ACT ONE opens festival with ‘Southern Comforts’:  ACT ONE’s fifth annual Festival of Fun opens Thursday, Aug. 4 at 8 p.m., with a preview of “Southern Comforts” at West End Studio Theatre in Portsmouth. 

“Southern Comforts,” by Kathleen Clark, is the story of New Jersey widower Gus Klingman and how his life changes when he meets Amanda Cross, a widow from Tennessee.

“This play is much more than a comedy,” director Stephanie Voss Nugent said in a press release. “What happens to Gus and Amanda gives us hope that it is never too late to mend a wounded heart.”

The audience is invited to meet with actors Terry Blanchard and Carol Davenport following the preview performance. Their feedback could help shape the production. Tickets for the preview are $14 and can be reserved by calling 603-300-2986.

“Southern Comforts” will be performed on Fridays, Aug. 5 and 26 at 8 p.m., and Saturdays, Aug. 6 and 27 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Tickets range from $14 to $20.

The 2011 edition of ACT ONE’s Festival of Fun will also include productions of “Radio Silence: Death on the Air,” “Spirits Willing,” “In my Head I’m Thin,” “Perched for Flight,” “Macabaret,” “Salt & Pepper Cooking: The Second Course,” “Salt & Pepper Cooking: The Education of an American Chef,” “A Little Kitchen in France” and “Boxed In.”

The festival’s concert series includes Ed Gerhard on Aug. 21, Cellobrew on Sept. 11, the Don Campbell Trio on Sept. 25, and World Tales on Oct. 9.

West End Studio Theatre is located at 959 Islington St. in Portsmouth. For more information, visit www.actonenh.org.

Hampton Beach Comedy Festival returns: From Sunday to Tuesday, Aug. 7 to 9, Ashworth by the Sea will host three nights of stand-up comedy featuring 15 performers who have been seen on Comedy Central and several other popular TV programs.

Seacoast native Jimmy Dunn will host each show of the second annual Hampton Beach Comedy Festival. He’s recently performed on Denis Leary’s Comics Come Home, and spent a week performing on the world’s largest cruise ship.

Other comics scheduled to appear this year include Shane Kinney, Matt D, Steve Bjork, Dan Crohn, Dave Rattigan, Tony V, Mike Whitman, Lamont Price, Jim Colliton, Karen Morgan, Mark Riley, Mike Prior, Kevin Neales, Mike McCarthy and Kelly MacFarland.

Tickets are $15 per night in advance or $20 on the night of the show, available at Ashworth by the Sea, 295 Ocean Blvd., Hampton, 603-926-6762. More information can be found at www.hamptonbeachcomedy.com.

UNH Celebrity Series season announced: The University of New Hampshire Celebrity Series recently announced its 2011-2012 season, providing cultural experiences for the school and community with guest artists in music, theater and dance. 

The season begins on Saturday, Sept. 17, with Golden Dragon Acrobats, who perform feats of balancing, tumbling and gymnastics.

On Nov. 17, Aquila Theatre will offer a production of Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest,” a romantic comedy and satire of Victorian ways.

Returning to UNH on Feb. 6, 2012, Teatro Lirico D’Europa will perform Giuseppe Verdi’s groundbreaking three-act opera “Rigoletto” with a live orchestra. 

Cellist Dmitry Kouzov has performed with orchestras and in recitals throughout his native Russia and on five continents. On Feb. 18, he’ll join pianist Peter Laul, who has performed with Kouzov since they were 12 years old. Pieces include Schumann’s “Adagio & Allegro,” Beethoven’s “Sonata #4,” Debussy’s “Sonata,” and Rachmaninoff’s “Sonata.”

Cordis Quartet will play on March 3. They play contemporary chamber music by fusing a combination of custom-made and traditional ethnic instruments.

On Wednesday, April 11, the Takács Quartet will return to UNH. They have been in residence at the University of Colorado since 1983. Pieces for this program include “Janacek Quartet No. 2,” “Britten Quartet No. 3,” and “Ravel Quartet.”

All performances take place in the Paul Creative Arts Center’s Johnson Theatre in Durham. Tickets can be purchased online at www.unhmub.com or by calling the Memorial Union Building box office at 603-862-2290.