Jenny Chen is Yasuko Yamashita and Patrick Scully is her husband Hiro Yamashita in Davidson College's production of "Kokoro."

Warehouse Performing Arts Center in Cornelius was forced to postpone this weekend’s final performances of “Frozen” after a cast member was kicked by a horse. Shows are rescheduled to next weekend, Feb. 17-19. Also, Davidson Community Players’ Connie Co. holds auditions Saturday for its upcoming production of “Stuart Little” as well as summer teen and junior companies. And coming up this month: Davidson College’s production “Kokoro” which opens Wednesday, Feb. 16, and Davidson Community Players’ “Masterpiece” which runs Feb. 27 to March 13.

‘FROZEN’ RESCHEDULED

Annette Saunders, one of three cast members in Warehouse Performing Arts Center, is on the sidelines this weekend after being kicked by a horse. Warehouse PAC canceled all this weekend’s performances and has rescheduled to Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 17-19, at 8 p.m. Call the box office with questions: 704-619-0429.

Byron Lavery’s “Frozen” is a a 2004 Tony-nominated crime drama. It tells of the disappearance of a 10-year-old girl, Rhona. The play follows Rhona’s mother, Nancy, Ralph, her killer, and Dr. Agnetha, who studies the basis of crime. Drawn together by horrible circumstances, these three embark upon a long, difficult journey that finally curves upward into the light of forgiveness.

Directed by Divina Cook, the play features John Cunningham, Anne Lambert, and Ms. Saunders. Warehouse Performing Arts Center is at 9216-A Westmoreland Rd., Cornelius.

‘KOKORO’ OPENS WEDNESDAY

The Davidson College theatre department invites the public to its production of “Kokoro (True Heart),” a gripping story of crossed cultures written by contemporary Japanese-American playwright Velina Hasu Houston.

The play begins at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16, through Saturday, Feb. 19, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Feb. 20. All performances are in the Rupert T. Barber Theatre in the Cunningham Theatre Center. It contains adult language and themes, and is recommended for ages 14 and up. Tickets are available by calling 704-894-2135 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, or they may be purchased online at www.davidson.edu/tickets.

First staged in 1994, “Kokoro” concerns Yasako, an isolated, voiceless Japanese woman living in the United States with her beloved daughter and philandering husband. In her culturally rootless despair, Yasako is pushed to a desperate traditional Japanese practice. While it is abhorred in the United States, her native Japanese culture views the act as a way to restore honor to the family.

Yasako partially botches her actions, and is brought to justice for her act. She is thrust into the complex American legal system and a media furor, while continuing to be tortured by her yearning for spiritual escape. Playwright Velina Hasu Houston sets the play in a supernatural world of magical realism, where ancestors and spirits wander freely through the afterlife and the present to communicate with Yasako.

The play is directed by Tamara Ruppart, a 2000 Davidson graduate who went on to earn an MFA degree in directing in 2009 from New York’s The New School for Drama. Ms. Ruppart has lived in Japan and specializes in Japanese literature and drama.

The cast of six includes five Davidson students, and Charlotte actress Jenny Chen in the lead role of Yasako Yamashita. Patrick Scully ’12 plays the part of her husband, Hiro, Ellen Goodson ’11 plays the mistress, Cea Rubin ’13 plays the spirit of the grandmother, Christa Johnson ’12 plays the lawyer and Ana Rodriguez ’12 plays the neighbor.

YOUTH AUDITIONS

Davidson Community Players Connie Co. children’s theater will hold auditions on Saturday, Feb. 12, for the April production of “Stuart Little” and for the Connie Company’s “Food for Thought” Summer Teen and Junior Companies. Auditions for both opportunities will be held from 10 a.m. to noon or 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. at the Armour Street Theatre. Plan to come to 1 of the 2 sessions and stay for the 2 hr. period. More info: http://www.davidsoncommunityplayers.org/

THEATER CALENDAR

“Frozen,” Feb. 18-19, Warehouse Performing Arts Center, 9216-A Westmoreland Rd., Cornelius, between I-77 exits 25 and 28 – Byrony Lavery’s Tony-nominated 2004 play about the disappearance of a 10-year-old girl, Rhona, and efforts to solve her murder. Performances at 8 p.m. Tickets $20, groups/seniors $15. Reservations: Email tickets@warehousepac.com or box office phone: 704-619-0429.

Divorce Southern Style, Feb. 3-20, Old Courthouse Theatre, Concord – An established favorite with stock theaters, this fast-paced, wildly funny farce centers on the zany schemes of a middle-aged divorcee who decides that the time is ripe to get back together with her ex-husband. Directed by Andy Rassler. Cast includes Linda Smith, Becky Porter, Melissa Bowden, Mike Curtis, Jonathan Ewart, John Farrell, Claudia Reiff. Shows Feb. 3, 4, 5; 11, 12; 18, 19 at 8 p.m.; Sunday matinees Feb. 6, 13, 20 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets $15, $12, $10. Reservations:  704-788-2405. More info www.oldcourthousetheatre.org

Kokoro (True Heart), Feb. 16-20, Davidson College Cunningham Theater Center, Barber Theater – Davidson Theatre Department presents Velina Hasu Houston’s “Kokoro (True Heart).” Directed by Tamara Ruppart. This challenging and deeply emotional exploration of the clash of Eastern and Western cultures follows a grieving Japanese mother who is thrown into the American legal system. Performances nightly at 7:30 except Sunday, Feb. 20, matinee at 2 p.m. Info: www.davidson.edu/theatre. Tickets available at davidson.edu/boxoffice.

Free screening: Girl with a Pearl Earring, Thursday, Feb. 17, 5 and 7:30 p.m., Our Town Cinemas, 227 Griffith St. – Free screening of the film “Girl With a Pearl Earring” at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Reservations required. Call 704-892-7953 to reserve your seat. The screening is part of a series of events in advance of Davidson Community Players’ production of “Masterpiece,” by Meir Ribalow. (see below)

Masterpiece, Feb. 25 to March 13, Armour Street Theatre, Armour and Watson streets – Davidson Community Players explores visual art with Meir Ribalow’s thrilling “Masterpiece.” Based on the actual events of the 20th century’s most notorious forgery scandal, the drama follows Flemish artist Han van Meegeren who successfully forges a ‘masterpiece’ by Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer to retaliate against a hostile and powerful art critic. The painting is sold for a small fortune to the Nazis, and it is not until nine years later that a mysterious investigator appears and the unraveling begins. Performances Feb. 24-26, March 3-5, March 11-12 at 8 p.m.; Sundays Feb. 27, March 6 and 13 at 2 p.m. General admission $18 adults, $15 seniors 65+ and $10 students. For tickets or information, www.davidsoncommunityplayers.org

Into the Woods, March 25-April 2, Davidson College Duke Family Performance Hall – Davidson departments of music and theater present “Into the Woods,” with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by James Lapine. Directed by Davidson theater professor Mark Sutch; orchestra conducted by music prof. Tara Chamra; musical director Jacque Culpepper. Fairy tales are deliriously (and movingly) turned topsy-turvy in this beloved musical. www.davidson.edu/theatre.