This musical is the imaginative account of what happens when the lives of new and old fairy tale characters dramatically and humorously intersect.

Cinderella, Jack of beanstalk fame, Little Red Ridinghood and the Baker and his Wife set out into the woods on a quest to find "happily ever after."

Along the way they meet Rapunzel, a Wicked Witch, a lascivious Wolf, vengeful Giants, a couple of charming Princes and their own destiny.

With wit and wisdom, the authors have created a parable about the loss of innocence, the joys and sorrows of adulthood and the price paid for getting the things you really want.

The shows are at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with a matinee at 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets available at the door are $12 for adults and $8 for children 12 and younger.

Free childcare will be provided for young children not attending the show.

Advance ticket reservations are available by emailing music@c3huu.org and include a $1 coupon that can be used at the intermission concession stand.

Women's Conference begins today

St. Paul AME Church is holding its annual Women's Conference today through Sunday.

The theme is "Equipping Women for Kingdom Building."

Featured speakers are the Rev. Mark Royster at 7 p.m. Friday and the Honorable Beverly Scarlett, district court judge in Orange County, for Sunday worship at 11 a.m.

Daily Bible study will be held at 6 p.m. each day.

The church is located at 101 N. Merritt Mill Road.

Congregation to hold art auction

Judea Reform Congregation, 1933 W. Cornwallis Road in Durham, will sponsor an "Art I Have Loved Sale and Silent Auction" from 4 to 6 p.m. Sunday.

The sale will include framed art pieces picked to sell, artifacts, posters and art books at bargain prices.

The silent auction includes 10 very special pieces.

To view them, go to judeareform.org and click on "What's New."

Refreshments will be served and admission is free.

Organ recital at Duke Chapel

Andrew Unsworth, one of three full-time organists at the Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City, will be the second organist to perform in the new Alumni Organ Recital Series at Duke Chapel in Durham.

Unsworth, who received his Ph.D. in music from Duke University in 2001, participates in the daily recital series at the Mormon Tabernacle and accompanies the Tabernacle Choir for its weekly radio and television broadcast, "Music and the Spoken Word."

His Duke Chapel concert is from 5 to 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.

For more information, call 684-3898.

Alternate gift market set

Simple Gifts, an alternate gift and fair trade market, will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. Friday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at Evergreen United Methodist Church, 11098 US Hwy 15-501 N.

Holiday shoppers can honor others by making tax-deductible donations to local and global nonprofit organizations.

A holiday card and gift description will be included with each donation.

Participating organizations include Carolina Tiger Rescue, Chatham Habitat for Humanity, Family Violence and Rape Crisis Services, Francisco Coll School - Guatemala, UMCOR - Africa and Haiti, among others.

Equal Exchange fair trade coffee, tea and chocolate will be available for purchase.

In addition, One World Market and Unique Batik will offer handcrafted goods made by global artisans.

Fiberactive Organics will sell organic cotton tablecloths and napkin sets, table runners, fabric bowls, platters and festive boxes made by refugee women living in Raleigh.

Light refreshments will be available and patrons also may purchase home-baked goods.

The net proceeds will benefit the Take and Eat Food Pantry in Chatham County.

Simple Gifts is sponsored by Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian and Evergreen United Methodist.

Church will hold Chistmas Bazaar

Christ United Methodist Church in Southern Village will hold its annual Christmas Bazaar Nov. 18-19.

Pottery, jewelry, Russian ornaments, creches, Christmas cards, wall hangings, stocking stuffers and table centerpieces will be sold.

This year, a silent auction with many sought-after items will be held.

All items are donated so 100 percent of the proceeds go to mission projects, including Habitat for Humanity-Chatham County, Beyond Our Borders, Blankets for Children, Prison Ministry-Alamance/Orange Correctional Center, Beacon of Hope - Nairobi, Kenya, Children's Hope Christ--Russia, Haiti earthquake relief, deployed military personnel and food and gas cards for local benevolence.

The bazaar will be open at the church, 800 Market St., from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.

Teaching series explores spiritual life

Lama Kathy Wesley will teach on "Making Life a Spiritual Journey" on from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Friday at Unity Center of Peace, 8800 Seawell Road.

On Saturday, she will present "Aspiration and Inspiration: Deepening our Dharma Practice."

This will include integrating meditation practices of establishing calm abiding and mindful attention, of cultivating compassion and loving kindness and of using visualization and sound in the profound sadhana practices such as Chenrezig and White Tara.

These teachings will be held at the ArcadiaCoHousing Common House in Carrboro.

"The Practice of WhiteTara" will be the topic of her teaching and discussion on Sunday at Piedmont KTC, located about one block west of Weaver Street Market in Carrboro.

She will offer the Refuge Vow to whoever wishes to enter into the path of Buddhadharma.

Interested persons should contact a member of Piedmont KTC for more information about the commitments involved.

CWS respresentatives to speak

Linda Houseman andDolly Dwyer from Church World Service will join the Adult Forum at United Church of Chapel Hill at 10 a.m. Sunday to discuss the crisis relief and development work of CWS around the world.

In particular, United Church is participating in the building and equipping of the Branko Pesic Primary School in Kosovo for children ofdisplaced Roma families.

Building the school and other CWS programs will be supported by the Alternative Gift Market at United Church on Nov. 19-20.

For further information, visit unitedchurch.org or call the church office at 942-3540.