Monday, March 25, 2019

'Angels' is stirring and strange in second part of epic play at Cygnet Theatre by James Hebert

'Perestroika' probes spirituality and human struggle as Tony Kushner masterwork concludes

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 06:06PM
Sunday, March 24, 2019

Spring arts 2019 | Top music picks in San Diego: Gary Clark Jr., Chris Thile, Morgan James, Father John Misty and more by George Varga

Spring in San Diego means more music in more venues, as the outdoor concert season gets under way. Morgan James Broadway vocal veteran James, 27, shines whether doing original numbers or put…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 08:00AM

Spring arts 2019 | Theater: Catching up with actress Monique Gaffney by James Hebert

The plays of Lynn Nottage have a way of taking on huge and difficult topics and distilling them into intimate, gritty and deeply authentic stories of individual lives in turmoil. They shy fr…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 08:00AM

Spring arts 2019 | Top theater picks in San Diego: 'Sweat,' 'Cats,' 'Babette's Feast,' 'Pride and Prejudice' and more by James Hebert

From “Cats” to Jane Austen to people in space — but not, alas, “Cats” in space — San Diego’s spring theater scene has a little bit of everything. Old Globe Theatre: "They Promi…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 08:00AM
Thursday, March 21, 2019

Tour celebrates the legacy of Alvin Ailey, whose dance company turns 60 this year by Marcia Manna

Robert Battle likens the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s diverse repertory to a buffet of delicious dance offerings. The company is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a San Diego t…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 01:00PM
Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Two decades after its off-Broadway debut, 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' rocks back into San Diego at Diversionary Theatre by James Hebert

For an “internationally ignored song stylist,” the one and only Hedwig Robinson is flirting awfully close to fame these days. (And Hedwig does love to flirt.) The wisecracking, gender-fl…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 06:50PM
Sunday, March 17, 2019

'Carmen' star finds the smart, seductive in her opera character by Pam Kragen

Besides being one of the most beloved operas in history, Georges Bizet’s “Carmen” has another international distinction. It’s also widely accepted as one of the best operas for a fir…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 08:00AM
Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Diving into 'Spamalot' with the Lady of the Lake, as road production of show heads to Escondido by James Hebert

Musical theater is rich with memorable and stirring sentiments: “No day but today.” “I could have danced all night.” “There’s a place for us.” And, of course: “Supreme execut…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 10:00PM
Monday, March 11, 2019

'Angels' resonates in compelling, sharply acted revival at Cygnet Theatre by James Hebert

The world as it was — the world of 1985, when “Angels of America” begins — could hardly have imagined the news of 2019: Last week, it was announced that for the second time in histor…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:40PM
Sunday, March 10, 2019

Gordon Lightfoot, on tour at 80, muses about music, life and hula hoops by George Varga

Hula hoops are not the first thing most fans associate with Gordon Lightfoot, the veteran Canadian singer-songwriter best known for writing and singing such hit songs as “Sundown,” “If…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 10:05AM

San Diego Rep announces world-premiere musical, new Herbert Siguenza comedy and more for 2019-20 season by James Hebert

As San Diego Repertory Theatre announces its 2019-20 season — the company’s 44th — the downtown institution also is tweaking its mission statement, putting extra emphasis on such words…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 09:00AM
Saturday, March 9, 2019

Elite ballet students compete for chance to make it big in world of dance by Jennifer Van Grove

With the who’s who of the ballet world gathered at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido, parents Saturday were seemingly more on edge than their talented offspring. That’s bec…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:20PM

San Diego Opera's 'Three Decembers' both intimate and epic in scope by Pam Kragen

In the opening scene of Jake Heggie’s chamber opera “Three Decembers,” the seemingly pedestrian subject matter, lengthy plot exposition via long-distance phone call and unmelodic recit…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 02:30PM
Friday, March 8, 2019

A Canadian playwright's story of family and loss finds a home at the Old Globe with U.S. premiere of 'Life After' by James Hebert

“Sometimes people leave you / Halfway through the wood.” – “No One is Alone,” from “Into the Woods” In the fall of 1986, the musical “Into the Woods” had its world premiere…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 04:05PM
Tuesday, March 5, 2019

Joffrey Ballet heads west as part of La Jolla Music Society's Dance Series by Marcia Manna

When the Joffrey Ballet performs “Beyond the Shore,” a dance created by choreographer and ballet master Nicolas Blanc, the audience is invited to witness a daring journey through an ever…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 08:00PM
Monday, March 4, 2019

La Jolla Playhouse's world-premiere musical 'Diana' is witty and provocative but rushes past its subject by James Hebert

If you’re feeling protective of the British royal family, prepare to clutch your pearls. (If you’re a member of the British royal family, have someone clutch them for you.) The world-pre…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 04:50PM
Friday, March 1, 2019

La Jolla Playhouse's 'Diana' is in the news — and about to take the stage by James Hebert

Princess Diana died nearly 22 years ago, and yet in some sense she has never left: Search her name online and you’ll get a daily stream of “news” stories with such headlines as “Did …

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 07:10PM
Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Epic 'Angels in America' winging in to Cygnet Theatre for first major San Diego production in years by James Hebert

Heartbreaking, thought-provoking, brilliantly unique: Those are some of the descriptions that come to Sean Murray’s mind when he talks about “Angels in America,” the playwright Tony Ku…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:35PM
Saturday, February 23, 2019

'Aladdin' a splashy spectacle in hit Broadway musical's first visit to San Diego by James Hebert

The Broadway musical “Aladdin” may trace its DNA to the Disney movie universe, but this show’s beating heart resides in a mystical desert city of rare fortunes, exotic entertainments a…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 03:00PM
Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Wartime story 'Gabriel' gets its West Coast premiere at North Coast Rep by James Hebert

North Coast Rep stages the West Coast premiere of “Gabriel,” Moira Buffini’s wartime drama about a mystery man who washes up on a Nazi-occupied British isle in 1943; the play chronicle…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 06:30PM

Broadway wishes keep coming true for San Diego-bred director Casey Nicholaw, as touring 'Aladdin' arrives in town for first time by James Hebert

There’s something Casey Nicholaw would like to say about “Aladdin,” and it may come as no surprise: This musical is not “A Long Day’s Journey Into Night.” “It’s just extravag…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 04:00PM
Tuesday, February 19, 2019

Finding 'Diana' in La Jolla Playhouse's much-anticipated new musical about a late, beloved princess by James Hebert

It can be hard now to separate memories of Princess Diana’s life from the sad story of her passing, at age 36 in a 1997 Paris car accident. Even the song most associated with the much-love…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 07:30PM
Friday, February 15, 2019

Hershey Felder brings 'Beethoven' to San Diego Rep, a decade after its world premiere here by James Hebert

Coursing through Hershey Felder’s solo stage exploration of the life and legacy of Beethoven is an odd little mystery — one involving the great composer’s bones, which were dug up in t…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:40PM
Thursday, February 14, 2019

'Dear Evan Hansen,' La Jolla Playhouse-launched 'Come From Away' heading to San Diego in 2019-20 Broadway/San Diego touring season by James Hebert

If you’re a San Diego-based fan of Broadway’s new wave of musicals, it’s a good bet you will be found at the Civic Theatre come next winter. That’s when the hit show “Dear Evan Han…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 03:42PM

Latin music drives San Diego Ballet's passion-packed 'Ritmos Latinos' at Lyceum Theatre by Marcia Manna

On a recent trip to Paris, against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower, Adam Bloodgood got down on one knee and proposed to Isabelle Overstreet. The newly engaged couple, both classical dancers…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 07:00AM
Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Shows at Old Globe, Lamb's Players Theatre earn top honors in annual Craig Noel Awards by James Hebert

A pair of shows staged in 2018 by the Old Globe and Lamb’s Players Theatre shared top honors at the 17th annual Craig Noel Awards on Monday night. The Globe production of the play “A Tho…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 06:30PM
Monday, February 11, 2019

Diversionary Theatre's 'Hour of Great Mercy' finds a quiet grace amid tragedy in Alaska by James Hebert

And you thought global warming was enough of a worry: Near the start of Miranda Rose Hall’s big-hearted new play “The Hour of Great Mercy,” a folksy radio host named Roger has a meltdo…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:30PM
Sunday, February 10, 2019

San Diego Theatre Week offers performing-arts deals as it returns for a fourth edition by James Hebert

Three years ago, San Diego Theatre Week launched with an idea modeled after the popular Restaurant Week: Offer special deals to bring people through the doors and, with luck, turn them into …

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:30PM
Friday, February 8, 2019

Old Globe Theatre's 'Tiny Beautiful Things' brings the wisdom and heartache of 'Dear Sugar' to the stage by James Hebert

Advice columns. We all know how they go. Someone writes in, agonizing over a problem. Someone else replies with tips and admonitions and maybe a little pat on the head. Then — on to the ne…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 11:20AM
Sunday, February 3, 2019

San Diego Musical Theatre opens 12th season with a rollicking 'Crazy for You' by David L. Coddon

With a flimsy storyline amounting to little more than an evocation of the old Mickey Rooney-Judy Garland “Let’s put on a show!” films of the ’30s wrapped around a love story, “Craz…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 05:45PM

Joni Mitchell 75th birthday concert screens Thursday at 6 San Diego theaters by George Varga

The stars were out in force to salute Joni Mitchell in music and words at the two sold-out 75th birthday concerts in her honor last November at the Los Angeles Music Music Center. The second…

SOURCE: The San Diego Union-Tribune at 12:30PM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards