Announcing: LA Stage Alliance Announces LA Stage Day, Saturday 5/18

LA STAGE ALLIANCE ANNOUNCES
LA STAGE DAY
A DAY-LONG COMMUNITY EVENT
FOR PERFORMERS, DESIGNERS, ADMINISTRATORS,
STUDENTS, VENDORS, AND PATRONS OF THE ARTS
ON THE CAMPUS OF
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY LOS ANGELES
SATURDAY, MAY 18

LA STAGE Alliance has announced LA STAGE DAY, a day-long community event for the greater Los Angeles performing arts community. Generously hosted by California State University Los Angeles, the activities will take place on the campus of CSULA on Saturday, May 18, from 8:30am – 7pm.

LA STAGE DAY is set to include provocative inspirational presentations from engaged community members; interactive sessions centered on what’s working and what’s next; a midday bazaar expo with staffed information tables of LA STAGE Alliance and Dance Resource Center member companies, partners, and affiliates; and artistic workshops led by a diverse group of local artists. As an added bonus, coordinated trips to see shows and performances will be available in the evening. The more than eight hours of performing arts community building will also include coffee and pastries (during morning check-in), several food trucks, and cocktails.

“Our aim with LA STAGE DAY is to come together to inspire and inform one another through provocative conversations and the exchange of ideas and information,” said LA STAGE CEO Terence McFarland. He continued, “Our performing arts community is filled with brilliance; LA STAGE DAY hopes to shine a light on the best of what we have to offer.”

A multitude of discussions, workshops, and sessions designed to inspire and exchange creative ideas will be offered throughout the day. Some of the categories scheduled to be explored are: Engaging with High School and College Audiences, Career Paths in LA Performing Arts, Social Media Stories, and Blue Skying – What’s Your Big Artistic Idea? Artistic workshops will be led by Ryan Heffington (Dance), Debbie McMahon (Melodrama), Che’Rae Adams (Playwrighting), and Johanna Smith (Puppetry), and more.

Among the speakers currently scheduled to share and inspire are DJ Kurs, Chris Anthony, Alice Tuan, Craig Fleming, Erin Quill, Yosi Sargeant, Yuval Sharon, Evelina Fernandez, Michelle Ramos-Burkhart, Thor Steingraber, Tim Carpenter, and Mark Seldis. Additional activities and speakers will be added to the schedule in the coming days.

LA STAGE Alliance, a non-profit organization empowering artists and engaging audiences since 1975, is dedicated to building awareness, appreciation, and support for the performing arts in Greater Los Angeles by strengthening the sector through community building, collaborative marketing, audience engagement, professional development, and advocacy.

LA STAGE Alliance programs are sponsored, in part, by Actors Equity Association, The Angell Foundation, Bakers Man Productions, California Arts Council, California Community Foundation, City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, DatabaseWorks, DEW Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Entertainment Lighting Services (ELS), Goldstar, Ken Werther Publicity, the James Irvine Foundation, Los Angeles County Supervisors through the LA County Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Arts, Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and Sony Pictures Entertainment.

For up-to-the-minute information and schedule of activities for LA STAGE DAY, visit http://www.lastagealliance.com/lastageday/.

# # #

05-10-13

Announcing: Final L.A. Engagement – Tara Grammy’s Solo Show ‘Mahmoud’ – May 18 thru June 29 at Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks

TARA GRAMMY SET TO RETURN
IN HER AWARD-WINNING SOLO SHOW
MAHMOUD

2012 NEW YORK FRINGE FESTIVAL WINNER
FOR OVERALL EXCELLENCE IN SOLO PERFORMANCE
2012 TORONTO FRINGE FESTIVAL WINNER FOR BEST OF FRINGE

FINAL LOS ANGELES ENGAGEMENT
MAY 18 – JUNE 29
AT WHITEFIRE THEATRE IN SHERMAN OAKS

Following back-to-back wins for best solo performance at the Toronto and New York Fringe Festivals in 2012 and a brief run at the Santa Monica Playhouse earlier this year, Tara Grammy will reprise her acclaimed solo performance in Mahmoud at the Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks beginning May 10 NOW OPENS ON SATURDAY, MAY 18. This limited, final run in the Los Angeles area will run through June 29 only.

Mahmoud tells the tale of an aging Iranian engineer-cum-taxi drive, a fabulously gay Spaniard, and a young Iranian-Canadian girl who are all trying to get through the day-to-day grind in a large metropolitan city. Hilarious, insightful, and touching, Mahmoud takes a memorable look at racism against Middle Eastern immigrants, homophobia within immigrant communities, and media-created stigmas surrounding Middle Eastern culture. Co-written by Tara Grammy and Tom Arthur Davis and directed by Davis, the show has a running time of one hour.

Performer and co-writer Tara Grammy is a recent graduate of the University of Toronto, where she worked with some of Canada’s top theatre artists, including Ken Gass, Leah Cherniak, Soheil Parsa and Martha Ross. Born in Tehran, she has lived in Germany, the United States, and Canada, and has traveled all across the world. She is interested in the immigration experience in her artistic endeavors, in an attempt to better understand multi-national identities. Recent credits include the Toronto Fringe hit show The Traveling Salesman & His Magical Suitcase of Desires, Necessary Angel’s award-winning SummerWorks production, White Rabbit Red Rabbit, and the indie smash hit Murder on Ossington. Her roles in these shows have ranged from a crazy British Mayor based on the commedia dell’arte character Pantalone, to a six-year-old child, to a dominatrix.

The lighting design for Mahmoud is by Jenna Koenig, the sound design is by Mike Conley, and stage managers are Morgan Zupanski and Jenna Koenig. The producers are Ty Donaldson and Michelle Grant.

Mahmoud will play one preview performance on Friday, May 10 at 8pm, and opening is set for Saturday, May 11 at 8pm. The regular running schedule is Friday and Saturday at 8pm through June 29. Admission is $30 and tickets are available now, online at www.mahmoudtaxi.tix.com or by phone at (800) 504-4849. The Whitefire Theatre is located at 13500 Ventura Boulevard (on the corner of Sunnyslope, between Coldwater Canyon and Woodman), in Sherman Oaks.

For more information, visit www.mahmoudtaxi.com or www.whitefiretheatre.com.

# # #

04-25-13

Announcing: Collaborative Artists Ensemble Presents ‘Through A Glass Darkly’ – Opens Friday, May 17 at 8pm

COLLABORATIVE ARTISTS ENSEMBLE
PRESENTS THE WEST COAST PREMIERE OF
THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY
BY INGMAR BERGMAN
ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE BY JENNY WORTON
DIRECTED BY STEVE JARRARD

MAY 17 – JUNE 9, 2013
AT THE RAVEN PLAYHOUSE IN NORTH HOLLYWOOD

Collaborative Artists Ensemble has announced the West Coast premiere of Through A Glass Darkly, written by Ingmar Bergman, and adapted for the stage by Jenny Worton. Directed by Steve Jarrard, the production is set to open on May 17 for a limited engagement through June 9 only.

Ingmar Bergman’s chamber drama Through A Glass Darkly is a character study dealing with the universal themes of faith, family, and reality. Recently released from a mental hospital, Karin and her family go on their annual holiday to a small island off the coast of Sweden. They all have high hopes for regaining a sense of normalcy, but Karin’s inner and outer worlds begin to collide, forcing a shattering of her sense of reality and those of the men (her husband, father, and brother) who are trying to save her. Bergman’s movie won the 1962 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

The stage version of Through A Glass Darkly has been presented only twice before. The play received its world premiere at the Almeida Theatre in London in 2010, and had its American premiere at the New York Theatre Workshop in 2011.

Adaptor Jenny Worton is the Almeida’s Artistic Associate. She was previously Literary Manager at the Tricycle Theatre, and worked in the Literary Departments at the Bush Theatre, the National Theatre, and Out Of Joint. Worton adapted Dolls for the stage (National Theatre of Scotland and Hush Productions), and acted as dramaturg for Breathing Irregular at the Gate Theatre in London. Her original work for Radio Four includes Demonstrating Grace and A Hallowed Space.

Director Steve Jarrard, a Southern California native, is the Managing Director of Collaborative Artists Ensemble, and has directed six out of nine of the company’s previous productions including The Food Chain, How I Learned To Drive, Eleemosynary, Lucia Mad, and the West Coast premiere of Carson McCullers’ The Square Root of Wonderful. Some of Jarrard’s other directing credits include Civilization, Doubting Thomason, and Noel Coward’s Present Laughter at Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica, among others.

The cast of Through A Glass Darkly will feature (in alphabetical order) Anthony Auer, Jon Boatwright, Timothy Walker, and Meg Wallace. The set design is by Steve Jarrard, and the stage manager is Tymica Spiller.

Through A Glass Darkly opens on Friday, May 17 at 8pm. The regular performance schedule is Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm through June 9. Admission is $25, with a discount available for seniors ($15). Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased online at www.plays411.com/darkly or via telephone at 323-860-6569. Collaborative Artists Ensemble performs at the Raven Playhouse, 5233 Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood, 91601. Street parking is available.

For more information on Through A Glass Darkly or Collaborative Artists Ensemble, visit www.collaborativeartistsensemble.com.

# # #

04-18-13