Weekend Preview: watch, listen, participate

This weekend provides a trifecta of different performance art options.

The first on the list, and a matter of daddy pride for the lucky man who is the father of the talented actress playing Gramma Josephine, is “Charlie and the Chocoloate Factory” at the Lakewood Playhouse. This children’s production is the product of a week of Spring break training under the direction of Mark Peterson and Maggie Knott. The show runs tonight only.

On a not-for-young-children note, Tacoma Musical Playhouse is staging “NINE, The Musical!” This show is a stage version Frederico Fellini’s influential 1963 Italian film, “8 1/2”, which took the third spot on the “Best Films of All Time” list in the British Film Institute’s poll of film directors. NINE is the story of celebrated Italian film director, Guido Contini, who has turned 40 and faces a double crisis: he has to shoot a film for which he cannot write the script, and his wife of 20 years, the film star Luisa del Forno, may be about to leave him. Those troubles aren’t separate as it turns out. The show is not recommended for children since it contains adult situations concerning sexual themes and coarse language. The show runs Friday and runs Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through April 17.

The participation entry of this week’s preview is a call for extras for an independent film being shot at Pacific Grill Saturday morning and Sunday evening. Local actress Ashley Cozine is shooting a short film called “Dessert & Suicide” – a dark comedy centered around Blind Dates – and needs people to play restaurant patrons. The gig isn’t paid, but you get free eats. Email dessertandsuicide@gmail.com if you may be interested.

And it might just stop raining by Sunday night.