2019 Season
Murder on the Nile
January 18th – February 10th, 2019
Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm and Sundays at 2:00 pm
Added Performances: February 7th at 8:00 pm and February 10th at 6:00 pm
No Show Superbowl Sunday
By Agatha Christie
Directed by Phil Brickey
Kay Ridgeway has led a charmed life. Blessed with enormous wealth, beauty and a new husband, she embarks on a honeymoon voyage down the Nile. Fatal circumstances await when the idyllic surroundings are shattered by a shocking and brutal murder. Under scrutiny is a multitude of memorable passengers, all with a reason to kill. The tension and claustrophobia builds, as a remarkable and audacious conspiracy is uncovered.
Maple and Vine
March 1st – March 31st, 2019
Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, Sundays at 2:00 pm
No Performance on Friday March 8th
Written by Jordan Harrison
Directed by Sarah Ripper
Katha and Ryu have become allergic to their 21st century lives. After they meet a charismatic man from a community of 1950’s re-enactors, they forsake cell phones and sushi for cigarettes and Tupperware parties. In this compulsively authentic world, Katha and Ryu are surprised by what their new neighbors – and they themselves – are willing to sacrifice for happiness.
Suprema
March 9th – March 30th, 2019
Saturdays at 5:00 pm, Sundays at 5:30 pm
Written by Phil Keeling
Directed by Chris Mertan
It’s 1940, and celebrated psychologist William Moulton Marston has decided that he wants to create a comic book heroine who stands for valor and love in a world dominated by men and war. Over the course of a single evening, Marston, his wife Elizabeth, and their lover Olive must convince DC Comics executive Max Gaines of the value of such a heroine while downplaying their own unorthodox lifestyle.
One Slight Hitch
April 19th, 2019 – May 19th, 2019
NO SHOW on April 21st, Easter and April 27th
Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, Sundays at 2:00 pm
Written by Lewis Black
Directed by Jason Sutton
It is Courtney’s wedding day, and her mom, Delia is making sure that everything is perfect. The groom is perfect, the dress is perfect, and the decorations (assuming they arrive) will be perfect. Then, like in any good farce the doorbell rings. And all hell breaks loose. So much for perfect.
“There’s more than a touch of Neil Simon in the morose Mr. Black.” —NY Times. “If you think of Lewis Black solely as a curmudgeonly comedian whose default setting is a state of apoplexy at the imbecility of his fellow man, you might be surprised by ONE SLIGHT HITCH. It’s not unexpected that HITCH should abound in snappy wisecracks and keen social observation. Those, after all, are hallmarks of Black’s stand-up act and his appearances on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. But what is that we detect on Black’s sleeve at the end of his play? Is that his…heart?” —Boston Globe. “If sustained laughter is the best measure of a comedy, ONE SLIGHT HITCH makes the grade.” —Asbury Park Press.
No MSG Added
Friday, May 24th at 8pm
No MSG Added is an Asian American Comedy Revue that promises to bring
the most authentic oriental sketches in Orange County. All of the
comedy ingredients used in our show are guaranteed 100% organic and
yes, you can add orange chicken to anything. Join us on this one-night
special menu as we celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander
Month. We promise laughter in the first 15 minutes or free
pot-stickers on your next order. And as always, there is no MSG added.
Into The Woods
June 15th, 2019 – July 21st, 2019
Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, Sundays at 2:00 pm (Opens Sat June 15th, no show on Friday July 5th)
Music and Lyrics Stephen Sondheim
Book by James Lapine
Directed by Jill Johnson
James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim take everyone’s favorite storybook characters and bring them together for a timeless, yet relevant, piece… and a rare modern classic. The Tony Award-winning book and score are both enchanting and touching.
The story follows a Baker and his wife, who wish to have a child; Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King’s Festival; and Jack, who wishes his cow would give milk. When the Baker and his wife learn that they cannot have a child because of a Witch’s curse, the two set off on a journey to break the curse. Everyone’s wish is granted, but the consequences of their actions return to haunt them later with disastrous results.
Puffs
August 9 – September 1, 2019
Fridays 8pm; Saturday 4pm and 8pm; and Sundays at 2pm.
Written by Matt Cox
Directed by Jeff Lowe
Puffs, or: Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic & Magic by Matt Cox is a Potter inspired comedy for anyone who has ever felt like a secondary character in someone else’s story. The play that “never goes more than a minute without a laugh” (Nerdist) gives you a new look at a familiar adventure from the perspective of three new heroes just trying to make it through magic school. Alongside them are the Puffs, a group of well-meaning, loyal rejects with a thing for badgers “who are so lovable and relatable, you’ll leave the theater wishing they were in the stories all along” (Hollywood Life). Their “hilariously heartfelt!” (Metro) and epic journey takes the classic story to new places and reimagines what a boy wizard hero can be.
“Puffs (Two Act Edition)” is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC.
Special Performances:
All Sunday shows are for young wizards and witches meaning we take out all the curse words! Also, arrive an hour early to make your own house flags! Buy a $2 flag and we’ll provide the decoration station!
The 4pm performance on August 17 will be a Relaxed Performance for members, family, and friends of the spectrum community. For more information please visit:
http://www.alchemytheatre.com/relaxed-performance.html
Family Matters
September 6th – September 22nd, 2019
Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm
Written by David Macaray
Directed by Philip Brickey
2 One Acts by David Macaray
Megan the Merciless
The year is 1982. The occasion is a family reunion of sorts. Megan, a brilliant but abrasive college professor, author, and social critic returns home after three years to visit her two sisters. Their father is in India seeking “spiritual renewal”, and their mom is serving a prison term for vehicular manslaughter. Not only does the reunion not go as hoped, but the old adage, “time heals all wounds” is rendered meaningless.
The Affair
Michael and Veronica have been involved in a torrid three-month affair. While it hasn’t been “earth-shaking” it has, up to this point, been adequate. She is married to a successful physician. He is unmarried, employed as a gardener at the country club where they met. She is bored, cynical and mature. He is childish and suffers from a profound inferiority complex. It’s a comedy.
No MSG Added
Friday, September 27th at 8pm
Added Performance Saturday, September 28th at 8pm
Tickets are $16
No MSG Added: Bagged Lunches
School is back in session and millions of young Asian American kids will be made fun of because of their weird lunches. Not here folks! No MSG Added welcomes all your smelly, sticky, and riced filled lunches! Come join us for a night of awesome laughs, reliving adolescent traumas, and overall silliness. Remember all sketches featured in our show are homemade, handmade, and like always, have No MSG Added (probably).
The Twilight Zone
October 4th – November 9th, 2019
Friday October 4th at 8:00 pm
Saturday October 5th at 8:00 pm
Sunday October 6th at 2:00 pm
No show Friday October 11th
Saturday October 12th – Nov 9th
Fridays at 11:00 pm
Saturdays at 5:00 pm
Sundays at 5:30 pm
Directed by Darri Kristin & David Campos
There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. A dimension as vast as space, as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man’s fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call “The Twilight Zone”. “That’s the signpost up ahead. Your next stop: The Twilight Zone.”
Episode details coming this summer!
Silence! The Musical
October 11th – November 10th, 2019
Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm
Music and Lyrics by Jon and Al Kaplan
Book by Hunter Bell
Directed by Jack Millis
Welcome to the Orange County Premiere of Silence! The Musical!
It’s been 8 years since this award winning musical premiered off-Broadway, and no one’s had the guts to bring it to Orange County – until now!
A laugh-out-loud, smutty, bawdy, raunchy tribute to the iconic movie from 1991, The Silence of the Lambs. Silence! The Musical may in fact be too dirty to even hint at in writing.
Rookie FBI agent Clarice Starling matches wits with the brilliant but insane cannibal, Dr. Hannibal Lecter in order to catch the serial killer known as Buffalo Bill. Clarice faces her own demons while racing the clock to unlock Lecters clues before another innocent girl is killed and skinned by Buffalo Bill.
This hilarious and completely inappropriate satire features a singing chorus of floppy eared lambs narrating the action as Buffalo Bill gleefully dances a hoedown while kidnapping hapless Catherine Martin. Even Dr. Lecter, scary as ever, sings about the life he’d like to lead someday outside the prison walls.
Fueled by a rabid cult following since the songs debuted online in 2002, SILENCE! was expanded into a live stage show and shattered every box-office record at the 2006 FringeNYC Festival. SILENCE! The Musical combines whip-smart dialogue and shocking songs to make a musical parody of The Silence of the Lambs that’s sure to be popular with seasoned fans of the movie and FBI rookies alike.
NOTE: This show contains racy jokes, vulgar language, filthy songs, sexual gags, full frontal nudity, bad accents and dancing farm animals. Allergic to dogs? No problem! There are no live dogs in this show.
It’s A Wonderful Life: a live radio play
November 29th – December 22nd, 2019
Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, Sundays at 2:00 pm
With
Saturday December 7th at 4:30 pm only
Saturday December 14th & 21st – 4:30 pm & 8:00 pm
Sunday December 15th 2:00 pm & 5:00 pm
Written by Joe Landry
The beloved American Classic comes to captivating life as a live 1940’s radio broadcast. With the help of an ensemble that brings a few dozen characters to the stage, the story of idealistic George Bailey unfolds as he considers ending his life one fateful Christmas Eve.
