There are four stellar shows on stage in Northeast Ohio this weekend! On the east side, Once Upon A Mattress at Notre Dame College. Downtown, MAMMA MIA! at PlayhouseSquare. On the west side, Legally Blonde The Musical and Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson at Lakewood’s Beck Center. I have photos, reviews, videos and an exclusive interview in This Weekend In Theatre!

ONCE UPON A MATTRESS @ MERCURY SUMMER STOCK

Kelvette Beacham and Pierre Jacques-Brault in Once Upon A Mattress. (Image: Finearts Photography for Mercury Summer Stock)

From Kory’s Review: “Once Upon A Mattress is a musical comedy, basically a spoof on fairy tales (and Disney movies). It is loosely based on “The Princess & The Pea.” Centered around an evil queen who wont allow any of the other princes and princesses to marry until her awkward son does. Every princess that comes to the castle to court the prince is categorically pushed away by the conniving queen and her sidekick the Wizard.”

I had the opportunity to sit down with Mercury Summer Stock Artistic Director Pierre Jacques-Brault and the star of Once Upon A Mattress Kelvette Beacham this week for a candid interview. We discussed the show and Mercury Summer Stock’s roots and mission.

Grab tickets and information on Once Upon A Mattress and Mercury Summer Stock at MercurySummerStock.com

LEGALLY BLONDE @ BECK CENTER

From left to right, Elle Woods (Caitlin Elizabeth Reilly*) introduces her dog, Bruiser to Emmett Forrest (Jamie Koeth*), a teaching assistant at Harvard Law School. Photo: Kathy Sandham

From Kory’s Review: “Legally Blonde The Musical opens on the Delta Nu fraternity house at UCLA, as the sisters celebrate one of their own getting engaged. The only problem is, he hasn’t popped the question yet. Elle Woods (Caitlin Elizabeth Reilly) is however, totally confident that her boyfriend Warner Huntington III (Jason Leupold) will propose at dinner tonight! When dinner doesn’t go as planned, the stage is set for a musical comedy that finds a blonde fashion major who’s “signature color” is bright pink, taking her LSAT and transferring to Harvard Law!”

Grab tickets and information at BeckCenter.org

MAMMA MIA @ PLAYHOUSESQUARE

MAMMA MIA! North American Tour 2010 by Joan Marcus

From PlayhouseSquare.org: “MAMMA MIA! is the ultimate feel-good show that has audiences coming back again and again to relive the thrill. Now it’s your turn to have the time of your life at this smash hit musical that combines ABBA’s greatest hits, including “Dancing Queen,” “S.O.S.,” “Super Trouper,” “Take a Chance on Me,” and “The Winner Takes It All,” with an enchanting tale of love, laughter, and friendship. Whether it’s your first visit or your fourteenth, see the show that has the whole world coming back for more, because every time feels like the first time at MAMMA MIA!“

I’ll see MAMMA MIA! on Tuesday, July 17th and will have a review posted on the 18th. In the mean time, grab tickets and information for MAMMA MIA! at PlayhouseSquare.org!

BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON @ BECK CENTER

Dan Folino* as Andrew Jackson in Beck Center’s production of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, May 25 through July 1, 2012 in the Studio Theater. (Photo: Kathy Sandham/Beck Center)

From Kory’s Review: “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson is a schizophrenic, rock and roll look at the life of our seventh president, Andrew Jackson. The atmosphere is fun and upbeat, the writing hilarious (if not a little too profane) and the staging eye-popping. Andrew Jackson is portrayed (by Dan Folino) as a rock-star, fame hungry, Spanish/Indian hating politician with an odd blood fetish, no, seriously.”

Grab tickets and information on Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson at BeckCenter.org