The Gazette of Really Small News

Auditions for Algonquin Arts Theatre's spring production of Carousel will take place at the theater on Tuesday, Feb. 7, and Friday, Feb. 9, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on both nights. Auditions are by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, email jan@algonquinarts(dot)org. All roles are open. Auditioners should prepare 32 bars of an appropriate Broadway selection and be prepared to dance. An accompanist will be provided. Callbacks are scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 11, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Performance dates are Friday, May 12, 8 p.m.; Saturday, May 13, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday, May 14, 3 p.m.; Friday, May 19, 8 p.m.; Saturday, May 20, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday, May 21, 3 p.m. Jan Topoleski will direct, with music direction by Mark Megill and choreography by Jessica O'Brien. The theater is located at 173 Main Street, Manasquan.

Barefoot in the Park , Neil Simon's 1963 comedy about young newlyweds in Manhattan, takes to the stage at the Algonquin Arts Theatre in Manasquan Friday, Feb. 3, at 8 p.m., and Saturday, Feb. 4, at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Premium tickets are $36 for adults, $33 for seniors, and $27 for students. Regular tickets are $29 for adults, $26 for seniors, and $20 for students. Tickets may be purchased by calling 732-528-2911 or online at www (dot) algonquinarts (dot) org. Tickets are subject to a $2 processing fee on each ticket. All sales are final. There are no refunds or exchanges unless a show is cancelled, according to the Algonquin Arts Theatre website. Also, according to the website, artists, programs, policies, dates, times and discounts are subject to change without notice. The Algonquin Arts Theatre is at 60 Abe Voorhees Drive. The box office is at 173 Main Street. Hours are 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, and 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

La Strada Ensemble Theater presents Drowning in Euphoria this Friday through Sunday at the Jersey Shore Arts Center's Herbst Theatre in Ocean Grove. The new play by A.J. Ciccotelli tells how a novelist, in order to finish writing a book, returns to the place where he first found love, and examines love's power to attract and destroy. The cast stars Christine Nagy, co-host of the Bob and Christine Morning Show on 106.7-Lite FM, and La Strada founding members Doug Bollinger, Donna Knowlton, and W. Allen Wrede. Also in the cast are Anthony Levi Morici, Gian-Soren Morici, Julie Murtha, Anthony O'Connell, and Karen Vana-Grecco. Performances are Friday and Saturday, Feb. 3 and 4, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 5, at 2 p.m. The Sunday performance will feature a question-and-answer session with the playwright. Tickets are $18 general admission, and $12 for students and senior citizens with ID. The Jersey Shore Arts Center is at 66 Main Ave., Ocean Grove. For tickets and ...

Readers at the Spring Lake Public Library have weighed in on the books they loved most in 2016. According to the list on the library's Facebook page, the genres range from history and biography to satire and dark humor, with a gentle leaning toward literary fiction, historical fiction, and history. What didn't make the list: romance, science fiction and paranormal. Among the most-loved titles: Born To Run (Bruce Springsteen) Girls of Atomic City (Denise Kiernan) Homegoing (Yaa Gyasi) Commonwealth (Ann Patchett) State of Wonder (Ann Patchett) Winter of the World, by Ken Follett Truman, by David McCullough Founding Brothers , by Joseph Ellis New York (Edward Rutherfurd) A Gentleman in Moscow, by (Amor Towles) A Thread of Grace (May Doria Russell) A Man Called Ove (Fredrik Backman) The Illusion of Separateness (Simon Van Booy) Let the Great World Spin (Colum McCann) Notorious RBG (Irin Carmon, Shana Knizhnik) Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusi...

Neptune will start inspecting buildings in the township as required by the state's Real Property Assessment Demonstration Program. "The purpose . . .  is to increase the frequency of property data collection/verification so taxpayers aren't unfairly paying less or more than they should be for a decade or more," the township said in an emailed statement. Until the Program was adopted in 2013, municipalities conducted property-tax assessments or revaluations every ten years. The inspections, which include interiors as well as exteriors, will be conducted by Realty Data Systems. Property owners will be informed of inspection by mail, and those notices have been mailed out, the township said. Inspections are to start within the next two weeks, according to the township. The first inspections are to take place within the Gables, Sunshine Village, Bradley Park, part of Midtown (west of Highway 35), part of Green Grove, and The Summit and Knox Hill condominiums. ...

New buildings on Ocean Grove's Main Avenue are close to completion nearly two years after fire in February, 2015 destroyed or heavily damaged small businesses and apartments on that site. This picture was taken at daybreak for the Daily Dawns page, which is why the light is low. We can't wait to see the buildings when they're occupied,  the trees are leafed out and the sun is shining.

Starting Monday, Jan. 30, the Monmouth County SPCA in Eatontown will be open six days a week. "The demand to rescue animals was much bigger than we thought, so we decided to stay open for adoptions six days a week!" the organization said on its Facebook page. Hours are Monday, noon to 5 p.m.; Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, noon to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. The shelter is closed on Tuesday. The new hours do not affect  surgeries, surrenders, and other business, according to the announcement. The Monmouth County SPCA is at 260 Wall Street, Eatontown. For information, call 732-542-0040, or email info@monmouthcountyspcaDOT org.