theater

'The Bald Soprano' Is an Absurdist 'Anti-Christmas' Present From City Garage

Presented by City Garage with an oddball reverence and dripping with mid-20th-century style, this holiday-themed production of Eugène Ionesco’s “The Bald Soprano” is a real treat.

Grimm

A cursed necklace, a golden cloak, and potions figure in "Grimm," still another conflation of fairy tale stories, one better suited to “Sesame Street” than the stage, at the Fringe.

Richard III

Jay Whittaker does skilled and showy work as the hunchback king in Shakespeare’s “Richard III,” at the Old Globe, in director Lindsay Posner’s contemporarily set production.

Regional Companies Battle Tough Times With New Fundraising Methods

Difficult economic conditions and budget cuts are a constant reality in nonprofit theaters across the country, with the past several years seeing a concentration of theaters closing doors, laying off staff, or reorganizing.

Robert Simonson Chronicles 100 Years of Equity History

A Q&A with Robert Simonson, author of "Performance of the Century: 100 Years of Actors Equity Association and the Rise of Professional American Theater.”

To Be or Not to Be on the West Coast

Barry Edelstein could reignite Shakespearean drama in SoCal with his new position as artistic director at the Old Globe.

Rich Sommer on Improv, Auditions, and 'Harvey'

"Mad Men" star and Back Stage subscriber Rich Sommer explains how improv helped his career and admits he's "freaking out" about his upcoming Broadway debut.

Blake Ellis on James Carpenter in 'The Dresser'

Blake Ellis recalls working alongside James Carpenter in the San Jose Repertory Theatre's production of "The Dresser."

Reality-TV Themed 'The Assistants' Isn't Ready for Prime Time

“The Assistants,” Joel Sinensky’s dark new play about shallow reality-TV producers and their lackeys, at Loft Ensemble, starts out strong but turns formulaic and loses steam.

'Soldier' Offers No New Insights on the Horrors of War

A dead Nazi soldier implicitly seeks the audience’s approval in “Soldier,” Jonathan Draxton’s well-acted, poorly staged exercise begun as a class assignment and now at Here.