Let’s make a deal

Would you make a deal with the devil—trading your immortal soul to achieve supreme knowledge and power here on Earth? That’s the proposition that drives Doctor Faustus, written by Shakespeare’s great rival, Christopher Marlowe. It’s a wild story with supernatural elements—seldom produced by commercial theaters nowadays. At the helm of this UC Davis production will be veteran British director William Gaskill, who’s worked with the likes of Sir Laurence Olivier, Alec Guinness and Maggie Smith over a career that’s covered five decades. Costumes will be by Maggie Morgan—a one-time theater critic for the Cal Aggie (the UC Davis student newspaper) who has gone on to design costumes for the Pasadena Playhouse, Mark Taper Forum and films ranging from Apollo 13 to Men in Black and The Grinch. Plays 8 p.m. in the Wyatt Pavilion Theatre (which resembles old English theaters) at UC Davis Thursday, Friday, Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. $6-$11. (530) 752-1915.