Theatre is becoming a better and better deal as far as entertainment goes. Have you noticed?
Sure your San Francisco Ballet tickets aren't getting any cheaper and if you're planning to head out to the city to catch Rent this fall, I'm sure you'll pay handsomely for those tickets. But I'm talking about local theatre, and we've got a fair amount of it around here.
It used to be that a quick and easy night out was dinner and movie. The old standby. And while movie tickets have gone up and up to $10 plus now, those local theatre seats $12-$15 to see something performed for you on a local stage are a steal. Sure, it may not always be Broadway quality or anything, but let me tell you, 3rd graders performing Hamlet would be more entertaining that the last film I saw on screen. And as a bonus, an evening at the theatre comes with an intermission for a potty break in the middle, and they typically don't frisk you for pretzels in your purse on the way in.
Last night I went to Sacramento's Shakespeare Festival to see Two Gentlemen of Verona (love and a bit with a dog). Shawn and I sat out on the lawn with a good friend and had a lovely picnic on a rather perfect Sacramento evening and enjoyed a good show on an outdoor stage. They put a 1920s twist to the show, and while taking Shakespeare out of his own time context sometimes irritates me, this particular show makes more sense if half the characters are drunk on martinis, so it worked. And props to the gentlemen who played Speed last night. Well played, Sir.