Larry Raben News

The Gateway will open NEWSIES to fully vaccinated audiences beginning August 25th at Patchogue Theatre. The entire company including all actors, musicians, technical support personnel, directors, designers, box office and admin staff have all been fully vaccinated for Covid-19. 

Disney's Newsies, presented by The Gateway, will be the first full-scale professional production at the Patchogue Theatre since shutting down due to the pandemic. It will run from August 25 through September 11th.

That triple-threat talent named David Engel will once again grace the Musical Theatre West stage in FOREVER PLAID 30th ANNIVERSARY REUNION CONCERT beginning August 5th, but this time socially distancing at Blair Field near by. Since David originated the PLAID role of Smudge, he has performed on many a stage from Broadway to his home away from home Musical Theatre West. David managed to answer my queries while in the car on the way to his husband Larry Raben’s opening night of SCHOOL OF ROCK he directed at Tuacahn Center for the Arts in Ivins, Utah.

Coyote StageWorks, the Coachella Valley-based award-winning Actors’ Equity professional theatre company, announced that its founder and board of directors have decided to close the venerated theatre company after 13 years. Along with other theatre companies around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic forced Coyote to cancel its 2019-2020 season, and that closure has continued due to the uncertainty thus far in 2021. This period of forced introspection led Coyote’s leadership to conclude that this was the right time to permanently close the company while celebrating its many accomplishments and accolades.

The long intermission is almost over and LA MIRADA THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS & McCOY RIGBY ENTERTAINMENT have announced their 44th season of shows, and will welcome subscribers and audiences back for another exciting, joy-filled season of Broadway smash hits, concerts, comedy and much, much more!

A co-production of San Francisco’s 42nd Street Moon and Long Beach's Musical Theatre West, PERFECT HERMANY will be available to stream online through May 2, 2021 as part of Moon’s 2021 Moonbeams season. This homage to legendary Broadway composer Jerry Herman stars the versatile Jason Graae, directed by Lee Tannen with musical direction by John Boswell.

42nd Street Moon and Musical Theatre West join forces to bring a Jerry Herman evening starring Jason Graae to the internet airwaves.

Musical Theatre West's (MTW) virtual benefit concert series “2021 Keep the Lights On,” continues its nine-concert streaming series.

The Valley Villagers Virtual Choir, headed up by musical director Jeff Rizzo and producer/director Eric Andrist, have gathered together 70+ performers for their latest virtual choir video.

The Old Globe today announced the cast and creative team of its 23rd annual production of Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, which this year will be presented by KPBS Radio in San Diego as a free audio-only production. Due to the ongoing pandemic, The Old Globe is unable to produce the San Diego favorite on its stage this year.

San Diego Musical Theatre has announced the 'SDMT Stars Under The Stars Spooktacular Concert' streaming now thru November 1, 2020.

The Valley Villagers Choir had to stop rehearsing and performing together when the Covid pandemic hit. But that hasn't stopped their leaders from getting people to keep singing. Founders Eric Andrist and Jeff Rizzo created a 'virtual' division for the choir and recently released their second virtual choir video, this time for Grandparent's Day. 

Rubicon Theatre of Ventura continues the company's Safe-Distance Drive-In Theatre Concert Benefit Series when Broadway veterans and beloved Southern California musical icons come together for a 30th Anniversary Concert celebrating the music of the hit show FOREVER PLAID.

After record-breaking opening week sales, Rubicon Theatre Company has announced details related to the first event of Rubicon Goes Retro, the company's Safe-Distance Drive-In Theatre Concert Series featuring live 75-minute concerts at the Ventura County Fairgrounds that patrons can enjoy from the safety and comfort of their cars.

One theatre company in California has found a creative way to change that for their audiences. Rubicon Theatre Company, based in the beachside community of Ventura, has become the first non-profit professional regional theatre in the nation to announce a Safe-Distance Drive-In Theatre Concert Series.

Singer Songwriter Christine Lavin offers BWW an exclusive highlights Video of '30th Plaidiversary of FOREVER PLAID'

Join the celebration of the 30th anniversary of Forever Plaid!

Musical Theatre West (MTW) brings Jerry Herman's musical masterpiece Mame to Southern California for a three-week run at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center March 27 a?" April 12.  Based on the novel, Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis and the play Auntie Mame by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, Mame lavishly delivers one of theater's all-time great heroines in a brassy, tuneful, hilarious and touching fashion.  Tickets are available at www.musical.org, by calling (562) 856-1999, or at the Musical Theatre West Ticket Office.  Tickets start at $20.

Rehearsals have begun for Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, on stage March 6 through 15. This 'classic whodunit' takes audiences on a fast paced thrill ride with a train full of suspects, and each one with an alibi! There are twists and turns aplenty in this intrigue-filled story, newly adapted for the stage from Agatha Christie's masterpiece by two-time Tony-nominated playwright Ken Ludwig. This unforgettable mystery takes audiences on a thrilling ride - Just after midnight, a snowdrift stops the Orient Express in its tracks. The luxurious train is surprisingly full for the time of the year, but by the morning it is one passenger fewer. An American tycoon lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. Isolated and with a killer in their midst, detective Hercule Poirot must identify the murderer - in case he or she decides to strike again.

Coyote StageWorks, the Coachella Valley based award-winning Actors' Equity professional theater company, will conclude its eleventh season with a full production of a?oeThe Velocity of Autumna?? by Eric Coble, which will run from March 13 through 22 at the Palm Springs Cultural Center, located at 2300 East Baristo Road in Palm Springs. Directed by Chuck Yates, The Velocity of Autumn swirls around Alexandra, an 80-year-old artist in a showdown with her family over where she'll spend her remaining years. In Alexandra's corner are her wit, her volcanic passion, and the fact that she's barricaded herself in her Brooklyn brownstone with enough Molotov cocktails to take out the block.