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Experience the Magic of Live Theater at Geffen Playhouse

Westwood Geffen Playhouse Theater

Geffen Playhouse Theater:
Where Classic and Contemporary Collide on the Los Angeles Stage


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Last Updated on Feb 10, 2025

Visit Westwood California

Discover the captivating world of the Geffen Playhouse Theater in Los Angeles.


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The Geffen Playhouse is a premier performing arts venue in Westwood known for world-class theater productions. It stages Broadway-caliber plays featuring renowned actors and playwrights. New play workshops give audiences a sneak peek at emerging works. Intimate performances in the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater create an up-close theater experience. Talkback sessions allow audiences to interact with cast and directors. Themed events and galas provide unique cultural experiences. Youth and student programs engage young theater enthusiasts. Subscription packages offer theater lovers access to multiple shows each season. Behind-the-scenes tours provide insights into stage design and production. Playwriting contests encourage emerging talent. Accessibility-friendly performances ensure all audiences can enjoy the arts.

Gil Cates Theater

The Gil Cates Theater, named in honor of the Geffen Playhouse’s founder, is a versatile 512-seat venue that serves as the stage for a wide range of productions. Since its opening in 2010, it has become known for its ability to host both contemporary and classic plays, including world premieres and re-imaginings of timeless works. The theater is large enough to accommodate musicals, though it primarily showcases plays that run for several weeks at a time. In addition to the main season productions, the Gil Cates Theater regularly hosts special events such as concerts, holiday productions, play readings, and educational performances, making it a vibrant cultural hub in Los Angeles.

Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater

The Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater, part of the Geffen Playhouse’s $17 million renovation in 2005, is a 149-seat venue designed with flexibility in mind. With its adjustable seating configuration, the theater offers an intimate setting ideal for a range of performances, from cabaret-style shows to world premieres. This space has become a favorite for both artists and audiences, hosting an array of events, including concerts, play readings, and family theater productions. The Audrey is renowned for its unique atmosphere, providing patrons with an up-close, personal theater experience. Each season, it typically features three productions along with various special events, further solidifying its reputation as one of Los Angeles’ most intimate and creative venues.

Upcoming Shows at the Geffen Playhouse

Noises Off
January 29 – March 9, 2025 (Extended by Popular Demand)
Michael Frayn’s Noises Off is a hilarious farce that takes audiences behind the scenes of a theater company on the verge of disaster. As actors bumble through a disastrous production, doors slam, sardines fly, and pants drop in this uproarious comedy. The cast’s forgotten lines, misplaced props, and romantic entanglements make it nearly impossible for the show to go on, both onstage and backstage. With its whirlwind of slapstick and witty chaos, Noises Off is a love letter to the unpredictable and often absurd world of theater.

Furlough’s Paradise
April 16 – May 18, 2025
In Furlough’s Paradise, cousins Sade and Mina return to their childhood home for a funeral, finding themselves at a crossroads in life. Sade is on a brief furlough from prison, while Mina takes a reprieve from her hectic career on the West Coast. Together, they navigate grief, family dynamics, and their differing memories of the past. As the clock ticks on their limited time together, they must come to terms with their hopes for the future and the untapped potential of their kinship. This poetic, theatrical exploration of family and longing delves into dreams of a utopian future yet to be realized.

The Reservoir
June 18 – July 20, 2025
In The Reservoir, Josh returns to Denver from NYU hoping to turn his life around, but his struggle with sobriety leads him down an unexpected path. Desperate for support, he turns to his four lovable grandparents, bringing them into his chaotic recovery process. From dragging them to Jazzercise class to forcing spinach down their throats, Josh’s journey is full of humor, heart, and surprising moments of insight. Ultimately, as his grandparents begin to offer the support he needs, Josh learns that recovery might come in ways he never imagined. This heartfelt comedy reminds us that sometimes healing doesn’t follow the path we expect.

UCLA and Geffen Playhouse

UCLA has maintained a strong partnership with professional theaters, and its collaboration with the Geffen Playhouse stands as a prime example of this mission. In the early 1990s, Gil Cates, then Dean of the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television, recognized the Doolittle Theater in Hollywood as too far from campus to effectively support the university's needs. He proposed acquiring the Westwood Playhouse, which was in close proximity to UCLA, and with the backing of Chancellor Charles Young, the sale of the Doolittle Theater funded the purchase and refurbishment of the Westwood Playhouse, which was renamed Geffen Playhouse in honor of David Geffen’s donation. This partnership aimed to create a nonprofit theater that would serve both the Greater Los Angeles community and UCLA’s educational goals, offering students opportunities for internships, residencies, and workshops. Today, UCLA continues to lease the building to the Geffen Playhouse, supporting a dynamic collaboration that enriches both the academic and cultural life of the university.

Things to do in Westwood
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