Miss Saigon At long last, the Manatee Players open their new home at 502 Third Ave. W., Bradenton, with this Claude-Michel Schoenberg-Alain Boublil-Richard Maltby Jr. update of the tragic tale of Madame Butterfly. It's a dramatic show for a dramatic new space. Runs March 28 through April 14. 748-5875, manateeplayers.com.
Of Mice and Men The Sarasota Opera continues its American Classics series with John Steinbeck's heart-breaking tale of Depression-era wanderers Lennie (Michael Hendrick) and George (Sean Anderson). Sung in English at the Opera House March 9, 12, 14, 17, 20 and 23; composer Carlisle Floyd takes part in a conversation at 1 p.m. March 9. 328-1300 or sarasotaopera.org
Kate Weare Company Choreographer Weare's work has been called "terrifically satisfying" by The New York Times. Now it's onstage, March 7-9, at the Historic Asolo Theater as part of the Ringling Museum's Art of Our Time/New Stages programming. Tango figures in Drop Down; nature's unpredictability in Garden. 360-7399 or ringling.org
Giving Hunger the Blues Time once more for this annual Southside Village treat, offering lots of music, food and drink vendors, and even kids' activities, from noon to 8 p.m. March 24 along Hillview. Best of all, it's for a good cause: All Faiths Food Bank. For ticket and band info, call 366-5555 or go to givinghungertheblues.org.
Playwright Lorraine Hansberry's actual family home on Chicago's South Side, bought in 1937, won landmark status from the city's historical landmarks preservation committee in 2010.
Bruce Norris' Tony- and Pulitzer-winning play bows at Asolo Rep March 15 through May 2. Helmed by artistic director Michael Donald Edwards, it takes a biting look back at the racial issues that fueled Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun 50 years ago, with a flash forward to see how things have—and haven't—changed today. 351-8000 or asolorep.org.
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