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Three shows about iconic women takes to the boards of local theaters, culled from the world of entertainment, folklore and World War II intrigue.

‘Let me entertain you’

Packed with powerhouse musical numbers, a story based on reality and a huge dose of show business, “Gypsy” is a gargantuan tale of the ultimate stage mother. It all works together in this “musical fable” set to open Oct. 24 at Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts.

Based on the memories of famous entertainer (stripper) Gypsy Rose Lee, the show revolves around the “center of the universe” character of her mother, Rose, a women who bulldozes her daughters into show business “’cause I was born too soon and started too late.”

With music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, “Gypsy” is heavyweight work. It’s loaded with such show-stoppers as “Everything’s Coming Up Roses,” “Rose’s Turn” and “Some People” to the charming “Small World,” “If Momma Was Married” and “Together, Wherever We Go” to the glorious “You Gotta Get a Gimmick.” 

Gary Rucker, who’s taking the directing role for the show, said the time was right for Rivertown to tackle the behemoth after a not-quite-stellar go with the show in 2013.

“I felt like we never really got a fair crack at the show and it’s kind of been in the back of my mind for a really long time,” he said. “It just seemed like a really good idea and I knew this whole time I wanted another crack at it. I’m glad I did because my cast is just phenomenal so it really worked out, timing-wise.”

Putting the pieces together helped when Meredith Long-Dieth came aboard in the pivotal role of Rose.

“Sometimes you’re just in an orbit with some people, like with some actors, and you’re like, ‘you know what they’d be good in — “Gypsy,”‘ you know,” he said. “I know that we have a big enough theater community that kind of fill out who else I needed.”

The starring role has attracted a pantheon of leading ladies, from Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters, Tyne Daly, Patti LuPone and most recently Audra McDonald, not to mention Bette Midler, Emelda Staunton and Rosalind Russell. But the show also features the two daughters as well.

Rucker tries to craft the show to get the point across, even to the point of crafting a set that reinforces the concept of a world of “backstage” maneuvering the mother handles so well.

“It’s all about Momma Rose, and you know that actress always kind of runs away with it because it’s such a high performance,” he said, “but what bothers me is this is a show about Louise growing up to be Gypsy Rose Lee and I feel like that’s often so overshadowed to the point where Louise is kind of this secondary character nobody cares about. So I’m really trying to remind the audience of whose story this is and kind of like how this kid survived to become this celebrity in the face of this,” he said, referring to Lee’s stints in more than a dozen movies, a mystery writer, a producer and starring in several productions.

“Louise become this grown woman in the face of Rose’s chaos,” Rucker said. 

“It’s been really interesting to watch the story unfold through that.”

Rucker sprinkles Lee’s history throughout the show so audiences will need to pay attention.

But the focus will be on the cast, which will feature Belle Tudor as Louise, doubling as the choreographer. Michael John Smith is the long-suffering Herbie and Lauren Smith is June. The “babies” will be played by Juliette Banquer, Haven Dawson and Anna Grace DePaula. The three “dancers” who give young Gypsy some advice on the burlesque background are Jauné Buisson, Chrissy Bowen and Christina Cross. Taking the role of Tulsa is Jorden Majeau with Michael J. Civitano, Luke Boucvalt, David Browning, Adam Breaux, David L. Haydel Jr., Rebecca Carleton Browning and Reagan Jolie Rozas. Also appearing will be Thomas Haggerty, Sebby Miller, James Peuler, Caleb Francis, Mary Clare Eastland, Brielle Hebert and Joel Rainey.

The show is at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, plus Nov. 7, and at 2 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 9 at 325 Minor St. in Kenner. Tickets start at $43. Visit rivertowntheaters.com.

Understanding an icon

There are many layers to the new production at Dillard University.

“Fever,” written by a Dillard professor, looks at the impact of Marie Laveau on the city during the yellow fever epidemic of 1853 and is funded in part by a grant in honor of another of the university’s late theater professors.

With the deadly epidemic as the backdrop, Carolyn Nur Wistrand’s play brings a more fleshed-out version of Laveau, played by Krystal Jackson, to life as she tends to the sick with herbal remedies in contrast to the treatments of doctors. When her daughter becomes ill, Laveau is faced with a crisis of belief in her own power.

Raymond Vrazel, director and assistant professor of theater, brings the story to life.

“Taking on this new and highly original play presents a director with a unique set of challenges, unlike working with a well-established script,” he said. “We have built this new play’s world from scratch — there’s no proven staging, style or interpretation to fall back on.”

Having the playwright on hand has been a tool Vrazel has used.

“It has been a great pleasure to work with our resident award-winning playwright, Nur Wistrand, so exciting to be able to explore her new script under her guidance and extensive knowledge of Marie Laveau’s life and legend,” Vrazel said. “The play’s unconventional staging and special effects required the production team to adapt and at times simplify elements while holding fast to the playwright’s vision.

“It’s an exhilarating experience to not just direct a production but shape a script in real-time — and in the end help birth a theatrical work that will have a lasting legacy.”

The show is produced in part through a grant that honors Sherri Marina, a former professor who died in 2020.

The show marking the university theater’s 91st season will be on campus at the Cook Theatre, 2601 Gentilly Blvd. It will run 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday plus 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $6. Visit dillard.edu.

From ‘Goddess’ to spy

Take a trip back in time to Paris in the Jazz Age when Anais St. John turns her talents to the story of songstress and spy Josephine Baker at BB’s Stage Door Canteen inside The National WWII Museum.

“Josephine Baker: From Creole Goddess to Siren of the Resistance” features the St. John in a show by Denise Altobello and musical direction from Harry Mayronne.

Baker was the toast of Parisian nightlife entertainment and also worked as a spy for “Lá Resistance” but also continued her entertaining after the war around the globe until her death in 1975.

She also worked tirelessly for civil rights in the United States as well as other countries.

St. John brings the legend to life in a combination of song and spoken word.

The show is at 7 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets start at $47 at the canteen at 945 Magazine St. Visit nationalww2museum.org.

On stage this week, Oct. 16-22

“AS LONG AS THE EARTH LASTS”: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday; JPAS’ Westwego Performing Arts Theatre, 177 Sala Ave. Written by Nicholls State University professor John Doucet, historical narratives and legends passed down by the survivors including his great-great-grandfather, John Frederique Rebstock, of the Great October Storm of 1893 that destroyed Cheniere Caminada. Tickets start at $29. jpas.org.

“FRANKENSTEIN”: 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday; Lafitte Greenway at 436 N. Norman C. Francis Parkway. The NOLA Project’s “crazed genius” of the pen, Pete McElligott, breathes new life into the story by Mary Shelley, who probably did not imagine Dr. Frankenstein and his monster would generate too many laughs, but she never met Pete. The show is outdoors and bringing chairs or blankets is recommended. Tickets start at $20, with premier seating included at $55. nolaproject.com.

“THE LEHMAN TRILOGY”: 7 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, 1 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday; Le Petit Théâtre du Vieux Carré, 616 St. Peter St. Three actors play the roles that span generations and recounts the history of a family of Southern dry goods merchants who become one of the greatest success and failure stories of recent financial times with cataclysmic losses in the financial sectors. Tickets start at $35. lepetittheatre.com.

“THE MISS FIRECRACKER CONTEST”: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 26; 30 By Ninety Theatre, 880 Lafayette St., Mandeville. The story focuses on Carnelle, her reputation in shreds, as she attempts the ultimate fixer for all-things-woe in the South — win a pageant. With her family having issues of their own and nothing turning out as it should, their futures come into focus and things don’t seem quite so bad. Tickets start at $20. 30byninety.com. 

“STEEL MAGNOLIAS”: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday; Slidell Little Theater, 2024 Nellie Drive, Slidell. A cadre of Louisiana women, together as a “hair” force, face life’s major moments, from weddings and childbirth to death and grief. There’s “laughter through tears” as the show runs the gamut of emotions. Tickets start at $20. slidelllittletheatre.org.

“VARLA JEAN IS THE DROWSY CHAPPELL ROAN”: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; Café Istanbul, 2372 St. Claude Ave. Drag chanteuse Varla Jean Merman returns to the Crescent City with a new show that features the rouge-tressed “feminomenon” who feels the “Pink Pony Club” performer has “been ripping her off,” taking aim at Roan, Dua Lipa, Sabina Carpenter, Billie Eilish and Miley Cyrus in an attempt to make her own mark on the charts. Tickets start at $30. brownpapertickets.com.