THEATER
Teen improvisational group Armadillo Rodeo returns to the stage after a long, covid-19-caused hiatus (since 2020, in fact), 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday at the Public Theatre, 616 Center St., Little Rock. The troupe is open to actors between 13 and 18; the logo notes it has been “Lassoing Laughs since 2007.” Each performance is fully improvised. Admission is by a suggested donation of $10. Email [email protected] or visit thepublictheatrelittlerock.com.
SpongeBob musical
With a volcano set to erupt and destroy their Bikini Bottom homes, SpongeBob SquarePants and his friends come together to save their beloved undersea world in “The SpongeBob Musical,” which the Royal Players stage at 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through June 23 at the Royal Theatre, 111 S. Market St., Benton.
The musical features a book by Kyle Jarrow, based on the animated series created by Stephen Hillenburg, with original songs by Yolanda Adams, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Sara Bareilles, Jonathan Coulton, Alexander Ebert of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, The Flaming Lips, Lady A, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco, Plain White T’s, They Might Be Giants and T.I., plus songs by David Bowie, Tom Kenny and Andy Paley; additional lyrics by Jonathan Coulton with additional music by Tom Kitt. The production was conceived by Tina Landau.
Sponsor is McCombs Medical. Tickets are $18; $15 for senior citizens 60-plus, members of the military and college students with valid ID; $8 for K-12 students. Visit TheRoyalPlayers. TicketLeap.com.
Pay ‘Proudly’
The Arkansas Repertory Theatre, 601 Main St., Little Rock, will distribute up to 100 “Pay What You Can” tickets for the first preview performance, 7 p.m. Tuesday — of “Pride and Prejudice,” a new adaptation by Kate Hamill of the novel by Jane Austen, on a first-come, first-served basis, starting at 10 a.m. Saturday at the theater box office. Sponsor is the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The theater will also provide at least 10 “Pay What You Can” (including free) tickets to every regular performance (7 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through June 30), on a first-come, first-served basis, 30 minutes prior to each show, in-person at the box office. Sponsors are Will & Karla Feland.
And in conjunction with the production, the Rep will hold four “Austen Tea Parties,” 5:30 p.m. Tuesday and June 25, each preceding a 7 p.m. performance, and 3:30 p.m. June 22 and 29, following 2 p.m. matinees.
In addition to tea and an assortment of treats from Community Bakery, each event will feature a Jane Austen expert — the Central Arkansas Library System’s Heather Zbinden at this Tuesday’s party; Carol West, on the faculty at Hendrix College in Conway, for the other three — providing a discussion about the author, the novel, the adapted play and the Regency Era forms of formal courtship.
Capacity is limited. Tea tickets are $50 above the cost of a ticket to the show; however, the Rep is offering tea-party bundles — $100 for any seat plus the tea party, and including a special hard-back edition of the novel from WordsWorth Books and a custom bookmark from The Rep.
Call (501) 378-0405 or visit therep.org/pride-prejudice-tickets.
MUSIC
Jazz Hall of Fame
The Arkansas Jazz Heritage Foundation holds its 2024 Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Jazz Celebration on Monday — 6 p.m. reception, 7 p.m. program — at the Old State House Museum, 300 W. Markham St., Little Rock.
The Jazz Hall of Fame inductees are C.E. Askew, Tom Cox, Robert Ginsburg, David Higginbotham, Lester “Les” David Pack Jr., Benjamin L. Pruitt Sr., I.J. Routen and Betty Ward.
The reception will include performances by the Swing Band Union, the Betty Ward Combo, Routen, Higginbotham, Cox and Askew. Admission is $40. Proceeds benefit The Old State House Society. Call (501) 661-1604, email [email protected] or visit square.link/u/RLdMkfXY.
C.E. Askew, Tom Cox, Robert Ginsburg, David Higginbotham, Lester “Les” David Pack Jr., Benjamin L. Pruitt Sr., I.J. Routen and Betty Ward are inductees into the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
C.E. Askew, Tom Cox, Robert Ginsburg, David Higginbotham, Lester “Les” David Pack Jr., Benjamin L. Pruitt Sr., I.J. Routen and Betty Ward are inductees into the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
ART
Small Works deadline
July 26 is the deadline for members of the Arkansas Artist Registry to submit works for the Arkansas Arts Council’s 2025 “Small Works on Paper” art exhibition. Artists can turn in up to three works on paper, 18-by-24 inches, online at arkansasarts.org. Entry fee is $15 for the first entry, $20 for two entries, $25 for three entries. Membership to the registry is free and open to all Arkansans 18 or older. The 2025 juror is Mario A. Robinson, a professional artist from Long Branch, N.J.
ETC.
‘Carnivore Plants’
Mark Gibson, owner of Green Thumb Water Gardens, presents a program titled “Carnivore Plants (including Venus Fly Traps and Pitcher Plants),” 9 a.m. Saturday at the Bell House in the center of Mt. Holly Cemetery, 1200 Broadway, Little Rock. It’s part of the 2024 Mount Holly Garden Series. The session also includes coffee and door prizes. Admission is by suggested $5 donation and proceeds benefit the cemetery. Provide your own lawn chair. Call (501) 372-3372 or email [email protected].
Big Read grant
The National Endowment for the Arts, in partnership with Arts Midwest, is giving the U.S. Marshals Museum in Fort Smith a $20,000 grant as part of its “Big Read” program for 2024-25.
The endowment is handing out $1.75 million to 62 nonprofits across the country to support programming centered on books from the NEA Big Read Library, “with the goal of inspiring meaningful conversations, celebrating local creativity, elevating a wide variety of voices and perspectives, and building stronger connections in each community.” Programming during this cycle is focused on the theme “Where We Live.”
Each grantee has chosen a book “based on how its themes, characters and setting relate to the unique aspects of their community,” according to the news release. The Fort Smith museum has picked “The Latehomecomer” by Kao Kalia Yang, a memoir of her family’s harrowing escape from war in Laos and the exodus of the Hmong people, first to refugee camps in Thailand and then, for many, to new homes in Minnesota.
Visit arts.gov/neabigread.
