Summer is just around the corner, and that means it’s a great time to go see one of the fabulous shows playing currently in our local theaters!
Covid protocols continue to be dictated by each individual venue, so bring a face mask to wear during the show in case the venue requires it. It’s a good idea to check with the theater before you attend a show to find out what their current policy is.
The information presented in this column is the latest available at the time of printing, however you should verify it with the theater to confirm it before making definite plans. Here are the shows that have announced opening dates for this month, or are already running:
OPENING
“The Enemy of Oz” When DD (Myrachele Thomas), a fiery young politician, discovers she’s the secret daughter of Oz’s most beloved hero, she sets out on a mission to topple the corrupt government she holds responsible for her mother’s murder. But as the daughter of Oz’s most notorious villain Calliope (Olena Calderon), uncovers her own dark legacy, an age-old blood feud is reawakened, and a campaign of vengeance and power ensues between the two for control over Oz. And with Oz on the brink of chaos, old and new generations reunite as political schemes, supernatural forces, and long-buried secrets collide in a battle for the soul of the Emerald City. Written by Christopher Ureña, and directed by Greg Shane, it runs May 2 through May 17 at the Blue Door Theater in Culver City. For tickets visit www.artsupla.org.
“Glow in the Dark Groundlings” Whether you’re new to the world of sketch comedy or a longtime fan, Glow in the Dark Groundlings guarantees a night full of laughter and excitement you can only find at The Groundlings Theatre. From sharp satire to ridiculous absurdity, the show’s unique combination of sketches and characters is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. Each performance showcases The Groundlings’ signature blend of irreverent humor and expert performance, featuring the brilliant talents of the current Main Company cast. The cast includes Erin Berry, Lauren Burns, David Crabb, Anthony Guerino, Chris Kleckner, Kara Morgan, Andres Parada, Jessica Pohly, Chase Rosenberg, & Gaby Sandoval. Directed by H. Michael Croner, it runs May 2 through June 21 at the Groundlings Theatre in Los Angeles. For tickets visit www.groundlings.com.
“Bonnie & Clyde” Set during turbulent times, it is a timely commentary on the American Dream and what can happen when that dream dies or is deferred as two dreamers — Bonnie, with her head full of poetry and stardom, and Clyde, desperate to escape poverty and make a name for himself. It’s a love story wrapped in tragedy. A crime spree set to a powerful score. Songs like “This World Will Remember Me” and “Dyin’ Ain’t So Bad” gives voice to characters who are usually just remembered as mugshots. The musical asks us to consider why they did what they did. It explores the cost of chasing fame, the pain of poverty, and the desperation that drives people to the edge. Written by Ivan Menchell, with music by Frank Wildhorn, lyrics by Don Black, and directed by J. Scott Lapp, it runs May 3 through May 18 at the Rubicon Karyn Jackson Theatre in Ventura. For tickets visit www.rubicontheatre.org.
“La Razón Blindada” Political prisoners are allowed to interact with one another for one hour a week — but must remain in their chairs and never stand. As they entertain each other with stories of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, we witness the power of theater to transport them, and us, into the realm of the imagination, despite repressive conditions and even as we remain bound to (and on the edge of) our seats. Written and directed by Arístides Vargas, it runs May 3 through May 18 at the 24th Street Theatre in Los Angeles. For tickets call 213-745-6516 or visit www.24thstreet.org.
“Welcome to the Dream Factory” Audiences will relive the golden days of Hollywood, where audacious dreams were built on soundstages by composers, actors, and directors, and lit up across the world on silver screens. The program includes music from many of the most important film composers of film history including Max Steiner (“Gone with the Wind”), Erich Wolfgang Korngold (“Captain Blood”), Dimitri Tiomkin (“Rawhide”), Franz Waxman (“Sunset Boulevard”), and John Williams (“E.T.”). Directed by Rachael Worby, it runs May 3 through May 4 at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills. For tickets visit www.muse-ique.com.
“Fences” Troy Maxson was a star of the Negro baseball leagues, but now it’s 1957 and he’s a garbage man in Pittsburgh. In one of August Wilson’s best and most well-known plays, we see one man struggle with disappointment and the effect it has on his marriage and relationship with his sons. This powerful Pulitzer Prize-winning play is both epic and intimate, and a must-see theatrical event. Written by August Wilson, and directed by Yvette Freeman-Hartley, it runs May 4 through May 18 at the Laguna Playhouse in Laguna Beach. For tickets call 949-497-2787 or visit www.lagunaplayhouse.com.
“The Addams Family” Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet, smart young man from a respectable family. A man her parents have never met. And if that weren’t upsetting enough, she confides in her father and begs him not to tell her mother. Now, Gomez Addams must do something he’s never done before – keep a secret from his beloved wife, Morticia. Everything will change for the whole family on the fateful night they host a dinner for Wednesday’s “normal” boyfriend and his parents. Written by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, with music by Andrew Lippa, and directed by Antoinette Dipietropolo, it runs May 8 through May 11 at the Bank of America Performing Arts Center in Thousand Oaks. For tickets visit www.BroadwayInThousandOaks.com.
“Urinetown The Musical” In a dystopian future ravaged by drought, private toilets are outlawed, and the tyrannical Urine Good Company controls all public restrooms, charging exorbitant fees for their use. Imagine a world where even going is a privilege. But, when young Bobby Strong leads a revolution against the U.G.C., he ignites a battle not just for free sanitation, but for human dignity itself. With its infectious score, razor-sharp wit, and a healthy dose of Brechtian irony, Urinetown skewers corporate greed, political corruption, and the very nature of musical theater, all while leaving you in stitches. This isn’t your typical song-and-dance show; it’s a bold, brash, and brilliantly subversive experience that will leave you thinking – and laughing – long after the curtain call. Get ready to be amazed, amused, and maybe just a little bit disgusted. Written by Greg Kotis, with music by Mark Hollman, lyrics by Mark Hollman and Greg Kotis, and directed by Gryphon Seveney, it runs May 9 through June 7 at the Westchester Playhouse in Los Angeles. For tickets call 310-645-5156 or visit www.kentwoodplayers.org.
“The Homecoming” this darkly comic, hauntingly ambiguous, play follows a family of men in a seedy house in North London: Max, the aging, crude patriarch, his ineffectual brother Sam, and two of Max’s three sons, both unmarried, Lenny, a small-time pimp and Joey, who dreams of success as a boxer. Returning to this oppressive household, one simmering with bottled-up anger and barely concealed hatreds, is the oldest son Teddy, now a successful professor of philosophy in America. After six years abroad, he brings his wife Ruth to meet the family for the first time, but the visit quickly turns into an ominous game of cat and mouse. In this unsettling drama of insidious manipulation, subtle power struggles, and sexual game-playing, nothing is quite what it seems. Written by Harold Pinter, and directed by Frédérique Michel, it runs May 10 through June 15 at the City Garage at Bergamot Station Arts Center in Santa Monica. For tickets call 310-453-9939 or visit www.ticketleap.events/tickets/city-garage/the-homecoming.
“Love’s End” a riveting and bitingly funny look at the dissolution of a marriage by celebrated French playwright Pascal Rambert. The audience is immediately hooked, drawn irrevocably into the world of a husband and wife whose deep love for one another has somehow, inexplicably come to an end. The language is violent, cutting and darkly comic, a torrential outpouring that offers a deeply insightful examination of love, life and letting go. Written by Pascal Rambert, translated from the French by Jim Fletcher and Kate Moran, and directed by Maurice Attias, it runs May 10 through June 15 at the Odyssey Theatre in Los Angeles. For tickets call 310-477-2055 Ext. 2 or visit www.OdysseyTheatre.com.
“A Man of No Importance” In this intimate and evocative musical that celebrates the redemptive power of theater, love and friendship, Alfie Byrne, an unassuming bus conductor in 1960s Dublin, is determined to stage an amateur production of Oscar Wilde’s Salome in his local parish. But this man of seemingly no importance must confront religious objections to his artistic pursuits and face the forces of bigotry and shame over a love “that dare not speak its name.” A live, five-piece orchestra featuring violin and reeds lends a bit of blas áitiúil (Irish flavor). Written by Terrence McNally, with music by Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott, it runs May 10 through June 1 at the A Noise Within in Pasadena. For tickets call 626-356-3100 or visit www.anoisewithin.org.
“White Rabbit Red Rabbit” explores the restrictions, censorship and denial of individual choice faced under a harsh regime. In this theater experience like no other, a different actor will step onto the stage at every performance and be handed a script they’ve never seen before. No rehearsal, no director. Wild and utterly original, White Rabbit Red Rabbit is emotionally vulnerable at times, hilarious at others, and always pushing the boundaries of what it means to be present: spontaneous, playful, interactive and unpredictable. Join the Fountain team for a piece of baklava and a conversation in the upstairs café after every performance. Written by Nassim Soleimanpour, it runs May 11 through June 22 at the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles. For tickets call 323-663-1525 or visit www.FountainTheatre.com.
“Becky’s New Car” Have you ever been tempted to flee your own life? Becky Foster is caught in middle age, middle management and in a middling marriage – with no prospects for change on the horizon. Then one night a socially inept and grief-struck millionaire stumbles into the car dealership where Becky works. Becky is offered nothing short of a new life … and the audience is offered a chance to ride shotgun in a way that most plays wouldn’t dare. This is a thoroughly original comedy with serious overtones, a devious and delightful romp down the road not taken. Written by Steven Dietz, and directed by Cape Caplin, it runs May 15 through June 15 at the Theatre Forty in Beverly Hills. For tickets visit www.theatre40.org.
“Hide & Hide” is a Homeric critique of the American Dream told through Billy (played by Ben Larson), a queer rent-boy from Texas fleeing a Christian sex conversion camp, and Constanza (played by Amielynn Abellera, The Pitt), a Filipina immigrant with a soon-to-expire visa, who together form a sham marriage to pursue their version of that dream in seedy 1980 Los Angeles. Written by Roger Q. Mason, and directed by Jessica Hanna, it runs May 15 through June 29 at the Skylight Theatre in Los Angeles. For tickets visit www.skylighttheatre.org.
“Edith” When a giant pillar of salt crashes into the kitchen, a family is thrown into a chaotic, campy fantasy that forces them to reckon with their relationship to disobedience, suffering, and deviant sex. From her vantage point as the witness to past destruction, the Pillar of Salt wishes to upend the traditional center of our current order and force us to turn around and see the joy in the carnage. Written by Noah T. Parnes, and directed by Ignacio Navarro, it runs May 23 through June 15 at the Loft Ensemble in North Hollywood. For tickets call 818-452-3153 or visit www.loftensemble.org.
“Flashes of Light” This new musical is set against the backdrop of the industrial revolution in New York City in the late 1800s. The story follows inventor Nikola Tesla, guided by Electra, who sends him visions of groundbreaking inventions during lightning storms. Their connection amps up when Tesla’s rivalry with Thomas Edison intensifies during the “War of the Currents,” a battle that shaped the world’s electrical future. As Tesla and Electra become obsessed with pushing the envelope of scientific discovery, a star-crossed love story fraught with peril unfolds as the line between science and mythology begins to blur. The music’s heartfelt lyrics, soaring vocals, and haunting melodies blending jazz, pop, and rock, bring this fantastical story both tragic and divine to life. Written by Billy Larkin and Ron Boustead, with music by Billy Larkin, and directed by Jon Lawrence Rivera, it runs May 25 through June 9 at the Sierra Madre Playhouse in Sierra Madre. For tickets call 626-355-4318 or visit www.sierramadreplayhouse.org.
CONTINUING
“The Wedding Singer” Set in 1985 but burning with 2025 energy, this version of The Wedding Singer trades spectacle for soul. Hade’s direction brings a cinematic eye and raw emotional edge to a story usually soaked in sequins. Expect heartbreak, humor, and a few too many slow dances under the wrong disco ball. Written by Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy, with music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin, and directed by Brayden Hade, it runs through May 11 at the Wisteria Theater in North Hollywood. For tickets call 818-237-4643 or visit www.wisteriatheater.com.
“The Staircase” Mother and Son spend their evenings playing cards and retelling stories of Hawaiian legend. Better those than their own, which lurk below the surface. When Son’s former sweetheart resurfaces, both he and Mother must choose how they will embrace the future. A mysterious tale about holding on, letting go and the curious force that pulls us back home. Written by Noa Gardner, and directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch, it runs through May 18 at the South Coast Repertory Julianne Argyros Stage in Costa Mesa. For tickets call 714-708-5555 or visit www.scr.org.
“Tasty Little Rabbit” tells the true story of a 1936 Fascist Italian investigation of pornography charges in Taormina, Sicily. This artistic prosecution uncovers a much darker secret of an 1890s love triangle between poet Sebastian Melmoth, photographer Wilhelm Von Gloeden and an 18-year-old Sicilian boy. What will be sacrificed to protect secrets of the heart? Written by Tom Jacobson, and directed by George Bamber, it runs through June 6 at the Moving Arts in Atwater Village. For tickets visit www.movingarts.org.