Calendar

Every Wed.–Sun., Sept. 30–Dec. 23. Rhiannon Ragland directs the world premiere of actor-playwright (and Purple Rose founder) Jeff Daniels’ comedy about America’s fastest growing sport. Four below-average players try to overcome their own limitations to achieve greatness in a game that has nothing to do with pickles. Cast: Ryan Carlson, Kate Thomsen, Lynch Travis, Jonathan West, and Caitlin Cavannaugh. 3 p.m. (Wed., Thurs., & Sat.), 8 p.m. (Thurs.–Sat.), & 2 p.m. (Sun.). Purple Rose Theatre, 137 Park St., Chelsea. Tickets $34–$52 in advance at PurpleRoseTheatre.org and by phone, and (if available) at the door. Discounts available for students, seniors, teachers, military personnel, and groups. 433–7673.

Competitive half marathon, with a relay option, a 4-hour time limit, and awards for the top 3 finishers in various age categories. Followed at 4 p.m. by a 1-mile fun run and at 4:30 by a 5-km competitive race. Post-race party at Erratic Ale Co. with a 12 oz. pour included with race registration. 11 a.m., Erratic Ale Co., 8080 Grand St., Dexter. $50 half marathon (relay, $60 for 2); $29 5-km ($30 after Dec. 8); $14 1-mile fun run ($15 after Dec. 8); $64 snowman challenge (all three runs). Preregistration by Dec. 8 required for half marathon, requested for 5-km and 1-mile runs at RunHoliday5k.com. 929–9027. 

Fathom Events. 973–8424 (Ann Arbor 20), 316–5500 (Emagine). Tickets $11.50–$12.50 (except as noted) in advance at fathomevents.com/events and at the door. Ann Arbor 20 (4100 Carpenter), & Emagine (1335 E. Michigan Ave., Saline), different times.

Dec. 10 & 14. Live (Sat.) & pre-recorded (Wed.) broadcast of the Metropolitan Opera world premiere production of Kevin Puts’ operatic adaptation of Michael Cunningham’s 1998 novel. The story follows 3 women from different generations—Virginia Woolf and 2 women affected by her novel Mrs. Dalloway—as they grapple with inner demons and social identities. Stars Renée Fleming, Kelli O’Hara, and Joyce DiDonato. 12:55 p.m. (Sat.) & 1 p.m. (Wed., Ann Arbor 20 only).

Dec. 8-11. David Andrews directs this accomplished town-and-gown company in Gilbert and Sullivan’s comic operetta about the romance between a young lady and a young man mistakenly apprenticed to an inept band of pirates when he was a boy. The ensuing madcap chaos is peppered with songs like “Poor Wand’ring Ones,” “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General,” and the pirates’ theme song, “With Cat-Like Tread,” better known as “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here.” 8 p.m. (Thurs.-Sat.), 1 p.m. (Sat.), & 2 p.m. (Sun.), Lydia Mendelssohn Theater. $30 (seniors, $27; students with ID, $15) in advance at the Michigan League Ticket Office, muto.umich.edu, and at the door. 763–8587.

Dec. 8-11. (The evening performance is followed by a dessert sing-along  ($25)  in the Michigan League Hussey Room.) David Andrews directs this accomplished town-and-gown company in Gilbert and Sullivan’s comic operetta about the romance between a young lady and a young man mistakenly apprenticed to an inept band of pirates when he was a boy. The ensuing madcap chaos is peppered with songs like “Poor Wand’ring Ones,” “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General,” and the pirates’ theme song, “With Cat-Like Tread,” better known as “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here.” 8 p.m. (Thurs.-Sat.), 1 p.m. (Sat.), & 2 p.m. (Sun.), Lydia Mendelssohn Theater. $30 (seniors, $27; students with ID, $15) in advance at the Michigan League Ticket Office, muto.umich.edu, and at the door. 763–8587.

Dec. 10 & 11. Young local dancers perform choreography by AADC teachers to Tchaikovsky’s Christmas ballet. 2 p.m., Milan High School Performing Arts Center, 200 Big Red Dr., Milan. Tickets $17 in advance at aadancecalssics.com or 302–4248; $20 at the door.

Dec. 10 & 11. Boychoir music director John Boonenberg leads this local ensemble of boys ages 7-18, accompanied by First United Methodist Church organist Naki Sung-Kripfgans, in its 36th annual Christmas concert. The program opens with the traditional processional “Once in Royal David’s City,” with the 1st verse sung by a solo boy soprano, and concludes with John Gardner’s “Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day.” Other works include Alfred Burt’s “Ah, Bleak and Chill the Wintry Wind,” Stephen Paulus’s“Hallelu,” John Rutter’s raucous “Donkey Carol,” and more. Also, audience sing-alongs of “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and “O Come, All Ye Faithful” are kicked off with a soaring Boychoir descant verse. This concert usually sells out. 3 p.m. (Sat.) & 5 p.m. (Sun.), Concordia University Chapel of the Holy Trinity, 4090 Geddes at Earhart. Tickets $20 (youths 17 & under, free) in advance at BoychoirA2.EventBrite.com & Tickets@a2BoyChoir.org, and at the door. 663–5377. 

Every Fri.–Sun., Dec. 9–Jan. 1, except Dec. 25. Carla Milarch directs this seasonal holiday Panto comedy that she co-wrote with R. MacKenzie Lewis. Panto is a British pantomime that blends familiar children’s stories with a bit of vaudeville to create a raucous family entertainment. This popular show, an annual tradition, usually sells out. 7:30 p.m. (Fri. & Sat.), 3 p.m. (Sat.) & 2 p.m. (Sun.), Theatre Nova, 410 W. Huron St. Mask & proof of vaccination required. Tickets $25 ($10 for kids under 17) in advance at theatre-nova.ticketleap.com and (if available) at the door. 635–8450.

This perennial national power opens its season with an exhibition match vs. CMU, EMU, and WMU. 4 p.m., Crisler Center. Tickets TBA at mGOblue.com/tickets. 764–0247. 

6:30 p.m., Yost Ice Arena, 1016 S. State. Tickets prices TBA; only standing room and obstructed view seats still available by phone at (866) 296–6849.  

Dec. 9 & 10. Shane Collins directs high school students and community members in the premiere of this play—about a girl who dreams of making music despite significant obstacles—that he co-wrote with assistant directors Cameron Graham and Quinn Strassel, and with the students themselves. Local artists, including Mark Tucker, the U-M art professor behind FestiFools, helped design and make the scenery. 7 p.m., Pathways to Success Academic Campus, 2800 Stone School Rd. $10. Preregistration required at showtix4u.com. 997–1237.

Dec. 2–4 & Dec. 9–11. EMU theater professor Meriah Sage directs EMU students in Rick Elice’s 2009 Tony Award-winning musical. Adapted from Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson’s 2004 novel which gives a backstory to Peter Pan, the narrative follows the nautical adventures of pirates, spies, island natives, crocodiles, and three orphan boys. Aimed at theatergoers age 10 & up. 7 p.m. (Fri. & Sat.) & 2 p.m. (Sun.), EMU Legacy Theater, 124 Judy Sturgis Hill Bldg., Ford St. (off Lowell from Huron River Dr.), Ypsilanti. Tickets $7–$18 in advance at emich.ludus.com & at the door. 487–2282.

Dec. 9 & 10. This NYC-based Spanish American comic known for a monotone delivery followed by a quick smile deploys her dry sense of humor on such matters as familial relationships, dating, and pets. She’s been featured as a comic on The Tonight Show, The Late Show, and The Late Late Show. Preceded by 2 opening acts TBA. Alcohol is served. 7:15 p.m. (Fri. & Sat.) & 9:45 p.m. (Sat.), 212 S. Fourth Ave. $18 reserved seating in advance at etix.com and $20 general admission at the door. 996–9080.

Dec. 10 & 11. EMU choral director Brandon Johnson leads the EMU choirs in a festive program featuring a Baroque concerto and contemporary arrangements of traditional carols with trumpet, guitar, and modern dance. 7:30 p.m. (Sat.) & 3 p.m. (Sun.), EMU Pease Auditorium, 494 College Pl., Ypsilanti. Tickets $15 (students, $5) in advance at emich.ludus.com and at the door. 487–0280. 

Superstar violin virtuoso Perlman is joined by the renowned Juilliard String Quartet (with new violist Molly Carr) along with 2 other guests: Emanuel Ax, a NYC-based pianist known for the elegant subtlety of his interpretations, and Jean-Yves Thibaudet, an L.A.-based French pianist who’s been praised for his nuanced musicality. The mixed chamber music program features French Baroque composer Jean-Marie Leclair’s lively Sonata for Two Violins in E minor, Mozart’s complex & lyrical Piano Quartet No. 2 in E-flat major, and French Romantic composer Ernest Chausson’s passionate Concert for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet. 7:30 p.m., Hill Auditorium. Mask required if Washtenaw County is in the CDC’s high-risk category. Tickets $28–$181 (students, $15–$53) at tickets.UMS.org. 764–2538.

This self-styled “crack squad of ‘supercrooners,’” an a cappella octet drawn from the Men’s Glee Club, performs an eclectic mix of everything from slow ballads to upbeat dance tunes to original parodies that give a collegiate twist to classic songs. 8 p.m., Rackham Auditorium. Tickets $12 in advance at the Michigan Union Ticket Office (muto.umich.edu), and (if available) at the door. um.friars@umich.edu. 

Dec. 9–11. Mirit Skeen directs this student theater ensemble in Paula Vogel’s 2015 play about the controversy surrounding the 1923 Broadway premiere of Sholem Asch’s God of Vengeance, a production for which the producer and cast were convicted of indecency. 8 p.m. (Fri. & Sat.) & 2 p.m. (Sun), U-M Walgreen Drama Center Arthur Miller Theatre, 1226 Murfin. Tickets $13 (students, $7) in advance at muto.umich.edu and at the door. facebook.com/umrudes.

Dec. 8-11. U-M theater professor Geoff Packard directs students in David Farr’s 2011 reimagining of the Robin Hood story, wherein the band of Sherwood Forest outlaws steals from the rich but don’t think to give to the poor until after Maid Marian’s intervention–along with the actions of the wicked Prince John. 7:30 (Thurs.), 8 p.m. (Fri. & Sat.), & 2 p.m. (Sun.), Power Center. Tickets $24–$30 (students, $13) in advance at tickets.smtd.umich.edu, the Michigan League Ticket Office, and (if available) at the door. 764–2538.

Family holiday cabaret with holiday and Broadway music, standup and sketch comedy, storytelling and more by AACT and other local performers. 8 p.m., A2CT Studio, 322 W. Ann St. Tickets $15 in advance at civicimprov.org and at the door.