A Selective Guide to the Arts in Los Angeles

Where else but LA can you experience Shakespeare any way you want, any time you want?  A few of your options include productions at the Broad Stage, A Noise Within and “by the Sea.”

‘The Merchant of Venice’

Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham stars as Shylock in a production commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company at the Broad Stage April 14 to 24. The Broad Stage has brought the amazing Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre Company to Santa Monica, and this is another not-to-be-missed event for Bard lovers.

‘The Comedy of Errors’

This production of one of the Bard’s most popular comedies continues through May 14 at A Noise Within in Glendale. Director Michael Michetti stages a play within a play, as though a 1920s American Vaudeville or Burlesque company is presenting a production of “The Comedy of Errors.”  The members of a fictitious Burlesque company – among them comics, dancers, a strongman and a ventriloquist – portray Shakespeare’s characters.  Transitional choreographed sequences with a live pianist further illustrate the Burlesque characters’ world, and Michetti has created a silent movie, in the style of the period, to depict key plot points.

‘Much Ado About Nothing’ and ‘King Lear’

Shakespeare by the Sea

Shakespeare by the Sea (SBTS) announces its 14th season of bringing FREE Shakespeare performances to the masses in Southern California, opening with the romantic comedy “Much Ado About Nothing” on June 9, followed one week later, on June 16, with the opening of the drama “The Tragedy of King Lear.” SBTS performances run for 10 weeks throughout Los Angeles and Orange County. Cities on this year’s tour include: Altadena, El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, La Crescenta, Laguna Niguel, Lakewood, Long Beach, Manhattan Beach, Newport Beach, Playa Vista, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rossmoor, Rowland Heights, South Pasadena, Whittier, and three more TBD.  See production schedules, full location information, and times at https://www.shakespearebythesea.org or call (310) 217-7596.