Announcing: “The Cost of the Erection” by Jon Marans Begins Previews at Blank Theatre on Sat 2/4/12

THREE-TIME DAYTIME EMMY AWARD WINNER
MICHAEL E. KNIGHT (ALL MY CHILDREN) SET TO STAR
IN THE BLANK THEATRE’S PRODUCTION OF
THE COST OF THE ERECTION
A NEW PLAY BY JON MARANS

WEST COAST PREMIERE WILL FEATURE KNIGHT,
ROBIN RIKER, KAL BENNETT, AND JAMES LOUIS WAGNER
DIRECTED BY DANIEL HENNING

PREVIEWS BEGIN FEBRUARY 4, 2012
AT THE BLANK’S 2nd STAGE THEATRE IN HOLLYWOOD

Renowned daytime television stars Michael E. Knight (All My Children) and Robin Riker (The Bold and the Beautiful), along with Kal Bennett and James Louis Wagner are set to star in The Blank Theatre’s production of The Cost of the Erection by Jon Marans, directed by Blank Founding Artistic Director Daniel Henning. The West Coast premiere begins previews on February 4, and opening night is set for Saturday, February 11 at 8:00. The engagement will run through Sunday, March 18.

In The Cost of the Erection, wealthy Susu Ziegler has purchased an exclusive Manhattan raw space apartment overlooking the Hudson. She hopes to have her architect husband design this tricky space, but with their marriage on the rocks, she forces him to compete against a younger, hotshot architect. This sexy, funny tale is told in a heightened theatrical style, compressing and playing with time and space, and ultimately examines what makes a marriage work. Or not work. The Cost of the Erection will have its world premiere under the title A Raw Space at the Bristol Riverside Theatre in Bristol, Pennsylvania on February 3.

Playwright Jon Marans’ Old Wicked Songs was a 1996 Pulitzer Prize finalist for Drama, the winner of a New York Drama League Award, a Los Angeles Drama Logue Award, and it was included in Otis Guernsey’s Best Plays of 1996-97. Marans’ other plays include A Strange and Separate People, Jumping For Joy, Legacy of the Dragonslayers (based on Studs Terkel’s Coming of Age), the musical Irrationals (Book & Lyrics by Marans, Music by Edward Thomas), and The Temperamentals, which had a successful run at The Blank Theatre in the spring of 2011.

Set and lighting design for The Cost of the Erection are by Cameron Zetty, costume design is by Rachel Engstrom, and sound design is by Warren Davis. Casting is by Scott David, Erica Silverman, and Bob Lambert. Nicki Gannon is stage manager.

Started in 1990 by Founding Artistic Director Daniel Henning, The Blank Theatre is Hollywood’s resident theatre, consistently offering some of the most high quality and entertaining productions in the area. Over its 20 year history, The Blank has won hundreds of awards, including every major award in Los Angeles for Outstanding Production, such as the LA Drama Critics Circle, Ovation, LA Weekly, NAACP, and Back Stage Garland. The Blank continues to be at the forefront of providing high quality productions with a risk taking sensibility and entertaining experiences for theatregoers. With programs such as The Living Room Series and its annual nationwide Young Playwrights Festival, The Blank Theatre is committed to developing excellence in artistic talent and providing the opportunity for artists to take bold risks. For more information, please visit www.TheBlank.com.

Preview performances of The Cost of the Erection are Saturday, February 4 at 8pm, Sunday, February 5 at 2pm, and Tuesday, February 7 – Friday, February 10 at 8pm. The Friday 2/10 performance is available for press review, and opening night is set for Saturday, February 11 at 8:00. The regular performance schedule is Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm through March 18. All preview seats are $26; regular performance prices are $26 on Thursday and Sunday, $30 on Friday and Saturday. Tickets are on sale now, and may be purchased online at www.TheBlank.com or by calling (323) 661-9827.

The Blank’s 2nd Stage Theatre is located at 6500 Santa Monica Boulevard (at Wilcox), in Hollywood. Secured valet parking is available.

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12-16-11

Announcing: Blank Theatre Opens 21st Season with “Dusk Rings a Bell” by Stephen Belber, Opening Oct. 8

HOLLYWOOD’S BLANK THEATRE WILL OPEN ITS 21st SEASON WITH THE
WEST COAST PREMIERE OF
DUSK RINGS A BELL
BY STEPHEN BELBER
FEATURING THEA GILL AND JOSH RANDALL
DIRECTED BY DANIEL HENNING

PREVIEWS BEGIN OCTOBER 1, 2011
AT THE BLANK’S 2nd STAGE THEATRE IN HOLLYWOOD

The Blank Theatre (Daniel Henning, Founding Artistic Director) kicks off its 21st season with the West Coast premiere of Dusk Rings A Bell by Stephen Belber, directed by Daniel Henning, with previews beginning on October 1 and opening night set for Saturday, October 8 at 8:00. The engagement will run through Sunday, November 13.

Dusk Rings A Bell will feature (in alphabetical order) Thea Gill and Josh Randall. Originally presented by the Atlantic Theater Company in New York City, Dusk tells the story of Molly and Ray, who spent a romantic summer afternoon together when they were teens, but went their separate ways. They meet, by chance, 25 years later. Both begin to romanticize their reunion, but a renewed connection is disrupted when Ray reveals the sordid details of a crime that left him incarcerated for 10 years. Their encounter reveals two vastly different paths taken, and two lonely souls attempting to reclaim a moment of possibility, when they were young and probably at their very best.

Stephen Belber’s plays have been produced on Broadway, as well as in over 25 countries. His plays include Match (Tony Award nomination for Frank Langella), Tape (Naked Angels, New York/Los Angeles/London), McReele (Roundabout Theatre), A Small, Melodramatic Story (LAByrinth Theater Company), Geometry of Fire (Rattlestick), Fault Lines (Cherry Lane), One Million Butterflies (Primary Stages), and Carol Mulroney (Huntington Theatre Company). He was an associate writer on The Laramie Project (Drama Desk and Lortel Award nominations), and co-writer on the more recent Laramie Project: Ten Years Later. Movies include Tape, directed by Richard Linklater, The Laramie Project (associate writer/Emmy Award nomination for screenwriting), Drifting Elegant, and Management, starring Jennifer Aniston and Steve Zahn, which he also directed. Belber is currently developing screen adaptations of both Match and McReele. Television credits include Rescue Me and Law & Order: SVU (staff writer). He is a member of both Tectonic Theater Project and LAByrinth Theater Company.

Set design for Dusk Rings A Bell is by Kurt Boetcher, lighting design is by Stephanette Smith, costume design is by Michael Mullen, and sound design is by Warren Davis. Caitlin Eckstein is stage manager.
Preview performances of Dusk Rings A Bell are Saturday, October 1 at 8pm, Sunday, October 2 at 2pm, and Tuesday, October 4 – Friday, October 7 at 8pm. The Friday 10/7 performance is available for press review, and opening night is set for Saturday, October 8 at 8:00. The regular performance schedule is Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm through November 13. All preview seats are $26; regular performance prices are $26 on Thursday and Sunday, $30 on Friday and Saturday. Tickets are on sale now, and may be purchased online at www.TheBlank.com or by calling (323) 661-9827.

The Blank’s 2nd Stage Theatre is located at 6500 Santa Monica Boulevard (at Wilcox), in Hollywood. Secured valet parking is available.

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09-07-11

Pictured: THEA GILL and JOSH RANDALL at first rehearsal, Tuesday 9/6/11.

Announcing: Blank Theatre Company’s ‘The Temperamentals’ Extended Through June 5

THE BLANK THEATRE COMPANY’S WEST COAST PREMIERE OF
THE TEMPERAMENTALS
EXTENDED DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND THROUGH JUNE 5
AT THE 2ND STAGE THEATRE

In 1950s Los Angeles, tired of police harassment, back alley bars and living in fear, a few brave souls set out to change their world and claim their civil rights. In a time when nothing could be spoken in the open, notorious communist Harry Hay and cultural icon Rudi Gernreich fell in love while building a movement. This is their story. “Temperamental” was code for “homosexual,” part of a secret survival language created by gay men in the pre-Stonewall United States.

The cast, in alphabetical order, is Erich Bergen (Jersey Boys, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum for Reprise, Venice at the Kirk Douglas Theatre), BAFTA Award-winner Dennis Christopher (Deadwood, Profiler, and returning to The Blank where his performance as Alan Turing in Breaking The Code won him LA Weekly and LADCC Awards), Patrick Scott Lewis (American Dreams, Zodiac), Mark Shunock (Timon in The Lion King), and John Tartaglia (Tony Award nominee for Avenue Q; the original cast of Shrek The Musical). Director Michael Matthews has worked extensively on Broadway, internationally, and in Los Angeles and Chicago. Recent highlights in Los Angeles include the critically acclaimed productions of Haram Iran!, The Women of Brewster Place, and Take Me Out at Celebration Theatre; Dead End at the Ahmanson Theatre, and The Cherry Orchard (starring Annette Bening) at the Mark Taper Forum. He has also directed The Jazz Age and The Santaland Diaries for The Blank.

Of the recent smash off-Broadway production, The New York Times called The Temperamentals “Intellectual, emotional, and sexual.” “Combines savvy context and ascending flights of bittersweet fabulousness,” said New York Newsday. And the Associated Press called it, “Fascinating, entertaining, and emotionally affecting.” Playwright Jon Marans is well known for his play Old Wicked Songs, which was a 1996 Pulitzer Prize finalist for Drama, and has been produced throughout the United States and translated and produced in a dozen countries around the world. Other plays by Marans include A Strange and Separate People, Child Child, and Jumping for Joy.

The design team for The Temperamentals includes set by Kurt Boetcher, lighting by Cameron Zetty, costumes by Lauren Tyler, and sound by Warren Davis. Matt Wolpe serves as music director, and producers are Daniel Henning, Noah Wyle, Matthew Graber and Angel Parker. The production stage manager is Marcedes Clanton.

Admission ranges from $26-$30 for regular performances. Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased by visiting www.TheBlank.com, or by calling (323) 661-9827. A speakeasy-style bar will be open to ticket holders at the Dragonfly Club (adjacent to the 2nd Stage) before evening performances, as well as at intermission.

The Blank’s 2nd Stage Theatre is located at 6500 Santa Monica Boulevard (at Wilcox), in Hollywood. Secured valet parking is available.

Photograph by Greg Gorman: (L to R) Mark Shunock, John Tartaglia, Erich Bergen, Dennis Christopher, Patrick Scott Lewis.  For more photographs, click here.

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05-10-11