American Conservatory Theater

COURTESY KEVIN BERNEBrenda Meaney and Henry Clarke portray an actress and playwright

Battle of sexes fuels ‘Venus in Fur’ at ACT

A carefully constructed battle of the sexes plays out in crisp, two-part…

COURTESY KEVIN BERNEBrenda Meaney and Henry Clarke portray an actress and playwright
COURTESY KEVIN BERNESeana McKenna and Marco Barricelli appear in “Napoli!” — a dramedy about Italians making the most of the black market in the mid-1940s

World War II-era Italy comes to life in ACT’s ‘Napoli!’

War is hell for the soldiers called up to fight in “Napoli!”…

COURTESY KEVIN BERNESeana McKenna and Marco Barricelli appear in “Napoli!” — a dramedy about Italians making the most of the black market in the mid-1940s
COURTESY PARK HANFrom left

ACT’s ‘Major Barbara’ showcases George Bernard Shaw

The great thing about George Bernard Shaw — and the thing that…

COURTESY PARK HANFrom left
Andrew Boyer

ACT's '1776' serves up revolutionary good time

Congressional deadlock is nothing new. Neither are obstinate orators, peevish outbursts and…

Andrew Boyer
Juan Davila/courtesy photoFounding Fathers hang out: From left

'1776' is a truly revolutionary musical

More than 230 years ago, on the eve of the birth of…

Juan Davila/courtesy photoFounding Fathers hang out: From left
Courtesy PhotoJack Cutmore-Scott and Rebekah Brockman play a 19th-century era tutor and student in American Conservatory Theater’s talky “Arcadia.”

ACT’s ‘Arcadia’ dazzles and dazes

“Arcadia” is a splendid Rubik’s Cube, as playwright Tom Stoppard twists its…

Courtesy PhotoJack Cutmore-Scott and Rebekah Brockman play a 19th-century era tutor and student in American Conservatory Theater’s talky “Arcadia.”
Courtesy PhotoAndrew Fraser

War through a soldier’s eyes

“Black Watch” has been taking audiences by storm ever since its 2006…

Courtesy PhotoAndrew Fraser
Courtesy PhotoJulius Ahn is excellent as a Chinese food deliveryman

ACT’s ‘Stuck Elevator’ pushes buttons

Like its undocumented protagonist struggling to find a place in the city…

Courtesy PhotoJulius Ahn is excellent as a Chinese food deliveryman
Courtesy PhotoOpera singer Julius Ahn plays a deliveryman stranded for days in ACT’s “Stuck Elevator.”

‘Stuck Elevator’ explores downs of Chinese immigrant experience

The term “boxed in” takes on new meaning in the world premiere…

Courtesy PhotoOpera singer Julius Ahn plays a deliveryman stranded for days in ACT’s “Stuck Elevator.”
Courtesy PhotoGeorge Hampe

‘Dead Metaphor’ a zinging political comedy

“So – what do you see yourself doing in five years?” It’s…

Courtesy PhotoGeorge Hampe
Courtesy PhotoSusan Blommaert and Reggie Gowland plays a grandmother and grandson sharing an apartment in ACT’s appealing production of “4000 Miles.”

‘4000 Miles’ reveals beauty of everyday people

Sometimes it’s possible to be captivated by a play about ordinary people…

Courtesy PhotoSusan Blommaert and Reggie Gowland plays a grandmother and grandson sharing an apartment in ACT’s appealing production of “4000 Miles.”
Courtesy PhotoStar of the show: Olympia Dukakis takes on the role of the entire chorus in American Conservatory Theater’s vibrant production of “Elektra.”

Dukakis electric in ‘Elektra’

The tragedy of “Elektra” echoes through the American Conservatory Theater this month,…

Courtesy PhotoStar of the show: Olympia Dukakis takes on the role of the entire chorus in American Conservatory Theater’s vibrant production of “Elektra.”
Courtesy photoOpening night: American Conservatory Theater presents “The Normal Heart

Larry Kramer’s ‘The Normal Heart’ plays the American Conservatory Theater

Who’s in townComedian and actor Dov Davidoff, seen on E! Network’s “Chelsea…

Courtesy photoOpening night: American Conservatory Theater presents “The Normal Heart
Courtesy PhotoTrue story: Among the all-around top-notch cast in the American Conservatory Theater production

ACT’s ‘Scottsboro Boys’ engages, enlightens

Three almost-proscenium-sized picture frames, stacked asymmetrically upstage — plus a pile of…

Courtesy PhotoTrue story: Among the all-around top-notch cast in the American Conservatory Theater production
COURTESY PHOTOHappy homemakers: In ACT's excellent production of “Maple and Vine

‘Maple and Vine’ a provocative blast to the past

It’s tempting to think that traveling back to the 1950s could solve…

COURTESY PHOTOHappy homemakers: In ACT's excellent production of “Maple and Vine
Courtesy photoComplex couple: René Augesen and Andrew Polk bring their characters to life in “Higher.”

Dense drama, emotions in ‘Higher’

“How can you honor the dead if you have no faith?” demands…

Courtesy photoComplex couple: René Augesen and Andrew Polk bring their characters to life in “Higher.”
courtesy photoOne-man wonder: Lorenzo Pisoni describes days as a youngster in the Pickle Family Circus in the entertaining “Humor Abuse

‘Humor Abuse’ a tender tribute to a clown

If you don’t laugh your pants off when Lorenzo Pisoni, in enormous…

courtesy photoOne-man wonder: Lorenzo Pisoni describes days as a youngster in the Pickle Family Circus in the entertaining “Humor Abuse
Courtesy photoLorenzo Pisoni describes days as a youngster in the Pickle Family Circus in the entertaining “Humor Abuse” onstage at American Conservatory Theater.

‘Humor Abuse’ a tender tribute to a clown

If you don’t laugh your pants off when Lorenzo Pisoni, in enormous…

Courtesy photoLorenzo Pisoni describes days as a youngster in the Pickle Family Circus in the entertaining “Humor Abuse” onstage at American Conservatory Theater.
Courtesy photoAmerican Conservatory Theater

Theater to open new studio in San Francisco's Mid-Market area

The American Conservatory Theater plans to hop on the Mid-Market revival bandwagon…

Courtesy photoAmerican Conservatory Theater
Making movies: From left

'Once in a Lifetime' a heavy-handed Hollywood spoof

American Conservatory Theater associate artistic director Mark Rucker first staged the 1930…

Making movies: From left