The kids are back in school and (hopefully) reading the greatest literature of all time. Maybe it’s time for you to refresh your memories of, or school yourself anew in, the old and new classics of the theater. Here are five productions of dramatic literature we’re betting are worth your theatergoing time and money this month, listed in order of closing dates.
Haunted House Party by Troubadour Theater Company at the Getty Villa's Outdoor Classical Theater, Sept 8–Oct 1
Ancient Roman comedies were scripted, but they also included musical interludes, improvisation and topical political quips (imagine all the bantering about the emperor who wanted to build a wall to keep the Celts out). Nowadays, what better theater company to take on Plautus’s Mostellaria (The Haunted House) than Troubadour Theater Company, treasured for its signature blend of classical plays with pop tunes, commedia and ad-libbing. Stephen Sondheim fans will recognize the plot of this one from his A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Adapted and directed by Matt Walker, Haunted House Party stars the Troubies’ veteran performers. 17985 Pacific Coast Hwy, Pacific Palisades. Thu–Sat 8pm. $36–$45. 310-440-7300.
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at Mark Taper Forum, Sept 11–Oct 16
August Wilson, the legendary American playwright who crafted 10 magnificent plays about the African-American experience during each decade of the 20th century, takes on the 1920s at an ego-fueled, ultimately tragic music-recording session in Chicago, where upstarts and old lions, artists and technicians battle it out. Phylicia Rashad, widely admired for her helming of Wilson works, directs this production, which stars Greg Bryan, Keith David, Jason Dirden, Damon Gupton, Matthew Henerson, Nija Okoro, Lamar Richardson, Ed Swidey, Glynn Turman and Lillias White. 135 N Grand Ave, Downtown Los Angeles. Tue-Fri 8pm, Sat 2:30pm & 8pm, Sun 1pm & 6:30pm. $25–$85. 213-972-4400.
A View From the Bridge at Ahmanson Theatre, Sept 14–Oct 16
The 2016 Tony Award–winning revival of Arthur Miller’s classic, directed by the fascinating Ivo van Hove, arrives in Los Angeles, albeit with a fresh cast. Eddie Carbone (Frederick Weller) is a Brooklyn longshoreman obsessed with his 17-year-old niece, Catherine (Catherine Combs). She falls in love with the newly arrived immigrant Rodolfo (Dave Register), whom Eddie and his wife, Beatrice (Andrus Nichols), have taken in. Eddie’s jealousy turns into the stuff of Greek tragedy, as does the staging, the actors in bare feet on a nearly bare space. 135 N Grand Ave, Downtown Los Angeles. Tue-Fri 8pm, Sat 2pm & 8pm, Sun 1pm & 6:30pm. $25–$125. 213-972-4400.
The Country Wife by Classical Theatre Lab at Kings Road Park, Sept 17–Oct 23
In 1660, England’s Puritan ban on theater was lifted, and…whee! Written in 1675 by William Wycherley, this play is about sex, sex and more sex, which apparently had just recently been discovered. The classical comedy is produced here and now by Classical Theatre Lab, specializing, as its name would indicate, in cool old stuff. There's no nudity, no profanity, but reportedly director Suzanne Hunt will still manage to make the work fun. It stars Christina Jacquelyn Calph, Virtic Emil Brown, Kathy Bell Denton, Jean Gilpin, Mel Green, Michael Hovance, James Loren, Rebecca Lincoln, Daniel Olson, Lonnie Silverman, Karen Tarleton, Donald Wayne and Alexander Wells. 1000 N Kings Road, West Hollywood. This is an outdoor venue. Sat-Sun 3pm. Running time 90 minutes, no intermission. Free admission, donations accepted. 323-960-5691.
Arcadia at A Noise Within, Sept 10–Nov 20
One of the Southland’s great classical repertory companies takes on the extraordinary playwright Tom Stoppard’s 1993 romantic look at our never-ending curiosity and quest for knowledge. It takes place in a country home in England, some characters living in the early 19th century, others in the present. Science, art and romance blend in an entrancing play for the epistemology nerd in all of us. Directed by Geoff Elliott, it stars Susan Angelo, Abby Craden, Tavis Doucette, Freddy Douglas, Mitchell Edmonds, Rafael Goldstein, Eric Curtis Johnson, Jeremy Rabb, Jill Renner, Erika Soto, Richy Storrs and Stephen Weingartner. 3352 E Foothill Blvd, Pasadena. See ANW website for repertory schedule. $20-$44. 626-356-3100.
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