Get Eddie’s recommendations for shows on stage now that you should be sure not to miss.
Sanctuary City
Berkeley Repertory Theatre presents the West Coast premiere of Martyna Majok’s Sanctuary City, a play where a teen’s hopes for the normality of a senior prom bump up against fears of giving the wrong answer to personally invasive questions from immigration officials – slip ups that could lead to immediate and permanent deportation.
La Traviata
In a co-production with Cinnabar Theatre, Pocket Opera’s La Traviata touts a world-class cast of principals, a big-voiced chorus of ten, and an overall production that far excels what one might expect in a setting where one would usually attend chamber concerts, but not full-blown operas. The result is a La Traviata that is perhaps the most accessible, impactful, and emotional version of this classic story that I personally have ever attended and one I highly recommend to both first timers and Verdi aficionados.
Dreaming in Cuban
Dreaming in Cuban is yet another in a long line of Central Works world premieres where the story does not end as the lights go up at the end of the production. The characters go home with us to continue conversations in our own thoughts and dreams, promising to remain vivid as our new friends for days to come, bringing in this case new insights into the lives of those among us exiled from their once homes as well as new empathy for those they left behind.
The Prom
Grab your glitter; glam up; and gaily grab a ticket for the best Pride Month gift you can give yourself, a night at
Dear Evan Hansen
Now on tour at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts under the sensitive yet hard-hitting direction of Liam Robinson, Dear Evan Hansen has opened in a production that often finds the packed audience one moment tapping their toes and smiling at the humor and in the next all sitting in stunned silence as the tension on stage leaves them frozen in their seats.
Hadestown
When stubborn hope that has endured for at least two millennia for this time, a happy ending is matched with a playwright’s brilliant score and ever-smart lyrics that are presented by a star-studded cast of incredibly impressive voices and musicians, then of course this touring production of Hadestown at the Orpheum Theatre is nothing short of a must-see.
Ragtime the Musical
When my favorite musical, Ragtime, is being staged by the company I personally most associate in the San Francisco Bay Area as perennially the proven, premiere venue to see great musicals – the Tony Award winning TheatreWorks Silicon Valley – and when that same musical is being directed by someone who has time and again been lauded and awarded over the past fifty-plus years for his sensitive, heartfelt, inclusive, and creative artistry – founder and recently retired TheatreWorks Artistic Director Robert Kelley – then, readers, you need to know that going in I expect this Ragtime to be a ‘must-see’ until I am proven wrong.
I am here to report that my expectation has not only been met, but has been exceeded
Hello, Dolly
Difficult it is not to hum (much less sing) along as the twenty-piece orchestra builds toward the Overture’s familiar finale, but impossible it is for everyone not to don a smile that will not leave anyone’s face for the next three or so hours of The Mountain Play’s 109th annual, summer show, “Hello, Dolly.”
Waiting for Next
Jeffrey Lo’s Waiting for Next is nothing short of being a heart-warming love story about friendship – a story full of charm and fun while also quite capable of drawing an occasional tear through the smiles.
A Small Fire
As wonderful and compelling is Adam Block’s script, Mary Ann Rodgers’ direction, and the stellar performances of the rest of the cast, the resounding reason not to miss Shotgun Players’ A Small Fire is the stunning performance of Desiree Rogers as Emily. I doubt I will never see another construction hard hat or a carefully made sofa bed that I do not think of her unforgettable portrayal.
