Two San Diego County theater productions are selling so well that producers have announced one-week extensions in recent days.
La Jolla Playhouse’s “Babbitt,” starring two-time Tony-winner Matthew Broderick, isn’t even open yet, but tickets are already so scarce that the run has been extended. “Babbitt,” a stage play by Joe DiPietro based on a 1922 novel by Sinclair Lewis, will open in previews on Nov. 7, with opening night set for Nov. 12. The show’s new closing date is Dec. 10. Tickets at lajollaplayhouse.org.
On Saturday, North Coast Repertory Theatre opened Jeffrey Hatcher’s “Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde,” based on a 1886 horror novella by Robert Louis Stevenson, and the following morning it added another week of performances. Originally scheduled to close Nov. 12, the play now has seven additional performances Nov. 15 through 19. Tickets at northcoastrep.org.
A scene from “Normal Heights” at the 2023 San Diego International Fringe Festival.
(Courtesy of Michael Prine)
Fringe festival preps for 2024 run
Producers of the San Diego International Fringe Festival, which returns in May 2024, are now accepting applications for artists who would like to perform at the 12th annual event.
The Fringe, which took a pandemic-related break in 2020 and has been produced in a more limited fashion in Balboa Park in recent years, will be presented May 16-26. The location has not been announced. Producers say that they’re hoping to return the festival to its former glory with as many as 500 combined performances during the 10-day run. There are also plans for Bi-National Fringe events in Tijuana on the weekends, May 18-19 and May 25-26.
Applications are being accepted now through Dec. 20. Producers will reserve 50 percent of the festival slots for local acts, 25 percent for national acts and 25 percent for international performers. To apply, visit sdfringe.org/participate.
Kate Rose Reynolds, left, and her mother, Rosina Reynolds hold their awards at the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle’s 2022 Craig Noel Awards for Excellence in Theatre on Feb. 27, 2023.
(Courtesy of Ion Moe)
San Diego theater critics announce 2023 awards date
The San Diego Theatre Critics Circle, which will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its Craig Noel Awards next year, has announced the date and location for its next ceremony. The 2023 Craig Noel Awards, honoring achievements in local professional theater, will take place Feb. 12, 2024, at the SES Portuguese Hall in Point Loma. Nominations will be announced on Jan. 1 and tickets will go on sale the same day.
Because of theater closures during the pandemic, the Critics Circle did not host ceremonies for the 2020 and 2021 theater years. It did hold a ceremony earlier this year for the 2022 theater year but due to the reduced number of shows last year and the reticence of several critics to return to reviewing in 2022 due to COVID concerns, the number of 2022 awards was reduced by half.
ErinMarie Reiter, the new president of the Theatre Critics Circle, said she’s excited to return to a full complement of awards for the 2023 calendar year at the Portuguese Hall, which was the home of the 2022 awards and was very popular and affordable for guests.
In the past year, the Critics Circle has elected new officers, launched a quarterly newsletter, a teen critic writing contest with the San Diego Unified School District and a podcast. For more information on the awards or to sign up for the newsletter, visit sdcriticscircle.org.
Full disclosure: I co-founded the Craig Noel Awards with former U-T theater critic Anne Marie Welsh in 2002 to honor the legacy of Craig Noel — the founding father of San Diego’s theater community. I also served as the Circle’s president for the past decade, and still serve on its board. The Critics Circle is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization made up of independent newspaper critics and theater bloggers.
Steve Taylor performs “Mr Bones & The Craniums” at the Marie Hitchcock Balboa Park Puppet Theater in Balboa Park.
(Courtesy of Georgina Denman)
Puppeteer returns for Marie Hitchcock birthday event
Steve Taylor, who performs under the title “Magical Ventriloquist,” is performing this weekend at the Marie Hitchcock Puppet Theater in Balboa Park, in celebration of what would have been Hitchcock’s 112th birthday. She died in 1994.
Taylor first performed at the Puppet Theater in 1967. He’s back for a handful of Halloween-themed shows at 11 a.m., 1 and 3 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
“Since Marie Hitchcock was born on October 31, 1911, Halloween is an appropriate time of year to celebrate her many decades of performing as San Diego’s official ‘Puppet Lady,’” Taylor said. “In 1967, I was performing marionette and ventriloquism shows in and around San Diego when Marie asked me to be her marionette apprentice, and for five years I became her part-time puppet assistant. My appearance in Balboa Park is my celebration of Marie’s birthday and her faith in me when I was so young. I wouldn’t be where I am today without her training and encouragement in those early years.”
In the years since, Taylor has performed in all 50 states, on TV’s “America’s Got Talent,” at Disneyland and at the Magic Castle in Hollywood.
Tickets are $4-$5 and are on sale at balboaparkpuppets.com/products/tickets.
Point Loma Playhouse plans ’24 Experiment’
Point Loma Playhouse has announced plans for an “extreme” 24-hour theater event that will be presented to the public on Nov. 4.
Point Loma Playhouse is presenting the “24 Experiment,” where 24 writers, 24 actors and six playwrights create, rehearse and perform six short plays in just 24 hours. An event like the “24 Experiment” was produced for several years as the finale of the San Diego International Fringe Festival, but it did not return after the pandemic.
The theater artists will start the project on the afternoon of Nov. 3 and the public is invited to see the results of their labors at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 at 3035 Talbot St., San Diego. Tickets are $10. Details can be found at sandiego24experiment.com/
pam.kragen@sduniontribune.com
