Archived entries for Daniel Henning

NEWS RELEASE ✰ BLANK THEATRE FOUNDING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR DANIEL HENNING NAMED 2018 PRIDE HONOREE

THE BLANK THEATRE’S
FOUNDING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
DANIEL HENNING
NAMED A 2018 PRIDE HONOREE BY
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATIVE LGBT CAUCUS

Daniel Henning, the Founding Artistic Director of Hollywood’s Blank Theatre, has been named a 2018 Pride honoree by the California Legislative LGBT Caucus. A special floor ceremony was held on June 18 during the California State Assembly floor session in Sacramento. Honorees were presented with resolutions in commemoration of their accomplishments and contributions to the LGBT community.

California’s Legislative LGBT Caucus was formed in 2002 to create a forum for the state’s legislators to discuss issues that affect LGBT Californians and to further the goal of equality and justice for all Californians. Formation of the LGBT Caucus made California the first state in the country to recognize an official caucus of openly LGBT state legislators. Previous honorees represent motivated individuals in arts, law, business, and public service. They include Executive Director of Equality California Rick Zbur, journalist Helen Zia, Academy Award-winner Dustin Lance Black, and Bishop Rev. Dr. Yvette Flunder.

Daniel Henning is a native Californian, born in Oakland and raised in the East Bay. He has been an activist since middle school. His work for LGBTQ Equality includes creating the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the Black Cat Protests (the first major LGBTQ demonstration in the US) and directing and hosting the 2017 LA City Council LGBTQ Pride Ceremony. Henning is a director, producer, actor, and writer. His work has been seen on MTV, HBO, CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, and on stages throughout Southern California. He is the Founding Artistic Director of The Blank Theatre in Hollywood, winning over 200 awards for his productions from the LA Drama Critic Circle, LA Weekly, Ovations, NAACP, and more. Henning has been inspirational to thousands of young artists through his work in The Blank’s Young Playwrights Festival (the only professional nationwide competition for playwrights aged nine to 19, which he founded 26 years ago) including Tony Award-winning playwright Stephen Karam, who was a three-time winner in the Festival. Henning has written, developed, and produced many plays about the LGBTQ experience and raised thousands of dollars for Equality causes.

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06/25/18

NEWS RELEASE ▪︎ THE BLANK THEATRE’S 25th ANNIVERSARY YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL CHOOSES WINNERS

THE BLANK THEATRE’S 25TH ANNIVERSARY

YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL

CHOOSES WINNERS

12 PLAYS BY THE NATION’S BRIGHTEST YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS

WILL BE PERFORMED AT

 THE STELLA ADLER THEATRE IN HOLLYWOOD

JUNE 1 25, 2017

Young Playwrights Festival - 25th anniverary logoNow celebrating its 25th Anniversary, The Blank Theatre’s Nationwide Young Playwrights Festival has chosen 12 plays by playwrights aged 17, 18, and 19 from six different states and the District of Columbia. These plays will be presented by professional actors and directors in this year’s Festival at The Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood, June 1–25.

Said Daniel Henning, Founding Artistic Director of The Blank, “Each spring for the past 24 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.” Henning continued, “These are not only the voices of today’s theatre — they are the voices of tomorrow’s as well.”

This year’s winning plays are: CAROLINE’S GRAND FINALE by Madison Kiernan, Fernandina Beach, FL, Age 17; QUARTER CUP by Lani Kording, Costa Mesa, CA, Age 19; THE PRESENT IMPERFECT by Rachel Linton, Washington, DC, Age 19; LOADED by Trinity Goderstad, Engelwood, CO, Age 18; DEATH ROWS by Jasmine Sharma, Franklin Lakes, NJ, Age 18; TAKE IT WITH YOU by Jasmine Perry, New York, NY, Age 19; YOU’RE A BRAIN, THAT YOU ARE by Dana Hensler, Danville, CA, Age 19; THIS AMERICAN STRIFE  by Akela Munsey, Monrovia, CA, Age 17; THE SECRET LIFE OF BICYCLES by India Kotis, New York, NY, Age 19;THE AUGUST 22nd OF MY CHILDHOOD by Rayna Berggren, Santa Monica, CA, Age 18; OCEAN DEBRIS by Cassandra Hsiao, Walnut, CA, Age 17; and THAT’S WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT by James La Bella, Marlborough, CT, Age 19.

A panel of theatre professionals chose from 241 plays submitted by young writers across the nation. Winning playwrights are next assigned a mentor, and then a professional director who will help them hone their scripts for four public performances with professional actors. This year’s mentors include Dave Holstein (Weeds, Raising Hope), Ellen Byron (Just Shoot Me, Wings), Gary Tieche (Medium), Kit Steinkellner (four-time YPF winner), Beth Bigler (The Real Housewives of Atlanta and three-time YPF winner), Bert V. Royal (Dog Sees God), Austin Winsberg (five-time YPF winner;The Sound of Music Live, Gossip Girl), Adam Lapidus, Robert L. Freedman (two-time Tony Award-winner for A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder), Shelagh McFadden, Jennie Webb, and Adam Belanoff (Major Crimes). This year’s directors are (in alphabetical order) Barbara Bain, June Carryl, Warren Davis, Rebecca Eisenberg, James Kerwin, Angela Oh, Christopher J. Raymond, Michael A. Shepperd, Laura Stribling, Richard Tatum, April Webster, and Stoney Westmoreland.

Over the past 24 years, The Blank has produced 284 plays by young playwrights.Eleven of those plays or playwrights have gone on to be presented on The Blank’s mainstage. Additionally, many of the plays have been nominated for LA theatre awards, including an Ovation Award for Best Writing—World Premiere, and an LA Weekly Award for Best One-Act Playwriting. Other alumni playwrights are populating the nation’s theatres and sound stages with their work. Many YPF winners have gone on to successful writing careers on Broadway, are filling regional stages, and have created network TV shows. Alumnus winner Stephen Karam has been a two-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and is a Tony Award-winner for Best Play of the 2016 Broadway season for The Humans.

This year’s YPF is made possible in part by The Bloomberg Philanthropies, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Los Angeles City Department of Cultural Affairs, The Rosenthal Family Foundation, The Plum Foundation, and the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation.

The Blank Theatre’s 25th Anniversary Young Playwrights Festival will run June 1–25 at the Stella Adler Theatre, 6773 Hollywood Boulevard, in Hollywood. The performance schedule is Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm. Each week’s program includes three plays, and admission is $25 for adults and $15 for students. Festival passes, which are good for one ticket each week of the festival, are $80 for adults and $50 for students. Tickets may be purchased online at www.TheBlank.com, or by phone at (323) 661-9827.

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05-05-17

 

NEWS RELEASE — THE BLANK THEATRE LAUNCHES CROWDSOURCING CAMPAIGN AT GENEROSITY.COM ON MONDAY

THE BLANK THEATRE
LAUNCHES CROWDSOURCING CAMPAIGN
AT generosity.com
TO BENEFIT THE THEATRE’S
LIVING ROOM SERIES

Blank Theatre LogoThe Blank Theatre (Daniel Henning, Founding Artistic Director; Noah Wyle, Artistic Producer; Heather Provost, Producing Director), a 501(c)(3) non-profit arts organization, has announced a first ever generosity.com crowdsourcing campaign to raise funds for its Living Room Series play development program. With a goal of raising $10,000, the campaign begins on Monday, April 11.

Now in its 24th year, the Living Room Series is a New Play Development program which embodies The Blank’s commitment to developing new work by both established and emerging writers. The Living Room Series takes place on Monday evenings between Labor Day and Memorial Day at The Blank’s 2nd Stage Theatre. This program offers a week-long rehearsal process for the playwright, director, and actors to explore and refine the play before presenting it to an audience. The performances are minimally staged with actors carrying scripts and are a wonderful opportunity for the playwright to get a sense of the play’s full potential.

The Living Room Series develops and produces approximately 30 new plays each year. Many of these plays have later received productions at venues including Manhattan Theatre Club, Transport Group, Laguna Playhouse, Malibu Playhouse, The Colony Theatre, Primary Stages, Vineyard Theatre, LaMaMa ETC, and Brideswell Theatre in London. In 2014 The Explorer’s Club by Nell Benjamin (twice developed in the LRS) was produced by Manhattan Theatre Club where it won the NY Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off Broadway Play.

Generosity is a fundraising community built for personal and social causes. Generosity is about compassion — not fees. The Generosity community is free of the fees common to most fundraising platforms, which means users keep more money for their causes. Generosity was built to give Indiegogo users a new community for showing and sharing their compassion through personal fundraising. Generosity helps cancer patients with bills and students with tuition. It boosts humanitarian efforts into new countries and helps nonprofits move quickly with their causes. It fills the gap at the end of a tough month and supports the village after the storm. Generosity is human goodness on a grand scale. To learn more, visit https://www.generosity.com.

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. In its 26-year history, The Blank has won hundreds of awards including every major award in Los Angeles for Outstanding Production (LA Drama Critics Circle, Ovation, LA Weekly, NAACP, and Back Stage Garlands). The Blank has been at the forefront of providing high quality productions with a risk-taking sensibility and entertaining experiences. With programs such as its 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 info, please visit www.TheBlank.com.

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04-06-16