Ensemble Theatre Company returns to the New Vic with in-person plays
Audiences will return to the New Vic in Santa Barbara as Ensemble Theatre Company performs its first in-person plays since the pandemic started.
Ensemble Theatre Company is preparing to present its first in-person plays at the New Vic since the pandemic started.
Single-play tickets are now on sale as the longtime Santa Barbara troupe welcomes audiences back into its theater at 33 E. Victoria St.
Those attending the plays must be fully vaccinated. And the ETC cast and crew are fully vaccinated, according to a news release.
If you purchase a ticket but later decide you’re not comfortable attending an in-person production, you can watch a live-streamed version instead or get a full refund. (See the FYI box.)
ETC’s five-play season will start in October with “Tenderly,” a musical about movie star Rosemary Clooney.
Linda Purl returns to ETC as Ms. Clooney, known for movies such as “White Christmas” (1954).
David Engel will play a variety of people in the life of the late Ms. Clooney, the aunt of movie star George Clooney.
“Tenderly” will feature an on-stage band and songs such as “Hey There (You with the Stars in Your Eyes),” “Tenderly” and “Come On-A My House.”
Engraving From 1873 Featuring The English Writer, Jane Austen. Austen Lived From 1775 Until 1817. 
“Tenderly” will run Oct. 7-24.
For the holidays, Jane Austen meets “Downton Abbey” in ETC’s production of “The Wickhams,” the second installment of the “Christmas at Pemberley” trilogy. The play will run Dec. 2-19.
ETC’s season will begin its season at the New Vic with “Tenderly,” a musical about movie star Rosemary Clooney. It will run Oct. 7-24.
Darcy, Lizzie and Lydia, three characters from “Pride and Prejudice,” will appear in a story about the servants’ goings-on below.
From Feb. 3-20, ETC will perform “Carmen Jones,” Oscar Hammerstein’s jazz/musical adaptation of Bizet’s “Carmen.”
The production will be followed by ETC’s long-delayed performance of “American Son,” a play about the intersection of racism and the police. ETC had to cancel the production last year because of the pandemic.
“American Son” will take the stage April 7-24.
The season will end with “Sleuth,” a comic thriller starring Santa Barbara favorite John Tufts. It will run June 9-26.
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FYI
Single-play tickets and subscriptions are being sold for the new Ensemble Theatre Company season. To purchase, go to etcsb.org.
Everyone attending the plays must be fully vaccinated. The cast and crew are also fully vaccinated.
In addition, if you prefer to sit farther away from other people, ETC will accommodate you.
And if you purchase a ticket but later decide you don’t want to attend in-person, you can watch a livestream version instead or receive a full refund, according to ETC.
The theater company noted that it has upgraded its HVAC system with higher-grade filters and 40% outside air.
