The Geffen Playhouse News

Senate Bill 1116, a measure introduced by Senator Anthony J. Portantino (D – Burbank) which seeks to create a payroll fund to support small nonprofit performing arts venues (SNPAOs), was signed into law September 29, 2022 by Governor Newsom. 

Leopoldstadt officially begins previews on Broadway, September 14. Get to know the cast bringing this play to the stage!

Due to illness, Road Less Traveled has postponed Mysterious Circumstances by one week and will open Thursday September 22.  

Producers Hunter Arnold and Kayla Greenspan announced that Jefferson Mays’ universally celebrated, one man virtuoso, tour-de-force performance in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol will be coming to Broadway this holiday season for a strictly limited 66-performance engagement at the Nederlander Theatre. Mr. Mays, who is currently performing as Mayor Shinn ten blocks north in The Music Man, will depart that role on October 23rd.

Theatre companies across the globe continue to grapple with some of the earliest questions posed upon reopening: what to do about masks? As more mixed policies come into play, we continue to see that there are segments of the audience that won’t come with masks, and segments that won’t come without, putting producers in a difficult position.

Laguna Playhouse has announced that JoBeth Williams (“Poltergeist,” “The Big Chill”) and Peter Strauss (“Rich Man, Poor Man,” “The Jericho Mile”) are set to star in the upcoming World Premiere production, based on the 1975 ABC Theatre Presentation that starred Katharine Hepburn and Laurence Olivier, of LOVE AMONG THE RUINS.

The Geffen Playhouse’s artistic director, Matt Shakman, announced he will step down from his role in February.

MILE SQUARE THEATRE (MST) has announced their first production of Kevin R. Free’s first season as Artistic Director, of Angelica Chéri’s BERTA, BERTA, directed by Kevin R. Free. BERTA, BERTA will play a four-week limited engagement at Mile Square Theatre.

Chance Theater, Anaheim's official resident theater company, announces the Orange County premiere of “The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity,” a dramatic comedy by Kristoffer Diaz that was one of the final nominees for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and snagged numerous “Best Play” Awards. Directed by Jeremy Aluma, “The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity” previews from September 23rd through September 30th, with regular performances running October 1st to October 23rd on the Cripe Stage at the Bette Aitken theater arts Center.

Road Less Traveled Productions will begin its 19th season with the second-ever production of Mysterious Circumstances by Michael Mitnick.  

Artists Repertory Theatre (ART) begins its 40th season on stage with The Hombres by Tony Meneses, a funny exploration into masculinity and the intimacy of male relationships. Performances run Sept. 10 through Oct. 9.    

Urbanite Theatre, Sarasota, Florida's premiere destination for bold, contemporary black-box theater, announced its 2022-23 season, which includes four main productions and two special engagements.

Ava: The Secret Conversations will join the Geffen Playhouse 2022/2023 season lineup to complete the full season.

54 BELOW will present JAIME CEPERO’S SONGS ABOUT ANXIETY 2.0 on August 17th 2022 at 930pm. Part ritual, part therapy, part queer kiki session, Songs About Anxiety 2.0 is the second installment of the concert performance showcasing original work from Afrolatinx actor, writer, and Gold Anthem Award recipient Jaime Cepero.

Next up at the Geffen Playhouse, the west coast premiere of playwright Fernanda Coppel’s King Liz opening July 21, 2022 (previews already begun). Jesca Prudencio directs the cast of Ray Abruzzo, Oscar Best, Nancy Linari, Evan Morris Reiser, Michelle Ortiz and Sabrina Sloan. I had the opportunity to throw out a few questions to Fernanda about King Liz, as well as her writing career.

The GLOUCESTER STAGE COMPANY will present the Tony Award-nominated GRAND HORIZONS next in the lineup of its 2022 season. Robert Walsh returns to Gloucester Stage to direct this thought-provoking comedy of marital malaise by award-winning playwright Bess Wohl, running from July 29 to August 21.

Director Mike Donahue’s production on the Geffen’s Cates stage is so intelligent, well-crafted and downright fun that A WICKED SOUL IN CHERRY HILL seems destined to have a future beyond Westwood.

A Wicked Soul in Cherry Hill is now in previews at Geffen Playhouse. In this poignant true-crime story told completely through song, a tight-knit Jewish community gathers to recount, remember, and reckon with the details of what happened in—and to—their town. Get a first look at photos here!

Ojai Playwrights Conference has announced 11 playwrights for the 25th Anniversary New Works Festival taking place August 7-14, 2022, in Ojai, CA, marking a return to in-person workshops and live performances after two years of working online.

Dorset Theatre Festival will open the 45th Season of professional summer theatre at the Dorset Playhouse with a regional revival of the classic thriller, Wait Until Dark, directed by Jackson Gay.