THE LION KING
Friday, May 28th, 2010
The arrival of the Broadway National Tour of Disney’s The Lion King for a three-week engagement at the Orange County Performing Arts Center is something to roar about. It’s not every day that one of Broadway’s longest running hits (over 5000 performances and counting) arrives in town. It’s not every day that a show that filled Hollywood’s Pantages for over 950 performances back in 2000-2003 makes a return visit. And don’t hold your breath waiting for some Southern California regional theater or CLO to put on their own production. With its humungous cast of fifty plus performers, over 200 puppets, and roles that require cast members portraying giraffes to saunter across the stageon four stilt legs, you can be darn sure that a big budget National Tour or sit-down production is the only way you’ll be able to see The Lion King … ever. Thus, although it’s not a case of now or never, it’s certainly now or a long time from now. If ever a production could be called a must-see for musical theater lovers of any age, it’s the one playing at OCPAC.
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DREAMGIRLS
Wednesday, April 21st, 2010
Dreamgirls is back, bigger, brighter, bolder, and more dazzling than ever. In fact, the National Tour which has just begun a two-week run at Costa Mesa’s Orange County Performing Arts Center is one of the most visually spectacular and spectacularly performed touring productions ever. In many ways, it’s in a class all by itself.
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HAIRSPRAY
Tuesday, April 6th, 2010
It’s been five years since Hairspray has been anywhere near L.A., so the arrival of the long-running National Tour at Costa Mesa’s Orange County Performing Arts Center is exciting news indeed. This fabulous touring production features lead and supporting actors who create memorable characters and a team of young triple-threats who sing and dance Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman’s tuneful songs to deserved audience cheers.
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THE MUSIC OF ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
For Andrew Lloyd Webber fans, there’s no better place to be this week than at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. A sextet of Broadway stars and a full onstage symphony orchestra join forces to perform thirty of Sir Andrew’s most famous compositions, making for a spectacular two hours of song.
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XANADU
Wednesday, December 16th, 2009
Who would ever have thought that Xanadu, one of biggest critical and commercial flops of the 1980s, would turn into a hit Broadway musical of the 2000s? Even the musical’s book writer, Douglas Carter Beane, is said to have had doubts about turning that lemon into lemonade. He need not have feared. Xanadu scored a pair of Tony nominations, including one for Beane, and ran for over 500 performances.
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SPRING AWAKENING
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
The arrival of Spring Awakening at the Orange County Performing Arts Center is welcome news indeed for anyone who missed the Tony-winning smash in its initial Los Angeles run a year ago. It’s equally exciting news for Spring Awakening fans like myself who simply couldn’t get enough of the Steven Sater/Duncan Sheik musical adaptation of Frank Wedenkind’s groundbreaking 1891 drama the first time around.
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Since 2007, Steven Stanley's StageSceneLA.com has spotlighted the best in Southern California theater via reviews, interviews, and its annual StageSceneLA Scenies.
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