Finishing up the year in Pasadena

A revival of "On Golden Pond" is out and "Matter of Honor" is in at the Pasadena Playhouse.

The year concludes with a new musical based on the life of Ray Charles. "Ray Charles Live! -- a new musical" (playing Oct. 341 to Dec. 9) will be directed by Sheldon Epps with music by Charles and a book by Suzan-Lori Parks. Given that Ms. Parks has written 365 plays in 365 days, extracting another one from the word processor should be a cakewalk.

Hopefully enough time has elapsed since the film of "Ray" for renewed interest in a dramatic depiction of Charles's life. The Pasadena Playhouse doesn't necessarily play it safe with musicals -- original or revived. I'd guess it would be tough for them to duplicate the audience-grabbing double whammy of "Fences" (not a musical) and "Sister Act" (musical), but "Ray Charles Live" could be exciting.

Unless it's going to bring James Earl Jones back into town, I shed no tears over seeing "On Golden Pond" fall of the schedule of any major regional theater. "Matter of Honor" (Aug. 24 to Sept. 30) by Michael Chepiga and directed by Scott Schwartz, tells the story of an African American West Point cadet named Johnson Whittaker, the roommate of Henry Flipper, the first African American cadet to graduate from the Point. Whittaker didn't make it. "Matter of Honor" recounts why not.