Announcing: Blank Theatre Presents World Premiere of “Sukie & Sue: Their Story” by Michael John LaChiusa

LINDSEY BROAD, RAE FOSTER, LENNY JACOBSON
AND MACKENZIE PHILLIPS
LEAD THE CAST OF THE BLANK THEATRE’S WORLD PREMIERE PRODUCTION OF SUKIE & SUE: THEIR STORY
BY MICHAEL JOHN LACHIUSA
DIRECTED BY KIRSTEN SANDERSON

FINAL PRODUCTION OF THE BLANK’S 21ST SEASON
BEGINS PERFORMANCES APRIL 21 AT 2ND STAGE THEATRE IN HOLLYWOOD
OPENS SATURDAY, APRIL 28 AT 8PM

Casting is complete and rehearsals have begun for The Blank Theatre’s world premiere production of Sukie & Sue: Their Story by Michael John LaChiusa, directed by Kirsten Sanderson. Developed last year in The Blank’s Living Room Series, Sukie & Sue: Their Story is the only play ever written by LaChiusa, who has received five Tony Award nominations for his musicals. Sukie & Sue: Their Story begins previews on April 21, and opening is set for Saturday, April 28 at 8pm. The engagement will run through Sunday, June 3.

Based on actual events, Sukie & Sue: Their Story tells the creepy yet funny tale of two young nurses who have everything to live for … great boyfriends, jobs that actually help people, and as much weed as they can smoke. That is until their Raggedy Ann doll becomes possessed and destroys their lives. Packed with laughter, this play is likely to send audiences home checking under their beds for demons with hair made of red yarn.

The cast, in alphabetical order, is Nick Ballard, Lindsey Broad (The Office, 21 Jump Street), Elena Campbell-Martinez, Eddie Driscoll, Rae Foster, Lenny Jacobson (Nurse Jackie), Mary-Beth Manning, and Mackenzie Phillips (One Day at a Time). Kirsten Sanderson has directed new works by Michael John LaChiusa, Craig Lucas, Shel Silverstein, Stephen Schwartz, and Blake Edwards, among others. For The Blank, Sanderson also directed LaChiusa’s Little Fish, and last season’s Terre Haute by Edmund White, starring Mike Farrell and Jim Parrack.

Along with an original underscore by Michael John LaChiusa, the design team for Sukie & Sue: Their Story includes set by Eric Broadwater, lighting by Stephanette Smith, costumes by Bethany Jane Bohatila, props and special effects by Stephen Weston, and sound by Warren Davis. Producers are Matthew Graber, Daniel Henning, and Noah Wyle, and the stage manager is Liana Dillaway.

Sukie & Sue: Their Story begins previews on Saturday, April 21 at 8pm. Previews continue on Sunday, April 22 at 2pm and Tuesday, April 24 through Friday, April 27 at 8pm. Opening night is set for Saturday, April 28 at 8:00. The regular running schedule is Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm through June 3. Admission is $26 for previews, and 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.

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

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03-20-12

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: Echo Theater Co. Presents “God’s Ear” at Zephyr Theatre Beginning January 12

ECHO THEATER COMPANY PRESENTS THE LOS ANGELES PREMIERE OF
GOD’S EAR
BY JENNY SCHWARTZ
DIRECTED BY RORY KOZOLL

OPENS JANUARY 14, 2012 AT THE ZEPHYR THEATRE

The Echo Theater Company has announced it will present the Los Angeles premiere of God’s Ear, a play by Jenny Schwartz, directed by Rory Kozoll. God’s Ear will play two preview performances on January 12 and 13, and is set to open on Saturday, January 14 at 8:00pm. The engagement runs through Sunday, February 19.

In God’s Ear, a couple suffers a tragic accident, and their grief propels them into a fantastical world where the Tooth Fairy sings, their flight attendant is a cross dresser, and GI Joe offers family counseling. It’s a lyrically absurd journey of love, loss, and laughter. Playwright Jenny Schwartz is a New York-based playwright and a graduate of Juilliard, where she received a fellowship in the Lila Acheson Wallace Playwrighting Program. God’s Ear premiered at New Georges in 2007, was subsequently produced by the Vineyard Theatre in 2008, and was a finalist for the 2007 Susan Smith Blackburn Award.

The cast will feature (in alphabetical order) Troy Blendell, Paul Caramagno, Alana Dietze, Andrea Grano, Tara Karsian, Amanda Saunders, and Jeremy Shranko. The design team includes set by Melissa Ficociello, lighting by Kristie Roldan, costumes by Jordan Bass, and sound by Drew Dalzell. Music direction is by Alex Mackyol, and Leia Crawford is the production stage manager. God’s Ear is produced for the Echo Theater Company by Lauren Bass and Chris Fields.

The multiple award-winning Echo Theater Company has presented 47 Los Angeles premiere productions, 37 world premieres, and 22 commissions. These productions introduced Los Angeles to the work of David Lindsay-Abaire, Sarah Ruhl, Adam Rapp, Adam Bock, Cusi Cram, Gary Sunshine, Ron Fitzgerald, Tanya Barfield, and Mike Batistick, among many others. Most recently, the Echo was nominated for three Ovation Awards including Best Ensemble and Best Play for its West Coast premiere of Mark Schultz’s Everything Will Be Different. The company also received seven LA Weekly Award nominations for its world premiere production of Matt Benjamin and Logan Brown’s Wirehead. The West Coast premiere of Jessica Goldberg’s Body Politic garnered Ovation nominations for Best Play and Best Ensemble. The Echo also engages in community outreach programs including a free public reading series, ActOut, an educational outreach program dedicated to helping at-risk youth, and PlayTime, an outreach program in which Echo members perform fairy tales, nursery rhymes and theater pieces for sick children of all ages in a number of facilities and hospitals in Los Angeles.

God’s Ear will play two preview performances on Thursday, January 12, and Friday, January 13 at 8pm, and opening night is set for Saturday, January 14 at 8:00. The six-week only engagement will end on Sunday, February 19. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm and Sundays at 7:00pm. Tickets are $25 and may be purchased by visiting www.echotheatercompany.com or by calling (877) 369-9112. The Zephyr Theatre is located at 7456 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, 90046. Street parking is available.

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12-15-11