Here are the shows you won't want to miss in the coming months.
Rooms: a rock romance. This rousing rock musical follows singer Monica and guitarist Ian from Glasgow to London and New York, from young love and obscurity to maturity and success. freeFall Theatre at Studio@620, Sept. 8-26, 620 First Ave. S., St. Petersburg, 727-359-0525, www.freefalltheatre.org.
Einstein's Dreams. Albert Einstein, about to discover relativity, dreams about time moving backwards, fast-forward, and at different rates for different people. Freaky. Jobsite Theater at the Straz Center, Sept. 16-Oct. 3, 1010 N. MacInnes Place, Tampa, 813-229-STAR, www.jobsitetheater.org.
Shipwrecked. Either Louis de Rougemont had the most thrilling adventures in history or was the 19th century's most shameless liar. Donald Margulies presents the evidence. You decide. Gorilla Theatre, Sept. 23-Oct. 17, 4419 N. Hubert Ave., Tampa, 813-879-2914, www.gorillatheatre.com.
Pump Boys and Dinettes. From a gas station and diner on U.S. 57, we're treated to country, rock 'n roll, folk, bluegrass, Cajun and more. If you love the small-town South, this is your musical. New American Theater at The Palladium, Oct. 1-10, 253 Fifth Ave. N., St. Petersburg, 727-575-9241, www.newamericantheater.org.
Mindgame. Into an experimental asylum for the criminally insane comes a true crime writer who wants to interview a serial murderer. Hint: nothing is as it seems. Jobsite Theater at the Straz Center, Oct. 21-Nov. 7, 813-229-STAR, www.jobsitetheater.org.
Opus. Crisis comes to a famous string quartet as one player goes missing. Can his replacement ever find acceptance among these difficult obsessives? Or is her real focus elsewhere? American Stage, November 2-28, 163 Third St. N., St. Petersburg, 727-823-PLAY, www.americanstage.org.
The God of Isaac. American Jew Isaac Adams finds out that a Nazi group intends to march in Skokie — and is provoked into a journey that returns him to his roots. Stageworks Theater at the Straz Center, Dec. 2-19, 813-229-STAR, www.stageworkstheater.com.
Wonderland. Conceived and raised in Tampa, this modern Alice is headed for Broadway. Before she gets there, come see her search for her daughter — and the meaning of life. Straz Center, Jan. 4-16, 1010 N. MacInnes Place, Tampa, 813-229-STAR, www.tbpac.org.
The Lion in Winter. Spend some quality minutes in Henry II's noisy castle in Chinon, France, with Henry's cagy wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and their three power-hungry sons. Doesn't greed make for tasty dialogue? Gorilla Theatre, Jan. 13-Feb. 6, 4419 N. Hubert Ave., Tampa, 813-879-2914, www.gorillatheatre.com.
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. As the backup band for the great Ma Rainey waits for the storied blues singer, we learn a lot about dreams deferred — even how they explode — as American Stage continues its exploration of the works of the great African-American playwright August Wilson. American Stage, Jan. 21-Feb. 13, 727-823-PLAY, www.americanstage.org.
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 1, 2010.