Theatrical Musings

HOLLYWOOD—Hamilton has been hot for a while now, but make way for a new meal ticket. “Something Rotten!” offers up a deliciously tasty, and often delightfully tasteless, touch of Hamlet and eggs served with a side of wry. The opening song of “Something Rotten!” says, “Welcome to the Renaissance,” but the Minstrel (Nick Rashad Burroughs) leads it off with a...

HOLLYWOOD—John Sebastian steps out on to the cavernous Fred Kavli Theatre stage, “just a man with a guitar,” and you’re instantly smitten, lulled into a state of familiar comfort. He says, “I didn’t know there were that many folkies left in Thousand Oaks,” and you think, “Did he say ‘folkies,’ or ‘fogies’?” It makes no difference as, either way,...

NEW YORK—Surprises, surprises galore! The nominations for the 2017 Tony Awards were unveiled on Tuesday, May 2 and leading the pack of all contenders is musical “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” that picked up a total of 12 nominations including Best Musical. Followed close behind was the musical “Hello, Dolly!” with 10 nominations. The announcement was made...

SAN FRANCISCO—Its finally here, "Hamilton" the Broadway musical will kick off its national tour on Friday, March 10 at San Francisco’s Orpheum Theatre. "Hamilton" tells the story inspired by a penniless orphan, who became the nation’s first treasury secretary at the age of 34. Compose of a multicultural cast, “Hamilton” has sold out shows and has astonished the American theater, winning Pulitzer,...

SAN FRANCISCO—Hoodline and ABC7 News reported that on Christmas Eve that the African-American Shakespeare Company's (AASC) production of "Cinderella," which played at The Herbst Theatre on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, was among San Francisco's top weekend events. Based on the classic fairy tale, the musical (directed by Rodney Earl Jackson, Jr. and Marcelo Pereira) showcased its 22nd holiday season in San...

SAN FRANCISCO—"Irving Berlin's White Christmas" is playing at San Francisco's Golden Gate Theatre until Christmas Eve, with Lorna Luft, the daughter of Judy Garland. The actress will reprise her role as Martha Watson. Luft starred in the musical 11 years ago including a United Kingdom tour from 2006 to 2011. Producer Nancy Gabriel shared that she was excited for Luft to...

SAN FRANCISCO—The San Francisco Ballet is presenting the Nutcracker from December 10 thru December 29. This year’s artistic director is Helgi Tomasson. On December 24, 1944, the Nutcracker debuted in the United States at San Francisco’s War Memorial Opera House. Due to its popularity it continued to perform and has since become a Christmas tradition, according to the San Francisco Ballet website. The...

NEW YORK—It was indeed a somber night for the American theatre community as the Tony Awards were held on Sunday, June 12 from the Beacon Theatre. The musical “Hamilton” led all contenders with 16 nominations and was the big winner of the night taking home a total of 11 awards including Best Musical. Host and funnyman James Corden kicked off...

NEW YORK—Well, it’s the musical that nearly everyone in the world has been talking about: “Hamilton.” And the biggest day in the theatre arena took place on Tuesday, May 3 as the 2016 Tony nominations were unveiled from the Diamond Horseshoe at the Paramount Hotel. “Hamilton” led all contenders with a record breaking 16 nominations including the coveted Best Musical....

SAN FRANCISCO—As October begins, a reflection of a fantastic fall production of a dark, gore-filled musical thriller is only appropriate.  I was lucky enough to catch the closing weekend of the San Francisco Opera's production of the three-time Tony award winning Sondheim classic, "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street." "Sweeney Todd" tells the story of Benjamin Barker, a 19th century...