THEATER
Gene Tunney was not only the heavyweight champion of the world, he was a World War I Marine, a successful businessman, and a college professor. And he was an avid Shakespeare buff, settling down with the Bard before each fight, a practice he credits for his defeat of Jack Dempsey in the 1927 World Heavyweight Championship title fight. Tunney later went on to teach Shakespeare at Yale. Playwright David E. Lane's new "Tunney/Shakespeare in Six Rounds" mines this fascinating connection in a one-man show being given its world premiere by Merrimack Repertory Theatre. Stage veteran Jack Wetherall stars as the provocative boxer. 8 p.m. $26-$56. Merrimack Repertory Theatre, 50 E. Merrimack St., Lowell. 978-654-4678. merrimackrep.org
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