The Old Globe Announces Plans for Full Reopening, Season to Feature World Premieres by Michael John LaChiusa & More

The Old Globe today announced plans for the long-awaited full reopening of its three theatres in Balboa Park. Audiences will be able to once again gather in the Globe's outdoor theatre starting June 4 and in the two indoor theatres in September. A full lineup of virtual and in-person theatre, boasting five world premieres, offers something for everyone, from musicals, Shakespeare, and new plays to movies, cabarets, family events, immersive storytelling, and more. This slate of programming, telling stories that range across many cultures and created by a diverse group of major talents, is part of the Globe's ongoing commitment to make theatre matter to more people, especially now as San Diego begins to return to public spaces and this art form they deeply love.

With great joy, I'm thrilled to announce The Old Globe is back!" exclaimed Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. "We celebrate our return to live performance by thanking the generous San Diego community, which supported us so fulsomely over the past 14 months, by acknowledging the artists, staff, and craftspeople who worked so hard to keep the theatre's lights on in a dark time, and by remembering the real pain and loss experienced by so many as the pandemic raged on. Our reopening lineup is characterized by all the richness and vitality that audiences have come to expect from the Globe. There's comedy, drama, and music, classic work and world premieres, and a wide range of theatrical forms, all created by our country's very finest artists. There's a deep sense of engagement with our many community constituencies. And there's a renewed passion behind our commitments to social justice, representation, inclusion, and belonging. The post-COVID Globe is energized, excited, and excellent. It's also healthy and safe, following all the latest public health guidelines. I cannot wait to see audiences in our venues again, and I am honored to welcome them with a truly sterling slate of programming. See you soon, San Diego!"

The health and safety of all audiences, artists, and staff is the highest priority for The Old Globe. Prior to June 15, seating for all Globe events will be socially distanced regardless of vaccination status. Currently, all patrons, whether they are vaccinated or not, must wear a mask at all times while on The Old Globe's plaza or in their venues. Masks must cover both your nose and mouth. Gaiters, bandanas, and coverings with exhalation vents are not permitted. A face shield will still require a face mask. For the safety of everyone, guests unable to wear proper face masks will not be admitted onto their plaza or into their venues. You may lower your mask when consuming a beverage or food, but you will be required to put it back on when you are not actively drinking or eating.

For performances and events starting June 15, please visit The Old Globe's website (www.TheOldGlobe.org), which will be updated regularly as they continue to monitor and follow the latest health guidelines from State of California and San Diego County public health officials.

Bios and headshots of all participating artists can be found at www.TheOldGlobe.org/Press-Room.

Starting June 4, their theatre doors open to the public for the first time since March 2020. The Old Globe will welcome audiences into their outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre for a series of movies, live cabarets, and Shakespeare scenes.

A free film series will delight audiences under the stars with some of the greatest movie musicals ever made, as well as recordings of beloved shows from the stage.

The lineup includes the following, free of charge (all movies begin at 8:30 p.m.):

· Friday, June 4: Dreamgirls starring Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, and Eddie Murphy;
· Saturday, June 5: Wonderful World of Disney's Cinderella with Brandy and Whitney Houston;
· Sunday, June 6: The 1961 classic and Best Picture winner West Side Story;
· Friday, June 11: Passing Strange filmed live on Broadway by Spike Lee;
· Saturday, June 12: The Wiz starring Diana Ross;
· Sunday, June 13: George Takei's Allegiance, the Broadway Musical on the Big Screen, the show that had its world premiere at The Old Globe in 2012;
· Thursday, July 1: The West End staging of Tony Award-winning Best Musical Kinky Boots;
· Friday, July 2: The Independence Day musical 1776 with William Daniels, Ken Howard, and Blythe Danner;
· Saturday, July 3: Grease starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

Though these movies are free, tickets are required. General-admission tickets will become available for the public on the following dates: June 1 (for Dreamgirls, Cinderella, and West Side Story), June 8 (for Passing Strange, The Wiz, and Allegiance), and June 25 (for Kinky Boots, 1776, and Grease).

Also this summer in their outdoor Festival Theatre, the Globe will present three live cabaret performances featuring in-demand theatre stars whose extraordinary voices were at the center of memorable world premiere musicals here at the Globe. These intimate evenings of songs are the perfect nights out for San Diego theatre fans.

The lineup consists of the following (all cabarets begin at 8:00 p.m.):

· June 19-20: Solea Pfeiffer (Globe's Almost Famous, Hamilton tour, Hollywood Bowl's West Side Story);
· June 25-27: Tony Award nominee Carmen Cusack (Bright Star at the Globe and on Broadway, Broadway's upcoming Flying Over Sunset)
· July 9-11: Eden Espinosa (Globe's Rain, Broadway's Wicked and Rent).

Tickets will go on sale to the general public on sale Friday, June 11 at 12:00 noon. Ticket prices start at $29.00.

The outdoor summer offerings continue as Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein presents Thinking Shakespeare LOVE!, a celebration of love in the plays, poems, and songs of Shakespeare. Edelstein will host an evening of excerpts all about the crazy, wonderful, intoxicating spirit of love that suffuses the Bard's works. This evening of romance will be performed live by the talented 2021 graduates of The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program: Christopher Cruz, Lily Davis, Christopher M. Ramirez, Klarissa Marie Robles, Claire Simba, Joz Vammer, and Jonathan Aaron Wilson.

Thinking Shakespeare LOVE! will run in the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre July 16-18, beginning at 8:00 p.m. each evening. Tickets will go on sale to the general public on sale Friday, June 11 at 12:00 noon. Ticket prices start at $20.00.

In addition to dozens of directing credits at the Globe and across the country, Edelstein most recently oversaw Hamlet: On the Radio, an audio revival of his smash-hit 2017 Globe staging of Shakespeare's exhilarating tragedy. Presented in two parts, Hamlet: On the Radio can be heard for free on KPBS Radio 89.5 FM, on the KPBS app and website, and on smart speakers on Friday, June 18 at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, June 19 at 7:00 p.m. (one part each day) and Sunday, June 27 at 2:00 p.m. (both parts airing consecutively). On Monday, June 28, after the KPBS broadcasts, the audio production will be available to stream on the Globe's YouTube channel as well as through the theatre's Spotify and Apple podcast channels.

Also starting June 4, The Old Globe's illustrious Arts Engagement Department is proud to once again welcome visitors onto its campus for free AXIS events, featuring fun interactive programs for the whole family. Two of these, Word Up! and The Poet's Tree, were launched virtually during the pandemic shutdown and now go live on their Copley Plaza. They are joined by brand new events created just for their signature AXIS series.

Realizing their commitment to making theatre matter to more people, AXIS offers free cultural programs on the Globe's Copley Plaza, led by local artists and craftspeople. The Globe's unique physical location-and now their social media platforms-are participatory art venues where they make opportunities for connectivity and creative placemaking. AXIS is an effort to broaden their concept of audience by encompassing diverse, multigenerational constituencies from communities across San Diego County.

This year's lineup includes:

· Friday, June 4, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Saturday, June 12, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.: Movement Enthusiast Physical Workshop with Disco Riot;
· Saturday, June 19, 12:00 noon - 1:15 p.m.: Juneteenth Celebration;
· Tuesday, June 22, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: The Poet's Tree Finale;
· Friday, June 25, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Saturday, June 26, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.: Movement Enthusiast Physical Workshop with Disco Riot;
· Friday, July 2, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Saturday, July 10, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.: Fit Body by Ashley All-Ages Dance Class;
· Friday, July 16, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Friday, July 30, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Saturday, July 31, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.: Fit Body by Ashley All-Ages Dance Class;
· Friday, August 6, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Tuesday, August 10, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Clean Comedy Happy Hour;
· Saturday, August 14, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.: Maraya Movement Workshop;
· Friday, August 20, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live;
· Tuesday, August 24, 5:30 - 7:00 p.m.: SoulKiss Night at the Globe;
· Saturday, August 28, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.: Movement Enthusiast Physical Workshop with Disco Riot;
· Friday, September 10, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Word Up! Live.

The Word Up! Live events will also be simulcast for free through The Old Globe's YouTube channel, so everyone can enjoy this exciting collaborative theatre-making event.

Some of these events involve hosts and audience members engaging in physical activities, but guests will be socially distanced throughout so they can safely take part in the fun.

The Old Globe, in collaboration with the George L. Stevens Senior Center, will also present a fifth annual Juneteenth Celebration performance presentation as part of the Center's annual Juneteenth festival event. Audiences are invited to join the celebration on Saturday, June 19 from 12:00 noon to 1:15 p.m. in the Globe's outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre. This year's event will feature a cabaret presentation of artists, including the San Diego Black Artist Collective, all sharing performance pieces inspired by the annual holiday. In addition, an invitation-only Juneteenth event, part of the coLAB series, and managed by the Senior Center, will take place on their campus the day prior featuring a similar lineup. Juneteenth-also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Liberation Day, and Emancipation Day-is a holiday celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States.

Though the AXIS and Juneteenth Celebration events are free, tickets are required. Tickets for the June 4 Word Up! Live event will be available on June 1, and tickets for the June 12 Movement Enthusiast Physical Workshop with Disco Riot event will be available June 8. For all arts engagement events after June 15, please check their website at www.TheOldGlobe.org for ticketing availability dates.

The Arts Engagement Department continues to make theatre matter across San Diego through its private offerings. These include Community Voices playwriting workshops, in partnership with Oceanside Library and the Fourth District Seniors Resource Center, and Reflecting Shakespeare, which continues its transformative program at California State Prison, Centinela in Yards A to D through its Reflecting Shakespeare Correspondence Course and Reflecting Shakespeare TV.

Even as the Globe is offering these early summer in-person offerings, the theatre will also present several virtual theatre pieces that can be enjoyed on your computer or phone-or even through the mail!

Nobel laureate Samuel Beckett (Waiting for Godot) is one of the towering figures of 20th-century drama. His 1958 short play Krapp's Last Tape takes on special meaning in the midst of a pandemic over 60 years later. Ruminating on a time of isolation and regret, the clown Krapp enacts his quirky birthday ritual: listening to a recording of his younger self and confronting the glories and failures of his youth. As part of the Globe's What Is Theatre Now? project, acclaimed director and Old Globe Resident Artist Patricia McGregor (the Globe's What You Are) creates a digital sharing of the quirky and touching play The Washington Post calls "an absurdist classic," starring two-time Emmy Award winner Ron Cephas Jones ("This Is Us").

This free digital production of Beckett's classic will be available to stream soon through The Old Globe's YouTube channel. Dates and details will be announced at a later time.

The appealing voice of Tony Award winner and Old Globe favorite Ken Ludwig (Baskerville, Robin Hood!) comes to you in an inventive new form. Dear Jack, Dear Louise is Ludwig's play about his parents' courtship during World War II. Now this sweet and personal story is transformed into an unforgettable, immersive theatrical journey that you experience through your own mailbox as you receive the same letters, photos, and telegrams his parents sent each other during the war. Over the course of six weeks, the Globe mails you the thrill of young love and the joy of human connection through a series of brief correspondences, designed and handcrafted with meticulous period detail.

Conceived by Teresa Sapien at Arena Stage and with materials created by the Properties Department of The Old Globe, Ken Ludwig's Dear Jack, Dear Louise: Love Letter Experience will begin mailings on June 15, with a second start date of July 1 for those who purchase reservations after June 15. Mailing groups will continue to begin on the 1st and 15th of each month while supplies last. Reservations for donors and subscribers are $25.00 and go on sale Wednesday, June 2, and reservations for the general public are $35.00 and go on sale Wednesday, June 9. Only one reservation is needed per household.

Take a magical walking journey through Balboa Park-in person!-with On This Spot: It Happened Here!, a brand-new interactive adventure conceived and written by Katherine Harroff (the Globe's Associate Director of Arts Engagement, Artistic Director of Circle Circle dot dot) and directed by Old Globe Resident Artist James Vásquez (the Globe's American Mariachi, Tiny Beautiful Things, Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas!). Five signs on and around The Old Globe's campus lead via QR codes to videos created on those spots that you can watch for free on your phone. With humor and heart, your virtual tour guide KG Marsens brings to life everyday people and the intimate, personal stories they've experienced in the public spaces where you are standing. You'll experience Balboa Park in a whole new way with this innovative mix of theatre, history, and technology.

The world premiere of this free ongoing experience begins Tuesday, June 15, and no reservations are required. Visitors will need a mobile device in order to scan QR codes and open the videos. Instructions on how to use these QR codes will be posted at each location.

The cast includes Bryan Barbarin (KG Marsens), Desiree Cuizon (Dancer), and Sarah Errington (Busker). The creative team includes Mark Holmes (Video Production), Shelly Williams (Costume Coordinator), and Sebastian Perfetto (Stage Manager).

Acclaimed director Johanna McKeon (the Globe's Noura) crafts a one-of-a-kind virtual theatrical event from the short fiction of award-winning Argentinian writer Juan José Saer, one of the greats of international literature. This solo performance presents a collection of characters whose separate perceptions, insights, and feelings come together to illuminate the human experience that connects us all. Originating through the Globe's What Is Theatre Now? initiative, Anonymous Biography brings to life Saer's captivating prose to create an intimate filmed experience that explores the mystery and beauty of everyday life. It will be performed in both the original Spanish and also English translation.

From the fiction of Juan José Saer, with an English translation by Roanne Kantor, and directed by Johanna McKeon, this world premiere play will star Rey Lucas (Globe's Water by the Spoonful). This free digital production will be available to stream soon through The Old Globe's YouTube channel. Dates and details will be announced at a later date.

Podcast fans can listen now to their latest podcast, Cocktails with the Canon, an interview-based series hosted by colleagues and friends, the Globe's Literary Manager and Dramaturg Danielle Mages Amato and Associate Producer Lamar Perry. Through a series of informal but hard-hitting conversations, Amato and Perry will take audiences on a journey that investigates the "traditional" Western dramatic canon, along with the writers, groups, identities, and aesthetics that have historically been excluded. Over the course of the season, they will welcome to the podcast an acclaimed group of American Playwrights to reflect on the forces that have historically shaped-and continue to shape-the American theatrical canon, and to discuss the works they consider canonical within their own communities. The hosts and guests will also dive into personal stories and share their dreams and action plans for the future of the American theatre. The podcast asks the question: how can we expand the canon and create access for all? Listeners will walk away from Cocktails with the Canon feeling like they've just left a night at the theatre and a gathering with their community over drinks and food. Cheers!

The first episode of Cocktails with the Canon is currently available, and new episodes will become available every other week on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Music, and Podbean.

The first episode features playwright Lauren Yee, and the podcast will continue with playwrights Ryan Victor Pierce or "Opalanietet", Dave Harris, Donja R. Love, Karen Zacarías, and Whitney White. Each interview is curated in collaboration with the episode's playwright to ensure that safe space is facilitated for open and honest conversation that is not a monolithic representation of the various communities and identities these artists hold.

Late summer will see the Globe's triumphant return to full-scale production, starting with the American tribal love-rock musical Hair. Originally scheduled to play indoors in the 2020 Summer Season, this joyful show will now play under the stars in the outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre August 10 - September 26, with opening night on Sunday, August 15.

The Age of Aquarius dawns again! It's the Summer of Love, and a group of young Americans are looking to change the world! Directed by Old Globe Resident Artist James Vásquez (The Old Globe's American Mariachi and Tiny Beautiful Things), this legendary rock musical bursts onto the outdoor stage with its Grammy Award-winning score, featuring iconic hits such as "Let the Sunshine In," "Good Morning Starshine," and the exuberant title song. Make love, not war!-and celebrate "harmony and understanding" with Broadway's first great rock musical.

Hair features book and lyrics by Gerome Ragni and James Rado, music by Galt MacDermot, choreography by Rickey Tripp (Broadway's Choir Boy and Once on This Island), and music direction by Angela Steiner (Indecent, upcoming Rattlesnake Kate at Denver Center). The full cast and creative team will be announced soon.

Then, this fall, their two indoor theatres reopen with a pair of world premieres.

A Globe-commissioned world premiere musical by five-time Tony Award nominee Michael John LaChiusa (the Globe's Rain, Broadway's The Wild Party). The Gardens of Anuncia is inspired by the life story of an icon of the American stage who directs and choreographs the show at the Globe: Broadway legend Graciela Daniele (original productions of Ragtime and Once on This Island). Anuncia tends the garden of her country house as she reflects on her life, looking back on her girlhood in Juan Perón's Argentina and paying homage to the family of women whose sacrifices allowed her to become an artist. This funny, poignant, and beautiful musical features a beguilingly romantic score filled with the exuberant sounds of women reveling in the joys of being alive.

Previously scheduled for the 2019-2020 Season, this new musical will run September 10 - October 17 on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in The Old Globe Theatre, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Opening night is Friday, September 17.

Running next door in their in-the-round theatre will be a Globe-commissioned world premiere that was developed in their 2020 Powers New Voices Festival. Shutter Sisters tells the story of two women living parallel lives on the hardest days of their lives. A white woman named Michael attends her adopted mother's funeral, while a Black woman named Mykal kicks her adult daughter out of her home. A heartfelt and surprising journey through womanhood, identity, and what it means to belong.

Written by Mansa Ra (Too Heavy for Your Pocket) and directed by Donya K. Washington (Beautiful Blackbird at Alliance Theatre), Shutter Sisters will run October 7 - November 7 in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, with opening night on Thursday, October 14.

Then, 2022 will kick off with two shows previously announced as upcoming shows.

First up is a thrilling new production of a too-often neglected American classic, Trouble in Mind. New York, 1955. A leading Black actress and a multiracial cast rehearse a challenging new Broadway play set in the South. Backstage rivalries and showbiz egos cause excitement of their own, but artistic differences between the cast and the white director soon bubble to the surface, revealing the truths that American drama covers over and the ways in which even well-meaning people can harm others under the guise of helping. The New York Times recently called Alice Childress's groundbreaking Trouble in Mind "a rich, unsettling play that lingers in one's memory long after its conclusion."

Directed by Old Globe Resident Artist Delicia Turner Sonnenberg (Globe's Skeleton Crew), Trouble in Mind will run February 5 - March 13, 2022 in The Old Globe Theatre, with opening night on Thursday, February 10.

Next door in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre will be El Borracho by Tony Meneses (Guadalupe in the Guest Room). Directed by Edward Torres (Globe's Native Gardens, Familiar, Water by the Spoonful), this world premiere play will run February 17 - March 20, 2022, with opening night on Thursday, February 24.

Raul is ill. He drinks, because he always drinks, just like "el borracho" on the lotería card. In his final months, Raul is forced to move in with his ex-wife Alma, who now has to care for the man she thought she'd never have to see again, and his son David, who has secrets he's longing to share. Developed as part of the Globe's 2020 Powers New Voices Festival, the world premiere of Tony Meneses's compelling tragicomedy follows one family's journey to come together so they can finally say goodbye.

Tickets for all full-scale productions-Hair, The Gardens of Anuncia, Shutter Sisters, Trouble in Mind, and El Borracho-are currently available by subscription. Three-play subscriptions start at $97.00.

Full cast and creative teams, as well as single-ticket on-sale dates, for the full-scale productions will be announced at a later date.

Details for additional 2021 productions, including holiday programming, will be announced at a later time. Plans for the remaining productions postponed during 2020 (Little Women, Faceless, What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, Dial M for Murder, The Taming of the Shrew, and Henry V) will be announced at a later date. Subscribers and ticket holders will be contacted by The Old Globe Ticket S and provided with options for the tickets they hold for these postponed productions.

All details, including production details and COVID safety protocols, are subject to change.

Note: While in-person productions and events were on hiatus during the COVID-19 shutdown, the Globe presented a full slate of free virtual programming to continue reaching the San Diego community, and this content can still be enjoyed online. Recent offerings include programming surrounding their Hamlet: On the Radio audio production, such as Thinking Shakespeare Live: Infinite Book, the latest installment of Edelstein's popular series; the online exhibit Shakespeare in San Diego: The Virtual Experience; Vicki and Carl Zeiger Virtual Insights Seminars; and the return of On Book: The Old Globe's Shakespeare Reading Group. Current and recent online arts engagement programs include new middle school and high school Globe to Go focused resources, a part of School in the Park; season 3 of Reflecting Shakespeare TV, a digital version of the transformative initiative offered at prisons; the exploration of modern poetry The Poet's Tree; and Creative Youth Studio.

You can view all of these programs and more on their website at www.TheOldGlobe.org and on their YouTube channel.