Ebony Pullum brings legendary jazz songstress Billie Holiday to vibrant life in Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festivals heartbreaking "Lady Day at Emersons Bar & Grill" through Aug. 6 in the Schubert Theater, Labuda Center for the Performing Arts, Desales University, Center Valley.The show brilliantly recreates one of Holidays final performances before she died in 1959 at a Philadelphia bar in a tour-de-force turn by Pullum.

Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival presents a humorous and joyfully magical interpretation of William Shakespeares "The Tempest" which runs through Aug. 6, on the Main Stage of Labuda Center for the Performing Arts, DeSales Univeristy, Center Valley.

The story of magician Prospero, usurped as Duke of Milan by his brother and cast adrift with his infant daughter Miranda, is satisfying and effective even as Prospero decides to exchange vengeance for forgiveness late in the game.

Travel back to the 1980s with Pines Dinner Theatres playfully hilarious production of the musical "The Wedding Singer."The show based on the 1998 film "The Wedding Singer" is a crazy nostalgic ride and is at the Allentown theater through Aug. 20.

The 80s vibe is everywhere, and it even extends to the wait staff some of who wear head bands and MTV t-shirts.

The show is chock-full of campy pop culture references from the unapologetically "Thriller" style dance moves to an all-out "Flashdance"-esque final for a song. Its all a lot of fun.

"Allies," a new play by Alexander Kventon, has appeared just as our society questions cultural identity.

It revolves around a group of six white men in a diversity meeting. The meeting takes up the whole ninety-minute play, although there is plenty of drama and a shocking ending, which I wont reveal here.

On July 7 and 8, Allentowns Between the Lines Theatre performed this drama in what it called an elevated reading, where the actors read their lines from the script but move about instead of just remaining in place. The format worked here, since the plot has the actors seated most of the time, and there was only one point where there was a pause to describe the action.