If you're seeking something silly to divert your attention from the heat and humidity, I'll refer you to Cincinnati Shakespeare Company where today they open a production of Alan Ayckbourn's Bedroom Farce. I went to a preview on Wednesday, and it's a daffy piece of comedy — four couples, three bedrooms, one crazy night and the morning after.

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Monday night I attended the fourth of four sold-out evenings of True Theatre, an innovative spoken word program that's been happening at Know Theatre since last October. Organizers Dave Levy and Jeff Groh have found considerable success inviting people (usually five per evening) to speak at these quarter gatherings about some real, personal event — usually on a theme, such as Monday night's "True Independence," inspired by last week's holiday.

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In my CityBeat column this week I shared the news that the Acclaim Awards are gone and that the League of Cincinnati Theatres (LCT) have stepped up to create a new awards program. The first two recognitions of the season have been awarded to Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati’s (ETC) Christmas-in-July celebration, Roger Bean’s Winter Wonderettes. This musical sequel to ETC’s biggest-ever box-office hit, The Marvelous Wonderettes, has earned these awards for its acting ensemble and specialized design.

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Following a six-month search, UC yesterday announced the appointment of Peter Landgren as dean of the College-Conservatory of Music, effective Sept. 1, pending board approval. The search process was noteworthy for actively involving CCM faculty, students and community members.

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Betty Jean, Cindy Lou, Missy and Suzy are back onstage at Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati. Those characters — played by Sara Mackie, Mia Gentile, Brooke Rucidlo and Denise Devlin — kept ETC audiences coming back for more in the spring of 2010 for The Marvelous Wonderettes, the theater's biggest box office hit ever, extended three times to meet the demand for tickets. This summer you can return for the regional premiere of Winter Wonderettes, a Christmas-holiday themed show with Pop holiday tunes from the 1960s, including "Jingle Bell Rock," "Santa Baby" and "It's a Marshmallow World."

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Since the 2011 Cincinnati Fringe Festival kicked off on June 1, a panel of three dedicated theater experts have been evaluating performances for recognition through the Acclaim Awards. These awards are in the process of being renamed, but for the sake of clarity and brevity, I’m going to call them by their soon-to-be-former name. The panelists are veterans of the Acclaims; neither Jackie Demaline of The Cincinnati Enquirer nor I are members of the panel or involved in this process.

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There are more doors than usual this weekend, right in the middle of the eighth annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival. If you're looking for a recommendation or two, I suggest you check out CityBeat's Fringe review website.

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Reviews have been posted on CityBeat's Fringe microsite for eight of the nine shows that debuted yesterday on opening night of the 2011 Cincy Fringe Festival. Two are rated as "Critic's Picks," including Curriculum Vitae by Jimmy Hogg (pictured).

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OK, so it's Memorial Day weekend, and theater-going might not be what you have in mind. How about this? If you're heading downtown for the feeding frenzy at Taste of Cincinnati (and what true Cincinnatian isn't?), you can take a quick side trip to Jackson Street in Over-the-Rhine to pick up some tickets or a pass for the eighth annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival. It's the perfect time to find your way to Know Theatre (1120 Jackson, right next to the Gateway Garage), which is Fringe headquarters.

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Lynn Meyers came to Ensemble Theatre more than 15 years ago for what she was told was an "interim" appointment as the Over-the-Rhine theater's artistic director. She's still at it and today she's known as one of Cincinnati's finest stage directors. If you need evidence, you can see two fine examples this weekend.

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