The Twenties Roar Again

America may not have given birth to Bach, Mozart or Beethoven, but the works that make up the enduring Great American Songbook have gone on to become our classical music. Chief among its composers are George and Ira Gershwin, and in 2012 a new musical packed with the brothers' most instantly recognizable tunes, including "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off," "'S Wonderful" and "I've Got a Crush on You," took Broadway by storm. Set smack dab in the thick of the Roaring Twenties' Prohibition era, Nice Work If You Can Get It sings and dances its way through the screwball story of a soon-to-be-married womanizer who falls head over heels for a spunky bootlegger looking to hide 400 cases of gin. Nice Work If You Can Get It is performed at 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday (October 10 through 12) at the Peabody Opera House (Fourteenth and Market streets; 314-241-1888 or www.peabodyoperahouse.com). Tickets are $27 to $82.
Fri., Oct. 10, 8 p.m.; Sat., Oct. 11, 2 & 8 p.m.; Sun., Oct. 12, 1 & 6:30 p.m., 2014