Week Ahead: Dramatic Times in Store for Tosa

Tickets are on sale for two plays that hit the stage this week, at and schools.

First to take to the boards are the students of Longfellow, performing the comedy “The Mouse That Roared” beginning Thursday.

In "Mouse," the government a the tiny European nation, the Duchy of Grand Fenwick, is in trouble. It's only export, a fine wine, is being pirated by a California winery using a similar name and label and selling for less.

The solution Fenwick's sovereign arrives at: Start a war with the United States, lose it, and receive massive foreign aid to rebuild its economy. Hilarity ensues when Fenwick gets more from its army than it bargained for.

Shows are at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday and at 4 p.m. Saturday. Tickets may be purchased the box office Monday through Friday from 3:20 to 4 p.m. or a half hour prior to each show. Admission is $4 for adults; $3 for senior citizens and students grades 6 through 12; $2 for children 5th grade and under.

This should move you

Opening Friday is "Footloose," produced by the Trojan Players of West High. Based on the Oscar-nominated movie of the 1980s, "Footloose" is filled with hit songs and dance numbers.

When a big-city boy named Ren moves to the small farm town of Bomont, he isn't prepared for the local laws that include a ban on dancing – the brainchild of a preacher bent on exercising control over the town’s teenagers.

Who, of course, but the preacher's rebellious daughter falls for the intriguing newcomer – and many of locals are eager to believe the worst about the new kid when her boyfriend tries to sabotage Ren's reputation.

With more than 70 cast and crew members, West theater director Tim Catlett said, "Footloose" will dance its way into the hearts of the audience and send everyone home singing the hits.

"Footloose" starts at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the West High Auditorium and continues its run with a 2 p.m. Sunday matinee and more performances at 7 p.m. Nov. 11 and 12. Tickets are $15 for adults; $10 for students and senior citizens. Order tickets online or call (414) 773-3219.

In conjunction with each performance, the Trojan Players will sponsor a shoe and sock drive for the Milwaukee Rescue Mission – with $1 off the ticket price for donations of gently used shoes or new socks.

The sky's the limit

Also in the offing at West High is ”The Planets,” presented at 7 p.m. Wednesday as part of a public education series each month during the school year at the Gary E. Sampson Planetarium.

“The Planets” will take visitors on an exciting tour of the solar system and extra-solar planets and will also be presented on Nov. 10. Reservations are required; call (414) 773-3390. No admission is charged; donations are accepted.

Official business

The Wauwatosa Common Council meets at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall for the first time – and on the same day – as Wisconsin's new concealed carry law and a weapons ban in city buildings go into effect.

Among items on the council agend are a proposed redistricting ordinance, a resolution approving a new contract agreement with the firefighters' union, and a resolu approving 2012 Community Development Block Grant program funding.