BWW Review: HOME ALONE Parody Holiday Hit!
The holidays aren't over at Rockwell (nor should they be!) and you have two more chances to catch their current great parody show of the '90s Christmas classic Home Alone. Previous parodies included Scream and Cruel Intentions which brought a flurry of nostalgia for those who grew up in the '90s, bu...
BWW Review: Tony Winner Idina Menzel Leads National Tour of IF/THEN in Los Angeles
As expected, Tony Award winner and Broadway superstar Idina Menzel drew thunderous applause a mere second into the the start of IF/THEN's opening night performance at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre last Wednesday night. It's no stretch then to say that her mere existence in this very same role she h...
BWW Review: GUYS AND DOLLS, Reinvented and Rich with Life at The Wallis
Luck has nothing to do with it. Mary Zimmerman's GUYS AND DOLLS is a well thought out, surprisingly fresh reinvention of one of the best golden age musicals ever written. The charming production just concluded a 9-month run at Oregon Shakespeare Festival and can now be seen on stage at the Wallis An...
BWW Review: Coyote Stageworks' Zippel-Directed BEING EARNEST IN NEW YORK a Triumph at the Annenberg
For one 'wonderfully entertaining' night only, Coyote Stageworks brought to the stage an all-star cast in a tremendously engaging staged-reading of Oscar Wilde's THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST -- with a twist! Helmed, and created, by Tony Winner David Zippel, this EARNEST was set in modern day Manh...
BWW Review: Rousing New 42ND STREET Tour Dazzles OC with Its Fancy Footwork
Need a pick-me-up from a bad day? Aching to smile heartily through a pleasantly peppy stage musical? Then you need not look further than the rousing, just-launched new touring production of the Tony Award-winning hit 42ND STREET, now currently entertaining audiences at Orange County's Segerstrom Cen...
BWW Review: South Coast Repertory Revisits Beth Henley's Grand ABUNDANCE
It was 25 years ago when South Coast Repertory first staged the World Premiere of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Beth Henley's dark comedy ABUNDANCE. Fast forward to 2015, and Orange County's Tony Award-winning regional theater saw it fitting to once again revisit the property in a brand new prod...
BWW Review: 3-D Theatricals Joyfully Presents THE ADDAMS FAMILY Glitzy-Gloomy Musical
Like many others during 1964-1966, I made sure to be home when "The Addams Family" TV show was broadcast. Carolyn Jones and John Astin were like no parents I knew and their family certainly lived the sort of off-kilter life totally different than any other family I had ever known. But it was their...
BWW Review: Desert Theatreworks Presents a Top-Notch Production of STEEL MAGNOLIAS
Desert Theatreworks, in Palm Desert California, has mounted a top-notch production of STEEL MAGNOLIAS. The acting is Broadway-quality, and the sets and costuming are also superb....
BWW Review: Irresistibly Beguiling MY FAIR LADY Blooms at Musical Theatre West
Fourth time's the charm for Musical Theatre West as the award-winning regional theater company opens its 63rd season with the 1956 Lerner and Loewe Broadway classic MY FAIR LADY. Retaining the effervescent wit and jubilant spirit of the original, MTW's irresistibly beguiling, top-notch local revival...
BWW Review: Top 10 Reasons Why Disney's THE LION KING Is Still Worth Seeing On Tour
18 years and billions of box office receipts later, Disney's Tony Award-winning global hit THE LION KING is still going strong both on Broadway and on various touring and sit-down productions across the world. The show's North American tour is currently finishing up its four-week return engagement a...
BWW Review: York and Pinchot Lead Kooky ADDAMS FAMILY at OC's 3D Theatricals
Appropriately enough, the supposedly haunted Plummer Auditorium in Fullerton is currently playing host to the happy spooks of 3-D Theatricals' regional production of THE ADDAMS FAMILY, which continues performances at this historic theater through October 25 before migrating south to the Redondo Beac...
BWW Review: Cirque du Soleil's Phenomenal Extravaganza KURIOS – Cabinet des Curiosités Amazes and Dazzles!
Cirque du Soleil has brought its newest touring show, KURIOS - Cabinet des Curiosites under the iconic blue-and-yellow Big Top to Southern California, beginning October 15 in Costa Mesa at the OC Fair & Event Center, followed in Los Angeles by Cirque du Soleil's first visit to Dodger Stadium beginni...
BWW Review: Chance Theater's A BRIGHT NEW BOISE Mixes Dark Comedy with Heartbreaking Spiritual Catharsis
Full of the Obie-winning playwright's amusingly observant and stirringly poignant portraits of ordinary people in extraordinary flux, Samuel D. Hunter's 2010 play A BRIGHT NEW BOISE is now being staged in a terrific production currently in performance at Orange County's Ovation-winning Chance Theate...
BWW Review: So Cal Premiere of FIRST DATE a Surprise Charmer at La Mirada
So does FIRST DATE---the relatively new musical comedy now playing its Southern California regional premiere at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts through October 11---merit an outing? Sure! If you're looking for a cute, charming little musical that's giddy and entertaining and features a...
BWW Reviews: MICHAEL FEINSTEIN'S A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES Brings Nostalgia with the Pasadena Pops
The Pasadena Pops held their final event of the summer at the Los Angeles Country Arboretum and Bontanic Garden on September 12, 2015. Michael Feinstein, performer and principal Pops Conductor led the full orchestra and featured soloists Shelea Frazier and Broadway's Jeremy Jordan....
BWW Review: Hilarity and High Jinx Abound in ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS at South Coast Rep
To put it succinctly, be ready to laugh your ass off. A brilliant, witty melange of slapstick, sight gags, silly absurdity, hyperbolic acting, and even bits of good ol' reliable audience participation, ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS, Richard Bean's exceedingly hilarious comedy of errors, misdirections, and mi...
BWW Review: MAN COVETS BIRD and Delivers Magic at 24th Street Theatre
You can tell when a theatre company cares about its audience, especially when that audience is largely made up of young people. It doesn't talk down to them and it doesn't assume they will only understand the obvious. Instead, its directors take the time to seek out work that is worthy of engagement...
BWW Review: Desert Rose's LOOT is a Bizarre, Irreverent Hoot
LOOT, a 1965 satirical farce -- a bizarre, dark parody of an English drawing room comedy -- by British enfant terrible Joe Orton, is a difficult production. Desert Rose Playhouse, in Rancho Mirage, California, pulls it off. Excellent acting and directing result in a great deal of hilarity....
BWW Review: MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL Leaves the Crowd Laughing and Dancing at Riverside's Fox Performing Arts Center
MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL-THE SURVIVOR TOUR is a great deal of fun. Each bouncy number has plenty of clever lyrics and deliberately silly choreography to keep the audience laughing. It is almost impossible not to clap and dance along with the performers as they perform such antics as playing instruments...
BWW Review: Desert Theatreworks Mounts a Brilliant, Must-See Production of DEAD MAN'S CELL PHONE
Palm Desert's Desert Theatreworks has mounted a must-see production of Sarah Ruhl's edgy, comedic, metaphysical play, DEAD MAN'S CELL PHONE.The director has created such a visual and musical feast that it doesn't matter if anyone understands the story, any more than it does with a ballet....
BWW Reviews: ISC's MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING is a 1940s Charmer
One of the keys to providing great entertainment is understanding your audience. For a theatre company that means knowing what your audience wants and then being able to provide it so they keep coming back for more. Independent Shakespeare Co. has done a brilliant job of both. Not only do they play ...
BWW Reviews: THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is a Beautiful Production, Well Worth the Trip from the Coachella Valley and Inland Empire
The new touring production of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, currently playing at the Segerstrom Center in Costa Mesa, is a must-see. The music, costumes, and sets are hauntingly beautiful and the performances are generally superb. Katie Travis, as Christine Daae, is a standout....
BWW Reviews: Slater, Ferguson, Robinson, and Co. Bring Hilarity to SPAMALOT at the Hollywood Bowl
Definitely one of this current millennium's funniest stage shows, the world-famous Hollywood Bowl certainly chose wisely in its decision to stage the hit musical comedy Monty Python's SPAMALOT as this year's all-star annual summer stage musical spectacular, which was welcomed with plenty of sustaine...
BWW Reviews: A NIGHT WITH JANIS JOPLIN is a Night to Remember
Baby boomers don't normally show their approval at the theater by leaping to their feet and giving standing ovations during a performance… unless they happen to be seeing A NIGHT WITH JANIS JOPLIN at Pasadena Playhouse. The power of remembrance combined with the powerhouse performances of Mary Bri...
BWW Reviews: New Compact HAIRSPRAY A Rousing Winner at OC's Chance Theater
Bravo to Chance Theater for taking on this mainstream hit and making it actually feel like a fresh, awesome little indie. Now playing through August 9, the latest offering from Orange County's bold, award-winning regional theater company is their own 'intimate' theater re-staging of HAIRSPRAY, the 2...
Videos
|
The Book of Mormon (Non-Equity) Segerstrom Center for the Arts (12/29-1/03) |
|
UB40 Fred Kavli Theatre (10/25-10/25) |
|
Ah Ha! Bluebird Park (6/06-6/06) PHOTOS VIDEOS |
|
Gorillaz Oakland Arena (10/28-10/28) |
|
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Segerstrom Center for the Arts (7/05-7/25) |
|
The Book of Will Curtis Theatre (6/12-6/21) |
|
Jekyll & Hyde the Musical Rose Center Theater (6/12-6/28) |
|
The Sound of Music Segerstrom Center for the Arts (6/02-6/14) |
|
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Segerstrom Center for the Arts (7/11-7/25) |
|
Fremont Ave. South Coast Repertory (4/25-5/23) |
| VIEW ALL SHOWS ADD A SHOW | |
Get Costa Mesa's #1 Theatre Newsletter
Get the best news & discounts for Costa Mesa Shows & beyond.
