To the delight of South Bay audiences, the San Jose Repertory Theatre is bringing back the much loved A Christmas Story this winter. They are also offering more ways for families to enjoy the play. A Christmas Story runs from November 21 – December 20, 2009, at the San Jose Repertory Theatre, 101 Paseo de San Antonio in downtown San Jose.

The San Jose Rep is again trying to help everyone afford to see a show this season. Besides their Pay What You Will Tuesdays, their second annual Black Friday Ticket Sales Event will be Friday, November 27. You can save up to 41% on tickets for any of their remaining shows of the 09-10 Season. All Balcony tickets will be $29 each if purchased on Black Friday. They are even waiving the handling fee! Tickets are available for all their remaining shows: A Christmas Story, The Weir, Ain’t Misbehavin’ and Sonia Flew.

To take advantage of San Jose Rep’s Black Friday Event, patrons may purchase tickets by calling the box office at (408) 367-7255 or in person at the San Jose Rep Box Office at 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose, CA 95113. The box office will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

And more! Pay What You Will Tuesday for A Christmas Story is November 24. Family Packs, which include two adult and two youth tickets, are available for A Christmas Story at the affordable rate of $99 and $119. New this year, are Stocking Stuffer Gift Packs for $89 and $69. Live theatre makes the perfect holiday gift – it’s good for the environment and uplifting for the human spirit. The $89 stocking includes two ticket vouchers for any show in the 09-10 Season, a box of assorted chocolates from San Jose’s own Schurra’s Confectioners, and a bottle of champagne. The $69 stocking includes two ticket vouchers for any show in the 09-10 Season. A gift of live theatre at the Rep is creative, hassle-free and green. To order San Jose Rep Stocking Stuffers, call the box office at 408-367-7255.

The SJ Rep is helping you help the community – AND see a play!

The San Jose Repertory Theatre has always been a leader in bringing the arts to everyone and giving back to the community. This season they are taking even broader steps in this direction.

In order to help community members who cannot afford regular priced tickets to the outstanding productions held at the Rep this year, they are offering Pay What You Will Tuesdays. The first preview Tuesday for each production of San Jose Rep’s 2009-2010 season, starting with the Tuesday, September 1 production of As You Like It, will be open to all members of the community for a suggested ticket price of $10, however any amount will be accepted. In addition, a canned food drive for Second Harvest Food Bank will have food bins in the lobby hoping for your donations. In this way any member of our community can not only see an exciting new production at the SJ Rep, but they can also help Second Harvest help those who are in even greater need.

Tickets go on sale at San Jose Rep’s box office one week prior to the scheduled performance. Seating is general admission and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

Pay What You Will Tuesday:

• Groundswell – Tuesday, Oct. 13

• A Christmas Story – Tuesday, Nov. 24

• The Weir – Tuesday, Jan. 26

• Ain’t Misbehavin’ – Tuesday, March 16

• Sonia Flew – Tuesday, May 11.

If you don’t make it to this Tuesday’s preview of As You Like It, you can still see the production of one of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays at the SJ Rep from August 29 to September 27.

Sibling rivalry, royals in exile, mistaken identities, cross dressing (no kiddin’), and love at first sight, all make an appearance in this bewitching and sophisticated comedy about freeing oneself from the shackles of technology and finding oneself in nature. Really! The actors will be texting onstage, and you can too, during intermission and after the show!

Don’t miss this exciting new production. San Jose Metblogs is excited to attend the September 4 show and we will have our review up by Saturday afternoon. See you at the Rep!

There are three ways to purchase tickets starting Monday, August 3:

• On-line at http://sjrep.com beginning at 12:00 a.m.

• By phone at 408.367.7255 during box office hours beginning at 10:00 a.m.

• In person at the box office downtown, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, between 2nd and 3rd Streets.

Single ticket prices start at $33. Five and six play subscriptions are also available for as low as $125. Discounts are offered to seniors, students, teachers, ADA or ASL members and groups of ten and more.

San Jose Rep also offers flexibility and value with Design Your Own (DYO) and Flex Pass packages. Choose the plays you want to see, when you want to see them with the Design Your Own package. Simply mix and match the days of the week and select 3, 4 or 5 plays to create an individualized season package. Save up to 20% and receive benefits that include free ticket exchange and complimentary ticket upgrades. For the ultimate in ticket flexibility, choose the Rep’s convenient Flex Pass. At a discounted price from single tickets, the Flex Passes are vouchers that can be redeemed for any main stage performance in the parterre or balcony section. Attend productions with one friend, bring all your friends to one production, give tickets away as gifts – the possibilities are endless.

The Rep launches the 2009-10 season with one of Shakespeare’s most sophisticated and bewitching comedies As You Like It. Next is the Regional Premiere of Groundswell, a haunting, psychological thriller about dashed dreams, enduring hope and the promise for a just post-apartheid society. Back by popular demand is the holiday classic A Christmas Story. In the New Year, the Rep presents the 1997-98 recipient of the “Laurence Olivier Best New Play,” The Weir, by Conor McPherson. In the spring, the joint will be jumpin’ to the musical styling of “Fats” Waller with the Tony® Award-winning musical revue, Ain’t Misbehavin’. The season concludes with a funny and moving family drama Sonia Flew.

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I am passionate about my film collection. I love them all, from ‘Bad Day at Black Rock‘ to ‘Harold and Maude‘, from ‘The Vanishing‘ to ‘The Last of Shelia‘, from ‘Tampopo‘ to ‘A Certain Smile’, and even my precious copy of the 1950 TV cartoon, ‘Crusader Rabbit‘.

‘Play Time’ (1967) is not yet in my collection, though I have been advised that the 70 mm version is best viewed big screen in the cinema. Thanks to Team San Jose and the Stanford Theater Foundation, ‘Play Time’, is showing in San Jose tonight.

See you there!
The California Theatre
345 South First Street, downtown San Jose.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
7:00 PM
Tickets: $5 (at the door only)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Second City - On Tour Cast: (Top Row L-R) Niki Lindgren, Megan Wilkins, Dana Quercioli (Bottom Row) Cody Dove, Tim Robinson, Mark Raterman

This is an adult show and sometimes blurs the lines of appropriateness, however I never really cringed and certainly did laugh a great deal. I thought the Sing-a-long at the Retirement Center skit was hysterical but almost everything they did was hysterical. It was a really fun evening, and if nothing else, a really COOL evening.

This show is only at the Rep through Sunday, July 19, so you need to get your tickets now before you miss your chance. Due to the volume of ticket sales their ticketing server has been down so you need to call the box office at 408.367.7255 to reserve your seats. Do not miss out on this great show!

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And why not have dinner downtown before the show? My guest and I went to Gordon Biersch for a light dinner of several appetizers; I cannot recommend their current specials enough. Their coconut shrimp was to die for.

Kevin B. McGlynn as Rafreaky in a spoof of The Lion King

On July 7 I attended a production of Forbidden Broadway at the San Jose Repertory Theatre. I knew little about this show before I attended. It is described as “New York’s longest running musical comedy revue that parodies, jeers and cheers American musical theatre,” but I would say that it skewers the business of Broadway just as much if not more. Because of this, I think it really speaks to those of us who are very much into the history of Broadway, who are familiar with “the business”, and who are aware of many of the personalities important to the Broadway scene. Those of us who are less up on Broadway news but know our Musical theatre will also enjoy it, just in a different way. The short run of this production should serve to keep the theater filled, and if you fall into any of the above categories you should definitely make time for this production and make reservations quickly.

The show is a quick series of musical performances. Some parody specific shows or people, but many point to more than one. In a show that is less than 90 minutes long, I counted at least 30 specific musical or personality references, so you can see that this moves along quickly. The taking over of Broadway by Walt Disney is a running theme throughout the show, along with the new trend of valuing puppets and fuzzy costumes over actual meaningful content. Personality references include Patti Lupone, Liza Minnelli, Harvey Fierstein and Ethel Merman among others. Musical references run the gamut from Fiddler to Hairspray to Phantom to Wicked to Gypsy and everything in between. Special attention is given to producer Cameron Mackintosh, costumer Julie Taymor, choreographer Bob Fosse and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber.

If you are a Broadway fan you should definitely not miss this show. It runs through Sunday, July 12 so get your tickets now!

San Jose Repertory Theatre
101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose
408-367-7255
Online

July 14 – July 19 a brand new show will arrive at the Rep: The Second City on Tour! That’s right, Chicago’s legendary comedy theatre will pay a short visit to the SJ Rep and will feature some of the best sketches, songs, and improvisations from The Second City’s forty-five plus year history. Another summer show you won’t want to miss!

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The side-splitting savagery known as Forbidden Broadway is on the road again with their newest edition! Now celebrating its record-breaking 25th year in New York, this year’s victims include the puppets of “Avenue Q,” the witches of “Wicked,” “Billy Joel’s Movin’ Out,” and a new look at old favorites such as “La Cage aux Folles,” “Little Shop of Horrors,” “Les Miz,” “Beauty and the Beast,” and “Chicago.” Rounding out the laughs are Mel Brooks’ “The Producers,” ABBA’s “Mamma Mia” and “Thoroughly Modern Millie;”  with lots more Broadway past and present.

The show is running from July 7 through July 12 with a matinee show on Saturday the 11th. For the Thursday and Saturday performances you are invited to join the Rep after-hours in the Curtain Call Patron Lounge for live piano music and premium wine, and you may even see a cast member or two! I think the most interesting deal is the Cabaret Club Package. This “swanky and unique package” includes two seats at intimate cabaret tables adjacent to the stage and a bottle of premium wine for you to enjoy during the show! Having never been to a cabaret style show before I am sure this would be fabulous fun.

San Jose Metblogs will be attending the opening night show and we will have a review up as quickly as possible. It’s a great time to get a babysitter and have dinner and a show downtown! We hope to see you there!

Forbidden Broadway is the recipient of an Obie Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, and the 2005 Drama Desk Award for Best Off Broadway Musical.

“Wonderful! There’s no Broadway like Forbidden Broadway!” -Entertainment Weekly
“Hilarious and brilliantly wicked” -The New York Times
“Gut-Busting Funny!” -New York Post

The San Jose Repertory Theatre
101 Paseo de San Antonio, CA 95113-2603
Purchase tickets online
Call 408.367.7255 for Cabaret Club Package

San Jose Repertory Theatre is a great place for children and teens to spend their summer. The Creative Dramatics Summer Workshop is a series of two-week programs that teaches youth improvisational and play-building skills. Sessions are offered for children and teens between the ages of 5-16, starting June 22 through July 20. All workshops are held at San Jose Repertory Theatre’s Fourth Floor Studio Theatre, located at 101 Paseo de San Antonio, in downtown San Jose.

“We’re delighted to offer a summer program for kids and teens that focuses on their ideas and their creativity,” comments Karen Altree Piemme, San Jose Rep’s Director of Outreach. “There are many opportunities out there for kids to perform in a play. At the Rep, we celebrate kids’ imaginations by giving them the opportunity to create their own plays.”

Led by San Jose Repertory Theatre professionals, participants develop their improvisational acting and play-building skills. In each two-week program, the first week focuses on character creation, communication, scene building, storytelling, and the collaborative nature of the improvisational process. During week two, participants use those skills to develop their own short play or improv showcase. At the end of each two-week session there is a final presentation of the participants’ finished works. Families, friends and the community-at-large are invited to view the final presentations.

“The program was originally started to fill a void in the offerings of summer arts programs in the community. There were lots of great programs that allowed kids to perform in plays or musicals that already existed,” Altree Piemme continues. “There wasn’t much available, though, that focused on the creative process. Kids’ natural impulses are to imagine – characters, stories, whole new worlds. We see it in children from a very young age. The Rep’s Creative Dramatics Summer Workshops help kids capitalize on those imaginative impulses and learn to use them in a nurturing, supportive, collaborative environment.”

 Creative Dramatics Summer Workshops Sessions:
 • Session I:   Ages 5-7   June 22-July 3,  9:00am-12:00pm
• Session II:   Ages 11-13   June 22-July 3,  1:30pm-4:30pm
• Session III:   Ages 8-10   July 6-July17,  9:00am-12:00pm
• Session IV:   Ages 14-16   July 6-July 17,  1:30pm-4:30pm
• Session V:   Ages 5-7   July 20-July 31,  9:00am-12:00pm
• Session VI:   Ages 11-13   July 20-July 31,  1:30pm-4:30pm

For more details contact Melissa Locsin at 408-367-7292 or MelissaL@sjrep.com. 

In the span of two months, thanks to the support of donors like you, we have raised the $22,000 match to the grant put forward by our Emeritus Trustee, John M. Sobrato for new lobby carpet. We will now be able to install new carpet in our lower and upper lobby in time for the start of Rick Lombardo’s Inaugural Season in September.

This is really incredible news, and I would like to personally thank each and every person who made a donation, including Emeritus Trustee John M. Sobrato, even if your personal donation was only $1.  As you can see, it all added up and we will now have a beautiful Repertory Theatre to show the world by September.  Thank you!

The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee has been extended:

Due to packed houses, overwhelming great reviews and exuberant standing ovations, The San Jose Repertory Theatre has extended the Putnam County Spelling Bee through June 14.  As we have said before, this musical production should not be missed.  It will appeal to adults and college students, and high school kids will also love it.  You don’t want to lose your last chance to see it and now The Rep has made it easier to go:  They have reserved 25 seats at every performance for the low price of $25 each.  You can purchase one or you can purchase all 25, but once they are gone they are gone.  If you miss getting that deal, you may fall into one of the below categories:

Price range: $33-$62

Students (full-time, with valid ID) - 1/2 off tickets for all performances, all seats.

Seniors (65 yrs +) and Teachers - $6 off tickets all performances, all seats.

ADA or ASL discount - $6 off your ticket and your companion’s ticket.

Subscriber Single Ticket Discounts - $6

Rush Ticket Discounts - Balcony price for that performance

By phone: 408.367.7255

Online: www.sjrep.com

By fax: 408.367.7236

In person: Rep Box Office, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose

REMINDER: The SJ Rep has received a Challenge Grant, needs your help!  

I noticed recently that the carpet at the SJ Rep is in horrible condition. Thank goodness someone else noticed too – If the SJ Rep can raise half the money through donations, they’ll receive a grant to pay for the rest of it.  Click this link for details:
The SJ Rep gets called to the carpet
UPDATE!  The Rep has already met their goal!

Two new Summer Shows: Forbidden Broadway and The Second City

Tickets on Sale June 10^th!

Forbidden Broadway opens July 7 and runs through July 12.  New York’s longest running musical comedy revue that parodies, jeers and cheers American musical theatre celebrates its record-breaking 25^th year.  This year’s special victims include the puppets of “Avenue Q,” the witches of “Wicked,” “Billy Joel’s Movin Out” and new look at old favorites such as “La Cage aux Folles,” “Little Shop of Horrors,” “Les Miz,” “Beauty and the Beast,” and “Chicago.” Rounding out the laughs are Mel Brooks’ “The Producers,” Abba’s “Mamma Mia” and “Thoroughly Modern Millie;” with lots more Broadway past and present.

The Second City, running from July 14 through July 19, provides audiences with the chance to see comedy stars in the making, but they will also have the opportunity to see absolutely hilarious satire and cutting-edge improvisation.  No topic or subject matter is off limits for The Second City.  If your parents asked you not to speak about it at the dinner table, chances are it will be made fun of in an evening with The Second City.