Announcing: Elephant Theatre Company presents Love Bites – Volume 10

ELEPHANT THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS

LOVE BITES – VOLUME 10
THE BEST OF LOVE BITES: 10 YEARS TOGETHER … AND STILL NO RING
An Encore Presentation of Some Not-So-Romantic and Dysfunctional
Short Plays From the Past 10 Years, Presented in Two Separate Programs
OPENING NIGHTS FEBRUARY 17 & 19

ANTI-VALENTINE’S DAY CELEBRATION
WITH SPECIAL PLAY LINE-UP
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14 AT 8PM

The Elephant Theatre Company, David Fofi and Lindsay Allbaugh, Co-Artistic Directors, has announced it will present this year’s annual short play festival as a “best of” encore anthology. THE BEST OF LOVE BITES: 10 Years Together … and Still No Ring will be split into two separate evenings of short one-acts that will run in repertory from Thursday, February 17 through Sunday, March 20. The two programs (‘Round One’ and ‘Round Two’) represent the best original short plays produced by the Elephant Theatre Company over the last ten years during its annual one-act festival, which has become a local ‘cult’ favorite. All of the plays, which will be performed at the Elephant Space in Hollywood, are written, performed and directed by members of the Company.

Kicking off the Elephant’s 15th Season, THE BEST OF LOVE BITES: 10 Years Together… and Still No Ring is a delicious assortment of short plays featuring dark humor, grand delusions and outright goofball shenanigans, all examining that elusive thing called love. Though it never bows to the conventions of a Hallmark greeting, LOVE BITES has become a hallmark of the Elephant Theatre Company’s distinctive excellence.

Various past festivals have garnered much praise. “Love Bites demonstrates that the Elephant Theatre Company can produce original material with depth and quality. The level of writing, acting and direction is above many of the company’s peers,” said LA Metro. And from Back Stage, “… not for the faint of heart … superbly acted and ably directed. These pieces, whether surreal or true to life, make for a crisp evening of outrageous fun … leaves one exhausted and guiltily anticipating next year’s production.”

THE BEST OF LOVE BITES will run as follows: Round 1 opens Thursday, February 17 at 8pm, and then plays Thursday and Friday at 8pm through March 18. Round 2 opens Saturday, February 19 at 8pm, and then plays Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm through March 20. General admission tickets are $20. There will also be a special Anti-Valentine’s Day (or, as Ken Werther likes to call it, Singles Awareness Day) Celebration on Monday, February 14 at 8pm, featuring a one-time lineup of plays, along with other surprises. Admission on Valentine’s Day is $25. [A COMPLETE LIST OF PLAYS FOLLOWS THIS RELEASE.]

To purchase tickets for regular performances and for the Anti-Valentine’s Day event, visit www.ElephantTheatreCompany.com or call (877) 369-9112. The Elephant Space is located at 6322 Santa Monica Boulevard (one block west of Vine), in Hollywood. Street parking is available.

THE BEST OF LOVE BITES: 10 Years Together… and Still No Ring

ROUND 1 (Thursday & Friday at 8pm)

THE ASCENT
Written by Jonathan Caren
Directed by David Fofi

MUPPET MAIDEN
Written and Directed by Alexandra Hoover

STRINGS
Written by Tony Foster
Directed by Amy French

EVERYTHING I DO
Written by Noelle Leiblic
Directed by David Fofi

BAGGAGE
Written and Directed by Kerry Carney

BLUFF
Written by Tony Foster
Directed by Amy French

WICKED CITY OR HUSH MY LOVE
Written by Dan McCoy
Directed by Tom Stanczyk

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

ROUND 2 (Saturday at 8pm & Sunday at 7pm)

REALITY ROMCOM: DAY 98 WITH MY ATTAINED PIXIE DREAM GIRL
Written by Kerry Carney
Directed by David Fofi

SOME MOLES AND OTHER COWLICKS
Written by Jonathan Caren and Zibby Allen
Directed by Lindsay Allbaugh

WEDDING LAMENT
Written by Louis Douglas Jacobs
Directed by Gina Garrison

NIGHT TRAIN
Written by Gena Acosta
Directed by Tom Stanczyk

CLOSE
Written by Tom Stanczyk
Directed by Edgar Landa

KARININAED
Written by Timothy McNeil
Directed by David Franco

PASTA AND LOVE
Written and Directed by David Franco

# # #

02-02-11

Extended: Six Performances Added to The Little Flower of East Orange

EXTENDED THRU JANUARY 15, 2011

Continuing Fri/Sat at 8 and Sun at 7 thru 12/19. Dark 12/20-1/6.
Added performances in January, 2011:
Fri 1/7, Sat 1/8, Thurs 1/13, Fri 1/14 and Sat 1/15 at 8pm; Sun 1/9 at 7pm

Thursday/Sunday $25; Friday/Saturday $30.

Call (877) 369-9112, or reserve online: www.elephanttheatrecompany.com

The Lillian Theatre, 1076 N. Lillian Way (just west of Vine, off Santa Monica
Boulevard), in Hollywood, 90038. Street parking is available.

Announcing: Melanie Jones Joins The Little Flower of East Orange

MELANIE JONES JOINS CAST OF ELEPHANT THEATRE COMPANY’S
WEST COAST PREMIERE OF
THE LITTLE FLOWER OF EAST ORANGE
BY STEPHEN ADLY GUIRGIS
DIRECTED BY DAVID FOFI

OPENS NOVEMBER 12 AT THE LILLIAN THEATRE

Former artistic director of Little Fish Theatre Melanie Jones has joined the cast of The Little Flower of East Orange by Stephen Adly Guirgis, it was announced today by Elephant artistic director David Fofi. Ms. Jones replaces the previously announced Katherine Helmond, who has left the production due to prior contractual obligations. Opening night is set for Friday, November 12, and The Little Flower of East Orange will play a strictly limited engagement through December 19.

Said Fofi, “Losing Katherine was devastating news for us, but we couldn’t be more thrilled that Melanie, a highly accomplished and respected actress, was available to step in so we could accommodate Katherine’s unexpected schedule shift.”

Melanie Jones began her professional career at age 16 with the Hartford Stage Company. A graduate of Brown University, she acted and directed for 10 seasons at Trinity Rep in Providence, RI. While artistic director of Little Fish Theatre in San Pedro, she appeared in productions of The School for Scandal, Hay Fever, Deathtrap, and Tooth and Nail. Directed by Fofi, and along with Jones, the cast of The Little Flower of East Orange features Michael Friedman, and (in alphabetical order) Mark Adair-Rios, LeShay Tomlinson Boyce, Kim Estes, Alejandro Furth, Kate Huffman, Timothy McNeil, Marisa O’Brien, Tom Stanczyk, and Tim Starks. The production design is by Joel Daavid, costume design is by Louis Douglas Jacobs, and sound design is by Matt Richter. Shannon Simonds is the production stage manager, and Little Flower is being produced for the Elephant by Lindsay Allbaugh and Tara Norris. Executive producer is Greg Borrud.

The Little Flower tale begins as Therese Marie (Jones) arrives in the emergency room of a small hospital in the Bronx. The nurses and doctors assume she is just another faceless charity case; abandoned, elderly and unable to even tell them her name. But Therese Marie’s dementia is not all that it seems and when her prodigal son Danny returns to New York, Therese Marie must fight to maintain her dignity as he imposes upon her the ugly secrets of their past. In this inter-generational ghost story, we observe a searing portrait of a mother and son who must face a long family legacy of abuse in order to find the true meaning of grace. The Little Flower of East Orange is part of the recently announced Elephant Theatre Company/LAByrinth Theater Company partnership.

Opening night is set for Friday, November 12 at 8:00. Seats are available to the public for that performance at $40, which includes a reception with the cast following the show. The regular running schedule is Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm through December 19 only. All tickets for regular performances are $25 and $30. To purchase tickets, call (877) 369-9112 or reserve online: www.elephanttheatrecompany.com. Also, visit the Elephant on Facebook and follow us on twitter @ElephantTheatre.

The Lillian Theatre is located at 1076 N. Lillian Way (one block west of Vine, just off Santa Monica Boulevard), in Hollywood. Street parking is available.

# # #

11-06-10