THE ESSENTIAL A&E PICKS FOR APR 21 - 27 

• United Talent Agency

George Takei / "Topaz Stories" reception
George Takei has taken full advantage of the celebrity offered by his role as Star Trek's Sulu over the ensuing 50-plus years, including becoming a forceful advocate for LGBTQ rights after coming out as gay in 2005 and sharing the story of his family's experience during the World War II-era internment of Japanese-Americans at California's Tule Lake relocation camp.

This week, Takei provides the keynote address for the University of Utah's annual MUSE (My "U" Signature Experience) Theme Year, which for 2022 is focused on "Rebuilding." The centerpiece of that theme is Takei's New York Times bestseller graphic novel The Called Us Enemy about the internment camp experience. His presentation includes stories from the book, and lessons for moving forward after adversity, with book-signing to follow. Takei's appearance this week coincides with the opening reception event on Friday, April 22, of the "Topaz Stories" exhibition at the Utah State Capitol Rotunda (350 N. State Street) that has been up since January, with several Utah internment camp survivors reading their stories at 4 p.m. and a reception to follow at 5 p.m.

Takei visits Kingsbury Hall (1395 E. Presidents Circle) on Thursday, April 21 (rescheduled from the original January date) at noon, with tickets available to the public via utahpresents.org. Admission is free, but a ticket is required. While tickets were still available at press time, should there be an official sell-out, there will be a wait list line with admission beginning at 11:45 a.m. Visit the website for up-to-date health and safety information, including mask requirements. (Scott Renshaw)

• APB Speakers

Dr. Bernice King
It's appropriate that Women Who Succeed, a program of Success in Education, would present a conversation with Dr. Bernice King. As CEO of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center For Nonviolent Social Change—an organization founded by her mother Coretta Scott King in memory of her father, Martin Luther King Jr.—she continues to advocate for ideals that are often negated amidst the turbulence, turmoil, disparity and despair that grips both this nation and the world overall.

Clearly, Dr. Bernice King's words of wisdom are needed now more than ever. In that regard, she works to educate individuals worldwide about the nonviolent strategies and principles practiced by her parents. To that end, the Center has created initiatives impacting half a million people across the planet, including the Beloved Community Leadership Academy, Students with King, education and certification programs for teachers and trainers and The Beloved Community Talks, the latter being conversations that delve into the difficult issues surrounding racial inequality and social injustice.

Consequently, consider this hour-long discussion an enlightening encounter that comes none too soon. Hope has fallen prey to happenstance, while anger and recrimination have taken the place of reason and reconciliation. Martin Luther King famously had a dream. Thanks to his daughter Bernice, that dream can persevere.

Women Who Succeed welcomes Dr. Bernice King, Thursday, April 21at 5 p.m. at Delta Performance Hall, George S. and Dolores Doré Theater (131 S. Main Street). Tickets cost $15 for adults and $10 for students with ID. Visit arttix.org for tickets and additional information. (Lee Zimmerman)

• Utah Symphony

Utah Symphony: Cirque de la Symphonie
Cirque has taken many forms over the years, ranging from flights of fantasy to pure cinematic spectaculars, all while utilizing special effects, scenic set-ups, animal acts and imaginative intrigue. How to top all that? Indeed, it almost seems like the circus form has practically exhausted its remarkable array of possibilities.

So leave it to the daredevil acrobats of Cirque de la Symphonie to bring us back to the basics—that is, breathtaking aerial displays, all manner of creative contortionists and gravity-defying performances. It leaves audiences gasping with disbelief as they witness performances that seem to defy the limits of human capability. This particular production boasts a Latin theme, flush with international artistry and the Utah Symphony sharing music by Argentine, Mexican, Spanish and Brazilian composers. Conducted by veteran Associate Conductor Conner Gray Covington, the musical program consists of orchestral works by Rimsky-Korsakov, Bizet, Falla and Piazzolla, among many others. Taken in tandem, it promises to provide an evening filled with a veritable potpourri of sights and sounds, one sure to delight both classical music aficionados and all those who find the cirque staple so intriguing and entertaining. That's a cirque-ainty! (Sorry.)

Audiences are encouraged to arrive early and enjoy the Lollipop Aerial Artists of Voodoo Productions. It seems this particular voodoo casts a spell all its own. Cirque de la Symphonie takes place Friday, April 22 & Saturday, April 23 at 7:30 pm at Abravanel Hall, 123 W S Temple. Tickets cost $10.50 - $95. Visit arttix.org for tickets and additional event information. (LZ)

• New World Shakespeare

New World Shakespeare: Twelfth Night
It has become almost a cliché to say that the works of William Shakespeare lend themselves to infinite possibilities when it comes to interpretation. Great art remains vital no matter when it was created, which is why a Shakespeare history can be set in the 20th century, or one of the comedies in contemporary attire. Now, at a time when issues of gender non-conformity have inspired polarizing arguments and discriminatory legislation, it's a perfect opportunity to re-visit plays like Twelfth Night that find Shakespeare exploring gender fluidity and what might lead people to disguise who they really are.

Celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2022, New World Shakespeare continues its tradition of thoughtful, creative versions of Shakespeare plays with this production of Twelfth Night that also serves as a spotlight on the work of Transgender Advocates of Utah. The premise involves plenty of gender-based confusion, particularly a shipwrecked woman named Viola who disguises herself as a boy, goes to work for the nobleman Duke Orsino, then encounters difficulty when the woman she's attempting to woo on Orsino's behalf falls in love with the disguised Viola instead.

New World Shakespeare's production of Twelfth Night runs through April 24 at The Box performing arts space at The Gateway (124 S. 400 West), with performances Thursday-Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are $20 general admission; masks are required for all audience members throughout the performance, and full vaccination is encouraged but not required. Visit newworldshakespeare.com for tickets and additional event information. (SR)