Broadway San Jose opens 2010-2011 season on Sept. 21 at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts

In December of 2008, The American Musical Theater of San Jose, Calif., announced it was canceling "its upcoming productions of Tarzan and 42nd Street and has ceased operation, effective immediately," as reported in playbill.com.

The American Musical Theater of San Jose (AMTSJ) was originally known as the San Jose Light Opera Association (SJLOA) when it began in 1934. Throughout the course of the next seven-plus decades, the theater group managed to entertain Bay Area residents with world-class performances from opera to Broadway-style musicals, offering both locally grown talent and internationally renowned stage and screen stars.

When the news came to theater patrons in December of 2008 that the group was filing bankruptcy, the stage went dark at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts, ticket holders were out the cost of their tickets and San Jose lost a piece of cultural history. Theater lovers everywhere mourned the loss of the AMTSJ.

The stage remained silent until 2009, when the Nederlander Organization, currently in its third generation of theater management under the guidance of James M. Nederlander, brought the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts back to life under the name "Broadway San Jose - A Nederlander Presentation" in conjunction with Team San Jose.

"The Nederlander family owns, operates and presents in theaters across the globe and is responsible for producing, co-producing, booking and investing in some of the world's most successful musicals, revivals and touring productions," according to nederlander.com, and has been doing so since 1912.

Broadway San Jose - A Nederlander Presentation started bringing Broadway musicals and events to the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts last September, with five productions including a closeout performance of world-famous Riverdance.

"We are thrilled to welcome Broadway San Jose - A Nederlander Presentation to San Jose," said Dan Fenton, president and CEO, San Jose Convention and Visitors Bureau and CEO of Team San Jose. "We look forward to the best of Broadway in our community for years to come."

The 2010-2011 season for Broadway San Jose has increased to seven performances, and starts with Burn the Floor. Opening night for Burn the Floor is Sept. 21, 2010. It will run nightly until Sept. 26, 2010. Sunday offers an added matinee performance at 1 p.m. Tickets are on sale now on a limited basis.

The 2010-2011 season of Broadway San Jose includes the following performances:

- Burn the Floor.
- Rain, The Beatles Experience.
- Fiddler on the Roof.
- The Color Purple.
- Grease.
- Stomp.
- Mamma Mia!.

Broadway San Jose Ticket information

For Broadway San Jose season tickets, call 866-395-2929. For individual shows, visit the box office or order tickets online at http://www.broadwaysanjose.com/get_tickets.html.

Center for the Performing Arts
255 Almaden Blvd.
San Jose, CA 95113

Sources:

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/123849-American-Musical-Theatre-of-San-Jose-Cancels-Productions-of-42nd-Street-Tarzan-and-Closes-Doors
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Musical_Theatre_of_San_Jose
http://photogirlstudio.com/
www.nederlander.com
http://sanfrancisco.broadwayworld.com/article/SPAMALOT_SPRING_AWAKENING_And_RIVERDANCE_Among_Broadway_San_Joses_Inaugural_200910_Season_20090702
http://www.broadwaysanjose.com/shows/burnthefloor.html
http://www.broadwaysanjose.com