The Bay Area’s April lineup of accessible performances
Your monthly guide to inclusive performances in San Francisco, Berkeley, and beyond.
Anything goes at Bay Area’s performances spaces this month. We’ve got musicals; we’ve got a stories about sports that take place on stage; we’ve got renowned dance companies with startling new productions; and we even have a man who is in love with a goat. I told you, anything goes this month.
At Cal Performances, two legendary dance companies perform with special dates for audio-described performances for those with low vision or blindness. First is Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater with a lineup of brand-new works, followed by the Joffrey Ballet presenting Midsummer Night’s Dream later in the month.
Musicals ranging from silly to heartbreaking (and accessibilities ranging from open captioned to ASL interpreted) are presented throughout the Bay Area with Anything Goes at Altarena Playhouse; MJ the Musical and Hadestown at ATG San Francisco; Beetlejuice and Les Misérables at Broadway San José; and Come From Away at TheatreWorks. Plus an opera, La Traviata, at Opera San José.
Then we have the athletes (who are really actors) at the boxing ring and basketball court (which is really a stage) with The Monsters at Berkeley Rep and FLEX at San Francisco Playhouse. Rounding out our strange, intriguing collection this month is Edward Albee’s tale of a married man who is in love with Sylvia. And who is Sylvia? She’s the goat, of course.
Anything Goes
Audio Described: April 12 at 2 p.m.
Luxury liner the S. S. American is sailing from New York to England with a madcap group of passengers, bringing witty repartee, exceptional songs, and brilliant dance numbers.
Altarena Playhouse
altarena.org
MJ: The Musical
Audio Described: April 4 at 1 p.m.
MJ goes beyond Michael Jackson’s singular moves and signature sound, offering a rare glimpse at the making of the 1992 Dangerous World Tour.
ATG San Francisco
us.atgtickets.com
Hadestown
ASL Interpreted: April 24 at 7:30 p.m.
Audio Described: April 26 at 1 p.m.
Intertwining two mythic tales, that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone, Hadestown is a haunting and hopeful theatrical experience that grabs you and never lets go.
ATG San Francisco
us.atgtickets.com
The Monsters
Closed Captioned: Evenings Apr 1, 3, 5, 7, and 8; and every matinee through Apr 30
Audio Described: May 2 at 2 p.m.
Raw and riveting, The Monsters delivers an emotional knockout and wrestles with the demons we must face to reconnect, rebuild, and forgive.
Berkeley Repertory Theatre
berkeleyrep.org
Beetlejuice
Closed Captioned: April 1 at 7:30 p.m.
ASL Interpreted: April 4 at 2 p.m.
Open Captioned: April 5 at 6:30 p.m.
It’s showtime! Based on Tim Burton’s dearly beloved film, this hilarious musical tells the story of Lydia Deetz, a strange and unusual teenager whose whole life changes when she meets a recently deceased couple and a demon with a thing for stripes.
Broadway San Jose
broadwaysanjose.com
Les Misérables
Closed Captioned: April 29 at 7:30 p.m.
Set against the backdrop of 19th century France, Les Misérables tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemption – a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit.
Broadway San Jose
broadwaysanjose.com
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Audio Described: April 11 at 2 p.m.
With brand-new commissions from next-generation creators and beloved works by Ailey dancers past and present, this revered institution continues to embody the values and vision of its founder through performances of exceptional power, beauty, and grace.
Cal Performances
calperformances.org
The Joffrey Ballet: Midsummer Night’s Dream
Audio Described: April 19 at 3 p.m.
Straying far from Shakespeare’s familiar path, the peerless Joffrey Ballet returns to Berkeley with Alexander Ekman’s daring and exuberant Midsummer Night’s Dream, a mind-bending trip to a surreal realm of unearthly delights.
Cal Performances
calperformances.org
La Traviata
English supertitles: Available at all performances (April 19 to May 3)
The scandalous love affair between the courtesan Violetta Valery and the young gentleman Alfredo Germont threatens to tear the fabric of the Parisian social order apart.
Opera San Jose
operasj.org
FLEX
Haptic Tour: April 19 at 12:30 p.m.
Audio Described: April 19 at 2 p.m.
In a forgotten town in rural Arkansas, a high school girls basketball team fights its way toward an impossible dream: a state championship.
San Francisco Playhouse
sfplayhouse.org
The Goat or, Who is Sylvia?
ASL Interpreted: April 2 at 7 p.m.
Audio Described: April 12 at 2 p.m.
Edward Albee’s Tony Award-winning tragedy edges the line of morality while exploring the limits of love and what is considered taboo in a modern society.
Shotgun Players
shotgunplayers.org
Come From Away
Audio Described: April 26 at 2 p.m.
ASL Interpreted: April 30 at 7:30 p.m.
Open Captioned: May 3 at 2 p.m.
On September 11, 2001, the world changed forever. This New York Times Critics’ Pick takes you into the heart of the remarkable true story of 7,000 stranded passengers and the small town in Newfoundland that welcomed them.
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
theatreworks.org
