Show Dad You Care With a Father's Day Theater Treat
With Father’s Day coming up, it’s time to honor the man who taught you to ride a bike, coached your Little League games, and (maybe) took you to your first live show. Forget another boring tie or polo shirt: Give Dad an evening out (with you or Mom) and a memorable experience at the theater. Here are five shows guaranteed to make your father happy. (Click on the title to book your tickets!)
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET
Introduce your own father to the fathers of rock 'n' roll at a show that injects a jolt of musical electricity into the history books. Recounting the famous recording session that took place in 1956 at Memphis’ Sun Records (where legendary producer Sam Phillips gathered his protégés Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and a then unknown Jerry Lee Lewis), Million Dollar Quartet features nostalgia-inducing classics like “Blue Suede Shoes” and “Great Balls of Fire” Dad is sure to love. And while the actors (including recent Tony winner Levi Kreis as Lewis) show off some incredible musicianship, the show is more than just a revue of hits as it delves into the stories behind the blood, sweat and tears that inspired the iconic artists.
LEND ME A TENOR
Tenor is a great opportunity for Dad to catch some of his favorite TV crime fighters live on stage, as Tony Shalhoub and Anthony LaPaglia head up the cast of this Tony-nominated revival. Just before opening night of an opera in Cleveland, the company manager (Shalhoub) mistakenly believes that his visiting Italian tenor (LaPaglia) has died. (In truth, the singer has simply passed out from too many tranquilizers.) Hilarity ensues as the manager struggles to pass off his mild-mannered assistant (The Hangover’s Justin Bartha) as the star of Otello—in blackface—in order to save ticket sales. The play is a classic farce that will have dad howling with laughter from all the mistaken identities, comedic misunderstandings and expertly choreographed pratfalls.
JERSEY BOYS
Walk like a man with Dad over to the August Wilson Theatre, where the Jersey Boys continue to pack the house in its fifth straight year. Another show with an instantly recognizable rock score (“Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You”) backed up by an incredibly powerful story of four friends, Jersey Boys follows the rise of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons as they catapult from neighborhood pals to international music superstars. With fame, the group finds themselves struggling with gambling addictions, failed marriages, mafia trouble, and radio payola scandals. But Jersey-style loyalty wins the day, and Jersey Boys' irresistible musical performances will have your dad dancing in aisles.
THE 39 STEPS
Dad may recall the Alfred Hitchcock suspense film of the same name, but he’ll be happily surprised by the zany twist this comedy puts on the classic whodunit movie. The 39 Steps trails unsuspecting Englishman Richard Hannay as he inadvertently gets involved in the murder case of a beautiful spy and is forced to flee the country. Filled with clever and inventive stagecraft, the show moves along at breakneck speed, but never takes itself seriously as the cast of four performers play over 100 roles, sometimes even frantically changing character on stage! A perfect treat for film buff dads and those who enjoy old fashioned sight gags and good laughs.
ROCK OF AGES
Did dad never fully realize those rock star dreams of his? Well, let him embrace his inner rebel yell by transporting him back to the 80s heyday of Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip with Rock of Ages. Pull up a stool at the rocking Bourbon Room bar, where classic 80s tunes from groups like Styx, Journey, Foreigner, Twisted Sister and Poison are lashed out by the talented cast and house band, Arsenal, as the story of aspiring rocker Drew unfolds. There are plenty of laughs in the show thanks to the hilariously nutty narrator Lonny. Plus, if Dad is an uptight executive type, this is the perfect opportunity for him to let his hair down, much like the show’s villain Hertz, a German entrepreneur hell-bent on gentrifying the LA party scene. Rock on!