· With last week's dismal theater schedule keeping us locked up indoors - apart from the national tour of "Urinetown" - the coming 14 days will provide enough entertainment to keep theater goers busy through March.

Opening on Thursday is the Peppermint Creek Theatre Company's second production of the 2003-04 theater season.

"The Last Five Years" will be on stage at the Plant & Soil Sciences Building's conservatory gardens through next week.

The contemporary musical follows a marriage from the beginning of love until the break-up during a period of five years and is portrayed as a beautiful show, said Justin Godley, who plays Jamie in the production.

For more information on the show or the theater group, visit www.peppermintcreek.org, call (517) 927-3016 or check out this week's edition of the lowdown.

· MSU also will have its fair share of entertaining to do this weekend with the Repertory Dance Company concert, featuring the new music ensemble "Musique 21" starting Thursday and running through Sunday.

The event is presented by the MSU Department of Theatre and the School of Music.

For more information, call (517) 355-6690, and to purchase tickets, call (517) 432-2000.

· If dance or musicals aren't your thing, then possibly the opera is.

The international touring company Opera Verdi Europa will return to the Wharton Center on Sunday.

Two one-act operas will be presented, including "Cavalleria Rusticana" and "I Pagliacci," which will be sung in Italian and featured with English super-titles (translations that appear on a screen above the actors).

The plots are simple - love-triangles, jealousy, secret-spillers and deception.

Tickets range from $24 to $38 and are available by calling (517) 432-2000 or 1-800-WHARTON.

For more information on the opera, visit www.whartoncenter.com.