A saucy mix of horny and corny, the British sex farce drips with mishaps, missteps and mistaken identity -- think Three's Company with Cockney accents, gov'nor. The genre inspires Noises Off, Michael Frayn's play-within-a-play about the troubles and tensions dogging a touring theater troupe. Plots, props and pants fall . . . sardines, contact lenses and innuendoes fly as the catastrophe-prone cast discovers that the show indeed must go on. "The funniest farce ever written" (says the New York Post), Noises Off opens this Thursday, February 26, at Mesa Community College's Theatre Outback, 1833 West Southern in Mesa. The risqué business continues through Sunday, February 29, with shows at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday. Call 480-461-7170 for tickets -- $10, with discounts available for seniors, students, alumni and staff. -- Jill Koch
Cannibal Run
Take in the sound of murder
2/26-2/29
He made a killing in the flesh trade. Several, in fact. "The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" sets up shop at Symphony Hall, 225 East Adams, as Arizona Opera presents Sweeney Todd, Thursday, February 26, through Sunday, February 29. Call 480-784-4444 or see www.azopera.org for tickets, $25 to $115. -- Jill Koch
What Light Through Yonder Window Break-Dances?
A modern twist on Shakespeare at SCC
2/26-2/27
A love affair trampled by drug use, parental disapproval and gang violence. It's a stretch, but Gravity Jazz Dance Theatre adapts Romeo & Juliet to present day, setting to modern music "a snapshot of teenage love." The Performing Arts Center at Scottsdale Community College, 9000 East Chaparral, doubles as fair Verona, where they lay their scene, at 8 p.m. Thursday, February 26, and Friday, February 27. Call 602-316-0846 for tickets, $16 for adults, $14 for students and seniors. -- Jill Koch
Optic Verve
Brazilian dance troupe performs
Sat 2/28
Quasars blaze brightly in a mostly dark universe, proving an apt namesake for the socially conscious dance troupe from Brazil. At 7 p.m. this Saturday, February 28, Quasar Dance Company shines in Lend Me Your Eyes at ASU's Gammage Auditorium, 10th Street and Mill in Tempe. In the first scenes, dancers throw themselves into the portrayal of urban problems in Brazil, against a backdrop of black-and-white videos depicting troubling urban scenes. In part two, taped interviews of older people provide the tableaux for more societal exploration. Tickets start at $20 and are available through the box office and www.ticketmaster.com. For more information, call 480-965-4050 or visit www.asugammage.com. -- Kim Toms
