Category: theatre

In Los Angeles a new theater middle class rises. There are a hundred theaters out there. But, like the city itself, LA’s “theater district” is spread out hither and yon. “People from out of town look at a map of L.A., see all the theaters and can’t believe it – they’re all over the place.” – Los Angeles Times

Ashland, Oregon’s Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a behemoth among regional theaters with its $15.48 million budget. Last year it sold a record 374,246 tickets, filling its three theaters to 93 percent capacity. But as this year’s season opens you might want to think about renaming the festival the Oregon American Play Festival. – Seattle Times

Tiny Tribeca theater in Manhattan tries out as a home to the smallest dance projects. The Flea Theater operates seven days a week, often layering two paying shows, ranging in price from $12 to $35, in one evening. – New York Times

Much has been written lately about the lack of new plays and experiences of substance on Broadway this season. One critic wonders if the analysis is justified. – Boston Globe

As New York’s Times Square has spiffed itself up, Off-Broadway theaters, traditionally resident on the fringe of the Great White Way, have begun springing up in the heart of the district. – Christian Science Monitor

The Chicago critics weren’t particularly kind to Elton John’s Disneyfied “Aida” musical fantasy. Nevertheless, the production is set to open on Broadway later this month after a makeover. – Backstage

Broadway’s Roundabout Theater is to be renamed after an airline. Meanwhile, the venerable Winter Garden is expected to be renamed after a car. Corporate branding comes to Broadway. – New York Times

The commercial theater business has been booming. But ominous signs are afoot. Some are proclaiming the end of the mega-musicals, the engine that has been driving business on Broadway and on the road. What’s to replace the big musicals on the touring circuit? – Boston Globe

Where’s new work to come from – and, almost more important, where are the places for it to go? – Boston Globe

Please oh please oh please say it isn’t so – since the announcement that “Cats” will close in June, ticket sales have sky-rocketed, making it the hottest show on Broadway. The whiff of “extend-me” is in the air. – New York Times

Should you like her never-produced, long-forgotten play? Nah. But that’s not the point, says a San Francisco producer, who’s presenting the play in tandem with an Arthur Miller play about censorship to “make a point about currents of ‘repression’ in the United States.” – Salon