BY DAWN BAUMGARTNER VAUGHAN

dvaughan@heraldsun.com; 419-6563

First, let's get the big name theatrical event out there: "Wicked." Back to that in a moment. Now, to size up the rest of the spring theater season in Durham and Chapel Hill.

The first play of the season opens tonight in the warehouse turned black box theater called Common Ground, by one of its resident companies, Ghost & Spice. The play is "Prelude to a Kiss," written by Craig Lucas and directed by Common Ground head Rachel Klem. The cast includes familiar local names -- Melissa Lozoff, Jordan Smith, Tony Hughes, Martha Brown, Michelle Byars, John Honeycutt and Geraud Staton.

The fantasy comedy written by a Tony Award-winning playwright is a modern day fairy tale that follows the "whirlwind courtship and storybook wedding, a young couple's life abruptly changed by a mysterious elderly man's kiss."

The production runs for three weekends. For schedule and ticket information, visit www.ghostandspice.com. Later this spring, Ghost Spice will tackle David Mamet's "Boston Marriage," also to be performed at Common Ground Theatre, 4815B Hillsborough Road, Durham. www.cgtheatre.org.

In Chapel Hill, PlayMakers Repertory Company has recharged after their epic undertaking of Charles Dickens' "Nicholas Nickleby" and returns with Arthur Miller's "All My Sons" on Jan. 27. It's the World War II era story of how a father's business decision raises questions of moral responsibility. But first, PlayMakers' second stage series, PRC2, will show "The Big Bang" by Universes Jan. 13-17.

In March, PlayMakers will perform Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest." For a full schedule and details, visit www.playmakersrep.org. Main stage productions are performed in the Paul Green Theatre at the UNC Center for Dramatic Art.

Also in Chapel Hill, Deep Dish Theater in University Mall will also perform an Oscar Wilde work, "An Ideal Husband," in February. The satire is about a politician being blackmailed by a former lover. Deep Dish pairs its theatrical works with a corresponding book, and for this play it is John Updike's "Couples." A book discussion will be held prior to the March 4 performance of "An Ideal Husband." Tony Lea directs.

Also this spring, Deep Dish will present "Body Awareness" by Annie Baker and directed by Paul Frellick. Opening in late April, the recent off-Broadway hit by a new playwright is about "an unconventional family that wrestles with a grown son's sexual awakening and an unwanted diagnosis in this gentle comedy."

For details about Deep Dish Theater, 201 S. Estes Dr., Chapel Hill, visit www.deepdishtheater.org.

In Durham, Manbites Dog Theater, 703 Foster St., will present "Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom" by Jennifer Haley beginning Feb. 18. Jeff Storer directs this regional premiere, described as "lines blur between reality and fantasy, and fear takes on a life of its own when kids in a suburban neighborhood become immersed in a sinister online game."

In April, Hillsborough author Allan Gurganus' "Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All" gets yet another new approach with the regional premiere of the theatrical adaptation, "Oldest Living Confederate Widow: Her Confession." Jane Holding portrays Lucille Marsden. Directed by Katja Hill.

For information, visit www.manbitesdogtheater.org.

Now back to the big name event flying into Durham in mid-April: "Wicked" the Broadway musical at the Durham Performing Arts Center. "The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz" will feature Marci Dodd as Elphaba and Helene York as Glinda in the play based on Gregory Maguire's novel that topples what we thought we knew of the Wicked Witch of the West from "The Wizard of Oz." Tickets go on sale Jan. 15. The show runs from April 21 through May 16.

A "Wicked" producer has already checked out DPAC when special guests were given a "Wicked" preview just before Halloween. DPAC has promoted the show even before the facility was completed. Expect sold out shows and audiences eager to reconsider the root of good and evil.

The rest of the Broadway shows this spring season at DPAC, appealing to a broad range of tastes, are "Mama Mia!" Jan. 26-31, "Spring Awakening" March 2-7, "The Color Purple" for a return engagement May 25-30, and "Disney's Beauty and the Beast" June 8-15. For ticket information, visit www.dpacnc.com.