Now is the perfect time to take in a holiday show, or two, and plan for a new year of plays and musicals from some of San Diego’s most well respected theaters. From Shakespeare to Broadway’s finest, you certainly won’t be disappointed with this season’s theater offerings.
Heading north, New Village Arts in Carlsbad, Intrepid Shakespeare Company in Encinitas or North Coast Repertory in Solana Beach offer the following:
New Village Arts, 2787 State Street: Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings, Dec. 8-24, The Trip To Bountiful, Feb. 9-March 3, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, March 30-April 21 and Seascape, May 18-June 9.
Intrepid Shakespeare Company, 800 Santa Fe Drive: Hamlet, Jan. 26-Feb. 17. Oleanna, April 4-14.
North Coast Repertory, 987 Lomas Santa Fe Drive: Educating Rita, Jan. 9-Feb. 3, Time Stands Still, Feb. 20-March 17, The Odd Couple, April 10-May 5, Becoming Cuba, May 29-June 23, and Perfect Wedding, July 10-August 4.
All three of these theaters have a great line up and some of the best directors in town. Rosina Reynolds, Sean Cox, David Ellenstein, Kristianne Kurner, Glenn Paris are all slated to direct. Don’t miss out.
Closer to San Diego you’ll find The Old Globe, La Jolla Playhouse, Broadway San Diego, Cygnet Theatre, San Diego Repertory, Diversionary Theatre, Ion Theatre, Mo’ olelo Performing Arts Company, San Diego Music Theatre and the up and coming Circle Circle dot dot Theatre Company.
Broadway San Diego, 1100 Third Ave, is a touring house. This means that its featured shows are Broadway National Tours that are touring throughout the U.S. and usually run for only one week. Upcoming shows are:
The Beatles with Rain, Jan. 4-6, Billy Elliot, April 30- May 5, Green Day’s American Idiot, May 28-June 2 and Sister Act, July 30-Aug. 4.
The Old Globe and The La Jolla Playhouse occasionally have a few touring productions, but through the years have been responsible for many shows going straight to Broadway (The Full Monty, Peter and The Starcatchers, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Jersey Boys). Both are theaters that offer patrons the chance to see many Broadway-bound shows before they reach The Big Apple.
The Old Globe, 1363 Old Globe Way: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Nov. 17- Dec. 29, Pygmalion, Jan. 12- Feb. 17, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, March 8-April 14, A Doll’s House, March 23- April 21, Be a Good Little Widow, May 11- June 9 and Other Desert Cities, April 27- June 2.
La Jolla Playhouse, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive: The La Jolla Playhouse doesn’t have a Christmas offering and at the moment they list only two shows for the upcoming season with no dates attached.
Side Show, which was on Broadway in 1997, is being billed as a “Re-Imagined Musical” and Tribes, by Nina Raine. It was the Drama Desk Award winner for Outstanding Play of 2012.
Cygnet Theatre, 4040 Twiggs Street: A Christmas Carol-A Live Radio Play, Nov. 23- Dec. 30, Gem Of The Ocean, Jan. 24-Feb. 24, Assassins, March 14-28 and Shakespeare’s R&J May 22-June 16.
San Diego Repertory, 79 Horton Plaza: The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged), Dec. 5-23, Clybourne Park, Jan. 12-Feb. 10, The Mountaintop, March 2-31, Federal Jazz Project, April 6- May 5.
Diversionary Theatre, 4545 Park Boulevard #101: Scrooge in Rouge, Dec. 14-30, Birds Of A Feather, Jan. 31-March 3 and The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabbler, March 28-April 28.
Ion Theatre Company, 3704 Sixth Ave.: Chicago: A Speakeasy Cabaret, Dec. 13-28, Punk Rock, Feb. 9-March 9, Grey Gardens, March 23-April 20, Bengal Tiger At The Baghdad Zoo, May 4-June 1 and In The Heat Of The Night, June 15-July 13.
Mo’ olelo Performing Arts Company, 930 10th Ave.: The Bluest Eye, Feb. 2-March 3, Extraordinary Chambers, June 6-30 and The Amish Project, Sept. 26-Oct.20
San Diego Musical Theatre, 2891 University Ave.: White Christmas, Dec. 13-23, Chicago, Feb.15-March 3, The Sound Of Music, May 10-26, and Ain’t Misbehavin, Sept. 27-Oct. 13.
Circle Circle dot dot, 930 10th Ave.: Street. Art. Prophets, Nov. 29-Dec 15, San Diego I Love You, Feb. 8-17, Derby Dolls (a working title), April 5-20, and Deconstruction of a Drag Queen, August 2013.
Newly appointed Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edlestein, will bring in San Diego favorite Kirsten Brandt to direct A Doll’s House, and former Co-Artistic Director Darko Tresnjak will also return to direct A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.
The La Jolla Playhouse will bring in Academy Award-winner Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, Chicago) to direct Side Show and Cygnet Theatre’s Sean Murray will direct most of the theater’s offerings with stellar actors like, Tom Stephenson, David McBean and Jason Connors.
San Diego Rep’s Clybourne Park, which won the 2012 Tony Award for Best Play as well as the 2011 Pulitzer Prize, should tempt patrons as well.
Diversionary Theatre brings back critically-acclaimed director James Vasquez to direct Birds Of A Feather and Matt McGrath who starred in last seasons phenomenal Next Fall will direct The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabbler.
Ion Theatre will tempt audiences, as they always do, with their version of the musical Chicago called Chicago: A Speakeasy Cabaret. It will be directed by Linda Libby featuring the talents of San Diego favorites Karson St. John, Tom Andrew and Andy Collins.
Mo’ olelo, always pushing the envelope by bringing us superbly creative offerings, will have critically acclaimed directors Delicia Turner Sonnenburg and Seema Sueko at their respective helms.
San Diego Musical Theatre, now finally with a home at the North Park Theatre, will offer Broadway fare featuring the talents of Los Angeles directors Todd Nielsen and Ron Kellum and featuring actors from California to New York.
Rounding us out is the Circle Circle dot dot Theatre Company. They are one of the few companies in town giving San Diegans original works usually written by their own company members. Edgy, exciting and energetic, this is most definitely a theater company to keep your eye on.
