From ABBA songs to country acts to standup's brash Kathy Griffin, the McCallum Theatre's 2008-2009 lineup has variety as a motif.

Here are some of my thoughts:

* Country acts: Randy Owen (aka the lead singer of Alabama), Vince Gill (aka Mr. Amy Grant) and Kris Kristofferson (aka Whistler from the "Blade" movies ... and an iconic singer and songwriter) are part of the season. And since it starts about a half year after Stagecoach, they're not just tacking on shows around the festival. Yee-haw!

* "The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley": I have to admit I was initially intrigued because I misread it as "The Musical Adventures of Paul Stanley." It was only after I got curious and realized it was a musical based on the children's books about the boy flattened by a bulletin board that I got excited. Now, I'm waiting for the musical about "The Maggie B."

* All the ABBA you can handle. Not only is there an ABBA tribute, but "Mamma Mia!" is also coming! The musical gets the movie treatment when it's released in theaters this July, but after seeing it, you can compare it with the stage presentation coming in March 2009. It's hard to tell which will reign supreme. The movie version has Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan, but the stage show has run for forever. (BTW, doesn't the plot seem a bit "Lace 2"? Or am I the only one making that connection?)

* Awesome icons. From Hal Holbrook doing the only Mark Twain you need to see to Joel Grey (Chiun in "Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins" ... but I guess I'd also better mention the Oscar and Tony he won for "Cabaret"), crooner Johnny Mathis and Regis Philbin, just buy tickets now. If you appreciate old-school entertainment, you won't be disappointed.

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