Rubicon Theatre Company

The Rubicon Theatre Company

1006 E. Main Street

Ventura, CA  93001

I went to the Rubicon once before, just after they moved into this historic, 1920's era church, and I don't remember it being bad. I just don't remember it being really good. 

I seem to remember that the seats were a mess, and it was really uncomfortable watching whatever production was on stage. It was a bit pricey, too, but I think that might have had something to do with the babysitter I had to hire, which factors into the cost. I do like live theater, but I just don't remember enjoying my Rubicon experience that first time.

But, a friend of my daughter's was in the Rubicon summer production of Beauty and the Beast, Junior, and my daughter wanted to see it. It was a busy weekend for us, but we were able to get home Sunday, take a short rest-I took a very rare nap-and get dressed up to go. I wanted my daughters to have the experience of live theater, and I wanted them to be somewhat rested so that they could enjoy the experience. I also wanted them to get the idea that live theatre is something to dress up for, and I wanted to make sure they had time to put on dresses and fix their hair. My high school aged son wasn't interested, and though the experience would have done him good, I'd like to take him to see something that he might enjoy more, so he was off the hook.

On a side note, I think it's great that my daughter wanted to support her friend by seeing the show. It's something that I wasn't real good about when I was my kids' age, and I'm trying to get better about now, and I encourage my kids to do the same.

Middle school students putting on a play sounds like a recipe for badness, but it wasn't. One of the more interesting aspects of living in Southern California is that there seems to be a wealth of stage talent, even in a place 75 miles from LA, like Ventura. And with a good director and choreographer, quality stage productions take place everywhere. The Rubicon has some fairly well off benefactors, and has been getting really good reviews over the years.

So we went. First, if you can, buy tickets online. It's cheaper, and it was a bit of a hassle buying tickets at the door. The tickets were sold at a table in the vestibule. Those who had printed their tickets online were able to go right into the lobby-those of us who didn't had to wait awhile. The theater seats just about 200 people, and the show was almost sold out, so I'm glad we were early. My daughter had spoken to her friend, who had told her that there would be plenty of seats-it's always best to double check the information gathered from middle-schoolers.

They had three seats together, center stage, in the very front row. I almost passed, but was assured that I wouldn't have to look to far up, and the other seats in the theater would have split us up, so I went with it.

The lobby has a small snack bar area, which was selling messages to cast members starting at $1, a really cute idea for the middle school aged actors, and my daughter bought one for her friend as we went in. 

Secret Picture. Note my ear.

I tried to take some pictures in the theater itself, but was told that it wasn't allowed. I snuck a few anyway. I found our seats, and the thing I liked about being in the front was there was lots of leg room. The seats, which I remembered being horribly uncomfortable, had been repaired, too, and were actually quite nice. I asked my girls if they were okay, and they said they like being really close. We did need to look up  slightly, but it really wasn't bad, and we had a great view of the actor's expressions. 

The play itself was very good. with great costumes and very good sound. All of the children sang their own songs, and though there were a few flubbed notes here and there, overall the singing was much better than I expected and really quite good. Both my daughters were mesmerized by the performance, and after we all talked about seeing another show.

The cast posing for pictures

After the show, my daughter's friend rushed out to say hello, and all the cast welcomed their friends and family, a fun thing to watch and another way it's different from the movies. 

So now I'm looking at the Rubicon schedule, both to see about another kids play, and to see what's playing for the adults.