Tracy Middendorf and Morlan Higgins in “After the Fall” at the Fountain Theatre (2002, photo by Ed Krieger); Tommy Schrider and Tracy in “Battle of Black and Dogs” at Yale Repertory Theatre (2010) by Mark Kinsey Stephenson Tracy Middendorf was hailed for her “delicious mixture of beauty and raw emotional vulnerability that makes you care […]
The Spanish term for a heightened state of emotion and authenticity, “duende,” roughly translates to a single word, “soul.” It’s also the elusive ingredient at the heart of flamenco, the centuries-old art form whose Andalusian origins, while not completely known, are an exotic blend of Jewish, Arab, and Roma (also known as Gypsy) cultures. Commonly […]
Continuing its 12-year relationship with Athol Fugard, The Fountain Theatre celebrates the master playwright’s 80th birthday with theU.S. premiere of his newest play. Directed by Stephen Sachs and starring Morlan Higgins, Julanne Chidi Hill and Jacqueline Schultz, The Blue Iris opens at the Fountain on August 24, with low-priced previews beginning August 18. Described by Time magazine as “the greatest active playwright in the English-speaking world,” Athol Fugard celebrated his […]
by Kevin Brown In the spirit of retiring “Late Show” host David Letterman’s famous “Top Ten” lists, I submit the following reasons why theatre is still important today: #10 Human Beings The performance of theatre is a universal cultural phenomenon that exists in every society around the world. Human beings are the only animal species […]
By Stephen Sachs If Los Angeles had a Mount Rushmore, the visage of Gordon Davidson would be on it. Such a monument to the City of the Angels would include many faces, from a variety of disciplines. Politics, the arts, architecture, sports, business. With names like Mulholland, Chandler, Griffith, Bradley, Getty, O’Malley, Wright, Disney. And […]
Fountain Family: We will not be silent. Have you heard of Rabbi Joachim Prinz? Probably not. In August of 1963, he and Martin Luther King, Jr. were among the ten leaders of the March on Washington. Preceding King to the platform on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial before King declared his dream to the world, Prinz […]
By Terri Roberts June is Pride month, a time of Mardi Gras-like celebration for the LGBTQ+ community that’s highlighted locally by the annual L.A. Pride Festival and Parade. The first Pride march, held June 28, 1970, was established to mark the one-year anniversary of the now infamous Stonewall uprising – an event widely seen as […]
Writer/creator Larry Powell’s digital series The Gaze…No Homo has received two Daytime Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Fiction Program for Sharon Lawrence. Joey Scoma has been nominated for Outstanding Multi-Camera Editing for a Drama or Daytime Fiction Program. The Fountain Theatre digital platform, Fountain Stream, partnered with Powell and Angelica Robinson of Tell Me a Story Productions in […]
By Terri Roberts Election Day has come and gone. As of this writing, millions of ballots are still being counted. The process may be slow and frustrating, but taking the time to make sure every voice, every vote, is heard and counted is American democracy in action. It’s why the Fountain Theatre launched its get-out-the-vote […]
Morlan Higgins and Julanne Chidi Hill in “The Blue Iris” Back in the year 2000, legendary South African playwright Athol Fugard was residing in Del Mar, teaching playwriting, acting and directing at UC San Diego — while continuing to turn out the prolific body of work that had earned him worldwide acclaim. He heard from […]
Virginia Newcomb and Dan Shaked by Steven Sabel “It’s all a very personal saga for me,” says playwright Ken LaZebnik. He’s speaking about his play On The Spectrum. It was commissioned by Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis, where artistic director Jack Reuler directed the 2011 premiere as part of the Center of the Margins Festival. Then it tied for second place in last year’s […]
Playwright/Poet Kit Yan. by France-Luce Benson This Saturday on Saturday Matinees, we’ll be joined by award winning playwright and poet Kit Yan, whose musical Interstate won “Best Lyrics” at the 2018 New York Musical Theatre Festival. Born in Enping, China, Yan’s family immigrated to Hawaii where they were raised. Yan describes their work as “a […]
“Heart Song” at the Fountain Theatre by Cynthia Citron “I have a long history of flamenco,” Pamela Dunlap says — her tongue firmly in her cheek. And thereby hangs the tale. “Actually, I’m not a dancer,” she continues. “I’m dragged kicking and screaming into flamenco class” as the lead in Stephen Sachs’ new play Heart Song, now […]
Ann Noble, Liz Berman and John Prosky introduce the evening. Tuesday night at the Fountain was one of those evenings that reminds us of the transformative power of theatre. Why we do what we do. It was also a night about working together. Not only for the incarcerated young men on stage from Rancho San […]