James Comey & Pete Souza Headline Curran Theater’s SHOW & TELL Speaker Series
San Francisco’s historic Curran theater will host two significant political figures over the next two months. As part of the theater’s SHOW & TELL series, former FBI Director James Comey, and former White House photographer Pete Souza will each their own one-night-only engagements.
Given the currently controversial political climate, these two provocative and topical events should both be hot tickets. Over the weekend, James Comey’s book, “A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership,” suddenly surged to be the No.1 bestseller on Amazon after a sudden spike in pre-orders. The book will be released on April 17 and has been available for pre-order for several months. Last month, the book’s publisher moved the release date from May 1 to April 17, citing public demand to hear from Comey. Tickets to the April 23 event at Curran are on sale now and include a copy of his book.
Mr. President, the American people will hear my story very soon. And they can judge for themselves who is honorable and who is not.
— James Comey (@Comey) March 17, 2018
One month later, Pete Souza will spend an evening reviewing some of the nearly two million photographs he took during the most crucial moments of Barack Obama’s two presidential terms. Tickets for this event include a signed copy of his #1 New York Times bestselling book, “Obama: An Intimate Portrait,” containing 300 of Souza’s most iconic photographs with fine-art print quality in an oversize collectible format, along with a signed bookplate. There is also an in-person book signing option as part of the VIP experience.
Curran Theater boasts an all-star lineup for the SHOW & TELL series this year. It features celebrated artists such as the writers and creative minds behind Soft Power, David Henry Hwang and Jeanine Tesori, along with Broadway legend Patti LuPone, award-winning playwright and actress (recently of “Black Panther” fame), Danai Gurira, and Tony Award-winning director George C. Wolfe. See further below for details on the current lineup.
Specific event dates and times for all shows will be announced in the coming months. Tickets for SHOW & TELL event tickets start at $29, with some including autographed books and special VIP opportunities.
James Comey
Monday, April 23 at 7pm
Tickets: $45–$85 (every ticket purchase includes a copy of his book, “A Higher Loyalty”)
No one in America has found himself more thrust into the middle of the public debate in the last two years than former F.B.I. Director James Comey. In his forthcoming book “A Higher Loyalty,” he shares his never-before-told experiences from some of the highest-stakes situations of his career in the past two decades of American government, exploring what good, ethical leadership looks like, and how it drives sound decisions. His journey provides an unprecedented entry into the corridors of power, and a remarkable lesson in what makes an effective leader.
Pete Souza
Thursday, May 10 at 7pm
Tickets: $65–$135 ()
During Barack Obama’s two terms, Pete Souza was with the President during more crucial moments than anyone else–and he photographed them all. Souza captured nearly two million photographs of President Obama, in moments highly classified and disarmingly candid. The #1 New York Times bestseller “Obama: An Intimate Portrait” reproduces more than 300 of Souza’s most iconic photographs. Together they document the most consequential hours of the Presidency–including the historic image of President Obama and his advisors in the Situation Room during the bin Laden mission–alongside unguarded moments with the President’s family, his encounters with children, interactions with world leaders and cultural figures, and more.
Souza’s photographs, with the behind-the-scenes captions and stories that accompany them, communicate the pace and power of our nation’s highest office. They also reveal the spirit of the extraordinary man who became our President. We see President Obama lead our nation through monumental challenges, comfort us in calamity and loss, share in hard-won victories, and set a singular example to “be kind and be useful,” as he would instruct his daughters.
David Henry Hwang & Jeanine Tesori
The State of The Art
Thursday, May 17 at 7pm
Tickets: $29–$85
Two of theater’s most unique and contemporary artists, David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly) and Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home) engage in a conversation about creating, collaborating, and the genesis of their exciting new work, Soft Power, before it comes to Curran’s stage June 20 – July 8. They provide a rare peek behind the curtain that will show us what it really takes to get plays and musicals from Idea to Opening Night.
This particular SHOW & TELL is hosted in partnership with CAAMFest 2018 in celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. CAAMFest, formerly the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival (SFIAAFF), celebrates its 36th year of showcasing film, music, food and digital media from the world’s most innovative Asian and Asian American artists. The festival runs May 10-24, 2018.
Patti LuPone
Wednesday, June 13 at 7pm
Tickets: $39 – 105
One of the most celebrated performers of our time, Patti LuPone returns to the Curran stage to reveal the mindset and process of the actor as only she can, while discussing highlights from her legendary career on the stage and answering audience questions.
