The Oakland Theater Project is taking theater lovers to the drive-in.
The COVID-19 pandemic has shuttered live performance venues in the Bay Area and beyond for the last year, of course. But while many theater troupes have moved to online productions, the Oakland Theater Project is traveling a different road, inviting fans to enjoy live theater from the comfort of their own cars. Its 2021 drive-in theater season includes six productions that explore themes of resurrection, revolution and renewal.
“We are thrilled to share our innovative approach to safely return to the joy of live performances while responding to the crises our society faces,” says Colin Mandlin, the company’s managing director.
The company’s first drive-in production, “Binding Ties: The 16th Street Station,” runs through March 7 in a parking lot at the 16th Street Station, 16th and Wood streets in Oakland. Tickets ($5 to $50, oaklandtheaterproject.org) are available online only. No tickets are sold at the door, so make sure to grab your ducats in advance. Show times are 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday.
The drive-in theater approach has proven popular with live music fans over the last year, as drive-in concerts have popped up at the Alameda County Fairgrounds and other venues. Now, the concept has spread to the stage, with guests at the Oakland Theater Project production watching the action through their windshields, with dialogue and sound transmitted via their car sound system or other applicable devices.
Theatergoers, who should be from a single household, must remain in their fully enclosed car — no convertibles allowed — throughout the production. Any restroom breaks require face coverings and social distancing.
The 30th anniversary production of “Binding Ties: The 16th Street Station,” which opens the troupe’s 2021 season, weaves video interviews, historical narratives, live storytelling and an intriguing on-site location — the 16th Street train station — to relay the story of former Southern Pacific Railroad workers and the migration of Oakland’s Black and immigrant communities in the early part of the 20th century.
Conceived and created by Stephanie Anne Johnson, Oakland Theater Project’s resident lighting designer, the show uses a historic site combined with original video interviews and photographs as a time machine to transport audiences.
Here’s what’s on tap for the rest of the 2021 season. All five of the remaining productions will be held in the parking lot of the Oakland Theater at FLAX Art & Design, 1501 Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Oakland.
“The Waste Land” — The classic T.S. Eliot poem is reimagined in this world premiere stage adaptation, which comments on the current COVID-19 crisis. Runs March 12 through April 18.
“Begin the Beguine: A Quartet of One Act Plays” — Another world premiere, this production consists of four one-act plays by prolific filmmaker and playwright Kathleen Collins. Runs May 14 through June 20.
“The Dream Life of Malcolm X” — This one-person show, another world premiere, delves into Malcolm X’s life experiences and his relationships and how those experiences continue to resonate today. Runs July 23-Aug. 29.
“Ghost Quartet” — Dave Malloy’s celebrated musical returns to the Bay Area, after a popular 2015 run at San Francisco’s Curran theater, with William Hodgson directing four Oakland Theater Project company members. Runs Sept. 17-Oct. 24.
“sAiNt jOaN: (burn/burn/burn)” — The company closes out its 2021 season with the world premiere of a modern, Bay Area-focused reimagining of the Joan of Arc storyline. Runs Nov. 12-Dec. 19.
