The Pacific Conservatory Theatre kicks off a spectacular summer season under the stars at the Solvang Festival Theater with the return of Sara Bareilles’ hit musical Waitress, playing June 19 through July 6. Then, kicking off summer in the Marian Theatre with a thrilling five-performance run of Holmes and Watson, playing June 26 through the 29.
The summer begins when PCPA returns to the Solvang Festival Theater to open Waitress, the celebrated Broadway musical with songs by Grammy-winner Sara Bareilles. Full of heart, humor, and pie, Waitress tells the story of Jenna, a talented baker who dreams of a better life and a fresh start. Opening at the Marian Theatre is, Holmes and Watson, a gripping mystery by Jeffrey Hatcher that plunges audiences into the world of the world’s greatest detective. In this fast-paced thriller, Dr. Watson is summoned to a remote asylum where three inmates all claim to be Sherlock Holmes. Catch this mystery in the Marian Theatre June 26 through the 29, then at the Solvang Festival Theater July 11 through the 26.
Director Michael Brusasco notes, “Keep your wits about you. Holmes and Watson is a proper mystery: filled with sharp minds, stiff collars, and always—always—two steps ahead of you. Clues abound: a glance, a pause, a suspicious swirl of sherry. Everything might matter. Or not. That’s the game. Full disclosure: I’m writing this before rehearsals begin. Holmes once said, ‘It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data.’ And yet, here I am, theorizing. I suspect—purely on artistic instinct—that what you’ll see will be a fog-laced, shadow-drenched, puzzle box of a play. Jeffrey Hatcher’s script is a gift of precision—sharp, spare and cunningly constructed. It demands clarity but invites ambiguity. Our task is to meet that structure with style: to lean into its elegance, embrace its suspense and let a little theatrical smoke curl in at the edges. We aim for tension with a wink, mystery without melodrama. Just enough danger to keep things interesting. Still, trust no one. Not the characters. Not the actors. And certainly not me.”
The 2025 summer season continues with two more audience favorites: the riotous musical comedy Something Rotten! — a show-stopping celebration of Shakespeare, showbiz, playing and sibling rivalry. Playing July 17 through the 26 at the Marian Theatre, and August 1 through the 23 at Solvang Festival Theater. Then, closing the 61st Season with, Songs for Nobodies, a moving and music-filled tribute to five legendary divas and the everyday women whose lives they touched. August 14 through 23 in the Marian Theatre, and August 28 through September. To purchase tickets for the shows, please visit pcpa.org or call the Box Office at (805) 922-8313. For a group of 12 or more, save 25% to 30%! For more information, contact Kelly Stegall at (805) 928-7731 ext. 4150.