NEWS RELEASE — “KARMA, THE AWAKENING” — WORLD PREMIERE MUSICAL OPENS AT EL PORTAL THEATRE ON THURSDAY 2/5 AT 8PM

A WORLD PREMIERE MUSICAL
KARMA, THE AWAKENING
BOOK AND LYRICS BY
BILLIE E. HAZELBAKER,
BRYAN N. BARNES, AND JEFFREY ROLLINS
MUSIC BY RONN PRICE, DAN GREEN AND BRYAN N. BARNES
MUSICAL DIRECTION BY JERRY DANIELSEN
DIRECTED BY JASON GOLDBERG

OPENS FEBRUARY 5
AT EL PORTAL THEATRE’S MONROE FORUM
IN NORTH HOLLYWOOD

Producer Jason Goldberg today announced the world premiere of Karma, The Awakening, a new musical with book and lyrics by Billie E. Hazelbaker, Bryan N. Barnes, and Jeffrey Rollins and music by Ronn Price, Dan Green, and Barnes. With musical direction by Jerry Danielsen, choreography by Lennon Hobson, and directed by Jason Goldberg, Karma, The Awakening will open on Thursday, February 5 at 8pm and play a strictly limited engagement through March 1.

A generation ago the ‘Dawning of the Age of Aquarius’ proclaimed a season of “harmony and understanding, sympathy, and trust abounding.” We are living in that age and Karma, The Awakening revives the dormant energy of that season. Be reawakened by that energy and witness the Wedding of the Ages—the marriage of science and spirituality. You will be born again and again—and again.
The cast will feature (in alphabetical order) Roslyn Cohn, Adam Fox, Katelyn Gault, Alena Henke, Aidan Johnson, Stephen Juhl, Jackson Kendall, PeterMcGlynn, Braddon Mendelson, Bob Moran, Madison Smith, Beth Ann Sweezer, and Jenny Torgerson. All design elements are being coordinated by Jason Goldberg and Jeremiah Whitman. The stage manager is Lyndsay Lucas.

Karma, The Awakening opens on Thursday, February 5 at 8pm and continues through Sunday, March 1 only. The regular performance schedule will be Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm. General admission seating is $30 with a $25 ticket available for students with valid ID. Tickets may be purchased online at https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/941084 or via phone at (818) 508-4200.

The Monroe Forum inside the historic El Portal Theatre is located at 5269 Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood 91601.

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01-23-15

NEWS RELEASE — ELI LIEB IN CONCERT WILL BENEFIT LOS ANGELES LGBT CENTER — SAT 2/28 AT 8PM

The Los Angeles LGBT Center’s
Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center
Presents

ELI LIEB
IN CONCERT

A BENEFIT FOR THE LOS ANGELES LGBT CENTER
Saturday, February 28 at 8pm

The Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center has announced Eli Lieb In Concert, a special one-night-only benefit event at the Center’s plush and intimate Renberg Theatre on Saturday, February 28, at 8pm. The show will be a rare “unplugged appearance” featuring just Lieb and his acoustic guitar.

Eli Lieb began burning up YouTube with brilliant covers of such popular songs as “Wrecking Ball,” “Young and Beautiful,” “Mirrors,” “Stay,” and “Skyfall.” Since then the openly gay musician has released the acclaimed self-penned singles “Young Love” (which has received three million YouTube views), his first solo album Eli Lieb, and most recently his single, “Lightning in a Bottle.” He resides in Los Angeles, where he is completing his second album. Since his arrival in LA in 2013 Lieb has collaborated with artists such as Adam Lambert, Cheyenne Jackson, and Crystal Bowersox.

Due to his growing popularity, Lieb was approached by the Leo Burnett Advertising Agency to write an original song for Allstate Insurance’s #OutHoldingHands campaign. Lieb wrote “Safe in My Hands,” which accompanied an animated short film by the same name, which was released in June 2014 and has become an anthem for the LGBT community. Another recent hit song, “Zeppelin,” garnered the attention of ABC Family producers, who featured it as the closing song for the second season finale of the network’s The Fosters. “Zeppelin” will be used in an upcoming episode of The Fosters as well. For more, visit www.elilieb.com.

General admission tickets for Eli Lieb In Concert are $25. VIP tickets are available for $100 and include priority reserved seating and a post-performance reception with the artist. All seats may be purchased online at www.lalgbtcenter.org/theatre or by phone at (323) 860-7300. Net proceeds from all ticket sales will support the full range of free and low-cost programs and services offered by the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

The Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Renberg Theatre is located at the Village at Ed Gould Plaza, 1125 N. McCadden Place (one block east of Highland, just north of Santa Monica Boulevard), in Hollywood. Free onsite parking is available.

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01-22-15

NEWS RELEASE — SUBMISSIONS NOW BEING ACCEPTED FOR THE BLANK THEATRE’S 23rd ANNUAL YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL

SUBMISSIONS NOW BEING ACCEPTED
THE BLANK THEATRE’S
23RD ANNUAL NATIONWIDE
YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL

The Blank Theatre’s 23rd Annual Young Playwrights Festival is now seeking submissions nationwide from playwrights 19 years of age and younger. The submission deadline is March 16, 2015. Winning plays will be presented by professional actors and directors from June 4—28, 2015 at the Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood, CA.

The Blank Theatre’s Young Playwrights Festival is a nationwide competition that produces the work of 12 young writers each year. Since 1993, the festival has produced 260 plays by playwrights 19 and younger from 27 states.

Each winning play will have four performances in a weekend run. The productions are made possible in part by grants from The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation, The Plum Foundation, The Rosenthal Family Foundation, The Walt Disney Company, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, and City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.

The rules for the festival competition are as follows: playwrights must be 19 years of age or younger on March 16, 2015; original plays and musicals can be any length, on any subject. Scripts must be legible and pages must be numbered and unbound. Submissions may be emailed to ypfsubmissions@theblank.com or hard copies mailed to YPF, c/o The Blank Theatre, PO Box 1094, Los Angeles, CA, 90078 (and must be postmarked or emailed by March 16, 2015). There is a limit of three (3) plays per playwright. All plays must include a cover sheet with the play’s title, playwright’s name, date of birth, school (if any), mailing address, contact phone number, e-mail address and the play’s production history (if any).

Each playwright whose work is accepted will be assigned a mentor: professionals who will help the youngsters hone their work for performance. Past mentors have included Tony Award-winning playwright Terrence McNally, Tony Award-nominated composer Michael John LaChiusa, writer Jeff Greenstein (Will & Grace), producer Todd Milliner (Hot in Cleveland, Grimm), writer Irene Mecchi (The Lion King, Brave), Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening), television and film director Garry Marshall, among many others. The playwrights then experience the thrill of seeing their plays performed by industry professionals in fully staged productions.

Said Noah Wyle (star of television’s ER and Falling Skies), Artistic Producer at The Blank, “Each Spring for the past 23 years, The Blank has found the freshest, most original voices in the American theatre, invited them to Los Angeles, and promoted their work during a month-long festival in June. This thought provoking work, performed and directed by seasoned professionals, has entertained thousands of audience members over the years. While these authors are often as different as the states from which they come and the subjects with which they deal, they share something truly improbable. They’re teenagers.” Wyle continued, “These are not only the voices of today’s theatre — they are the voices of tomorrow’s as well.”

For more information, visit the festival’s website at www.YoungPlaywrights.com or The Blank Theatre’s website at www.TheBlank.com.

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01-13-15