November | 2012 | Intimate Excellent
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt was at the Fountain Theatre on Sunday, November 25, to catch the performance of our critically acclaimed Los Angeles Premiere of In the Red and Brown Water.
Have you seen Joe as Robert Lincoln (Abe’s oldest son) in Steven Spielberg‘s film Lincoln starring Daniel Day Lewis? Joseph Gordon-Levitt is an actor and director whose career as both a child and an adult has included television and feature films. He is best known for his roles in the films (500) Days of Summer, Inception, 50/50,The Dark Knight Rises, and Looper, and for playing Tommy Solomon in the television sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun. Gordon-Levitt began his career in commercials as a child before making his film debut in Beethoven. He has also starred in 10 Things I Hate About You, Manic, Mysterious Skin, Brick, The Lookout, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, and Premium Rush, and plays a supporting role in Steven Spielberg‘s Lincoln. He founded the online production company hitRECord, in 2004.
It is rumored that Joe may suit up as Batman in the upcoming Justice League movie for Warner Brothers.
Great seeing him at the Fountain!
In the Red and Brown Water Extended to Feb 24 (323) 663-1525 More
Posted in actors, Arts, Drama, movies, performing arts, plays, Theater, theatre
Tagged (500) Days of Summer, 10 Things I Hate About You, 3rd Rock from the Sun, 50/50, Batman, Brick, Daniel Day Lewis, Fountain Theatre, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, hitRECord, In The Red and Brown Water, Inception, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Justice League, Lincoln, Looper, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Premiere, Manic, Mysterious Skin, new plays, plays, Robert Lincoln, Steven Spielberg, The Dark Knight Rises, The Lookout, theater, Tommy Solomon, Warner brothers
Fanny Ara
Forever Flamenco, an L.A. Weekly “Pick of the Week”, continues its long and successful run (9th Smash Year!) at the Fountain Theatre. This sensual art form tells stories of love and loss, happiness and longing, and the intimate 78-seat setting of the Fountain Theatre is the perfect place to see the art of flamenco as it is meant to be experienced. A rotating series of directors and a cast of L.A.’s top flamenco singers, dancers and guitarists combine precise choreography with spontaneous exploration to create an electrifying show that is a completely new experience each performance.
Antonio Triana
The Fountain Theatre’s acclaimed series presents dancers Fanny Ara, Melissa Cruz and Manuel Gutierrez, with artistic director Antonio Triana and special guest Kai Narezo on guitar, percussionist Joey Heredia, and Gypsy cantaor (singer) José Cortes. With only 78 seats in four rows, the Fountain is the perfect place to view flamenco. Each show features a roster of world-class dancers, singers and musicians drawn from the rich pool of flamenco artists in Southern California, with additional guest artists brought from San Francisco, Albuquerque and Spain.
Forever Flamenco Dec 9 (323) 663-1525 More
Posted in Arts, Dance, dancer, flamenco, Fountain Theatre, performing arts, singer, Theater, theatre
Tagged Antonio Triana, Dance, Deborah Lawlor, Fanny Ara, Flamenco, flamenco dancing, flamenco guitar, Forever Flamenco, Fountain Theatre, Joey Heredia, Jose Cortes, Kai Narezo, Los Angeles, Manuel Gutierrez, Melissa Cruz, theater
“In the Red and Brown Water” (photo by Ed Krieger)
The Fountain Theatre has extended the Los Angeles premiere of Tarell Alvin McCraney’s lusciously theatrical and boldly original In the Red and Brown Water through the end of February, in honor of Black History Month. Performances will continue through December 16 as previously scheduled, then resume on January 5 for an additional eight weeks through February 24.
Lyrically weaving together elements of urban contemporary realism with West African mysticism, In the Red and Brown Water tells the tale of Oya, who can run faster than anyone—but not fast enough to escape her destiny. Her journey from the promise of youth to the complicated yearnings of womanhood is joyous, raucous, raw and brazenly beautiful.
The Fountain production has been declared “100% Sweet” by Bitter Lemons, a website that aggregates Los Angeles theater reviews, and which, in a rare editorial comment, writes, “Once again, the Fountain Theatre shows that they are the class of Los Angeles theater, big or small… this is simply what theater is meant to be.” The Los Angeles Times raves, “CRITIC’S CHOICE! Beyond the fact that it is sensational, the Fountain Theatre’s production of ‘In the Red and Brown Water’… introduces Los Angeles audiences to a dramatic poet in the process of discovering his singular voice and shows how magnificently one of L.A.’s better small theaters can serve bold new talent.” The LA Weekly agrees, “GO! A visceral fable that rises up from the underbelly of America,” and Back Stage calls In the Red and Brown Water “a production that explodes in sounds, images, and extraordinary performances.”
It took the Fountain three years to obtain rights to produce McCraney’s play, which first exploded on the theater scene with a production at New York’s Public Theatre in 2009. On his personal Facebook page, Los Angeles Times Theater Critic Charles McNulty posts, “I love [the Fountain Theatre] production — even more than the one at the Public Theater. LA Theater is not to be underestimated!”
In the Red and Brown Water is helmed by multiple award-winning director Shirley Jo Finney. Diarra Kilpatrick stars as Oya in “a lead performance that is so good you wonder if somehow the designers may have concocted some kind of CGI image in front of your eyes instead of a living breathing human being; her movement, range of emotion and depth of passion is so indescribable that it will literally take your breath away.” (Colin Mitchell, Bitter Lemons). The ensemble also includes Dorian Christian Baucum, Peggy A.Blow, Gilbert Glenn Brown, Justin Chu Cary, Stephen Marshall, Simone Missick, Iona Morris, Theodore Perkins and Maya Lynne Robinson.
Performances of In the Red and Brown Water continue through February 24 on Thursdays (through December 13 only),Fridays and Saturdays @ 8 pm and Sundays @ 2 pm (dark December 17 through January 4). Call (323) 663-1525 or go to www.FountainTheatre.com.
Posted in actors, Arts, director, Drama, Fountain Theatre, new plays, performing arts, plays, playwright, Theater, theatre
Tagged African American, Back Stage, Bitter Lemons, Black History Month, Charles McNulty, Colin Mitchell, Critic’s Choice, Dorian Christian Baucum, Facebook, Fountain Theatre, Gilbert Glenn Brown, In The Red and Brown Water, Iona Morris, Justin Chu Cary, LA Weekly, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Premiere, Los Angeles Times, Maya Lynne Robinson, new plays, Peggy A. Blow, plays, playwriting, Public Theater, rave reviews, Shirley Jo Finney, Simone Missick, Stephen Marshall, Tarell Alvin McCraney, theater, Theodore Perkins
Alan Goodson
College students from Fashion Institute for Design and Merchandising attended a recent performance of In the Red and Brown Water. The students are in their first or second year of college and are mostly 18 to 22 years old. Their teacher is Alan Goodson, who is also an actor who has appeared on our Fountain stage.
“The class is called Seminar in the Arts,” explains Goodson. “The students are generally visual artists of one kind or another, but have had little or no exposure to other artistic media – so I try to broaden their artistic horizons by taking them to theatre, classical music, and architectural walks. ”
“In the Red and Brown Water”
After seeing In the Red and Brown Water at the Fountain, the students were required to write about their experience. Here are some comments:
“I was extremely moved by ‘In the Red and Brown Water’ and would most definitely recommend this play to others. I went into this play close-minded because I have never been one to enjoy plays all that much, but this play was very intriguing and captured my attention from the start.”
*
“Tarrell Alvin McCraney (the writer) tells a story of a young girl, Oya (the magnificent Diarra Kilpatrick), who may be able to outrun everyone, but she cannot escape her fate. Oya’s journey, from her promising youth to the complications of womanhood, is a joyous, raw and openly beautiful portrayal. . . . Going into the play with an open mind is essential, most of the audience were FIDM students who had no idea what lay ahead of them; one of them being me. I truthfully did not expect myself to enjoy ‘In the Red and Brown Water’ as much as I truly did. It is not a play with a happy-ever-after ending; this was to show that not everyone leaves the earth pleased. Life is about lessons and hardships that make the person who they are, Oya’s journey showed her heartache, happiness, sorrow, all in one lifetime. She had a beautiful life of joy and despair, and we all were privileged to see this acted out on stage. And while all but one of the characters are people of color, the play’s themes of self-discovery, choices, and destiny transcend race. McCraney is not just a voice for all people, but for the ages.”
*
“I was completely lost in a different world and truly feeling the raw emotions portrayed on stage thanks to an intimate theatre and exquisite actors. . . . ‘In the Red and Brown Water’ leaves the audience questioning and interpreting. Which is the reason why people create or look at art in the first place.”
*
“This production had a talented, enthusiastic cast that made the play very intimate, real and entertaining. This play will indefinitely engrave a sense of passion and inspiration in the hearts and minds of everyone that gets the opportunity to experience it.”
*
“The play allows your emotions to be heightened throughout the cultural, relatable, and life-inspiring performance. It was wonderfully executed, designed, and detailed, allowing the audience to understand the purpose and plot of the wonderful story. Overall, the play allows you to be a part of the emotional rollercoaster that the characters feel.”
*
“The play really spoke to my emotions, making me feel as though I was on the rollercoaster ride with Oya. This was due to the ten brilliant cast members, the set design and the intriguing storyline. It was an honor to attend one of the plays of Tarell Alvin McCraney at the Fountain Theatre in such a small, intimate setting. The play would not have left me feeling the emotions I did if it was in a larger theater. I highly recommend this play to someone who wants to broaden his or her horizons and set foot into the life of someone else.”
*
“The story of Oya and McCraney’s lives came together beautifully to create a story easily relatable for most people. With excellent lighting techniques and subtle props, the message is clearly portrayed and allows the audience to become a part of the scene using imagination. Without the wonderful performances by the actors, actually becoming the characters, the play would not have been as powerful. This play may relate personally to some, but provides a deep message for all.”
*
“I would definitely recommend the play, ‘In the Red and Brown Water”, to my family and friends. The experience watching this method of theatre performance revealed a way to capture scenes, dialogue, settings, and so on, that I never knew about. I thought this play was amazing. Overall, I highly enjoyed my time at the Fountain Theatre and would love to go back and see other plays.”
*
“Throughout the play, the different aspects of the script and how the performance was carried out truly inspired me and were easily relatable, as everyone goes through the common troubles of life. . . . The theme of this play and performance inspired me in creative ways for current assignments and has positively affected my views of smaller theatres.”
“In the Red and Brown Water”
In the Red and Brown Water has also earned Rave Reviews from critics everywhere, including being highlighted as Critic’s Choice in the Los Angeles Times.
It runs to December 16th. (323) 663-1525 More
Posted in actors, Arts, designers, director, Drama, Fountain Theatre, new plays, performing arts, plays, playwright, Theater, theatre
Tagged Alan Goodson, college students, Critic’s Choice, Diarra Kilpatrick, Fashion Institute for Design and Merchandising, Fountain Theatre, In The Red and Brown Water, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Premiere, Los Angeles Times, new plays, Oya, plays, playwriting, rave reviews, students, Tarrell Alvin McCraney, theater
Paul Rudd and Kate Arrington in “Grace”.
Next time you’re in a theatre and a cell phone goes off, remember… it could be worse.
Such was the case Wednesday night when an audience member vomited over the mezzanine and on to people sitting below in the orchestra section during a Broadway performance of Grace, starring Paul Rudd, Ed Asner, Michael Shannon and Kate Arrington.
An elderly man became sick during the evening’s performance, leaned over the edge of the balcony and hurled during the middle of the show, causing a ruckus in the audience and noticeably affecting the actors on stage.
Theatergoer Lori Schwab, who was in the audience, gave this account of the incident: “I was at the Cort Theater seeing the play “Grace”. In the middle of the show there was quite the ruckus. After hearing a loud gasp several people got up and left the theater, followed by several more. During all of this the actors carried on as best they could. At the end of the show, the cast came out for curtain calls, and just before making their call for $$ for Actors Equity fights Aids fund, Paul Rudd told us that someone in the balcony had vomited onto those in the orchestra.”
New York Magazine‘s Daily Intel also had a tipster in the audience, who noted, that it all started when the man in question — who appeared to be elderly — passed out. He “fell forward so that he was leaning/hanging over the balcony. Then as people were trying to get him back up and into his seat, he threw up all over the people below him in the orchestra and then collapsed on the floor of the balcony. A group of about twenty formed around where he was, and everyone in the theater was looking back at the commotion … The stench of the vomit was a little overwhelming, and many people were noticeably uncomfortable, and of course everyone who was vomited on left.”
The tipster also said that the actors all kept their composure on stage and finished the show without stopping. It was only after curtain call that Rudd addressed the situation to the audience.
Paul Rudd
“At the end of the show, they all made jokes about it, Paul Rudd saying how as an actor, being able to move people to tears or to laughter is amazing — but moving them to puking is a whole different league,” writes the Daily Intel tipster. “Then after the show, at the stage door, the actors said how they almost stopped the show because they didn’t know the severity of the situation.”
Audience members called 911, but the vomiting suspect returned to his seat, presumably to make sure he caught the end of the play.
Posted in actors, Arts, Drama, Fountain Theatre, performing arts, plays, playwright, Theater, theatre
Tagged Broadway, Cort Theatre, Ed Asner, Grace, Kate Arrington, Michael Shannon, Paul Rudd, throw up, vomit
Tarell Alvin McCraney
In the Red and Brown Water playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney will direct and adapt a new production of Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra as part of a collaboration among the Public Theater, GableStage in Miami and the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Public announced on Monday. The play will have its premiere at the Stratford-Upon-Avon home of the Royal Shakespeare Company, where Mr. McCraney is an artistic associate, in November 2013, before being staged in Miami in January 2014 and later that month at the Public.
In addition to directing the production, Mr. McCraney edited the text, reordered the scene structure and relocated the play to “the late 1700s against the backdrop of Saint-Domingue, on the eve of the Haitian Revolution against the French,” according to a news release. Casting will take place in London, New York and Miami, Mr. McCraney’s hometown.
Artistic leaders from all three companies say their faith in and admiration for McCraney is what led them to say yes to the collaboration.
Oskar Eustis
“One of the beautiful things about this is that it was driven by Tarell,” says Oskar Eustis, artistic director at the Public, which has presented all three of McCraney’s reputation-making Brother/Sister Plays. “The key to all of this is that we’re unabashed Tarell McCraney fans.”
“Tarell was our playwright in residence, and I wanted to see his take on Antony and Cleopatra,” emailed Michael Boyd, former artistic director of the RSC, who commissioned the script, adding that he was seeking “a bold new take on this difficult play.”
For GableStage’s Joseph Adler, McCraney’s Antony and Cleopatra is an opportunity to build on a relationship that began last season with McCraney’s staging of his The Brothers Size and this season with a January-February production of Hamlet, a 90-minute adaptation McCraney and Bijan Sheibani wrote for the RSC.
The Public’s Eustis explains why a McCraney Antony and Cleopatra set in Haiti is so appealing to him.
“This isn’t an idea you’d lay on top of the play. It’s not a contemporary, lively, anachronistic setting,” he says. “This is something that will allow people to hear this play differently. This brings it closer and makes us understand colonialism.”
“Tarell has a deep sense that his work is in service of something much bigger than himself. He’s trying to answer to an artistic imperative. It makes you want to throw your weight behind him,” Eustis says.
“His life will get more complicated, but one still feels the purity of that vision. Not just for his sake, you want to hold him out as an example that you don’t have to sell out to be a success.”
Tarell Alvin McCraney
A 2007 graduate of Yale, Mr. McCraney is best known for his trilogy The Brother/Sister Plays. His other plays have been produced at major regional theaters throughout the United States and in England. McCraney’s play, Choir Boy, opened at London’s Royal Court Theatre to rave reviews.
Commissioned by New York’s Manhattan Theatre Club, where it will get its U.S. premiere with previews starting June 18 and an opening July 2,Choir Boy is set in a black boys’ prep school celebrating its 50th anniversary. The headmaster’s nephew is at odds with Pharus, a gay student with a glorious tenor voice who is determined to become leader of the school’s famous gospel choir. In her review in The Guardian, critic Lyn Gardner writes: “Threaded with searing gospel songs, McCraney’s play examines the shifting nature of truths, biblical and otherwise, and cleverly manipulates the hot-house setting to consider wider issues of black American history, from the brutal days of slavery to Obama’s cry of ‘yes we can!’”
“In the Red and Brown Water” (Fountain Theatre, LA Premiere, 2012)
The Foutain Theatre‘s Los Angeles premiere production of McCraney’s In the Red and Brown Water is a critical and popular smash hit, earning rave reviews including Critic’s Choice in the Los Angeles Times.
Stephen Sachs
“We’re thrilled with the overwhelming response to the play,” says Fountain Co-Artistic Director Stephen Sachs. “And proud to be the theatre that introduced this important new playwright to Los Angeles audiences. We look forward to continuing our relationship with Tarell. The Fountain is his home in Los Angeles.”
In the Red and Brown Water is now playing to December 16th, call (323) 663-1525 or buy tickets.
Posted in actors, Arts, director, Drama, new plays, performing arts, plays, playwright, Theater, theatre
Tagged Antony and Cleopatra, Chicago, Critic’s Choice, Fountain Theatre, GableStage, Head of Passes, In The Red and Brown Water, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times, new plays, New York, plays, playwriting, Public Theater, Saint-Domingue, Stephen Sachs, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Stratford Upon Avon, Tarell Alvin McCraney, The Brother/Sister Plays, The Royal Shakespeare Company, theater, William Shakespeare
Fountain box office manager James Bennett.
by Rachel Fain
Los Angeles is peppered with small theater companies performing in intimate spaces. They are tiny nonprofits, operating on a shoestring and dependent on dedicated volunteers. Many are nomadic, renting space as they need it. These Los Angeles theater companies are, perhaps, the true pioneers of the pop-up movement now popular with restaurants and retail shops.
Others have found permanent homes, shoehorned into storefronts and carved out of warehouses or similar not-quite-traditional spaces. A few have shiny, new theaters built by the largesse of a few generous and stalwart donors.
None of these companies is rich. They operate under the 99-Seat Plan agreement withActors’ Equity, the theater actors’ union. This limits their costs, but also caps the audience at 99 per performance. It can be very difficult to pay a crew, let alone turn a profit, when your income is so limited. And many of these 99-Seat Plan theaters have even fewer than 99 seats, making filling those seats for every performance very important. The people who run the box offices of these intimate theaters have jobs that look very different from their counterparts at larger venues.
Fountain Theatre
The Fountain Theatre has occupied its home, on Fountain Avenue near Normandie, since 1990. James Bennett has managed the box office for about three years, while finishing a degree in communications. He inherited the position from a high school friend who held the job before him. He is one of four full-time employees at the Fountain—plus two part-timers.
The fact that the Fountain employs a part-time parking attendant speaks to its focus on “superlative service,” Bennett says. As the only box office staffer, Bennett knows his patrons “by name, by voice, by face.” He takes great pride in not only being able to recognize them in person or on the phone, but also knowing where they like to sit—yes, unlike most intimate houses, this theater has assigned seating. He alone processes all ticket orders from the phone and online, assigns seats, and prints out the tickets each day. It may be apocryphal, but the story goes that the theater started assigning seats after two patrons got into a fistfight over front row center—and the theater has only six seats in front row center.
Assigning seats clears up problems in the theater, but creates other challenges. “Sometimes people have specific needs that overlap with other people that have the same specific needs,” says Bennett, “and I am of the opinion that nobody is more important than anybody else, ever, so sometimes I have to give someone something that they don’t exactly know they want, yet.”
Bennett finds the front row too close anyway, and when his mother or girlfriend comes to the theater, he puts her in C20 or A25. He also recommends a couple of specific pairs of seats in the third row, because they face an aisle and have ample legroom. He tries to seat his tallest subscribers in these locations. “The Fountain is an intimate theater and we try to convey that experience through all levels of service,” Bennett explains.
Rachel Fain writes for LA Stage Times
Posted in Arts, Drama, new plays, performing arts, plays, Theater, theatre
Tagged 99-Seat Plan, Actors Equity Association, audiences, box office, Fountain Theatre, intimate theatre, James Bennett, Los Angeles, new plays, plays, seating, subscribers, theater, tickets
Timo Nunez
The Fountain Theatre adds a last-minute, special performance of Forever Flamenco! this Sunday, November 11 with flamenco superstar Timo Nunez. Joining Timo on stage at the Fountain Theatre, L.A.’s foremost intimate venue to view flamenco with only 78 seats in 4 rows, are dancers Briseyda Zarate, Clara Rodriguez and Corrie Jimenez; singer Jesus Montoya; guitarist Gabriel Osuna; and percussionist Joey Heredia.
Clara Rodriguez
Hailed as “America’s Number One Flamenco Dancer” on FOX TV’s So You Think You Can Dance, Timo Nuñez began dancing ballet and studying musical theatre at the early age of seven in Santa Barbara, California. At the age of nine, he was intensely attracted to Spanish Flamenco Dance and began to study under Linda Vega and Roberto Amaral. Timo quickly began to excel as a young professional performer with the Santa Barbara Civic Light Opera and Juan Talavera’s Men of Flamenco. At the age of twelve Debbie Allen discovered Timo and his sister Beatrice as a young brother/sister flamenco duo. Simultaneously, Timo began his training in Spain. Invitations to perform at the Kennedy Center in Debbie Allen’s Pepito’s Story soon followed. Timo later became a member of the Debbie Allen Dance Academy’s faculty as a flamenco instructor. Following High School, Timo was chosen by Kenny Ortega, Julie McDonald and Toni Basil to win the prestigious LA Music Center Spotlight Award for non-classical dance.
Timo now performs and choreographs all over the world from Santa Barbara to Sevilla, New York to Dubai. Timo won the coveted First Place recognition in El Concurso de Baile Flamenco in Albuquerque. He was judged by Israel and Pastora Galvan, Rafael and Adela Campallo and El Torombo, some of the most renowned flamenco dancers of all time.
Forever Flamenco Sunday, Nov 11 (323) 663-1525 More
Posted in Arts, Dance, dancer, flamenco, Fountain Theatre, performing arts, singer, Theater, theatre
Tagged Briseyda Zarate, Clara Rodriguez, Corrie Jimenez; Jesus Montoya, Dance, Debbie Allen, Deborah Lawlor, El Concurso de Baile Flamenco, Flamenco, flamenco dancing, flamenco guitar, Forever Flamenco, Fountain Theatre, FOX TV, Gabriel Osuna, Joey Heredia, Juan Talavera, LA Music Center Spotlight Award, Linda Vega, Los Angeles, Roberto Amaral, So You Think You Can Dance, Timo Nunez
Diarra Kilpatrick and company.
RAVE! CRITIC’S CHOICE! “Beyond the fact that it is sensational, the Fountain Theatre’s production of “In the Red and Brown Water” by Tarell Alvin McCraney is important for two reasons: It introduces Los Angeles audiences to a dramatic poet in the process of discovering his singular voice and it shows how magnificently one of L.A.’s better small theaters can serve bold new talent.” – Los Angeles Times
Peggy Blow, Diarra Kilpatrick and company.
RAVE! “Every player scores a memorable impression, above all the luminous lead Diarra Kilpatrick, who can inhabit a simple soul yet express her intensely complicated inner torment … [Director Shirley Jo Finney] indisputably remains at the top of her game.” – Hollywood Reporter
RAVE! “A production that explodes in sounds, images, and extraordinary performances.” – Backstage
RAVE! “An astonishing accomplishment! Skilfully aided by director Shirley Jo Finney, the superb cast works poetry, myth, dance, chanting and music into the mix.” – Total Theater
RAVE! “Electrifying! … A unique piece full of dancing, singing, haunting story telling and enchanting characters … It is like nothing you have ever seen before and something that is utterly fascinating and highly entertaining.” – ALittleNightMusing
RAVE! GO! “Compelling! A visceral fable that rises up from the underbelly of America.” – LA Weekly
Diarra Kilpatrick and Gilbert Glenn Brown
RAVE! “Perfection! Finney’s excellent directorial work … The casting is flawless.” – LA Beat
RAVE! “Unforgettable! An excellent cast!” – ArtsinLA
RAVE! “This is the show to see!” – CaribPress
RAVE! “A new, important, and original voice in American theatre … a talented cast … Especially moving … heart-wrenching” – BlogCritics
Diarra Kilpatrick and company.
RAVE! “Diarra Kilpatrick is a breath of fresh air in her daring performance … Gilbert Glenn Brown nearly steals this show (at least as far as the women are concerned) with an explosive and arousing performance … terrific … hilarious … a steady cast anchored by theater veterans Iona Morris and Peggy A. Blow.” – Donloe’s Lowdown
Iona Morris and Diarra Kilpatrick
Simone Missick and Maya Lynne Robinson
Diarra Kilpatrick, Dorian Baucum and company.
Now Playing! (323) 663-1525 More
Posted in actors, Arts, director, Drama, Fountain Theatre, new plays, performing arts, plays, playwright, Theater, theatre
Tagged African American, Back Stage, Critic’s Choice, Diarra Kilpatrick, Dorian Baucum, Fountain Theatre, Gilbert Glenn Brown, Hollywood Reporter, In The Red and Brown Water, Iona Morris, Justin Chu Cary, LA Weekly, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Premiere, Los Angeles Times, Maya Lynne Robinson, new plays, Peggy Blow, plays, playwriting, rave reviews, Shirley Jo Finney, Simone Missick, Stephen Marshall, Stephen Sachs, Tarell Alvin McCraney, The Brother/Sister Plays, Theodore Perkins
“Cyrano” reading at Mixed Blood Theatre, MN.
Fountain actors Troy Kotsur and Paul Raci, director Simon Levy, and playwright Stephen Sachs were at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis last weekend to join local actors there for a reading of Cyrano, the recent smash hit Fountain co-production with Deaf West Theatre. Cyrano was being read as part of Mixed Blood’s Center of the Margins new play festival.
The weather was cloudy in Minneapolis, a chilly 38 degrees. The cast was lead by Kotsur and Raci, with nine local deaf and hearing actors creating the ensemble. Rehearsal time was brief. Director Levy and the cast had to work fast, quickly coordinating the complicated blending of American Sign Language, spoken English, and printed text projected on screens.
Cyrano is an imaginative modern day retelling of the romantic classic Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. In this updated new deaf/hearing version, Cyrano is a brilliant deaf poet in love with a hearing woman who doesn’t know sign language.
There were two public readings of Cyrano at Mixed Blood Theatre over the weekend, on Saturday and Sunday. Mixed Blood Theatre holds 200 people and both readings were full. Audience response to the play was very enthusiastic.
Artistic Director Jack Reuler and the entire staff at Mixed Blood were wonderful hosts, welcoming the Cyrano company and making sure everything ran smoothly.
The acclaimed Fountain/Deaf West production of Cyrano earned two Ovation Award nominations: Best Lead Actor (Troy Kotsur as Cyrano) and Best New Play (playwright Stephen Sachs). The Ovation Awards will be held Monday, November 12th, in Los Angeles.
Snapshots from Cyrano Reading at Mixed Blood Theatre!
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Posted in actors, Arts, Deaf, director, Drama, Fountain Theatre, new plays, performing arts, plays, playwright, poem, poetry, Theater, theatre
Tagged American Sign Language, ASL, ASL Poetry, Best Lead Actor, Best New Play, Center of the Margins, Cyrano, Cyrano de Bergerac, deaf, deaf actor, deaf theatre, Deaf West Theatre, deafness, Edmond Rostand, Erin Gardner, Fountain Theatre, Jack Reuler, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Mixed Blood Theatre Company, new play festival, new plays, Ovation Awards, Paul Raci, plays, playwriting, Simon Levy, staged reading, Stephen Sachs, theater, Troy Kotsur