Cat Power

The last time Cat Power were scheduled to play in the general vicinity of the Capital Region (in Tivoli), the show was postponed, and the ticket-holding community was thrown into a tizzy. Singer-songwriter Chan Marshall’s reputation as an unpredictable performer led to a mild panic that the show just wasn’t going to happen at all, and fans were beside themselves. As it turned out, it was that very enthusiasm and attachment to Marshall’s work—a blend of grim folksiness, delicate melodic ache and spirit-rich blues-beholden indie rock—that led to the rescheduling: The original venue just couldn’t accommodate the anticipated crowd.

On her current swing through the area—she’s touring in support of her starkly gorgeous and arresting album You Are Free—Marshall will spare fans similar fear. They’ve got not one but two opportunities to catch her this weekend, and both locations should be able to handle the turnout.

Tomorrow (Friday, Dec. 3), Cat Power will play Time & Space Limited (434 Columbia St., Hudson). Tickets for the 9 PM show are $15. For more information, call 822-8448. On Saturday (Dec. 4), she’ll hit MASS MoCA (1040 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, Mass.). Tickets for the 8 PM performance are $17. For more information, call (413) 662-2111.

Gypsy

If you don’t know by now, let us inform you: Gypsy is the classic Broadway hit based on the best-selling memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, who rose to fame with her unique combination of a “lady-like strip-tease technique with an intellectual viewpoint.” The play tells the story of Gypsy and her sister, June, as they are pushed by their mother to become stars in the vaudeville show-business world of the 1920s. (Pictured are Jessica DiSiprio as June and Mary Beth Whitehead as Gypsy.) As the true story goes, the girls did become famous under the obsessive direction of their smothering stage mother. (“Mama” is one of the juiciest female roles in the Broadway repertoire.) This production is under the direction of Orlando Pigliavento, with choreography by Deb Pigliavento and musical direction by Vince Bonafede.

Gypsy opens tomorrow (Friday) at the Schenectady Light Opera House (826 State St., Schenectady), with performances Dec. 3-5 and 9-12. Shows are at 8 PM on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and 2 PM on Sundays. Tickets are $18 adults, $9 children under 12. Student rush tickets are also available for $10 (cash only) for students with photo IDs, and will be sold 15 minutes before curtain time. For more information and to order tickets, call 399-9359 or visit www.sloctheater.com.

La Bohème

Back in 2002, the Hudson River Theater hosted performers from Italy’s Accademia del Teatro, a school dedicated to training singers in the bel canto style. Well, after receiving a “flood” of requests, the theater is bringing them back again. On Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, the Accademia del Teatro will perform a condensed version of Puccini’s La Bohème.

You remember La Bohème: Mimi, Rodolfo, poverty, love and consumption. Oh, and a lot of beautiful singing. We have been promised a revelatory musical experience, in the sense that the bel canto style is more appropriate to the material than the “Germanic” style most contemporary opera singers are trained in.

The Accademia del Teatro will perform La Bohemè on Saturday (Dec. 4) at 8 PM and Sunday (Dec. 5) at 4 PM at the Hudson River Theater (521 Warren St., Hudson). Tickets are $25. For more information, call 822-8189.