Onstage in Pasadena: Upcoming Theatre Events

A CHRISTMAS CAROL
By Charles Dickens
Adapted by Geoff Elliott
Directed by Geoff Elliott & Julia Rodriguez-Elliott
December 1 – 24, 2023
The region’s longest-running musically merry holiday tradition returns! A Noise Within’s delightfully festive and inspirational annual production is perfect for all ages. Make cherished memories with your family this season by witnessing Ebenezer Scrooge’s joyful transformation in a perfect burst of boundless good cheer for the season, and beyond!
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book By Hugh Wheeler
From an adaptation by Christopher Bond
Directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliott
February 11 – March 17, 2024
A classic masterpiece by the legendary Stephen Sondheim, this heart-pounding thriller will shock the senses with diabolical comedy, stunning terror, and razor-sharp wit. Savor the macabre madness as a murderous barber, hungry for revenge for his long-lost family, strikes a partnership with a beastly baker. Filled with extraordinary, soaring music, this eight-time Tony Award winner will leave you gasping!
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

KING HEDLEY II
By August Wilson
Directed by Gregg T. Daniel
March 31 – April 28, 2024
King Hedley II continues the stories of characters first introduced in Seven Guitars and shows the tragic realities for Black men in 1980’s, Reagan-era Pittsburgh. After seven years in prison, King attempts to rebuild his life, peddling stolen refrigerators to get the money to buy a video store. But his self-worth is built on self-delusion, and he plants seeds where nothing will grow.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

MISALLIANCE
By George Bernard Shaw
Directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos
May 12 – June 9, 2024
One summer day, an early 20th century English undergarment mogul and his family entertain friends and unexpected visitors at their country estate. Through their lively debate and subsequent antics – including eight marriage proposals and one plane crash – the audience is treated to a satiric comedy of manners that exposes chaotic clashes of class, gender, and generations.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

BOTH AND (A PLAY ABOUT LAUGHING WHILE BLACK)
A REMOUNT AT THE WALLIS ANNENBERG CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
written and performed by Carolyn Ratteray
directed by Andi Chapman
Through clowning, poetic text, and a tour-de-force performance, the play deeply investigates the nucleus of Black joy. As her mother is dying, Teayanna finds herself in a netherworld between life and death, struggling to help her mother cross over. The journey reveals the wisdom of the ancestors, invokes the legacy of the Middle Passage, and unfolds the surprising secrets within her mother’s purse. This unique and powerful story, rich with humor, raw honesty, and passion, becomes a brilliant meditation on how to reconnect with joy.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

NT LIVE: YERMA
National Theatre Live
A woman is driven to the unthinkable by her desperate desire to have a child in this radical production of Lorca’s achingly powerful masterpiece. In contemporary London, a woman in her thirties is desperate to conceive, building with elemental force to a staggering and shocking climax.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

NT LIVE: VANYA
National Theatre Live
Andrew Scott (Fleabag) brings multiple characters to life in Simon Stephens’ radical new version of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

CLICK CLACK MOOSIC WITH HELIX COLLECTIVE
Family Programming
This delightful music programming for ages 3-7 is a live musical storytime event featuring the Click Clack Moo! book by Doreen Cronin set to original music by Helix Collective resident composer, Phil Popham. Come meet musicians, explore an instrument petting zoo, and hear Click Clack Moo come to life!
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

GILBERT CASTELLANOS
8PM
Jazz innovation at its spectacular best. “[Castellanos] plays with élan, evincing a more individual, ever-large sound offering hard-swinging, often ear-grabbing solos….” Los Angeles Times
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

ANITA GRAEF & LOUISE CHAN
8PM
Music Style: Classical
Virtuosic cellist Anita Graef returns to Boston Court accompanied by pianist Louise Chan with an electrifying program of classical and contemporary compositions featuring Brahms, Beethoven, works by Reena Esmail, David Baker, and more.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

BRIGHTWORK PRESENTS: I WILL LEARN TO LOVE A PERSON
8PM
Music Style: New Music
Brightwork Ensemble members Stacey Fraser (soprano), Aron Kallay (piano), Nick Terry (percussion), and Brian Walsh (clarinets) present music about love, longing, green skies, and an ever-expanding universe. Featuring Chris Cerronne’s I will learn to love a person and AJ McCaffery’s Murmurations.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

THE BODY’S MIDNIGHT
A CO-PRODUCTION WITH IAMA THEATRE COMPANY
by Tira Palmquist
directed by Jessica Kubzansky
World Premiere Production
What does it mean to get lost in America? Anne and David are set to find out as they embark on the perfect American road trip. They have a map, an impressive list of sights to see, and an itinerary that should put them in St. Paul just in time for the birth of their first grandchild. But soon their perfect plan is derailed by a troubling diagnosis and the beautiful impermanence of the world around them. As Anne and David veer off of their intended path, they are forced to grapple with the unavoidably messy and breathtaking journey of their lives.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

DORIS COSIC
8PM
Music Style: Classical
Classical guitarist Doris Ćosić celebrates Bach through a program featuring two of Bach’s major solo works paired with pieces from the 20th and 21st centuries that were highly influenced by his music.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

QUARTET INTEGRA
8PM
Playing a program of avant-garde compositions including pieces by John Zorn and Anton Weber, don’t miss the internationally renowned Quartet Integra, whose thrilling sound displays “an enormous wealth of colors… and sparkling rhythms.” (All News Press)
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

GOLD LINE QUARTET
8PM
Music Style: Classical
The Gold Line Saxophone Quartet, named for Pasadena’s local metro Gold Line, presents a program featuring Dvořák, Ravel, an exciting new saxophone octet by ensemble member David Joseph Spence, and more.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

VIJAY VENKATESH
8PM
Music Style: New Music/ Classical
Colburn pianist Vijay Venkatesh plays a dazzling classical program, showcasing his “extremely rare combination of effortless technical command and authority with a sense of poetry and refinement…electrifying and unforgettable…” –Jeffrey Kahane
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

AIDS Threads – From Epidemic to Eco-Disaster
AIDS Threads: From Epidemic to Ecodisaster weaves personal stories from the AIDS years into a fabric of present-day politics and anecdotal observations from the lingering health crisis to addressing the immediate dangers of climate change and incessant wars worldwide.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

It Must Be Him: A Genderful Musical Memoir with Michael Kearns
Throughout the past half century, Michael Kearns has woven his work as an artist and social activist into the fabric of Los Angeles (and beyond). Besides his work on the front lines of social justice causes, it is virtually impossible to chronicle the theatre scene in Los Angeles without mentioning his name.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

Inherit the Wind
NOW EXTENDED THROUGH DEC 3! Two of the nation’s leading lawyers go head-to-head in the ultimate battle of wit, wisdom, and will in this powerful drama. In a fresh production boldly reimagined for today, will this small-town courtroom bring us together or tear the nation apart?
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

The Pasadena Playhouse Holiday Spectacular
by Sam Pinkleton
You better watch out, you better not cry, because something magical is coming to the Playhouse this holiday season. Tony nominee Sam Pinkleton, one of the creative minds behind 2021’s Head Over Heels, returns to the Playhouse to sleigh audiences with a brand-new holiday show that’s sure to leave you feeling merry and bright. So get ready to jingle all the way and joins us for a holly jolly spectacular you’ll never forget.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

KATE
Written and Performed by Kate Berlant
In her widely celebrated one-woman show, revered comedian Kate Berlant explores the events of her life that have brought her to this moment. Embodying many characters in this tour de force performance, she expertly morphs before our eyes and exposes a truth she has, until now, kept hidden. Originally directed by Bo Burnham.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

One of the Good Ones
by Gloria Calderón Kellett
The ultimate family showdown is on in the world premiere of this new comedy commissioned by Pasadena Playhouse. When the “perfect” Latina daughter brings her boyfriend home to meet the parents, her family’s biases and preconceptions are put on full display. As tensions run high and hilarity ensues, everyone must navigate the ins and outs of family dynamics and the boundaries of acceptance — all while tackling the age-old question: what does it truly mean to be an American? Meet your new favorite family in this laugh-out-loud, heartfelt story from Gloria Calderón Kellett, the co-creator and showrunner of Netflix’s One Day at a Time.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

Jelly’s Last Jam
Book by George C. Wolfe
Music by Jelly Roll Morton
Lyrics by Susan Birkenhead
Musical Adaptation and Additional Music Composed By Luther Henderson
When legendary musician Jelly Roll Morton’s soul is forced to face the music, the self-proclaimed “inventor of jazz” is left at the ultimate crossroads. Follow Jelly from the back alleys of New Orleans to the sparkling stages of New York, as his remarkable journey unfolds in a stunning display of song, dance, and music. With soulful melodies, electrifying tap dancing, and fiery tunes that will leave you breathless, get your groove on with this dazzling musical masterpiece.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

“Winter Night” A Capella
2PM
Join The Harvard Yardbirds a cappella group and OcTech, Caltech’s choral octet, at the Parson’s Nose Theater as we explore the chilly darkness of a Winter Night with song!
FULL EVENT INFORMATION

“A Christmas Carol”
The story that stirred Victorian society, and the world, to a deeper appreciation of Peace on Earth, Good Will toward Men. Charles Dickens’ immortal tale told in a new way.
FULL EVENT INFORMATION