• ‘The Grand Manner’: Pewter Plough Playhouse, Friday through Sept. 30. Inspired by playwright A.R. Gurney’s youthful encounter with actress Katharine Cornell, this backstage drama showcases Broadway’s golden age. ($15 Fridays, $18 to $20 Saturdays and Sundays)

• ‘Alice in Barbershop Land’: Clark Center for the Performing Arts, Saturday. Travel through Wonderland with Alice and her friends, the Central Coast Celebration Chorus, specializing in all-female barbershop harmony singing. ($20)

• Cuesta College Music Faculty Concert: Cuesta College Cultural and Performing Arts Center, Sept. 14. Join vocalist John Knutson, saxophonist Dave Becker and other faculty members for a fundraiser benefiting music scholarships. ($7 to $12)

• ‘Sheer-Luck Holmes’: Great American Melodrama & Vaudeville, Sept. 20 through Nov. 11. Hapless detective Sheer-Luck Holmes investigates a mystery involving Egyptian artifacts in this silly spoof. ($18 to $22)

• ‘Celebrated Classics’: Spanos Theatre, Cal Poly, Sept. 29. Join mezzo-soprano Jacalyn Kreitzer and other Cal Poly faculty members for an evening of music by the likes of Camille Saint-Saëns and Johannes Brahms. ($9 to $12)

• The Offspring: Avila Beach Golf Resort, Oct. 3. The Orange County punk band behind ’90s hits “Self Esteem,” “The Kids Aren’t Alright” and “Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)” performs with special guests Neon Trees and Dead Sara. ($35)

• San Luis Obispo Symphony: Cohan Center, Oct. 6. Joined by violinist David Kim, the symphony kicks off its “Classics in the Cohan” concert series with works by Dmitri Shostakovich, Ottorino Respighi and Johannes Brahms. ($20 to $75, on sale Friday)

• ‘That’s Entertainment!: A Decade of Follies’: Clark Center, Oct. 6 through 14. The Central Coast Follies’ 10th annual fundraiser benefitting Parkinson’s research features plenty of toe-tapping tunes from stage and screen. ($21 to $25)

• Doc Severinsen & The San Miguel Five: Cohan Center, Oct. 7. The octogenarian trumpeter, who spent about three decades as the bandleader on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson,” is back with a swinging selection of Latin rhythms and gypsy jazz. ($30 to $59)

• Fall Frenzy: Pozo Saloon, Oct. 7. DMX, Xzibit, Kendrick Lamar and 2 Chainz lead the list of hip-hop acts slated to perform outdoors at the historic Pozo Saloon. ($30 to $75)

• Arts for Autism Gala: Pavilion, Cal Poly, Oct. 13. This fundraiser for the Central Coast Autism Spectrum Center celebrates visual artists and performers on the autism spectrum. ($32)

• Pacifica Quartet: Spanos Theatre, Oct. 13. Known for its exuberant style and daring repertoire, the Grammy Awardwinning string quartet will present some of Ludwig van Beethoven’s best-loved work. ($36 to $45)

• Carville&Matalin: Cohan Center, Oct. 14. James Carville is a Democrat. His wife, Mary Matalin, is a Republican. No wonder this married pair of political pundits finds so much to talk about. ($21 to $110)

• United States Air Force Band and Singing Sergeants: Cohan Center, Oct. 15. A U.S. Air Force tradition since the 1940s, these two military ensembles perform everything from classical music and popular standards to patriotic songs. (Free)

• ‘8’: Spanos Theatre, Oct. 18. Local gay rights groups present a reading of “8,” a play by Academy Award-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black about the federal challenge to California’s Proposition 8. ($9 to $11)

• Alton Brown: Cohan Center, Oct. 26. America’s favorite food science buff has been serving up culinary savvy on The Food Network for nearly a decade. His TV credits include “Good Eats” and “Iron Chef America.” ($21 to $47)

• ‘The Sleeping Beauty’: Clark Center, Oct. 26. Recommended for ages kindergarten through fifth grade, this California Theatre Center production follows an enchanted princess whose kingdom is cursed by a fairy. ($8.75)