As a theatre fan living in Los Angeles, I find it difficult to keep track of all the shows coming here, especially since many are in Orange County, La Jolla, San Diego, etc. As such, I created (and try to maintain) a spreadsheet of all the announced shows within reasonable driving distance that either pique my interest or I thought would interest most of my theatre-going friends. So many people have asked me for a copy of this list that I thought some people on this forum might like it.
A few notes: 1. I included every show I know of coming to medium-to-large theatres in Southern California. 2. Including every single play or musical on this list would be madness. 3. For the most part, I did not include 99 seat theatres, although I know there are some extraordinary theatre companies performing in these small spaces. If I hear of something exceptional in a small theatre, I try to add it. 4. If you have any suggestions or corrections, please send them to me, although I can’t guarantee that I’ll add everything. Shows and dates are always subject to change. 5. I know that some of the shows on this list will be terrible. I just like to keep track of what's coming. 6. Hopefully people find this useful, and if they do, I’ll strive to maintain it. If not, I’ll take it down.
Maybe we should have a BWW meet-up at one of these.
I'm pleased to hear that people find the list useful! I just noticed that while the link in my post works, if you cut and pasted the URL from the message, it was missing one letter and sent you elsewhere. I have fixed it. I have also added the 2016-17 Kirk Douglas season.
Has anyone seen any shows at the California Theatre in San Bernardino? They have an interesting season coming up, but I don't understand why their shows only play for three days, or, in some cases, one day.
I'm an actor in NYC, but thinking about making the leap to LA full time. Was in callbacks for Hunchback at La Mirada, and really enjoy the LA life. So thanks for this!
Awesome. Thanks for posting this. As an East Coast native who has lived in Southern CA for a long time now I have always craved seeing theatre. About ten years ago a friend made a list of every show playing in just LA over a one month period- including all theaters. There were over 300. My favorite was a 9 seat theatre down an alley. There were only 8 chairs. When the last person came in they shut the door and the final seat folded down from it.
I have the summer off for work so I am catching up on theatre. I just saw Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at International City Theatre in Long Beach which is worth a look. It is a solid production of one of my favorite recent plays. Considering the need for diversity in casting I was dismayed that a white actress was cast as Cassandra. Turns out she didn't perform and we got the director with a script in hand.
I am seeing Hollywood for the closing performance Sunday in LaJolla. I have been facinated with the story of William Desmond Taylor since I lived in Hollywood. I am seeing The Little Mermaid and Buyer and Cellar next week as well as The Boy From Oz at the Celebration Theatre (half price Gold Star tickets reduce the risk). I have tickets for Beautiful, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and the West Side Story concert coming up. Thanks to your list I can plan on some more shows.
I have been making regular updates to the list of upcoming shows in Southern California - including newly-announced seasons, concerts by Broadway performers, the LA Opera, LA Theatre Works, National Theatre Live screenings, and more. Let me know if you have any additions or comments!
This content is frequently updated, but the link stays the same.
Looking to come out to California in November.I couldn't find a decent website for theatre in the Los Angeles area, you do get the Los Angles Theatre website, which is replicated fo every city in America, but with a different city name, however this website is very very limited. I have put a link below, so everyone is on the same page as me.
https://www.los-angeles-theatre.com/
Would be very handy if someone did something similar for San Francisco and Chicago.
I have expanded my Southern California theatre list to include more venues and more types of shows. You can now find it here:
http://theatreinsocal.com
It covers most of Southern California, with a focus on commercial venues that are 300+ seats. It also includes major theatre-related events on TV or in cinemas. Not perfect, but I have found it to be extremely helpful to track what's coming. You can also filter by region, date, genre, etc. Enjoy!
This is amazing! Thank you so much! I didn't know Audra and Eden were doing concerts.
"This table, he is over one hundred years old. If I could, I would take an old gramophone needle and run it along the surface of the wood. To hear the music of the voices. All that was said." - Doug Wright, I Am My Own Wife
Thanks for sharing this amazing work! Might have missed it, but I didn't see a listing for Joshua Henry concert at the El Rey on Monday, December 11, 2017.
Thanks for the heads-up about the Summer extension! I wasn't sure at first if Love Actually counted as a show, but having seen their Scorsese show, I agree that it does.
I appreciate all comments and suggestions - I want this to be as useful as possible for my fellow theatre lovers.