Boxcar Theatre

My wife and I attended the second day showing for the performance of The Speakeasy at the Box Car Theatre.It was a wonderful Christmas gift from my wife. The performance is very interactive and unique in that it draws the audience into the illicit behavior of the 1920 era's backroom saloons (think of Great Gatsby etc).You will be notified via text to arrive at a certain place and time with a secret password. Once you find your contact at that location you exchange information and given a location and another password to enter the establishment.This is where the fun begins.The outside of the place has something to be desired of but that is part of the whole appeal. You knock on the door and give the person the password to enter. Once inside the "performances" take place in several locations. The main "stage" has a combination of singing and dancing, as well as, vaudeville acts from that era. The second part of the location contains a "hidden" casino with a roulette, craps, and blackjack tables. The back of the place has a small room which you can view events happening in the changing room and a bar/performance/sitting area in the back.Performers will be interacting in front of you and all around you. It's a wonderful idea and great concept.We reserved a table in the front and watched a show with some wonderful singing, dance numbers, and comedy routines. You may not recognize most of the songs from that time but as the night progresses you will eventually find a few nuggets that you will easily recall hearing from an old movie or television show. I enjoyed listening to all of them and especially enjoyed the rendition of "We have no Banana's Today." I don't believe you could even create or sing that song today as it would offend just about the whole ethnic makeup of SF but the tongue and cheek performance was absolutely marvelous!We then moved to the back where we went to the "casino" room. I blew everything on black and when the ball landed on red we made our way to the back room. The back contains a small stage with a piano, bar, and sitting room. In the sitting room actors will be having conversations with each other and events will be taking place that creates the whole atmosphere of the speakeasy. Keep in mind that so much is happening around you that you can not possibly see and experience everything. That's part of the appeal of the show is that each person sees things differently and not everybody catches the whole storyline. I will not give too much away other than it was a wonderful evening and something I would highly recommend to others.I would suggest coming to the show in period attire as it helps create the mood of what you are about to see and experience. The performance is about a time and place long forgotten but part of our American History. It is presented in way that draws you into that era of dancing girls, booze and all.

Went to the popup Nightmare on Franklin St. (wrote a separate review just for the popup). Please see my review NightmareSF- also on yelp. Rather than duplicate that I will summarize- Not One Person who attend from my group enjoyed it and would not return again to another performance.

As far as venues go, Boxcar Theatre is 3-Stars For the play we saw last weekend, CLUE, I'd say a BIG 4 STARS (but since this is a review about the theatre, we must stick w/ A-OK) The tickets I purchased online showed us sitting all together but the layout when we got there was different, so 1 of our party had to sit all by themselves - BOO! The stage setup is def original & well put together, I'll give them that. We're all up on a platform looking down on the stage so it's like you're looking at Clue, the board game But it also meant that I couldn't see anything the actors did on "my side" of the wall. Some people in the audience said they'd been back multiple times to "see" the whole thing...hmmm. Also, there were huge columns in the middle of the East & West sides of the stage so views were obstructed even further.....I was sitting right up against 1 of these columns *** Be sure to sit on the North or South side of the stage & you'll be better off in terms of no columns *** The theatre itself was sweltering hot - the actors were sweating profusely & I was no different - wear flimsy layers!! Last complaint - they wouldn't allow anyone in to their seats until 10pm (the show started at 10). Equate this to the whole sold out crowd standing practically shoulder to shoulder in the teeny lobby, trying to move about to get to the restrooms or bar - very cramped! The Play itself was a very clever rendition, taking the best parts of "Clue", the movie & combining it with the "limitations" of the board game. There was also a shout out to "Murder By Death" which is always a favorite. In any case, the actors were completely into their roles & the Clue-movie actors who they were spoofing should have been highly complimented by the tribute. Now I want to see the movie again so I can appreciate the Play even more. Overall, a campy, comical, whodunit conundrum

CLUE Jan 12 thru Feb 2011 - THE BOXCAR winter 11 showCLUE:Directors Peter Matthews & Nick A. Olivero have a brilliant show - sure to sell out - so buy up all these goldstar seats if you can find any.. this is truly a charm to sit above the amazing wiz of a CLUE GAME Board designed by co director Olivero . his vision of hosting the game watcher above the set is epic .. as if we are part of a Harry Potter broom fight ,, we are instead a sit a top of a game of CLUE. The adapted script moves fast and is very fun mixing in many of the key lines from the film and more. A great cast of SF locals better players all move at the speed of this game plan - The Butler brilliantly played by Brian Martin - holds the game board together with the most script tied to his role. Sarah Savage, Linnea George-Kupferand, Justin Liszanke keep the game rolling with some very funny comic timing linked to the many roles that Adam Simpson is cast as his every role true to the game and killings. J. Conrad Frank the queen on he board spins his skirt as the dice is tossed and is hilarious as the bodies fly. Besides the dead dummies as they pile up, the true star of this play is the set. The audience is lifted above the game board to see the whole 90 min event unfold - its a great night of Black box theatre in SF - not to be missed and is most likely sold out ,, I hope you get to see it. CLUE is the best .. V

ABIGAIL DREARY playing now thru August 6th -review forwarded from Charles Kruger at SF Bay Theatre Examiner -he gives 5 out of 5 starshttp://www.examiner.com/theater-in-san-francisco/abigail-dreary-is-a-haunting-hoot-with-an-authentic-emotional-core-review

Review #600During its last week in production, I took my sister to see Boxcar Theatre's take on 'Clue.' Tickets were $35 each (I missed the discounted Goldstar tix) & worth every dollar. Located in an alleyway off of seedy 6th street, I had my bf chauffeur us to & from the show. I loved the unique set up: you climb a flight of stairs to take your seat (there are about 49 chairs lining the perimeter of the stage) & look down at a living, breathing rendition of the boardgame. Each section of the stage is a 'room' (library, kitchen, conservatory, etc) that the actors manage to squeeze themselves into, almost on top of one another. If you've seen the movie, the play & the actors were right on the money. There were references to bad acting & even worse editing. And just like in the movie, all three endings were revealed.Decent acting, super intimate venue & clever use of a tight space. Being several feet in the air was such a different, fun way to enjoy a show. Theater on a small stage does not get any funner than this. Plus, gotta love the wallet-friendly ticket prices. Five stars for the overall experience, four stars for the theater & acting. There was a crowded concession stand selling drinks like 'Professor Plum Wine' & 'Ms White Russian.' Cute detail!

I'm absolutely addicted to interactive theatre experiences and bought a plane ticket up to SF specifically for Boxcar Theatre's Speakeasy production. I already wrote a review on that specific Yelp page but also wanted to share my praise amongst the other Boxcar reviews here. While The Speakeasy is shutting its doors soon, I truly hope that Boxcar will be attempting another show like it in the future. SF needs more of these unique events and your production in particular left me incredibly impressed, having enjoyed a quality night of immersive entertainment and talented company.I took my sister, who had few expectations, and she said it set the bar for all her future nightlife experiences in San Francisco. The authenticity of the experience, from the perturbed, yellow-accessorized staff doling out instructions, to the strong, almost unpalatable bathtub gin drinks, to the cheesy cabaret acts, was above and beyond what I expected from such independent theatre.Before attempts at comparisons are made, let me clarify that Boxcar's Speakeasy is a much smaller and more intimate production than say, Temple Studios' shows like Speak No More. It's also doing things a bit differently. You aren't a masked figure. Characters can see you. Though it might be inspired, the Speakeasy is not trying to be anything else at all, and I applaud that.I also want to include my acknowledgement for the after-party. Without it, I would not have been able to appreciate that more than 80 people contribute to making The Speakeasy happen every night. Not to mention how cordial, friendly, and gracious all the actors were when relishing the opportunity to casually mill around. Sipping off-menu cocktails and learning my way around a craps table made for a fantastic finish to an unforgettable night.--Now I do have a few suggestions to the production team should they decide to apply this concept elsewhere in the future (which I would jump at the opportunity to support):1) Slow motion during particular soliloquies was a nice touch. However, not all actors were doing their part to maintain this effect, and it was lost to more than a few people. The bartender (and casino dealers, etc) should also be affected. This can be timed so he's speaking with a particular character before another's monologue starts up. If he's taking an order or conversing with a patron, have another actor interrupt the exchange and get his attention.2) What you need for the next production are speakers linked with microphones on the actors. Definitely get a good sound engineer. That way, their voices penetrate into the room and are audible to even the casual listener. Even after putting a spotlight on the characters and gathering the audience's attention, lots of dialogue was lost to the crowd many times. For me in the lounge area, even while seated on the chaise, it was difficult to deliberately listen to the conversation happening at the bistro table directly adjacent.3) Lastly, I know that many of you have clown and improv schooling. Still, given the direct face-to-face interaction, this is the type of show that requires an actor to be on their toes all night. And a few of you need to work on how to gracefully flub lines. When you respond to a verbal stumble by correcting yourself, you draw the more discerning patrons out of this carefully constructed fairytale. Don't worry about repeating your lines the same every time. It's about effectively getting your character's point across. Sell that, and you're set.

This is a really small venue for theatre near Civic Center and in SOMA. I went here to see Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind created by Greg Allen and written, directed, and performed by the SF Neo-Futurists. In this theatre performance, the players attempt to perform 30 skits in 60 minutes. The audience shouts out a number between 1-30 to choose a skit. They prepare the skits before they play them. It was entertaining and kept you on your feet. The Neo-Futurists remind me of a college improv group and the venue reminds me of a small DIY college theatre. I do enjoy this kind of stuff and I'd check out what Boxcar Theatre puts on again.

I saw Rhino this weekend on closing night at Boxcar, and it was a fantastic evening. They probably shouldn't let the director address the audience before the show, because I became wary when he described the show he wrote/adapted as an "experiential experience," but I ended up loving it, but this isn't a review of the play, it's a review of the playhouse.The black box space is small and intimate, the staff with whom we interacted were friendly, and the experiential value of the experience is high for the price of a ticket.

BRAVO!! We could not ask for a better venue to watch an adaptation of Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends! Friends and I have been looking forward to catching the show for weeks and we even went to check out Shel's books from the library in preparation for the play. We arrived 10 minutes after the show started and although we were trapped outside, a lovely lady opened the door for us and we snuck inside. The sheer act of doing so made me feel young again, as if I was sneaking into an R-rated movie, and I loved every minute of it! Even reciting Shel Silverstein poems outside while we were anxiously awaiting to be let in was fun!Overall, the cast was amazing, the music on point and the venue was extremely intimate. I can't wait to go back and watch another play. In the meantime, I'll just have to continue reciting poems from the book in my head... There is a place where the sidewalk endsAnd before the street begins,And there the grass grows soft and white,And there the sun burns crimson bright,And there the moon-bird rests from his flightTo cool in the peppermint wind.Let us leave this place where the smoke blows blackAnd the dark street winds and bends.Past the pits where the asphalt flowers growWe shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,And watch where the chalk-white arrows goTo the place where the sidewalk ends.Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,For the children, they mark, and the children, they knowThe place where the sidewalk ends.