The Spoon River Anthology

This moody mosaic of rural Illinois circa 1915 is created through 60 secret-sharing monologues, spoken from the afterlife by lovers, drunks, penny pinchers and laborers. Twenty-five actors participate, some veterans, others rookies. The kaleidoscopic effect is heartwarming yet world-weary—life’s brief, its outcome sometimes futile. F, Sa 8pm; Su 2pm. Through 11/29. $13-$15. The Actor’s Theatre at the Wilkerson Theatre in the California Stage Complex, 1725 R St.; (916) 456-7066. J.H.