Any kid who has had a bad day should be able to relate to the hapless Alexander in Magical Theatre Company's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.

Last Saturday, a sold-out audience enjoyed seeing how Alexander worked through his difficulties with his brothers, friends at school, the dentist and more.

Viorst, who wrote the 1972 book, helped develop the script. Lima beans for dinner, yucky kisses on TV, gum in his hair -- director Dennis O'Connell said children will be happy to empathize with Alexander at a bit of a distance.

He said not all children's books are as well-suited to a musical adaptation as this one is. Alexander not only fits Magical Theater Company's space (it has no wings or fly space), it also fits into its educational mission.

O'Connell and set designer Robert Katkowsky make ingenious use of props in this show, with a slew of brightly colored shoes and shoe boxes being the most fun. And how the heck does that trunk light up inside and spit out copies like a photocopying machine?

The stage is dominated by two big jungle gym sets, which are mixed and matched in a number of clever combinations to represent Alexander's house, the playground and more.

For educators, Magical Theatre Company also offers a study guide for grades 1-3 that ties the play in to lessons in language arts, social studies, science, math, music, art, drama, and life skills such as dealing with your emotions.

Alexander's cast is led by Adam Hoffman as the scowling young title character, an intensely focused, imaginative, rambunctious boy who's just a little grumpy in this story. Co-stars are Oliver Corrigan, Deb Lemire, Michael O'Brien, Trishah Scalera and Meriel Sikora.

The cast does a great job with a doo-wop song at a shoe store, which is loads of fun. And Lemire's final lullaby to Alexander as his mother is lovely.

In other Magical Theatre Company news, K.I.D. Camp will run July 10-21 for children ages 7-17. The location will be at Johnson Elementary, 1340 Auburn Ave., Barberton, July 10-18, and will move to the theater at 565 W. Tuscarawas Ave., Barberton, July 19-21. Time is 9 a.m. to 4:05 p.m., with $350 registration due May 26. The day camp is broken down into three age groups: 7-9, 10-12 and 13-17. The final performance will be A Magical Fantasy 7:30 p.m. July 21.

Advanced Acting for Teens also will be offered July 31-Aug. 11 for ages 14-19, by audition and interview only. Time is 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Cost is $350. Call 330-848-3708.

Most of the cast and artistic team for Angels in America have been living with Tony Kushner's Pulitzer Prize-winning play for close to two years now at Weathervane Community Playhouse.

The theater will mount the second half of Kushner's epic, Perestroika, beginning Friday in the intimate, 48-seat John L. Dietz Theatre. Weathervane first produced Part One: Millennium Approaches in January 2005, reprising the show with six of its eight original actors in November.

Now, five of the original actors will complete Kushner's story with Part Two: Perestroika. Director Sean McConaha said it's very rare for actors anywhere to stick with a show for two years. Returning are Sean Derry as Prior, Jim Viront as Roy Cohn, Scott Crim as Louis Ironson, Dede Klein as Hannah Pitt and Dana North as the angel.

The two-part, seven-hour Angels in America premiered in 1992 in Los Angeles. Part One: Millennium ran on Broadway in 1993-1994, joined at the end of its run in repertory with Part Two: Perestroika.

Anyone who saw either of Weathervane's performances of Part One -- which ends with a major cliffhanger -- should be dying to find out what happens to the characters in Part Two.

The vast-reaching play focuses on politics, sex and religion, seen through the microcosm of the gay community against the backdrop of the AIDS epidemic. In Perestroika, God has abandoned his creation, and the unwilling prophet Prior has been chosen to restore good to the world.

``It's very, very different in tone than the first one,'' said McConaha, full of prophesizing as main character Prior tries to come to terms with his role.

In Angels, Kushner -- who writes about moral responsibility during politically repressive times -- indicts the Reagan administration for turning a blind eye to the AIDS epidemic. The play is set in 1985.

In 1998, London's National Theatre named Angels in America one of the 10 best plays of the 20th century. McConaha ranks it in the top three, along with the iconic Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller and Fences by August Wilson.

University of Akron theater professor James Slowiak received an Outstanding Teacher Award at the recent May Founders Day luncheon. Slowiak, who joined the university in 1989, teaches acting, directing, voice, movement and contemporary theater styles. He also co-directs the New World Performance Laboratory.

Slowiak has a master's degree in directing from the University of California at Irvine and a bachelor's degree in anthropology, French and dramatic arts from Macalester College. He has directed more than 50 theater events and conducted numerous workshops in performance ecology and creative training techniques around the world.

The Akron Woman's City Club Coach House Theater Board has canceled its tribute to the late Jack Bennett, originally scheduled for Saturday, due to only single-digit reservations. A dinner and staged reading of Bennett's Living In Style, honoring the late Coach House box office manager, may be rescheduled at a later date. Call the theater at 330-762-6261 for more information.

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