Few live theater groups can claim to grind as hard as the Sunnyvale Community Players. They’ve been indefatigable since 1969 and even a global pandemic couldn’t shut them out. Hot off the heels of their West Side Story run, they’re back with the musical adaptation of Daniel Wallace’s novel Big Fish. The story of an Alabama father relating his life’s fantastical and outlandish stories to his skeptical son, actor John Mannion describes the tale as “uplifting, colorful, fun”—an energy that’s been in short supply these days. Available to view both in person and to stream online.

Big Fish
Sat-Sun, Various Times, $44
Sunnyvale Community Theatre

The Sunnyvale Community Players have been sticking to the classics this year, and their forthcoming show is no exception. The local theater company’s annual junior production is Bye Bye Birdie. The musical follows a group of local high schoolers, their families, a soon-to-be-enlisted rock & roll star and his management team in Sweet Apple, Ohio—the kind of saccharine sweet suburban American town that never really was. While Conrad Birdie’s handlers are trying to stage one last publicity stunt before he is shipped overseas, 15-year-old Kim MacAfee and her folks are chomping at the bit to appear alongside their daughter on The Ed Sullivan Show. Runs through March 10.

Bye Bye Birdie
Fri, 7:30pm, $16+
Sunnyvale Community Theatre