Alan Blumenfeld News

Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum kicks off its All-Shakespeare Summer Season in celebration of the Bard's 450th birthday with a gender-reversed Lear for the 21st century, opening tonight, Saturday, June 7 at 8 p.m. in the theater's spectacular outdoor amphitheater in Topanga Canyon.

Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum continues its celebration of the Bard's 450th birthday with a new production of All's Well That Ends Well that joins the All-Shakespeare Repertory Season on June 21.

Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum kicks off its All-Shakespeare Summer Season in celebration of the Bard's 450th birthday with a gender-reversed Lear for the 21st century, opening on Saturday, June 7 at 8 p.m., and the return of the company's signature rendering of A Midsummer Night's Dream, with performances beginning Sunday, June 8 at 3:30 p.m. The two productions will continue to run in repertory through the end of Sept. in the theater's spectacular outdoor amphitheater nestled in a Topanga Canyon ravine, and will be joined later in the season by three additional mainstage offerings.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, presents a free reading of Ferenc Molnar's Liliom, the play upon which the popular 1950's musical Carousel was based. Apollo Dukakis, a resident artist with the company, directs the piece, using the Benjamin F. Glazer translation, with a cast of sixteen portraying multiple roles. Admission for the reading is free. RSVP via phone to 626-356-3100 x1 to reserve your seat. This reading takes place during the run of The Guardsman, another well-known work by Ferenc Molnar, at A Noise Within, now playing through November 30.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, continues their family holiday tradition by presenting its production of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, the ultimate tale of forgiveness, opening Saturday, December 7 and closing Sunday, December 22, 2013. This is the second year that ANW has presented the timeless holiday classic, once again accompanied by a special fundraiser event, "Fezziwig's Festive Holiday Tea" on December 8, which directly supports Classics Live! - ANW's education programs. The event will feature a live auction hosted by NBC4's Fritz Coleman.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, presents a free reading of Ferenc Molnar's Liliom, the play upon which the popular 1950's musical Carousel was based. Apollo Dukakis, a resident artist with the company, directs the piece, using the Benjamin F. Glazer translation, with a cast of sixteen portraying multiple roles. Admission for the reading is free. RSVP via phone to 626-356-3100 x1 to reserve your seat. This reading takes place during the run of The Guardsman, another well-known work by Ferenc Molnar, at A Noise Within, now playing through November 30.

Actors who dedicate their life to the theatre are a passionate, unique and rare breed. Art imitates life imitates art when Theatricum Botanicum artistic director Ellen Geer stars alongside her sister Melora Marshall, daughter Willow Geer and daughter-in-law Abby Craden in THE ROYAL FAMILY, an uproarious comedy about a family of actors.

Art imitates life imitates art when Theatricum Botanicum artistic directorEllen Geer stars alongside her sister Melora Marshall, daughter Willow Geer and daughter-in-law Abby Craden in an uproarious comedy about a family of actors. Originally written as a thinly disguised parody of the Barrymores,George S. Kaufman andEdna Ferber's winsome spoof about a thespian dynasty is the perfect vehicle for Topanga's first theatrical family. Also in the cast are 'defacto' Theatricum family members Alan Blumenfeld, Tim Halligan, Aaron Hendry and Earnestine Phillips, and longtime company member Susan Angelo directs.The Royal Family opens today, June 22 at Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga, the centerpiece of the company's 40th Anniversary Summer Repertory Season.

Art imitates life imitates art when Theatricum Botanicum artistic director Ellen Geer stars alongside her sister Melora Marshall, daughter Willow Geer and daughter-in-law Abby Craden in an uproarious comedy about a family of actors. Originally written as a thinly disguised parody of the Barrymores, George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber's winsome spoof about a thespian dynasty is the perfect vehicle for Topanga's first theatrical family. Also in the cast are "defacto" Theatricum family members Alan Blumenfeld, Tim Halligan, Aaron Hendry and Earnestine Phillips, and longtime company member SusanAngelo directs. The Royal Family opens on Saturday, June 22 at Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga, the centerpiece of the company's 40th AnniversarySummer Repertory Season. Check out a first look below!

Art imitates life imitates art when Theatricum Botanicum artistic directorEllen Geer stars alongside her sister Melora Marshall, daughter Willow Geer and daughter-in-lawAbby Craden in an uproarious comedy about a family of actors. Originally written as a thinly disguised parody of the Barrymores,George S. Kaufman andEdna Ferber's winsome spoof about a thespian dynasty is the perfect vehicle for Topanga's first theatrical family. Also in the cast are "defacto" Theatricum family members Alan Blumenfeld, Tim Halligan, Aaron Hendry and Earnestine Phillips, and longtime company member Susan Angelo directs.The Royal Family opens on Saturday, June 22 at Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga, the centerpiece of the company's 40th Anniversary Summer Repertory Season.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, continues this season's 'Words Within' Wednesday night play reading series with four free, one-night-only readings this summer at its Pasadena theatre: THE HEIRESS by RUTH AND Augustus Goetz, based on the 1880 Henry James novel Washington Square, tonight June 5, 2013, 7 pm; THE GHOST SONATA by August Strindberg, considered one of the world's greatest modern playwrights, on June 19, 7pm; GALILEO, a timeless classic by BERTOLD BRECHT on July 24, 7 pm; and LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT by EUGENE O'NEILL on August 14, 7 pm. The readings feature A Noise Within resident artists as well as artists from the theatre company's current repertory productions.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, continues this season's 'Words Within' Wednesday night play reading series with four free, one-night-only readings this summer at its Pasadena theatre: THE HEIRESS by RUTH AND AUGUSTUS GOETZ, based on the 1880 Henry James novel Washington Square, on June 5, 2013, 7 pm; THE GHOST SONATA by AUGUST STRINDBERG, considered one of the world's greatest modern playwrights, on June 19, 7pm; GALILEO, a timeless classic by BERTOLD BRECHT on July 24, 7 pm; and LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT by EUGENE O'NEILL on August 14, 7 pm. The readings feature A Noise Within resident artists as well as artists from the theatre company's current repertory productions.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, offers a free, one-night-only reading of three one-act plays by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright THORNTON WILDER - THE LONG CHRISTMAS DINNER, THE WRECK ON THE FIVE-TWENTY-FIVE and INFANCY - on Wednesday, May 15, 7 pm, as part of its "Words Within" reading series at its Pasadena theatre. Directed by Abby Craden, the readings feature A Noise Within resident artists as well as artists from the theatre company's current repertory productions.

Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum celebrates its 40th Anniversary with a lively summer season of theater, music and performance under the stars and live oaks of Topanga Canyon

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, offers a free, one-night-only reading of SARAH RUHL's humorous and heartbreaking LATE: A COWBOY SONG on Wednesday, April 17, 7 pm, as part of its "Words Within" reading series at its Pasadena theatre. Directed by Susan Angelo and featuring A Noise Within resident artists, Ruhl's genre-defying ode to the contemporary cowboy pays homage to Frank Capra's iconic film It's a Wonderful Life. In her signature quirky style, the two-time Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright utilizes convention only to break with it, offering a meditation on the idiosyncrasies of American culture while challenging definitions of love, partnership, gender and tradition. The Chicago Times describes the work, which premiered in 2010, as "gentle and knowing" and "a play about all manner of uncertainties." The New City Chicago critic proclaimed, "I wouldn't be surprised if Late: A Cowboy Song quickly becomes a modern classic."

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, concludes its 21st season with the West Coast premiere of GEORGE FARQUHAR'S THE BEAUX' STRATAGEM, a hilarious period yet contemporary "buddy road trip" filled with eccentric characters adapted by THORNTON WILDER and KEN LUDWIG, opening Saturday, April 6 and closing Sunday, May 26, 2013 (previews begin Saturday, March 30). Set in the early 1700's in the English countryside, two girl-crazy young adventures are on the road-trip of their lives when, out of the blue, they find themselves hopelessly in love. Co-Producing Artistic Director Julia Rodriguez-Elliott directs the play, which is the remarkable creation of three playwrights working in three different centuries. Described as "sheer laugh-out-loud fun" (The Free Lance-Star), the play "glides confidently from silly to wry, from the pratfall to the riposte" (The Washington Post) and is "a delightful romp that seamlessly reaches across the centuries to combine the old with the new" (Theater Mania). The run includes a 'Pay What You Can" date on Thursday, April 4.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, offers a free, one-night-only reading of the droll and wickedly biting satire THE DEVIL'S DISCIPLE by GEORGE BERNARD SHAW, directed by ANW Resident Artist Mark Bramhall, tonight, October 24, 2012, 7:00 pm, in its new state-of-the-art Pasadena theatre.

A Noise Within (ANW), the acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, offers a free, one-night-only reading of the droll and wickedly biting satire THE DEVIL'S DISCIPLE by GEORGE BERNARD SHAW, directed by ANW Resident Artist Mark Bramhall, on Wednesday, October 24, 2012, 7:00 pm, in its new state-of-the-art Pasadena theatre.

Botanicum Seedlings, Theatricum Botanicum's new play development program, celebrates its 10th Anniversary with SeedlingsFest 2012, offering Theatricum audiences and company members an opportunity to sample fresh new works, plus seasonal gourmet treats and live music. Subtitled a "Festival of (short) Playreadings," SeedlingsFest features two days of plays from emerging and award-winning playwrights interpreting this year's theme, "Hybrids & Heirlooms" - a nod to Seedlings' ten years of supporting plays of varying styles and forms, from traditional to wildly experimental and everything in between. SeedlingsFest 2012 takes place Saturday and Sunday, October 20 and 21, at 2 pm. Admission is free; donations will be gratefully accepted.

Theatricum Botanicumcontinues the 2012 Repertory Season with George Bernard Shaw's Heartbreak House. Theatricum artistic director Ellen Geer directs the Nobel Prize-winning author's "Fantasia in the Russian Manner on English Themes" for Theatricum's outdoor stage in idyllic Topanga Canyon.