About the Theatre
Geffen Playhouse has been a hub of the Los Angeles theater scene since opening its doors in 1995. Noted for its intimacy and celebrated for its renowned mix of classic and contemporary plays as well as provocative world premiere productions, the not-for-profit organization continues to present a body of work that garners national recognition. Named in honor of entertainment mogul and philanthropist David Geffen, who made the initial donation to the theater, the company was founded by Gilbert Cates and is currently helmed by Executive Director Gil Cates, Jr., Artistic Director Matt Shakman and Board Chair Adi Greenberg. Proudly associated with UCLA, the Geffen welcomes an audience of more than 130,000 each year, and maintains extensive education and community engagement programs, designed to involve underserved young people and the community at large in the arts.RELATED STORIES
Full Cast Set For WAITING FOR GODOT at Geffen Playhouse
by Stephi Wild - October 01, 2024
Geffen Playhouse has announced the full cast for Waiting for Godot, written by Nobel Prize winner Samuel Beckett (Endgame, Krapp's Last Tape) and directed by Judy Hegarty Lovett (The Realistic Joneses, How It Is). ...
The Hollywood Theatre Club Kicks Off TodayTix's LA Theatre Week With Sunset Rooftop Party
by A.A. Cristi - September 06, 2024
Hollywood Theatre Club announced a historic gathering of L.A.'s artistic directors for the first time, fostering collaboration and dialogue among the city's leading theatre visionaries....
Cast Set For THE BROTHERS SIZE at Geffen Playhouse
by Stephi Wild - June 25, 2024
Geffen Playhouse has announced the full cast for The Brothers Size, written by Geffen Playhouse Artistic Director and Academy Award winner Tarell Alvin McCraney and directed by Olivier Award-nominated Bijan Sheibani....
Review: THE HOPE THEORY at Geffen Playhouse
by Harker Jones - May 07, 2024
Every immigrant experience is unique and Guimarães’ story is a deeply engaging rumination on the power of faith and the capacity of hope to see one through....
Video: Director Sideeq Heard on FAT HAM at Geffen Playhouse
by Joshua Wright - April 12, 2024
Watch as Director Sideeq shares what he hopes audiences will understand about themselves and others after seeing Fat Ham at Geffen Playhouse....
VIDEO: Tarell Alvin McCraney On His Vision for the Geffen Playhouse
by Joshua Wright - January 04, 2024
Watch as Geffen Playhouse Artistic Director Tarrell Alvin McCraney talks about his plans for the storied theatre's upcoming season and beyond....
Christopher Ashley to Talk THE UNTITLED UNAUTHORIZED HUNTER S. THOMPSON MUSICAL On 'Bob Barth's One Night Stand'
by Chloe Rabinowitz - September 21, 2023
Get ready for an enlightening evening of theater talk as Christopher Ashley, the Artistic Director of the acclaimed La Jolla Playhouse, joins host Bob Barth on 'Bob Barth's One Night Stand.' ...
Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney Named Artistic Director of the Geffen Playhouse
by Stephi Wild - September 12, 2023
Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney has been appointed artistic director of the Geffen Playhouse. Learn more about McCraney here!...
Cast Revealed For Horror Play THE ANTS At Geffen Playhouse
by Stephi Wild - May 23, 2023
Geffen Playhouse has announced the full cast for its world premiere production of The Ants, written by Ramiz Monsef (The Unfortunates, 3 Farids) and directed by Pirronne Yousefzadeh (Vietgone, Queen). Find out who is starring in the show here!...
Review: AVA: THE SECRET CONVERSATIONS At The Geffen
by Tracey Paleo - April 18, 2023
Elizabeth McGovern gets downright gritty in a gutsy, full-blown exploration of one of Hollywood’s most meta-femmes fatales in AVA: THE SECRET CONVERSATIONS....
Past Shows
You’re six years old. Mum’s in hospital. Dad says she’s “done something stupid.” She finds it hard to be happy. So you start to make ...
The Mountaintop
6/6 - 7/9/2023
The night before his untimely death, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. returns to his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis after delivering a speech ...
The Inheritance
9/13 - 11/27/2022
In contemporary Manhattan, Eric and Toby are 30-somethings who seem to be very much in love and thriving. But on the cusp of their engagement, ...
The Inheritance, Part One
9/13 - 11/27/2022
Winner of the 2020 Tony Award for Best Play. Winner of the 2020 Drama Desk Award for Best Play. Winner of the 2019 Olivier Award ...
The Inheritance, Part Two
9/13 - 11/27/2022
Winner of the 2020 Tony Award for Best Play. Winner of the 2020 Drama Desk Award for Best Play. Winner of the 2019 Olivier Award ...
King Liz
7/12 - 8/14/2022
A WICKED SOUL IN CHERRY HILL
6/21 - 7/24/2022
Man Of God
5/10 - 6/19/2022
David Henry Hwang Theater: Anna Moench; dir: Jesca Prudencio....
WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?
4/19 - 5/22/2022
Trayf
3/1 - 4/10/2022
Lindsay Joelle; dir: Benjamin Kamine. American Premiere...
Power Of Sail
2/8 - 3/13/2022
Distinguished Harvard professor Charles Nichols (Emmy & Tony Award winner Bryan Cranston) finds himself in hot water after inviting an incendiary white nationalist to speak ...
The Enigmatist
9/14 - 10/30/2021
Can you solve the enigma? From the creator and performer of the hit virtual production Inside the Box comes an immersive experience of puzzles and ...
Someone Else's House
4/23 - 7/3/2021
Obie Award-winning multimedia artist Jared Mezzocchi has a harrowing story to tell: his family's frightening, true-life haunting inside a 200-year-old New England house. Flip the ...
The Door You Never Saw Before
5/14 - 6/27/2021
Part musical, part adventure, this inventive new play is designed to take frustrated kids in quarantine on an outrageously fun journey. After entering a door ...
Macbeth
6/16 - 7/20/2020
The Enigmatist
5/5 - 6/14/2020
An immersive evening of puzzles, cryptology and illusions...
Nightfall
3/3 - 4/12/2020
Revenge Song: A Vampire Cowboys Creation
2/4 - 3/8/2020
Gil Cates Theater: Revenge Song: A Vampire Cowboys Creation...
Man of God
3/3
David Henry Hwang Theater: Anna Moench; dir: Jesca Prudencio....
Revenge Song
2/4
Key Largo
11/6 - 12/10/2019
adapt: Andy Garcia, Jeffrey Hatcher. World Premiere...
The Thanksgiving Play
10/22 - 12/1/2019
by Larissa FastHorse Good intentions collide with absurd assumptions in Larissa FastHorse’s wickedly funny satire, as a troupe of terminally woke teaching artists scrambles to ...
Skintight
9/3 - 10/6/2019
Joshua Harmon; dir: Daniel Aukin....
Skintight
9/3 - 10/6/2019
Hanging on by a thread after her ex-husband gets engaged to a much younger woman, Jodi (Tony Award winner Idina Menzel, Rent, Wicked) retreats to ...
Witch
8/20 - 9/29/2019
Mischief is afoot in the sleepy village of Edmonton and the fate of the world is at stake in this smart modern fable. When the ...
Our Very Own Carlin McCullough
6/19 - 7/29/2018
A single mother discovers that her ten-year-old daughter is a tennis phenom. When a young, dedicated coach takes Carlin under his wing, her meteoric rise ...
Skeleton Crew
6/5 - 7/8/2018
As the Great Recession of 2008 begins to decimate industries across America, the once-gleaming “Motor City” has lost its luster. At one of its still-standing ...
Sell/Buy/Date
2/27 - 4/8/2018
Sell/Buy/Date is an exuberant new show inspired by the real-life experiences of people affected by the sex industry. Brimming with Jones' masterful, multicultural characterizations, Sell/Buy/Date ...
Ironbound
1/30 - 3/4/2018
At a bus stop in a run-down New Jersey town, Darja, a Polish immigrant cleaning lady, is done talking about feelings; it’s time to talk ...
Underneath the Lintel
10/10 - 11/19/2017
Glen Berger; dir: Steve Robman....
A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ... THE GYNECOLOGIC ONCOLOGY UNIT AT MEMORIAL SLOAN KETTERING CANCER CENTER
9/5 - 10/8/2017
Halley Feiffer; dir: Trip Cullman....
Constellations
6/6 - 7/16/2017
This spellbinding, romantic journey begins with a simple encounter between a man and a woman. But what happens next defies the boundaries of the world ...
The Legend of Georgia McBride
4/4 - 5/14/2017
He’s young, he’s broke, his landlord’s knocking at the door, and he’s just found out his wife is going to have a baby. To make ...
Long Day's Journey Into Night
1/31 - 3/18/2017
Eugene O'Neill; dir: Jeanie Hackett. Gil Cates Theater:...
The Lion
1/4 - 2/19/2017
Benjamin Scheuer; dir: Sean Daniels. Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater:...
Icebergs
11/8 - 12/18/2016
Alena Smith; dir: Randall Arney. World Premiere...
Icebergs
11/8 - 12/18/2016
Alena Smith; dir: Randall Arney. World Premiere...
The Model Apartment
10/11 - 11/20/2016
Donald Margulies; dir: Marya Mazor....
The Model Apartment
10/11 - 11/20/2016
Donald Margulies; dir: Marya Mazor....
Barbecue
9/6 - 10/16/2016
Barbecue centers on around the O'Mallerys, a dysfunctional group of siblings who come together for a park barbeque in order to stage an emergency intervention ...
Barbecue
9/6 - 10/16/2016
Barbecue centers on around the O'Mallerys, a dysfunctional group of siblings who come together for a park barbeque in order to stage an emergency intervention ...
Big Sky
6/7 - 7/17/2016
Alexandra Gersten-Vassilaros; dir: John Rando....
[Untitled, Derek DelGaudio]
5/3 - 6/12/2016
Derek DeGaudio....
Stage Kiss
4/5 - 5/15/2016
Sarah Ruhl; dir: Bart DeLorenzo....
Sex With Strangers
3/1 - 4/10/2016
Laura Eason; dir: Kimberly Senior....
Barcelona
2/2 - 3/13/2016
Two women and a besieged town Nuria and Elena are two women with outstanding bills, two friends separated by the love of a man and ...
Outside Mullingar
11/10 - 12/20/2015
This is a new romantic comedy from the Pulitzer-, Oscar-, and Tony Award-winner John Patrick Shanley, writer of Doubt and Moonstruck. Anthony and Rosemary are ...
Guards at the Taj
10/6 - 11/15/2015
Rajiv Joseph; dir: Giovanna Sardelli....
THESE PAPER BULLETS! A Modish Ripoff of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing
9/8 - 10/18/2015
Rolin Jones; lyrics: Billie Joe Armstrong; music: Billie Joe Armstrong; dir: Jackson Gay....
Bad Jews
6/9 - 7/19/2015
Joshua Harmon....
Murder for Two
5/27 - 7/7/2015
book: Kellen Blair, Joe Kinosian; lyrics: Kellen Blair; music: Joe Kinosian; dir: Scott Schwartz....
The Power of Duff
4/7 - 5/17/2015
The Huntington's Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA: Stephen Belber; dir: Peter DuBois....
Switzerland
3/3 - 4/12/2015
An attractive young man interrupts acclaimed novelist Patricia Highsmith at her reclusive home. When might the publishers expect the next anticipated addition to her sinister ...
The Night Alive
2/3 - 3/15/2015
Conor McPherson; dir: Randall Arney....
Gil Cates Theater:
6/10 - 7/20/2014
The Country House Donald Margulies; dir: Daniel Sullivan....
Ruth Draper's Monologues
4/8 - 5/18/2014
Ruth Draper....
Slowgirl
3/4 - 4/20/2014
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater: Greg Pierce; dir: Randall Arney....
The Birthday Party
2/4 - 3/16/2014
Gil Cates Theater: Harold Pinter; dir: William Friedkin....
Play Dead
11/5 - 12/15/2013
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater: Todd Robbins....
Wait Until Dark
10/8 - 11/17/2013
A blind housewife becomes the target of three con-men searching for heroin hidden in a doll that her husband innocently brought back from Canada. This ...
Rapture, Blister, Burn
8/13 - 9/22/2013
Gina Gionfriddo; dir: Peter DuBois....
Yes, Prime Minister
6/4 - 7/14/2013
Jim Hacker and Sir Humphrey Appleby are back - and on stage - in the biggest West End comedy hit of the year. Now it's ...
The Judy Show - My Life As A Sitcom
5/7 - 6/16/2013
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater: - Judy Gold, Kate Moira Ryan; dir: Amanda Charlton....
American Buffalo
4/2 - 5/12/2013
Gil Cates Theater: - David Mamet; dir: Randall Arney....
Miss Julie
2/26 - 4/7/2013
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater: - adapt: Neil LaBute from August Strindberg; dir: Neil LaBute....
The Gift
1/29 - 3/10/2013
Gil Cates Theater: - Joanna Murray-Smith; dir: Maria Aitken....
The Exorcist
7/3 - 8/12/2012
The most chilling test of faith come to life on stage. This world premiere adaptation of the famous 1971 novel documenting the terror and redemption ...
The Exorcist
7/13 - 8/12/2012
Documenting the terror and redemption of a ten-year-old girl is just as frightening as when the story was first told. The most chilling test of ...
A T-Rex is Loose
6/9
The Geffen Playouse Story Pirates, in partnership with the Natural History Museum, presents 'A T-Rex is Loose'! Made up of stories written by kids about ...
Mona Golabek in The Pianist of Willesden Lane
4/17 - 5/27/2012
Grammy-nominated pianist and storyteller Mona Golabek shares the gripping tale of a young girl who holds on to her music in order to stay alive. ...
Good People
4/3 - 5/13/2012
Margaret Walsh can't catch a break. Laid off from her job at the dollar store, South Boston is providing her the same level of opportunity ...
The Jacksonian
2/7 - 3/18/2012
Funky Punks
3/3
A high-energy, interactive circus extraveganza including stilt-walkers, puppets, jugglers, tramplone tricksters and even a plunger! Get ready for a night like no other with the ...
Join the Geffen Playhouse for a rediscovery of timeles tales from around the world, through clowning acts, puppertry and shadow theater...
Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins
1/13 - 2/19/2012
The story of the late Molly Ivins, the old school maverick, fiercely independent newspaper columnist and a Texan with a capital T. She is the ...
NATHAN PACHECO
12/18
Nathan Pacheco presents a new musical world where pop and opera merge to form an incredible evening of entertainment, skill and elegance....
Radiance: The Passion of Marie Curie
11/1 - 12/11/2011
California Institute of Technology - CALTECH PLAYREADERS...
Next Fall
10/25 - 12/4/2011
The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity
8/30 - 10/9/2011
Superior Donuts
5/31 - 7/10/2011
Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Tracy Letts weaves a heart-warming and humorous tale of unlikely friendships in one of Chicago’s most diverse neighborhoods. ...
The Break of Noon
1/25 - 3/6/2011
Playwright and provocateur Neil LaBute’s newest play takes off from George Bernard Shaw’s quote: “All truths begin as blasphemies.” And then we meet John Smith. ...
Videos
 |
Wish You Were Here
South Coast Repertory's Julianne Argyros Stage (1/12 - 2/2) | |
 |
New Year's Eve with D-Nice & Friends
Walt Disney Concert Hall (12/31 - 12/31) | |
 |
Jingle All the Way, a Holiday Jubilee
P3 Theatre Company (12/21 - 12/21) | |
 |
Cody Fry with Orchestra
Walt Disney Concert Hall (1/10 - 1/10) | |
 |
Arturo Sandoval: Swinging Holiday - Deck the Hall Holiday Concerts
Walt Disney Concert Hall (12/23 - 12/23) | |
 |
Batiashvili Plays Beethoven
Walt Disney Concert Hall (1/3 - 1/5) | |
|
Song of the Night
Walt Disney Concert Hall (2/27 - 3/1) | |
|
Hamlet
Center Theatre Group at the Mark Taper Forum (5/28 - 7/6) | |
|
Kelli O'Hara in Concert
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion at the Los Angeles Music Center (2/1 - 2/1) | |
|
Colin Hay
Smothers Theatre (1/23 - 1/23) | |
|
Gustav and Alma
Walt Disney Concert Hall (3/6 - 3/9) | |
| VIEW SHOWS ADD A SHOW | ||
Recommended For You
Get Los Angeles's #1 Newsletter
Get the best news & discounts for Los Angeles & beyond.
