1/5/16

Well, 2015 was a great year in San Diego theater, especially for new work (see my 2015 Theater Year in Review and Top 10 Theater Productions of 2015 at www.patlauner.com)… but now, it’s time to look ahead. I thought I’d list a few productions I’m looking forward to in 2016.

  • The Old Globe New Voices series: four new works, including a musical! – that may become full productions in the year/s to come (Jan. 15-17)
  • ion theatre’s long-delayed “Sunday in the Park with George,” which has never been produced in San Diego (exact dates as yet unknown)
  • “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” at Intrepid Theatre, starring Lamb’s Players’ Robert and Deborah Smyth (whom my husband and I fantasy-cast in the roles ten years ago). They should really tear into it (1/30-2/28)
  • “Ragtime” at San Diego Musical Theatre. I have a soft spot for this show (it’s when I fell in love with Brian Stokes Mitchell)… and SDMT always does a bangup job (2/6-2/21)
  • Moxie Theatre’s “brownsville song (b-side for tray) e. Last year at the Old Globe, I saw a terrific reading of Kimber Lee’s powerful piece about family connection and resilience in the face of tragedy. With more time to delve deeper her expansive character, Sylvia M’Lafi Thompson should be even more potent this time around. Hard to imagine (1/31-2/28)
  • “Guards at the Taj,” at La Jolla Playhouse. As a big fan of Rajiv Joseph (“Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo”), I’m really looking forward to this black (and bloody) comedy, of sorts.
  • The New Village Arts production of “Emilie: The Marquise du Châtelet Defends Her Life Tonight,” by Lauren Gunderson, starring Jo Anne Glover. I’ve already read a book about the intriguing, whip-smart 18th century mathematician/physicist , and I’m interested to see what she has to say for herself, and why she was left in the dustbin of history, when she’s brought back from the dead. The play premiered in 2009 at South Coast Repertory (2/5-3/6)
  • And speaking of South Coast Rep, always a breeding-ground of new and provocative work, I’m anxious to see “The Madwoman in the Volvo,” a world premiere by and starring wry/funny NPR storyteller Sandra Tsing Loh (1/3-1/24) and “Red,” John Logan’s searing tale of a critical moment in the life of artist Mark Rothko, starring Mark Harelik, too long gone from San Diego stages. As a painter myself, I always learn something from this play – about art, color and Rothko, whose work I love (1/22-2/21)

Well, that takes care of the first quarter of the year… Lots to see, as always, and I’ll continue to report back. Happy theatergoing in ’16!