Matt Butler – Reckless Son

Matt Butler’s
Reckless Son

One Night Only!

Live & In Person at The Marsh San Francisco Mainstage

Written & Performed by Matt Butler
Directed by Richard Hoehler

Click For Tickets

Online ticket sales close 2 hours before each performance,
and additional tickets may be available for purchase at the door.

One Night Only!
September 17, 2024
Tuesday at 7:30pm


Ticket Information

Tickets: $15 – $35 General Seating sliding scale | $50 & $100 Reserved Seating

Online ticket sales close 2 hours before each performance,
and additional tickets may be available for purchase at the door.

60 minutes | No Intermission | Ages 15+*
*The show addresses suicide, self-harm, and drug addiction. 
However, no profanity or sexually explicit content.
Please do not bring infants to the show

Please read our
Health, Safety and COVID-19 Information
Our commitment to our patrons


About the Show

Reckless Son, written and performed by singer/songwriter Matt Butler, was inspired by his journey performing over 100 concerts in jails and prisons across the country. Through a powerful combination of spoken word and song, Reckless Son humanizes the experience of the incarcerated by giving them voice and telling their stories. Turning a compassionate eye to their lives before, during, and after their time behind prison walls, the performance evokes empathy and understanding for those who are all too often considered  out of sight and out of mind. It’s a story of hope, forgiveness, and what it means to discover a deeper sense of purpose through service to others.

Raising awareness, shifting perspectives, and empowering individuals to create change within their communities, Reckless Son is more than just a show. It’s a calling. Reckless Son was developed in part by the HB Studio Artist Residency program and was workshopped in Oregon State Penitentiary, The Theater Workshop at Otisville State Prison, and the Chesterfield County Jail.


About the Performer

Matt Butler is a songwriter, poet and storyteller as well as the founder of Art That Serves, an organization dedicated to bringing the arts to the incarcerated.  His solo show Reckless Son tells the story of how his concert at the Albany County Jail led to over 100 performances in jails and prisons across the country.  He’s been featured on NPR Morning Edition, The Blue Grass Situation, and PBS with SPIN saying “Butler is doing something special for the American arts” after adding him to their albums and artists of the year lists.  He’s performed at events held by The David Lynch Foundation, The Columbia Center For Justice, American Folk Art Museum, National Alliance On Mental Illness (NAMI), The Caron Foundation and was an inaugural ‘Activist In Residence’ at the Kripalu Center in the Berkshires and Artist In Residence at HB Studio in Manhattan.  Along with correctional facilities, he speaks and performs at universities, high schools, and retreat centers.  His first poetry collection is titled The Sonnets Of Becoming.  Learn more about his work at www.mattbutlersongs.com and www.artthatserves.org.