California Theatre

Covering The San Francisco Bay Area & Sacramento Valley Since 2001

California Theatre • 345 S 1st St, San Jose, CA 95113

Plays • Musicals • Opera • Dance

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Current Production

• NOV 16 - NOV 30, 2025 •

Madame Butterfly / Opera / Musical

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Giacomo Puccini’s Madame Butterfly is a tragic opera set in early 20th-century Nagasaki, Japan. It follows Cio-Cio-San, a young geisha known as “Butterfly,” who enters into a marriage contract with an American naval officer named Lieutenant B.F. Pinkerton. To Butterfly, the union is a sacred, lifelong commitment; to Pinkerton, it’s a convenient arrangement during his stay in Japan. The opera explores the clash between cultures, love, and betrayal through Puccini’s lush and emotional score, highlighting Butterfly’s deep devotion and faith in a future that may not align with reality. The story unfolds gradually, focusing on the themes of innocence, honor, and the devastating cost of misplaced trust. With soaring arias and heartbreaking realism, Madame Butterfly remains one of opera’s most poignant works.

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Coming Soon

		• OPENS DEC 13, 2025 • The San Jose Nutcracker / Ballet / Holiday A swirl of snowflakes, a battle of toys, and a dreamlike adventure, The Nutcracker captures the magic of childhood imagination and the wonder of Christmas. Set to Tchaikovsky’s enchanting score, the story begins at a festive holiday party where a young girl receives a mysterious nutcracker doll. As the night deepens, her home transforms before her eyes as ordinary becomes extraordinary, toys come alive, and the nutcracker leads her into a fantastical realm filled with dancing sweets, sparkling snow, and creatures from her wildest dreams. Each scene unfolds like a living painting, balancing whimsy with elegance. More than a seasonal tradition, The Nutcracker is a timeless celebration of innocence, courage, and the power of dreams to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.
		• OPENS DEC 14, 2025 • My Very First Nutcracker / Ballet / Holiday On a glittering Christmas Eve, a cozy house fills with laughter, music, and twinkling lights as a holiday party begins. Young Clara (or Marie, depending on production) receives a mysterious toy, the Nutcracker. When night falls and the family retires, Clara can’t resist sneaking back to gaze upon her new gift, and that’s when the ordinary becomes extraordinary. In scenes drawn from the first act of the classic Nutcracker, toy soldiers come alive, mice stir mischief, and a playful battle unfolds as Clara watches with wonder. Set to Tchaikovsky’s familiar melodies, this one-act adaptation invites toddlers and young children into the magical world behind the Christmas tree, minus the later realms of sweets and sugarplums. It’s a gentle, enchanting introduction to ballet’s holiday favorite, filled with charm, spectacle, and just enough magic to light up little imaginations.
		• OPENS FEB 15, 2026 • Cavalleria Rusticana & Pagliacci / Opera / Drama “Cavalleria Rusticana” and “Pagliacci” are two short operas that pack more passion, betrayal, and tragedy into one evening than most stories do in a lifetime. In Cavalleria Rusticana, a small Sicilian village stirs with the fire of love, jealousy, and revenge as everyday life collides with the unforgiving codes of honor that rule the people’s hearts. Emotions simmer just beneath the surface until one impulsive act changes everything. Then, in Pagliacci, the curtain rises on a traveling troupe where art imitates life a little too closely. The painted smiles of clowns hide real heartbreak, as a jilted lover’s anguish blurs the line between performance and reality. Together, these operas form a raw, human portrait of passion pushed past its limits, where love, pride, and betrayal explode in hauntingly beautiful harmony.
		• OPENS APR 19, 2026 • La Traviata / Opera / Romantic Tredgedy Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata unfolds in the glittering salons of 19th-century Paris, where beauty and tragedy waltz hand in hand. At its heart is Violetta Valéry, a dazzling courtesan who lives for pleasure and freedom until an unexpected love challenges everything she thought she wanted. As the music sweeps from sparkling celebration to aching intimacy, the opera traces her struggle between passion and respectability, between the demands of society and the cry of her own heart. Every aria drips with emotion, every note revealing a soul caught between love and loss. La Traviata is not a fairy tale; it’s a mirror held up to human longing, sacrifice, and the cruel bargain of time, set to some of Verdi’s most hauntingly beautiful melodies.