DRAMATIC GIFTS

The Brooklyn
Academy of Music has just announced its slate of dance, theater,
pop music and opera performances for its "2007 Spring Season,"
and the revelations come just in time to thrill those tough-to-buy-for-folks
on your holiday list.



For its spring lineup, which spans Feb. 7 to May 27, BAM presents
10 events in the Howard Gilman Opera House and the Harvey Theater.
The season starts with The Hamburg Ballet’s first Brooklyn appearance
in over 20 years, the local premiere of its adaptation of Thomas
Mann’s novella "Death in Venice." The production, which
features music of Bach and Wagner, will be staged Feb. 7­10
in the opera house.



Among the other dance programs, it’s choreographer Matthew Bourne’s
"Edward Scissorhands" – yes, it’s based on the bizarrely
sweet Tim Burton film starring Johnny Depp – that’s the most
anticipated. "Edward Scissorhands" will take the opera
house stage March 14­31.



Shakespeare again dominates the spring theatrical offerings.
Edward Hall’s all-male ensemble Propeller returns to Fort Greene
for a three-week residency (March 17-April 1) of the Bard’s comedies
"The Taming of the Shrew" and "Twelfth Night"
in the Harvey Theater.



Also returning is the acclaimed troupe Cheek by Jowl, which last
appeared at BAM in 2004 with "Othello." This time,
they bring one of Shakespeare’s most complex creations, "Cymbeline,"
to the Harvey Theater May 2­12.



Musical events run the gamut from a Belgian production of Mozart’s
"The Magic Flute" (pictured), playing April 9­14
in the opera house, to a performance by Brooklyn Heights resident
Mos Def on Feb. 16 and 17 in the opera house.



A special BAM engagement next September has also been announced:
the Royal Shakespeare Company productions of "King Lear"
(with Ian McKellan) and Chekhov’s "The Seagull."



Subscription tickets to the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s "2007
Spring Season," which spans Feb. 7 to May 27, go on sale
Dec. 4. For more information, call (718) 636-4100 or visit the
Web site www.bam.org.