Fantastic venue with ample parking and easy walking access to the main street, food, and whimsy. Tickets for the show were reasonably priced. Bathrooms were clean which was great as I had to make frequent use of them! The tap though is rather cold and the water truly runs for an eternity! My only other gripe was that the concessions were incredibly stale. Truly my pretzel almost broke a bicuspid. But thankfully the fantastic show distracted me! Definitely worth a revisit! read more

This is a lovely little theatre in Hayward. I'm not sure how long it's been here in Hayward but I wish I had discovered it sooner. I attend a concert performed by East Bay Blues Society. They were great. The theatre also has its own parking lot and snacks are available. read more

Douglas Morrisson Theatre - Bay Area Blues Society - Performing Arts Near Me - Hayward, California

The theater is very nice. I attended the Sphinx concert and it was Great. I look forward to attending other events at the theater. read more

Nice venue. Easy parking. Love having access to a local venue for an interesting array of performances.

Douglas Morrisson Theatre was an happenchance walkby. it's next to the Sr. Center which is undergoing reconstuction. the Japanese Garden is further along. while it's nice having it here, i don't see where's the parking? sign notes it's closed due to the pandemic. i'm glad i don't need to decide whether or not to come here since no review has been written for 5 years. read more

Douglas Morrisson Theatre - Frontage - Performing Arts Near Me - Hayward, California

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It took a bit of clever marketing to get me to finally attend Hayward's own local theatre. I love plays, so I'm not sure what took me so long. I received an email from Hayward Area Recreation Department (HARD) offering a dinner and theatre combination. It was brilliant! We all met at Neumanali at 5pm for a themed family style dinner. The evening's play was a ghost story, The Woman in Black, and so the restaurant was spookily dark and candlelit. We were delighted to see a specter, a silent woman in black, wandering around behind us. After our relaxed and satisfying dinner, we drove off to the theatre, which is well hidden away near our lovely Japanese Garden. [The garden closes at 4, so you won't be able to do both unless you enjoy a matinee.] The theatre is small, which gives the audience a wonderful, intimate experience. The staff were all pleasant and competent, and the venue was comfortable and clean. The players were excellent. The play itself was not my cup of tea, but the offerings each season are very diverse, so I do look forward to trying another show. I'm thinking about James and the Giant Peach with the family! read more

The 2012 season plays are more interesting than prior years. The season is called family snapshots, and I must congratulate them for doing plays like Member of the Wedding rather than tired musicals. read more

I've always liked this theater. They've put out some really nice shows over the years. The last time I was here was 2 years ago and since, they've reorganized parking. The small parking lot to the left is now mostly blue parking with maybe 5 spaces for regular parking. I went straight there and found a spot. Most people parked in the gravel parking in front or to the right. They have to put more lights out there at night. You can barely see where you're walking. The theater itself is no non-sense. Small venue but nice seats, nice stage, well run. No food or drinks allowed supposedly but after intermission, put your drink in your bag, just don't munch too loud. They offer wine and cookies for a donation, they also sell the usual concession. It's a nice evening out and pricing is reasonable. It's always good to support the local theater. read more

Saw the final performance of THE WOMAN IN BLACK, a murder mystery in the Brit style of staging. Wonderful actors, excellent technical aspects: lighting, sound, stage set. It was the ushers and the audience, who ruined the otherwise most exceptional performance. Late arrivals were seated with flashlights ablaze being wagged around. Place them in the back row, for pity sakes. There were but two people sitting back there, and with all those seats available, put late arrivals where they won't disrupt those who came on time. if you arrive after curtain you should not be shown to your rightful seat. Wait until intermission! Returning to the two people in the back row ... they arrived late and to make up for their poor timing, they proceeded to chat each other up throughout the first act. Really? Unbelievable. Then when the so-called head usher was approached (and keep in mind she was in the back watching the performance), she wanted to argue that she did not hear them. It took two of us, unrelated audience members, to convince her that speaking during a performance should not be permitted. And, finally ... we understand that times are tough, but could the place have a little bit of air conditioning? It was like being in the dead of summer in the Mojave, dry and hot with no air circulating. read more

110 in the Shade musical surprised me with excellent performances from lead actors. Impressive singing, dancing, and moving performances! Simply enjoyable coming in from a cold, rainy Friday evening! The set backgrounds, coordination of lights and action were FAB! It's little gems like this that will bring Hayward back from the brink! If Douglas Morrison builds it, they will come! Keep up the good direction and quality. read more

We have been going to DMT for many years. Thrilled they are back up and running again. Once Upon a Mattress was beyond wonderful. Great cast, perfect for their parts Beautiful stage and a really enjoyable evening. Glad that they have returned to their type of theatre. Don't miss this one! read more

I've been here back when it was "the Little Theatre" to see plays such as "Annie" and "Something's a Foot" to only name a few of so many! The preformances are just great! The venue is very nice. The Acting is always so superb! Five stars all the way. I was looking online to see when their next preformance would be and noticed their name changed to Douglas Morrison Theatre, and then noticed it wasn't on yelp! So here you go yelpers! Enjoy! read more

This little theater (in fact, it used to be called the Hayward Little Theatre) is tucked away off of A St. It's a tiny theater - only about 10 rows deep - which means you're never too far from the stage. The down side is that the seats really curve around the stage, so a lot of them have a sideways view. As with most theater companies, the tickets are a little pricey. However, if you come ten minutes before curtain, available seats are only $10. If you're willing to gamble that's it's not a sold-out show, and don't mind sitting on the sides, this is the way to go. You can support the arts, see live theater, and do it for the price of a movie ticket. Works for a tight budget. The stage is small, so sets are usually pretty simplistic. I'm always amazed at the creativity shown in presenting setting and atmosphere with so little. There has always been plenty of parking around the theater, although some of it is in the dirt. Not sure what it would be like if they were full. read more

A fabulous adaptation and performance of Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband" is now playing at the Douglas Morrisson Theatre in Hayward, and it is a show not to be missed. At its world-premiere preview last night (Feb. 6, 2014), it was joyously received by a diverse audience ranging from teenagers to seniors who laughed and cheered the cast's wonderfully smart and professional performances. Each of the eleven performers brought a delightfully-balanced mixture of nuance and over-the-top qualities to their roles. And each, I thought, performed as a featured rather than supporting player. All eleven got an opportunity to do a star-turn - and they did not disappoint. Enough can't be said about this adaptation of Wilde's play by Scott Munson. He modernized and Americanized this 19th century English comic-drama of political corruption and morality into the milieu and vernacular of 1950's Washington, DC without sacrificing any of its original comic irony, wit, or wisdom - a bravura achievement. I would be remiss if I didn't also mention an extra added treat, that of an unexpected and truly magnificent turn by Beebe Reisman and Alicia von Kugelgen, together singing the most hauntingly-beautiful version of "Autumn Leaves" that I have ever heard - in such perfect harmony to put even that of the Everly Brothers to shame. Treat yourself to great live theatre by going to this wonderful gem of a production. Robert Palgon Fremont, CA read more

Amended from before - after the review, I got a very nice note from the Artistic Director with some questions, an apology and an offer for tickets to another performance. She didn't need to do that - and I know she's in the job where the kudos go elsewhere and the complaints come to her doorstep. So I'd give HER a 4+ star review - and hope she has a wonderful board of directors supporting her in some of the other issues! :) read more

I came here twice to watch two shows for my theatre class at Ohlone College. The theatre is quite lovely compared to other theatres I had visited throughout the bay area. It has a classy touch to it. They do a fantastic job decorating the stage. I went there during their 2009 season and watched Sullivan and Gilbert & Forever Plaid Tidings. Sullivan and Gilbert was the most dry play I saw throughout all the shows I saw for this class! WOW I nodded off so many times! I notice a lot of other people nodding off too! Forever Plaid Tidings however was amazing! It was extremely humorous and entertaining, one of my two favorite shows from the whole class! read more

I really like this theater. We've had season tickets for 10 years. I know the customer base is older but it seems like the theater is always very warm. I hope to see plays that are more well known than what they have been in the past. This year we enjoyed Hank Williams very, very much. The others not so much. Usually the actors are very good but lately the plays are not well known at all. I wish they would tell about the play in the brochure they give you. It might help us to understand the play better. Friday the coffee was so hot you couldn't hold the cup. They didn't have any sleeves. We used 4 napkins. It's the little things that make a difference. read more

I have been going to this theater for 15 years. Unfortunately the last 5 years have been going down hill. We saw "it's a Wonderful Life" last night. It was awesome. New director and the cast did a great job. I hope this director stays and does more. read more

To meet the challenge of Miller's play "All My Sons," the actors need to define their characters so that the plot has "meat" to it. Each character must show the sakes that his or her character have for the obstacles that they have to overcome (or not) to gain the objectives set out by the author of the play. In this regard, this production seems vapid, the actors say their lines but without any real definition of their character's core values and concerns. The actors move around the vast expanse of this great stage setting seeming to look for places to stop, and then say their lines. If you want to see a play reading, it's here; however, you will not find the drama and exposition of a powerful Arthur Miller play that needs attention to the details demanded of a great play. read more

This theatre does a fantastic job. I have been attending for years. They are able to pull in a surprising pool of talen musical and dramatic. The show Sullivan and Gilbert would rate among the best musical anywhere. Consistently good. read more

On the spur of the moment, my husband and I attended the preview of "All My Sons" at the Douglas Morrisson Theatre last night. WOW!!! This preview is ready for the road and doesn't need one more rehearsal. The actors playing the 4 leading roles, ESPECIALLY, Jeffrey Hoffman playing Chris Keller, were amazing. The emotional curve and intensive range of humanness in this production were on par with anything we have seen at some of our biggest and supposedly "best" theatre haunts at any local theatres in the Bay area, the Guthrie, off Broadway and yes, even on Broadway. It was obvious the director had HER heart in the heart of this play. The theatre and staff made us feel warm and welcomed to what was a new theatre experience for us. There is not a bad seat in this house. Congratulations to the entire cast and crew. I must mention the beautiful stage set that allowed the audience to enjoy such a relevant and captivating background to Arthur Miller's moving story. read more

This is definitely my theater. I enjoy watching plays at colleges because they have the funds to put on a big production and have very reasonable admission fees. But college productions don't typically do mainstream plays. I've tried Broadway West, but 2 for 2 felt a little or quite disappointed by the performances. At DMT however, I saw 2 great shows and immediately felt a world of difference in the level of quality. The lighting and sound were great for both shows. The actors were far better as well. The woman in black was so good, this is a play that requires good sound and lighting to capture the atmosphere. DMT did great. The whole play is portrayed by 3 people and only 2 with spoken roles. Was blown away by the acting. Tonight, just saw Wonder of the world, very funny and again, great lighting, sound and acting. I'm sold, I trust that DMT will always put on a good show. If you see something that interests you at the DMT, be sure not to miss it. read more