The Time of Your Life, by William Saroyan, is a journey back to October, 1939--one that is sometimes sentimental, but nearly always absorbing. One character after another wanders in to Nick's Pacific Street Saloon, Restaurant and Entertainment Palace, each with his or her own memories, hopes, disappointments, etc. The play is certainly dated, but that's part of its charm. And this production sets the right tone, with a set that could serve as a museum model for a down-and-out bar in 1939. At the Loeb tonight and tomorrow and Monday through Saturday at 8 p.m., except Saturdays at 5 and 9. Tickets are $5.50 and $6.50 for normal people, $1 less for Harvard affiliates, and $3.75 for students who get there half an hour before showtime.

The Sometime Friend is a new play by a Boston playwright, Lealie Hurley, and has a local setting. Two friends bump into each other, a common situation around here, and--another common situation--one of them can't place the other. In the course of trying to figure out just who one of these people is, the play explores all the different personas he has adopted, concentrating heavily on the lost idealism of the 60s. Presented by the People's Theatre of Cambridge, 1253 Cambridge St. In human square, performances through August 31, Friday and Sunday at 7:30 and Saturday at 6 and 9. Tickets are $2.50. Call 354-9466 for reservations.

Spaced is, as the name suggests, a "futuristic experience." At the Newbury St. Theatre, Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury St. In Boston, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Call 723-9475 if you want to know more.