Press Release: Coeurage Theatre Company Presents ‘The Yellow Boat’ – Opens Saturday 4/19 at GTC Burbank

COEURAGE THEATRE COMPANY
LA’S ‘PAY WHAT YOU WANT’ THEATRE COMPANY
PRESENTS
THE YELLOW BOAT
BY DAVID SAAR
DIRECTED BY JOSEPH V. CALARCO

OPENS SATURDAY, APRIL 19
AT GTC BURBANK

Coeurage Theatre Company, LA’s ‘Pay What You Want’ Company, has announced the first production of its 2014 season, The Yellow Boat by David Saar. Directed by Joseph V. Calarco, there will be one preview performance on Friday, April 18 at 8pm and opening is set for Saturday, April 19 at 8pm. The Yellow Boat will play through May 25 at GTC Burbank.

Based on the true story of David and Sonja Saar’s son Benjamin, The Yellow Boat is a glorious affirmation of a child’s life and the strength and courage of all children. The play celebrates the value of living life fully and richly in the moment, and with playfulness and creativity explores real people overcoming very real fears. Recommended for kids over age eight, parents, and families. Originally presented by Childsplay at the Tempe Performing Arts Center in Arizona.

The cast will feature (in alphabetical order) Katelyn Gault, Ivy Khan, Cody Klop, TJ Marchbank, Joseph O’Malley, Kurt Quinn, Joey Nicole Thomas, and Malika Williams. The production design is by Tito Fleetwood Ladd, costume design is by Marcy Hiartzka, and sound design is by Joseph V. Calarco. Original music for The Yellow Boat is by Gregory Nabours, and choreography is by Janet Roston.

Playwright David Saar is the founder and artistic director of Childsplay in Tempe, AZ, which was formed in 1977. Among the many productions he has directed for the company are Still Life with Iris, A Year with Frog and Toad, Pero or the Mystery of the Night, Afternoon of the Elves, and Cyrano. Saar has also directed The Origins of Happiness for Arizona Theatre Company, Charlotte’s Web, The Yellow Boat, and Tomas and the Library Lady for Seattle Children’s Theatre, and The BFG for Chicago Theatre for Young Audiences. He has been the recipient of the Governor’s Arts Award (1989), the national Winifred Ward Dare to Dream Fellowship (1991), the Phoenix Futures Forum’s Dream Weavers Vision Award (1993), the first Notable Achievement Award from the Herberger College of Fine Arts (2002), the Thomas DeGaetani Award from the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (2007), and the prestigious Medallion Award from the Children’s Theatre Foundation (2010) to honor artistic excellence and Childsplay’s national influence during its 33-year history.

Director Joseph V. Calarco previously directed The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love- Suicide for Coeurage and is also a frequent actor and sound designer with the company. His stage appearances include Balm in Gilead, No. Saints Lane, LA Lights Fire, and The Rocky Horror Show. Past sound designs include A Bright Room Called Day, Translations, Balm in Gilead, Is He Dead?, Double Falsehood, No. Saints Lane, Bash: Latter-Day Plays, Head Over Heels, LA Lights Fire, Hats, Nudes & Immortality, and Brief Interviews with Hideous Men.

The Yellow Boat will play one preview performance on Friday, April 18 at 8pm and opening is set for Saturday, April 19 at 8pm. The running schedule is Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 4pm through May 25 only. All seats are available on a Pay What You Want basis, and may be reserved online at https://coeurage.secure.force.com/ticket, or by calling (323) 944-2165.

GTC Burbank is located at 1100 W. Clark Avenue in Burbank, 91506. Street parking is available.

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03-27-14

**The Coeurage PAY WHAT YOU WANT Policy**
Pay What You Can is based on a person’s ability to pay.
Pay What You Want is based on a patron’s desire.
It is a value placement as well as an economic decision, designed to eliminate cost as a factor
in attending theatre. Each patron decides what a theatre experience is worth to him or her,
and some decide it is worth more than they initially paid.
For that reason, the box office is kept open during intermission and after performances.

Press Release: Celebration Theatre 31st Anniversary Benefit Event – Saturday 4/26 at CBS Studio Center

Celebration Theatre’s Annual
VIBRANT VOICE AWARDS
BENEFIT EVENT
Featuring Original ‘Golden Girl’ Betty White
Along With Her Hot in Cleveland Co-Stars
Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, and Wendie Malick
Reading a Classic Episode of The Golden Girls
2014 Vibrant Voice Awardees
Wendie Malick & Robert Forster

Special Guest Sean Hayes and More!

Saturday, April 26, at 7:30pm
Sound Stage 19 at CBS Studio Center
in Studio City

Celebration Theatre has announced its annual Vibrant Voice Awards benefit event, this year featuring original ‘Golden Girl‘ Betty White along with her Hot in Cleveland co-stars Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, and Wendie Malick reading a classic episode of The Golden Girls. The 2014 Vibrant Voice Awards will be presented to Wendie Malick and Robert Forster, and there will be special appearances by Sean Hayes and other stars to be announced.

The Vibrant Voice Award is presented annually in recognition of long-term support of Celebration Theatre as well as spreading the word about the work and mission of Celebration. Past recipients of the award have included Leslie Jordan and Sharon Lawrence.

Tickets for the 2014 Vibrant Voice Awards, Celebration Theatre’s 31st Anniversary benefit event, are available at three price levels. Gold tickets are $500 each and include priority seating for the show, an exclusive meet-and-greet with the stars, a souvenir poster, and priority entrance to the post-performance party on the set of Hot in Cleveland. Silver tickets are $250 and Bronze tickets are $100 (both include show and party). All ticket purchases are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Tickets may be obtained online at www.celebrationtheatre.com or by phone at (323) 957-1884.

Directing duties will be shared by Celebration Co-Artistic Director and Ovation Award-winner Michael Matthews and Ryan Bergmann. The evening will also feature a raffle for a walk-on role in a future Hot in Cleveland episode. The event is produced by the Celebration Theatre Board of Directors and Executive Director Michael C. Kricfalusi, and is sponsored in part by Zing Vodka.

The Hot in Cleveland sound stage is located at CBS Studio Center, 4024 Radford Avenue in Studio City. Complimentary parking will be available.

Founded in 1982 and now in its 31st season, Celebration Theatre is a community of artists dedicated to presenting innovative, provocative and relevant work that examines the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer experience. It provides a supportive forum for professional and emerging writers, directors, designers and performers, giving voice to the full experience of gay culture. The theatre endeavors to challenge society’s perception of the community and give a vibrant voice to its evolving identity.

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03-25-14

Press Release: Mack & Poppy Return With ‘The Patriot Act’ – Two Nights Only, April 25 & 26

THEY’RE BACK!
MACK & POPPY RETURN TO LOS ANGELES
WITH THEIR NEW SHOW
THE PATRIOT ACT
TWO PERFORMANCES ONLY
APRIL 25 & 26 AT 9PM

AMERICA’S BEST LEAST-KNOWN LOUNGE ACT
PERFORMS AT CAVERN CLUB CELEBRITY THEATRE INSIDE
CASITA DEL CAMPO IN SILVER LAKE

Mack & Poppy are set to make their long-awaited return to Los Angeles with their new show The Patriot Act on Friday, April 25 and Saturday, April 26. The curtain will rise at 9pm for both shows at Cavern Club Celebrity Theatre inside Casita Del Campo Restaurant in Silver Lake. In this star-spangled romp, Mack and Poppy present a musical tribute to the greatest country in the world (the USA, of course) as a send-off to their beloved cabana boy Fernando, just prior to his imminent deportation. This dynamic duo of comedy and song will take their audiences on a road trip from sea to shining sea, across the purple mountains’ majesty, across the fruity plains. Mack & Poppy will be accompanied by music director Jack Cheddar at the piano.

Mack & Poppy are the creation of Christopher Michael Graham and Tod Macofsky. Crooner Mack Diamond (Macofsky) began his career as a child star, singing on street corners with his two older brothers, Shlomo and Moishe. Later, Mack suffered a decade of depression and alcoholism in Las Vegas, where he spent eight years performing his solo show, A Yiddishe Mackie, at The Imperial Palace. He met the lovely Poppy Fields while she was in the chorus of Jubilee!, and the rest is showbiz history. Southern Belle Poppy Fields (Graham) escaped the narrow-minded confines of Possum Trot, Alabama, and traveled the world as a singer/dancer/actress, entertaining celebrities, businessmen, and heads-of-state. After a successful beauty pageant career, the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas called, where Poppy wed and divorced four husbands before finally meeting and marrying the “Sensation of the 24-hour Buffet,” entertainer Mack Diamond.

The Patriot Act will play two performances only at the Cavern Club Celebrity Theatre inside Casita Del Campo Restaurant on Friday, April 25 and Saturday, April 26 at 9pm. Tickets are $20 in advance, and are available online at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/561022 or by phone at (800) 838-3006. Tickets are $25 at the door. For more information, visit www.mackandpoppy.com. Casita Del Campo is located at 1920 Hyperion Avenue in Los Angeles, 90026.

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03-24-14