Marin Theatre Company’s production of Harold Pinter’s Betrayal, directed by Carey Perloff, is exsemplary. Emma-Liz sklar and Robert-Charlie Semine Photos by David Allen Walking into the Marin Theare Company’s production, one could feel that the set is already speaking. White window frames and doors rise over the stage, tilted and stacked, as if someone took … Read more
Oakland Theater Project’s Orpheus Descending by Tennessee Williams touches on our deepest human vulnerabilities. Through Will Detlefsen’s perceptive direction, we see a world unfold fractured by racism, prejudice, bigotry, and social confinement. Sam Fehr’s focused set—a dry-goods store in a repressed Southern town—reflects the community’s narrow world, while drawing the audience into the emotional lives … Read more
Lauren Sutton-Beattie, Julianne Bretan, Jane Harrington Novato Theater Company’s fun-filled Mamma Mia!, written by Catherine Johnson, is a much-needed reprieve from the cacophony that surrounds us. Joyful, energetic, and warmly nostalgic, the production sweeps us into a world where music, friendship, romance, and laughter triumphs everything. Creative direction by Lisa Morse keeps the story moving … Read more
(Jean) Susan Koozin, (Irving) Victor Talmadge, (Larry) Daniel Cantor By Patricia L. Morin Award-winning Marin Theatre beautifully presents the West Coast premiere of Pictures From Home. This play is an incisive and deeply moving work by acclaimed playwright Sharr White. Adapted from the celebrated photo memoir of renowned Marin photographer Larry Sultan, the play slips … Read more
Neil Simon’s Humor Unfolds The Folly of Misunderstandings by Patricia L. Morin In a world filled with adversity, and fear, along with natural disasters and nuclear threats, swimming in a sea of hilarity offers the perfect relief. A short holiday relief that stops the outside world from invading. Set Designer Clinton Vidal’s masterpiece set is a … Read more
Dean Linnard as René Gallimard San Francisco Playhouse’s magnificent revival of playwright David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly upends Puccini’s culturally antiquated opera, Madame Butterfly. Director Bridgette Loriaux’s precise direction and elegant choreography enhance the psychological depth in this strikingly physical production, allowing the emotional undercurrents to surface with clarity and force. Both Madame Butterfly and … Read more
In the heart of San Francisco’s Crossing at East Cut—211 Beale Street at Howard—surrounded by apartments and bustling city life a joyous wonderland springs to life. Circus Bella’s Starlight transforms the urban landscape into a space of shared delight. Guided by ringmaster, director, and producer Abigail Munn, who proclaims, “When your community comes together, magic … Read more
Ensemble dancers Oakland Theater Project’s mind-blowing Cabaret pulls us from Berlin’s infamous 1930s Kit Kat Klub into present-day bedlam. Writer Christopher Isherwood’s subtle, illicit refuge from a rising political storm evolves under Director Erika Chong Shuch’s fearless and creative direction. The frenetic immersion into the chaos grows just outside our doors. We aren’t simply watching … Read more
Ensemble Marin Theatre’s Sally & Tom, written by Suzan-Lori Parks, delivers a sharp, incisive, and daring exploration of how America chooses to remember its history. Under the insightful direction of Artistic Director Lance Gardner, this play-within-a-play moves seamlessly between the 18th century and the present day. Innovative set design highlights each shift in time. Scrolling … Read more
Allison Gamlen (Karen), Allan Kropp (Lloyd), Anna Kosiarek (Eve), Sindu Singh (Margo), Dan Allen (Clement) Altarena Playhouse’s intriguing production of The Wisdom of Eve written by Mary Orr, lures us eagerly back into the addictive world of the soap opera. Under the imaginative direction of award-winner Kimberly Ridgeway, the play is instantly absorbing. We witness … Read more
Chanel Tilghman (Mariah), Zoe Chien (Annabel) Central Works’ ingenious Dada Teen Musical: A Play, written by Maury Zeff, intertwines absurdist theatre with modern American politics. Keenly directed by Gary Graves, we are instantly introduced to four stereotypical characters whose normal school day turns chaotic. The plot follows ambitious Annabel (Zoe Chien), who is manipulating her Harvard … Read more
Mark Shephard, Michael Sally, Ezra Hernandez, Ashley Jaye, Ted Bigornia, Natalie Hawkins, Anna Gilbert, Parker Soughers The Fantasticks, the longest continuously running Broadway musical, teams up with Benicia Old Town’s oldest continuously running California theatre group for an enchanting coming-of-age revival. The show delights from its opening, heart-warming “Try to Remember” to its final nostalgic … Read more
Bethany Cox (Doralee) , Andrea “Andee” Thorpe (Violet) & Lauren Sutton-Beattie (Judy). Photo by Marilyn Izdebski. Novato Theater Company delivers a fast-paced, vibrant, top-grade production of “9 to 5,” adapted from the 1980 film. With music and lyrics by the dynamic Dolly Parton and book by Playwright Patricia Resnick, the songs surpass the flimsy plot. … Read more
The Oakland Theatre Project production of Hamlet, directed by exceptional Michael Socrates Moran at the Marin Shakespeare Theatre, astounds. The play offers an unparalleled, in-depth exploration of the Hamlet’s existential angst, focusing on “every nuisance of every emotion” and spotlighting Hamlet’s powerfully profound question —”Who am I outside of my father’s murderer executioner.” Dean Linnard’s extraordinary … Read more
Mrs Pearce (Heather Orth), Colonel Pickering (Brady Morale-Woolery), Eliza (Jillian A. Smith). Henry Higgins (Adam Magill) San Francisco Playhouse delivers a masterful production of George Bernard Shaw’s My Fair Lady, dazzling the audience with exceptional acting, music, and design. Set Designer Nina Ball stuns with 1930s-inspired sets—a stately sitting room with bar and spiral staircase, … Read more