Matthew Baldiga

On April 11, 2003, just two days after the fall of Saddam Hussein, then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, along with General Richard B. Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addressed the media. When asked about the looting and the lack of law and order following the 'liberation' of Iraq, Rumsfeld said: 'Think what's happened in our cities when we've had riots and problems and looting. Stuff happens! Freedom's untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things. They're also free to live their lives and do wonderful things, and that's what's going to happen here.' The backroom deals and politics leading up to the invasion of Iraq are the subject of David Hare's historical drama STUFF HAPPENS. The play premiered in London in 2004. Two years later, it opened off-Broadway to critical acclaim. Last weekend, Burning Coal Theatre opened their season with Hare's play, which by his own account, is a fictional dramatization based on interviews, televised speeches, and transcripts.

Burning Coal Theatre is proud to present David Hare's Stuff Happens, a witty and fast-paced look at the decisions made in the months following the events of September 11th, culminating in the US-led invasion of Iraq.

California Shakespeare Theater's 25th anniversary season at the Bruns Amphitheater concludes with Artistic Director Eric Ting's company debut with Shakespeare's Othello, from September 14 through October 9. For tickets and information, contact the Cal Shakes Box Office at 510.548.9666 or visit www.calshakes.org

California Shakespeare Theater's 25th anniversary season at the Bruns Amphitheater returns to the works of George Bernard Shaw with his sharply-observed take on feminism, class distinctions, and romance, You Never Can Tell, directed by Obie award-winner Lisa Peterson, from August 10 through September 4.

California Shakespeare Theater's 25th anniversary season at the Bruns Amphitheater returns to the works of George Bernard Shaw with his sharply-observed take on feminism, class distinctions, and romance, You Never Can Tell, directed by Obie award-winner Lisa Peterson, from August 10 through September 4. For tickets and information, contact the Cal Shakes Box Office at 510.548.9666 or visit www.calshakes.org?

American Conservatory Theater's Master of Fine Arts Program, Class of 2016, will present Dan LeFranc's The Big Meal-a delicious comedy about eight diners, four generations and one family-February 24-27, 2016 in The Rueff at A.C.T.'s Strand Theater (1127 Market Street, San Francisco). Family is not a word, it's a seating chart in this delicious and provocative comedy. Playwright Dan LeFranc orients the drama around four generations of a single family loving and laughing, fighting and yelling over a series of meals. While the passing of time in LeFranc's world is fluid (this feels like a modern cousin of Thornton Wilder's The Long Christmas Dinner), the meals are quick and casual-a moveable feast. One moment, two young lovers are hooking up over cocktails, the next moment, they're middle-aged and clashing about their kids. With characters that develop, flip, and shift, The Big Meal serves up a thought-provoking feast for audiences.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2015-16 season with AH, WILDERNESS!, Eugene O'Neill's passionate coming-of-age classic. AH, WILDERNESS! is a tender portrait of a sensitive teenage poet whose experience of first love leads him into the raptures of romantic poetry and the pain of heartbreak.

Featuring a lively cast of dozens, delightful music, gorgeous costumes, and those deliciously spooky ghosts, the Bay Area's favorite holiday tradition returns with American Conservatory Theater's celebrated production of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Now in its 39th year, this version of A Christmas Carol-adapted by Paul Walsh and Carey Perloff-stays true to the heart of Dickens's timeless story of redemption and brings a playful sensibility to his rich language.

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2015-16 season with AH, WILDERNESS!, Eugene O'Neill's passionate coming-of-age classic. AH, WILDERNESS! is a tender portrait of a sensitive teenage poet whose experience of first love leads him into the raptures of romantic poetry and the pain of heartbreak.

Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC), under the leadership of Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch and Managing Director Sarah Clare Corporandy, presents William Shakespeare's Henry V from August 14 through August 21 on the Bratton Stage.

Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC), under the leadership of Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch and Managing Director Sarah Clare Corporandy, presents Lynn Nottage's Intimate Apparel from July 24 through August 2 on the Bratton Stage.

Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC), under the leadership of Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch and Managing Director Sarah Clare Corporandy, announced casting for their Mainstage 2015 Season, which includes blending Chautauqua Theater Company alumni with those making their company debuts. Principal actors are Andrew Borba, Carol Halstead, Tangela Large, Manu Narayan, Michael Potts, Shelia Tousey, and Kathryn Hunter Williams. The season features Our Town (July 3-12), Intimate Apparel (July 24-August 2), and Henry V (August 14-21), all performed at the Bratton Theater at Chautauqua Institution.

The San Francisco Playhouse (Bill English, Artistic Director; Susi Damilano, Producing Director) completes its fifth season of the Sandbox Series of new plays with the world premiere of Rhett Rossi's From Red to Black. Susi Damilano will direct. Rhett Rossi is the newest playwright under commission to write a play for San Francisco Playhouse in partnership with Bisno Productions, producers of numerous Broadway shows.

American Conservatory Theater announced today the Spring 2014 Repertory featuring students from A.C.T.'s acclaimed Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) Program, as well as a coproduction featuring students from A.C.T.'s Young Conservatory (YC) Program. The three works in repertory this May are Stephen Adly Guirgis' scorching comedy, Our Lady of 121st Street; Georges Feydeau's madcap farce The Girl from Maxim's; and Rob Ackerman's hilarious and heartbreaking Teach for America. Tickets for each performance are $20 and are available online at www.act-sf.org or by calling the A.C.T. Box Office at 415.749.2228. Two and three-show packages are available. Pick any two shows for $30 (a savings of $10) or purchase all three shows for $40 (a savings of $20). Packages are available for purchase by visiting https://tickets.act-sf.org/online/ (select M.F.A. Program Spring Repertory Package).

Ultimately, this was a series of hits and misses. Half the characters and plot points weren't really needed. Nonetheless, when you boil it down, "Pratfalls" is a great relationship piece. "Pratfalls" is presented by Ground Up Productions at the Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex's Dorothy Strelsin Theatre, 312 W. 36th St., NYC. The show runs now through May 19. Tickes are available through (212) 352-3101, (866) 411-8111, www.theatermania.com, or www.groundupproductions.org.

The world-premiere of the new play PRATFALLS, by playwright Holly Webber, directed by Jenn Thompson and starring Victor Verhaeghe (HBO's 'Boardwalk Empire'), Kate Middleton, Amelia White and Matthew Baldiga opens tonight, April 27 at the Abingdon Theatre Complex (312 West 36th Street).

The world-premiere of the new play PRATFALLS, by playwright Holly Webber, directed by Jenn Thompson and starring Victor Verhaeghe (HBO's 'Boardwalk Empire'), Kate Middleton, Amelia White and Matthew Baldiga opens April 27 at the Abingdon Theatre Complex (312 West 36th Street).

Ground UP Productions presents the World Premiere of Holly Webber's PRATFALLS, a new comedy about falling down - set on a rooftop in Brooklyn - directed by Jenn Thompson (THE LATE CHRISTOHER BEAN). Preview performances begin April 27 prior to an official press opening of April 29 at the Abingdon Theatre Complex /Dorothy Strelsin Theatre (312 West 36th Street).

Crosshatch Theatre Company (formerly known as The Collective Theatre Company), under the leadership of Stephen F. Agosto, Geoffrey Bryant and Emma Canalese, co-artistic directors, presents the world premiere of Einstein and Mileva, a new play by Caitlin Shannon.

Crosshatch Theatre Company (formerly known as The Collective Theatre Company), under the leadership of Stephen F. Agosto, Geoffrey Bryant and Emma Canalese, co-artistic directors, presents the world premiere of Einstein and Mileva, a new play by Caitlin Shannon.