By Joe Straw 9
He needs to go, dress up, slightly, takes a pen and pad but doesn’t know if he’s going to take notes. After all it is dark and cryptic notes is about all he can decipher after the night has taken its course.
The key to his car is adjustable when the steering wheel has a mind of its own. The car starts, always a good sign and off he goes into the spirited night. Going to a new place in Los Angeles, probably a theatre that’s been there for tens of years and he can’t wait, always early, that is when he gets the best parking.
He enters the theatre’s threshold, excitement slightly elevated, steps up to the ticket booth, and gathers his ticket to wait in the lobby. He observes the multitudes entering the same way, watching offerings - generally a hug - to someone they haven’t seen in a while.
Stepping inside he observes the pulchritude of red seats and beautiful sets incased in a black box and sitting down to take preliminary notes while the light is still good.
Theatre starts with a spark, oftentimes quixotic. A germ of an idea that multiplies into a system of propulsion that moves creatively to finality. Theatre has always supported that idea that germinating that seed is first a gateway to an ineffable journey. To go to theatre in Los Angeles supports the journey and Los Angeles is the theatre hub of the world. Great, good, bad or indifferent it makes no difference if something within you (within you is the key) leaves the night with a better understanding of humanity.
It’s a simple matter, dressing up and going. But figuring out where to go is also matter of choice. In Los Angeles there are several theatres offering their theatrical wares, some outstanding venues, The Pantages, The Ahmanson, are large venues with huge spectacles that will give you an outstanding night of entertainment, something you’ll remember for the rest of your life.
But if money is the issue, and it generally is, there are smaller houses, with intimate settings, that will give you that something whatever you are looking for. And, the players are sometimes Broadway performers, only a few feet away, giving so much life to the written word and performances that the nights are oftentimes remarkable.
In smaller theatres, one just never knows who is going to show up offering a moment of their time to speak in an intimate setting, a separation of information, and a discussion of the craft. All is good.
One has never been invited to the Antaeus Theatre Company in Glendale with a press pass, but reports are the work is always incredible. So, the seed is here. Theatre needs your participation and if you are so inclined please donate to a 501 (3) c. Your donations are tax deductible.
Antaeus Theatre Company in Glendale – Antaeus.org
Heartbreak House by George Bernard Shaw directed by Nike Doukas – Oct 11 through November 16
Theatre 40 - https://theatre40.org/support/ - Edgar Allan Poe’s The Case-Book of C. Auguste Dupin Sep 17 – Oct 18, 2026
The Ruskin Group - https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?donation=rgt – (check for listings)
Whitefire Theatre - https://venmo.com/u/whitefiretheatre - (check for listings)
The Actors Gang - https://theactorsgang.com/support-us - The Women of Lockerbie by Deborah Brevoort – September 10 – 27th 2026
Theatre West - https://givebutter.com/FriendsofTheatreWest - The Feel Good Story America Needs Right Now by Mark Wilding – October 2 – November 8th, 2026
Los Angeles Theatre Center – https://purchase.latinotheaterco.org/Donations - The Dance and the Railroad October 1 – November 1, 2026
Casa0101- https://casa0101.org/support-us - Real Women Have Curves by Josefina Lopez – December 4 – 20, 2026
The Matrix - https://www.matrixtheatre.com/ - (check for listings)
The Zephyr Theatre - https://www.zephyrtheatre.com/ - (check for listings)
The Odyssey Theatre Ensemble - https://odysseytheatre.com/support/make-a-donation/ - (check for listings)
A Noise Within - https://www.anoisewithin.org/support/donate/ - (check for listings)
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