2023’s Top 5 Moments in Theater, Dance and Classical Music
The year 2023 is rapidly coming to an end. But while we box up assorted gifts and prepare for 2024, let’s take a moment to reflect on the best in...
December 27, 2023
Chance Theater Gets to the Heart of the Matter to Find Its Voice
PART 2: Over 25 years, through trial and error, Chance Theater discovers the plays – and musicals – that connect to its community. (Go to PART 1 to read the first...
December 6, 2023
Chance Theater is Built to Last
PART 1: The Anaheim stage finds balance and support at the intersection of art and commerce. (Go to PART 2 to read the second installment of this story.) In January...
November 27, 2023
Paula Tomei to Step Down as SCR’s Managing Director
Paula Tomei, South Coast Repertory’s longtime managing director, will step down in August 2024. The announcement was released today. Tomei, 66, has been with Orange County’s most prominent theater company...
November 14, 2023
Irvine Barclay Theatre President Jerry Mandel to Step Down
Jerry Mandel, president of Irvine Barclay Theatre, will leave his position at the end of this year. The announcement was made today. Craig Springer, Irvine Barclay Theatre’s executive vice president,...
November 2, 2023
‘A Raisin in the Sun’ Both a Classic and a Historical Snapshot
REVIEW: SCR’s new production of the 1959 drama underscores the strength of Lorraine Hansberry’s concepts – and of her writing. While the multifaceted Lorraine Hansberry’s talents extended to literary writing,...
October 30, 2023
SCR’s ‘Quixote Nuevo’ is an Enjoyable Feast Marred Only by Too Many Thematic Ingredients
REVIEW: While uneven, the ambitious, visually and aurally elaborate contemporary update of the Don Quixote tale is well worth seeing. “Don Quixote” has been around for more than 400 years,...
October 9, 2023
SCR’s Smaller 60th Season Showcases Classic Stories
The 2023-24 lineup includes ‘Quixote Nuevo,’ ‘A Raisin in the Sun’ and a musical version of ‘Prelude to a Kiss’ – but the pandemic exerts the same unwanted forces on...
September 29, 2023
How Has the Pandemic Hangover Affected O.C.’s Arts Scene?
The doom-and-gloom reports surged shortly after the pandemic faded. Crowds weren’t coming back to theaters, museums and concert halls. Did Orange County venues and arts presenters experience the same audience...
September 11, 2023
O.C.Theatre Guild Award Winners Recognized at Second Annual Ceremony
The 2023 OCTG Theatre Awards are in the books, and like the inaugural awards ceremony a year ago, they confirmed the dedication and determination of Orange County’s theater community in...
April 22, 2023
New Ballet ‘Like Water for Chocolate’ Prioritizes Storytelling, Acting and Mexican Culture
An exploration of tradition and rebellion will take center stage in “Like Water for Chocolate,” Christopher Wheeldon’s latest full-length ballet for American Ballet Theatre. The work is based on a...
March 26, 2023
Stage Door Closes Its Doors, For Now
The theater landscape is littered with the corpses of small-sized companies forced to close for a variety of reasons – for example, running out of steam creatively or losing manpower...
February 24, 2023
