Scary Tale

Poor Anne. The former beauty has awakened this morning to discover a sheep’s head in place of her own. Hey, it could happen to you, but only if you were the princess heroine of Kate Crackernuts, Stray Cat Theatre’s amped-up theatrical translation of an old Scottish fairy tale.

The story, both in its original ancient form and this raver-friendly adaptation, concerns a pair of half-sisters, one of them breathtaking, the other plain. The pretty one has a curse placed on her by the mother of the less-attractive one, and the two gals run off together in search of Anne’s real head. Along the way, one of them becomes obsessed with a skinny addict, which almost certainly will lead to at least one sickening moral before the curtain comes down.

Stray Cat’s version of Sheila Callaghan's adaptation includes, according to its promotional materials, “mystical dead crows, witches on toilets, and headless sheep.” The production, which opens with a performance at 8 p.m. Friday, February 1, was directed by Gary Minyard, who’s generally in charge of more benign fairy tales as artistic director for Greasepaint Scottsdale Youtheatre.

Fri., Feb. 1, 8 p.m.; Sat., Feb. 2, 8 p.m.; Sun., Feb. 3, 2 p.m.; Thu., Feb. 7, 8 p.m.; Fri., Feb. 8, 8 p.m.; Sat., Feb. 9, 8 p.m.; Sun., Feb. 10, 2 p.m.; Thu., Feb. 14, 8 p.m.; Fri., Feb. 15, 8 p.m.; Sat., Feb. 16, 8 p.m., 2008