City Garage

Tucked behind Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade in an old 1930s police garage, City Garage is a theater company that offers challenging works with a distinctly European flavor. Under the artistic direction of Frederique Michel, for 11 years this membership company has specialized in plays not usually seen in Los Angeles -- classic modern dramas such as "The Balcony'' by Genet, works by contemporary European playwrights, especially women, and rarely produced plays by well-known writers.

The intimate space offers 48 seats surrounding a modified thrust stage, so audience members never sit more than two seats from the action. Large glass windows salvaged from demolition sites create the walls of the lobby and the dressing rooms. For some shows, audiences watch the actors dress and make-up.

Concerned that theater is too often priced out of most people's range, City Garage offers two tickets for the price of one for Wednesday performances and admission for the Sunday 5:30 p.m. show is "pay what you can." This is an adventurous theater dedicated to getting audiences to think.