Much to my surprise, local alt-weekly newspaper The Other Paper has not one, not two, but three articles by love-him-or-hate-him theatre critic Richard Ades this week, including a rare cover story about CATCo's production of The Pillowman. Also highlighted are Opera Columbus' breathless return from the financial abyss with their production of La Boheme, and a review of Shadowbox Cabaret's latest rock musical effort, Hair.

I guess you could count four articles that are theatre related, if you also include the nightclub review of James' Club 88 by Kitty McConnell, a "sophisticated" and "swanky" new piano bar just steps away from the Palace Theatre.

It's not every week we get such thorough coverage in the press, especially with a big game against Purdue around the corner. But we'll savor it while it lasts.

At ComFest in Columbus this weekend, (a gigantic festival run entirely by volunteers with 60,000 visitors a day and no corporate sponsorship) at 2:30 on Saturday afternoon, performing on the smallest of 6 outdoor stages, Hugs & Kisses attracted about two hundred 18-35 year olds who were all cooler, hipper, and more excited than pretty much everyone I see at the theaters these days. How do they do it? Well, for one thing, Hugs & Kisses probably aren't theatre, they're probably a band, but you coulda fooled me.

Yes friends, Columbus' own Michael Grossberg is heading to Las Vegas next week, and the Dispatch has given him some blog space to tell us all about his fanciful escapades. Why Vegas?

The American Theatre Critics Association will visit Las Vegas for the first time with about 135 people, mostly critics, attending the June 18-24 conference. Theater critics are curious to see how Las Vegas' monied producers are thinking bigger and staging more theatrical entertainments. Many seem well beyond the budget or scope of Broadway - or just about anywhere else.

Here in Columbus, a play sponsored by the ACLU is making the rounds. Another timely play, about 9 Iraqi women, debuts in Atlanta. The Huffington Post has a few thoughts on Armed & Naked in America. Boston's Huntington Theatre announces their season.

Okay, so this won't be so much a review as it'll be a slathering of praise.

A photo from the Cynthia Hopkins/Accinosco production Must Don't Whip 'Um has been on the cover of the Wexner Center's programs all season, so I guess it's fair to say I had some high expectations for this show. I skipped it at The Public's Under the Radar festival, knowing I could see it here. I'm kind of regretting it now. I'm going to be out of town performing in my own show, so there's no chance I can catch it again.

The show started with a voice-over from the Narrator, assumedly Cynthia Hopkins, explaining, essentially, what we were about to see, the farewell concert of her mother's music career, an event that took place shortly before her mother's disappearance. There was some milling about on stage and a couple of scenes acted with the aid of some clever blue screen before Cynthia Hopkins appeared, the music started and I began to cry.

Available light [theatre] opens their newest show, Tomorrow is the Question in just one week's time.

"It's a play about politics. What works, what doesn't and why it's up to us to fix it."

The play runs March 30-31 and April 5-7 at the Columbus Dance Theatre, 592 E. Main St.

Discounted tickets are on-sale now at AVLt's online ticket window.

If you're socially inclined, you can get an incredible deal on a block of 5 tickets. But, you'll need to click the link to get more info.