Berkeley Rep

• Season runs from September through June
• Two theatres in the same complex
• Berkeley Rep website
• Reservations highly recommended - the days of getting last-minute tickets at Berkeley Rep are mostly over

Thrust Stage: We learned to love Berkeley Rep when this smaller "theatre-in-the-round" stage was all they had. There's barely a bad seat in the house, the size is just small enough to feel intimate - and their set designers are still finding new ways to use this open space.

Roda Theatre: A 600-seat theatre with a proscenium stage (in theatre-speak that means a raised stage with an arch where the audience directly faces the stage).

Both theatres have a reasonable (but not overly generous) amount of leg room, but long legs (or short ones that have a hard time staying still) will be better off in an aisle seat

When two shows are running simultaneously, it can get a bit crowded, mostly in the parking lot across the street.

• In the Roda Theatre, seats in boxes EE and FF can be very uncomfortable with the railing getting into your line of sight, especially if you're short.
• Check their schedule for docent presentations and post-show discussions. They also host special teen nights and half-price nights for the under-30 crowd.

We rate Berkeley Rep 5 stars out of 5 for memories of more amazing performances than we can count.

If you're looking for old-style Broadway musicals and revivals, this isn't the place for you. But with all due respect to your taste, why not try something a little different for a change?

Berkeley Rep is located at 2025 Shattuck Avenue near its intersection with Addison in downtown Berkeley.

There are more ways to get to the Berkeley Rep than there are shows playing in a season, including using BART. They do a good job of summarizing all of them at their website.

Discounts: It's not the most convenient way to get tickets, but it can save you money - the TIX ticket booth in San Francisco's Union Square sometimes sells same-day tickets at a reduced price.

In just two seasons, they staged 5 world premieres, including Itamar Moses' Yellowjackets and In the Next Room (or the vibrator play), which became the seventh show since 2006 that originated at Berkeley Rep and then moved on to Broadway, prompting the New York Times to rave: "Like ballplayers, theaters sometimes get hot, rapping out hits with unlikely regularity, and the Rep, 41 this year, is on fire."

Since we first "discovered" this fine theatre troupe a couple of years before they won the Tony Award for Regional Theatre in 1997, the Berkeley Rep has turned out a string of thought-provoking, entertaining and simply brilliant performances that keep us returning season after season.

When you go, expect the house to be full, the show to start on time and the performance to be first rate.

One of our few complaints about Berkeley Rep isn't really their fault. There are few really nice restaurants within walking distance. To enjoy a meal as good as the play you'll be seeing, head for Gourmet Ghetto (Shattuck north of University) or Solano Avenue just over the city line in Albany.