THE day after my new play, “Rapture, Blister, Burn,” began previews Off Broadway I received a Facebook message from Wendy Wasserstein’s former assistant, a fellow playwright named Jenny Lyn Bader. Jenny had been in our first audience and wanted to tell me how much she had enjoyed the play. She said she wished Wendy were here to […]
Fountain Theatre’s “Citizen: An American Lyric” at Grand Park, Los Angeles, 2018. by Mary Gabriel In the late 1930s, amid a global economic collapse, the rise of fascism in Germany, Italy and Japan, and an ugly U.S. nationalism that targeted asylum-seeking immigrants, abstract artists working in New York pondered the perennial question: What is the […]
The study of theater has always been a slightly odd fit with higher education. Theater’s departmental needs are so different from the norm: Where other programs require smart classrooms, desks, and Wi-Fi, we seek vast, empty spaces with sprung wood floors and natural light. The inner life of a chemistry major should not affect the […]
Playwright France-Luce Benson is the Community Engagement Coordinator at the Fountain Theatre, and host of the online gathering, “Saturday Matinees.” Art imitates life when the Fountain Theatre presents Talking Peace, a new 10-minute, site-specific “Zoom-within-a-Zoom” by acclaimed playwright France-Luce Benson. Talking Peace will premiere on day one of Alternative Theatre L.A.’s Together LA: A Virtual Theatre Festival, one of six short plays presented by […]
Vickie Ramirez, unidentified, Nikkole Salter, Roberta Uno, Dionna Michelle Daniel, Marissa Chibas, Lynn Nottage (photo: ArtsChangeUs) by Dionna Michelle Daniel On March 6th, I had the pleasure of participating in the book launch at The Public Theater for the anthology Contemporary Plays by Women of Color edited by Roberta Uno. Not only was a scene from […]
‘Broomstick’ set design by Andrew Hammer (photo by Ed Krieger) Jenny O’Hara’s mesmerizing solo performance in our acclaimed LA Premiere of Broomstick has been rightly hailed by critics as a “tour-de-force”. The same can certainly be said of the extraordinary set design by Andrew Hammer. Andrew has created an absolutely enchanting witch’s cottage that […]
by Terri Roberts Fountain audiences know Tim Cummings as an impassioned actor who brings gritty depth and honesty to every role he undertakes. From his searing work as political activist Ned Weeks in The Normal Heart (2013), to his heart-wrenching portrayal of Mitchell, devoted and loving partner to the suddenly-stricken Daniel in Daniel’s Husband (2019), […]
The Fountain Theatre is thrilled to participate in The Dramatists Guild’s annual End of Play Initiative. Throughout the month of April, Dramatists across the U.S. are committing to completing one new theatrical work. Whether it be a new play, song, score, screenplay or revised draft of an existing work in progress – End of Play […]
Rob Nagle and Tanya Alexander in “Human Interest Story.” “The line between where you are now and sleeping in your car is much thinner than you think.” The Fountain Theatre presents the world premiere of a timely new play, written and directed by Stephen Sachs (Arrival & Departure, Citizen: An American Lyric, Bakersfield Mist), about homelessness, celebrity worship and the assault on […]
The cast of “The Chosen” A select group of Fountain Theatre donors gathered at the lovely Sherman Oaks home of Director of Development Barbara Goodhill last night to meet the director and cast of our upcoming production of Chaim Potok’s The Chosen. The stage version of the beloved classic of modern Jewish literature opens at […]
Dan Shaked and Virginia Newcomb in “On the Spectrum” Mac has Asperger’s. Iris has autism. Jacqueline Schultz directs Jeanie Hackett,Virginia Newcomb and Dan Shaked in the West Coast premiere of a funny, touching and unconventional romance. On the Spectrum by Ken LaZebnik opens this Saturday, March 16th, at The Fountain Theatre. Quirky and unexpected, On the Spectrum is a love story with a difference. In LaZebnik’s award-winning play, an online […]
Annie Barker with fellow interns at LA County Arts Intern Summit. by Annie Barker This past week, I left my desk at the Fountain Theatre to join my fellow interns at the Los Angeles County Arts Commission Summer Intern Summit. During this all-day event, I had the opportunity to meet with the over 130 […]
by Terri Roberts Happy New Year! After a long and tumultuous 2021, the hope and promise of the first calendar page of 2022 has arrived. At the Fountain, we have much to look forward to in the months ahead. New, exciting productions are already in the works (more news on them to come), but first […]
In 1990, Stephen Sachs and Ed Waterstreet shared a dream. Stephen had just launched the Fountain Theatre with Deborah Lawlor. He had worked sporadically with deaf actors and writers in Los Angeles for five years prior and was now eager to start a deaf theatre company at the newly-formed Fountain. Ed was a respected actor […]