The theatre presents and stages great intriguing shows while the staff and production crew are…read morealways friendly and considerate.

I've been a fan of the shows at this space for over 15 years I guess. Recently saw Ride The Cyclone…read moreand Ruthless there. We enjoyed them both. The staff is always pleasant and the 3 different theater spaces each have a special charm. I hope they continue to thrive even though this current terrible administration has cut a lot of funding to non profit arts organizations.

I'd never been to a Berkeley Repertory show until this year. I'm surprised because I'm such a big…read moretheatre nerd. I was served an ad on Instagram for Arthur Miller's All My Sons in March 2026. It stars Jimmy Smits (of Star Wars and the West Wing fame! That's my President Santos and Bail Organa!) and his wife Wanda DeJesus. Such big names! I took my mom to a weekday matinee. It was a packed house and skewed older (hey, it was a weekday.) The theatre was clean and intimate. There was no bad seat in there! They did have a young person's discount if you're under 35 which was nice (if you're under 35.) Maybe if Berkeley built more housing, the city would be more welcoming and inclusive to young people and there wouldn't be that discount. Bathrooms were clean. After the show (which was a tearjerker), there was a Postshow Discussion with a docent (a UC Berkeley grad student.) It was fun discussing the show with other attendees who stayed. It was like a book club! Intimate and inclusive, and then there was a surprise--Jimmy Smits and Wanda DeJesus came to listen and contribute to the conversation! (And then do autographs and photographs.) Berkeley Repertory is a community hub. I appreciate their shows and the discussions they evoke (and the space they provide to have said discussions.) The SF Chronicle raved about All My Sons and I could not rave about it more either! Time to reread Arthur Miller and also support local theatre!

We attended The Cook production…read more The theatre is small and intimate, not a bad seat in the house. Acoustics were perfect, seating was relatively comfortable. They had a decent selection of drinks and snacks. The play was awesome. It made us want to learn more about the history of Cuba. Superb acting & a great set design made for a wonderful experience. #GoSee

Shotgun Players is a great theater space in Berkeley. I saw a show here yesterday and was impressed…read moreby how intimate and inviting the venue feels. The theater is small enough that you feel close to the performance, but still has the production quality and atmosphere of a much larger space. The seating provides a strong view of the stage, the space has a lot of character, and the staff created a welcoming experience from the moment I arrived. I also appreciated how the design of the theater makes live performance feel immediate and engaging. A great local venue for anyone who enjoys live theater. I would absolutely return for another production.

I came here with my friends to see Sunday in the Park with George. The production was very well…read moredone and our seats were only $8/each since the show was still in previews! Support local theater! I'd come again to check out other shows.

SF had this Opera in the Park event, and it was such a lovely experience. We went to the one in…read moreConcord, and it was so much fun, relaxing, well organized, and just a great time overall. Can't wait to see an opera at the Opera House next!

Recently attended the SF Opera World Premiere The Monkey King by Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang…read more Love everything about it--from staging and set designs, lighting, costumes, choreography to all the talented casts. Hurry, you can still see it as it runs until November 30. Having grew up reading The Monkey King, this Opera spoke to me. So excited to have this timeless story come alive in operatic form, such an amazing experience in that the monkey king is a smart, rebellious, powerful being and he learns through his adventures to harness power and balance it with wisdom, humility and responsibility. Very aspirational and yet familiar. Some Chinese Opera (Northern and Southern) nuances incorporated into this Western-style opera. Beautiful and provoking. Looking forward to the next event.

My husband and I attended The Nutcracker in December, and unfortunately the experience was so…read moreunpleasant that we have no interest in returning to the San Francisco Ballet. We were seated in the second row of the orchestra, directly behind a group in the first row who whispered, turned around, pointed, and moved almost constantly throughout the performance. Their level of fidgeting was honestly bizarre and impossible to ignore. They also had a very young child with them who repeatedly made noise and turned around during the show. It was so distracting that I barely remember the performance itself. What I remember is the group sitting in front of us. We wanted to say something during the show, but there was no usher visibly monitoring our section. We also did not feel comfortable confronting strangers directly in a dark theater and potentially escalating the situation. This is exactly why ushers should be present and attentive during a performance, rather than placing the burden on patrons to police one another. When we spoke with a manager afterward, we were told that we could have reported the issue during intermission and possibly been moved. That response was frustrating. By intermission, half the performance had already been ruined, and it did not seem fair that we would be the ones expected to leave the seats we selected and paid for while the disruptive patrons remained in place. We contacted the Ballet multiple times afterward. Initially, the response felt dismissive. We were then offered tickets for one specific date in February, which was not practical because we live in Santa Cruz and could not simply travel to San Francisco on a randomly selected day. Eventually, we were offered tickets to a spring program, but the most logical and appropriate resolution would have been replacement tickets for the following Nutcracker season, since that was the experience that had been ruined. What made this especially disappointing was not only the behavior of the patrons, but the way the Ballet handled the complaint afterward. A sincere apology and a straightforward effort to replace the experience would have gone a long way. Instead, the process felt unnecessarily difficult and left my husband unwilling to do business with the San Francisco Ballet again. For an organization charging premium prices for a formal live performance, I expected better audience monitoring and much better customer service.

Came here to see the SF Ballet performance of The Nutcracker and this venue is beautiful. You can…read moretell it is so old, and has so much history. The details are everything. We sat in orchestra seating (second to last row, perfect middle section) and had great acoustics. It was a little far for seeing stage details, so maybe being binoculars. Overall, it was cool to have an eye level view of the whole stage. Bathroom lines can get long during intermission, but they move so fast. There are a ton of restrooms and line waiters don't realize it. No food inside the theatre, but drinks with lids are okay! Would love to come back here!

The golden Girls Christmas did not disappoint. A family friendly drag queen even with lots of…read morelaughs. The comedic timing is impeccable. We were laughing for days after. If you love someone. Give the gift of laughter to the Golden Girls Christmas show. Cherish the memory forever. The staff at the Curran theater are also courteous and friendly. An added bonus.

This is a beautiful, historic-looking theater. I love visiting older theaters because of their…read moreunique architecture and charm. We saw a show here and found it smaller than some of the other theaters in San Francisco, but it was still lovely and full of character. Unfortunately, our experience with the service was not great. My husband was still looking for parking while I went to retrieve our tickets from will call. I was already inside the building, standing near the entrance, when he came to the doorway. I simply wanted to hand him his ticket so it could be scanned and he could come inside to join me. As I tried to hand the ticket to him through the doorway, the employee checking tickets stepped in front of me and repeatedly told me that I could not leave the building and come back inside. I explained several times that I was not trying to leave I only wanted to hand my husband his ticket. However, she kept repeating the same statement without listening to what I was actually saying. After trying to explain the situation multiple times, I finally kept it simple and said, "I know. Can I just hand this ticket to him?" At that point, she seemed to understand, scanned his ticket, and allowed him to come inside. What made the interaction frustrating was not the policy itself, but the way it was handled. The employee came across as rude and dismissive, and I felt as though I was being treated like I had done something wrong when I was simply trying to give my husband his ticket. A little more patience and communication would have gone a long way. The theater itself was lovely, and we enjoyed the show, but the interaction at the entrance left a negative impression and could have been handled much more professionally.

I could not disagree with the last reviewer more. Hamlet is a gorgeous, layered, fascinating play…read more I have seen it performed live many times, and Actors Ensemble put a daring twist on the lead role by having everyone in the cast play Hamlet for at least a few lines. I wasn't sure how I would like this treatment, but it turned out to be gracefully and interestingly done. The rest of the 2018 season was similarly enjoyable. I look forward to the 2019 season. The location in the park is gorgeous, and they made full use of the space. The price can't be beat, since it's free. They do ask for a donation, but are charming and friendly.

The best selection of plays in the bay area. These folks choose serious plays that are funny,…read moreinsightful, brilliant, and do not pander to the lowest common denominator. Back home in rural NY, I saw a similar local theater company cave in to such pandering. One season every single play was about cats and/or lonely older women pondering the meaning of life while struggling with their relationship with their children. But I digress. I nearly fell over when I looked at the history of plays they've put on at AE-of-B. Its of a higher quality than the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln center! Just what I'd hope for in a city as educated and erudite as Berkeley. ...So I give it 3 stars... That's 5 stars for the choice of plays, 4 for the venue, and 1 star for the acting. It may be unfair to blame Berkeley (or the Bay Area in general) for the fact that anyone truly pursuing acting will leave for LA, NY, or London. But I just cannot sit through a play when the actors haven't mastered the basics of acting. I've mentioned this before regarding other well-loved East Bay theater groups - one of them confuses yelling with acting, one of them uses the same set of characters no matter what the play is. My complaint about the actors' ensemble is that some of the cast had not mastered their diction. We were in a 24-seat theater and I still couldn't make out what was being said! As strong as the weakest link! Sigh.

Tonight I saw Red Red Red. I enjoyed the show and I really appreciate the theater venue at FLAX…read moreTheater at the art and design store in downtown Oakland. This is a tiny theater sort of in the back room at this enormous art supply store. There are only five or so rows of seating, which means everyone gets a good view. I paid double price for a reserved seat, which guarantees your spot on the front row. None of the seats are actually reserved in this theater. For the reserved price you get first shot at the front row. What's really pretty awesome about this tiny theater is there lighting and Sound system. They were actually able to create some good lighting effects and the sound system with music and occasional voice overs added value to the show. The staff were extremely nice. Only one very strange thing. They claimed it Fridays is mask wearing night at theaters. Maybe this is true, but I've never heard of it. Everyone in the audience was required to wear a face mask.

I've seen two productions there, "52 Letters" and "Long Day's Journey into Night". Great space in…read morethe Flax building, parking lot in the back. Affordable, pay what you can. Snacks too. Intimate, nice bathrooms too. Thank you Lucianne, box office manager, marketing director Simone, executive associate Leigh, director Michael. Great theater, great space, innovative and diverse. I am looking forward to the next production, Mahabharata.