Muhlenberg College Theatre and Dance is staging an adaptation of a 17th century comedy and Civic Theatre School students are presenting the junior version of a hit movie-musical.

Muhlenberg College Theatre and Dance presents “The Desire Project,” April 3 - 6, Studio Theater, Trexler Pavilion for Theater and Dance, Allentown.

More than 100 young performers are in “Beetlejuice Jr.,” April 3 - 6, Nineteenth Street Theatre, Allentown.

“The Desire Project” is an adaptation of “The Convent of Pleasure” by Margaret Cavendish.

Written in 1668, “The Convent of Pleasure” is a comedy about a noblewoman who rejects marriage in favor of creating a community in which she and other women can live without patriarchy.

The play was adapted by Muhlenberg professor of theater Beth Schachter with assistance from the cast to bring Cavendish’s utopian exploration into the 21st century.

Schachter directs the show, which she calls a “funny, flashy celebration of feminine pleasure and freedom.”

“The Desire Project,” 8 p.m. April 3, 4; 3 p.m., 8 p.m. April 5; 2 p.m. April 6, Studio Theatre, Trexler Pavilion for Theatre and Dance, Muhlenberg College, 2400 Chew St., Allentown. 484-664-3333; https://muhlenberg.edu

Civic Theatre School’s “Beetlejuice Jr.” is the culmination of the school year for Civic Theatre School, the longest continuously-operating theater arts education program for young performers in the Lehigh Valley.

The school began in the 1950s when Ralpha Senderowitz founded the Children’s Theatre School at the former Civic Little Theatre, now Civic Theatre of Allentown.

More than 100 students ages 6 to 18 will take part in “Beetlejuice Jr.,” directed by JoAnn Wilchek Basist, a former student at Civic Theatre School.

“Beetlejuice Jr.” is based on the 1988 American gothic comedy horror film directed by Tim Burton. The hit movie was adapted into a Broadway musical with music and lyrics by Tony Award-nominee Eddie Perfect and book by Tony Award-nominated Anthony King and Scott Brown. “Beetlejuice” was nominated for eight Tony Awards in 2019, including Best New Musical.

The junior series is a 60-minute version of the Broadway musical designed for young performers.

The musical includes the production numbers “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song),” “Jump in the Line (Shake, Shake Señora),” “Dead Mom,” “The Whole ‘Being Dead’ Thing” and “Say My Name.”

“Beetlejuice Jr.,” 6 p.m. April 3, 4; 3 p.m., 6 p.m. April 5, 6, Civic Theatre of Allentown, 527 N. 19th St., Allentown. 610-433-8903, https://civictheatre.com/

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com