Closed but not dark: Las Vegas theater online!

Stuck in Phase 2 of the reopening, with rumblings of returning to Phase 1 if COVID-19 infections continue to skyrocket, our community theaters remain closed.

But not dark, because live theater in Las Vegas is continuing online and at the drive-in.

The Smith Center’s online Living Room Sessions continue, featuring The Composers Showcase virtually from Myron’s Cabaret Jazz, sponsored by Toyota. Catch the Groove Live on Facebook each Wednesday at 5 p.m. or catch-up on recorded past live sessions.

Wednesdays are a busy night for the online arts scene. Vegas City Opera continues their lively Wine Wednesday’s Concert Series at 5:30 p.m. on Facebook Live https://www.facebook.com/VegasCityOpera/. Pair your favorite chardonnay with sparkling arias or get out the boxed wine to sing along with a lusty opera chorus!

The Las Vegas Little Theatre gamely keeps rescheduling their upcoming season to conform with the latest COVID developments. They announced on their website due to the postponement of the hoped-for Phase 3 reopening, their production of “Brighton Beach Memoirs” has been rescheduled until August 7 – 23. Ticket holders will be automatically moved to the corresponding performance in August. If you wish to
exchange your tickets for another performance date, please contact the LVLT box office at 702-362-7996.

Currently, LVLT is keeping its 2020-21 season schedule in place, however, “Murder on the Orient Express” scheduled for Sept. 4 – 20, will be replaced with “Glengarry Glen Ross” by David Mamet. Additionally, “No Way to Treat a Lady” scheduled for Jan. 15 – 31, 2021 is being replaced by “Putting it Together,” a musical revue celebrating award- winning composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim originally scheduled as LVLT’s summer musical offering.

​Ticket holders for “Putting It Together” will be contacted by LVLT about their tickets. Tickets may be moved to the January dates, traded for another production, donated to LVLT, or refunded. Call the box office at 702-362-7996 with any questions.

Loyal fans can get their LVLT fix virtually through two online shows featuring favorite actors and directors in early August.

First is the encore of their popular “The Quarantine Monologues,” Sunday, August 2 at 3 p.m. This collection of 15 original monologues themed on the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on our lives address such pertinent topics as “Germs are Everywhere”; “I Don’t Like the Way My Cats are Looking at Me”; “The Masked Man”; and “In Line.”

Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at www.LVLT.org or contact the Box Office at 702-362-7996. A link to the online performance is provided upon purchasing the ticket.

“The Quarantine Monologues is directed by David Ament, Gillen Brey, Joe Hynes, Jacob Moore and Walter Niejadlik and boasts an ensemble cast of talented local actors.

And do not miss the interactive whodunnit, “Deception at the Disco!” presented virtually by LVLT and A Touch of Mystery as an online fundraiser on Saturday, August 1 at 7 p.m.

​It is Las Vegas Little Theatre’s Musical Extravaganza! Frannie Fabiano (Gillen Brey), LVLT’s new Event Coordinator has hired three acts to entertain: The Diva (Joy Demain), Vinnie Vegas (Michael Kaczurak) & the Vinnettes (Monica Johns and Melissa Riezler), and Troy Tritone (Glenn Heath). The boa feathers are about to fly as The Diva finds out she is not the only headliner for the evening. Someone is about to make their last appearance and you become the Private Dick who will solve the case and win a prize.

Local actors are donating their time to perform for this benefit.

A link to the online performance is provided upon purchasing a ticket at www.LVLT.org or contact the Box Office at 702-362-7996. There are two different ticket prices: $50 for show and a Disco Cake Ball goodie bag (pick up required) or $35 for just the show.

In July, Theatre Works Silicon Valley presented an online reading of “Shakespeare in Vegas” written by Suzanne Bradbeer and directed by Giovanna Sardelli in partnership with Vegas Theatre Company.

A wise guy producer with a dream and a despondent New York actress attempt to bring Shakespeare and the Strip together. Will showgirls outshine the Bard? Find out what happens in Vegas!

The cast included Tony Award-winner Karen Ziemba, Tony-nominee Patrick Page and Nican Robinson from Netflix’s “13 Reasons Why.”

One advantage of going online is that we can enjoy such seasonal favorites as the Nevada Ballet Theatre (NBT) all year round! Announcing NBT@Home NBT is now bringing the joy of dance directly to home. Their new NBT@Home page is a specially curated collection of performance highlights, behind-the-scenes features and other fascinating glimpses into the world of NBT. Even COVID cannot stop the dance! Explore
NBT@Home.

Opera Las Vegas’s new slogan should be “Celebrating Life’s Grandest Stories Online!” OLV’s new You Tube channel allows local opera lovers to experience both new content and to catch recordings of past productions.

“The Magic Flute: What Would Have Been” is a series of video presentations featuring the leading characters of OLV’s cancelled June production of one of Mozart’s most beloved operas—a great way to introduce kids to opera.

There are also numerous glimpses into OLV’s past triumphs including Donizetti’s“The Elixir of Love” (2019), “La Cenerentola (Cinderella) (2018), another children’s favorite, and Verdi’s “Rigoletto” (2017), staged in a Las Vegas casino. Future digital opera events on You Tube include an upcoming recreation of last February’s “Opera Legends in Black,” OLV’s tribute to African American singers and composers.

Go to Opera Las Vegas YouTube Page to hear the plus-sized lady sing.

The amazingly creative Troy Heard, artistic director of the Majestic Repertory Theatre, kept theater live while socially distanced with his innovative Majestic Drive- Thru Theater in May. Tickets were $50, 18+ only, and the drive-thru location was sent upon purchase.

A double-lined mask and t-shirt were served to ticket-holders at curbside five minutes prior to their schedule time slot. Patrons remained in their cars as they enjoyed a drive-thru curbside immersive theater experience.

As Las Vegas’s temperatures and political climate heated up, Troy shut the outdoor show down. Watch for what comes next from one of our most experimental theater companies.

What’s happening at A Public Fit? APF has been holding weekly Zoom readings of scripts from plays under consideration for future seasons. In addition, APF has begun work on Season One of “Behind the Buzzz,” a podcast exploring the behind- the-scenes processes that led up to the production of APF shows. How does a play happen? More info to come! Stay tuned at https://apublicfit.org.