Here in Southern California we are enjoying fair weather as usual, which means it’s time to go out and enjoy one or more of these fabulous shows playing currently in our local theaters!

COVID protocols continue to be dictated by each individual venue, so bring a face mask to wear during the show in case the venue requires it. It’s a good idea to check with the theater before attending a show to find out what is their current policy. 

The information presented in this column is the latest available at the time of printing; however, you should verify it with the theater to confirm it before making definite plans. 

Here are the shows that have announced opening dates for this month, or are already running:

Opening

“Here Be Dragons” In this powerful new play, a high school classroom becomes a courtroom battleground between two estranged brothers (Jim Beaver and Charlie Mount) on opposing sides of the Evolution/Intelligent Design issue. With Meg Lin, Anne Leyden and John Combs as the school board members, whose decision on whether or not to accept the state’s re-definition of science (allowing for the legal introduction of Creationism into their science classrooms) is being carefully watched by the country’s media and may influence school systems across the country. George Tovar and Corrine Shor play parents of a child whose teacher was killed while teaching a Bible Literacy class. Adding her sly wisdom to the debate is the board secretary (Scottie Nevil) looking for a “lost cause” of her own to champion. 

As the brothers engage in their battle of wits, the tension builds and it becomes increasingly unclear who will win. Will the school allow the teaching of Intelligent Design? It’s a question being asked in actual school boards across the country right now! 

Written and directed by Charlie Mount, it runs through March 11 at the Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks. For tickets, visitwww.whitefire.stagey.net/projects/13156.

“Guards at the Taj” Set centuries ago, yet piercingly relevant today, “Guards at the Taj” follows two low-ranking imperial guards stationed outside the Taj Mahal before its grand unveiling. An impossible task will test their lifelong friendship, shake their faith and shatter their lives forever. This darkly funny and deeply moving play asks us: follow duty or follow beauty? 

Written by Rajiv Joseph, and directed by Behzad Dabu, it runs Feb. 5 through Feb. 22 at the El Portal Theatre Monroe Forum in North Hollywood. For tickets, call (818) 508-4200 or visitwww.elportaltheatre.com.

“Three Coconuts” is set in Chicago 1968, during the Democratic National Convention. Downtown, cops are fighting demonstrators in the streets. Meanwhile, in the Albany Park neighborhood Ida Blumenthal is preparing for sabbath dinner. Ida’s husband is long-gone. So Ida, looking for a new husband for herself and, most importantly, a new father for her young son Sammy, has taken out an ad in the Jewish newspaper, The Forward. She has invited three gentlemen to her first-floor apartment for her home-cooked Shabbat dinner. Three candidates arrive. Her brother Irving, noting their eccentricities, dubs them “Three Coconuts.” 

Meanwhile, Ida’s second-story neighbor Maury has been operating a bordello on his premises. When the local constabulary comes calling Ida, Sammy and the Three Coconuts risk being swept up in the vice cops’ dragnet. It was just supposed to be Shabbat dinner. What could possibly go wrong? 

Written and directed by Howard Teichman and Steven G, it runs Feb. 6 through March 29 at the Miles Memorial Playhouse in Santa Monica. For tickets, call (323) 821-2449 or visitwww.wcjt.org.

“Sylvia Sylvia Sylvia” Sally, a once-celebrated novelist grappling with writer’s block and overshadowed by her husband Theo’s rising literary fame, seeks solace and inspiration in the iconic Boston apartment once inhabited by Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes. But when eerie encounters begin to blur the line between inspiration and madness, Sally is forced to question what’s real, what’s imagined and what her art may truly cost her. A darkly funny, gripping world premiere from rising playwright Beth Hyland, this tragicomic thriller explores creativity, obsession and our ghosts that refuse to be ignored. 

Written by Beth Hyland and directed by Jo Bonney, it runs Feb. 12 through March 8 at the Gil Cates Theater at Geffen Playhouse in Westwood. For tickets, call (310) 208-2028 or visitwww.geffenplayhouse.org.

“Incitation to the Dance” Includes frank discussion of sexual themes. Leave the kids at home. 

Malcolm is a film professor teaching a class on Queer Coding in Film Noir. Asher is his husband, depressed as he faces a career crisis. Finn is a determined young man who upends their comfortable world with his provocative blend of sexuality and menace. As Malcolm reveals to his class the homoerotic undertones in the seminal film noir “Gilda”, his personal life threatens to become a mirror image of the tangled trio in the film. This show is a sexy, dark comedy filled with witty banter, rising sexual tension, stylish dance numbers, and the radiant vitality of Rita Hayworth. 

Written and directed by Michael Van Duzer, it runs Feb. 13 through March 15 at the Theatre West in Studio City. For tickets, call (323) 851-4839 or visitwww.eventbrite.com/e/incitation-to-the-dance-tickets,-1975939145174.

“Man of La Mancha” unfolds as a story within a story following Miguel de Cervantes as he invites a community of prisoners to help him bring his tale to life. What begins as a stark, stripped-down world transforms through imagination, humor and shared belief as the characters become co-creators in Don Quixote’s quest to see the world not as it is, but as it could be. 

Blending whimsy with emotional depth, the production celebrates resilience, dignity and the power of storytelling to set us free. By the final moments, audiences will be left to wonder whether Don Quixote was mad … or simply brave enough to dream out loud. 

Written by Dale Wasserman, with music by Mitch Leigh, lyrics by Joe Darion, and directed by James Vásquez, it runs Feb. 13 through March 1 at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach. For tickets, call (562) 856-1999 or visitwww.musical.org.

“The 39 Steps” A missing spy. A mysterious woman. A man on the run. When Richard Hannay, a seemingly ordinary man, makes the split-second decision to stop and help a stranger he is catapulted into a high-speed chase across the Scottish countryside – with only his wits (and a trench coat) to survive. This fast-paced farce features over 150 characters played by just four actors in a whirlwind of costume changes, clever staging and nonstop laughs. Equal parts Hitchcock homage and theatrical tour de force, this is a masterclass in imagination, precision and play. 

Written by John Buchan, adapted by Patrick Barlow and directed by Jenny Sullivan, it runs Feb. 14 through March 1 at the Rubicon’s Karyn Jackson Theatre in Ventura. For tickets, call (805) 667-2900 or visitwww.rubicontheatre.org.

“Honour” A sharp and authentic examination of love, betrayal and the fragile agreements that hold marriages together. When a celebrated writer can’t seem to “do the right thing,” decades of loyalty, intimacy and compromise unravel in a single evening. With wit and emotional precision, the play explores the personal cost of truth and the reverberations of a single, life-altering choice – asking whether honesty is always an act of courage or sometimes one of cruelty. 

Written by Joanna Murray-Smith and directed by Max Mayer, it runs Feb. 14 through March 22 at the Ruskin Group Theatre in Santa Monica. For tickets, call (310) 397-3244 or visitwww.ruskingrouptheatre.com.

“Luca & Uri” opens with a breakup between two men fiercely bound by love yet unable to hold on, tracing the fractured arc of their decade-long relationship in Los Angeles. As their dreams and desires pull them apart, their intimacy dissolves into quiet compromises and mounting silences, exposing the gradual erosion of self. Unfolding like a fractured memory through moments of tenderness, passion and resentment, the play confronts the cost of staying, the quiet courage it takes to leave and the heartbreak of loving someone so deeply you begin to disappear inside them. 

Written by Nicholas Pilapil and directed by Jon Rivera, it runs Feb. 14 through March 15 at the Victory Theatre Center in Burbank. For tickets, call (818) 841-5421 or visitwww.ruskingrouptheatre.com.

“OY! What They Said About Love” In this warm, witty and deeply personal performance, Budd explores the universal search for love and connection. Wondering why others seem to find lasting relationships while he remains on the sidelines, Budd interviewed couples from all walks of life – from a Jewish pair who met on Craigslist to an interfaith couple who connected at a Halloween party – and brings their real words to life onstage. Wearing many hats (and voices), he embodies a dozen characters and weaves together a narrative that is as hilarious as it is heartfelt. 

Written by Steve Budd and directed by Mark Kenward and Kenny Yun, it runs Feb. 14 through Feb. 15 at the Santa Monica Playhouse in Santa Monica. For tickets, call (310) 394-9779 or visitwww.thevictorytheatrecenter.org.

“Red Harlem” Based on true events when the Communist Party courted African Americans in 1932 by championing their civil rights and opposing racist injustices, four Harlemites fleeing racial injustice and the economic fallout of the Great Depression, win roles in a blockbuster film financed by Joseph Stalin. Once in the Soviet Union, they pursue the dreams denied them in the U.S. but when they discover the country is hiding a devastating secret, they’ll be forced to escape it with their lives. 

Written by Kimba Henderson and directed by Bernadette Speakes, it runs Feb. 14 through March 15 at the Company of Angels in Boyle Heights. For tickets, call (323) 270-6325 or visitwww.companyofangels.org.

“Richard III” Charismatic and contemptible in equal measure, burdened by physical challenges and consumed by ambition, Richard claws his way to the crown with unrelenting ferocity, removing all obstacles and all people in his path. Manipulating, marrying and murdering his way to the top with unmatched charm and zeal, Richard turns the audience into his unwitting accomplice: we root for him even as his plans grow ever more monstrous. 

Written by William Shakespeare and directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos, it runs Feb. 14 through March 8 at A Noise Within in Pasadena. For tickets, call (626) 356-3100 or visit www.anoisewithin.org.

“Fiddler on the Roof” Set in the village of Anatevka at the turn of the 20th century, “Fiddler on the Roof” follows Tevye, a devoted husband and father striving to uphold tradition as his family and community face profound social change. Through humor, heart and unforgettable music, the musical explores enduring themes of family, faith, love and resilience. The score includes some of musical theater’s most celebrated songs, including “Tradition,” “If I Were a Rich Man,” “Matchmaker” and “Sunrise, Sunset.” 

Written by Joseph Stein, with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick and directed by Tim Nelson, it runs Feb. 20 through March 8 at the Rose Center Theater in Westminster. For tickets, visit www.rosecentertheater.com.

“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” By turns endearing, hilarious and deeply relatable, the musical explores the thrills and pitfalls of dating, romance, marriage and long-term commitment from first dates and second guesses to in-laws and everything in between, capturing nearly every stage of romantic life with warmth and humor. 

Written by Joe DiPietro, with music by Jimmy Roberts and directed by Barry Pearl, it runs Feb. 20 through March 8 at the International City Theatre in Long Beach. For tickets, call (562) 436-4610 or visit www.InternationalCityTheatre.org.

“Uncle Vanya” Set in a rural estate at the end of the 19th century, the lives intertwine of Vanya, his niece Sonya, the retired Professor Serebryakov and his young wife Yelena, leading to complex jealousies, romantic rivalries and emotional breakdowns as they confront their wasted lives and failed dreams. Vanya and Astrov, a local doctor, both fall in love with Yelena, a spoiled, self-centered beauty; Sonya pines hopelessly for the doctor while the oblivious professor disrupts everyone’s lives with his egotistical demands. This classic play, rendered here by LaBute in a new, contemporary version, uses deceptively ordinary dialogue to reveal deep human frailties and a poignant, yet hopeful message about how we find the strength to endure life’s struggles. 

Written by Neil LaBute and directed by Frédérique Michel, it runs Feb. 20 through March 29 at the City Garage in Santa Monica. For tickets, visitwww.ticketleap.events/tickets,/city-garage/uncle-vanya.

Continuing

“Julius Caesar” A gripping exploration of ambition, loyalty and betrayal, “Julius Caesar” examines the rise and fall of one of history’s most iconic figures. As conspirators strike in the name of freedom, the consequences reshape Rome — and immortalize Caesar as a symbol of power whose legacy echoes across centuries. As the opening production of “The Stuff of Legends,” “Julius Caesar” sets the tone for a season dedicated to stories that endure – tales whose impact is so extraordinary they can never be forgotten. 

Written by William Shakespeare and directed by Glenn Kelman, it runs through Feb. 7 at the Helen Borgers Theatre in Long Beach. For tickets, visit www.lbshakespeare.org.

“The Altruist” A happy, seemingly healthy bachelor discovers via his annual physical that he has at least two terminal diseases. Seeking positivity, he decides he will donate all of his organs (while they are still good) and save multiple lives. But this is not allowed so he sues the state. The media goes berserk and before you can say The Great White Way, a Broadway producer shows up wanting to turn his story into a great big money-making musical! 

Written by Bill Fitzhugh, with music by Richard Allen and directed by Bruce Kimmel, it runs through Feb. 22 at the Group Rep in North Hollywood. For tickets, call (818) 763-5990 or visitwww.thegrouprep.com.

“My Son the Playwright” In his bold and intimate new solo show, L.A. cult icon and Rogue Machine resident playwright Justin Tanner dives headfirst with courage and sharp humor into a story that centers around the strained relationship between a playwright and his estranged father. In his most autobiographical play yet, two men in different apartments prepare for a meeting that they would rather avoid – but desperately need. What begins as a messy and comic struggle against pride and past resentments becomes a reckoning with vulnerability and forgiveness. 

Written by Justin Tanner and directed by Lisa James, it runs through March 1 at the Rogue Machine at the Matrix Theatre in Los Angeles. For tickets, call (855) 585-5185 or visitwww.roguemachinetheatre.org.

“God of Carnage” satirizes parenting, marriage and upper-middle class dynamics in an oft-hilarious manner that is as cutting as it is clever. In gentrified Brooklyn, a playground fight between 11-year-old boys brings four parents together to resolve their sons’ conflict. At first diplomacy rules. But as each parent reveals their demands, the living room peace summit spirals into a riotous free-for-all of opposing parenting styles, conflicting personalities and marital tensions. A brilliant and biting comedy of manners (without the manners). 

Written by Yasmina Reza and directed by Marco Barricelli, it runs through March 21 at the South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa. For tickets, call (714) 708-5555 or visitwww.scr.org.

“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” George and Martha invite a young couple to their home for a nightcap. As the clock ticks into the wee hours, Nick and Honey find themselves submerged in a cocktail of clever mind games, deep-seated resentments and broken promises. Hilarious and harrowing, this unflinching portrait of a marriage ceaselessly astonishes audiences with its razor-sharp dialogue and thrilling performances. 

Written by Edward Albee and directed by Lisa Rothe, it runs through March 21 at the South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa. For tickets, call (714) 708-5555 or visitwww.scr.org.

Sincerely,

Steve Zall, Publisher – Scene in LA
Sid Fish, Co-Publisher & Editor – Scene in LA