By Dave Kempa

I’m not sure which one of you wished that we all lived in more interesting times, but the hex seems to have worked.

Thank goodness we have opportunities for reprieve, where we can walk into a cool theater, shut off our phones, and tune into a live-action performance from the best players that Sacramento has to offer.

This August truly runs the gamut in stage productions, from community theater renderings of classics like “The Three Musketeers” and “Twelfth Night,” to a raucous comedy written by famed actor Jeff Daniels (you might remember him from the hit 1994 film “Dumb and Dumber”, to a hallmark Broadway jukebox musical rolling through town. Sacramentans have ample opportunity to enjoy the arts with loved ones as summer fades to fall.

“The Three Musketeers”

While they may not have a home base at the moment, the roving Green Valley Theatre crew has never failed to entertain over the years — be it their absinthe-addled “VerteFeé Cabaret” or the annual “Rocky Horror Picture Show” production during Halloween. This summer they’re setting up shop at The Gathering Place next to Midtown’s St. John’s Lutheran Church for an action-packed presentation of Alexandre Dumas’ classic, “The Three Musketeers.”

Young D’Artagnan rolls into Paris with dreams of prominence, fortune and — with any luck — a chance to join the king’s famed Musketeers. It is here he finds Athos, Porthos and Aramis and the drama follows suit. D’Artagnan suddenly must help the queen hide her affair with a British duke while navigating the perils of Cardinal Richelieu. Things come undone when the object of his affection, Constance, is kidnapped and D’Artagnan must find a way to save his love.

Venue: The Gathering Place, 1721 L St., Sacramento

Dates: Aug. 9 – Sept. 1

Cost: $25

Tickets: greenvalleytheatre.com

“Mud, River, Stone”

Sacramento’s premier Black theater, Celebration Arts, returns with its fourth offering of 2024’s phenomenal season of “Black Girl Magic.” Written by two-time Pulitzer winner Lynn Nottage, “Mud, River, Stone” follows a well-to-do African-American couple as they travel to Africa  to connect with their roots, but soon find that they’re mired in the remnants of an abandoned grand hotel deep in the throes of the rainy season. It is here that they meet a quirky businessman, an eccentric Belgian roving the earth in search of meaning, and a soldier-turned-bellhop who eventually takes the guests hostage in a bid to feed the revolution’s starving survivors. 

Directed by Nashell Lynem, this production spans the minefields — both literal and metaphorical — of the modern era, while also holding true to our sense of romance and comedy. 

Venue: Celebration Arts, 2727 B St., Sacramento

Dates: Aug. 9 – Sept. 1

Cost: $10 – $25

Tickets: celebrationarts.net/box-office

“Pickleball”

Sporting events have long held a revered place on the stage. “Damn Yankees,” a comedic musical centered around baseball, wowed audiences on Broadway for over 1,000 performances. “Lombardi” nearly won a Tony in telling the story of my hometown hero and former Green Bay Packer coach and legend Vince Lombardi.

Today, famed comedic actor Jeff Daniels brings us an examination of over-the-hill athletics and the human spirit with “Pickleball.”

Daniels hates the game. His wife won’t stop talking about it. Keep that in mind as you enter the theater for this tongue-in-cheek tale of four not-great athletes as they prepare for a local pickleball tournament, and all that they must do to overcome their own setbacks and limitations. Not sure what a “dink” is? Never seen a pickleball paddle? Don’t worry. This one’s sure to be a good time, no matter your skill level.

Venue: The Sofia, Home of B Street Theatre, 2700 Capitol Ave., Sacramento

Dates: Aug. 14 – Sept. 22

Cost: $24 – $40

Tickets: bstreettheatre.org

“Jersey Boys”

Speaking of Broadway staples, “Jersey Boys,” the musical tale of the rise and fall of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers The Four Seasons, ran for a whopping 12 years on the big stage after its 2005 debut.

The shows that breeze through Broadway at Music Circus while on tour are naturally going to be a bit pricier than the more homegrown shows. But sometimes it is absolutely worth the price of admission. For the music-minded patron of the arts with a love for harmony this one’s a no-brainer.

Songs like “Walk Like a Man,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry” and “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)” are so deeply enmeshed in the Americana zeitgeist that many young folks couldn’t tell you the original artists. This tale reminds us that it was four blue-collar kids who changed the world with their own sound, selling 175 million records worldwide before they turned 30.

Venue: Broadway at Music Circus, 1419 H St., Sacramento

Dates: Aug. 20 – Sept. 1

Cost: $80 – $124

Tickets: broadwaysacramento.com

“Twelfth Night”

If you haven’t heard about Happy Hour Theatre’s Well-Versed workshop, you’ll absolutely want to check out this community production of “Twelfth Night.” Led by local artist, director and legend Janis Stevens, workshop participants are put to the test in a two-month pressure cooker of learning the ins and outs of how to put on a quality Shakespeare production, before showcasing their work for the greater Sacramento community.

It’s an incredibly cool concept presented to you by the same company that came up with The Playwright’s Village, a program dedicated to helping local writers develop their work and bring it to life onstage.

Join this summer’s crew as they bring you a “whimsical staging” of “Twelfth Night,” the Bard’s joyful, gender-bending tale of unrequited love and mistaken identity that follows twins Viola and Sebastian after they’re separated in a shipwreck. 

Venue: California Stage, 1725 25th St., Sacramento

Dates: Aug. 23 – Sept. 1

Cost: $20

Tickets: happyhourtheatre.org

This story was funded by the City of Sacramento’s Arts and Creative Economy Journalism Grant to Solving Sacramento. Following our journalism code of ethics and protocols, the city had no editorial influence over this story and no city official reviewed this story before it was published. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, Capital Public Radio, Outword, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review, Sacramento Observer and Univision 19.