Fall is traditionally the time for a return to the theater, from Abravanel Hall to Rose Wagner, the arts are in full swing. Of course, venues will have the safety of their patrons at the top of their minds, so expect masks, distancing, vaccination cards, and check with presenters for updates. Following is a roundup of the shows, concerts and performances going on in THE BLOCKS now through the end of 2021 and beyond.
Abravanel Hall
The Utah Symphony’s, busy fall performance schedule at Abravanel includes: Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi Films in Concert, September 9 & 10; Hilary Hahn Plays Brahms, September 16 & 17; Theirry Fischer Conducts Stravinsky & Rachmaninoff, September 24 & 25; Enrique Mazzola Conducts Brahms 4, Verdi & Rota, October 21, 22 & 23; Back to the Future Films in Concert, October 29 & 30; Salute to Youth, November 2; Stephen Hough Plays Brahms’ Piano Concert No. 1, November 5 & 6; and Pink Martini performs with the Symphony, November 12 & 13. Shiyeon Sung m
akes her conductorial debut with the Utah Symphony in a concert featuring Tchaikovsky 4, Arlene Sierra & Prokofiev, November 19 & 20; the popular Messiah Sing-In returns to Abravanel Hall on November 27 & 28; Inmo Ynag plays Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, December 3 & 4; Celtic Woman performs holiday songs with the Symphony, December 7; Ingrid Fliter Plays Chopin’s Concerto No. 2 with the Symphony, December 10 & 11; Utah Symphony’s Holiday Pops Concert starring Jodi Benson will be held December 17 & 18; the annual Here’s Comes Santa Claus concert is scheduled for December 18; and Home Alone Films in Concert will play December 21 & 22. Non-Utah Symphony performances and events at Abravanel Theatre this fall include Nathan Pacheco with the American Heritage Lyceum Philharmonic Orchestra, November 23. Tickets to all Abravanel Hall events can be purchased at saltlakecountyarts.org.
Eccles Theatre
In celebration of its 10-year anniversary, Sting & Honey presents Waiting for Godot, September 10-25. Political comedian Bill Maher performs live at the Eccles on September 12. The Armchair Expert podcast will broadcast its Armchaired & Dangerous Live show at the Eccles on September 16. The Los Angeles Azules perform on September 30. The Grammy-award winning band, Little Big Town, will be in concert September 10 and 11. The Last Podcast on the Left performs a live, horror-themed show from the Eccles on September 25. Enjoy an evening of flamenco music and dance with Flamenco Fascinación and Los Angeles Azules on September 30. Contemporary Christian artist, Amy Grant, will deliver a concert on October 9. Comedian Tom Segura makes a stop in SLC on his I’m Coming Everywhere world tour on October 14. Broadway Across America presents Roots & Rhythm on November 5. Texas-based guitarists, Kithara Duo, will be in concert on November 6. Join one of America’s most beloved writers and comedians for An Evening with David Sedaris on November 17. Host and creator of the weekly comedy show, Patriot Act, Hasan Minhaj, visits the Eccles on November 19. The Pilar Pobil Legacy Foundation presents the Tablado Dance Company on November 19 & 20. Culinary extraordinaire Alton Brown performs his live show on November 20. The Cirque Musica Holiday Spectacular plays on November 21. GENTRI: The Gentleman Trio will perform their Finding Christmas show on November 26 & 27. Zions Bank/Broadway at the Eccles present the incomparable Mean Girls, November 30-December 5. Renowned singer/songwriter Gregory Alan Isokov performs on December 7. Mystery Science Theater’s Time Bubble Tour arrives at the Eccles on December 14. Mat and Savanna Shaw wrap up 2021 at the Eccles Theatre with Believe, a show centered around the hope and joy of the holidays, on December 18.
Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre
The Capitol Theatre is home to two of Utah’s most beloved performing arts organizations: Ballet West and Utah Opera. Ballet West’s 58th season kicks off on October 22-30 with Ben Stevenon’s Dracula and then continues with The Little Mermaid, November 5 & 6 (with a an all-Spanish-spoken show on 11/6); The Nutcracker, December 4-26; a double bill of Carmina Burana and Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces, April 1-9; Romeo & Juliet, February 11-19; and Choreographic Fest V, May 11-15. The Utah Opera opens its 2021-22 season with Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, a funny and colorful production set in the 1980s, on October 9-17. Subsequent productions include Jonathan Dove and April De Angelis’ Flight, January 15-23; Puccini’s Tosca, March 12-20; and Gilbert & Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance, May 7-15.
Other scheduled Capitol Theatre performances include: Arturo Sandoval Quintet on September 10, multi-Grammy Award winning Jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant on September 25 and an Oscar Peterson Tribute on November 19, all presented by the GAM Foundation/Jazz SLC. The comedic and completely Spanish-speaking production, Knockout de Risas, will be held on September 18. The Center for Latter-day Saint Arts will bring more than 70 dancers of all ages to the Capitol Theatre stage for Vision, an “exploration of the human body as a source of creation, inspiration and revelation” on September 24. The outrageously funny drag queen, Bianca Del Rio, aka the Clown in a Gown, will have audiences eating out of the palm of her hand with her new one-woman show, Unsanitized, on September 26. Tickets to all Capitol Theatre performances can be purchased at saltlakecountyarts.org.
Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center
Repertory Dance Theatre officially kicks off its 2021-22 season, appropriately dubbed “Homecoming” with North Star, on September 30 -October 2. Subsequent shows include Compass, November 18-20; Emerge, January 7-8; Regalia, March 5; and Six Songs From Ellis, April 21-23, 2022. Live and in-person performances of RDT’s monthly “wiggle-friendly” shows for children and families, aka Ring Around the Rose, return September 11 and continue October 9, November 13, December 11, January 8, February 12, March 12, April 9 and May 14.
Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Total Eclipse runs September 16-18, along with Moving Parts, a family-and sensory-friendly performance on September 18. 1520 Arts presents They Reminisce on September 24.
The Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation presents Rite of Spring, somewhat ironically on October 8; a performance by its 2018 Bronze Medal Winner, Sergey Belyavsky, on November 12; acclaimed Taiwanese-pianist, Ching-Yung Hu, performs at all-Liszt concert on March 12; and Hsiang Tu performs a variety of pieces for piano inspired by animals.
Plan-B Theatre presents Sleepy Hollow, a world premiere by Matthew Ivan Bennett, its annual co-production with Radio West, broadcast live on KUER October 29 at 11 a.m. and rebroadcast the same day at 7 p.m. Pygmalion Productions’ fall 2021-22 schedule includes Tragedy Averted, October 8-31; Bella Bella, February 11-26; and Body Awareness, May 6-21.
Other performances slated for The Rose include: Awkward Productions’ Bubbles the Clown – Unmasked and Unfiltered, on October 17. In the spirit of Halloween, Warehouse 5 Drum Theatre brings its Paranormal Percussion, on October 18. Nurse Blake, a comedic tribute to healthcare workers everywhere, on November 10.
Tickets to all events held at The Rose can be purchased at saltlakecountyarts.org.
