From action and adventure to romance and comedy, there is something for everyone in the 2012 summer season of shows at The Muny in Forest Park. Mike Isaacson, The Muny’s executive producer, said the cast and crew relish The Muny experience. “We’re very fortunate,” said Isaacson, who took over at the end of last season for longtime Muny executive producer Paul Blake. “It’s fun for a couple of reasons. Everybody here loves what they do, and loves being able to support these people. That generosity of spirit just sort of flows through everything we do, which is really great. The real key of that…

When it comes to hot exhibits sure to get visitors fired up, the First Due Fire Museum at the St. Louis Mills in Hazelwood is sizzling. The museum was founded on May 10, 2004, by firefighters Eric Kiehl, Chester Jones and Steve Arnold as a way to promote fire safety education. “The goal for the museum was education,” Kiehl said. “Letting the public know what firefighters are all about—the type of work that we do, the type of equipment that we use, the gear that we wear—mainly it was an educational thing.” But there was another reason the three decided to open a museum packed with a …

Scottish-American culture and character will be on display through lively music and dance, unique athletic contests, fascinating storytelling and more during the 12th annual Missouri Tartan Day Festivities today through Sunday at Frontier Park in St. Charles. “It’s just a fantastic weekend,” said Tartan Day Chairman Vickie Struckmann. “Just come down and wander.” Tartan Day started as an observance of the April 6, 1320, Declaration of Arbroath, when Scots gained independence from English rule. “I look forward to this every year because it’s a wonderful thing to celebrate freedom and liberty …

Cavalia, the equine and equestrian extravaganza being performed in St. Louis through April 8, combines all the flash and spectacle of a circus with the serenity and beauty of a walk in the woods. The show, called “A Magical Encounter Between Human and Horse,” explores humankind’s longstanding relationship with horses. Cavalia features 37 highly skilled riders, acrobats, aerialists, dancers and musicians and 49 magnificent horses. Over the course of two hours, the horses gambol, trot and gallop across the expansive 160-foot-wide stage, sometimes free to wander, occasionally guided by a trainer…

In an award-winning career that has spanned 40 years and over 25 recordings, singer-actress Maureen McGovern keeps coming back to her true passion—performing live. “I just love performing,” McGovern said by phone from an extended concert stop in Palm Springs. “The show is a journey every night. It’s a train we get on together—the audience and myself—and take this journey. It’s cathartic in a way, for me. It’s also just a joy—I work with such incredible musicians, and I feel very blessed about that. And at 62, to still be doing what I love, I’m grateful for that too.” McGovern is the vocalist …

The Theatre Guild of Webster Groves is offering patrons more bang for the buck with their current production of “All in the Timing”—it’s buy one ticket, get six one-act comedies. Comedy, however, just hints at what audiences can expect from these one-acts, all written by David Ives. “They are mind-numbingly fun, because they will blow your mind,” said Krystal Stevenson of south St. Louis, who has roles in two of the one-act plays. “They are kind of an interesting, existential view of the world in a way, and I think that’s what makes it more interesting, because it’s done in a very comical way…

With a 17-piece big band heavy on brass instruments, the Dave Dickey Big Band will deliver room-filling tunes during their Sunday performance in Kirkwood. “The band’s got a big sound,” band leader and trombone player Dave Dickey said. “They’re all professional guys, so they’re all very good soloists and players.” The performance will be 6-9 p.m. at the Kirkwood Station Brewing Company, which features a good restaurant and a great area for music. “It’s a big room – it’s fun,” he said. “They actually have a dance floor. We had a gig there last January, and so many people showed up, it was great…

Three days before the official opening for six new exhibitions at The Sheldon Art Galleries, art galleries director Olivia Lahs-Gonzales zipped through the exhibition space on a whirlwind tour. “These are pretty stunning,” Lahs-Gonzales said, looking at the large photographs of Tim Simmons. “He uses a (large format) four by five camera. They’re amazingly detailed — you can see every blade of grass.” Simmons and Steve Giovinco have photos in the “Edge of Darkness” exhibit. The photos contributed by Simmons are all shot in darkness or near darkness, with artificial light introduced to highlight…

In the entranceway to the Missouri History Museum, not too far from where a small herd of Asian elephants roam their enclosure at the St. Louis Zoo, an elephant-like creature sporting huge, curved tusks looms over visitors. This creature, a lifelike replica of a Columbian mammoth, stands 14-feet at the shoulder and looks like it could’ve won a tug-of-war with a couple of African elephants. It is part of the museum’s “Mammoths and Mastodons: Titans of the Ice Age” exhibit, which continues through April 15. These magnificent mammals, which inhabited North and Central America during the …

Actor Robert Picardo is known to Star Trek: Voyager fans as the holographic doctor, so will his appearance this weekend at the St. Louis Science Center will be real or holo? “Since I can reconfigure the magnetic containment field that creates the illusion of my body, to either allow matter to pass through it or be stopped, you don’t really know," Picardo said by phone from Los Angeles, where he lives. "Just coming up and trying to pass your hands through my chest is no longer a sufficient test. Actually, now that I think about it, I suppose that it is. I don’t recommend it though.” During the…

The Saint Louis Zoo will give children something to smile about Sundays in January and February duringDelta Dental Winter Zoo, from fun plays about keeping smiles healthy to games, activities and parades. “It’s always fun to come to the Saint Louis Zoo, but a lot of people don’t think about coming to the zoo in the wintertime,” said Ginny Westmoreland, the zoo’s director of marketing. “But it’s a great time to come out to the zoo, and we’ve developed this series of events leading up to Mardi Gras.” Every Sunday through Feb. 19, the Delta Dental Stage Show will be presented in The Living World…

As a former joke writer for “The Tonight Show” legend Johnny Carson, Louie Katz knows the value of a good punch line. Now, as a standup comic 23 years later, Katz mines the vagaries of vegans and the dangers of dating for comedy gold and couldn’t be happier with his chosen profession. “It’s like an addiction,” he said of doing standup. “After a while I just can’t stop.” Katz, who has done standup on HBO, Comedy Central and shows including “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” and “Last Call with Carson Daly,” is the headliner today through Sunday at the St. Louis Funny Bone Comedy Club at Westport …

From singing on the back of his father’s vegetable truck in the early days when a music career was just a dream, to getting style tips from Tony Bennett, vocalist Tony Viviano has done it all. Throughout the course of his 40-year career, Viviano has become comfortable in many musical genres, from jazz and rock to blues and funk. Jazz takes the forefront during an 8-11 p.m. show Friday at Robbie’s House of Jazz in Webster Groves. Viviano will perform with saxophonist Jerry Greene and his jazz quartet, which features guitarist Tom Byrne, bassist Chris Watrous and drummer Montez Coleman. Viviano…

Walking into the showroom at the Kemp Auto Museum in Chesterfield is like stepping back in time to an era when cars were called roadsters and friends lounged in the rumble seat to get a little air. The museum has dozens of gleaming automobiles nestled side by side on a polished black tile showroom floor that reflects the cars’ images as if they were parked next to water. It opened in 2006 primarily to showcase an impressive collection of Mercedes-Benz vehicles. “This is the only automobile museum in the United States that features Mercedes-Benz automobiles,” museum curator Rodger Van Ness …

From musicians and magicians to face-painting and fireworks, First Night 2012 at Grand Centerin St. Louis offers something for everyone this New Year’s Eve. “I’m really excited about it this year,” said Travis Howser, director of events and theater for First Night. “It’s a wide range. I think there’s a general perception that this thing is specifically for families. Now it is a really family-friendly festival, and we do have a lot of families, but with the range of performances that we have, it’s for everyone. Every age, race, whatever—that’s what I find most exciting about the festival, is …

With model trains chugging through 5,000 square feet of blooming plants, Christmas trees, Nutcracker soldiers, wooden rocking horses and other old-fashioned toys, the Missouri Botanical Garden’s “Gardenland Express” holiday display is a throwback to an era people cherish and miss. “We’re kind of becoming a traditional spot for a lot of people,” said Karen Hill, a public information officer with the garden. “The old department store windows downtown used to have trains and things like that in them. A lot of people have commented over the years that our display kind of reminds them of that and …

A Christmas Parade with visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus, elves, snowmen and more, downtown businesses with live holiday scenes in the windows and the play “A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas” make Hannibal the place to be this weekend. “We certainly would like to invite visitors to Hannibal and have them experience Hannibal in a whole new light this season,” said Gail Bryant, director of the Hannibal Convention and Visitors Bureau. The annual parade, sponsored by the Hannibal Jaycees, has the theme “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas.” With the historic downtown decorated for the …

Polar bears, penguins, prairie dogs and flamingos will all be dressed in their holiday finest and lighting up the night to greet visitors at the annual U.S. Banks Wild Lights holiday light show at the St. Louis Zoo. "It’s really beautiful," said Michael Macek, curator of birds at the zoo. "It’s grown every year that I’ve been here, and I’ve been here 20 years. Every single year they add more. It’s actually quite nice, because it’s so cold and dark, it’s nice to see the zoo lit up." Wild Lights is open 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Dec. 11. Starting Dec. 16, it …

Santa parades, strolling Christmas characters and Victorian carolers will be presented to entertain visitors throughout the holiday season. Santa Claus is coming to town, and he and Mrs. Claus will be arriving in style by horse-drawn carriage at 11 a.m. today to kick-off the 37thannual Christmas Traditions at Kister Park in downtown St. Charles. It’s a fun time of year in St. Charles, something the city builds toward throughout the year. "We do a lot of events and festivals in St. Charles over the course of every year – probably in the neighborhood of about 100 or so," said Carol Felzien, …

Dancing bears, frogs leaping over a shimmering river of light, a candy cane forest and the 12 days of Christmas are among the wonders waiting for visitors to the 26th annual Winter Wonderlandholiday light display Nov. 23 through Jan. 1 at Tilles Park in Ladue. For all of Santa’s helpers who have worked hard to prepare the display, opening night will be a chance to enjoy the fruits of that labor. "Everyone who has a part to play in putting up Winter Wonderland, they really feel proud of our final product," said Diane White, the recreation supervisor in charge of Winter Wonderland for the St. …