Like the side shows at the turn-of-the-century, Los Angeles' Side Show is packing 'em in with people anxious to "come look at the freaks." The critically-lauded, popular production of Henry Krieger-Bill Russell's pop musical will extend at the Colony Theatre through April 20.

Side Show, nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical, is based on the true story of Daisy and Violet Hilton, Siamese twins who rose from from a sideshow attraction to become a singing and dancing vaudeville act in the 1930's. Although the musical was considered a flop on Broadway, Side Show has become a popular cult favorite along the lines of The Rocky Horror Show.

Misty Cotton (Miss Saigon, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) and Julie Dixon Jackson star as Violet and Daisy Hilton, respectively. Also in the cast are Kevin Early (Les Miserables, Reprise!'s 1776, The Most Happy Fella) as Terry Connor, James Black replacing David Jennings as Jake, Todd Nielsen (Putting It Together) as The Boss and Mark W. Smith (Notre Dame de Paris, The Ballad of Little Mikey) as Buddy Foster.

Nick DeGruccio directs with choreography by Mark Raftery. Musical direction is by Tom Griffin.

Tickets are $28-$31. The Colony Theatre is 555 North Third Street in Burbank. For reservations, call (818) 558-7000. The Colony Theatre is on the web at http://www.colonytheatre.org. — By Christine Ehren