While what happens onstage is the essence of theatre, theatre people do lots of interesting things offstage as well. Every week, I will bring you news of non-show theatre events around the U.S. -- exclusively on Playbill On-Line. To send information for this column, eMail releases to [email protected] .

The Shakespeare Festival of Dallas will present Academy and Golden Globe award winning star of stage and screen, Olympia Dukakis in the world premiere of The Mystery of Things...A Woman's Explanation of Lear on Saturday, October 5 at the historic Majestic Theatre in Dallas as part of 25th anniversary season.

Written by Dukakis and Dennis Krausnick, the one night only performance explores a woman's relationship with power, the bonds between mother and daughter and aging.

Tickets are available trough Arttix at (214) 871-ARTS and range from $15 to $150 and includes the performance plus a Q &;A with Olympia Dukakis following the show. The $150 ticket also includes an invitation to a private party with Ms. Dukakis on Friday, October 4 and a champagne and dessert reception following the performance.

For more information on the "Spotlight Series," call the Shakespeare Festival of Dallas at (214) 559-2778.