BroadwaySF is a commercial theatrical production company in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

. It was founded in 1977 by

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

producers

Carole Shorenstein Hays Carole Shorenstein Hays (born September 15, 1948 as Carole J. Shorenstein) is an American theatrical producer. Biography Shorenstein was one of three children born to real estate developer Walter Shorenstein and Phyllis Finley. Her father was ...

and

Robert Nederlander Robert Elliot Nederlander Sr. (born April 10, 1933) is an American attorney and businessman who served as the president of the Nederlander Organization, which has been involved in the live theatre industry since the early 20th century. He is a ...

as Shorenstein Hays Nederlander Theatres (Later abbreviated to SHN) as a promoter of short engagements of national touring productions of plays and musicals. BroadwaySF owns and operates two historic theatres in

: the Orpheum and

Golden Gate The Golden Gate is a strait on the west coast of North America that connects San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean. It is defined by the headlands of the San Francisco Peninsula and the Marin Peninsula, and, since 1937, has been spanned by t ...

Theatres; and previously operated the

Curran Theatre The Curran Theatre, located at 445 Geary Street between Taylor and Mason Streets in the Theatre District of San Francisco, California opened in February 1922, and was named after its first owner, Homer Curran. As of 2014, the theater is owned by ...

until 2014. BroadwaySF also consults on the Broadway series at the AT&T Performing Arts Center in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

. On October 1, 2019, SHN changed its name to BroadwaySF in the aftermath of a lawsuit between itself and founder Hays, who had given up an active role in the organization. Hays continued to hold a 50% stake in SHN until then, when she gave up her stake as a part of the settlement.

Notable productions

BroadwaySF has hosted the world premieres and pre-Broadway engagements of numerous shows including: ''

Wicked Wicked may refer to: Books * Wicked, a minor character in the ''X-Men'' universe * '' Wicked'', a 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire that inspired the musical of the same name * ''Wicked'', the fifth novel in Sara Shepard's ''Pretty Little Liars'' s ...

'', '' Mamma Mia!'',

Baz Luhrmann Mark Anthony Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962), known professionally as Baz Luhrmann, is an Australian film director, producer, writer and actor. With projects spanning film, television, opera, theatre, music and recording industries, he is re ...

's ''La Bohème,'' the 2006 revival of ''

A Chorus Line ''A Chorus Line'' is a 1975 musical with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante. Set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, the musical is centered on seventeen Broadway dancers ...

'', ''

Legally Blonde The Musical ''Legally Blonde'' is a 2007 musical with music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin and a book by Heather Hach. It is based on the novel ''Legally Blonde'' by Amanda Brown and the 2001 film of the same name. The show tells th ...

'', and a new musical stage version of ''

Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Beilin; yi, ישראל ביילין; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Born in Imperial Russ ...

's White Christmas''. BroadwaySF engagements have kicked off the national tours of ''

Jersey Boys ''Jersey Boys'' is a jukebox musical with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe, and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It is presented in a documentary-style format that dramatizes the formation, success and eventual break-up of the ...

'', '' Spring Awakening'', the Lincoln Center revival of ''

Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popular ...

's South Pacific'', '' Avenue Q'', ''

Edward Scissorhands ''Edward Scissorhands'' is a 1990 American fantasy romance film directed by Tim Burton. It was produced by Burton and Denise Di Novi, written by Caroline Thompson from a story by her and Burton, and starring Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Antho ...

'', and '' The Light in the Piazza'', all immediately following their Broadway runs. BroadwaySF has presented the West Coast premieres of ''

Caroline, or Change ''Caroline, or Change'' is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori and lyrics and book by Tony Kushner. The score combines spirituals, blues, Motown, classical music, and Jewish klezmer and folk music. The show ran both Off-Broadway and on Broadway ...

'', ''

I Am My Own Wife ''I Am My Own Wife'' is a play by Doug Wright based on his conversations with the German antiquarian Charlotte von Mahlsdorf. The one-man play premiered Off-Broadway in 2003 at Playwrights Horizons. It opened on Broadway later that year. The p ...

'', ''

Spamalot ''Spamalot'' (also known as ''Monty Python's Spamalot'') is a musical comedy with music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle, and lyrics and book by Idle. It is adapted from the 1975 film ''Monty Python and the Holy Grail''. Like the motion pictu ...

'', ''

The Color Purple ''The Color Purple'' is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction.

'', and the Pulitzer Prize winning play '' August: Osage County''. ''

'' returned to San Francisco playing a two-year run, ''Jersey Boys'', ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance ...

'', and ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

'' each played for over a year, while ''

The Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pier ...

'' broke records with a five-year run.

References

Notes {{more footnotes, date=February 2011

External links

Official websiteBroadway Theater in San Francisco
Companies based in San Francisco