Sta

JULIE YOLLES

ENTERTAINMENT WRITER

•

gA_NeW
Great
'year's

ve

BIRMINGHAM FIRST
NIGHT '97 5 p.m.-midnight,

$7 1 ages 6+, $1 /5 and under
— The seventh annual alco-
hol-free family event features
outdoor and indoor continu-
ous live music — R&B, clas-
sical music, show tunes, light
opera, funk, rock 'n' roll and
jazz; clowns, face painting,
the Spoon Man and perfor-
mances of Rumpelstiltskin
for the kids.
Activities and music will
be held at the Village Play-
ers (Rumpelstiltskin); the
Community House (David
Syme and others); St. James
Episcopal Church (tap

At 7 and 10 p.m.,
former Detroiter
Susan Merson
will play
rebellious
daughter Sandra
and four other
members of the
nice, Jewish
Fisher family in
JET's Family

show at the theater from 5-midnight when
you present your "First Night '97" badge.
First Night '97 badges are required for ad-
mission to all performances and may be pur-
chased in advance at the Birmingham
AAA branch, Birmingham/Bloomfield Cham-
ber of Commerce, the Community House,
Crowley's (Southfield and Birmingham), Ja-
cobson's (Birmingham and Livonia), Birm-
ingham YMCA, any NBD Bank or Kroger.
On the night of, beginning at 5 p.m., badges
may be purchased at the Birmingham City
Hall (151 Martin, near Maple, Henrietta and
Pierce).
For more information, call (810) 646-9734

DETROIT OPERA HOUSE — WNIC
100.3-FM & INTERMEZZO

8 p.m , $45 'person — Buffet
dinner, midnight champagne
toast, dancing on the Grand
Stage of the Detroit Opera
House and continental break-
fast.
For tickets, call Ticket-
master at (810) 645-6666. For
more information, call the
DOH at (313) 961-3500.

Secrets.

1111 here's no business like show busi-
ness.
Everything about it is appeal-
ing. Everything the theaters will
allow. Nowhere will you get that
happy feeling, when you are
drinking to New Year's bows.
Here's some of the special
events planned locally for stage
and screen for a truly theatrical
New Year's Eve. At press time, tickets were
available for all of these events:

ANN ARBOR CIVIC THEATRE — '50s
Sockhop 8 p.m.-1 a.m., $101 adult, $5 1 stu-

dent with I.D., admission includes a dona-
tion to AACT — Presented by the cast and
crew ofBye, Bye Birdie, the alcohol, drug and
smoke-free evening includes refreshments,
D.J.-spun music and dancing at the AACT
Playhouse, 2275 Platt Road, Ann Arbor.
Call (313) 971-AACT.

Right: St.
Dunstan's Guild of
Cranbrook will
present three
performances of

Rumpelstiltskin,

beginning at 5:15
p.m. at the Village
Players Theatre
(southeast corner of Chestnut and
Hunter, 2 blks. S. of Maple) during
Birmingham First Night '97.

dancer Alfred Bruce Bradley and
others); Baldwin Public Library
(The Spoon Man and magician
J.R. McAtee); Community House
parking lot/Big Top Entertain-
ment (The Contours and others);
Midnight countdown at Shain
Park.
The Birmingham Theatre will
offer $4.25 movie tickets to any

Below: Take a bow, fox trot or
shake, rattle and roll in the New
Year on the Grand Stage of the
newly restored Detroit Opera
House.