News And Blogs

"You're listening to "30 to Curtain," a Center Theatre Group podcast. I'm Doug Baker, Center Theatre Group's Producing Director and I'll be your guest host for this episode. I work closely with Artistic Director Michael Ritchie to bring productions to our three theaters, the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum and Kirk Douglas Theatre. Joining us fo...

30 to Curtain: Kevin McCollum and 'The Play That Goes Wrong'

Dear Evan Hansen. Something Rotten!, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder. Three of the most delightful Broadway shows of the past few seasons have two things in common: they made their Los Angeles premieres at the Ahmanson Theatre, and they were made possible by donations given to a discretionary fund to invest in Broadway-bound shows to ens...

Center Theatre Group Invests in Broadway

For five weeks this summer, every day will be Take Your Daughter to Work Day for one father on the Center Theatre Group staff. Producing Director Douglas C. Baker’s daughter, Blair Baker, is part of the company of The Play That Goes Wrong, which is onstage at the Ahmanson July 9 – August 11, 2019. Blair, a New York-based actor, is an understudy...

When Theatre Is the Family Business

"Welcome to '30 to Curtain,' a Center Theatre Group podcast. I'm Michael Ritchie, Artistic Director of Center Theatre Group. For each episode of this podcast, we talk with some of the talented artists working across a three stages, the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre. Our guest on this podcast is Sir Matthew Bourne, who...

30 to Curtain: Sir Matthew Bourne

There are some theatregoers who argue that despite added hassle, the act of going to a theatre and watching a play in-person is virtuous and the very cornerstone of the art.

A Few of The 2018 Tony Nominees We’re Rooting For!

How does a new (play with a) musical get made? To quote Soft Power, It Just Takes Time. In this case, that’s four years, 13 readings and workshops, and the partnership of a crackerjack creative team of American theatre all-stars. But before all that, there was breakfast, as Center Theatre Group Artistic Director Michael Ritchie and playwright Dav...

Four Years, Two Breakfasts, and One Big Commission

Almost every performance you see onstage at Center Theatre Group is a collaboration. And we’re not just talking about the obvious—the team of actors, writers, directors, producers, designers, and artisans who have come together for the show’s run. More often than not, the production you’re seeing took collaboration among theatre companies a...

Center Theatre Group Hits The Road

The name “Ivo van Hove” doesn’t flow off the tongues of Angelenos yet—but it will soon. (For the record, it’s pronounced “EE-vo van HOE-va.”) The 57-year old Belgian director of A View From the Bridge, which plays the Ahmanson Theatre September 7 – October 16, 2016, has been called avant-garde, minimalistic, provocative, and groundb...

Meet Ivo van Hove

Immersive art installations have become all the rage in Los Angeles, and God—and the Ahmanson Theatre—have both taken notice. Whether it’s the throngs of people lined up outside the Broad Museum to snag a spot in its Infinity Mirrored Room or the disappointment of so many Angelenos in not securing a reservation to Los Angeles County Muse...

Artist James Turrell Shines Through the Set for 'An Act of God'

It’s not every day that you get on a conference call with God. But He’s easier to get hold of when He has a show coming to the Ahmanson Theatre from January 30 through March 13, 2016. In advance of An Act of God, Center Theatre Group got on the phone with Him on a Friday afternoon, along with playwright and former The Daily Show with Jon Stewa...

On the Phone with God and His Head Writer

Marsha Norman’s credits span the spectrum of performance from tragic plays to HBO series and have earned her top awards and prizes including a Tony and a Pulitzer. But what drew her to the tale of housewife and World War II war bride Francesca Johnson and inspired her to write the book for the musical adaptation of The Bridges of Madison Count...

A Conversation with Pulitzer Prize-Winning Writer Marsha Norman