Review: THE NOTEBOOK at Orpheum Theatre
by Steve Murray - February 14, 2026
What did our critic think of THE NOTEBOOK at Orpheum Theatre?...
Review: M. BUTTERFLY at SF Playhouse
by Steve Murray - February 12, 2026
What did our critic think of M. BUTTERFLY at SF Playhouse?...
Review: IMPROBABLE FICTION at Masquers Playhouse
by Kelly Rogers Flynt - February 11, 2026
IMPROBABLE FICTION at Masquers Playhouse is a tale of two parts. Don’t let the easy-going first half lull you into complacency. When the action hits, it comes in quick succession with quippy lines, funny costumes, over the top dramatics, and plenty of belly laughs....
Review: THE CHERRY ORCHARD at Marin Theatre
by Steve Murray - February 04, 2026
Change is hard, we all know that. We get stuck in patterns and the comfortable, even if that inertia is destructive. Watching Chekhov’s Cherry Orchard, brilliantly directed by American Conservatory Theatre Artistic Director emerita Carey Perloff and starring an all-star cast of local legends, will...
Review: WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME at Hillbarn Theatre
by Steve Murray - February 02, 2026
Heidi Schreck’s award-winning 2019 homage to the US Constitution couldn’t be timelier than at this moment of political crisis in America. Written as a remembrance of her 15-year-old self as a debater in love with the constitution, the present-day Heidi narrates the play which links her family’...
Review: THE WIZ Lights Up Broadway San Jose
by Linda Hodges - January 28, 2026
Opening Night of The Wiz at Broadway San Jose was dazzling, the kind of evening that reminds you why musical theater, at its best, feels communal, electric, and alive. From the moment the curtain rose, the production burst onto the stage with color, rhythm, and unmistakable joy, offering a vibrant a...
Review: EUGENE ONEGIN at San Francisco Ballet
by Jim Munson - January 26, 2026
San Francisco Ballet is kicking off its 2026 repertory season with the massively ambitious world premiere of Yuri Possokhov’s Eugene Onegin. It’s a tall order to create a full-length contemporary classical ballet to compete with the warhorses we’ve seen a zillion times, but SFB has given it th...
Review: THE BOOK OF MORMON at Orpheum Theatre
by Steve Murray - January 16, 2026
Trey Parker and Matt Stone are on a high recently, with their long- running animated series South Park skewering the present administration in their inimitable profane and darkly surreal style. 2011’s The Book of Mormon brought their irreverent humor to Broadway in what at the time seemed shocking...
Review: DOG MAN: THE MUSICAL at The Henry J. Kaiser Center For The Arts
by Linda Hodges - January 05, 2026
Dog Man: The Musical fetches laughs, heart, and legit Broadway-level craft in a show that never talks down to its audience. Read our review here!...
Review: THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL A BEAUTIFUL NOISE at Broadway San Jose
by Linda Hodges - December 31, 2025
What did our critic think of THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL A BEAUTIFUL NOISE at Broadway San Jose?...
Past Shows
Theatresports (TM)
Jul 7 – Aug 25, 2023
Who will be the summer champions when your favorite teams square off in improvised competitions? BATS Improv brings back the world-renowned sensation Theatresports TM Fridays...
Improvised Fantasy Island
Jul 1 – Jul 29, 2023
Improv Magic Awaits at Fantasy Island! Join the guests at this tropical island resort where their every dream comes true, but never in the way...
The AI Experiment: An Unscripted Adventure
May 6 – May 27, 2023
The AI Experiment is an exciting three-way collaboration! It starts with the BATS players getting a variety of story suggestions from the audience, including genre...
The Gather
Mar 3 – Mar 31, 2023
The Gather brings storytellers and improvisers together on the BATS stage! Every Friday in March, two invited storytellers, from local organizations including The Moth and...
Spontaneous Broadway
Mar 4 – Mar 25, 2023
Thank you for your long history of backing new musical theatre! We've got another project for your consideration -- in fact, we have too many...
Guilty Pleasures: Improvised Soaps
Feb 4 – Feb 25, 2023
Long lost twins? Business empires crushed? Love affairs revealed? Find out in Guilty Pleasures: Improvised Soaps! Every Saturday in February we’ll feature a different genre...
Love Makes the World Go Round
Feb 3 – Feb 24, 2023
A show for those in love, looking for love, or trying to avoid the whole thing at all costs.Love makes the world go round and...
Celebrate New Year’s with BATS Improv
Dec 31
BRING IN THE NEW YEAR WITH BATS IMPROV!Come join us for a New Year's-inspired show! We’ll do short scenes based on your New Year’s suggestions...
BATS Improv Presents: Theatresports™
Dec 2 – Dec 30, 2022
Who will be the holiday champions when your favorite teams square off in improvised competitions? BATS Improv brings back the world-renowned sensation THEATRESPORTS for four...
BATS Improv Presents: The Good, The Bad & The Jolly
Dec 3 – Dec 17, 2022
A collection of musical vignettes exploring and celebrating all things holiday! Whether you love the holidays or hate them, revel in the winter cheer or...
Family Drama
Nov 12 – Nov 26, 2022
Family Drama is a fully improvised three act stage play set at a family holiday gathering. The performers create the characters, relationships and home where...
The Harold
Nov 11 – Nov 25, 2022
THE HAROLD begins with a single audience suggestion. From that point on anything can happen — it’s unstructured and unpredictable! The improvisers search for improv...
The Improvised Twilight Zone
Oct 15 – Oct 29, 2022
Enter a dimension of both shadow and substance. It’s the middle ground between science and superstition, between the pit of your fears and the summit...
Things that Go "Blank" in the Night
Oct 14 – Oct 28, 2022
Things That Go "Bump"? "Ah-choo"? "Surprise"? "Moo"? You tell us! Things That Go “blank” in the Night is an improvised homage to horror anthology movies...
3 FOR ALL
Oct 21 – Oct 22, 2022
THEY’RE BACK! 3 FOR ALL Returns as Special Guests of BATS Improv!RAFE CHASE, STEPHEN KEARIN & TIM ORR - San Francisco's internationally critically acclaimed improv...
Two Musicals, Tonight!
Apr 16 – Apr 30, 2022
Two Musicals, Tonight! is improv at its most magical when the BATS Company players spontaneously create two completely improvised musicals, one in each half, based...
The Cypher Scenes
Apr 15 – Apr 29, 2022
It is back again! Improvised poets and freestyle rappers join BATS Improv onstage for The Cypher Scenes at Fort Mason Center For Arts & Culture....
SuperScene
Dec 18
Super Scene Five genres in one nightSuper Scene is a fast-paced, rip-roaring theatre competition featuring five directors creating five unique, completely improvised stories, each with...
Bitten By BATS Improv Festival
Feb 2
Bitten By BATS Improv Festival honors the myriad ways in which BATS Improv has helped create, shape, and enrich the San Francisco Bay Area improv...
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