As the summer comes to a close, so do most of Washtenaw’s theater seasons. Along with the season wrap up comes a slew of awards for excellence from Michigan theater critics. This coming Monday, Michigan’s professional theater community will celebrate another year of excellence with the 12th annual Wilde Awards, hosted by the Michigan Equity Theatre Alliance. As always, Washtenaw County is well represented.

Did you know that the Wilde Awards are open to the public? This year’s awards will feature performances by Naz Edwards, John Seibert, Thalia Schramm, Brian Thibault, Madison Deadman, and more. To celebrate with Michigan’s favorite actors, designers, and directors, visit The Berman Center's online box office.

Show: “Translations” by Brian Friel, through August 31 Company: Carriage House Theatre Type of Company: Pre-professional Venue/location: Carriage House Theatre, 541 Third St, Ann Arbor
Recommended ages: 12+
Description: Translations, by acclaimed Irish playwright Brian Friel, is set in a rural school in the town of Baile Beag in 1833, when Ireland is under direct British rule. The schoolmaster’s son Owen has returned from Dublin, accompanied by two English officers with orders to survey the area and standardize place names - which means translating them into the King’s English. As the residents of Baile Beag struggle to find their place in this anglicizing world, young lieutenant Yolland begins to fall in love with Baile Beag as it is, its language, and a young woman who attends the school. Language itself, with its ability to both unite and divide, stands at the crossroads between imperial powers and cultural heritage, between tradition and progress in this complex play about identity in a changing world.
Fun fact: Baile Beag ("Small Town") is a fictional village, created by Friel as a setting for several of his plays, although there are many real places called Ballybeg throughout Ireland.
For tickets and information: carriagehousetheatre.org

Show: “Les Miserables,” based on the novel by Victor Hugo, music by Claude-Michel Schonberg, and English libretto by Herbert Kretzmer, through August 18
Company: The Encore Musical Theatre Company
Type of Company: Professional Equity Special Appearance Contract
Venue/location: The Encore Musical Theatre Company, 3126 Broad Street, Dexter
Recommended ages: 12+
Description: Set in early 19th-century France, it is the story of Jean Valjean and his quest for redemption after serving nineteen years in jail for having stolen a loaf of bread for his starving sister's child. Valjean decides to break his parole and start his life anew after a kindly bishop inspires him to, but is relentlessly tracked down by a police inspector named Javert. Along the way, Valjean and a slew of characters are swept into a revolutionary period in France, where a group of young idealists make their last stand at a street barricade. Songs include "I Dreamed a Dream", "On My Own", "Bring Him Home", "Master of the House", "Castle on a Cloud", and many more!
http://www.annarbor.com/entertainment/encore-scores-big-with-its-small-version-of-les-miserables/
Fun fact: Victor Marie Hugo (26 February 1802 - 22 May 1885) was considered one of the greatest and best known French writers. In France, Hugo's literary fame comes first from his poetry but also rests upon his novels and his dramatic achievements. Among many volumes of poetry, Les Contemplations and La Légende des siècles stand particularly high in critical esteem.
For tickets and information: 734-268-6200, www.theencoretheatre.org.

Show: “Miles & Ellie” by Don Zolidis, through August 31
Company: The Purple Rose Theatre Company
Type of Company: Professional Equity SPT
Venue/location: The Purple Rose Theatre Company, 137 Park Street, Chelsea
Recommended ages: 17+ (contains adult language and content)
Description: Miles and Ellie are two teenagers in love when a youthful misunderstanding breaks them apart. Flash forward 20 years and a disenchanted Ellie has come home for what she expects to be a typical dysfunctional family Thanksgiving. Not long into the family shenanigans, however, Ellie learns that Miles is still in town and carrying a torch for her. Is it possible to get a second chance at your first love? This charming romantic comedy will make you wonder “what if?”
Fun fact: Grunge music becomes popular in 1991, the year the play is set, because of the success of Nirvana's Nevermind, Pearl Jam's "Ten" and Soundgarden's "Badmotorfinger."
For tickets and information: purplerosetheatre.org, 734-433-7673

Show: “My Other Voice” by Alex Kipp, through September 1
Company: Alex Kipp Productions
Type of Company: Professional Equity, Special Appearance Contract
Venue/location: Walgreen Drama Center, 1226 Murfin, Ann Arbor
Recommended ages: 16+
Description: “My Other Voice” is Alex Kipp’s autobiographical play about his battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma while a senior at the School of Music, Theatre & Dance at the University of Michigan. Kip, 25, a native of Columbus, Ohio, was given a 15-30 percent chance of survival after being diagnosed, and lost his voice during subsequent treatment at the U-M Medical Center. “No longer able to speak or sing,” he said, “I had to find a new identity.” Now in complete remission, Kip wrote "My Other Voice" with the goal of providing inspiration and hope to other cancer patients.
Fun fact: Prior to the play’s upcoming premiere, it received several readings with industry professionals in New York City and had a staged reading in Columbus, Ohio. The Ann Arbor production will feature U-M faculty, students, and other industry professionals both on stage and behind the scenes.
For tickets and information: http://akipprod.com/tickets.html

Show: “My Name is Asher Lev” by Aaron Posner, adapted from the novel by Chaim Potok, through September 8
Company: Performance Network Theatre
Type of Company: Professional Equity (SPT)
Venue/location: Performance Network Theatre, 120 East Huron, Ann Arbor
Recommended ages: 16+
Description: Based on the famous 1972 novel by Chaim Potok, this provocative play tells the story of a boy growing up in a sheltered Hasidic community in 1950s Brooklyn, who discovers he has a prodigious talent as an artist. Struggling to reconcile his gift with the community’s Orthodox values, he immerses himself in an art form steeped in Christian imagery. When he brings forth a masterwork entitled “The Brooklyn Crucifixions,” he must decide whether or not to honor his self-expression and exhibit, potentially bringing shame on his family, his community, and even his faith. http://www.annarbor.com/entertainment/performance-network-explores-art-and-family-in-my-name-is-asher-lev/
Fun fact: The first "Brooklyn Crucifixion", a work by Asher which plays a central role in the novel's conclusion, is an actual painting by Potok, who was an accomplished artist as well as a novelist and rabbi; the second Crucifixion, which is described in the book as being superior to the first, does not have a real-life counterpart.
For tickets and information: 734-663-0696, www.performancenetwork.org/