs alongside her big brother, juggler Chet Monday, at Slappy's Holiday Circus at Galleria Dallas through Dec. 23.

The AT&T Performing Arts Center is taking part in all the awesome online deals today by waiving all fees on the following performances:

Jamie Foxx: December 1, 2011, Winspear, 8pm

A Gathering: The Dallas Arts Community Reflects on 30 Years of AIDS: Tuesday, December 6, Winspear Opera House

Charlie Daniels Band Holiday Show: Wednesday, December 7, Winspear Opera House

A Mary Mary Christmas: Saturday, December 10, Winspear Opera House

Linda Eder Holiday Show: Sunday, December 11, Winspear Opera House

The Second City Dysfunctional Holiday Review: Friday, December 16 - Saturday, December 17, Wyly Theatre

David Blaine (the art of magic): January 12, 2012, Winspear, 8pm

Mark Twain Tonight! w/ Hal Holbrook: January 13, Winspear Opera House

Ladysmith Black Mambazo: January 15, 2012, Winspear, 8pm

American Ballet Theatre: Jan. 20-21, 2012, Winspear, 8pm

Loretta Lynn: January 22, Winspear Opera House

National Geographic Live's Roz Savage: Solo Across the Ocean: February 21, 2012, Winspear, 8pm

Command Performance: SPECIAL EVENT March 9, 2012, Winspear, 7pm

National Geographic Live's Mireya Mayor: Pink Boots and a Machete: March 19, 2012, Winspear, 8pm

Anoushka Shankar: March 31 - April 1, 2012, Wyly Theatre, 8pm

DanceBrazil: April 13-14, 2012, Wyly Theatre, 8pm

Modern Family Panel (Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ty Burrell, Eric Stonestreet and Co-Creator/Executive Producer Steve Levitan): April 24, 2012, Winspear, 8pm

Diavolo: May 4-5, 2012, Wyly Theatre, 8pm

Madeleine Peyroux: May 24, 2012, Wyly Theatre, 7pm and 9pm

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

TODAY
- Alonzo Bodden at Addison Improv through Sunday

FRIDAY
- Neophyte Warhorse at Dallas Comedy House
- Roadside Couch at Dallas Comedy House

SUNDAY
- Backdoor Comedy Memorial Day Comedy Show

All comedy events this weekend

If you're the type who would enjoy reading Chris Vognar's interview with Will Ferrell, then you can stop reading this now.

When news broke that Ferrell was to be awarded the nation's most prominent award for humor, the Mark Twain Prize, I just about had to run to the kitchen to get a drink of water so I could do a spit-take across my living room. Does that joke sound forced and unfunny to you? I agree. But then, I don't deserve a Mark Twain Prize, either.

It's not just that I'm appalled at the idea of somebody finding a parallel between Twain, a keen observer of humanity who used humor as a weapon against injustice, and Ferrell, who has a gift for playing idiots. OK, I am appalled at that.

And it's not just that, as the L.A. Times' Jacket Copy blog notes, Ferrell is one of the few recipients of the prize who has not published a book. OK, that's also part of it -- you'd think that someone winning an award named for America's greatest writer would at least have to show that he could, you know, spell.

But I'm mostly appalled that such a one-note buffoon is being mentioned in the same breath as the true comic geniuses who have won the award before him. Look at that list of previous winners: Richard Pryor (1998), Jonathan Winters (1999), Carl Reiner (2000), Whoopi Goldberg (2001), Bob Newhart (2002), Lily Tomlin (2003), Lorne Michaels (2004), Steve Martin (2005), Neil Simon (2006), Billy Crystal (2007), George Carlin (2008), Bill Cosby (2009), Tina Fey (2010). Each one of those people pushed the boundaries of entertainment. They challenged and sometimes provoked audiences.

Will Ferrell has moved me on occasion -- if you count that vague motion-sickness-like feeling I get when I've seen him parade about without his shirt on. You're welcome to enjoy him -- but the thought of him being honored in such a way does make me want to perform some kind of unpleasant bodily function. Hey! Maybe next year, I can win a Mark Twain Prize, too.

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

TODAY
- Michael Winslow at Addison Improv through Sunday

FRIDAY
- Heroine Addiction Improv at Ad-Libs
- Stupid Time Machine at Dallas Comedy House through Saturday

SATURDAY
- Morgan Murphy at Fort Worth Community Arts Center (pictured)

All comedy events this weekend

Actor/comedian Jerry Seinfeld is performing today and twice tomorrow at sold-out shows in Dallas. And we want to know: What did you think of the show? Is he still funny? Was he ever? What did he talk about?

Tell us in the comments section!

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

TODAY
- Sugar Sammy at Addison Improv through Sunday

FRIDAY
- Lisa Lampanelli at Majestic Theatre

SATURDAY
- Rickey Smiley at Majestic Theatre (pictured)
- Mystery Dinner Comedy at Dave & Buster's Arlington

SUNDAY
- Craig Ferguson at Bass Performance Hall

All comedy events this weekend

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

TODAY
- Steve-O's Entirely Too Much Information Tour at Addison Improv (pictured) through Sunday

FRIDAY
- Backdoor Comedy Club Saturday too
- Roadside Couch at Dallas Comedy House

SATURDAY
- Victory Point at Dallas Comedy House

SUNDAY
- Family Comedy & Magic Show at Addison Improv

All comedy events this weekend

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

TODAY
- Kathleen Madigan at House of Blues (pictured)
- Chris Titus at Addison Improv through Sunday

FRIDAY
- Backdoor Comedy Club Saturday too
- Drew Fraser at Clarence Muse Cafe Theater Saturday too
- Roadside Couch at Dallas Comedy House

SATURDAY
- Da Brick Comedy Explosion at Carrolton Plaza Arts Center

All comedy events this weekend

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

FRIDAY
Heroine Addiction Improv turns 1 at Ad-Libs
Jamie Kennedy (pictured) at Addison Improv through Sunday
Neophyte Warhorse at Dallas Comedy House

SATURDAY
Life Bindaas: A Comedy & Musical Evening at Dallas Convention Center

All comedy events this weekend

If you're up for a laugh, check out these events this weekend.

TODAY
Steve Byrne (pictured) at Addison Improv Friday, Satuday and Sunday, too
Block Party at Dallas Comedy House

FRIDAY
The Dallas Comedy Conspiracy at Event 1013
Panty Glee: First Friday Funnies at Pantagleize Theatre

SATURDAY
Three's Company at Dallas Comedy House

All comedy events this weekend

With the ongoing Dallas Comedy Festival running through Sunday at the Dallas Comedy House - and select shows at Fort Worth's Four Day Weekend - there are a whole lot more opportunities for a laugh in Dallas-Fort Worth this weekend. Here's a selection of shows to see:

TODAY
Erik Griffin at Hyena's Comedy Club (Dallas) Friday and Satuday, too
Sweater Off Dead and Pavlov's Dogs at Dallas Comedy House
Villian The Musical and Cubbies! at Dallas Comedy House

FRIDAY
Spirit Desire, The Belmont Transfer, and Bare Moxie at Dallas Comedy House
Bill Bellamy at Addison Improv Saturday and Sunday, too

SATURDAY
Uncle's Brother featuring Tim Meadows at Dallas Comedy House
Never Pickles, Galapagos, and Stupid Time Machine at Dallas Comedy House

SUNDAY
Uncle's Brother featuring Tim Meadows at Four Day Weekend
Bill Maher (pictured) at the Winspear Opera House

All comedy events this weekend

Both Saturday performances on May 7 (7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.) are sold out, so the comedian will begin his Dallas tour stop one day earlier than originally scheduled. Tickets for the added show - which is at 7 p.m. Friday, May 6 - go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, April 1.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.attpac.org, by phone at 214-880-0202, and at the AT&T Performing Arts Center Box Office at the Winspear Opera House, 2403 Flora Street (Monday-Saturday, 10 am-6 pm & Sunday 11 am-4 pm),

The annual Dallas Comedy Festival begins tomorrow at the Dallas Comedy House in Deep Ellum and Four Day Weekend in Sundance Square. Running through Sunday, the fest hosts six nights of comedy shows and eight workshops that'll teach both pros and joes about improv.

The week will include performances by Sweater Off Dead, Villain the Musical, Crepes of Wrath, The Belmont Transfer, Rigor Tortoise, Captain Donkeyface & Mr. Ponytail, and Uncle's Brother with Tim Meadows.

If you're going, let others know what's up by tweeting with the hashtag #dcf2011.

If you're up for a laugh, get out this weekend and see:

TODAY
Angel Salazar at Hyena's Comedy Club (Dallas) Friday through Sunday, too

FRIDAY
Paul Rodriguez (pictured) at Addison Improv Saturday and Sunday, too
Heroine Addiction Improv Comedy at Ad-Libs

SATURDAY
House Party at Dallas Comedy House

All comedy events this weekend

If you're up for a laugh, get out this weekend and see:

TODAY
Bed Creed at Hyena's Comedy Club (Fort Worth) Saturday too
Sebastian Maniscalco at Addison Improv

SATURDAY
John Oliver at House of Blues pictured
Steven Keller Presents Da'Brick Comedy Explosion at Carrollton's Old Downtown Plaza Arts Center

All comedy events this weekend

If you're up for a laugh, get out this weekend and see:

TODAY
Bret Ernst at Hyena's Comedy Club (Dallas) pictured
Donnell Rawlings at Addison Improv
Lisa Landry at Hyena's Comedy Club (Fort Worth)

SATURDAY
Level 1 Showcase at Dallas Comedy House

All comedy events this weekend

Part of the Lexus Broadway Series, The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein, a new musical comedy from the creative team of the 12-time Tony Award winning The Producers, makes its Dallas debut at the Winspear Opera House on Jan. 4 and continues through Jan. 23. So get your tickets soon. They go on sale Sunday, Oct. 31, 2010 at 10:00am at www.attpac.org/frank, 214-880-0202, at the box office at 2403 Flora Street (Monday-Saturday, 10 am-6 pm; Sunday, 11 am-4 pm), and at the remote Box Office at Park Place Lexus Plano at 1025 Preston Road.

Ticket prices range from $30.00 to $150.00.

Marty Feldman in Mel Brooks' 'Young Frankenstein', 1974

I was giggling before a performer ever stepped onstage for Uptown Players' Forbidden Broadway. The transformation of the stately Kalita Humphreys Theater into a sorta-tacky, sorta-fabulous proscenium -- complete with huge gold letters shouting "KALITA!" above the stage, had me in stitches (Frank Lloyd Wright's ghost, who is probably writhing in pain at the very thought, not withstanding). Two numbers in, especially after watching Beth Albright skewer any fond memories of Annie with "I'm 30 years old ... tomorrow," and I was totally gone.

For those unfamiliar, Forbidden Broadway takes the Great White Way's finest shows and puts them on a sharply honed roasting stick. No show, no performer, is sacred: Not Carol Channing (Wendy Welch, you are my heroine forever more). Not Patti LuPone (local newcomer Tyce Green, who I am hereby dubbing The Palest Man in Dallas, with eyebrows that would cut Her Pattiness like a knife if she got too close). Not Mandy Patinkin (Shane Strawbridge, pretension personified). Not Ethel Merman (the phenomenal Sara Shelby-Martin, stridently chastising the Phantom -- a superbly stolid Jim Johnson -- about his lack of projection). Not even Les Miserables, when the entire cast gets together to sing "I Dreamed a Show," or Rent ("Seasons of Hype") or Cats ("I Enjoy Being a Cat" -- really, they should get Drew Kelly to frantically chase spotlights around in a cat outfit in every show). Who've I left out? Melissa Farmer, whose wicked send-up of ... erm, Wicked ... closes the first act in screaming, utterly diva-esque non-subtlety.

OK, I'm cracking myself up just thinking about it. You've only got through Sunday to see this one; get over there if you know what's good for your musical-theater-loving heart. (FYI, my husband, who isn't as much of a theater geek as I am -- well, honestly, he's not a theater geek at all -- loved the show, even though he didn't know most of the shows being spoofed.) Go to www.uptownplayers.org, or call 214-219-2718.

PHOTO by Michael Ainsworth: Beth Albright (from left), Tyce Green and Drew Kelly in Forbidden Broadway.

You've got through Sept. 5 to see playwright-choreographer-actress Andi Allen's Bollywood Lysistrata, a send-up of Greek comedy by way of saris, cricket matches and wayyyy over-the-top (intentional) over-acting. The show, co-directed by Allen and Bill Fountain for Level Ground Arts, revamps Aristophanes by changing the setting to 1899 India, where the local men have become so enchanted with the game of cricket that they play for days on end, leaving their frustrated wives and girlfriends as "cricket widows." The ladies camp out in a temple, refusing to leave until the men meet their demands.

It's worth seeing for Allen's gloriously silly-yet-precise choreography, which -- unless you are in a coma or on a stretcher -- will have you bouncing in your seat and wondering where you can take a good Bollywood dance class around here. (My husband is Very Very Afraid.) The cast is also excellent, with especially witty performances from Camille Monae (Chandini) and Krishna Smitha (Mahdavi), the sidekicks to Rhonda Durant (Lakshmi, leader of the women's rebellion).

And what's more fun that watching gorgeous saris and jewels sparkle onstage? Taking them home! Level Ground has come up with what I think is a brilliant ploy -- theater-plus-gift shop. For every show, Fountain says, local artists whose work somehow correlates with the show will be invited to set up shop in the lobby. For Bollywood, Anu Cherian is selling sumptuous saris and textiles, skirts, dresses and jewelry. I scored a skirt and five pairs of earrings for less than $50 total. For Carnival of Souls: Purgatorium, set in Katrina-era New Orleans, there'll be voodoo dolls and such.

For tickets or more info, visit www.levelgroundarts.com or call 214-630-5491.

PHOTO by Mathew Butler: Camille Monae, left, Rhonda Durant and Krishna Smitha (with Kyle Dupree in background) in A Bollywood Lysistrata.

The Eisemann Center in Richardson has added a seventh performance of the immensely popular Till Death Do Us Part: Late Nite Catechism 3, at 8 p.m. Monday (Feb. 15). In the comedy show, the ever-helpful "Sister" instructs the audience on how to enjoy marriage, within the confines of scripture, of course. $36-$39. 972-744-4650 or the Eisemann Center Web site.

Comedian Michael Ian Black has postponed tonight's scheduled show at the University of North Texas' Murchison Center for the Performing Arts in Denton because of, you guessed it, the weather. The show will be rescheduled, although the new date hasn't yet been announced. For updates or refunds, call the UNT box office at 940-369-7802.

I had a journalism professor at UNT who went apoplectic if anyone used the word "unique": "ONLY if it's truly one-of-a-kind," he would bellow. I don't think I've used that word in a review or story, ever, because of that. But now I can: Taylor Mac, I'm pretty darned sure, is truly unique.

His show, The Be(a)st of Taylor Mac, at Undermain Theatre through Feb. 13, is one of the most entertaining, transporting experiences I've ever had in a theater. He's hilarious, profane, endearing, infuriating, perplexing, political and utterly disarming. He appeared Wednesday night in green and pink fishnets, a pink-and-white polka-dot skirt covered in rubber gloves, a dreadlocked-and-sequined blonde wig, and with glittery, sequined makeup that made his face look like an exquisite Mardi Gras mask. Mac is world-renowned as a performance artist -- which he says is just a "really fancy way of saying drag" -- and this is his first performance in Dallas, or Texas for that matter. You're missing something very, very special if you don't see it, whatever your politics or attitudes about men wearing frilly women's "finery," as he calls it.

PHOTO of Taylor Mac by Drew Geraci

You've got till Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, to see the utterly splendid Give It Up!, presented by the Dallas Theater Center at the Wyly Theatre. The show is smartly funny, sexy, just a teensy bit political, and it boasts a cast that's Broadway-ready. Patti Murin stars as Lysistrata "Lissie" Jones, a cheerleader at Athens College who decides to "stop giving it up" -- and convinces her cohorts to join the cause -- until the school's pathetic loser of a basketball team starts winning. Andrew Rannells (who reminds me way too much of Josh Duhamel) co-stars as Michaelangelo "Mick" Jackson, Lissie's boyfriend and, of course, team captain.

If you see it here, you can boast that you saw the world premiere, before it hits Broadway -- and it could and should. The book by Douglas Carter Beane and music, lyrics and orchestrations by Lewis Flinn are bubbly, upbeat and completely hummable (I want the soundtrack, NOW). Really, it had me with my first glance of the scenic design (by the fabulously named Beowulf Boritt), all green-blue upscale-bathhouse tiles, offset at the beginning by lovely puffs of purple smoke. And those sheer curtains in the Eros Motor Lodge set -- hey, can I buy those after the show closes?

Other standouts in the cast include Lindsay Nicole Chambers as the librarian with a sultry soul, Curtis Holbrook as the geek who saves the day, and Dallas' own force of nature, the wondrous Liz Mikel as both a goddess and a gorgeous brothel madam. Get your game on now, before it's too late. Tickets at www.attpac.org, or call 214-880-0202.

PHOTO by Brandon Thibodeaux/Dallas Theater Center: Patti Murin and Andrew Rannells

Things I learned from Thursday night's Eddie Izzard comedy concert, which he quite truthfully described as being "about everything that's ever happened, with gaps":
1) Something that just sounds silly -- say, a velociraptor talking (well, grunting) his way out of a traffic ticket -- becomes almost unbearably hilarious when touched by Izzard's wacky genius.
2) There's a Swiss brand of fishnet tights that can withstand bullet holes. Eddie wasn't doing the drag-transvestite thing Thursday night -- he was dressed downright subtly, for him, in jeans, a black shirt and red-lined tails -- but it was good of him to pass on these wardrobe tips, nonetheless.
3) All things connect via the hyperlinks on Wikipedia. Jam! Helicopters! Spoons!
4) Dallas has more opera singers per capita than anywhere in the world. At one point in the show, a bunch of them were hitting high notes across the arena (or "airline hangar," in Eddie's words) and trying to outdo one another as Eddie looked on, bemused.
5) "It seems logical in my brain" can mean some very strange things when it comes to Eddie Izzard. Things I'd happily pay quite a bit to hear again, given enough time for my laughter-muscles to recover.

Check here on Friday afternoon for the full review.

Photo of Eddie Izzard by Lorenzo Agius

WaterTower Theatre has dictated my schedule (and that of all alternative-theater happy Dallas folks) for the first half of March by announcing the line-up of its 2010 Out of the Loop Festival. The roster isn't quite complete (no news of what show WTT itself is producing this time around, for instance). But it's a full, full list anyhow.

You can see the whole press release past the break.

And this time, there's a cause.

Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong have announced the Cheech and Chong: Get it Legal tour, which will come to Fort Worth's Bass Hall on Friday, April 30. The duo has partnered again, after performing together last year for the first time in over 25 years on the Light Up America Tour. This time, they have another partner: the Marijuana Policy Project.

MPP seeks to have marijuana regulated "in a manner similar to alcohol."

Cheech and Chong are throwing their tour behind its title. Tickets go on sale Friday at 4:20 p.m. They can be bought at basshall.com.

The next time Del Shores, Caroline Rhea, Rue McClanahan and Leslie Jordan (and a few of their cohorts from Logo TV' s Sordid Lives: The Series) get together, they should come with a parental-advisory sticker. And I mean that in the most complimentary way. If the stately Majestic Theatre could have blushed, I'm sure it would have (well, maybe not; it started as a vaudeville house, after all) during the Saturday-matinee performance of A Sordid Comedy Affair, a collection of stand-up that was so funny it had the audience -- mostly gay men and straight women, according to an impromptu poll by Del -- doing spit-takes between standing ovations. I would have felt very Will & Grace if only I had thought to take a gay male friend; as it was, my husband held up admirably and even good-naturedly served as the "token straight man."

Dennis Miller was in fine form Saturday night at Grand Prairie's Nokia Theater, playing a short show to a small audience, but everyone seemed thoroughly satisfied as they made their way to their cars a little past 9 p.m. Perhaps Dennis was taking into consideration the age of his audience -- it seemed to be Baby Boomer City, nary a teenager or even 20something in sight from where I sat. There was a lot of gray hair and Botox working that room along with Dennis.

Miler, dressed in jeans and a white suit jacket, standing behind a podium like a professor giving a profanity-laden lecture on the sorry state of American affairs, seemed surprisingly laid-back given his reputation for intensity. Despite his sympathies with right-wing conservatism, he seemed willing to take shots at both left- and right-wing idiocy with equal precision.

He stuck mainly to politics and other current events, but did sidetrack to tell a hilarious story about meeting Frank Sinatra once in Las Vegas. Miller, accompanied by his mother and the family nanny (long story), had dinner with the Great Man (and his bodyguards) in a hidden-away room at the hotel where Frank was staying. Miller's 69-year-old mother told Sinatra about having seen him when she was a girl, in 1952. "I remember that show," he responded. "You were sitting to the right of the stage that night. You looked good."

For a full review of Miller's show, check here later today.

PHOTO by Joy Tipping: Dennis Miller takes the podium.

The Lexus Broadway Series, the tour presenter for the new Winspear Opera House about to open at the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts in October, is scooping its own first show. The Lincoln Center South Pacific is the first subscription item in December. But today the organization announced that it is bringing Billy Crystal's Tony Award-winning one-man show, 700 Sundays, from Nov. 17 through Nov. 22.

Crystal's tribute to his late father set the record for one-week sales for any non-musical show on Broadway back in 2005. A short tour hit some American cities and Australia. AFter a two-year hiatus, the actor-comedian is reviving the piece for a six-city tour.

It's a coup for the series and the DCPA to get a star as big as Crystal duriing its first month of regular operation. Tickets go on sale in July and will be available only to subscribers of the main Lexus Broadway Series.

FOLKS, HERE"S WHERE TO REGISTER FOR THE DRAWING FOR FREE TICKETS TO SEE BILLY CRYSTAL>
(Photo by Carol Rosegg)

She knows how to make an entrance: Dame Edna hit the Bass Hall stage on Tuesday night swathed in what seemed an acre of cascading hot pink and silver ruffles, all topped by that magnificent coif of Easter-egg purple. The regular Bass Hall drapes had been replaced by purple ones, of course -- and really, you can't help but admire a woman who apparently considers purple a neutral (as do I).

From reporter Michael Granberry: Achmed the Dead Terrorist and his "master," the wildly talented comic-ventriloquist Jeff Dunham, will now play American Airlines Center on Friday night instead of Saturday night, because of the Dallas Mavericks needing the arena on Saturday. So, Dunham will take the stage at 8 p.m. Friday, 24 hours earlier than expected. A graduate of Richardson High School and Baylor University, Dunham has gotten so big that he is now selling out arena shows. His popularity is due, of course, to his frequent appearances on Comedy Central (where he's about to have his own show) and to hundreds of millions of hits on YouTube, where Achmed ("I kill you!") has become a major star. My favorite line from Dunham's recent European tour (yes, he and Achmed have even toured Europe): Achmed expressed frustration in Sweden because when he said, "I kill you!," the Swedes thought he was saying "Ikea."

Photo: Achmed the Dead Terrorist, left, and Jeff Dunham

This just announced: The Smothers Brothers are going to bring their particular brand of humor to Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie on Wednesday, Oct. 21.

Tom and Dick, famous in the '60s for the line (!) "Mom always loved you best," and later for The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour on TV. In 2008, they celebrated 50 years of performing together. Now, the legends have their own brand of wine.

Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m.

(Photo from smothersbrothers.com)

Denis Leary brought his tour to Nokia Theatre on Thursday night. We were there:

By PUNCH SHAW
Special Contributor

GRAND PRAIRIE -- It was an evening of comedy and anger -- but not always in that order.

Actor-comedian Denis Leary brought his Rescue Me Comedy Tour to Nokia Theatre on Thursday night, where he ranted and raged on a number of topics with a little help from some equally miffed friends.

What ticks Leary off? Let's see, the answer to that would be ... everything!

Celebrities seemed to be an especially sore point. While projecting their photos, Leary explained to the crowd of about 2,500 exactly what was wrong with various forms of tabloid fodder, such as Madonna, Dr. Phil and Brad Pitt. His highly profane attacks were sometimes funny, and the vehemence of his vitriol was often enough to make the material work. But his subjects were such paper tigers that some came off as hollow or just mean for the sake of being mean. The less-confrontational material also worked only sporadically because he so overworked anatomical and scatological jokes.

(Photo by Robert Presutti/The New York Times)

Actor and comedian Bob Newhart will make a stop at Fort Worth's Bass Hall on April 11.

Tickets go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. and range from $43 to $73.

As recently as 2007, Newhart was nominated for a Grammy for I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This, based on his 2006 book.

Hopefully, this won't all be a dream.

(Photo by Business Wire)

Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer and Michael McKean will bring their six-week, 30-city tour to Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie on Saturday, May 2.

This time, the guys will be Unwigged and Unplugged, performing music from heavy metal band Spinal Tap and folk music from A Mighty Wind, among other selections. It could be considered a 25th anniversary celebration of This Is Spinal Tap. Guest, Shearer and McKean, considered a legendary trio of comedians and musical artists, will be performing their alter ego-music as themselves for the first time. No wigs, no amps, no electric instruments. Let's see if they can hit "maximum volume" in an acoustic setting.

Tickets go on sale Friday through Ticketmaster.

(Photo of (left to right) Shearer, McKean and Guest by Suzanne Tenner/Warner Bros. Pictures)

You can't see me, but I'm typing reallyreallyreallyfast and I'm nottakingabreathever and I'mgoingtodothisfortwohours-
straightwithoutstopping. There: Now you have some idea of what Robin Williams is like in concert; he's like the Energizer Bunny on steriods, with a shot of NoDoz and about a gallon of Red Bull thrown in for good measure. "I"m exhausted," exclaimed the woman in front of me after the sold-out concert.

Yes, it paid to have eaten your Wheaties if you hoped to have had even half a chance of keeping up with Williams' rapid-fire patter as he hilariously, raunchily riffed on everything from buying the end zone at Texas Stadium ("the Cowboys didn't use it during the playoffs") to the alarm bells that should go off when "chimp," "Xanax" and "alcohol" are used in the same sentence to the single funniest routine I've ever seen onstage, about the designers of the human reproductive system, which unfortunately I can't print even one word of.

He's utterly fearless, playing naughty and not always nice on subjects as diverse as "moderate Republicans" ("That's like having a gun rack on a Volvo, not something you see very much") and the alarmingly petite women who compete in Olympics gymnastics. "They're not women! They're Shetland females!"

For a full review, see GuideLive.com on Saturday evening/Sunday morning.

When I saw the 3 Redneck Tenors over the holidays, I was mildly suprised to find out they're not all tenors. Ditto, finding out that the 3 Blonde Moms ... well, aren't. Blonde, that is. And that their show dwells much more on marriage than on motherhood.

The show, running through Saturday at Richardson's Eisemann Center, is actually three comediennes doing stand-up. The show starts with a too-long, totally unnecessary slide show (festooned with incorrect grammar on the captions -- urgh!) about the three women, leading audience members to believe they're somehow connected and that they'll interact during the show. Not so much: They appear onstage together for just a few minutes, and from then on the nearly two-hour show is straight stand-up.

The token brunette, Cathy Ladman, kicks things off in fine form with lines like "Marriage is like a jigsaw puzzle with 5,000 pieces ... all sky." She also gets a good one in about, at age 53, mothering a 5-year-old. "I could belong to PTAARP."

The actual blondes, Joanie Fagan and Beaumont Bacon, are likewise hilarious -- although Fagan's silly brand of Martha Stewart perkiness gets on one's nerves A LOT at the beginning of her stint. Bacon is a master of physical comedy, and her depiction of the horrors of a public bathroom is worth the price of admission.

Look for a full review Thursday afternoon at Guidelive. And for tix, go to the Eisemann.

Carol Burnett had a sold-out Bass Hall audience eating out of the palm of her hand before she ever took the stage Monday night -- she cleverly started the show with a series of big-screen clips from The Carol Burnett Show, and after about two minutes of that, we were all so enchanted that she got a standing ovation before she ever uttered a word. All she had to do was appear on stage.

The evening consisted of Burnett's reminiscences about the show, more clips and answering questions from the audience. Now in her 70s, Burnett looked amazing (to one woman in the back of the house who asked, "How do you stay so pretty and so thin?" she quipped, "And you're sitting on what row?") and her timing and ability to tell a story to maximum effect remain gleefully vigorous. Both with the clips and in person, she reduced the audience to delirious giggles over and over. And she proved herself to be the epitome of "Old Hollywood"-style grace: She doesn't diss anyone, ever, and she's polite and generous with everyone she talks to. She invited so many audience members backstage, to get this or that signed or just because they wanted to meet her, it's a wonder there was anyone left to go to the parking lot after the show.

She's a treasure, and for everyone who was at Bass Hall on Monday, it's a time together they'll never forget.

Look for a full review here.

Tickets will go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. for Denis Leary's show at Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie. The comedian/actor/spokesman will appear at Nokia on April 9.

Nokia also announced today that Cedric the Entertainer will perform there on March 14. Those tickets go on sale Jan. 16 at 10 a.m.

(Photo by DARLA KHARZEI)

You've still got a few days to catch Chicago's famed Second City comedy troupe (touring edition) at the Majestic Theatre, presented by the Dallas Summer Musicals. This is undoubtedly the most fun you'll have this week -- and they even have a two-for-one ticket deal going right now (see the DSM Web site for details). The show runs through Sunday.

On Tuesday, troupe members were in fine form, and there was a definite sense that we were seeing the comedy superstars of tomorrow (this is the same group that gave us the Belushis, Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Dan Aykroyd, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, ad infinitum). I confidently predict that Ross Bryant and Tara DeFrancisco will end up on Saturday Night Live, based solely on their spew-your-drink-hilarious sketch about two secret agents playing an absurd version of six (more like 60) degrees of separation. Their improv at the end of the bit was dazzling, and so funny I almost forgave the woman in front of me who didn't stop talking during the entire show. (Yes, you, on Row H in the left section!)

Other highlights included Brian Jack's conversation with a T-Mobile representative who asks an endless series of "identity-proving" questions -- most of the answers had to do with unicorns -- and the entire cast doing an improv that had them trying to guess, Charades-like, the words "symbiotic," "Nicaragua" and "adjudicate." They also did dead-on, sublimely hilarious sendups of Avenue Q and Riverdance.

Just get on down to the Majestic this week; you'll thank me. But don't wear a good shirt, because you're going to end up spewing your beer or wine on it. Go to the Dallas Summer Musicals or Ticketmaster Web site, or call 214-373-8000 for tickets.

Trust me on this: You don't have anything more fun to do on Saturday than heading to the McKinney Avenue Contemporary for an hour-and-a-half with Leslie Jordan. The impish scene-stealer from Will & Grace, Boston Legal, Reba and other shows is in town doing his hilarious one-man show, which is really much more than stand-up comedy; it's a full theatrical experience. He's touring in support of his new Logo TV show, Sordid Lives, and his book, My Trip Down the Pink Carpet. In keeping with that theme, the show is bathed in neon pink, with requisite pink carpet (he actually rolls himself up in it at one point), and at Friday's performance he was nattily attired in a suit that included a pink tie and cuff links.

The Emmy winner nails his own appeal spot-on when he declares, early in the show, that he's actually a "high-school cheerleader trapped in the body of a 53-year-old gay man. ... If someone cut me open, Hannah Montana would spill out." Mr. Jordan has so much infectious energy, coming right at you in the MAC's relatively small space, that I was gloriously exhausted just from watching him.

Other highlights include Mr. Jordan's tales of Hollywood crushes (the same as mine, really -- Mark Harmon, Robert Urich, George Clooney), his fearlessly hilarious depiction of the difference between "butch queen dancing" and "queen dancing" (it's mostly in the facial expressions) and the way he imitates Faye Dunaway imitating Tennessee Williams (just go with me on that one). He also tells a spew-your-drink-it's-so-funny story about Beverly D'Angelo and a trip to a Dallas Victoria's Secret for frilly underthings. I will divulge no more.

Really, go. Just go. You'll thank me later. Two shows on Saturday, at 2 and 7 p.m. At the MAC, 3120 McKinney Ave. $50. 214-953-1212. www.thelesliejordan.com.

Galleria Dallas has a cool new free series going for the kids called Showtime Saturdays, and you can expect a touch of humor, with the folks at Slappy's Puppet Playhouse helping to produce it. Darren Collins will do his comedy juggling act tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. adjacent to the Play Place on Level 3.

Actress and comedienne Wanda Sykes, observational, scathing, hilarious Wanda Sykes, has just been added to the TITAS 2008-2009 season. She is scheduled to perform at McFarlin Auditorium on Friday, Sept. 26, at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $25 to $75, and available at the TITAS Box Office, 3625 N. Hall Street, Suite 740. Or you can call 214-528-5576 or 800-462-7980, or go online. TITAS also offers a $5 Youth Ticket (K-12) that is available only at the McFarlin Auditorium box office on the day of the show. Group discounts are available, but you have to call the box office for more information.

Depending on your view of him, comedian George Carlin was either offensive or honest. What ended up being his final comedy album, It's Bad For Ya, was released today, a little more than a month after he died of a heart attack at 71. His site describes it as:

It's Bad For Ya features Carlin's noted irreverent observations on such taboo subjects as religion, death, patriotism and big business, as well as pungent examinations of modern language and the "decrepit state of the American culture."

Read the rest here.

Are you going to see Jerry Seinfeld Saturday night? If you went, how was the Jerry Seinfeld show?

Be part of the "supporting cast" in the new Jib Jab viral video. Follow the instructions at the end of the new presidential campaign spoof and paste your face on a cameo character in the video. Oh, the splendorous comic-relief that is Jib Jab. Those guys should get a Nobel Peace Prize for creating such a healing balm of laughter for our social and politcal anxieties.

Okay, I went and did the photo upload (see my video here). It's a little tricky. You want to use a fairly high resolution jpeg (mine was 281 kb - about 200 dpi). Don't worry if your head doesn't fit on the first step of the editing - you get a chance to fine tune on step two. Their editing page took me a long time to load. And you have to register with them to be able to send your customized video. Time waste factor: 1/2 hour. Fun factor: Worth it if you have the time. And you can then send the link to all your pals.