Assassinations are the dismal fascination factor of political history, much like drug addictions are the lurid lure of rock ’n’ roll. The American musical theater icon Stephen Sondheim decided to turn the dismal into droll when he wrote Assassins, which debuted in 1990. Company One, the theater group that has busted free of its longtime “fringe” status, is staging the musical about would-be presidential killers at the Plaza Theatre (Boston Center for the Arts, 539 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.933.8600.) Get tickets ($30–$38; $15 for students; $18 for everyone on Wednesdays) at www.companyone.org or call the box office. Go on a Friday or Saturday and make it a double feature: ubiquitous actor and playwright John Kuntz exhumes one of his early laughfests, After School Special, which he’ll perform late night with comic sidekick Rick Park. (We’ll give you one chance to guess the comic target.) Tickets are sold separately at www.bostontheatrescene.com.
