To walk into The New Vic Theatre is to happen upon four dudes dressed as cowhands, sittin’ on bales of hay around an ersatz campfire making beautiful music. Somehow it feels as natural as can be, especially as welcoming as they are to the folks meandering to their seats.

When Beauty and the Beast hit Broadway in 1994 it was a spectacle the likes of which hadn’t ever before been seen onstage. The first of the Disney animated films sprung to life as a Broadway musical, it transformed the magic Disney formula of classic fairytale that tugs at the heartstrings and teaches a larger lesson with dynamic characters, beautiful songs, and just the right amount of humor — and amplifies it for the stage.

Typically in theater, when something goes wrong, it’s not the end of the world. Disaster! is one huge exception.

A classic love story driven by the power of music is sure to win the hearts of many in Saugatuck. Presented by Mason Street Warehouse, Once follows a Dublin street musician down on his luck who becomes inspired to keep going when a young woman is enchanted by his “haunting love songs.”

Heritage Theatre is taking a dark turn with Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins, diving into the minds of famous assassins across history.

Popeye, boxing gloves, skulls, speaker cones, even UFOs — references to events and symbols from 20th century popular culture permeate the work of the late Billy Mayer, a well-known and well-liked Hope College art professor.

“We are addicted to our devices, we are glued to screens for work, for entertainment and for our social lives — at some point we need to find something that can provide a break. And for many, this is music,” said Julian Kuerti, the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra’s new musical director.

A hub for social enterprise, creative pursuits and arts and job training, West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology helps teens explore creative careers and adults build sustainable futures.

Dixie Longate is the brainchild of Kris Andersson, who both created and plays the fabulously sassy, bawdy, twangy fast-talking, gum-smacking, hard-drinking, glamorous, shameless truth-telling, Tupperware-slinging, nymphomaniacal motivational speaker whose high-energy shows are like exceptionally-timed stand up.

There are some shows for some audiences that never grow old. No matter how dated the music or how lacking in narrative beyond that which the audience brings to it, “Godspell” is one of those shows, and perhaps for nowhere more than conservative Christian stronghold Holland, Michigan.