PRESCOTT – Lots of wild and crazy things happen when a group of cowboy poets, singers andASU Gammage has a secret. It’s a blockbuster; so after I tell you what it is, don’t pass it along. It needs to remain just between us.

Here it is:

Phoenix doesn’t empty out in summer. People remain here. And not just a few thousand. Lots of ‘em.

Surprised? I know I was. Of course, I'm still here in Phoenix–I can tell it’s Phoenix by the endless sweat pouring from my brow–but when I go driving, I find so few other cars on the road that I think, “Am I alone?” When I need to buy groceries or pump some gas for my lonely car, I have to search and search just to find a store or a gas station open. Phoenix, thriving from September to May, is a deserted desert from June through August.

Wait ... no, that’s not my view. I always get mine mixed up with that of the Valley’s performing arts organizations. For that must be what they think, seeing as the major theater companies, dance troupes and classical music organizations shut their doors at the end of every spring, not to open them again until September–or later.

ASU on the other hand has looked out its windows, seen the traffic jams and the crowded malls, and concluded there is ticket revenue to be had during the seemingly endless parade of 100‑degree‑plus days. Next month, ASU Gammage kick‑starts its 2007‑2008 season with three back‑to‑back musicals: one for kids, one for fans of classic shows, and one for pop music lovers.

“Go Diego Go! Live,” Aug. 1 ‑ 5, is based on what I have been assured is the well‑known kid’s television show, a spin‑off of “Dora the Explorer.” My own kids haven’t been young enough to enjoy this sort of thing for several years now, so I’m out of touch. I’m just grateful we got past the “Barney” stage. Anyway, Diego saves an animal in each of his TV episodes, and in the live theater version, a jaguar is the object of his rescue efforts.

“Sweet Charity” runs from Aug. 7 to Aug. 12, and features Paige Davis as the titular hooker with a heart of gold. (The star of TLC’s “Trading Spaces” replaces the previously announced Molly Ringwald.) The 1966 show was one of the last great traditional Broadway book shows, following on the heels of such blockbusters as “Hello Dolly” and “Funny Girl,” before the 1970s and Stephen Sondheim began a sea change in musical theater. The music by Cy Coleman is tuneful and intelligent, and the lyrics are by the incomparable Dorothy Fields. In her youth, Fields wrote the words for such hits as “On the Sunny Side of the Street.” She made a brave and successful comeback in her 60s for this show. “Hey Big Spender” is the score’s most famous song.

“Mamma Mia,” the ABBA‑based musical, runs from Aug. 21 ‑ 26. I haven’t seen it, but it’s reputedly one of the more successful shows to take pre‑written songs by a pop group and build a story around them. That story concerns a mother, a daughter, and three possible dads, who somehow end up singing all the ABBA hits you’ve ever wanted to hear. The great ‘70s English rock group Queen, on the other hand, recently had a show built around their songs, and it was almost universally decried as too far a stretch. Why didn’t the writers simply tell the story of Freddie Mercury’s life?

For more information on these shows and ASU Gammage's 2007‑2008 season, go to asugammage.com.

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The Kerr Cultural Center has all but disappeared from view. Just a few seasons ago, the cozy venue near Scottsdale’s Borgata was a thriving spot for a variety of music, from classical–exemplified by Close Encounters with Music–to New Age and jazz. The jazz more or less remains, with a few performances by the Jazz in Az folks this summer as testimony.

But as a quick look at asukerr.com will tell you, from August until mid‑November, the Kerr is no more than a social center for weddings and bar mitzvahs. Even after that, the schedule appears very wan, indeed.

It's sad. Louise Lincoln Kerr, whose home the Center once was, was a tireless champion of the arts, and while the Kerr has troubling sightlines and not the world’s best acoustics, it has been home to many fine performances by major artists. Should we look for the building to be sold soon?