NEWS RELEASE – LOS ANGELES LGBT CENTER PRESENTS “THE SEARCH FOR SIGNS OF INTELLIGENT LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE: REVISITED — OPENS SATURDAY 10/8 at 8pm

The Los Angeles LGBT Center’s
Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center
Presents
The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Revisited

By Jane Wagner
Directed by Ken Sawyer

PREVIEWS BEGIN OCTOBER 4
OPENS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8 AT 8PM

For the first time in the 35-year history of Jane Wagner’s iconic play The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, the author and her creative and life partner Lily Tomlin have given their approval for it to be reinvented as a fully staged production performed by a company of 12 actors as opposed to its original solo format. This first-ever fully cast production will be directed by Ovation Award-winner Ken Sawyer with previews beginning October 4. Opening is set for Saturday, October 8 at 8pm at the Davidson/Valentini Theatre at the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

Over the last four years, the Center’s Cultural Arts Program’s creative collaboration of Artistic Director Jon Imparato and director Ken Sawyer has presented the critically-acclaimed hits Deathtrap; The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later; The Goat or, Who Is Sylvia?; and Hit the Wall (which won Sawyer LADCC and Stage Raw Awards for Best Director and a Best Production of the Year Award for the Center). The new staging of Wagner’s play is titled The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Revisited. Said Imparato, “It was important to give our production a new name so that audiences are aware this is not a solo performance but a reimagined version of the play with different actors playing the many roles.”

In The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Revisited audiences will embark on a hilarious, tender, and profound journey through the streets, across the world, and far beyond. The cast will include (in alphabetical order) Julia Aks, Charlotte Gulezian, Joe Hart, Julanne Chidi Hill, Kristina Johnson, Kimberly Jürgen, Bellini Logan, Jeremy Luke, Ann Noble, Sasha Pasternak, Anny Rosario, and Rachel Sorsa.

The design team: Stephanie Kerley Schwartz (set), Matt Richter and Adam Earle (lighting), Paula Higgins (costumes), Matt Richter (sound), Nick Santiago (projection design), Anna Waronker and Charlotte Caffey (original music and underscore), Yusif Nasir (choreography), and Mo Gaffney (mime instruction). The producer for the Los Angeles LGBT Center is Jon Imparato, and Rebecca Schoenberg serves as stage manager.

Preview performances begin on October 4 at 8pm and continue on October 5, 6, and 7 at 8pm. Opening is set for Saturday, October 8 at 8pm. The engagement will run through December 11 with no performances over Thanksgiving weekend. General admission tickets are $30 and 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 Davidson/Valentini Theatre is located at 1125 N. McCadden Place (one block east of Highland, just north of Santa Monica Boulevard), in Hollywood, 90038. Free onsite parking is available.

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09-06-16

About the Los Angeles LGBT Center
Since 1969 the Los Angeles LGBT Center has cared for, championed, and celebrated LGBT individuals and families in Los Angeles and beyond. Today the Center’s more than 500 employees and 3,000 volunteers provide services for more LGBT people than any other organization in the world, offering programs, services, and global advocacy that span four broad categories: Health, Social Services and Housing, Culture and Education, and Leadership and Advocacy. The Center is an unstoppable force in the fight against bigotry and the struggle to build a better world — a world in which LGBT people can be healthy, equal, and complete members of society. Learn more at http://lalgbtcenter.org

NEWS RELEASE — WORLD PREMIERE PLAY “STANLEY ANN: THE UNLIKELY STORY OF BARACK OBAMA’S MOTHER” STARRING ANN NOBLE SET TO OPEN AT LOS ANGELES LGBT CENTER JULY 9

The Los Angeles LGBT Center’s
Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center
Victoria Mudd and Elizabeth Yng-Wong Present

A World Premiere Play
STANLEY ANN:
The Unlikely Story of Barack Obama’s Mother
Written by Mike Kindle
Directed by Mark Bringelson
Performed by Ann Noble

OPENS JULY 9 AT 8PM
at the Davidson/Valentini Theatre

The Los Angeles LGBT Center, Victoria Mudd, and Elizabeth Yng-Wong have announced the world premiere production of Stanley Ann: The Unlikely Story of Barack Obama’s Mother. The one-woman play, written by Mike Kindle and directed by Mark Bringelson, chronicles the life of Stanley Ann Dunham from her young adult years in Hawaii to her later professional life in Indonesia. Starring Ann Noble (The Goat or, Who Is Sylvia?), Stanley Ann will play two preview performances on July 7 and 8 at 8pm and opening is set for Thursday, July 9 at 8pm at the Center’s Davidson/Valentini Theatre.

Stanley Ann introduces a brave, idealistic, adventurous woman whose moral compass dictated painful choices. Drawing on actual events, the play follows Dunham’s journey from single motherhood to international adventurer through a crisis of conscience at the farthest edge of the American Empire.

First workshopped at the Powerhouse Theatre in Santa Monica, Stanley Ann was further refined in Washington, DC at the Capital Fringe Festival with Ms. Noble in the title role. Now Mudd and Yng-Wong are teaming up with the Los Angeles LGBT Center to present the world premiere of this revealing and electrifying new play.

Mike Kindle (Playwright) received his BA in Drama from the University of Virginia and his MFA in Theatre from UCLA. He is highly active in the Los Angeles theatre community, is a proud member of the oft-recognized Los Angeles Theater Ensemble, and has worked for Center Theatre Group.

Mark Bringelson (Director) is a multi-award-winning director and actor who works in theatre, film, TV, opera, and music videos. The long list of world premieres he has directed for the stage include, most recently, Michael Kearns’ BANG BANG at Highways Performance Space, Susan Rubin’s EVE2 at Bootleg Theatre, and Tony Foster’s Swimmer’s Ear at Skylight Theatre. Bringelson wrote and directed the 60-minute noir film Obedience and the short film Phonecall. He also directed two pilots for HBO, Tug and Buster and Caveman.

Actress Ann Noble is one of LA’s most accomplished and celebrated actresses. A member of The Antaeus Company, Noble is also an accomplished playwright and producer. Most recently she received extraordinary praise for her multiple award-winning role as Stevie in the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s universally acclaimed production of Edward Albee’s The Goat or, Who Is Sylvia?

There will be two preview performances on Tuesday, July 7 at 8pm and Wednesday, July 8 at 8pm. Stanley Ann will open on Thursday, July 9 at 8pm. General admission tickets for are $15 for previews and $20 for regular performances and may be purchased online at www.lalgbtcenter.org/theatre or by phone at (323) 860-7300. The performance schedule is Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm through July 26 only. Net proceeds from ticket sales will support the full range of free and low-cost programs and services offered by the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

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06-09-15

Press Release — All Star Cast Will Perform ‘The Vagina Monologues’ May 16-17-18 to Benefit V-Day & Protect.org

All-Star Cast Will Perform
The Vagina Monologues
to Benefit V-Day and Protect.org

Popular LATalkRadio Host Sheena Metal
Directs the Eve Ensler Play
at the Atwater Village Theatre Speakeasy

3 Performances Only, May 16-17-18

More than 50 film and television stars will perform Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues in an intimate theatrical setting for three performances only, May 16, 17, and 18 at 8pm, at the Atwater Village Theatre in Los Angeles. Produced and directed by Sheena Metal for Ensemble Studio Theatre Los Angeles, all proceeds will benefit V-Day, A Global Movement to End Violence Against Women and Girls, and Protect.org, a national pro-child, anti-crime association committed to building a powerful, nonpartisan force for the protection of children from abuse, exploitation and neglect.

“It is exciting to work with so many great actresses, all of whom are graciously donating their time and talents,” said Metal, whose popular LATalkRadio show, The Sheena Metal Experience (M-F, 5-7pm) is only one of four programs she hosts on LATR each week. “I salute every artist, onstage and off, that is contributing to this special presentation of The Vagina Monologues.”

Among the long list of luminous actresses who will perform in the three benefit performances are (in alphabetical order) Alison Arngrim, Yvette Cason, Daisy Eagan, Ilene Graff, Sally Kirkland, Ann Noble, Jenny O’Hara, Susan Olsen, Lizzie Peet, Suzanne Westenhoefer, and Kim Yarbrough. A complete cast list is available at www.vdayla.com.

To date, the V-Day movement, founded by playwright/actress Eve Ensler, has raised over $75 million and educated millions about the issue of violence against women and the efforts to end it. In 2006, the V-Day movement was named one of Marie Claire Magazine’s Top Ten Charities, and in 2010, over 5400 V-Day benefit events took place produced by volunteer activists in the U.S. and around the world, educating millions of people about the reality of violence against women and girls. In 12 years, the V-Day movement has reached over 300 million people.

These special performances of The Vagina Monologues are Friday, Saturday, and Sunday May 16, 17, and 18, at 8pm. Tickets are $25, and may be purchased online at www.vdayla.com. The Atwater Village Theatre Speakeasy is located at 3269 Casitas Avenue, in Los Angeles.

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05-07-14