Los Angeles is never lacking outstanding theatre, whether epic Broadway shows, engrossing dramas or bold fringe offerings. BroadwayWorld is rounding up our top recommended theatre every month.
Kinky Boots
Hollywoof Bowl - July 8 through 10th.
Kinky Boots - The winner of six Tony awards-including Best Musical-Kinky Boots tells the story of an unlikely friendship built around some very unlikely shoes. Factory owner Charlie is struggling to save his business, and the fabulous Lola has a wildly exciting idea that just might do the trick. With original songs by Cyndi Lauper, a book by Harvey Fierstein, and an all-star cast, Kinky Boots is the huge-hearted story of two people with nothing in common-or so they think. Featuring Wayne Brady, Jake Shears, and Kelly Marie Tran.
For tickets: click here.
King James
Mark Taper Forum - June 1st through July 3rd, 2022.
"Relationships are hard work. Especially when it's between a prisoner of war and her captor. Oh, and their love has to remain a secret (for obvious reasons).Verdi's epic drama Aida returns to our stage for the first time in 16 years, in a sensational production starring Latonia Moore and Russell Thomas. Director Francesca Zambello conjures a gorgeous world where hieroglyphics by the L.A.-based artist RETNA create a striking backdrop to the timeless story. Expect to be furt,er blown away by a huge chorus and orchestra, a ballet, and beautiful music that's both intimate and heroic in this grandest of grand operas."
For tickets: click here.
Shakespeare In Love
Electric Company Theatre - through July 6th, 2022.
Based on the Academy Award-winning movie, this enchanting, hilarious, romantic stage play reimagines William Shakespeare's creative process - and explores his inspiration - as he writes Romeo and Juliet. Young Will Shakespeare has writer's block. The deadline for his new play is fast approaching, but he's in desperate need of inspiration. That is, until he finds his muse... the feisty, brilliant and beautiful Viola. This crafty young woman is Will's greatest admirer and will stop at nothing (including breaking the law) to appear in his next play. Against a bustling background of mistaken identity, ruthless scheming and backstage theatrics, Will's love for Viola quickly blossoms, inspiring him to write his greatest romantic masterpiece.
For tickets: click here.
Dear Evan Hansen
Ahmanson Theatre - through July 31st, 2022.
Returning to the Ahmanson Theatre after a sold-out record-breaking run in 2018.
Winner of six 2017 Tony Awards® including Best Musical and the 2018 Grammy® Award for Best Musical Theatre Album! A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he's always wanted: a chance to finally fit in. Dear Evan Hansen is the deeply personal and profoundly contemporary musical about life and the way we live it.
For tickets: click here.
To T or Not To T?
Kirk Douglas Theatre - through July 10th, 2022.
In this hilariously intimate reflection on taking T(estosterone) and transitioning, award-winning storyteller meets stand-up comedian, D'Lo, invites you on his quest to embody a beautiful masculinity that upholds his queer and feminist politic. It's a vibrant, multi-faceted journey from idolizing his immigrant father (the man who matters most to him), to growing up on hip-hop, to learning from feminist elders, to finding deep connection with studs/bois and other trans masculine folks.
For tickets: click here.
RENT
Live, Under the Stars, Smith Center Amphitheatre - July 8th through July 16th, 2022.
"No Day But Today" is not only a chant sung by young artists struggling with a debilitating illness, it is also a reminder of the importance of recognizing each moment of life as significant. Rent the musical has all the ingredients to turn despair into hope which is what Art itself does. We are still dealing or not dealing with the issue of homelessness, people whose chosen families are their lifeline and artists in the middle of it all attempting to create, love and live. Puccini wrote La Boheme in 1895 and Jonathan Larson wrote Rent in 1993 (first reading and first production in 1996) and both highlight the beauty that can come from dogged determination to never give up on one another and to fight for what's humane for us all. What we bear witness to does impact our conscience.
Get tickets: click here.
Saturday Night Fever
Laguna Playhouse - through July 17th, 2022.
Put on your "Boogie Shoes" for Saturday Night Fever, one of the most loved dance stories of all time! The year is 1979 and in Brooklyn, New York, Tony Manero, a young man with a dead-end job and an extraordinary ability to dance, has only one ambition in life - to become the disco king. When he meets Stephanie, who also dreams of a world beyond Brooklyn, they decide to train together for a dance competition and their lives begin to change forever. Based on the 1977 film that became a cultural phenomenon, the electrifying score is packed with legendary hits from the Bee Gees including the classics: "Stayin' Alive," "Night Fever," "Jive Talking," "You Should Be Dancing" and "How Deep is Your Love?"
Get tickets: click here.
A Wicked Soul In Cherry Hill
Geffen Playhouse - through July 24th, 2022.
On a November night in 1994, a murder was committed in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. In this poignant true-crime story told completely through song, a tight-knit Jewish community gathers to recount, remember, and reckon with the details of what happened in-and to-their town. This wholly original production, written by South Jersey native Matt Schatz, asks what it does to our souls when our leaders fall from grace.
For tickets: click here.
Newsies
Five Star Theatricals - July 15th through July 24th, 2022.
Set in New York City at the turn of the century, Newsies is the rousing tale of Jack Kelly, a charismatic newsboy and leader of a ragged band of "newsies," who dreams only of a better life far from the hardship of the streets. But when publishing titans Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise distribution prices at the newsboys' expense, Jack finds a cause to fight for and rallies newsies from across the city to strike for what's right.
For tickets: click here.
freestyle love supreme
Pasadena Playhouse - begins July 12th, 2022.
Before Hamilton, before In the Heights, there was Freestyle Love Supreme, a 2020 Special Tony Award Recipient. Now - direct from Broadway - the hip-hop musical phenomenon from Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Anthony Veneziale arrives at Pasadena Playhouse! Using cues from the audience, the cast takes you on a hip-hop comedy ride where no two performances are the same. "Just as you were thinking that life has no rhyme nor reason, along comes Freestyle Love Supreme to pump you full of hope." - The New York Times
For tickets: click here.
Looking to include your shows? Submit them to our listings here.