OPENING THIS WEEK

A CHRISTMAS CAROL · A Contemporary Theatre

ANNIE GET YOUR GUN · The Paramount Theatre

BLACK NATIVITY · Intiman Theatre

BONDAGERS · Theater Schmeater

IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE · Everett Theatre Players

MOTHER JONES WILL SPEAK! · Seattle Theatre Project

THE NUTCRACKER PUPPET BALLET · Northwest Puppet Center

PLAZA SUITE · Riptide Deli Theatre

SANDERS FAMILY CHRISTMAS · Taproot Theatre

A VERY SPECIAL MONEY & RUN WINTER SEASON HOLIDAY SPECIAL · Theater Schmeater

ONE WEEK ONLY

LYRICAL JUGGLER THOMAS ARTHUR IN CONCERT · Broadway Performance Hall

ODUNDE FESTIVAL 2000 · Adefua Cultural Education Workshop

SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL STAND-UP COMEDY COMPETITION · Kirkland Performance Center

SEATTLE SKETCHFEST · Every damn sketch comedy troupe in town and several from other places

CLOSING THIS WEEK

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS · SecondStory Repertory

OPENING AND CURRENT RUNS

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

Boy, the Thanksgiving carcass is barely cold before the Christmas shows start dancing on its grave. David Pichette and John Procaccino alternate playing Scrooge in the Dickens classic, done for the 25th time at A Contemporary Theatre, 700 Union St, 292-7676. $20-$35. Previews Fri-Sat Nov 24-25, 7 pm. Opens Sun Nov 26, 2 & 6 pm. Generally runs Tues-Sun, but times and days change over the course of the run so give 'em a call first. Through Dec 24.

ANNIE GET YOUR GUN

Marilu Henner from Taxi! Tom Wopat from Dukes of Hazzard!! And some guy named Irving Berlin wrote the songs. Opens Tues Nov 28. Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St, 292-ARTS. $20-$54. Tues-Sat at 8, Sun at 7:30, Sat-Sun mats at 2. Through Dec 10.

BLACK NATIVITY

And Intiman trots out its holiday show (a gospel "song play" by Langston Hughes) for the third time, featuring the Total Experience Gospel Choir. Intiman Theatre, Seattle Center, 269-1900. $38 general, $28 students/seniors, $20 for youth 16 and under. Previews Sun Nov 26 and Tues Nov 28, 7 pm. Opens Wed Nov 29, 7 pm. Tues, Wed at 7, Thurs-Sat at 8, Sat-Sun mats at 2. Special Sunday evening show Dec 17, 7 pm. Through Dec 24.

BONDAGERS

This Scottish musical about women workers on the border farms of the late 1800s opened a couple of weeks ago, but they only just sent us a press release. Theater Schmeater, 1500 Summit Ave, 324-5801. $12 (anyone under 18 is free). Thurs-Sat at 8; special matinee on Sun Nov 26, 2 pm. Through Dec 2.

EXPRESSIONS OF THE SPIRIT

The über-bendy UMO troupe tackles the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm. Reviewed this issue. ArtsWest, 4711 California Ave SW, 938-0339. $12-$22. Thurs-Sun at 8, call about weekend matinees. Through Dec 16.

GULLIVER'S TRAVELS

Four chunks of Jonathan Swift's epic satire, each brought to life by a different director (either Sean Belyea, Jennifer Jasper, Juliet Waller, or Scot Augustson). Consolidated Works, 410 Terry Ave N, 860-5245. $14 general, $12 members. Thurs-Sun at 8. (No performance Thurs Nov 23.) Through Dec 15.

*HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH

Not only is this called by some the greatest rock musical of all time, it stars Nick Garrison and Sarah Rudinoff; not only can they act, their combined vocal power and finesse could tear the roof off and then nail it back down. Reviewed this issue. Re-bar, 1114 Howell (at Boren), 323-0388 or 325-6500. $16. Thurs-Sun at 8. Through Feb 11.

H.M.S. PINAFORE

Another love story with a catch from Gilbert & Sullivan. Civic Light Opera at the Jane Addams Theatre, 11051 34th Ave NE, 363-2809. $18-$22. Thurs-Sat at 8, Sun at 2:30. Through Dec 9. NOTE: CLO musicians are on strike. You may have to cross a picket line in order to see the show.

MOTHER JONES WILL SPEAK!

A one-woman show about the famed turn-of-last-century political activist. Therese Diekhans plays 15 different roles. Opens Fri Nov 24. Seattle Theatre Project at Open Circle Theatre, 429 Boren Ave N, 382-4250. $10. Thurs-Sun at 8. Through Dec 16.

NEW PATAGONIA

A Ken Kesey-esque literary lion decides he's going to have the most spectacular death of his generation. A new play by Elizabeth Heffron--the first time in living memory the Rep has produced a new play by a local writer who isn't August Wilson or Steven Dietz. Seattle Repertory Theatre, Seattle Center at Second and Mercer, 443-2222. $29-$42 ($10 for anyone 25 or under). Tues-Sun at 7:30, Sat-Sun at 2. Through Dec 23.

THE NUTCRACKER PUPPET BALLET

And here's a holiday tradition in the making, a puppet version of The Nutcracker from the Carter Family Marionettes. Opens Fri Nov 24. Northwest Puppet Center, 9123 15th Ave NE, 523-2579. $6.50 children, $7 seniors, $8.50 adults. Fri at 7:30, Sat-Sun at 1 & 3. Through Dec 17.

PLAZA SUITE

If you're going to do dinner theater, I guess you just have to do Neil Simon. Opens Fri Nov 24. RipTide Deli Theatre at the Liberty Deli, 2722 Alki Ave SW, 405-TIDE. $22 in advance, $25 at the door (includes dinner). Dinner starts at 6:30, show starts at 7:30. Through Dec 23.

PRINCE BRAT AND THE WHIPPING BOY

It's not what you think, it's for kids. You should be ashamed of yourself. Seattle Children's Theatre, Seattle Center, 441-3322. $14.50-$22. Fri-Sat at 7, Sun at 2 & 5:30. Through Jan 13.

THE RED BALLOON

Boy meets balloon, falls in love, must protect balloon from pin-wielding bullies. A collaboration with Scottish theater troupe Visible Fictions. Seattle Children's Theatre, Seattle Center, 441-3322. $14.50-$22. Fri at 7, Sat-Sun at 2 and 5:30. (No performance Sun Dec 24.) Through Dec 30.

REVERSE PSYCHOLOGY

Ludlam's 1980 farce about a married pair of psychologists having affairs with each other's patients. Reviewed this issue. Empty Space, 3509 Fremont N, 547-7500. $20-$28. Tues-Thurs at 7:30, Fri at 8, Sat at 2 & 8, Sun at 2 & 7. Through Dec 16.

SANDERS FAMILY CHRISTMAS

A bluegrass gospel musical, set on the brink of the U.S. involvement in WWII. Opens Fri Nov 24. Taproot Theatre, 204 N 85th St, 781-9707. $17-$25. Wed-Thurs at 7:30, Fri-Sat at 8, Sat at 2. Through Dec 30.

*SNOW

"This production, [from] MacArthur Fellow John Jesurun, is as much installation art as theater. Only after you're feeling all quiet and calm does the story begin.... Like a lot of installation work, this piece is more concept-driven than character-driven." (Rebecca Brown) New City Theater, 1632 Broadway in the First Christian Church, 328-4683. $12-$15. Thurs-Sat at 8. (No performance on Thurs Nov 23.) Through Dec 2.

SOUPTALKS SEATTLE

Three short puppet plays inspired by world arms talks, with a meal (soup, of course). Not your typical Punch-and-Judy show. Puppetsoup at the Sand Point Brig, 7400 Sand Point Way, 568-1000. $50 general, $35 for CoCA members; prepaid reservations are required. Final performance on Sat Nov 25, 6 pm.

DANCE

*LYRICAL JUGGLER THOMAS ARTHUR

Stretching the limits of juggling, with live music by Paul Ely Smith and Gina Salá. See Bio Box. Broadway Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway, 634-1782. $14. Sat Nov 25, 8 pm ONLY.

ODUNDE FESTIVAL 2000

A celebration of West African music, dancing, and song, presented by Adefua Cultural Education Workshop. Fri & Sun Nov 24 & 26 feature drum and dance workshops at Rainier Dance Center, 9264 57th Ave S (call 722-6602 for times); Ile-Ife, an African musical drama by Nigerian Prince Soba (Gideon) Oyeleke, at Rainier Beach High School Performing Arts Center on Sat Nov 25 at 3 & 8, as well as an all-day African Marketplace at the Rainier Beach High School gym, 8815 Seward Park S.

FESTIVALS, CABARET, & COMEDY

*HOKUM HALL

The pleasures of vaudeville, both broad and delicate, are kept alive at Hokum Hall, 7904 35th Ave SW, 937-3613. Prices vary per event, but are almost never more than $12. Thanksgiving Day, Thurs Nov 23, 7:30 pm: The Wizard of Oz (1925) with Andy Crow; Fri Nov 24, 8 pm: The Wizard of Oz (1933) & The Magic Cloak of Oz with Andy Crow; Sat Nov 25, 8 pm: The Patchwork Girl of Oz with Andy Crow.

SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL STAND-UP COMEDY COMPETITION

Hmm, the title pretty much sums it up. Featuring the likes of Mitch Hedberg, Ross Shafer, Peggy Platt, and more. Kirkland Performance Center, 350 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland, 425-893-9900. $18.50. Fri Nov 24, 8 pm ONLY.

SEATTLE SKETCHFEST

Enough sketch comedy to choke a chicken. See Stranger Suggests. Wed Nov 29, 8 pm: Sketch Sampler at Nippon Kan Theatre. Thurs-Sat Nov 30-Dec 2, 8 pm: Sketch Marathon at the Speakeasy Backroom, featuring different troupes each night. Call 444-4336 for details and updates.

*THREE DOLLAR BILL

"Like most disreputable arts, standup now offers a more compelling product for its lack of adoration. Billed as a gay- and lesbian-oriented show, Three Dollar Bill also works as a low-cost current comedy primer." (Tom Spurgeon) Comedy Underground, 222 S Main St, 628-0303. $6. Tues at 8.

LATE NIGHT

*JET CITY IMPROV

Improv comedy and music based on audience suggestions. "The show goes down really smoothly. One only wishes for better direction." (Tom Spurgeon) Ethnic Cultural Theater, 3940 Brooklyn Ave NE, 781-3879. $7, $5 with student ID. Fri-Sat at 10:30.

SEXUAL PERVERSITY IN CHICAGO

David Mamet's play about gender strife. "I'm really at a loss as to why anybody would go to the trouble of producing this mean-spirited and misogynist one-act about dating, mating, and moving on." (Tamara Paris) Union Garage, 1418 10th Ave, 720-1942. $10. Fri-Sat at 11. Runs until it loses steam.

*THEATER SPORTS

"The only improvisational show I've ever seen where the women performers were clearly better than the men--a welcome change from the overaggressive scene-stealing of many male-driven troupes." (Tom Spurgeon) Market Theater, 1428 Post Alley, 781-9273. Fri-Sat at 10:30, $9; Sun at 7, $5.

A VERY SPECIAL MONEY & RUN WINTER SEASON HOLIDAY SPECIAL

The latest episode of this transcendent camp trifle. Opens Fri Nov 24. See Stranger Suggests. Theater Schmeater, 1500 Summit Ave, 324-5801. $8 (anyone under 18 free). Fri-Sat at 11, through Dec 2; Thurs-Sat at 8, Sat-Sun at 11, Dec 7-16.

CALLS

Civic Light Opera holding auditions for Where's Charley? on Tues-Wed Nov 28-29. Call 363-4807. Note: No Sondheim allowed.

Northwest Asian-American Theater holding non-Equity audition for male and female Asian American actors of various ages for Welcome to the Wongs on Dec 5-6. Call Joseph Yang at 283-4807 or e-mail joestevenyang@hotmail.com.

Seattle Public Theater seeks ethnic actors (two men, one woman) for The Tragedy of King Christophe. Also seeking lighting designer, propsmaster, and tech crew. Auditions by appointment only; call 328-4848 ext. 1.