All stories by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Coronavirus: What can a Bay Area theater lover watch when there’s no theater? Plenty by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Bay Area stages are dark, but you can catch a wide variety of theater productions via streaming -- here's a rundown.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 01:30PM
Friday, March 13, 2020

Review: Masterful ‘Mangos’ at Magic Theatre in SF forced to cut run short by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Magic Theatre's world preview of Ricardo Pérez González's brilliant 'Don't Eat the Mangos' SF must close March 13 due to COVID-19 fears.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 10:45AM
Monday, March 9, 2020

Custom Made Theatre in SF debuts feminist farce ‘Lady Scribblers’ by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Custom Made Theatre in SF unveils the comedy 'Lady Scribblers,' about the dicey conditions women playwrights faced in 17th-century England.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:00PM
Monday, March 2, 2020

Review: Culture Clash’s satire at Berkeley Rep is razor sharp by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Bay Area-founded Culture Clash has brought its incisive satire back to Berkeley Rep with funny and sharp (Still) in America'

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 05:09PM
Friday, February 21, 2020

Octavio Solis’ personal coming-of-age stories come alive on SF Stage by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Famed playwright Octavio Solis' deeply personal book of stories, "Retablos," will be performed by Word for Word theater troupe in S.F.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 03:05PM
Friday, February 14, 2020

Review: Epic theater sensation ‘Gatz’ lands at Berkeley Rep by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Elevator Repair Service brings its astounding stage hit 'Gatz' -- a unlikely retelling of 'The Great Gatsby' -- to Berkeley Rep's Roda Theatre.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:59PM
Friday, January 31, 2020

Review: ‘Devil’s Music’ at Center Rep captures Bessie Smith’s talent, swagger by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

'Devil's Music' captures Bessie Smith's raw talent and swagger in production by Center Rep in Walnut Creek.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:06PM
Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Review: Dynamic ‘West Side Story’ hits home in Pleasanton by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Pacific Coast Repertory Theatre stages a lively 'West Side Story' revival that subtlety acknowledges the racism, misogyny that occurs on stage.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 04:25PM
Monday, January 27, 2020

‘Veep’s’ Tony Hale returns to stage for quirky ‘Wakey, Wakey’ in SF by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Tony Hale, best known for starring in TV's "Arrested Development" and "Veep," comes to ACT in S.F. to star in "Wakey, Wakey."

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 05:28PM
Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Review: Powerful ‘Pianist of Willesden Lane’ returns to Bay Area by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

TheatreWorks presents Mona Golabek's Holocaust-themed "Pianist of Willesden Lane," a triumph of storytelling and piano playing.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 05:04PM

Review: Sarah Ruhl farce ‘Stage Kiss’ charms at City Lights in San Jose by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Sarah Ruhl's comedy "Stage Kiss" is a play within a play within a play, and it succeeds at all levels at City Lights Theater in San Jose.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 03:41PM
Friday, January 17, 2020

Review: ‘She Kills Monsters’ in Berkeley is a huge, geeky triumph by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Qui Nguyen's play "She Kills Monsters" pairs a 'Dungeons and Dragons'-themed story with '90s pop culture in a massively entertaining show in Berkeley.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:54PM
Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Unsettling stage show ‘Nether’ opens in Redwood City by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Jennifer Hayley's play about the creepy, dark underside of an AI system opens at Dragon Productions Theatre Company in Redwood City.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 01:30PM
Tuesday, January 14, 2020

New Oakland arts center emerging in most unusual spot by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

With Oakland arts center the Flight Deck set to close soon, the Flax Art & Design store is emerging a potential performance site.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 01:00PM
Friday, January 10, 2020

Three’s a crowd? 2 plays on polyamory land in SF theaters by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

'PolySHAMory' by Kate Robards plays The Marsh and 'How to Transcend a Happy Marriage' by Sarah Ruhl plays at Custom Made Theatre.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 03:36PM
Friday, December 27, 2019

Review: Caryl Churchill’s witch-hunt play in Berkeley couldn’t be timelier by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Caryl Churchill's powerful witch-hunt drama "Vinegar Tom," playing at Berkeley's Ashby Stage, speaks to the current political climate.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:11PM
Monday, December 23, 2019

Unique Derique lovable clown show ‘Fool La La’ back in Berkeley by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Unique Derique's "Fool La La" clown blends gentle humor with circus tricks, magic and other fun; it's playing at The Marsh Berkeley.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 01:00PM
Friday, December 20, 2019

Review: ‘Groundhog Day’ musical in SF a snarky holiday treat by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Yes, "Groundhog Day the Musical," getting its Bay Area premiere at SF Playhouse, is a worthy holiday show.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 03:05PM
Tuesday, December 17, 2019

2019 was a bold year for Bay Area theater — here’s the best of what we saw by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Cal Shakes, Shotgun Players, Marin Theatre Company, Berkeley Rep and ACT delivered some of the best Bay Area stage productions we saw in 2019.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 04:22PM

Quantum Dragon presents an AI comedy of manners in SF by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Quantum Dragon in SF performs the West Coast premiere of a futuristic sci-fi comedy of manners, 'An Invitation Out.'

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:00PM

Sarah Ruhl back at Berkeley Rep with ‘Becky Nurse,’ a Salem witch trial comedy by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Prize-winning playwright Sarah Ruhl returns to Berkeley Rep with "Beck Nurse," a comedy inspired by the Salem witch trials.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 11:45AM
Monday, December 9, 2019

Review: Austen’s ‘Pride & Prejudice’ now a so-so new musical in Palo Alto by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's world premiere of a musical adapted from Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice' needs better songs.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 03:03PM
Friday, December 6, 2019

Go-Go’s musical ‘Head Over Heels’ back in SF in time for holidays by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

"Head Over Heels," which marries Go-Go's tunes to a silly Elizabethan story line, comes to New Conservatory Theatre in SF for a holiday run.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:54PM
Thursday, December 5, 2019

Bay Area icon Josh Kornbluth performs greatest hits — for charity by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Bay Area monologist Josh Kornbluth is performing three of his best-known solo shows in Berkeley to benefit TheatreFirst stage company.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 06:46PM
Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Family turmoil powerfully captured in ‘The Humans’ in San Jose by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

'The Humans,' Stephen Karam's prize-winning portrait of a struggling family, gets strong staging at San Jose Stage Company.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 06:04PM

‘Mahabharata’: World’s longest poem becomes a brisk Oakland stage show by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Bay Area playwright Geetha Reddy adapted epic Indian poem "The Mahabharata" into a brisk solo show for Ubuntu Theater in Oakland.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:28PM
Monday, December 2, 2019

Poe’s ‘Tell-Tale Heart’ gets hip-hop makeover at Berkeley’s Aurora Theatre by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Berkeley's Aurora Theatre hosts Phil Wong and Dan Wolf's "Tell Tale Hearts," a hip-hop take on the Edgar Allan Poe classic horror tale.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:00PM
Tuesday, November 26, 2019

New Musical ‘Tale of Despereaux’ delights at Berkeley Rep by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Based on the award-winning kids book, 'Tales of Despereaux' at Berkeley Rep charms as a family friendly holiday show.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 06:49PM

Caryl Churchill’s famed time-skipping play ‘Cloud 9’ lands in SF by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Caryl Churchill's time-traveling 'Cloud 9' tackles hot-button issues in unusual ways; it plays at Custom Made Theatre in S.F. through Dec. 15.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 01:23PM
Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Flight Deck arts venue in Oakland faces uncertain future by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

Flight Deck performing arts space in Oakland will close in March after Ragged Wing Ensemble moves out -- unless someone takes it over.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 03:53PM
Tuesday, November 12, 2019

You haven’t seen a ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ like this SF production by Sam Hurwitt, Correspondent

'Midsummer Night's Dream' gets a unique production by Arabian Shakespeare Festival in S.F.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 11:45AM

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