Pasadena Playhouse Announces 2022/2023 Season Featuring Six-Month Sondheim Celebration

Pasadena Playhouse Producing Artistic Director, Danny Feldman, has announced the 2022/2023 Season featuring a six-month-long celebration of the works and impact of Stephen Sondheim. The State Theater of California's Sondheim Celebration will begin in January 2023 and extend into June. Continuing their mission of creating notable revivals of the American Musical (Ragtime, Little Shop of Horrors, and Head Over Heels), the celebration will center around two full productions - Sunday in the Park with George and A Little Night Music, commemorating the latter show's 50th anniversary. The grand finale will be a special concert by Sondheim muse Bernadette Peters. Additionally, in a landmark partnership, the Playhouse is working with the high schools of Pasadena Unified School District to present a production of Into The Woods with students collaborating with theater professionals in creating their own special production. The 2022/2023 Season will be rounded out with two Los Angeles Premieres - Sanctuary City by Martyna Majok and Stew by Zora Howard. Creative teams and casting for all productions as well as additional Sondheim Celebration events will be announced at a later date.

Memberships, with options starting at $100, are now available at pasadenaplayhouse.org, or by calling 626-356-7529.

"This ambitious celebration has been several years in the making and has taken on even deeper meaning since the loss of Stephen Sondheim last year. Our goal is to provide a mosaic experience for our community, engaging audiences with multiple works by Sondheim and his collaborators' side by side, so that audiences can have a richer appreciation of his impact and work." Producing Artistic Director Danny Feldman added, "After our first season back on stage, we knew this year had to be about celebrating: Celebrating the masterworks of the greatest musical theater writer of all time. Celebrating new voices in the American Theater. Celebrating our community coming together at the Playhouse once again."

SONDHEIM CELEBRATION (January - June 2023)

The most ambitious and momentous event in the history of Pasadena Playhouse. This celebration of Stephen Sondheim features premier, full-scale productions of his monumental musicals seldom seen in the greater Los Angeles area and a one-of-a-kind concert by one of Sondheims' most beloved muses. Additional concerts, classes, digital programming and special events will be announced at a later date.

"Put simply, Stephen reinvented the American musical. He's loomed large over more than six decades in the theater. And with revivals from Broadway to the big screen, he is still here, pulling us up short, and giving us support for "being alive." - Barack Obama, Presidential Medal of Freedom Ceremony

Sunday in the Park with George (February 14 - March 19, 2023)

Book by James Lapine, Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

One of the most acclaimed musicals of all time, Sondheim's most innovative and groundbreaking musical has rarely been produced in Los Angeles with the full-scale production it deserves-until now. Inventive, insightful, and in a class of its own, this ravishing, captivating masterpiece encapsulates the complexity of life-and the art of understanding it.

A Little Night Music (April 25 - May 28, 2023)

Book by Hugh Wheeler, Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Suggested by a film by Ingmar Bergman

In honor of its 50th Anniversary, the Playhouse is proud to present this unsung sensation in its full, original, and soaring orchestration. Boasting one of the most singular and sumptuous scores in Broadway history, Sondheim's enchanting, hilarious romantic farce is a bona fide classic of American musical theater.

Recipient of three Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Original Score, A Little Night Music is "heady, civilized, sophisticated and enchanting." - New York Times

Bernadette Peters in Concert (June 10 - 11, 2023)

Bernadette Peters, Broadway's brightest star and Sondheim's most stunning muse, in an unforgettable evening of song from the Broadway shows she's received accolades for, as well as from all her Grammy Award winning and nominated albums. A glamorous evening as only Bernadette Peters can do.

Into the Woods (January 26 -27, 2023)
Book by James Lapine, Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Presented by students of the Pasadena Unified School District

Into the Woods is a lyrically rich retelling of classic Brothers Grimm fables, with Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine bringing the cockeyed fairytales to life on stage featuring all of your favorite characters - Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack (and his beanstalk) and the Witch. In a landmark partnership, the Playhouse will collaborate with the high school students and teachers of Pasadena Unified School District to present Into The Woods with students working alongside theater professionals in creating their own special production.

Recipient of the 1988 Tony Award for Best Original Score and the 1989 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, "Into the Woods blends imagination and playfulness in its own very special proportions" and follows "a path strewn with wit and the beguiling songs we've come to expect from Sondheim." - Newsweek

Sanctuary City (September 14 - October 9, 2022)

By Martyna Majok

From Pulitzer Prize-winner Martyna Majok (Cost of Living) comes a provocative, unforgettable story of two life-long friends, their tenuous grip on living in America, and persevering through whatever comes their way with wit and grit. Profoundly human and undeniably universal, it begs the question: how much do we owe to one another?

Recipient of the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award and Laurents/Hatcher Foundation Theater Development Grant, Sanctuary City "makes for a compelling contemporary drama that has enigmatic characters, rising intensity, vigorous argumentation, timely themes, and an underlying sense of humor and compassion." (amNY). Elysa Gardner of New York Stage Review says, "Majok has given us something that transcends politics as only the best and most humane art can." In addition to the Los Angeles premiere of Sanctuary City, Majok's Pulitzer Prize-winning Cost of Living will open on Broadway this fall.

Stew (July 11 - August 6, 2023)

By Zora Howard

Mama's in the kitchen early preparing her famous stew for a big event, but even as her daughter and granddaughters help, she still feels like time is running out. Soon these three generations of Black women begin to feel their past and present closing in. A finalist for the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Zora Howard's hilarious, haunting, and taut 90-minute drama has a lot more cooking underneath the surface.

A 2021 Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Stew "feels familiar without being cliché, delivering a captivating story that's intimate, funny, and heartbreaking in equal measure." - The New Yorker

MEMBERSHIPS

Membership is their form of Subscription. It is the best and most cost-effective way to celebrate the season at the Playhouse and includes tickets/access to Sanctuary City, Sunday in the Park with George, A Little Night Music, Bernadette Peters in Concert, and Stew. With packages starting at $100 for the PlayhousePass, there are packages for everyone. Members receive advanced access to tickets, significant discounts on tickets, reduced/waived fees and unprecedented flexibility, allowing patrons to experience live theater on their terms.

• Traditional Subscription/Classic Memberships: Receive tickets to all 5 productions with preassigned seats for the entire season. Packages start at $275.
• Dynamic Memberships: Prepaid access to all 5 productions, allowing you to pick your seats as you go (before tickets are available to the general public). Packages start at $250.
• PlayhousePass: $100 annual membership fee unlocks access to $50 tickets for the best available seats to any production you want to attend, with advanced access to tickets before they go on sale to the public.

Buy Early and Save: The prices above reflect packages sold on or before July 1, 2022; after July 2, 2022, Membership pricing will increase.

More information on all these packages, or higher-level Memberships, can be found at pasadenaplayhouse.org/membership.

COVID-19 POLICY

Pasadena Playhouse continues to follow all Covid-19 safety protocols put forth by Los Angeles County and the City of Pasadena. The most up-to-date requirements can be found at pasadenaplayhouse.org/covid-19/.

ABOUT PASADENA PLAYHOUSE

Pasadena Playhouse is a place where people have gathered for more than 100 years to experience bold and important theater. It is one of the most prolific theaters in American history with a legacy of profound theatrical impact and courageous new work. In 1937, the Playhouse was officially recognized as the State Theater of California for its contribution and commitment to the dramatic arts. Today it continues that tradition of excellence under the helm of producing artistic director Danny Feldman. Dedicated to enriching lives through theater, community programs and learning initiatives, Pasadena Playhouse is a living force in the community.


2022-2023 Slate of Offerings at Pasadena Playhouse
Season, schedule and artists subject to change

September 14 - October 9, 2022

Sanctuary City
by Martyna Majok

A wake-up from the American dream.

Martyna Majok: Martyna Majok was born in Bytom, Poland and raised in Jersey and Chicago. She was awarded the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play, Cost of Living. Other plays include Sanctuary City, Queens, and Ironbound, which have been produced across American and international stages. Awards include The Academy of Arts and Letters' Benjamin Hadley Danks Award for Exceptional Playwriting, The Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding New Play, The Greenfield Prize, as the first female recipient in drama, The Champions of Change Award from the NYC Mayor's Office, The Francesca Primus Prize, two Jane Chambers Playwriting Awards, The Lanford Wilson Prize, The Lilly Award's Stacey Mindich Prize, Helen Merrill Emerging Playwright Award, Charles MacArthur Award for Outstanding Original New Play from The Helen Hayes Awards, Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award, ANPF Women's Invitational Prize, David Calicchio Prize, Global Age Project Prize, NYTW 2050 Fellowship, NNPN Smith Prize for Political Playwriting, and Merage Foundation Fellowship for The American Dream. Martyna studied at Yale School of Drama, Juilliard, University of Chicago, and Jersey public schools. She was a 2012-2013 NNPN playwright-in-residence, the 2015-2016 PoNY Fellow at the Lark Play Development Center, and a 2018-2019 Hodder Fellow at Princeton University. Martyna is currently writing a musical adaptation of The Great Gatsby, with music by Florence Welch and Thomas Bartlett, and developing TV and film for HBO, Plan B, and Pastel.

January 26 - 27, 2023

Into the Woods
Book By James Lapine
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Presented by students of the Pasadena Unified School District

A lyrically rich retelling of classic Brothers Grimm fables bringing the cockeyed fairytales to life on stage.

February 14 - March 19, 2023

Sunday in the Park with George
Book By James Lapine
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

A work of art shimmering in color and light.

April 25 - May 28, 2023

A Little Night Music
Book By Hugh Wheeler
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

A waltz among lovers.

June 10 - 11, 2023

Bernadette Peters In Concert
An evening with a Broadway star

A glamorous evening as only Bernadette can do.

Stephen Sondheim: Stephen Sondheim wrote the music and lyrics for Saturday Night (1954), A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum (1962), Anyone Can Whistle (1964), Company (1970), Follies (1971), A Little Night Music (1973), The Frogs (1974), Pacific Overtures (1976), Sweeney Todd (1979), Merrily We Roll Along (1981), Sunday In The Park With George (1984), Into The Woods (1987), Assassins (1991), Passion (1994) and Road Show (2008) as well as lyrics for West Side Story (1957), Gypsy (1959) and Do I Hear A Waltz? (1965) and additional lyrics for Candide (1973). Anthologies of his work include Side By Side By Sondheim (1976), Marry Me A Little (1981), You're Gonna Love Tomorrow (1983), Putting It Together (1993/99) and Sondheim On Sondheim (2010). He composed the scores of the films Stavisky (1974) and Reds (1981) and songs for Dick Tracy (1990) and the television production Evening Primrose (1966). His collected lyrics with attendant essays have been published in two volumes: "Finishing the Hat" (2010) and "Look, I Made A Hat" (2011). In 2010 Broadway's Henry Miller's Theatre was renamed The Stephen Sondheim Theatre in his honour; in 2019, London's Queens Theatre was also renamed the Sondheim.

James Lapine: James Lapine is a playwright and director. On Broadway he has worked with Stephen Sondheim on Sunday in the Park with George; Into the Woods; and Passion. He also conceived and directed the musical review Sondheim on Sondheim. With William Finn he created Falsettos, recently revived by Lincoln Center Theater; Little Miss Sunshine; Muscle; and directed Finn's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Other Broadway credits include his play based on Moss Hart's memoir Act One (also LCT), Amour, The Diary of Anne Frank, Golden Child, and Dirty Blonde. He has written the plays Table Settings, Twelve Dreams, The Moment When, Fran's Bed and Mrs. Miller Does Her Thing. Lapine has been nominated for eleven Tony Awards, winning on three occasions. He has also been the recipient of the Pulitzer Prize, SDC's Mr. Abbott Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater, and inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame.

Hugh Wheeler: Hugh Wheeler was a novelist, playwright and screenwriter. He wrote more than thirty mystery novels under the pseudonyms Q. Patrick and Patrick Quentin, and four of his novels were transformed into films: Black Widow, Man in the Net, The Green-Eyed Monster and The Man with Two Wives. For films he wrote the screenplays for Travels with My Aunt, Something for Everyone, A Little Night Music and Nijinsky. His plays include Big Fish, Little Fish (1961), Look: We've Come Through (1961) and We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1966, adapted from the Shirley Jackson novel), he co-authored with Joseph Stein the book for a new production of the 1919 musical Irene (1973), wrote the books for A Little Night Music (1973), a new production of Candide (1973), Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979, based on a version of the play by Christopher Bond), and Meet Me in St. Louis (adapted from the 1949 MGM musical), contributed additional material for the musical Pacific Overtures (1976), and wrote a new adaptation of the Kurt Weill opera Silverlake, which was directed by Harold Prince at the New York Opera. He received Tony and Drama Desk Awards for A Little Night Music, Candide and Sweeney Todd. Prior to his death in 1987 Mr. Wheeler was working on two new musicals, Bodo and Fu Manchu, and a new adaptation of The Merry Widow.

Bernadette Peters: Throughout her illustrious career, Bernadette Peters has dazzled audiences and critics with her performances on stage, film and television, in concert, and on recordings. She has garnered numerous accolades including three Tony Awards, a Golden Globe, three Emmy and four Grammy Award nominations and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Best known for her work on stage and one of Broadway's most critically acclaimed performers, Bernadette recently starred on Broadway as Dolly Gallagher Levi in the hit musical, Hello, Dolly!. Prior to that, she starred in City Center's Encores! Production, A Bed and a Chair: A New York Love Affair featuring the music of Stephen Sondheim and orchestrations by Wynton Marsalis and on Broadway, in Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music and Follies.

Peters garnered both the Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for her performance in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, Song and Dance. She also won a Tony Award for her performance in Annie Get Your Gun. She received Tony nominations for her outstanding performances in Sam Mendes' critically acclaimed revival of Gypsy, in Neil Simon's The Goodbye Girl, Stephen Sondheim's Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George, the Jerry Herman/Gower Champion ode to the movies, Mack and Mabel, and the Leonard Bernstein/Comden and Green musical On The Town. In addition to these honors, Peters earned a Drama Desk nomination for her unforgettable portrayal of the Witch in Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods.

She also enjoys a career which boasts an impressive list of television credits, including guest-starring on the NBC-TV series, Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist for which she earned an Emmy nomination. The popular series was made into a TV movie musical titled Zoey's Extraordinary Christmas for The Roku Channel. Other recent TV appearances include The CW's Katy Keene; CBS All Access' The Good Fight; and Amazon Prime's Golden Globe winning series, Mozart in the Jungle. She recently completed production on the new Apple TV series, High Desert, scheduled to be released this Summer.

Other television credits include NBC-TV's Smash, ABC-TV's Grey's Anatomy and Ugly Betty. In addition to starring in the Lifetime TV movie Living Proof, Peters has lit up the silver screen in over 30 films throughout her distinguished career. She received a Golden Globe Award for her memorable performance in Pennies From Heaven. Other film credits include The Jerk, The Longest Yard, Silent Movie, Annie, Pink Cadillac, Slaves of New York, Woody Allen's Alice, Impromptu, It Runs in the Family, Coming Up Roses, The Broken Hearts Gallery and most recently, a surprise appearance in the popular Jonathan Larson biopic, tick, tick...BOOM!

Bernadette has recorded six solo albums, including the Grammy-nominated I'll Be Your Baby Tonight, Sondheim, Etc.: Bernadette Peters Live at Carnegie Hall, and Bernadette Peters Loves Rodgers & Hammerstein, in addition to numerous original Broadway cast recordings.

Peters devotes her time and talents to numerous events that benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Her "pet project" Broadway Barks, co-founded with Mary Tyler Moore, is an annual, star-studded dog and cat adoption event that benefits shelter animals in the New York City area. She is a New York Times best-selling author who has penned three children's books: Broadway Barks, Stella is a Star, and Stella and Charlie: Friends Forever. All of her proceeds from the sale of these books benefit Broadway Barks. Peters resides in New York and Los Angeles with her rescue dogs, Charlie and Rosalia.

July 11 - August 6, 2023

Stew
By Zora Howard

Not your ordinary kitchen-sink drama.

Zora Howard is a Harlem-bred writer and performer. Plays include Stew (2021 Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Drama League nominee for Outstanding Play; Page 73 Productions), The Master's Tools (Williamstown Theatre Festival), AtGN (Oberlin College), Bust (Susan Smith Blackburn Prize Finalist; L. Arnold Weissberger New Play Award Finalist), and Hang Time. Her work has been developed at Page 73, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Ojai Playwrights Conference, Primary Stages, and Cape Cod Theatre Project, among others. In 2020, her feature film Premature (2020 Film Independent John Cassavetes Award nominee), which she co-wrote with director Rashaad Ernesto Green, opened in theaters following its world premiere at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. Zora is the inaugural Judith Champion Fellow at Manhattan Theatre Club, a 2022 Lilly Award recipient and is currently under commission from Seattle Rep, and MTC.