Theater Previews – 9/26/19

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – Planning a trip to theater soon? We’ve got you covered!

VICTOR/VICTORIA
Moonlight Stage Productions (Vista)
Through September 28
Victor/Victoria is a witty, comic romp examining questions of gender, identity and love, set in Paris in the 1930s. English soprano Victoria Grant finds herself at a nightclub, without work or money. She meets Carroll Todd, or “Toddy,” a performer at the club who gets fired while trying to help her. The two soon team up and embark on an unlikely (and surprisingly successful) scheme. With Toddy’s help, Victoria becomes “Count Victor Grazinski” – a renowned female impersonator. The twist is of course that she is a woman, claiming to be a man, claiming to be a woman. Things get even crazier when sparks begin to fly between Victoria and a notorious Chicago businessman, King Marchan, and he sets out to uncover “the Count’s” secret.
• The show is based on a 1933 German film, written by Reinhold Schünzel and titled Viktor und Viktoria. The story was reworked as a musical film in 1982. The film starred Julie Andrews and had a script by Blake Edwards (who also directed) with music by Henry Mancini and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse.
• In 1995 Broadway adapted the screen musical to the stage for the first time starring none other than Julie Andrews top rave reviews.
• Tickets: moonlightstage.com or 760.724.2110

NOURA (West Coast Premiere)
The Old Globe (Balboa Park)
Through October 20
A riveting West Coast premiere loosely inspired by Ibsen’s A Doll’s House from acclaimed playwright, Heather Raffo. Noura and her husband are Chaldean Christian refugees from Iraq, celebrating their first Christmas Eve as American citizens. But the long-anticipated visit of an orphan girl they once sponsored, now a promising college student, causes them to question who they’ve become and what they’ve left behind.
• The Wall Street Journal calls this powerful drama “one of the finest new plays I’ve ever reviewed. Full of unexpected revelations and flashes of sudden, blinding illumination.”
• One of my favorite young local actors, Giovanni Cosic, who I had the joy of directing at San Diego Junior Theatre does some amazing work in this stirring play.
• Tickets: theoldglobe.org or (619) 234-5623

SPEED THE PLOW
Point Loma Playhouse (Point Loma)
Through October 6
David Mamet’s SPEED THE PLOW is one of several successful plays he has written about the business world. Filled with Mamet’s trademark, rapid-fire-dialogue, SPEED THE PLOW focuses on the ruthless nature of Hollywood and the movie industry… scrambling for “the deal”… finding the right script, right director, right cast… and shamelessly using high artsy ideals to further a career.

• Everyone should see a David Mamet play at least once in their lives to know how modern dialogue can and should be written and SPEED THE PLOW is one of his best! — The New York Times
• Point Loma Playhouse is a beautifully intimate space nestled in the heart of Point Loma where some of San Diego’s best restaurants enhance each performance.
• Tickets: pointlomaplayhouse.com or 619-800-5497

ANASTASIA
Broadway / San Diego (Civic Theatre – Downtown)
October 1 – 6
From the Tony Award®-winning creators of the Broadway classics Ragtime and Once On This Island, this dazzling show transports us from the twilight of the Russian Empire to the euphoria of Paris in the 1920s, as a brave young woman sets out to discover the mystery of her past. Pursued by a ruthless Soviet officer determined to silence her, Anya enlists the aid of a dashing conman and a lovable ex-aristocrat. Together, they embark on an epic adventure to help her find home, love, and family.
• ANASTASIA features a book by celebrated playwright Terrence McNally, a lush new score by Stephen Flaherty (music) and Lynn Ahrens (lyrics) with direction by Tony Award® winner, and San Diego artist Darko Tresnjak.
• This is one of the most epically glorious sets to hit Broadway in the last 10 years. A Must See!
• Tickets: broadwaysd.com or (619) 570-1100