Chuck Louden

A SPONTANEOUS MOCKERY OF JUSTICE, INDEED Now on for a short run through January 26 at Walnut Creek’s Lesher Theater, Synergy Theater brings an improvised spoof of the iconic TV series Law & Order. Complete with the signature “Chung Chung” between scenes, this show offers a hilarious and unpredictable take on the long-running crime drama….

THIS TRULY IS HOLIDAY JOY Now playing this holiday season through January 5, 2025, down by The Embarcadero: The circus is in town. But not just any circus. Circus Bella, in a colorful Big Top tent at Beale & Howard, puts the circus in your lap with Kaleidoscope. Certainly what is achieved in this one-ring…

HOLIDAY CHEESE The Transcendence Theatre Company is based out of Sonoma County and is known for putting on live theater productions usually in the summer, often in actual wineries. They have combined their efforts with Marin Theatre out of Mill Valley for this production of holiday music featuring performers from various Broadway productions. But instead…

A.C.T. ASKS US TO PONDER “WHY NOT” – BUT AFTER THIS UPDATED CAROL YOU’LL BE SCREAMING “WHY?!” Last holiday season, American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) announced that, after over 40 years, they were ending their annual run of their popular holiday classic showing of A Christmas Carol. The original sets were to be struck and all…

WITH ROTIMI AGBABIAKA KILLING IT AS PIRATE CAPTAIN HOOK, IT’S NO WONDER WHY THIS PETER PAN IS SUCH A TREASURE This holiday season, The Presidio Theater presents the fourth incarnation of Panto in the Presidio with the world premiere of Peter Pan, written by Stephanie Brown and Richard Ciccarone, inspired by Peter and Wendy by…

A CABARET IN THE HEART OF THE CASTRO Cabaret is a masterpiece of American musical theater that has been presented in a vast variety of musical and physical shapes and sizes since its premiere on Broadway in 1966. John Kander and Fred Ebb’s score and Joe Masteroff’s book has been cut, added to, and shifted…

This perennial favorite is back for its 19th year. This “drag” version of classic holiday-themed Golden Girls episodes seems to grow in popularity every year. Since its inception in 2005 when it was originally performed to a select crowd of friends informed by email, it has outgrown the living room and 2 subsequent South of…

WEAVING TOGETHER THE IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE With our post election blues, and immigration becoming a hot button issue again, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding sends a message of love, hope and family of choice at Berkeley Rep. Debuting on Broadway last year, this traveling show is making its West coast debut. Original director Whitney White is still…

“HOW LUCKY YOU ARE” TO SEE SEUSSICAL No one does youth and family theater better in the Bay Area than The Berkeley Playhouse. Everything they offer features classic and family friendly shows performed by talented ensemble actors of all ages. Even the young child performers can sing and dance to choreographed numbers with heart and…

Club Oasis, San Francisco’s premiere drag and cabaret theater showcases the best of Bay Area’s queer community’s talent, from fresh performers to campy remakes of pop culture and TV shows (their recent Rocky Horror was a hoot). The latest sitcom to be spoofed by the talented Oasis team of performers is The Nanny. the CBS…

EXPLORING THE GULF IN A RELATIONSHIP New Conservatory Theater is premiering in it’s West Coast debut, Audrey Cefaly’s 2017 play The Gulf – An Elegy. This intense one-act two-hander traces the seemingly laid back relationship between two women: Betty (Lauren Domingo)   and Kendra (Amy Meyers). They’re spending a lazy afternoon on a small fishing boat…

IT TAKES DAN HOYLE TO CREATE GREAT JOURNALISTIC THEATER San Franciscans pride themselves on their open mindedness towards all walks of life and outlooks. But do we really listen objectively to other people’s opinions that may vastly differ from our own? We love living in our Blue bubble particularly now in our very divided political…

THIS MUSICAL IS A GOLDRUSHER Post Pandemic, New Conservatory Theatre Center is continuing to branch out in its selection of theater offerings. Primarily known for stories about gay men, coming out, and HIV/AIDS-themed shows, the busy company is now offering more diversity in both subject matter and cultures. Hopefully these efforts will appeal to a…

CHOIR BOYS TO MEN Shotgun Players in Berkeley is presenting the Bay Area premiere of the Tony-nominated play, Choir Boy. It’s a fine fit. This one-year chronicle of a distinguished African-American institution — the imaginary Charles R. Drew Prep School for Boys — is written by gay playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney (Head of Passes, Brother/Sister…

FUNNY HOW IT GOES WRONG, BUT IT KEEPS GETTING WRONGER AND WRONGER AND… San Francisco Playhouse launches into its 2025-25 season with the fast-paced comedy The Play That Goes Wrong. This play-within-a-play is an old-fashioned Agatha Christie whodunnit murder mystery. The action (or chaos) has already begun when patrons enter the theater. A stage crew…

JAGGED WITH SOPHISTICATION A.C.T. is bringing back a tried and true favorite: Noël Coward’s Private Lives, moving the play’s locale from France to Argentina, specifically Montevideo. An ultimate comedy of manners, this three-act play centers on a long-divorced couple, both of whom are on their honeymoons with their new respective spouses when they are hit…

STUNNING STORYTELLING Many times when I go to see a show, whether as a critic or just a patron, I’ll come in not knowing in advance what I’m going to see. With a reputable theater company, my expectations are set pretty high. The Berkeley Rep’s outings have never failed to disappoint me, sure, but not…

Arsenic and Old Lace, the classic black comedy about two sweet old sisters poisoning old men lodgers has been told on stage and screen for decades. This includes the original play written by Joseph Kessering in 1941 and a film in 1944 directed by Frank Capra featuring Cary Grant and Raymond Massey. In 1962, there…

LET THIS SILLY BLONDE MUSICAL ENTERTAIN YOU Post-pandemic, as the world is seemingly opening up, local theater and the arts have not rebounded. Many venues are suffering or have gone out of business. In every local theater production I have seen in The Bay Area in 2024, as soon as the curtain goes down, cast…