My guests on the 06/18/26 “Theatre Thursday” segment on The Drive on 95.5 FM were stage director Elly Lichenstein and dramatic coloratura soprano Michelle Allie Drever from the Mercury Theater/Pocket Opera co-production of Giacomo Puccini’s La rondine. The opera runs in the little red schoolhouse on the hill in Petaluma through June 28, then travels…
by Cari Lynn Pace * Broadway comes to the North Bay with the opening of Transcendence Theater Company’s 2026 Broadway Under the Stars season and awakens sleepy Sonoma with ain’t too proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations. The outdoor production of blockbuster songs and dancing transplanted from the lights of Broadway runs through…
by Harry Duke * Transcendence Theatre Company opens their 2026 Broadway Under the Stars series with a high energy production of ain’t too proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations. The jukebox musical about the legendary Motown group has Bay Area roots having premiered at Berkeley Rep in 2017 before a successful, Tony-winning Broadway…
by Barry Willis * Through June 28, Walnut Creek’s CenterREP presents a daunting interpretation of Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill: The Musical. Directed by Matt M. Morrow in the Margaret Lesher Theatre, this Pill is in many ways an alternative vision to one launched in April by Marin Musical Theatre Company. Where MMTC’s show was…
My guest on the second of two “Theatre Thursday” segments on The Drive on 95.5 FM on 06/04/26 was Dylan Freeman from the Transcendence Theatre Company presentation of ain’t too proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations. The opening production of TTC’s 2026 Broadway Under the Stars series runs in Sonoma June 12 through…
My guests on the first of two “Theatre Thursday” segments on The Drive on 95.5 FM on 06/04/26 were cast members Syona Ayyankeril and Zachary Hasbany from the Cinnabar Theater production of The Secret Garden. The family musical runs through June 28 in the Warren Auditorium on the campus of Sonoma State University in Rohnert…
by Cari Lynn Pace * It’s hallelujah and high praise for Sister Act, now running in Santa Rosa at 6th Street Playhouse through June 27. This stage version patterns the plot of Whoopi Goldberg’s popular 1992 movie. The movie’s rock ‘n roll soundtrack has been scrubbed to feature original rock and soul music by…
by Harry Duke * Adaptations of film and television shows into stage musicals range from the fairly faithful (The Producers, any Disney film) to the barely recognizable (The Addams Family Musical). Sister Act, now running at Santa Rosa’s 6th Street Playhouse through June 27, falls into the latter category. Sitcom writers Bill and Cheri Steinkellner…
by Harry Duke * Audiences don’t go to jukebox musicals for their plots. The often threadbare and/or ridiculous storylines used as bridging material between popular songs by an artist or group are tolerated by audiences waiting to hear the next in a series of greatest hits, be they by Patsy Kline, the Go-Gos, or Neil…
My guests on the 05/28/26 “Theatre Thursday” segment on The Drive on 95.5 were actor Hannah Passanisi, choreographer Jorey Cantu, and director Megan Bartlettt from the 6th Street Playhouse production of Sister Act. The show runs in the GK Hardt Theatre from May 29 through June 27. Click below to listen: ********** Click HERE for…
North Bay Stage and Screen 