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Salt Lake City will soon have a giant new theater, but it will be no help to local performing-arts companies. Many local companies are desperate for a performing space, and the small theaters at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center are already overbooked.

The only good news is that companies are improvising, and productions are springing up in found spaces all over town. Sackerson's "The Bride of Frankenstein" just finished a run in a cavernous warehouse on 300 West, and Utah Repertory Theatre's production of "Carrie," also Halloween-themed, is playing in an abandoned storefront at The Gateway, which itself seems like a ghost town these days.

Director Johnny Hebda wants to immerse the audience in the experience of the play, and sitting in makeshift seats in an open space where the actors are only inches away does make you feel as if you are in the Chamberlain High School gym uncomfortably close to the carnage. Enhancing that feeling, zombielike characters prowl the playing area — huddling on the steps and cowering in the corners — before the show begins, representing the spirits of the victims of Carrie's vengeance.

"Carrie" is Michael Gore, Dean Pitchford and Lawrence Cohen's musical based on the 1974 classic horror novel by Stephen King and 1976 film by Brian De Palma. Besides proving that you can make a musical about practically anything, "Carrie" has some pretty good songs that show off the voices of its youthful and highly energetic cast, not to mention a theme that remains as relevant as it was in the 1970s: bullying.

Most people already know the plot. Teenager Carrie is a misfit who is victimized by her classmates at school and browbeaten by her religious fanatic mother at home. When she is humiliated at her senior prom, she unleashes her telekinetic powers to take revenge. In what seems like a miscarriage of justice, even the few people who were kind to her are not spared.

As in any melodrama, the characters are either very good or completely evil, victims or villains, but the actors manage to give them some depth, especially through the songs. Carrie (Natalia Noble) shares her frustration and dreams in "Carrie" and "Why Not Me?" She and her mother, Margaret (Rachel Shull), reveal their underlying love in a touching duet, "Evening Prayers": "We have no one except each other." Emilie Starr's Sue, who stands up for Carrie, does a fine job with one of the show's signature songs, "Once You See," which asks, "What does it cost you to finally see?" Brock Dalgleish's charismatic Tommy, Carrie's prom date, proves "there's more to me than I reveal" with his poem song, "Dreamer in Disguise." And Carrie and her supportive phys ed teacher, Miss Gardner (Megan Shenefelt), bond and blend beautifully in "Unsuspecting Hearts."

Skye Dahlstrom is brassy and brazen as the vicious Chris, Carrie's nemesis, and Derek Gregerson's loud, unruly Billy is her made-in-hell match. Jim Dale's Mr. Stephens tries to be the voice of reason and stability.

Hebda moves the large ensemble fluidly around the limited space, aided by Ashley Gardner Carlson's lively and easy-to-execute choreography. Bravo to Utah Rep for using a live band; Kevin Mathie's precise musical direction adds shape to the show.

Geoffrey Gregory's dramatic lighting with its colorful, flashing lights and James Hansen's eerie sound design with its disembodied voice and ominous thunder claps and rain create a paranormal atmosphere.

Whether you regard it as pure entertainment or an object lesson, "Carrie" is definitely a unique musical, and this cast pulls out all the stops to bring it to life. —

'Carrie'

Energetic performances and well-staged songs and dances revitalize Stephen King's horror classic.

When • Reviewed Oct. 31; plays Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 p.m. through Nov. 8 with matinees on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 2 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 8, at 3 p.m.

Where • 90 S. Rio Grande St. (400 West), at The Gateway, Salt Lake City

Tickets • $18 in advance; $20 at the door; $15 and $17 for students with ID; http://www.utahrep.org/tickets

Running time • Two hours and 15 minutes (including an intermission)