Ahmanson Theatre News

Swan Lake runs December 3, 2019 - January 5, 2020 at the Ahmanson Theater. Let's see what the critics are saying...

Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake opened last night at he Ahmanson Theatre. 

In training for the acting profession yours truly studied ballet, and I was always the first to throw the line off. I could not dance...ballet or any other form. I know so little about dance, then how can I write about it? Well, when Matthew Bourne is involved, I am envelopped in magic. What a treat to attend a Matthew Bourne event! Yes, his ballet productions are events ...  filled with magical storytelling without a word of dialogue. Like singers or actors, the ensemble tell the story through movement, with Tchaikovsky's gorgeous music to back it up. It's breathtakingly beautiful. Anger, violence and at the opposite extreme,  sensual appeal, blatant or subdued, and love are the most readily reognized emotions in this art form. Bourne divides his production into four acts with an intermission between Ac

Currently in previews, the New Adventures production of Matthew Bourne's a?oeSwan Lakea?? opens December 5, 2019 at Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre.

The Fred Ebb Foundation (Mitchell S. Bernard, Trustee) in association with the Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) presented the fifteenth annual Fred Ebb Award for aspiring musical theatre songwriters to Angela Sclafani & Benjamin Velez. The award, named in honor of the late award-winning lyricist Fred Ebb, was presented by Kate Baldwin on Monday, December 2nd from 6-8pm at a by-invitation-only ceremony in the Penthouse Lounge of The American Airlines Theater.

It's December! Voting is now underway for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Los Angeles Awards, brought to you by TodayTix! Now you can vote to make sure your favorite local theatres and performers are recognized. Check out the first set of stats below.

Whether you live in New York or London, San Francisco or Sydney, Boston or Seattle, we've got the best prices on theater tickets this Cyber Monday. Looking to plan a trip to New York? Buy your tickets today. Planning a family outing for the holidays? We've got the deals. Basically wherever you live, whatever you want to see, we've got our best prices of the year on theater tickets for shows around the world. Check out some of the deal highlights below!

Let's face it: You probably have enough stuff. While deals on vacuums and toothbrushes can feel satisfying in the moment, wouldn't you rather get tickets to an unforgettable theatrical experience? That's where we come in. This Cyber Monday (i.e. today!) deals on theater tix are so good they feel like a steal. Whether it's a show you've been planning to see forever, or a deal that's just too good to pass up, today's the day to buy those tickets.

Beginning at a rather leisurely pace, JITNEY takes its time introducing us to the cast of characters working and hanging out together in the one-room gypsy cab business office run by Becker (Steven Anthony Jones), a former mill worker who prides himself on owning his own business. His employees, who we learn about via their individual stories as they interact with the other characters, allow the audience an intimate view of the Pittsburgh working-class struggling to keep afloat in a time of great social change during the city's period of so-called a?oeurban renewal,a?? as the city tries to shut down businesses -- including the cab station -- to make way for a new, more upscale modern building

Voting is NOW OPEN and the first votes are in for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Los Angeles Awards, brought to you by TodayTix! The nominees are set, and now you can vote to make sure your favorite local theatres and performers are recognized!

Producer Scott Rudin announced today that 'To Kill a Mockingbird,' Aaron Sorkin's new play, directed by Bartlett Sher and based on Harper Lee's classic novel, will be a part of Center Theatre Group's 2020 - 2021 season at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles. Tony Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Richard Thomas will perform the role of Atticus Finch.

Casting is set for Matthew Bourne's a?oeSwan Lakea?? from New Adventures, which will be presented by Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre December 3, 2019 through January 5, 2020. With direction and choreography by Matthew Bourne and music by Tchaikovsky, a?oeSwan Lakea?? will open on December 5 at 8 p.m.

Legendary, multi-award winning actress/singer Betty Buckley returns to Café Carlyle, March 10 a?" 21. Her career spans theater, film, television and concert halls around the world. She's received a sea of accolades including a Tony Award for her performance as Grizabella, the Glamour Cat, in Andrew Lloyd Webber's CATS. She's a 2012 Theatre Hall of Fame inductee, and the 2017 recipient of the Julie Harris Award from The Actor's Fund for Artistic Achievement. Betty Buckley just completed a national tour of the new Broadway production of Hello, Dolly! produced by Scott Rudin.

Presented by Center Theatre Group, performances for August Wilson's a?oeJitneya?? will begin on November 22 at the Mark Taper Forum. Performances will continue through December 29 with the opening set for November 24. Originally presented by Manhattan Theatre Club, a?oeJitneya?? is directed by Tony Award winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson. 

ENSEMBLE THEATRE COMPANY (ETC) presents the second show of its 2019-20 Season, the can't-miss, holiday event of the season, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE: A LIVE RADIO PLAY, adapted by Joe Landry, from the screenplay by Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett, Frank Capra & Jo Swerling and directed by ETC's Director of Education and Outreach, Brian McDonald.

Center Theatre Group has announced the four new schools that have been selected to participate in the 2019-2020 Disney Musicals in Schools program. The program is an initiative developed by Disney Theatrical Group to create sustainable theatre programs in under-resourced elementary schools. The four schools are a part of Los Angeles County. The four schools include: Dr. Owen Lloyd Knox Elementary (LAUSD), Eastman Avenue Elementary (LAUSD), Euclid Avenue Elementary (LAUSD) and San Gabriel Avenue Elementary (LAUSD).

Center Theatre Group has welcomed four new passionate supporters of theatre to its Board of Directors, announced Board President Kiki Ramos Gindler. They include Jill Chozen, a theatre investor, philanthropist and past trustee of University Synagogue; George V. Hausler, an executive with J.P. Morgan; Philip Pavel, Managing Director of the NoMad Los Angeles Hotel; and Bonnie Vitti, President of the Louis and Harold Price Foundation, which was founded by her grandfather, Harold Price. 

The Fred Ebb Foundation (Mitchell S. Bernard, Trustee) in association with the Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) will present the fifteenth annual Fred Ebb Award for aspiring musical theatre songwriters to Angela Sclafani & Benjamin Velez. The award, named in honor of the late award-winning lyricist Fred Ebb, will be presented by Kate Baldwin on Monday, December 2nd from 6-8pm at a by-invitation-only ceremony in the Penthouse Lounge of The American Airlines Theater.

Nominees for the 30th Annual LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards were announced on Tuesday, November 5 on at This Stage [ThisStage.la]. The ceremony will take place Monday, January 13, 2020 at The Theatre at Ace Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. Among the nominees are director Michael Arden and actor Jefferson Mays for A Christmas Carol, and Tina star Daniel J. Watts.

Center Theatre Group has selected two local productions for the fourth annual Block Party: Celebrating Los Angeles Theatre at the Kirk Douglas Theatre from March 18 through April 19, 2020. Block Party 2020 will remount Sacred Fools Theater Company's a?oeThe Art Couplea?? and IAMA Theatre Company's a?oeCanyon.a?? The visiting companies will receive the full support of Center Theatre Group and its staff in order to fund, stage and market each production.