MIDDLETOWN - In the unlikely event that you’ve been living in a cave somewhere where there is no news, you’ve most likely heard about the musical The Book of Mormon right?

       It’s the hottest show that I can ever remember, with tickets in New York City selling for crazy amounts of money and with a wait for good seats for close to a year. And the tour that started over a year ago sells out in hours wherever it hits. It’s crazy, I know. Friends of mine have told me how their uncle or brother or neighbor saw the show and either loved it like mad or was so angered by the language and tone of the show they walked out. One lady I met at a party told me she’s been going to the theater for close to half a century and cannot remember any show that has this much buzz about it and a show with so much foul language and offensive spirit.

       Having been going to the theater all of my life, starting around age 16 or so, I can remember when a good seat in the orchestra for a popular show was under $10. Today, with premium seating and all, I know friends who have seen this show on Broadway and paid close to $1,000 for a pair of tickets. I wouldn’t do that, so, like many of us, we wait until the touring company comes to town and, behold, it’s coming in late March. For the New York Times to write that this is the best musical of the century is pretty major stuff even, though the century is only 14 years old. For more information, visit www.bushnell.org .

       In the musical, Mormon missionaries going to their second favorite spot, Uganda, and try to persuade the people there to embrace the Mormon life. It proves to not be an easy task, as they question their devotion to their faith while being confronted with a warlord who wants them out!

       Well, if the edgy, pushing-the-limits Book of Mormon is just not for you (and many of us just don’t enjoy being pushed in the theater), there are a few great productions coming our way at The Hartford Stage this spring.

       I’ve circled two on my calendar as not to miss. The first one is Somewhere and when you hear that you probably immediately think of West Side Story--and you’d be right. This dance-filled family saga takes place in 1959, when West Side Story is storming Broadway and with a terrific movie version in the works. It fuels the showbusiness dreams of Inez Candelaria, who works as an usher but hopes that her children will succeed on the other side of the footlights. Somewhere had its world premier at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego a few years ago and was well-received. Beautifully acted and with great imagination, this work shows tons of passion and promise. Now coming to Hartford, I suggest if you’re a fan of West Side Story, as I am, not to miss this. Somewhere comes to Hartford Stage April 3-27.

       Closing out the season will be a new entry, the 2013 Tony Award winner for best play, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, written by comic genius Christopher Durang. This wildly funny farce, about a self-absorbed movie star with her twenty-something boy-toy in tow who returns to the family farmhouse to visit her brother and sister, is a gem. What should be a lovely family reunion quickly turns into a free-for-all. There is good reason that this won the Tony for best play. It’s genius writing and, really, isn’t that what a good play or musical is all about?

       Again, this is circled on my calendar, playing at the Hartford Stage from May 22-June 15. Visit www.bushnell.org for more information and tickets.

       Questions, comments? Jeffrey LaGrange can be reached at jefflagrange@yahoo.com .