SAN FRANCISCO / BAY AREA THEATER REVIEWS

There is just something so damned exciting about Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori's 'Caroline, or Change'! It is rare indeed to experience a work of art this ambitious, morally complex, entertaining, honest, and just plain downright human. It is easily one of the handful of best musicals written in t...

The persistent legend, mystique and fascination of what may have happened to Anastasia during Russia's revolution finds a new home in the musical ANASTASIA...

BWW Review: THE FLICK at Shotgun Players is Annie Bakers' astute observations of three lonely, dysfunctional theater attendants....

BWW Review: BETTE DAVIS AIN'T FOR SISSIES at 3Below Theater is a compelling portrait of the great stage and film legend and early feminist....

BWW Review: THE 39 STEPS at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is a brilliantly directed and acted rollicking spoof of Hitchcock's noir spy thriller The 39 Steps....

Marin Shakespeare's SPAMALOT is an altogether delightful and uproariously zany production that has their audiences laughing almost non-stop throughout the show. Playing its final week now through August 25, SPAMALOT is a not-to-be-missed, hugely enjoyable show....

Playing now through September 8, Broadway San Jose's Wicked is a dazzling, deeply satisfying bucket list musical for Broadway aficionados of every age....

BWW Review: BETTE DAVIS AIN'T FOR SISSIES at 3Below Theaters & Lounge is an up close and personal conversation with Bette Davis....

Christina Gorman's a?oeRoan @ The Gatesa?? currently in its world premiere production by Central Works at the Berkeley City Club could not be timelier. Lest that sound like a vapid platitude, in this instance it is well deserved. In a taut 70 minutes, it explores themes of online and IRL privacy, pe...

Is the state of the world making you more than a little crazy these days? The president's latest racist rants gotcha down? Well, Bay Area Musicals' production of "Hairspray" just might be the perfect remedy to lift you out of your despair and make you believe in our collective power to triumph over ...

BWW Review: THE LANGUAGE ARCHIVE at Lucie Stern Theatre is a stunning production of Julia Cho's award-winning, quirky tale of love and miscommunications....

BWW Review: CAVEMAN PLAY at Z Below explores the moment when we decided to switch from huntergatherers to agrarians with all its future complications for society....

Bay Area Musical's production of HAIRSPRAY rocks the house early 1960s style, with lacquered bouffants and non-stop music, dancing and comedy – all wrapped up in a story about spunky, plus-sized teen Tracy Turnblad of Baltimore and her dream to be a dancer on the local TV dance program, “The Cor...

One of Shakespeare's least performed works, Measure for Measure, is also one of his best. With some of his most stunning verse alongside his bawdiest humor, it teeters on the razor edge between comedy and tragedy so delicately that it is considered one of his three "problem plays." This vibrant prod...

BWW Review: Disney's NEWSIES Shines Now Through July 13 at Woodminster Summer Musicals...

Watching Stephen Sondheim & James Lapine's "Passion" recently at San Francisco's Custom Made Theatre reminded me what a difficult show it is to pull off. Although it contains several of the most rapturous songs Sondheim has ever composed, there is an underlying earnestness that can be unsettling to ...

BWW Review: CABARET at SF Playhouse is an eye-popping, wonderfully acted revival that is as relevant today as when it premiered in 1966....

Most theatremakers have to take on less creative professions to pay their bills, and in Michael Patrick Gaffney's one-man play The Oldest Living Cater Waiter, his side hustle is put front in center in relaying the story of his life as he balances his passion with practicality....

After eight seasons of presenting phonenomal musical revues in its award-winning 'Broadway Under the Stars' performances, the Transcendence Theatre seamlessly transcends into its inaugural full Broadway production of the mega-hit musical, A CHORUS LINE. A...

BWW Review: THE SAN FRANCISCO GAY MEN'S CHORUS PRESENTS 'QUEENS' at The Sydney Goldstein Theater, a retrospective of powerful LGBTQ Queens from the 60's to today....

BWW Review: Jen Silverman's WINK at Marin Theatre Company explores the thin line between savagery and civilization....

BWW Review: KISS MY AZTEC! at Berkeley Repertory Theatre is a Hilarious, Socially Hip Historical Romp Through the Aztec Empire...

San Jose Stage Company concludes its 2018-19 season with the musical juggernaut 'Mamma Mia!.' On the plus side, it's refreshing to see a show created largely by women that focuses on strong female characters. On the minus side, the show requires a high tolerance for groan-inducing jokes and song lyr...

SHNSF's Golden Gate Theatre was electric with excitement as the house filled to capacity for the touring company of RENT. Now thru June 23!...

BWW Review: ONCE at The Gateway Theater brings us the Tony winning score and heartwarming story of love lost, musical passion and the courage to move on....