947 stories by "James Hebert"
London may have its Changing of the Guard, but San Diego has its own tradition of grand transition: The Conferral of the Fur. That would be the shaggy green getup that graces the title chara…
We'll have to take playwright Ernest Thompson's word for it that the pond in the title of his most famous work is, in fact, golden; we see only a glimpse of its shores through the windows of…
Donna Summer ruled disco " and, for a time nearly four decades ago, the pop-music universe. Not everyone, of course, was wild about the dance-minded style that Summer helped turn into a defi…
Musical theater and horror flicks just go together like tap-dancing and chainsaw maniacs. (Or something.) And they've been going together for nearly 15 years now with "Evil Dead " The Musica…
There's a moment in North Coast Rep's arresting "Of Mice and Men" where George Milton details to his pal Lennie Small the dream of someday tending a ranch of their own. As George speaks, he …
"Hamilton" fans, here comes your shot.The smash-hit Broadway musical's touring presenter has just announced that tickets to the show's much-anticipated Jan. 6-28 engagement at the San Diego …
Dr. Seuss, Mr. Shakespeare and some budding playwright named Neil Simon make for the dynamic (if unlikely) trio behind the Old Globe Theatre's just-announced 2018 summer season. The four-pla…
It seems safe to say that "Diana, The Musical" may be the only Patio Playhouse show this year to be name-dropped by the New York Daily News. The play, which opens Friday (Oct. 20) at the Esc…
Sometimes a creative work can become so familiar that what made it vital in the first place is obscured by the kind of cultural shorthand it acquires. That might be the case with the classic…
Caleb Foote says it was fate that led him to the lead role in the local premiere of everyone's favorite Broadway play about a potty-mouthed, chaos-causing puppet. But you have to wonder if t…
Words of wisdom are where you find them " and for a failed Elvis impersonator turned fledgling Florida drag queen named Casey, they issue from the ruby-red lips of a high-heeled, wisecrackin…
When it comes to "Smoke on the Mountain," there's mileage on the musical: Lamb's Players Theatre is staging Connie Ray's charmingly down-home show for the seventh time since its West Coast p…
Site-specific performance, immersive drama, interactive art: It's tough to find one label that fits the riot of creativity that is La Jolla Playhouse's Without Walls Festival. But new festiv…
To bee or not to bee? Six kids go into linguistic battle in "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," the musical comedy from composer-lyricist Bill Finn and writer Rachel Sheinkin, whos…
Over the past couple of years, Jennifer Paredes has made an indelible mark as not only of San Diego's most-sought after young actors, but one of its most fearless. Paredes has played a sever…
And now, put your hands together for "Almost Like Praying." In case you haven't checked it out yet: "Hamilton" and "In the Heights" creator Lin-Manuel Miranda's song to benefit Puerto Rico d…
Leonard Pelkey is gone. Leonard Pelkey is everywhere. In the playwright-actor James Lecesne's quietly moving solo show about a missing teen-ager, a few motley objects " a backpack, a broken …
Broadway has come calling, and Jason Mraz's answer is: "I'm yours."The Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter-guitarist, who launched his career in San Diego's coffeehouse scene, has announc…
Here's some of what's coming up on the San Diego performing-arts scene for October: 10.6-11.19: "Smoke on the Mountain" Down-home and up-tempo and folksy all over: Lamb's dusts off this much…
Here's some of what's coming up on the San Diego performing-arts scene for October: Down-home and up-tempo and folksy all over: Lamb's dusts off this much-revived musical about the fictional…
More than 150 years after the Civil War ended, America still seems to be fighting that bloody conflict's battles, over and over again.Confederate monuments remain flash points of this countr…
From a puppet-centric Broadway hit to a world-premiere musical about a disco diva, here are some promising shows to look for on San Diego stages this season. "Father Comes Home From the Wars…
Some of Edred Utomi's fondest memories of growing up revolve around two musicals: "The Sound of Music," and the South African-made "Ipi Ntombi," a huge favorite of his dad's. Long before he …
The title of the Jordan Seavey play now hitting the stage at Diversionary Theatre is an eye-catching one " not just for its loaded first word but for the questions the rest of it raises abou…
Karen Hartman was just 16 and a San Diego high-school student when her first play was produced, but she already had some strong ideas about the power of theater. "A play can be a more accura…
