Things to do in Bay City this weekend: ‘The Crucible,’ a Halloween light show and a Rod Stewart tribute

BAY CITY, Mich. — Bay City Players opens Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” this weekend, leading a downtown lineup that also includes a Halloween music-and-light show under the planetarium dome, a free Great Lakes history program and a Rod Stewart tribute at the State Theatre.

‘The Crucible.’ The community theater at 1214 Columbus Ave. stages Miller’s 1953 drama Oct. 16–18 and Oct. 23–25. This weekend’s shows are at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday, according to the theater’s schedule. Tickets are $22 for adults and $12 for students. Kaeleigh Casavant directs the production, which is rated PG-13. The play centers on a Salem couple whom a spiteful servant accuses of witchcraft in 1692; Miller meant it as a parable of 1950s McCarthyism, the theater notes. The theater asks buyers to purchase only through its website or its ticketing agent. The box office number is 989-893-5555.

Monster Light Show. The Delta College Planetarium, 100 Center Ave., runs its Halloween show at 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17. Songs such as “Monster Mash,” “This Is Halloween” and “Thriller” play under 3D animation and light effects in the Dome360 Theatre, and some effects are performed live, planetarium manager Mike Murray said in the college’s announcement. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students, children 3 to 18, seniors and military members. The planetarium recommends buying ahead and says the show isn’t suited to children under 6.

Saving Great Lakes photos. The Saginaw River Marine Historical Society’s free monthly program runs from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday at Trinity Episcopal Church, 815 N. Grant St. Roger LeLievre, president of the Marine Historical Society of Detroit, and board members Nathan Leindecker and Matt Miner will describe their work digitizing donated collections of historic ship photos, including one the group says it rescued from a Dumpster. Use the Fifth Street entrance at the back of the church. Earlier, at 4 p.m., the society holds its annual memorial service at the USS Edson for Saginaw Valley men and women who died working on Great Lakes boats; the public is welcome.

Rod Stewart tribute. Canadian tribute artist Doug Varty brings “Young Hearts” to the State Theatre, 913 Washington Ave., from 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18, according to the theater’s ticket listing.

Sources:
Bay City Players, “The Crucible,” https://baycityplayers.org/pf/thecrucible/
Go Great Lakes Bay, “The Crucible - Evening Shows,” https://www.gogreat.com/events/the-crucible-evening-shows/
Delta College, “Halloween Music Light Show at the Delta Planetarium,” Sept. 24, 2026, https://www.delta.edu/news/2026-monster-lights-planetrium-pr.html
Saginaw River Marine Historical Society, “Upcoming Monthly Presentations,” https://saginawrivermhs.wixsite.com/srmhs/upcoming-monthly-presentations
State Theatre of Bay City (DICE Entertainment), “Young Hearts - A Rod Stewart Tribute,” Oct. 18, 2026, https://www.simpletix.com/e/young-hearts-a-rod-stewart-tribute-the-sta-tickets-288061
Photo: Chad Johnson, “State Theatre Bay City.jpg,” June 3, 2014, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/), cropped and color-adjusted, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:State_Theatre_Bay_City.jpg

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Tags: Bay City · Michigan Travel · Theater · Bay City Players · Delta College Planetarium · State Theatre