<i>Amadeus</i> <i>Amadeus</i>

Amadeus  | 

February 11 — March 8

The stage is set for a riveting rivalry between two composers: Antonio Salieri, the court’s celebrated musician, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the vulgar prodigy whose brilliance threatens everything Salieri holds dear. Tony Award-winner Jefferson Mays (A Christmas CarolI Am My Own Wife) stars as Salieri under the masterful direction of Tony Award-winner Darko Tresnjak (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder). Lavishly laced with biting wit, this Tony and Oscar-winning masterpiece dives deep into ambition, envy, and the price of greatness. Embrace the intrigue of Amadeus, where the music is divine and the drama is unforgettable.

“A stunning piece of theatre.”

-The Guardian

by PETER SHAFFER

directed by DARKO TRESNJAK

GET TICKETS

become a member

 

The stage is set for a riveting rivalry between two composers: Antonio Salieri, the court’s celebrated musician, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the vulgar prodigy whose brilliance threatens everything Salieri holds dear. Tony Award-winner Jefferson Mays (A Christmas CarolI Am My Own Wife) stars as Salieri under the masterful direction of Tony Award-winner Darko Tresnjak (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder). Lavishly laced with biting wit, this Tony and Oscar-winning masterpiece dives deep into ambition, envy, and the price of greatness. Embrace the intrigue of Amadeus, where the music is divine and the drama is unforgettable.

“A stunning piece of theatre.”

-The Guardian
Loading Events

February

February

Calendar Month Navigation

+ Export Events

Cast

Sam Clemmett

Sam Clemmett

Mozart

Sam Clemmett

Sam Clemmett is an actor best known for originating the role of Albus  Potter in the Tony & Olivier award-winning production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in the West End and on Broadway, as well as starring in Wendy & Peter at the RSC, Accolade, and Lord of the Flies. On screen, Clemmett appears in Netflix’s acclaimed series Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story from Shonda Rhimes, and Cherry, directed by the Russo Brothers. Other screen credits include The War Below, Endeavour and The Musketeers.”

Jefferson Mays

Jefferson Mays

Salieri

Jefferson Mays

Jefferson Mays is a Tony Award-winning actor best known for his one-man adaptation of A Christmas Carol directed by Michael Arden and his performances on Broadway in I Am My Own WifeOsloThe Music Man, and A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. He recently starred as “Frederick Fellows” in Noises Off at The Old Globe and as “Mayor Shinn” in The Music Man revival opposite Hugh Jackman. On screen, Mays appears in HBO Max’s JuliaHacks, and Perry Mason, and starred in TNT’s I Am the Night and the Coen Brothers’ The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. His television credits include The AmericansThe KnickLaw & Order: SVU, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

Kenajaun Bentley

Kenajaun Bentley

Van Swieten

Kenajaun Bentley

Kenajuan Bentley is pleased to be making his Playhouse debut. Other Theatrical credits – five seasons at The Oregon Shakespeare Festival; some favorite shows there include: Ruined, 12th Night, All The Way, The Great Society. NYC Credits include WELL, The Merchant of Venice, and Edward 2. Television: Currently recurring as Tim on Shrinking (Apple). Other credits include: Scandal, The Young and the Restless, Station 19, SWAT, The Neighborhood, 9-1-1, NCIS, All American. Education: MA from Western Michigan University, MFA from The University Of Connecticut. (UCONN)

Jared Andrew Bybee

Jared Andrew Bybee

Cook/Major-Domo

Jared Andrew Bybee

Previously with Pasadena Playhouse: Inherit the Wind, A Little Night Music. Theater credits: Emile de Becque, US National Tour, South Pacific; Andrei Sakharov, Alexsei’s Quest (New Work). Concert credits: Soloist, Metropolitan Opera; Lincoln Center; Carnegie Hall; Wilshire Ebell Theater; Kimmel Center; Kennedy Center; Dutch National Opera & Ballet; Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. Operatic Credits: Don Giovanni, Seattle Opera; Lescaut, Gran Teatro del Liceu; Steve Jobs, Olivier, Bello, Figaro (Marriage of Figaro), Baron Grog, Santa Fe Opera; Escamillo, Charleston Opera Theater; The Pilot (Little Prince), Utah Opera; Figaro (Barber of Seville), Arizona Opera. Film credits: Something’s More Than One Thing (Russo Brothers); 72 Hours; Original Sound. TV credits: Law & Order: FBI, SVU, CIA; Dexter: Resurrection; The Beast in Me.

Jennifer Chang

Jennifer Chang

Venticelli

Jennifer Chang

Jennifer Chang is a storyteller based in Los Angeles. She is thrilled to be acting again in a room with Darko no less, having previously had the great fortune in The Dispute by Marivaux. Other Stages: South Coast Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, Mixed Blood, LaMAMA Etc, East West Players, National Asian American Theatre Company. Media: Mom, 2 ½ Men, Parenthood, NCIS: LA, Medium, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Medium, Numb3rs, Days of Our Lives, In the Dark, numerous national commercials. She has been known to direct plays. Proud union member: AEA, SAG-AFTRA, SDC, AGMA.  BFA: NYU, MFA: UCSD. Faculty, UCLA School of Television, Theatre, and Film. www.changinator.com. Much love to D, A, and S for their unwavering support.

Matthew Patrick Davis

Matthew Patrick Davis

Joseph II

Matthew Patrick Davis

Broadway: Side Show. Regional: Noises Off (Old Globe), Wonderful Winter of Oz (Laguna Playhouse), Lincolns of Springfield (Center Stage), Side Show, The Nightingale, Limelight, A Midsummer Nights Dream (La Jolla Playhouse), Cinderella Christmas, South Street (Pasadena Playhouse), The Complete History of America (abridged) (Garry Marshall Theatre), more. Film/Television: The Mother in Barbarian, Henry Danger, Sam & Cat, Community, The Sarah Silverman Program, Greek, more. As a songwriter, he has co-written songs for Disney’s Iron Man & His Awesome Friends (w/ TJ Hill), The Ghost & Molly McGee, RoboGobo, Pupstruction, and T.O.T.S. (w/ Rob Cantor), and Netflix’s Red Fish Blue Fish (w/ Rob Cantor). His kids’ album, I Love My Dog, is available on the Yoto Music Player. IG: @matthewpatrickdavis

Michelle Allie Drever

Michelle Allie Drever

Katherine Cavaileri/Soprano

Michelle Allie Drever

Dramatic coloratura soprano Michelle Allie Drever commands the stage with a rare fusion of agility, power, and intensity. Hailed for “the most delicious singing” (The Almanac), recent triumphs include Amina (La sonnambula, West Bay Opera) and Nedda (Pagliacci, Opera Festival of Chicago). Other credits: Violetta (La Traviata), Lucia (Lucia di Lammermoor), Queen of the Night (Die Zauberflöte), Donna Anna (Don Giovanni), and Tosca (Tosca) with Opera Mississippi, Opera Birmingham, Pocket Opera, and Pacific Opera Project. A “force of nature,” praised as “the rare combination of actor/singer for whom opera was intended but seldom found” (Splash Magazine), Drever holds a master’s from UCLA, trained at the Renata Scotto Opera Academy, and debuted on Navona Records.

Alaysha Fox

Alaysha Fox

Theresa Salieri/Soprano

Alaysha Fox

Described as a “shining presence” (Seen and Heard International), soprano Alaysha Fox is quickly making her mark in opera. Highlights: Nedda in Pagliacci (Opera Santa Barbara), Mary in The Three Women of Jerusalem (LA Opera), High Priestess/cover Aida (Opera Maine), and covering Susie “Mama Sue” MacDonald in the world premiere of She Who Dared (Chicago Opera Theater). Solos: Verdi’s “Requiem” (La Sierra University) and Bougie’s “Magnificat” at Carnegie Hall. A former Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist at LA Opera, she performed Female Chorus in “The Rape of Lucretia”, High Priestess in Aida, and covered Mimì in La Bohème. Awards: First prize, Palm Springs Opera Guild Competition; Grand Finalist, Laffont Competition. She holds degrees from Manhattan School of Music.

Matthew Henerson

Matthew Henerson

Count Johann Kilian Von Strack

Matthew Henerson

Pasadena Playhouse debut. Elsewhere in Los Angeles: Ahmanson (Romeo and Juliet), A Noise Within (Threepenny Opera, Richard III, Ah, Wilderness!), Celebration (What’s Wrong With Angry, Cabaret), Deaf West (Pinocchio), East West Players (M. Butterfly), Mark Taper Forum (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom). Regional: ACT, American Shakespeare Center, Bay Street Theater, Denver Center, Ensemble Theatre Company, Laguna Playhouse, La Jolla Playhouse, North Coast Repertory, Northern Stage, San Diego Repertory, San Jose  epertory, South Coast Repertory, and Shakespeare Festivals in Arizona, Colorado, Marin, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, and Utah. Film: “A Christmas Carol”, “Mars Needs Moms” and “Jungle Book” for Disney. Television: “The Bernie Mac Show”, “Hung”, “The Fosters”, “One Day at a Time”, and recurring as SA Carl Laughlin on “NCIS: Origins”.

John Lavelle

John Lavelle

Orsini-Rosenberg

John Lavelle

John has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Regionally, and at The Royal Shakespeare Company. He received a Drama Desk Award for his performance in The Royale at The Lincoln Center Theatre. John has appeared on TV and Film in numerous roles, most notably portraying Roy Reed in the Academy Award-nominated film Selma. He is the author of several plays and films, including The Very Best People (Max Lerner Award) and Inhalation (2-time O’Neill Finalist). John is a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, part of the IAMA Theatre Company ensemble, and a grateful member of the Pasadena/Altadena community.

Brent Schindele

Brent Schindele

Chef/Pianist/Harpsichordist

Brent Schindele

Brent Schindele (Chef/Pianist) is glad to return to Pasadena Playhouse, where he led the stellar cast of the world premiere of South Street as “Johnny Blue”. National Tours: The Sound of Music (Zeller/Captain Von Trapp), Jesus Christ Superstar (Peter/Simon/Keyboards), West Side Story (Tony). Off-Broadway: The Musical of Musicals – The Musical! (Leading Man). Regional: Hillary & Clinton (Bill), A Streetcar Named Desire (Stanley), The 39 Steps (Hannay), Art (Serge), Souvenir (Cosme), End of the Rainbow (Anthony), Merrily We Roll Along (Frank), Guys & Dolls (Sky), The Scarlet Pimpernel (the Pimpernel), Striking Twelve (the Guy), The Bodyguard (Kevin Costner). Film/TV: Cold Cold Man, Call Me Dan, Cold Case, General Hospital. B.A.: Dartmouth. For Erika and Jack, always.

Hilary Ward

Hilary Ward

Venticelli

Hilary Ward

Theatre: Pasadena Playhouse (debut), Theater Works Hartford (Primary Trust), Barrington Stage Company (Primary Trust), South Coast Repertory (Sense and Sensibility), Ojai Playwrights Conference (Ripe Frenzy), La Jolla Playhouse (Mother Courage), Classical Theatre of Harlem (Macbeth, King Lear, Medea). Television/Film: Law & Order, Station 19, Bull, Sharp Objects, All the Way, NCIS, The Fosters, Heart Shot, Criminal Minds, Grey’s Anatomy, Modern Family, Other People, Like You Mean It. Hilary’s image and voice have been featured in more than six dozen national television and radio commercials. Proud union member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA. MFA-UCSD.

Lauren Worsham was nominated for a Tony and won Drama Desk and Theatre World Awards for originating the role of Phoebe in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. Most recently: Murder On The Links (Two River Theater). Select past credits: Sunday in the Park, Call Me Madam, Big River, and Where’s Charley (NY City Center Encores); The Engagement Party (Geffen), Dog Days (Montclair Peak Performances and LA Opera), Turn of the Screw (NYC Opera), Showboat (NY Philharmonic), and Candide (NYC Opera). Lauren recurred on multiple episodes of The CW’s Valor and is a founding member of the indie rock band Sky-Pony. Here’s to lucky #5, dear Darko. Love always to my family, you carry my heart.

Creative Team

Peter Shaffer (Playwright)

Read More

Sir Peter Shaffer, in full, Sir Peter Levin Shaffer (1926-2016), was a British playwright of considerable range who moved easily from farce to the portrayal of human anguish.

Educated at St. Paul’s and Trinity College, Cambridge, Shaffer first worked for a music publisher and then as a book reviewer. His first play, Five-Finger Exercise (1960), is a tautly constructed domestic drama that almost overnight established his reputation as a playwright. It was followed by The Private Ear, The Public Eye (both 1962), and The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1964), a portrayal of the conflict between the Spanish and the Inca – “hope and hopelessness, faithlessness and faith.” In 1965, Shaffer’s adroit farce Black Comedy was first performed. Equus (1973; filmed 1977), dealing with a mentally disturbed stableboy’s obsession with horses, and Amadeus (1979; filmed 1984), about the rivalry between Mozart and his fellow composer Antonio Salieri, were successes with both critics and the public. Later plays include the biblical epic Yonadab (1985), Lettice and Lovage (1987), and The Gift of the Gorgon (1992). Shaffer was knighted in 2001 and sadly passed away in 2016.

Darko Tresnjak (Director)

Read More

Director Darko Tresnjak is acclaimed for his work on A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, which earned him the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards. He also received an Obie Award for his direction of Ionesco’s The Killer at Theater for a New Audience. From 2004 to 2009, he was Artistic Director of the Old Globe Shakespeare Festival, and from 2011 to 2019, he led Hartford Stage. Tresnjak has directed plays, musicals, and operas at institutions such as the Public Theater, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Festival, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Geffen Playhouse, Metropolitan Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and Los Angeles Opera. Upcoming projects include Murder on the Links at Two River Theater and Rajiv Joseph’s Archduke at Roundabout Theatre Company.

Alexander Dodge (Scenic Designer)

Read More

PASADENA PLAYHOUSE: Debut. BROADWAY: I Need That; Anastasia (Outer Critics Nomination); A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder  (Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Nominations); Present Laughter (Tony Nomination); Old Acquaintance; Butley; Hedda Gabler. OFF BROADWAY: Archduke: Roundabout, Messy White Gays: The Duke; Prosperous Fools: TFANA; Russian Troll Farm and Harry Clarke: Vineyard; The Whisper House: 59E59; Observe the Sons of Ulster… (Lortel Award Winner): LCT. REGIONAL: Disney’s Hunchback of Notre Dame: La Jolla, Paper Mill Playhouses, Japan, Germany, Austria. London West End: Harry Clarke, All New People. OPERA: Samson et Dalila: Metropolitan Opera; The Thirteenth Child: Santa Fe; Ghosts of Versailles: L.A. Opera; Ukiyo-E: Grand Théâtre de Genève; Il trittico: Deutsche Oper Berlin, Lohengrin: Budapest. MFA: Yale. @alexanderdodgedesign

Linda Cho (Costume Designer)

Read More

Broadway: Ragtime, Art, The Great Gatsby (TONY Award);  Pirates! The Penzance Musical; Doubt; Summer, 1976; Take Me Out; Grand Horizons; Anastasia (Tony nomination); POTUS; Harmony; The Great Society; A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (TONY award); Lifespan of a Fact; Velocity of Autumn; Summer 1976. Irene Sharaff Young Master Award; American Theatre Wing Advisory Committee, Susan Blackburn Playwriting Prize judge. MFA Yale School of Drama; BA McGill University and Paris American Academy.

Will Vicari (Hair/Wig/Makeup Designer)

Read More

Will Vicari is one half of The Wig Associates with his design partner, Krystal Balleza. Their designs have been seen on and off Broadway (Yellow Face, Real Women Have Curves), Lincoln Center, New York Philharmonic, Signature Theatre, MCC, Atlantic Theatre Co, The Public, Axis Theatre, The Orpheum. Regional: Arena Stage, Barrington Stage, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (‘23-‘26 seasons). Will has also served as associate designer to Tom Watson: Ragtime, Just In Time, Parade, Spamalot, Harmony, Sound of Music (Nat. Tour). Thanks to Rob, Bob, and Leone for their mentorship. www.thewigassociates.com, Summit Entertainment Group. 

Pablo Santiago (Lighting Designer)

Read More

Pablo Santiago is an award-winning lighting designer working in both live performance and digital film. He is originally from Chiapas, Mexico. AWARDS: The Kinetic Lighting Award, the Henry Award, the Richard Sherwood Award, the Stage Raw Award, and multiple Ovation Award nominations.  OPERA: The Kennedy Center, Santa Fe Opera, LA Opera, Opera Philadelphia, Detroit Opera, San Francisco Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Teatro Municipal São Paulo (Brazil), and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.  THEATER: Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Goodman Theatre, Arena Stage, Mark Taper Forum, Geffen Playhouse, BAM-Harvey Theater, and the Hollywood Bowl. Pablo creates evocative visual landscapes that spark the imagination and elevate the storytelling—bringing light not only to the stage but to the emotional journey of the audience. @pablosdesign, pablosantiagodesign.com

Jane Shaw (Sound Designer)

Read More

PASADENA: debut. THEATER Roundabout (including Archduke directed by Darko Tresnjak); Playwrights Horizons; Manhattan Theatre Club; Theatre for a New Audience; Mint Theater Company; Rattlestick; Repertorio Español; Bedlam; Guthrie; Mark Taper Forum; Arizona Theatre Company; The Huntington; Shakespeare Theatre Company; Geffen Playhouse; Alley Theatre; Hartford Stage; Cleveland Play House; The Old Globe; Asolo Rep; TheatreWorks Silicon Valley; Seattle Rep, Milwaukee Rep, Alabama Shakespeare Festival; Williamstown Theatre Festival, Northern Stage, and En Garde Arts. AWARDS Drama Desk Award; Connecticut Critics Circle Awards; Henry Award; Bessie Award; Meet the Composer Grant; NEA/TCG Career Development Grant; Nominations: Lucille Lortel, Elliot Norton, Henry Hewes. TRAINING Harvard University; Yale School of Drama. janeshaw.com

Aaron Rhyne (Projection Designer)

Read More

Designs include BROADWAY: Anastasia (Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award) For Colored Girls…, The Sound Inside (Outer Critics Circle Award), A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Drama Desk Award), Bonnie and Clyde. TV: Hasan Minhaj: The King’s Jester (Netflix). DANCE: I AM (Camille A Brown), Septime Webre’s The Wizard of Oz, The Sun Also Rises(Washington Ballet). OPERA: The Thirteenth Child (Santa Fe Opera), The Ghosts of Versailles (LA Opera), La Traviata (Wolftrap), Florencia en el Amazonas (Florida Grand, Opera Colorado). DISNEY: Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, Moana, Tangled, and multiple other productions for Disney’s Parks, Resorts, and Cruise Lines. @aaronrhynedesigns  www.aaronrhyne.com

Sasha Nicolle Smith (Intimacy Consultant)

Read More

Theater: Topdog/Underdog, Eureka Day (Pasadena Playhouse), The Lonely Few, Fat Ham, The Engagement Party, The Mountaintop and The First Deep Breath (Geffen Playhouse), American Idiot, Fake it Til You Make It, JaJa’s African Hair Braiding (CTG LA), The Piano Lesson, A Man of No Importance, One Man Two Guvnors (A Noise Within), The Notebook (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Ms. Blakk For PresidenT, Familiar (Steppenwolf), How To Catch Creation (Goodman), A Raisin in the Sun (Guthrie), The Bluest Eye (Virginia Stage Company). Film/Television: Forever, The Residence, Beef, Your Place or Mine, and That ‘90s Show (Netflix), Daisy Jones & The Six, Swarm (Amazon), Tiny Beautiful Things, How I Met Your Father (Hulu), Random Acts of Flyness (HBO), among others.

Ryan Bernard-Tymensky, CSA (RBT Casting)

Read More

Ryan’s casting work spans theatre, film, and TV, with over a decade of experience in both LA and NYC. They’ve cast numerous stage productions at Pasadena Playhouse, the recent Off-Broadway run of DRAG: The Musical, and the currently running NY premiere of Messy White Gays. On screen, their credits include Wicked (films), This Is Us, Atypical, and more. At the core of Ryan’s work is a deep commitment to inclusion and authentic representation. Through RBT Casting, they champion artists who reflect the full spectrum of human experience and push for stories that challenge industry norms and better reflect the world we live in.

Ticket Info

Tickets

Tickets start at $40. To be the first to know about on-sale dates, you can subscribe to our mailing list.


Groups

Plan your next group event at Pasadena Playhouse! Whether you’re organizing a work event, a celebration, or a night out with your theater besties, we make it easy for you to create an incredible experience for your fellow theater lovers.

Contact Patron Services to find out how you can save up to 35% off tickets with a group of 10+.

Digital Tickets

Pasadena Playhouse is thrilled to introduce a new Digital Ticket experience for performances.

  • When purchasing a ticket, select “Digital Ticket” as your delivery method and your tickets will be instantly placed in your Digital Ticket Wallet.
  • To access your Digital Ticket Wallet, use the same email address and password you used to purchase tickets online and log-in to mytickets.pasadenaplayhouse.org.
  • Inside your Digital Ticket Wallet, you’ll be able to easily share tickets with friends and add tickets to your Apple Wallet.
  • Don’t forget to bookmark your Digital Ticket Wallet in your mobile phone browser to quickly access your tickets at the theater.

REVIEW THE USER GUIDE

Access Performance

Open Captioning

Guests who enjoy open captioning may request to be seated in view of a video screen with text descriptions synchronized to the onstage action designed for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Open Captioned performance of Amadeus will be on Sunday, March 1. 2026 at 2:00 PM.

Get Tickets

Audio Description

Join us for our Access performance to take advantage of the audio description service. The service includes verbal descriptions of actions, costumes, scenery, and other visual elements of the production and is designed for patrons who are blind or have low vision. Guests may request a listening device to hear live audio descriptions. Audio description is available in all seating locations on the Orchestra level of the theater. If you would like to hear the pre-show notes, please be in your seat 15 minutes before showtime.

Audio Described performance of Amadeus will be on Sunday, March 1. 2026 at 2:00 PM.

Get Tickets

Special Performances

Wine Wednesday

Preview week Wednesday, ticket holders are invited to come early and enjoy complimentary wine prior to the show at Pasadena Playhouse.

The Wine Wednesday performance of Amadeus will be on Wednesday, February 11, 2026 at 8:00 PM.

Media Sponsors