I'll preface by saying that the theater itself is nice, with good views throughout.
Marks down by forcing a family to pay a full-price ticket for a 7-month-old to enter to watch his 7-year-old sister's dance company (K-12 dancers) in their annual recital. Â That an infant, who cannot even sit in a seat on his own, would need a full-price ticket is outrageous, especially at a family show.
To top it off, the box office closed prior to intermission, with plenty of families still arriving. Â I was told by an usher that, had I not had a ticket for my infant & came after the box office was closed, that they would have let me in.
There should be discounted tickets for youngsters in laps, just like on airplanes and even Disneyland.
It's not fancy schmancy like the Segerstrom in Costa Mesa, but it's a lovely quaint theater. Every seat has a fantastic view of the stage, you can see the sweat droplets and ripples of every abdominal muscle from the contemporary dancers. Parking is easy-- garage off corner of Campus and West Peltason. Seats are close together, so you "make friends." I was late by 30 min and was still allowed in by the ushers.
Signs on the sidewalk direct you to the Barclay theater. Box office to the left of the entrance doors & easy Goldstar ticket pick up. Wine and beer cash bar in lobby, you can't take the drink into the theater, but you can leave it on a table & write your name on a cocktail napkin covering your drink. It's still there at intermission.
Casual wear or bohemian style dressers. After the show, finish your date night at Ruth Chris 2.3 miles away.
I rarely go to theaters or the movies but Yelper Aaron L. had an extra ticket to go see the Muppets Stuffed and Unstrung so how could I refuse? It's hard to turn down a free evening with the Yelp crew.
The theatre is conveniently located on the UCI campus and near the parking structure but you can avoid parking fees by parking across the street and walking. It's a short walk and good exercise.
Inside, you'll be greeted professionally. It's a smaller theatre but still spacious enough for a crowd and elegant. There's a bar area with a few concessions and alcohol. Once it's time for your show, you'll be given a brochure and walked to your seat.
Since we were a social bunch, we were seated in "tweet seats" which are far enough back to allow us to use our phone without interrupting guests and also in a decent spot to view the show. That was pretty cool.
Despite my hesitations about the show, I actually really enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. I was laughing out loud the whole time and tickets are actually affordable here.
This is an awesome little theater located on the campus of UCI. Â A few friends and I loaded up to go to the theater to attend Henson Alternative: Stuffed and Unstrung for a CYME that Ryan C. planned. Â The best place to park (although you have to pay) is the parking structure located near the theater. It's nice to have peace of mind that the car won't be towed and you don't have to jay walk across a busy street.
The staff, from the box office to the theater manager who greeted us were great. FYI - they sell refreshments including wine inside. You just can't take it inside the theater. Â The place is super clean and lovely.
I know they have great shows, but if you have a chance, you need to see Henson Alternative. It had my ribs hurting.
Better late than never, as they say.
I'm so behind on writing reviews that I'm afraid I'm going to cycle back around and recheck all those places I was supposed to review but haven't yet lol
So I got these tickets to see the Hanson Alternative Stuffed and Unstrung, courtesy of Yelp! and Mr Ryan C. Thanks! Billed as a sort of naughty muppet show, I was excited to see it. The Barclay theater is located on the UCI campus, and for the privilege of parking onsite, we forked over $10. Not too bad.
The theater itself is nice, no frills really, but it's not like I had box seats, which was fine, since the theater is not overly large, and the muppet/puppet show was shown on two large screens anyway. The seats were fairly comfy, and I do not think I stepped on anyone's toes on my way to my seat :)
The show was fun and funny, engaging the audience and rotating cast members frequently, though I agree with Boyfriend in that improvisational acting can definitely be hit or miss. I still thought the show was great, and I would happily see it again :)
Small and intimate venue but very well kept. Â Everyone is right when they say there isnt a bad seat in the house. Â Due to the size of the facility every seat has a great vantage point of whatever you are watching. Â The only down side that I found was the poor sound system. Â We watched The Nutcracker and ALL of the music was played off of a CD or what sounded like someones Ipod. Â Needless to say it sounded horrible! Â And for me it detracted from the skill of the ballet dancers. For the $45 I paid per ticket I wished they would have put a little more energy into making the music as great as the dancing. Â This ballet featured mostly local children ranging from age 4 to 20. Â So adorably impressing to see the little 4 year olds actually staying in their spots and remembering their dance moves. Â Parking was pretty easy since there is plenty provided by UCI. Â We paid $10 for the all day pass. Â The Barclay staff that checked our tickets at the door and that helped us find our seats were very friendly, full of cheer and helpful. Â I highly recommend the Barclay though I feel like my tickets were more worth $35 vs the $45 I paid. Â Though I must say the performers definitely sparked my interest in the art of Ballet. Â I now would love to see a much larger ballet production thanks to those graceful dancers.
Review Source:Thanks for the free tickets to check out Henson alternative: Stuffed and Unstrung, Yelp! Great theater - intimate environment and even though we were sitting back right orchestra we weren't too far from the stage and could catch everything. Clean, plentiful bathroom stalls, ushers were friendly and used ipods to scan the tickets (fancy!), had coffee and other refreshments. $10 for parking in the structure but I'm pretty confident that you can park across the street in the shopping center without problems since there are a lot of different restaurants including an Edwards theater.
Review Source:The gf got us tickets to see the naughty muppet show Henson alternative: Stuffed and unstrung. It was all improv and I like scripted better but this show was hilarious. It's a decent looking theater with plenty of seats but not to far back from the stage so that its hard to see. We paid 10$ for parking and the ushers were nice and showed us to our seats. We saw a few other yelpers there and even though the seats were in the back we still saw the whole show with out any problems ^_^
Review Source:I had tickets to attend the Henson Alternative: Stuffed and Unstrung show at the Irvine Barclay Theatre last night. Â The venue is easily assessed via walkway from the parking garage. Â Inside, there is no bad seat in the house. Â We sat in the 2nd to last row and was still able to enjoy the show immensely. Â Just an FYI, the back 2 rows are the "tweet" seats where you can tweet the show on your Twitter feed. Â Photography and recording is still prohibited due to copyrighted material. Â The show was hilarious and inappropriate. Â 18 and over only for the Henson show but you should check out their schedule throughout the season. Â There is an awesome lineup. Â The tickets are fairly priced since this theatre is on the UCI campus. Â Great show, great venue.
Review Source:I love the Irvine Barclay! It's a small theatre, but it's well taken care of. The parking structure charges $10, but it's a close walk to the theatre from there. I came to see the Nutcracker and it was beautiful, I will definitely keep an eye on the Irvine Barclay's calendar to see what else will draw us in. If you have small children, this is a great layout, because you can get in and out quickly if you need to.
Review Source:Came to see Jake Shimabukuro.
Comfy seats.
Intimate Theater.
3rd row from back in the balcony area still afforded a good view and the sound was great.
Lighting was nicely matched with the songs.
Parking: OMG, $10 per car in the structure. However, I think they charge you less if you're not there for the concert.
Food if you're hungry: University Town center is across the theater with In-N-Out, Taco Bell, Jack In the Box, Peet's, Yogurtland. Chek out: <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.shopneighborhoodcenters.com%2FNeighborhoodCenters%2FCenter%2FUniversity_Center.aspx&s=9a5bd35c03d72a22a5a9b7ec618a2d2cd68668dd23a5d34e5d514552ef055e5d" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.shopneighborh…</a>
I recently attended a ballet recital at the Barclay and I'd have to say it's a really nice theater. Â With 750 seats, it can hold a good size crowd yet it still feels very intimate. Â The sightlines are great as is the sound.
The only real drawback is that there aren't a lot of food options nearby for pre/post-theater meals other than casual food at UCI or the nearby shopping centers.
Attended the Original Tribute to the Blues Brothers performance last night. The British performing group was VERY ENTERTAINING and they  put on a SUPER CHARGED show! The quality of the dancers "The Bluettes" and the musicians
made the show a first class act. Jake and Elwood were very engaging and the hit of the show.
Lots of great old songs that were well done. Highly recommend attending for a great sing and dance along show.
This is the second time I have been to the Irvine Barclay Theatre.  It is a great venue at UCI where a variety of shows such as musical acts, performance art, comedy, etc., have played. The place does not have a bad seat in the house because of it's pretty small size.  Even at the back of the theatre, the seats are good.  It is easy to find and parking is simple.  Got our tickets  online and breezed into the lobby 30 minutes before the show.  They had a bar in the lobby for pre-show drinks.
We were there to see Stuffed and Unstrung by the Henson Alternative. <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/Pnkyub-x1cI6T-tk7gxRQw?select=ESSnPIzJxZmUCvelxBiGJg">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>  It is an adults only improv show involving 80 Henson puppets, 6 comedians and improv skits based on audience suggestions thrown at host, Patrick Bristow.  <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/Pnkyub-x1cI6T-tk7gxRQw?select=KleI9UdOd48-inXYAfn03w">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>  Note:  These are not my photos.  They are stock photos.  Pictures and filming are not allowed in the theatre.  The show is running at the Barclay through Sunday.  <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stuffedandunstrung.com%2Ftickets.php&s=5a2e16d7ea02af787c2bdd2e545f7e40b0572837d4164898766229d7a9074ded" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.stuffedanduns…</a>  It is a crazy fun show and not for the easily offended.  Even though these are Henson puppets, this is not Muppet material and definitely not Sesame Street.  Very 18 and over content but nonetheless hilarious.
Hope to be back to the Barclay soon to see what other great shows they have to offer.
The theater feels smaller than you might expect, which is a good thing--even near the back rows, the seats are still pretty good. Â There's also a good variety of performances here, from Broadway musicals (my personal favorite) to dance and classical concerts. Â Prices for both parking and tickets can be a bit steep; sometimes you can find discounted tickets, but as for parking, you're stuck with the UCI parking garage next door (unless you want to risk being towed at Taco Bell).
Review Source:I went here twice to see jazz performances for my class. Overall, it's a very nice theatre with great seating and lots of space for leg room. Â This place is also very clean (even in the restrooms). Also, the staff was very nice and showed me to my seat without much fuss. I'm not sure about the drinks in the theatre because I didn't buy any drinks.
However, the venue is pretty small but I was able to get a decent view of the performers from the back row. I've also heard some complaints about parking (something I would not know about because I walked to both performances from my apartment).
Payam Entertainment had the pleasure of producing NAMJOO: Unplugged at the Irvine Barclay Theater on April 15, 2011 for the Bay Area based Iranian artist Mohsen Namjoo. The management and production team at the Barclay were amazingly kind, professional and accommodating. We had a sold out show and the venue helped us getting the word out through their network.
We truly enjoyed working with every single one of their staff members and would like to recommend this beautiful venue to any artist and producer who wishes to produce a concert in Orange County. Audience members will also enjoy the lovely hall, state of the arts sound system, and the welcoming personnel. We are looking forward to going back to the Barclay whether as a producer or as an audience member. (SOCIARTS is the official promoter and manager of the Namjoo concerts).
Thank god this place exists, I wouldn't be able to see any of my modern/contemporary dance LIVE if it didn't.
It's great to grab a bite or a drink or both, across the street @ the mini-mall.
Even though I graduated from CSULB way back n 1994, they still accept my student ID for lower priced tickets.
Just wish they had more dance!
Went to 2 performances here in the past week and it's really nice venue!
I watched one Pop Concert (Rent performers) and one Orchestra performance (Mozart). Â The theater is clean, spacious, and modern enough. Â The volunteers were very helpful in finding our seats. Â Restrooms were also very clean. Â I was glad to beat the crowd!
I agree with the only other review on Yelp - this is a great theater in Orange County. It is small but extremely professional (we attended the taping of a HBO comedy special). Very few seats would not have a great view of the stage and if you are an aisle sitter like me, you will not have a difficult time booking your favorite seat. The only caveat is the parking ($8) in a small multi-level lot that is directly adjacent to the theater - if you leave immediately after the performance, you will be caught in a grid-lock, so bring your patience.
Review Source:This theater is one of the hidden gems in Orange County. Â The center is just beautiful and they usually have excellent quality events. Â It is small enough that all the seats are good. Â The prices are quite reasonable - we saw a modern dance performance for $25. You can park and dine across the street or the structure is right next to the theater.
Review Source:My girlfriend and I (specific enough for you Shemuell F.?) were able to snag $29 tickets for David Sedaris' recent book tour stop at the Barclay.
Shortly after I ordered the tickets, I received a receipt in the mail -- but not tickets. A note that was included indicated that our tickets were going to be held 45 minutes before showtime at the box office's will call. "Why the hell won't you give me my tickets, this is ridiculous! I'm not going to wait in line for something that you could have just sent me! Wait...it's an effort to curb the resale of tickets? Oh. Yeah, that makes sense."
I was expecting a massive line at the Will Call window, but instead was greeted by a nicely organized system of five or six different lines that were set up by last name. Although there were much more people in the "A-C" line, I was still able to grab my tickets in a few minutes.
As our tickets were collected at the door, we were informed by the staff member of the Barclay how to get to our seats, where we could find the restroom, how long the performance was expected to be, and the fact that there would be no intermission. How sweet was that?
Although our seats were the very last row of the orchestra section, we were only 60-70 feet away from the stage. I guess when you have a 750 seat house, every seat is a good one.
A moment of hilarity ensued when the cell phone of one of the ushers went off. Of course, you were able to tell that the owner of the phone was a senior citizen when you recognized the corny default ringtone. Instead of digging into her bag and turning it off, she decided to try to ignore it instead. I imagined that it was either because she didn't think she could find the phone in her bag and try to turn it off in the dark, she just didn't know how to turn off the phone other than to answer a call, or that she just didn't want to admit that an usher had forgotten to turn their phone off. Either way, it was an amusing thing to watch.
Be advised that while you should purchase a, newly raised, $8 parking pass at the parking garage, you can park in any of the adjoining staff parking lots after 5 PM, just be sure to confirm with the parking attendant.
It's funny to hear that other Yelpers finally went to visit this place because of West Side Story. Â It was an amazing performance by the way! Â Pink Martini came to perform here last year and I'm sad that I missed that. Â I've been here my first year here for an orchestra concert. Â
The place seems small at the bottom but once you sit up in the balconies, it looks gigantic. Â I wouldn't have imagined the size of the place until I got inside. Â Ticket prices for any concerts of performances have been student friendly give that it's right across the UC Irvine campus. Â Their website has a calendar of events that's pretty diverse. Â I want to attend another concert or two before I graduate. Â It has always been a treat coming here to watch a show.
I came to watch a production of the West Side Story with UCI's Chancellor's Club. Â I got to be in the front row, and it was amazing! Â I really enjoyed everything about that experience, and wouldn't hesitate returning for a show. Â UCI students definitely need to take advantage of the theater.
Review Source:I came here with a friend to watch West Side Story with a friend. We got the very last 2 tickets. I always knew about this theater but had never seen a show here until tonight.
The first thing I noticed upon entry was that there was a whole lot of elderly people. Not sure if it was this particular performance or something about this particular theater that attracted them here. The next thing we noticed was that all 4 drinking fountains were shut off or "broken". Money making scheme to make you purchase bottled water at the concession stand. Everything else about the theater make it feel very new and clean. From the carpets, to the walls, to the restrooms, everything was nice and tidy.
At first our seating seemed pretty good because we could definitely see the stage clearly. But after we sat down we immediately noticed a pretty big issue. The aisle rail in front of us was obstructing our view of the stage. I had to either lean forward to look over or slouch down to look in between two poles. Although they did make a good foot rest.
Another random disturbance that has nothing to do with the theater was the guy sitting next to me. He kept singing through the "I feel so pretty, oh so pretty" song. Then he was sniffly near the end. Yes the story was tragic but having a snotty snorty dude next to you ruins it.
The Irvine Barclay is the place to be
If you're looking for a show, there's so much to see
The interior is so pleasant and nice to me
Wait what the hell, I have to pay a parking fee?
Yes, parking is $7 or risk parking in the University Center.
The Irvine Barclay Theater puts on some of Irvine's best performing arts shows in town. Â See, there's more to me than just music your mom would abhor!
Like many, I tend to forget about the Barclay, being that its much larger, big brother the "OC Performing Arts Center" is just minutes away down the 405. Â However, if you check out the website, you'll find that the Barclay offers every bit of a diverse performance, from seeing the American Ballet's rendition of "The Nutracker" to seeing "Pink Martini" on their latest tour for "Hey Eugene!" Â UCI's performing arts department (dance, music, etc) also puts on their shows at the Barclay.
While tickets aren't any cheaper, I appreciate the more relaxed and laid back setting. Â You won't feel out of place among women wearing their fur coats for the evening.
I have seen a number of performances at the Barclay, from ballets as well as the UCI symphony. Â My last excursion was for the "Nutcracker", and I found that the small venue also added a certain kind of "warmth" you don't usually get at the stuffy Dorothy Chandler Pavillion in LA, for example. Â
Note: Â Parking usually runs around $7 in the UCI lot. Â There will be signs that say that you will be towed if you park in the UCI marketplace lot across the street. Â HOWEVER, I personally haven't had problems doing that, especially if I make sure I have my In-N-Out burger after the show.
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