The Woodland Opera House is excited to announce the return of Backyard Broadway!

This group of Broadway and nationally known theatre professionals, last seen on our historic stage in 2019, will bring their incredible talents once again (and with some new performers) for a fabulous evening celebrating musical theatre.

Saturday, March 18th at 7:30 p.m. on the historic Woodland Opera House stage.

Tickets prices are $40 adults and $20 kids (13yrs old and under)

Click here to purchase your reserved seats

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Find out more about  Backyard Broadway on their Instagram page. Click the icon below.

Performers are as follows:

Leah Sprecher-After earning a B.A. in Theatre from UCLA’s Ray Bolger Musical Theatre Program, Leah went on to tour the country with multiple broadway musicals including 42nd Street, Happy Days, and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. She has also performed regionally at the Tony award winning Papermill Playhouse (Cinderella) and Goodspeed Opera House (Pirates of Penzance, Happy Days, Darling Grenadine). She is an alumnus of the renowned Groundlings Sunday Company where she debuted two original one woman shows, Old Lady Parts and Everything’s Coming Up Barbara. Her TV credits include guest stints on IFC’s Maron, and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live and Blackish.

Robert Petrarca (music director)- Previously Smudge in Forever Plaid (International City Theatre, Lawrence Welk Resorts Theatre, PV Performing Arts Center), Potsie in Happy Days (world premiere at Garry Marshall’s Falcon Theatre), The Pianist in Laurel & Hardy (Falcon Theatre), Schwartz in A Christmas West Side Story (Troubadour Theatre Company), Subby in Zip! Goes A Million (Operetta Foundation), Betty/Gerry in Cloud 9 (Ryan Repertory Theater, NY), Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Lucius in Julius Caesar (Shakespeare in Delaware Park). Robert has directed several productions throughout Los Angeles, including the world premiere of It’s Top Secret at the Noho Arts Center.  He had the privilege of running Golden PAC’s Young Adult Workshop Program for 6 years and directed over 20 productions during that time.  He is also a co-founder of Maxine’s Heavenly Cookies.

Sharon Rietkerk is a professional actor and singer whose career has taken her from her home state of California to perform all across the country. A cum laude graduate of the University of California, Irvine with a degree in acting and honors in musical theater, she is member of Actor’s Equity Association. Sharon has performed leading roles with such renowned theater companies as Chicago Shakespeare Theater and The Old Globe Theater, as well as TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and San Jose Repertory Theater, among many other hometown Bay Area theater companies. She was last seen in Davis with the Davis Shakespeare Company performing the title role in Mary Stuart. Her work has garnered the accolades Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress from the Theatre Bay Area Awards. Sharon specializes in working on the development of new musicals and has originated roles in adaptations of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, and most recently as Watson in a new musical adaptation of Sherlock Holmes. She has also performed the role of Marian Paroo in the beloved The Musical Man in a staged concert with the South Coast Symphony. Sharon has performed her cabarets at Feinstein’s San Francisco and at The Line Up series with the Chicago Cubs organization and in the online series Unstuffy and Unstoppable with the South Coast Symphony. Her performances in the films of musical adaptations by Tony Award nominee Paul Gordon of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Emma can be found on Amazon video. Sharon has been featured as a solo vocalist on the San Francisco Symphony Chamber Music and Sound Box series, premiering the composition “I am Matteo” and arrangement of works by Piazzola for Soprano, Trombone, and chamber and brass ensembles by composer and San Francisco Symphony Principal Trombonist, Timothy Higgins.

Q Smith was a part of the original cast of the Tony Award winning (for Best Director) show, Come From Away. Before Come From Away Q. was last seen on Broadway as the first African American actress to play a leading role in Disney’s Mary Poppins. Also on Broadway Q. was in the 1^st revival of Les Miserables and Off Broadway she has performed and recorded the soundtrack for Fame: On 42^nd Street.She has toured with the North American Broadway show- A Night With Janis Joplin playing the roles of Aretha Franklin and Nina Simone.  Other noted credits include Abyssinia: A Gospel Celebration with Wynton Marsalis at the Lincoln Center, Showboat in concert at the renowned Carnegie Hall, guest soloist for Hillary Clinton’s Vital Voices awards at the Kennedy Center and a guest soloist at Barack Obama’s inaugural ceremonies. She has shared the stage with Gladys Knight, Rita Coolidge and Gary U.S Bonds in Smokey Joe’s Cafe’ amongst others and has traveled the world with various productions; including Central America, Germany, Amsterdam and the entire US .  Not only is she an entertainer, but a passionate educator.  She has been developing a curriculum entitled Comprehensive and Restorative Art Therapy, which helps children with behavioral problems and learning disabilities maintain their curriculum through the arts. Her goals are to build a performing arts school integrated with the juvenile system, open a bed and breakfast in Hawaii, travel the world, and finish her book Queens of the Theatre!

Crystal Kellogg has performed all over the country and internationally. Credits include – Broadway: School of Rock, Finding Neverland. National Tours: Finding Neverland, Kinky Boots, The Pajama Game. Favorite Regional credits: Because of Winn Dixie (Goodspeed Opera House), Grease (Tuacahn Center for the Arts), Little Shop of Horrors (Gateway Playhouse), South Pacific (Arrow Rock Lyceum). TV credits: “Person of Interest” (CBS), “The Looming Tower” (Hulu).

Amelia McLean is a singer/songwriter that lives in Nashville.  She is currently recording her first studio solo album in Los Angeles and she was on Season 18 of American Idol where she sang her way into the Top 40!!

Randi Kaye  hasn’t taken a headshot for over a decade but realized she should probably be mentioned on here too!  She and her husband Jared Young are the producers of Backyard Broadway.  Prior to moving to Davis, Randi lived in NYC for over 10 years as a professional dancer.  She performed in multiple Broadway National Tours throughout the US, Japan, and Europe.  Favorite shows include Judy in White Christmas, Patsy in Crazy for You , and Anytime Annie in 42nd Street (where she fell in love with Jared the drummer).  She is so grateful to be a part of this incredible community and is SO excited to be bringing Broadway to Davis!  Greatest productions of all time are Noah and Bax.

THE BROADWAY LEGEND

Barbara Dixon is no mere entertainer; she is the living, breathing, dancing, screaming embodiment of entertainment itself. An inveterate performer with decades of experience, Ms. Dixon is a singer and dancer whose career has touched every medium and genre – from (off-) Broadway to (near-) Hollywood, and everywhere in between. Barbara Dixon is a tireless artist, having logged more audition time without booking a lead role than any other performer in Broadway history.

Fans, critics, passersby, and professional rivals all agree: Barbara Dixon is a creative force — passionate, headstrong, and occasionally frightening. She possesses a bucket of unforgettable tunes, a large rolling suitcase full of unbelievable stories, and the unquenchable thirst to perform. Upon Ms. Dixon’s arrival, every acquaintance becomes her devotee, every room becomes her stage, every truck stop coffee shop becomes her banquet.

Barbara Dixon can currently be seen traveling the globe with her wildly popular cabaret show (Everything’s Coming Up Barbara), sharing her unbelievable experiences via social media (@BroadwayBarbaraOfficial), and promoting her signature line of scented body oils and seniors’ shape-wear (Barbara Dixon’s Smells and Tights) on the At-Home Shopping Network.

Accompaniment for the evening  courtesy of the following,  Piano: Robert Petrarca, Drums: Jared Young, and Guitar:  Steve Tornabene. Backyard Broadway was formed by Jared Young and Randi Kaye, both formerly performed in Broadway musicals for over 10 years. Jared, a professional drummer, and Randi, a professional dancer, live in Davis now with their two children. Backyard Broadway is an evening of song and dance with a variety of music from musical theater to country and contemporary. The performers are professional Broadway artists flown in from NYC and LA. Cast for this concert have performed all over the world and in the Broadway productions of Come From Away, A Band’s Visit, 42nd Street, and more.