Dozen of live, local plays hit Sonoma County stages

Sonoma County's ever-active theater community is already well into its fall season this year, with an almost startling variety of offerings.

There are mysteries ranging from the parody of Tom Stoppard's “The Real Inspector Hound,” and a rapid-fire Sherlock Holmes spoof of the classic “Dial M for Murder.”

Musicals range from perennial favorites like “The Fantasticks” and “Most Happy Fella” to the ambitious “Titanic, The Musical.” There's a bit of Shakespeare with “Romeo and Juliet,” and a take-off on Chekhov.

You'll even find a new work created by college students around the theme of “Leaving Home.”

Some shows are already running, several open this weekend, and there are many more to come. Here's a quick look at current and coming productions:

Friday through Sept. 18 - “The Real Inspector Hound,” murder mystery parody by Tom Stoppard, directed by John Green and performed at the Hudson Street Wineries Tasting Room, 428 Hudson St., Healdsburg. $20. hudsonstreetwineries.bpt.me

Friday through Sept. 25 - “The Jack London Festival” presents two plays in rotation: the world premiere of “The House That Jack Built,” a drama about the famous author by Cecelia Tichi, priced at $10-21; and actor-writer Charlie Bethel's one-man stage adaptation of London's “Call of the Wild,” $10-$15. Studio Theater, 6th Street Playhouse, 52 W. Sixth St., Santa Rosa. 523-4185, 6thstreetplayhouse.com.

Friday through Sept. 25 - “The Big Meal,” a comedy by Dan LeFranc dealing with 80 years and five generations of a modern family, “from first kiss to final goodbye.” Left Edge Studio Theater, Luther Burbank Center, 50 Mark West Springs Road, Santa Rosa. $25-$40. Box office: 546-3600; information: 536-1620, leftedgetheatre.com.

Through Sunday, Sept. 11 - “The Fantasticks,” the longest-running musical in Broadway history, with music by Harvy Schmidt, book and lyrics by Tom Jones. Two fathers connive to ensure that their son and daughter fall in love. Songs include “Try to Remember.” Sonoma Community Center, 276 Napa St., Sonoma. $15-$45. (866) 710-8942, sonomaartslive.org. Up next: “I Hate Hamlet,” Sept. 22-Oct. 9.

Through Sept. 18 - “Animal Crackers,” a stage adaptation of the zany Marx Brothers classic, directed by Craig Miller, artistic director of the 6th Street Playhouse, and presented on the theater's main stage. 52 W. Sixth St., Santa Rosa. $15-$38. 523-4185, 6thstreetplayhouse.com. Next up: “Threepenny Opera,” Sept. 30-Oct. 23.

Through Sept. 18 - “Capacity,” stage drama about Albert Einstein and his wife Mileva Maric, written by Rebecca Louise Miller and directed by husband-and-wife team John and Elizabeth Craven. Main Stage West, 104 N. Main St., Sebastopol. $15-$25. 823-0177, mainstagewest.com. Up next: “Dancing at Lughnasa,” Oct. 14-30.

Through Sept. 25 - “Most Happy Fella,” with book, music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, creator of “Guys and Dolls,” with stage direction by Elly Lichenstein and music direction by Mary Chun. Cinnabar Theater, 3333 Petaluma Blvd. N., Petaluma. $25-$40. 763-8920, cinnabartheater.org. Up next: “The Quality of Life,” Oct. 14-30.

Through Sept. 25 - William Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet,” presented by We Players, directed by Ava Roy, with an original music score by Charlie Gurke. $30-$80. Petaluma Adobe State Historic Park, 3325 Adobe Road, Petaluma. The park's early 19th-century, two-story adobe building, with its balconies, makes a perfect setting for this particular play. weplayers.org.

Sept. 16-Oct. 9 - “Baskerville, A Sherlock Holmes Mystery,” by Ken Ludwig, a fast-paced comedy based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's “Hound of the Baskervilles,” with five actors playing more than 40 characters. Bette Condiotti Theatre, Spreckels Performing Arts Center, 5409 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park. $16-$26. 588-3400, rpcity.org. Up next: “Titanic, The Musical,” Oct. 14-30, on the Spreckels main stage.

Sept. 18 - “That Stupid F--king Bird,” by Aaron Posner, a satire “sort of” adapted from Anton Chekhov's “The Seagull.” Staged reading presented by the Pegasus Theater Company one night only at 6 p.m. at the Sonoma Nesting Company in downtown Guerneville. Donations accepted. pegasustheater.com. Up next: “The Quality of Life,” at the Blue Door Gallery on Main Street in Guerneville, Oct. 9.

Sept. 22.-Oct. 8 - “Real,” a reworked and rewritten version of the Imaginists theater collective's 2013 creation in which six actor play 20 characters dealing with “30 years of a failed immigration policy.” The story: Liberty, the good fairy, knows the Pinocchio wishes to become a real boy, but her pet snail, Justice, moves slowly. Performed in English and Spanish. The Imaginists, 461 Sebastopol Ave., Santa Rosa. $5-$25. theimaginists.org, 528-7554.

Sept. 23-Oct. 8 - “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” dark musical comedy with book by Hugh Wheeler and music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, directed by longtime local favorite Carl Hamilton. Raven Performing Arts Theater, 115 North St., Healdsburg. $10-$25. 433-6335, raventheater.org.

Sept. 23-Oct. 9 - “Run for Your Wife,” a farce about a London cab driver with two wives and two separate lives, written by Ray Cooney and directed by Amy Lovato. Cloverdale Performing Arts Center, 209 N. Cloverdale Blvd., Cloverdale. $12-$22. 894-2214, cloverdaleperformingarts.com.

Oct. 7-16 - “Leaving Home,” an original play created by students and drawn from interviews with fellow students and alumni, in collaboration with instructor Laura Downing-Lee. The topic: leaving home, of course. Newman Auditorium, at the Elliott Avenue end of the Santa Rosa Junior College campus. $12-$22. 527-4307, santarosa.edu.

Oct. 7-22 - “Moon for the Misbegotten,” the classic drama by Eugene O'Neill. Roustabout Theatre Ensemble in the Carston Cabaret at Luther Burbank Center, 50 Mark West Springs Road, Santa Rosa. $20-$25. Box office: 546-3600; information: roustabout-theater.org.

Oct. 13-23 - “Waiting for the Parade,” the story of five working women in Calgary during World War II, by John Murrell, directed by Danielle Cain. Ives Hall, Sonoma State University, 1801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park. $5-$17. 664-4246, sonoma.edu.

Oct. 21-Nov. 6 - “Dial M for Murder,” the mystery classic by Frederick Knott, famed for the Alfred Hitchcock movie version. North Bay Stage Company, East Auditorium, Luther Burbank Center, 50 Mark West Springs Road, Santa Rosa. $28. Box office: 546-3600; information: northbaystageco.org

You can reach staff writer Dan Taylor at 521-5243 or dan.taylor@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @danarts.