A Play Is a Poem at Center Theatre Group, September 2019

Page 1

2019

SEP

CTG_MTF_COVER-0919-PlayIsPoem.indd 1

MARK TAPER FORUM

8/7/19 2:28 PM


S O U T H PA S A D E N A 853 Mission Street • 626.799.4595 S A N TA M O N I C A 1 2 2 7 5 t h S t r e e t • 3 1 0 . 4 3 4 . 9 6 9 7 C O S TA M E S A 1664 Newpor t Blvd • 949.515.TILE (845 3) W W W. M I S S I O N T I L E W E S T. C O M

CTG_WRAP_0919 p1-16.indd 2

8/14/19 6:09 PM


H A R DWA R E

LIGHTING

PLUMBING

VA N I T I E S

Why Go All Over Town?

905 Mission Street . South Pasadena . 626.799.3503 W W W. M I S S I O N W E S T. B I Z . n e x t d o o r t o M I S S I O N T I L E W E S T a d d e s i g n b y B l u e M e t r o p o l i s D e s i g n . w w w. b l u e m e t r o p o l i s . c o m

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 1

8/14/19 11:53 AM


FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

WELCOME TO CENTER THEATRE GROUP Thank you for joining us as we kick off our 2019/20 Season at the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre with works from some of the artists I admire most. John Leguizamo is a brilliant writer and actor, and I’m so happy that we’re presenting his funny, timely, very smart Latin History for Morons at the Ahmanson. The show sold out its first two runs on both coasts and wowed Broadway; I think L.A. audiences will agree that it strikes a perfect balance between pure fun and fascinating historical explanation. You’re going to learn so much, and you’re going to leave laughing. A razor-sharp screenwriter and a seasoned playwright whose characters and stories are always fascinating and never what you expected, Ethan Coen is a true renaissance artist. For those of you who have never experienced his work onstage, you’re in for quite a treat with A Play Is a Poem at the Taper. These five unique pieces, directed by Neil Pepe (who was last at the Taper with The Subject Was Roses), are each excellent in their own right and come together to create an extraordinary evening. Center Theatre Group audiences have been blessed with some splendid Samuel Beckett performances over our last few seasons, and I know that Bill Irwin in his own On Beckett is not one they’ll soon forget. Bill is one of our most dynamic and inventive artists, and I can’t wait for you to see him exploring his lifelong relationship with this master playwright—with his deep understanding of the prose and his deft feel for physical comedy—as no one else can. Enjoy the show, and come back soon. I’m very proud of the season we’ve put together for you. Sincerely,

Michael Ritchie

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

2019/2020 Officers

HONORARY CHAIRMAN

BOARD MEMBERS

Susanne Daniels

Louise Moriarty

EMERITUS

PAST PRESIDENTS

Harry Abrams

Bradford W. Edgerton, MD

Kari L. Nakama

Harold Applebaum

Lew R. Wasserman

Gary Frischling

Dan Palmer

Ronald J. Arnault

Marshall Berges

Meghan Pressman

Judith Beckmen

Armand S. Deutsch

Michael Ritchie

Ava Fries

Walter Mirisch

Laura Rosenwald

Susan Grode

Henry C. Rogers

Bruce L. Ross

Phyllis Hennigan

Richard E. Sherwood

Carmen Schaye

Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr. J. David Haft

Donna Schweers

Richard Kagan

Lawrence J. Ramer

Elliott Sernel

O. Kit Lokey

Glenn A. Sonnenberg

Walter Mirisch

Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr.

Sandra Stern

Diane Morton

Marshall Trenckmann

Edward B. Nahmias

Lew R. Wasserman

CHAIRMAN

William H. Ahmanson PRESIDENT

Jonathan Axel Pamela Beck

Kiki Ramos Gindler

Thom Beers

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

Miles Benickes

Brindell Roberts Gottlieb

Gail Berman-Masters

VICE PRESIDENT

Jana Bezdek

William R. Lindsay

Betsy Borns

SECRETARY

Diana Buckhantz

TREASURER

Dannielle Campos Ramirez

Amy R. Forbes David Quigg

Christine Cronin-Hurst

Rebecca George Patricia Glaser Manuela Cerri Goren Robert Greenblatt Jason Grode Aliza Karney Guren Stanley Iezman Paul James Jody Lippman

Matthew Walden

Phyllis Hennigan Richard Kagan Martin Massman

William H. Ahmanson †deceased

Center Theatre Group is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose work is made possible thanks to the generous support of our donors. Call 213.972.7564 or visit CTGLA.ORG/SUPPORT to learn more. 2 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 2

8/14/19 11:53 AM


“First Republic understands our legacy and our bold aspirations. We define the goal, and they help us get there.” A M E R I C A N B A L L ET T H E AT R E

Kara Medoff Barnett, Executive Director

(855) 886-4824 | firstrepublic.com | New York Stock Exchange symbol: FRC MEMBER FDIC AND EQUAL HOUSING LENDER

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 3

8/14/19 11:53 AM


LOOK WHO’S TALKING! Six great nights out. You’ve GOT to be there!

Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin Legendary Actors and Activists Sunday, October 20, 2019

Fr. Gregory Boyle

Center Theatre Group Publications 2019 Editor Sarah Rothbard Art Director Deanna McClure Copy Editors Kathryn Mackenzie, James Sims, Reza Vojdani Designers Irene Kaneshiro, Javier Vazquez, Tara Nitz, Sandi Silbert

Explore More CenterTheatreGroup.org Contact the Editor Content@CTGLA.org 601 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 Published By SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MEDIA GROUP

Founder & Executive Director of Homeboy Industries & Best-Selling Author Sunday, November 17, 2019

Publisher Jeff Levy Editor in Chief Benjamin Epstein

Anderson Cooper

Award-Winning Broadcast Journalist & Best-Selling Author Sunday, January 26, 2020

Art Director Carol Wakano Production Manager Glenda Mendez Production Artist Diana Gonzalez Contributing Designer Heidi Schwindt

Dr. Robert Sapolsky

Editor Gillian Glover

Neuroscientist, Primatologist & Best-Selling Author Sunday, February 16, 2020

Digital Editor Alicia Luchak Advertising Director Lyle Laver

Pres. George Bush

43rd President of the United States of America Sunday, April 19, 2020

Account Managers Kerry Brewer, Tim Egan, Joel Gilliam, Sara Kemp, Walter Lewis, Jessica Levin Poff, Heather Price, Reagan Zorn Business Manager Leanne Killian Riggar Marketing Manager Dawn Kiko Cheng

Dan Buettner

Administration Kelsey Bauder

Longevity & Happiness Expert, Explorer & Best-Selling Author Sunday, May 17, 2020

Honorary President Ted Levy

DISTINGUISHED SPEAKER SERIES

Order Today!

of the Westside

Live at the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills! Also appearing at The Segerstrom Hall, Costa Mesa

speakersla.com | 310.546.6222 Series Packages start at $280. Sold as a series only. Tickets to individual events are not available

For information about advertising and rates, call Southern California Media Group 3679 Motor Ave, Suite 300 Los Angeles, CA 90034 Telephone: (310) 280-2880 FAX: (310) 280-2890 Visit Performances Magazine www.socalpulse.com

PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE is published monthly by Southern California Media Group to serve theatrical attractions throughout the west. © 2019 Southern California Media Group All Rights Reserved. Southern California Media Group 3679 Motor Avenue, Suite 300, Los Angeles, CA 90034, Telephone: (310) 280-2880 FAX: (310) 280-2890

4 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

client:

Distinguished Speaker Series

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 4 7695 job no:

9 • El Segundo, CA 90245

date:

7/25/19

format:

Adobe Illustrator CC / PDF

8/14/19 12:21 PM


TheGlazerEstate.com

601 MOUNTAIN DR

BEVERLY HILLS | $75,000,000

Approximately 27,500 square feet carefully curated with no expense spared. Over 1.6 acres level in a park-like setting, with a long private driveway, rolling lawns and a 98 foot swimmer’s pool. Entertain on a grand scale with the capability to host over 1,000 guests. Massive scale with two-story glass atrium/foyer, grand formal dining room, glass enclosed junior dining room and formal living room. A world apart in the heart of Beverly Hills.

JEFF HYLAND 310.278.3311 DRE 00389584

DREW FENTON HILTONHYLAND.COM

310.858.5474 DRE 01317962

Š2019 Hilton & Hyland Real Estate, Inc. Broker does not guarantee the accuracy of square footage, lot size or other information concerning the condition or features of property obtained from public records or other sources. Equal Housing Opportunity. DRE 01160681

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 5

8/14/19 11:53 AM


around CENTER THEATRE GROUP Thanks to all who donated and attended our one-night-only benefit reading of Kirk and Anne: Letters of Love, Laughter, and a Lifetime in Hollywood—the new play based on the book by longtime Center Theatre Group supporters Kirk and Anne Douglas—on July 22, 2019 at Kirk’s eponymous theatre. Proceeds from the event benefited Center Theatre Group and MPTF.

ART AT THE AHMANSON Stop by the Mezzanine level of the lobby at the Ahmanson Theatre to check out exhibitions curated by our Education & Community Partnerships department. Loteria de teatro cards—inspired and used by our theatre workshops in Boyle Heights—offer an introduction to the art form, plus a fun way to learn some Spanish or English. And selections from photographer Rafael Cardenas’s “Landscapes and Land Dwellers: Photography of Place” explore the lives of Angelenos in Northeast and East Los Angeles as land dwellers in the ever changing landscapes of the city.

6 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 6

8/14/19 11:53 AM


P

(Left, L–R) Anne Douglas, Deborra-lee Furness, Hugh Jackman, and Kirk Douglas. (Top, L–R) Event Co-Chairs Marilyn Katzenberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. President/CEO of MPTF Bob Beitcher and Center Theatre Group Managing Director/CEO Meghan Pressman. Center Theatre Group Artistic Director Michael Ritchie and Culver City Mayor Meghan Sahli-Wells. Host Committee Members Jack and Maggy Simon. (Bottom, L–R) Center Theatre Group Board Member and Event Co-Chair Robert Greenblatt. Event Co-Chair Sam Mudie and Center Theatre Group Board Member and Event Co-Chair Patricia Glaser and Host Committee Members Melina Esrailian and Eric Esrailian. Host Committee Members Leah Bishop and Gary Yale. Photos by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging.

MAGICIANS IN SPACE July found Trey Lyford, Geoff Sobelle, and Steve Cuiffo busy workshopping their current Center Theatre Group commission, Elephant Room 2.0, at St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn. Douglas audiences who loved 2012’s Elephant Room will be happy to know that star magicians Louie Magic, Daryl Hannah, and Dennis Diamond are back together again…and this time they’re in space.

CENTER THEATRE GROUP BROCHURE DROPS Our new brochure collects the entire 2019/20 Season at all three Center Theatre Group venues—the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre—under one very cool cover designed by the Shepard Fairey-founded Studio Number One. Check out the digital version at ISSUU.com/centertheatregroup.

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 7

8/14/19 11:53 AM


ON OUR STAGES

IN THE THEATRE

Photo by Mark Abrahams.

LATIN HISTORY FOR MORONS AHMANSONTHEATRE SEP 5 – OCT 20, 2019

LATE SEATING

Latin History for Morons reveals America’s unsung heroes, throughout past and present— all unforgettably told by Tony and Emmy Award winner John Leguizamo, one of the most incisive, insightful, and entertaining personalities onstage today. ®

®

A PLAY IS A POEM MARKTAPERFORUM SEP 11 – OCT 13, 2019 If the audience laughs it was a comedy. If the audience nods with new understanding it was a drama. If the audience both laughs and nods but can’t say why it’s funny or what they’ve understood, it might be A Play Is a Poem, the new collection of short plays by celebrated playwright and filmmaker Ethan Coen.

Photo by Carol Rosegg.

ON BECKETT KIRKDOUGLASTHEATRE SEP 13 – OCT 27, 2019 Bill Irwin has spent a lifetime haunted by Samuel Beckett’s language. In this intimate 90-minute evening, Irwin explores a performer’s relationship to Beckett, mining the physical and verbal skills acquired in his years as a master clown and Tony Award -winning actor. ®

To minimize disruption, patrons not seated when the performance begins will be asked to wait in the lobby until an appropriate break. Latecomers may also be given alternate seats until intermission.

FRAGRANCES Please refrain from wearing strong perfumes and cologne. Many people are allergic to heavy scents.

LOST & FOUND Contact a head usher or call the lost and found clerk at 213.972.2600 for the Ahmanson and the Taper. Contact the performance manager at 213.972.4435 for the Douglas.

SMOKING IS PROHIBITED Smoking of any kind, including electronic devices, is prohibited.

FIRST AID In case of injury or illness, please see an usher.

YOUNG CHILDREN AND BABIES Children under age six are not admitted, unless the production is advertised for younger audiences. Regardless of age, everyone must have a ticket and be able to sit quietly through the performance. Babes in arms are not admitted.

For tickets and more information and to learn about season tickets, group sales, ACCESS performances, and audience & stage talks, visit our website at CTGLA.org or call our Audience Services department at 213.628.2772.

8 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 8

8/14/19 11:53 AM


My legacy. My partner. You have dreams. Goals you want to achieve during your lifetime and a legacy you want to leave behind. The Private Bank can help. Our highly specialized and experienced wealth strategists can help you navigate the complexities of estate planning and deliver the customized solutions you need to ensure your wealth is transferred according to your wishes. Take the first step in ensuring the preservation of your wealth for your lifetime and future generations. To learn more, please visit unionbank.com/theprivatebank or contact: Simone Branigan Private Wealth Advisor simone.branigan@unionbank.com 310-550-6460

Simon Rawlinson, CFP®, CWS® Private Wealth Advisor simon.rawlinson@unionbank.com 818-254-0787

Wills, trusts, foundations, and wealth planning strategies have legal, tax, accounting, and other implications. Clients should consult a legal or tax advisor. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification mark CFP® in the U.S., which it awards to individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements. ©2019 MUFG Union Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. Union Bank is a registered trademark and brand name of MUFG Union Bank, N.A.

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 9

8/14/19 11:53 AM


STUDENT MATINEES SHOWCASE THE

Power of Representation “IF YOU DON’T SEE YOURSELF REPRESENTED OUTSIDE OF YOURSELF, YOU JUST FEEL F*CKING INVISIBLE,” explains John Leguizamo in Latin History for Morons (onstage at the Ahmanson September 5 – October 20, 2019). Though we’ve never said it in quite this way ourselves, that’s one of the central values of Center Theatre Group’s Student Matinee Program, which brings thousands of local students to our shows each year.

Learn more, including how to participate, at CTGLA.org/Education.

The 2019/2020 Student Matinee Season “demonstrates the power, for young people, of seeing people onstage who are like them,” said Center Theatre Group Director of Social Strategy, Impact and Innovation Leslie K. Johnson. The Student Matinee experience includes a pre-show educator conference, resource materials, in-school visits from our teaching artists, and a post-show Q&A with cast and creative team members. At the center of it all is the students’ experience at the theatre. “We want to bring young people to shows where the content and theatrical styles are varied and sophisticated, and where they can hear stories that are deep and sometimes hard—and present rigorous ideas about the real world,” said Johnson. The season kicks off with Latin History for Morons—and John Leguizamo couldn’t be more excited to “smuggle information” to L.A. students. “It’s so great to turn students on to theatre,” he said. They all leave going, ‘I didn’t know theatre could be so much fun, so relatable.’” That is key for local teens; approximately 70% of the students we serve in this program identify as Latinx. Next up are two performances of August Wilson’s Jitney at the Taper. “As the Los Angeles home of the National August Wilson Monologue Competition, we have many students in our midst who are growing increasingly familiar with Wilson’s canon,” said Johnson. “And Jitney has resonant themes of family, race, and changing communities.” Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake Student Matinee arrives next at the Ahmanson. “We’ve enjoyed a rich collaboration with Matthew Bourne and the dancers in his company, who go into our schools to lead pre-show workshops before the performance,” said Johnson. “We’re also excited to be sharing a story that we hope will speak to our LGBTQ+ students.” She is also looking forward to returning to the Taper for two performances of What the Constitution Means to Me “to partner with educators to create more ways for young people to see and study theatre and to think about the big ideas it presents. Experiencing and making art are essential ways that young people can express themselves and enter into the important civic discourse taking place in our country,” said Johnson. The final show of the season is Once on This Island at the Ahmanson, “a beautiful celebration of life and love that also shares a message about connecting to our roots and figuring out where we belong.”

10 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 10

8/14/19 11:53 AM


TODAY IS COMPLETELY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY MINE. AT VILLA GARDENS, pursue your passions and life to the fullest. Lounge in cheerful courtyards with green lawns and flowering trees, and share stories with like-minded people. Or get out and about in Old Pasadena. Surround yourself with beauty, culture and smiling faces in a continuing care retirement community. At Villa Gardens, you’ll love where you live.

LIVE

C A L L O R V I S I T U S 626.4 63.5300 villagardens.org

WHERE

842 EAST VILLA STREET

YO U LOV E

We’re an equal opportunity housing provider.

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 11

PA S A D E N A , C A 9 1 1 0 1 CA License #197602345 COA #195

8/14/19 11:53 AM


LIGHTING AND SOUND DESIGN. ORIGAMI AND STORYTELLING. PLAYWRITING AND PLAY READINGS. ZINE-MAKING AND REDACTING. Angelenos from across the city engaged in these activities over the course of four free, open-to-the-public workshops Center Theatre Group hosted over the summer to pilot expanding the reach, scope, and audience of our community programming.

COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS

Bring Angelenos Together Over the past few years, our education and community engagement efforts have included student workshops; programming in Boyle Heights with library partners; Family Sundays at the Ahmanson in partnership with local nonprofits; and public programs like Community Conversations and post-show talks—all of which are offered free of cost. “Now we are excited to offer a full season of ongoing ways for people of different ages, backgrounds, and experience levels to come and create with us,” said Director of Social Strategy, Innovation and Impact Leslie K. Johnson. “We want to bring folks together to experience great stories, learn, gain skills, and have fun telling a few of their own.” The Adventures in Creating & Storytelling for Theatre/Aventuras en Como Crear y Narrar para el Teatro Workshop on June 15, 2019 invited families to come to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for Spanish and English readings of Naomi Iizuka’s The Last Firefly and origami- and prop-making inspired by the story. “We love providing ways for families to interact with each other through theatre, and wanted to play with how we expand bilingual programming, both of which we’ve done in Boyle Heights,” said Johnson. The inspiration for the next workshop, on June 27, 2019, at the Women’s Center for Creative Work in the Elysian Valley neighborhood, came directly from the work onstage at the Ahmanson at the time—the scandal and censorship portrayed in Indecent. Share Your Most ‘Indecent’ Stories: A Zine-Making Workshop invited participants to create zines to tell their most salacious stories—then to redact the parts that might not be fit for public consumption. Playwright Marcus Gardley led the June 29, 2019 workshop at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, Creating Your Personal Story for the Stage, which “was designed to tap into Center Theatre Group as a home for playwriting, for discovering voices,” said Johnson. Held the morning of the Los Angeles Writers’ Workshop Festival, participants also were invited to attend play readings by members of that professional playwriting community (to which Gardley himself belongs). Our partners at East Los Angeles College provided the space for Telling a Story with Light and Sound on June 29, 2019. “We’ve learned that many people of different backgrounds want to develop technical skills around theatre,” said Johnson. “We’ve done many workshops for students and educators on lighting and sound design, but it was great to see people of all ages and experience levels really digging in together.” She’s excited to continue to expand this kind of programming, both on-site and around Los Angeles. “This was our first real foray into drawing people all over the city together to come take workshops with us, whether they know Center Theatre Group or not,” said Johnson. “And I’m looking forward to more.”

Photos by Cristi Burgos/CBGRAPHY and Ericka Kreutz Photography

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 12

8/14/19 11:53 AM


John Berry and Anthony Lilley for Scenario Two Ltd & Karl Sydow present

RENÉE FLEMING DOVE CAMERON

Book by CR AIG LUCA S Music and Lyrics by ADAM GUET TEL

A FULLY STAGED PRODUCTION OF THE SIX-TIME TONY AWARD -WINNING MUSICAL with the LA OPERA ORCHESTRA ®

7 SHOWS: OCT 12–20

TICKETS FROM $24 L AOPERA.ORG • 213.972.8001

Presented by special arrangement with R&H Theatric al s Europe. Produced by arrangement with Turner Enter tainment Co. owner of the original motion pic ture “Light in The Piazza”. Based on the Novel by Elizabeth Spencer

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 13

8/14/19 11:53 AM


He’s regularly called a virtuoso, a master of his craft, and even a genius (per the MacArthur Foundation) and a clown prince (by no less than PBS). You’ve seen him in everything from TV shows like CSI and Sesame Street to his Tony Award -winning stints in plays like Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Fool Moon (roles he reprised with Center Theatre Group). Bill Irwin is a multi-hyphenate artist and creator—and also exactly the right guide into the world and work of playwright Samuel Beckett, for newbies and longtime aficionados alike. ®

MAKES BECKET T PURE PLEASURE Irwin, who created and performs On Beckett at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, has appeared in four different versions of Waiting for Godot (alongside Robin Williams, Steve Martin, and Nathan Lane), adapted Beckett’s Texts for Nothing prose pieces for the stage, and met Beckett in Paris in the 1980s. But it’s his passion and playfulness above all that make On Beckett a pleasure for everyone in the theatre—himself included—for every single one of its 89 minutes. “The part of the evening that I’ve perhaps thought most about is the first two and a half minutes,” said Irwin, “where it’s laid out what we’re up to— and I try to return to the question of why this stuff stays in my head, what kind of relationship I have to this language.” He added, “It’s all part of the mission when you step out and start one of these evenings: what does it feel like tonight, and what are they making of me tonight? And how can I connect with this audience, person to person, to start the evening off...?” The impetus for creating On Beckett was fairly simple: “I found I had this repository of Beckett stuff in my head. It was important to me, it wouldn’t go away, and I didn’t want it to go away. And I was looking for a way to share the place that this language has had in my noggin and in my life,” he explained. “It’s a coping mechanism as well as a celebration and an investigation of the

14 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 14

language. I’m looking for both. So I began to think about it as an evening, and an invitation to people to look at this language with me.” On Beckett “bounces back and forth between passages from Samuel Beckett’s work and personal reflections on his language,” Irwin said. “It’s a personal evening. To do one of Beckett’s plays is a certain kind of adventure, and I’ve done that. To do solo delivery, or recitation, of some of his prose is another particular kind of adventure.” On Beckett is something entirely different, and it draws on all of Irwin’s varied talents, including those he picked up in his training as a master clown. “I’m sort of pulling on my whole bag of shtick,” he said of his extremely physical performance. Although Irwin started out wondering if he had enough material, he soon ran into the opposite problem. “I like to look at new stuff. Sometimes I’ll think, ‘Oh, this should go in the evening’ because I’ll hit some stretch of Beckett’s writing—which by the way, is the most varied writing of any author I know,” he said, listing the many tones Beckett can take. Irwin’s enthusiasm is infectious. “But it needs to stay compact,” he added. All this is why, if you see On Beckett, you can’t help agreeing with Irwin on the play’s basic premise: “This guy’s voice, this writer’s voice, is one that’s going to last way into the future. People are going to be reading Beckett’s stuff and performing Beckett’s stuff the way they have Shakespeare’s. It’s coming to the center of the culture.”

Photo by Carol Rosegg.

8/14/19 11:53 AM

WACPA


JOIN US FOR AN EXCITING SEASON OF DANCE, MUSIC, THEATER AND CINEMA!

2019/20 SEASON DANCE 2019/20 COMPANY-IN-RESIDENCE

BODYTRAFFIC SEPT 26-28

Circa: Humans

Vijay Gupta, violin, Suzana Bartal, piano, Peter Myers, cello, & Reena Esmail, composer India & The West: Compositions & Conversations

NOV 1-2

Contra-Tiempo: joyUS justUS JAN 17-18

Lula Washington Dance Theatre JAN 30-FEB 1

Joshua Roman

Blue13 Dance Company: Terpsichore in Ghungroos

LEDISI: The Legend of Little Girl Blue

The Wallis

And Contemporary Bollywood Works

BODYTRAFFIC

The Minghella Project

in Association with BODYTRAFFIC

The Wallis

APR 18-25

DIAVOLO MAY 14-16

Herb Alpert & Lani Hall SEP 21

Joshua Roman, cello & Conor Hanick, piano

THEATER

OCT 5

SIN TICK GLE ETS N OW O

N SA

WALLIS ANNENBERG CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS Romantics Anonymous

FEB 23

From the Top MAR 4

Johnny Gandlesman, violin Complete Bach Cello Suites MAR 21

Violins of Hope / Delirium Musicum APR 2

Ory Shihor, piano Beethoven’s Workshop: The Most Beloved Sonatas With Text by Hershey Felder

APR 4

Emerson String Quartet MAY 8

National Sawdust/folds

MUS IC

The Wallis

The Wallis

Angela Hewitt, piano Bach Odyssey

MAY 21-22

MUSIC

CINEMA

Heidi Duckler Dance The Chandelier APR 15-18

DANCE

The Wallis

FEB 21-22

FEB 15

LE!

Brooklyn Rider & Magos Herrera Dreamers

Sisters in Law

SEPT 18 – OCT 13

Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol DEC 4-8

OCT 10

LEDISI: The Legend of Little Girl Blue

David Orlowsky & Quartetto di Cremona

DEC 13-22

OCT 12

Garrick Ohlsson, piano NOV 8

Sonia De Los Santos La Golondrina: A Musical Journey NOV 10

Herb Alpert & Lani Hall

TH E ATE R

Dinnerstein/ Haimovitz: Beethoven/Glass JAN 9

Art Garfunkel

A Musical Journey Into the Lives of Nina Simone and Ledisi

Frankenstein FEB 12-MAR 1

Emil and the Detectives MAR 27-29

Snow White MAY 8-17

Romantics Anonymous MAR 17-29

Hershey Felder: Anna & Sergei JUL 18-AUG 2

JAN 12

Megan Hilty & Cheyenne Jackson JAN 25

CINE MA

Film Independent Special Events

NOV 5, JAN 12, FEB 25, MAY 5, JUNE 30

Dance @ The Wallis is made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).

WACPA1920_ads_Performances_Sept_1.indd 1 CTG_WRAP_0919.indd 15

TheWallis.org

8/1/19 3:59 PM 8/14/19 11:53 AM


CTG_WRAP_0919 p1-16.indd 16

8/16/19 11:24 AM


MARKTAPERFORUM 2019/20 SEASON FIRST SEASON PRODUCTION

A PLAY IS A POEM

By Ethan Coen Directed by Neil Pepe World Premiere Sep 11 – Oct 13, 2019

SECOND SEASON PRODUCTION

LATIN HISTORY FOR MORONS Written by & Starring John Leguizamo Directed by Tony Taccone Sep 5 – Oct 20, 2019 Presented at the Ahmanson Theatre OR

THE NEW ONE Written & Performed by Mike Birbiglia Directed by Seth Barrish Oct 23 – Nov 24, 2019 Presented at the Ahmanson Theatre

THIRD SEASON PRODUCTION

AUGUST WILSON’S JITNEY Directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson Nov 22 – Dec 29, 2019

FOURTH SEASON PRODUCTION

WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME By Heidi Schreck Directed by Oliver Butler Jan 12 – Feb 16, 2020

FIFTH SEASON PRODUCTION

THE ANTIPODES

By Annie Baker Directed by Lila Neugebauer Mar 25 – Apr 26, 2020

SIXTH SEASON PRODUCTION

KING JAMES

By Rajiv Joseph Directed by Anna D. Shapiro World Premiere Production Jul 29 – Aug 30, 2020

PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE P1

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 1

8/29/19 12:54 PM


friend. insider. visionary.

you!

INTRODUCING A NEW MEMBERSHIP EXPERIENCE AT CENTER THEATRE GROUP As a nonprofit organization, Center Theatre Group relies on the philanthropy of people just like YOU.

friends

Your tax-deductible contribution of $100 or more helps ensure that Center Theatre Group continues to bring the highest quality theatre to our community. And, as a member, you will unlock benefits that enhance your theatregoing experience, from behind-the-scenes members-only events to the best seats in the house— and more!

insiders

Learn more at CTGLA.org/membership

Friends get first access to tickets before the general public plus invitations to members-only events, including backstage tours and rehearsals. Join today with a gift of $100 or more.

Insiders enjoy a year-round VIP experience with access to the best seats for our shows, concierge service for house seats at New York and London productions, and special behindthe-scenes events. Join today with a gift of $2,500 or more.

visionaries

QUESTIONS? Call our Membership Concierge at 213.972.7564 or email membership@CTGLA.org

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 2 IA-Member ad.indd 1

Visionaries have the ultimate access to our artists, shows, programs, and staff, with premium seating for our productions, including use of The Founders’ Room at the Ahmanson, and invitations to private salon-style artist events. Join today with a gift of $15,000 or more.

8/29/19 12:51 PM 2/15/19 5:32 PM


MICHAEL RITCHIE Artistic Director | MEGHAN PRESSMAN Managing Director | DOUGLAS C. BAKER Producing Director GORDON DAVIDSON Founding Artistic Director

Presents the World premiere of

By

Ethan Coen Presented in association with Atlantic Theater Company With

Ro Boddie

Max Casella

Micaela Diamond

Peter Jacobson

Jason Kravits

Nellie McKay

Saul Rubinek

Miriam Silverman

Joey Slotnick

Sam Vartholomeos

CJ Wilson

Orginal Music

Nellie McKay Scenic Design

Costume Design

Lighting Design

Sound Design

Riccardo Hernández

Sarah Laux

Tyler Micoleau

Leon Rothenberg

Hair & Wig Design

Fight Direction

Casting

Charles G. LaPointe

Steve Rankin

Associate Artistic Director

Production Stage Manager

Telsey + Company William Cantler, CSA Karyn Casl, CSA

Kelley Kirkpatrick

David S. Franklin

Directed by

Neil Pepe SEPTEMBER 11 – OCTOBER 13, 2019 MARK TAPER FORUM PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE P3

5:32 PM

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 3

8/29/19 12:51 PM


CAST

(In Order of Appearance)

THE REDEEMERS Cal...................................................................................................................MAX CASELLA Wes..............................................................................................................JOEY SLOTNICK Gary Allen............................................................................................................CJ WILSON A TOUGH CASE Ed Curtin.....................................................................................................JOEY SLOTNICK Don Baines..........................................................................................................CJ WILSON Arthur Threadgill..........................................................................................SAUL RUBINEK Lindy.....................................................................................................MICAELA DIAMOND LuAnne..........................................................................................................NELLIE MCKAY Johnny Branco.......................................................................................PETER JACOBSON AT THE GAZEBO Carter................................................................................................SAM VARTHOLOMEOS Dorothy.................................................................................................MICAELA DIAMOND Gadsden..............................................................................................................RO BODDIE THE URBANES Cabbie............................................................................................................MAX CASELLA The Wife...............................................................................................MIRIAM SILVERMAN Joey Falcone...............................................................................................JOEY SLOTNICK Steve Tudik..........................................................................................................RO BODDIE INSIDE TALK Movie Executive.....................................................................................PETER JACOBSON Lou Wald.....................................................................................................JASON KRAVITS Jerry Sterling................................................................................................SAUL RUBINEK The Writer.........................................................................................SAM VARTHOLOMEOS UNDERSTUDIES Understudies never substitute for a listed performer unless a specific announcement is made at the time of the performance. STAGE MANAGERS Michelle Blair Katherine Shea INTERMISSION A Play Is a Poem will be performed without an intermission. Please turn off all electronic devices such as cellular phones and watch alarms. The use of any recording device, either audio or video, and the taking of photographs, with or without flash, is strictly prohibited.

P4  PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 4

8/29/19 12:51 PM


THE REDEEMERS

A TOUGH CASE

AT THE GAZEBO

THE URBANES

INSIDE TALK

Clockwise from top left: Joey Slotnick, CJ Wilson, and Max Casella. Saul Rubinek, Nellie McKay, Joey Slotnick, CJ Wilson, Peter Jacobson, and Micaela Diamond. Saul Rubinek, Sam Vartholomeos, Peter Jacobson, and Jason Kravits. Max Casella, Miriam Silverman, Ro Boddie, and Joey Slotnick. Ro Boddie, Micaela Diamond, and Sam Vartholomeos. Photos by Benedict Evans.

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 5

8/29/19 12:51 PM


COLLABORATION

CAS T

AND POETRY

WHAT MAKES A PLAY? HOW PL AY WRIGH T E TH A N COEN A ND DIRECTOR NEIL PEPE BROUGH T A PL AY IS A POEM FROM THE PAGE TO THE S TAGE

P6  PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 6

8/29/19 12:51 PM


L–R: Director Neil Pepe and playwright Ethan Coen.

FROM APPAL ACHIA TO HOLLY WOOD, drama to comedy, A Play Is a Poem is a cross-country cross-section of American theatrical history. Consisting of five short plays of disparate settings and genres, the fundamental connection these pieces share doesn’t begin onstage. Rather, it all starts with over a decade’s worth of collaboration between playwright Ethan Coen and director Neil Pepe. The roots of the duo’s collaboration go back to the mid-2000s, when Ethan and his brother, Joel Coen, co-wrote a radio play that was staged in New York. “I’ve always loved not only the richness of their writing but the surprise of their storytelling,” said Pepe. “I was intrigued that they were getting into something near playwriting.” Connected by mutual friends for a lunch meeting, Coen later shared some one-act plays he had been working on with Pepe, who was instantly smitten: “I read them and I loved them. They were incredibly funny and irreverent, just sort of bite-sized pieces of the brilliance of Ethan’s writing for film but applied to a theatrical form, which was exciting to me.” PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE P7

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 7

8/29/19 12:51 PM


Three of those one-acts eventually turned into 2008’s Almost an Evening at Atlantic Theater Company, where Pepe, who directed, is Artistic Director. Pepe and Coen quickly followed up their first collaboration with 2009’s Offices and 2011’s Happy Hour (also evenings of three plays). Now on their fourth collaboration with A Play Is a Poem, the duo have developed a comfortable rhythm together. “Neil has a hyper-developed ear for what’s working, what’s not working, and a perfect touch with the actors, a way to show them how they can make it go better, keep the hoop rolling,” said Coen of the rehearsal process. “I’ve spent hours and hours over the years in a rehearsal room with him, and I still don’t know how he does it.” Pepe, for his part, feels the same. “He’s so used to working with actors and has such an inherent understanding of story and dramaturgy, it feels completely collaborative—where the writer begins and the director stops,” said Pepe of Coen. They are also in basic agreement about the format and subject of A Play Is a Poem. “This play is five different stories, five little jaunts, the scenery different in each, the setting different—Neil and I haven’t talked about what ties them together; I don’t think either of us thinks about

it,” explained Coen. “The aim is to get the play to that point, where it’s become a great big joyride for actors and audience. Neil knows how to get it there, but it’s an elusive place.” Pepe offered a hint of how he sees that journey. “There’s something inherently iconic about the plays in an American way,” said Pepe. “But I think the thing that is of course surprising and deeply funny is Ethan’s take on it. So in a certain way it’s both his take on these stories and America, but also a take on some of the forms that these stories have taken over the years.” They both prefer to keep the work uncategorizable. “It doesn’t matter where you put the play on that spectrum, high or low, tragedy or comedy—Neil cares about that as little as I do,” said Coen. “We’ve never even talked about that, over the course of many years of working together— whether what we’re working on is a comedy or not. Or what the play is in any generic sense. It’s a play, and it’s either working or not working, either going or not going.” One asset they have in getting the play going is a robust ensemble that includes many actors who have worked with both Pepe and Coen previously in both theatre and film.

“ T HERE’S SOME T HING INHEREN T LY ICONIC A BOU T T HE P L AY S IN A N A MERICA N WAY.”

L-R: Center Theatre Group Artistic Director Michael Ritchie, Ethan Coen, and Neil Pepe at the first rehearsal for the World premiere of A Play Is a Poem.

P8  PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 8

8/29/19 12:51 PM


L-R: Nellie McKay, C.J. Wilson, Sam Vartholomeos, Saul Rubinek, Micaela Diamond, Ro Boddie, Ethan Coen, Max Casella, Joey Slotnick, Miriam Silverman, Jason Kravits, Peter Jacobson, and Neil Pepe.

“Doing one-acts with a great ensemble of actors, I feel like it’s where I come from—having come of age in a theatre company with a closely knit acting ensemble,” said Pepe. “I think Ethan also comes from a background and aesthetic of great ensemble actors, and that’s how we approach these.” But of course theatre has its limitations as well, which just might be part of the appeal. “In my mind, in theatre there’s an essential truth and simplicity to the form, which allows the words to kind of spark the imagination as opposed to having the capacity to show and realize everything, which I think you can really do very effectively in film,” said Pepe. “There’s something about poetry and language and the essential nature of a poem and the essential nature of a short play that is exciting in its economy.” With all of that in mind, for both collaborators, at the end of the day, the crux of the piece—or any piece—is trying to coax out the essence of theatre; the thing that keeps an audience engaged with the art. Coen describes it as “the mad state that joins actors and audience when the play’s working; a mad thing that makes sense in the moment but nobody can describe it afterward.”

“THE AIM IS TO GE T THE PL AY TO TH AT POIN T, WHERE IT ’S BECOME A GRE AT BIG JOY RIDE FOR ACTORS A ND AUDIENCE.”

Or, as Pepe put it: “We do the best we can with the words that we have and we hope everybody enjoys the evening.”

Photos by Benedict Evans.

PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE P9

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 9

8/29/19 12:51 PM


WHO’S WHO RO BODDIE (Gadsden, Steve Tudik) is thrilled to be making his Mark Taper Forum debut. Off-Broadway credits: The Public Theater (Socrates), Summer Shorts at 59E59 Theaters (Appomattox). Regional credits: La Jolla Playhouse (Blueprints to Freedom), Old Globe (Skeleton Crew tour), Cleveland Play House (The Mountaintop), Milwaukee Repertory Theater (The Whipping Man), Baltimore Center Stage (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), Studio Theatre (Dirt, Three Sisters, No Sisters), Round House Theatre (Master Harold and the Boys), Cygnet Theatre (Every Brilliant Thing, Seven Guitars, King Hedley II). TV credits: The Good Wife, Person of Interest, Elementary, Unforgettable. Awards: San Diego Critics Circle Award. Education: University of the North Carolina School of the Arts. MAX CASELLA (Cal, Cabbie). This is the third time Max has worked with Ethan Coen—previously appearing in Relatively Speaking on Broadway and Inside Llewyn Davis. Other film credits include Late Night, Night Comes On, Live by Night, Jackie, Wonder Wheel, Blue Jasmine, Old Boy, Killing Them Softly, Revolutionary Road, Analyze This, Ed Wood, Newsies, and The Rhythm Section (upcoming, directed by Reed Morano). Currently recurring on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and the recent season of Ray Donovan. Other television credits include Vinyl (series regular), Boardwalk Empire (recurring), The Sopranos (five seasons), and Vinnie Delpino on Doogie Howser, M.D. Broadway: Timon in the original cast of The Lion King (multiple award noms). Other theatre credits include: Troilus and Cressida, Timon Of Athens (Public Theater); Julie Taymor’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Endgame (BAM); and Simon McBurney’s adaptation of The Kid Stays in the Picture. MICAELA DIAMOND (Lindy, Dorothy) made her Broadway debut as Babe— the youngest Cher—in The Cher Show, a role she auditioned for just weeks after graduating high school. She made her television debut in NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert, appearing in the ensemble and understudying for Sara Bareilles. Diamond grew up in New York City and is a graduate of LaGuardia High School

of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York. Favorite roles include Louise in Gypsy and Sally Bowles in Cabaret. @micaela_diamond PETER JACOBSON (Johnny Branco, Movie Executive). Atlantic Theater Company: The Water Engine and Once in a Lifetime. Off-Broadway: original New York productions of Steve Martin’s Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Four Dogs and a Bone (John Patrick Shanley dir.), The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged), Taming of the Shrew, and Comedy of Errors (Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park), Obie Award-winning June Moon, and Waiting for Lefty. TV: Dr. Taub on House, Proxy Snyder on Colony, and recurring roles on Fear the Walking Dead, NCIS: L.A., The Americans, Ray Donovan, Law & Order: SVU, and Law & Order, as well as Billions, Paterno, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Genius, Madam Secretary, and Chicago PD. Film: White House Down, Good Night and Good Luck, and upcoming The Goldfinch, Joyful, Before You Know It, and Violet. Peter is from Chicago. JASON KRAVITS (Lou Wald) last appeared at Center Theatre Group in the pre-Broadway run of The Drowsy Chaperone. Other Broadway credits include Relatively Speaking (by Ethan Coen, Elaine May, and Woody Allen) and Sly Fox. Recent TV credits include The Kominsky Method, Big Bang Theory, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Young Sheldon, and The Deuce, as well as upcoming episodes of The Undoing and The Hunt. Other favorite appearances include The Practice (ADA Richard Bay), Curb Your Enthusiasm, Grey’s Anatomy, Gilmore Girls, Everybody Loves Raymond, 30 Rock, and the final episode of Friends. Movie credits include Morning Glory, Chinese Puzzle, Stepford Wives, and the upcoming What is Life Worth? His one-man, improvised cabaret Off the Top has been produced in Edinburgh, London, Amsterdam, and Adelaide, and can be seen regularly at Birdland, NYC. NELLIE McKAY (Original Music, LuAnne, Musician) has released seven critically acclaimed albums, with a new EP, “Bagatelles,” coming in October. Broadway Theatre World Award for Polly Peachum in The Threepenny Opera,

P10  PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 10

8/29/19 12:51 PM


co-created/starred in Off-Broadway’s Old Hats, created musical biographies of Barbara Graham, Rachel Carson, Joan Rivers, and Billy Tipton (Best Concerts of the Year— The New York Times). Film roles in P.S. I Love You and Downtown Express, music for Rumor Has It, Monster -In-Law, Last Holiday, Gasland, and Private Life. TV appearances on David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Craig Ferguson, The View, and Jimmy Dore. Music heard on Mad Men, Boardwalk Empire, Weeds, Grey’s Anatomy, NCIS, Nurse Jackie. A recipient of PETA’s Humanitarian Award for dedication to animal rights, and an annoyingly vocal critic of endless war, capitalism, and the two-party system that sustains it. SAUL RUBINEK (Arthur Threadgill, Jerry Sterling) started his career dedicated to the development of over 50 Canadian plays. Saul’s work in television and features spans four decades including Frasier, Warehouse 13, upcoming Amazon series The Hunt with Al Pacino, Clint Eastwood’s Oscar-winning Unforgiven, Tony Scott and Quentin Tarantino’s True Romance, and Joel and Ethan Coen’s The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. His play Terrible Advice (starring Scott Bakula and Sharon Horgan) premiered in London in 2011. Saul directed Paramount/Showtime’s Club Land (starring Steven Weber and Alan Alda), Jerry and Tom (Sundance 1998, starring Joe Mantegna and Sam Rockwell), and the award-winning indie Cruel But Necessary—the latter two produced by his wife and partner Elinor Reid. Saul also produced an award-winning documentary, So Many Miracles, chronicling his parents’ reunion with the people who saved their lives during the Holocaust. MIRIAM SILVERMAN (The Wife). Broadway: Junk. Off-Broadway: Plano (Clubbed Thumb); Finks (Drama Desk nomination, EST); Tiny Beautiful Things, Hamlet (The Public); A Delicate Ship (Playwrights Realm); You Got Older (Page 73); Everything You Touch (Rattlestick); The Witch of Edmonton (Red Bull Theater). Regional: Mary Jane, The Moors (Yale Repertory Theatre); The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window (Jeff nom, Goodman); Measure for Measure, All’s Well That Ends Well, As You Like It, The Dog in the Manger (Shakespeare Theatre Company); Peer

Gynt (Guthrie Theater); Awake and Sing! (Arena Stage). Film: Bad Education (upcoming), Sand Mama, Better Days Ahead. TV: The Village, NOS4A2, Elementary, Pan Am, Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Education: BA and MFA, Brown University. JOEY SLOTNICK (Wes, Ed Curtin, Joey Falcone). Broadway: Junk, The Front Page, The Big Knife. Off-Broadway: Dying for It, Happy Hour, The New York Idea, Offices, Almost an Evening (Atlantic); The Altruists (Vineyard); Tchaikovsky (Signature). Regional: Chapter Two (Bucks County); Animal Crackers (Williamstown and The Goodman); Arabian Nights, Up Against It, Master & Margarita, Great Men of Science, Our Town, Wants & Needs (Lookingglass); Romance (Bay Street). TV: Boston Public (series regular); The Single Guy (series regular); Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (recurring); The Good Wife (recurring); Nip/Tuck (recurring); The Goldbergs; Murphy Brown; Blue Bloods; Psych; Boston Legal; The Office; Medium; Curb Your Enthusiasm; Law & Order: SVU; Family Guy; Entourage. Film: Pirates of Silicon Valley; The Cobbler; Humor Me; T he Secret Life of Walter Mitty; Brief Interviews with Hideous Men; Blast from the Past; Hollow Man; Twister; A League of Their Own. SAM VARTHOLOMEOS (Carter, The Writer) was born and raised in Queens, New York, a proud first-generation American. He is a graduate of LaGuardia H.S. of Music & Art and Performing Arts, and made his Off-Broadway debut in John Patrick Shanley’s Prodigal Son at Manhattan Theatre Club. TV/film credits include: Law & Order: SVU, Bull, The Following, Truth Slash Fiction, and as Ensign Danby Connor on Star Trek: Discovery. Sam holds degrees in psychology and philosophy from the City College of New York. CJ WILSON (Gary Allen, Don Baines). Broadway: Bronx Bombers, The Big Knife, Festen, Henry IV, The Best Man. Off-Broadway: On the Shore of the Wide World, Hold on to Me Darling (Lucille Lortel nom.), Dying for It, Our New Girl, Offices, The Voysey Inheritance (Atlantic Theater); Medieval Play, The Lady from PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE P11

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 11

8/29/19 12:51 PM


Dubuque (Signature); Bronx Bombers, Happy Now? (Lucille Lortel nom., Primary Stages); All-American (LCT3). Regional: Old Globe, Shakespeare Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Group, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Wilma. Film: Manchester by the Sea, A Vigilante, Demolition, Easy Living, The Intern. Upcoming: Irresistible. Television: The Blacklist, Quantico, Bull, Elementary, The Looming Tower, The Sinner, Homeland, The Characters, House of Cards, The Sound of Music Live!, The Following, The Good Wife, Blue Bloods, Onion Sportsdome, The Americans, Brotherhood, Law & Order, L&O: SVU, L&O: CI, Without a Trace. Fox Fellow. ETHAN COEN (Playwright). Previous plays: Almost an Evening, Offices, Happy Hour, and Women or Nothing; also “Talking Cure,” part of an evening of one-acts whose other contributors were Woody Allen and Elaine May. A collection of stories, Gates of Eden, and two collections of poems, The Drunken Driver Has the Right of Way and The Day the World Ends. Coen has written, produced, and directed movies with his brother Joel for 35 years. NEIL PEPE (Director). Recent directing credits: Juno and the Paycock at Irish Repertory Theatre; Simon Stephens’ On the Shore of the Wide World; Kenneth Lonergan’s Hold on to Me Darling; and David Mamet’s The Penitent, all at Atlantic Theater Company in New York. Broadway credits include the musical Hands on a Hardbody and Mamet’s Speed-the-Plow and A Life in the Theatre. Off-Broadway credits include John Guare’s 3 Kinds of Exile; Moira Buffini’s Dying for It; Jez Butterworth’s Parlour Song, Mojo, and The Night Heron; Ethan Coen’s Happy Hour, Offices, and Almost an Evening; Harold Pinter’s Celebration and The Room; Adam Rapp’s Dreams of Flying Dreams of Falling; Joe Penhall’s Blue/ Orange; Hilary Bell’s Wolf Lullaby; David Pittu’s What’s That Smell?; Howard Korder’s Sea of Tranquility; Edwin Sanchez’s Clean; and Quincy Long’s Shaker Heights, all at Atlantic. Additional credits: American Buffalo (Donmar Warehouse, Atlantic); Romance, Keep Your Pantheon, and School (Center Theatre Group, Atlantic); Frank D. Gilroy’s The Subject Was Roses (Center Theatre Group); Zinnie Harris’ Further Than the Furthest Thing (Manhattan Theatre Club); Jessica Goldberg’s Refuge (Playwrights Horizons); Tom Donaghy’s The Beginning of August (South Coast Repertory, Atlantic); and Eric Bogosian’s Red Angel

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 12

(Williamstown Theatre Festival). Neil has been the Artistic Director of Atlantic Theater Company since 1992. RICCARDO HERNÁNDEZ (Scenic Designer). Broadway: Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune; Indecent; The Gin Game; The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess; The People in the Picture; Caroline, or Change (National Theatre London); Elaine Stritch at Liberty (The Old Vic, London); Topdog/ Underdog (Royal Court); Bells Are Ringing; Parade (Hal Prince director, Tony and Drama Desk nominations); Bring in ’Da Noise, Bring in ’Da Funk; The Tempest. Recent: Jagged Little Pill (Diane Paulus director, ART); Lempicka (Rachel Chavkin director, WTF); Admissions (LCT); La Dame aux camélias (France); Mlima’s Tale (Public Theater); The Invisible Hand (NYTW—Hewes Design Award for Scenic Design); The Skin of Our Teeth, The Father, and A Doll’s House (Arin Arbus director, TFANA); La Mouette (Cour d’honneur, Palais des papes—Avignon Festival). He has designed over 250 productions in the US and internationally. Obie Award: Sustained Excellence; Yale School of Drama design faculty. SARAH LAUX (Costume Designer). Broadway: The Band’s Visit, Fully Committed, The Humans. Selected Off-Broadway/regional: Before the Meeting (Williamstown Theatre Festival), Superhero (Second Stage), Downstairs (Primary Stages), Blue Ridge (Atlantic Theater Company), This Ain’t No Disco (Atlantic Theater Company), Jerry Springer: The Opera (The New Group—Obie Award), On the Shore of the Wide World (Atlantic Theater Company), Bad Dates (Huntington Theatre Company), The End of Longing (MCC Theater), Bad Jews (George Street Playhouse), Man From Nebraska (Second Stage), The Band’s Visit (Atlantic Theater Company), Ultimate Beauty Bible (Page 73) The Effect (Barrow Street Theatre), The Humans (Roundabout Theatre Company), Thresh/Hold (Pilobolus Dance Theater), Come Back, Little Sheba (Huntington Theatre Company), Women or Nothing (Atlantic Theater Company), Really Really (MCC Theater). Feature film: Freak Show (Maven). Television: High Fidelity (Hulu). TYLER MICOLEAU (Lighting Designer). Center Theatre Group debut. Broadway: Be More Chill, The Band’s Visit (2018 Tony Award for Lighting Design of a Musical). Recent Off-Broadway: Hercules (Public Works), Dying City (Second Stage Theater), Socrates (The Public Theater). Other notable Off-Broadway: When the Rain Stops Falling (Lucille Lortel Award), Blasted (ATW Hewes Design Award), Bug (Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards). 2010 Obie Award for

8/29/19 12:51 PM


Sustained Excellence. Regional designs for the Huntington Theatre, Alley Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Dallas Theater Center, The Old Globe, La Jolla Playhouse, Trinity Repertory Company, Arena Stage, Shakespeare Theatre, Kansas City Rep, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Wilma Theater, Pig Iron Theatre, Folger Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, and many others. A Play Is a Poem is Tyler’s fourth collaboration with director Neil Pepe. tylermicoleau.com LEON ROTHENBERG (Sound Designer). Recent L.A. area: 1776 at La Mirada Performing Arts Center, Ironbound at the Geffen, Our Town at Pasadena Playhouse. Recent Broadway: Hillary and Clinton, The Waverly Gallery, Mike Birbiglia’s The New One, The Boys in the Band. Recent regional: Huntington Theatre, Two River Theater, Second Stage, Manhattan Theatre Club, A.C.T., City Theatre Pittsburgh, Arena Stage, Old Globe, Portland Center Stage, Seattle Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, Williamstown Theatre Festival, NY Stage and Film. International: Cirque du Soleil, National Theatre of Cyprus, and Dijon International Festival. Tony Award for Sound Design: The Nance. klaxson.net CHARLES G. L APOINTE (Hair & Wig Designer). Numerous Broadway, touring, West End, and international productions, including Hamilton, The Cher Show (Drama Desk Award); The Band’s Visit; Beautiful; Ain’t Too Proud; Beetlejuice; The Lifespan of a Fact; SpongeBob SquarePants (Drama Desk Award); Jersey Boys; Motown; Memphis; On Your Feet!; A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder; The Color Purple; Newsies; In the Heights. Television: The Wiz Live! (Emmy Award nomination); Jesus Christ Superstar Live! (Emmy Award nomination and Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylist Guild Award); Hairspray. STEVE RANKIN (Fight Director). Broadway: Ain’t Too Proud, Carousel (Drama Desk Outstanding Fight Choreography), Summer, Jersey Boys, Memphis, Henry IV, Macbeth, Guys and Dolls, The Who’s Tommy, Getting Away With Murder, Two Shakespearean Actors, Twelfth Night, The Real Inspector Hound, Anna Christie. Off-Broadway: The Third Story, Pig Farm, The Night Hank Williams Died, Below The Belt. Taper: Archduke, Zoot Suit, Bent, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Immediate Family, What the Butler Saw, Burn This, The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Palestine, New Mexico, The House of Blue Leaves, Water & Power, Electricidad, The Talking Cure, Gem of the Ocean, The House of Bernarda Alba. Other theatre: Stratford Shakespeare Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe (Associate Artist), Metropolitan Opera, LA Opera, et al. Mr. Rankin plays mandolin with The Susie Glaze New Folk Ensemble.

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 13

TELSEY + COMPANY (Casting). Broadway/tours: West Side Story, Tina, The Sound Inside, Linda Vista, Freestyle Love Supreme, Beetlejuice, Oklahoma!, To Kill a Mockingbird, Mean Girls, Frozen, Come From Away, Waitress, Hamilton, Wicked, My Fair Lady, Once on This Island, Hello, Dolly!, Anastasia, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Off-Broadway: Atlantic Theater Company, Classic Stage Company, MCC Theater, New Group, Park Avenue Armory, Second Stage Theater. Film: The Kitchen, Mary Poppins Returns, Ben Is Back, The Greatest Showman, Into the Woods, Rachel Getting Married. TV: Tales of the City, Fosse/Verdon, NOS4A2, This Is Us, NCIS: New Orleans, One Day at a Time, Rent, commercials. telseyandco.com DAVID S. FRANKLIN (Production Stage Manager). Center Theatre Group highlights: An Enemy of the People, Baz Luhrmann’s La Bohème, Art, Romance, The Cherry Orchard, Curtains, Nightingale, The History Boys, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Two Unrelated Plays by David Mamet, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Parade, The Subject Was Roses, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Randy Newman’s Harps and Angels, God of Carnage, Vigil, Waiting for Godot, Los Otros, Red, Seminar, Tribes, Humor Abuse, The Steward of Christendom, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Bent, The Christians, Disgraced, A View From The Bridge, Zoot Suit, Archduke, King of the Yees, Head of Passes, Water by the Spoonful, Sweat, Valley of the Heart, Linda Vista, Lackawanna Blues, and had the pleasure of assisting on Soft Power. Other Los Angeles: Los Angeles Theatre Center in its heyday from 1985–1990, Pasadena Playhouse, and the Geffen Playhouse. Regional: Seattle Rep, Intiman Theatre. New York: Public Theater. Tours: Europe—Quotations from a Ruined City, Law of Remains (with Reza Abdoh’s Dar a Luz company). MICHELLE BLAIR (Stage Manager, L.A.) has worked on over 30 productions for Center Theatre Group. Some highlights include Lackawanna Blues, Linda Vista, Sweat, Water by the Spoonful, Head of Passes, Heisenberg, Archduke, Zoot Suit, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Bent, The Sunshine Boys, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Red, Leap of Faith, The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Parade, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, all wear bowlers, Topdog/Underdog, and “QED” at Lincoln Center Theater. Other favorites include La Traviata with the Los Angeles Opera, The Tempest with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Henry IV with Shakespeare Center Los Angeles, The Pee-wee Herman Show at Club Nokia, and Jersey Boys in Las Vegas. Graduate of the University of Southern California and the University of Amsterdam. Mom to 11-year-old Liam and 7-year-old Imogen.

8/29/19 12:51 PM


KATHERINE SHEA (Stage Manager, N.Y.). Broadway: Travesties, Arthur Miller’s The Price, Fiddler on the Roof, It Shoulda Been You, Once. Off-Broadway: Apologia (Roundabout Theatre Company), Once (New York Theatre Workshop). Regional theatre: Prometheus Bound, The Blue Flower, Cabaret, Endgame, Donnie Darko (American Repertory Theater). Love to my friends, family, and #dorothyfranz! ATLANTIC THEATER COMPANY (Neil Pepe, Artistic Director; Jeffory Lawson, Managing Director). At Atlantic, our aim is singular—to empower simple and honest storytelling that fosters greater understanding of our shared world. We are a family of artists dedicated to exploring essential truths onstage, be it a show at Atlantic Theater Company or a class at Atlantic Acting School. Founded as an ensemble of impassioned artists in 1985, Atlantic Theater Company has grown into a powerhouse Off-Broadway company, premiering 200+ works from new and established writers. From our Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning productions to our community-based education programs, we are committed to uncovering and celebrating the stories of our varied human existence. For more information, visit atlantictheater.org. CENTER THEATRE GROUP

DOUGLAS C. BAKER (Producing Director) is now in his 30TH season at Center Theatre Group. He is an active member of the Broadway League, the Independent Presenters Network, and is a proud member of the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers. In May 2013, Doug received the Broadway League’s prestigious Outstanding Achievement in Presenter Management Award. KELLEY KIRKPATRICK (Associate Artistic Director). Since arriving at Center Theatre Group in 2005, Kelley has produced over 60 productions at the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre, many of which have gone on to future lives on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and beyond. In addition to producing shows across Center Theatre Group’s three stages, he has had the privilege of collaborating with numerous local and national artists to commission and develop new works. NAUSICA STERGIOU (General Manager) has worked supporting artists in theatres of all shapes, sizes, and locales including Center Theatre Group as General Manager and, previously, as Audience Development Director. She oversees productions at the Taper and Douglas, as well as new play commissions and developmental productions. Nausica has taught at USC’s School of Dramatic Arts and works with local nonprofits including Hollywood Orchard.

MICHAEL RITCHIE (Artistic Director) is in his 15TH season as Center Theatre Group’s Artistic Director, and has led over 200 productions to the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre stages, including the premieres of six musicals that moved to Broadway—The Drowsy Chaperone, Curtains, 13, 9 to 5: The Musical, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and Leap of Faith—and the Pulitzer Prize in Drama finalist Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo.

MEGHAN PRESSMAN (Managing Director) joined Center Theatre Group as Managing Director in 2019. Previously, she served as Managing Director of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (D.C.), Director of Development for Signature Theatre (N.Y.), and Associate Managing Director of Berkeley Rep, in addition to working at numerous other theatre and arts organizations across the country. She is the Vice-Chair of the National Board for the Theatre Communications Group (TCG).

GORDON DAVIDSON (Founding Artistic Director) led the Taper throughout its first 38 seasons, guiding over 300 productions to its stage and winning countless awards for himself and the theatre—including the Tony Award for theatrical excellence, Margo Jones Award, The Governor’s Award for the Arts, and a Guggenheim fellowship. The Kentucky Cycle and Angels in America (Part One) won the Pulitzer in consecutive years and, in 1994, three of the four plays nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play were from the Taper (Angels in America won). In 1989, Gordon took over the Ahmanson and, in 2004, he produced the inaugural season in the Kirk Douglas Theatre.

P14  PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 14

8/29/19 12:51 PM


KATHERINE SHEA (Stage Manager, N.Y.). Broadway: Travesties, Arthur Miller’s The Price, Fiddler on the Roof, It Shoulda Been You, Once. Off-Broadway: Apologia (Roundabout Theatre Company), Once (New York Theatre Workshop). Regional theatre: Prometheus Bound, The Blue Flower, Cabaret, Endgame, Donnie Darko (American Repertory Theater). Love to my friends, family, and #dorothyfranz! ATLANTIC THEATER COMPANY (Neil Pepe, Artistic Director; Jeffory Lawson, Managing Director). At Atlantic, our aim is singular—to empower simple and honest storytelling that fosters greater understanding of our shared world. We are a family of artists dedicated to exploring essential truths onstage, be it a show at Atlantic Theater Company or a class at Atlantic Acting School. Founded as an ensemble of impassioned artists in 1985, Atlantic Theater Company has grown into a powerhouse Off-Broadway company, premiering 200+ works from new and established writers. From our Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning productions to our community-based education programs, we are committed to uncovering and celebrating the stories of our varied human existence. For more information, visit atlantictheater.org. CENTER THEATRE GROUP

DOUGLAS C. BAKER (Producing Director) is now in his 30TH season at Center Theatre Group. He is an active member of the Broadway League, the Independent Presenters Network, and is a proud member of the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers. In May 2013, Doug received the Broadway League’s prestigious Outstanding Achievement in Presenter Management Award. KELLEY KIRKPATRICK (Associate Artistic Director). Since arriving at Center Theatre Group in 2005, Kelley has produced over 60 productions at the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre, many of which have gone on to future lives on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and beyond. In addition to producing shows across Center Theatre Group’s three stages, he has had the privilege of collaborating with numerous local and national artists to commission and develop new works. NAUSICA STERGIOU (General Manager) has worked supporting artists in theatres of all shapes, sizes, and locales including Center Theatre Group as General Manager and, previously, as Audience Development Director. She oversees productions at the Taper and Douglas, as well as new play commissions and developmental productions. Nausica has taught at USC’s School of Dramatic Arts and works with local nonprofits including Hollywood Orchard.

MICHAEL RITCHIE (Artistic Director) is in his 15TH season as Center Theatre Group’s Artistic Director, and has led over 200 productions to the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, and Kirk Douglas Theatre stages, including the premieres of six musicals that moved to Broadway—The Drowsy Chaperone, Curtains, 13, 9 to 5: The Musical, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and Leap of Faith—and the Pulitzer Prize in Drama finalist Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo.

MEGHAN PRESSMAN (Managing Director) joined Center Theatre Group as Managing Director in 2019. Previously, she served as Managing Director of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (D.C.), Director of Development for Signature Theatre (N.Y.), and Associate Managing Director of Berkeley Rep, in addition to working at numerous other theatre and arts organizations across the country. She is the Vice-Chair of the National Board for the Theatre Communications Group (TCG).

GORDON DAVIDSON (Founding Artistic Director) led the Taper throughout its first 38 seasons, guiding over 300 productions to its stage and winning countless awards for himself and the theatre—including the Tony Award for theatrical excellence, Margo Jones Award, The Governor’s Award for the Arts, and a Guggenheim fellowship. The Kentucky Cycle and Angels in America (Part One) won the Pulitzer in consecutive years and, in 1994, three of the four plays nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play were from the Taper (Angels in America won). In 1989, Gordon took over the Ahmanson and, in 2004, he produced the inaugural season in the Kirk Douglas Theatre.

ADDITIONAL STAFF FOR A PLAY IS A POEM Assistant Director.................................................................Sky Smith Dialect Coach...................................................................Kate Wilson Los Angeles Casting.................................Michael Donovan Casting Associate Scenic Designer........................................Riw Rakkulchon Assistant Costume Designer, N.Y................................Jacob A. Climer Stitcher......................................................................Cosmo Martinelli Resident Assistant Lighting Designer......................Zachary Heffner Assistant Sound Designer..........................................Anna Grossman Prop Carpenter...............................................................Ryan Howard Rehearsal Prop Coordinator, N.Y. ..................................Kate Stack Production Assistant, N.Y. ..............................Lauren Fitzgerald Veit Production Assistant, L.A. ...................................................Liv Scott CREDITS Scenery constructed by F&D Scene Changes, Ltd. Scenery drops printed by Rose Brand. Costumes provided by the Center Theatre Group Costume Shop. Additional costumes for Ms. McKay and Ms. Diamond provided by Tricone, Inc. Piano rental provided by Keyboard Concepts. Additional musical instrument rental provided by L.A. Percussion Rentals. Production photography by Craig Schwartz. MUSIC CREDITS “Solitude” Written by: Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, and Eddie De Lange. Published by: Sony/ATV Harmony, EMI Mills Music Inc., and Scarsdale Music Corp. Music Supervision by Duotone Audio Group: Music Supervisor......................................................David Leinheardt Music Coordinator..............................................................Dana Hom

SPECIAL THANKS Special thanks to Camron Parker, Associate General Manager at the Atlantic Theater Company. A Play Is a Poem was rehearsed at Manhattan Theatre Club’s Creative Center. ONLINE CenterTheatreGroup.org #APlayIsAPoem Like us on Facebook Center Theatre Group Follow us on Twitter @CTGLA Subscribe on YouTube CTGLA Follow us on Instagram @CTGLA The Actors and Stage Managers employed in this production are members of Actors’ Equity Association. This theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. The following employees are represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Machine Operators, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, its Territories and Canada, AFL-CIO, CLC: Stage Crew Local 33; Local Treasurers and Ticket Sellers Local 857; Wardrobe Crew Local 768; Makeup Artists and Hair Stylists Local 706. The scenic, costume, lighting, and sound designers in LORT Theatres are represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829. The Director is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, Inc., an independent national labor union. Center Theatre Group is a member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT), the American Arts Alliance, the Broadway League, Independent Producers’ Network (IPN), LA Stage Alliance, National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT) and the Theatre Communications Group (TCG).

SPECIAL THANKS Special thanks to Camron Parker, Associate General Manager at the Atlantic Theater Company. A Play Is a Poem was rehearsed at Manhattan Theatre Club’s Creative Center.

Production photography by Craig Schwartz.

L–R: Costume designer Sarah Laux, cast members Micaela Diamond, Ro Boddie, Saul Rubinek, and Sam Vartholomeos, and assistant costume designer Jacob A. Climer at the first rehearsal. Photo by Benedict Evans.

P 14 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P 15


MICHAEL RITCHIE Artistic Director | MEGHAN PRESSMAN Managing Director | DOUGLAS C. BAKER Producing Director GORDON DAVIDSON Founding Artistic Director Center Theatre Group would like to thank its exceptional staff for their ongoing commitment, dedication, and extraordinary efforts.

ARTISTIC LINDSAY ALLBAUGH................................................... Associate Artistic Director NEEL KELLER.................................. Associate Artistic Director/Literary Director KELLEY KIRKPATRICK................................................. Associate Artistic Director PATRICIA GARZA ....................................Line Producer, Special Artistic Projects MICHAEL DONOVAN CASTING................................................Casting Consultant SUZANNE HEE MAYBERRY .................................................Casting Coordinator IAN-JULIAN WILLIAMS ....................................Program Coordinator, Block Party TIFFANY SLAGLE ...................................................................... Literary Assistant MATTHEW BOURNE, DANAI GURIRA, ANNA D. SHAPIRO ......................................................................Associate Artists KRISTINA WONG..............................................Sherwood Award Recipient, 2019 EDUCATION, ENGAGEMENT, AND COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS LESLIE K. JOHNSON............. Director of Social Strategy, Innovation and Impact KATHRYN MACKENZIE ................................................ Director of Administration TYRONE DAVIS.....................................................Audience Engagement Director TRACI KWON.................................................. Arts Education Initiatives Director JESUS REYES...................................................Community Partnerships Director CAMILLE SCHENKKAN..................................Next Generation Initiatives Director JAQUELYN JOHNSON...........................................Audience Engagement Manager FELIPE M. SANCHEZ............................................................Emerging Artists and Arts Professionals Program Manager ANNE MARIE ACOSTA.....................................................Administrative Assistant DEBRA PIVER................................................................. Resident Teaching Artist MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION NAUSICA STERGIOU................................................................... General Manager JEFFREY UPAH ...........................................................................General Manager KATIE SOFF.................................................................Associate General Manager ERIC SIMS..................................................................Associate General Manager MEGAN AARON........................Company Manager & Assistant General Manager KEVIN JOHNSON..................................................General Management Associate ALANA BEIDELMAN.......................... Executive Assistant to the Artistic Director PRODUCTION JOE HAMLIN........................................................................ Director of Production KRYSTIN MATSUMOTO.......................................................... Production Manager CHRISTOPHER REARDON......................................................Production Manager KATIE CHEN...........................................................Assistant Production Manager ERIN TIFFANY........................................................Assistant Production Manager ERICA LARSON..................................................................Production Coordinator SHAWN ANDERSON.................................... Head Carpenter (Ahmanson Theatre) SCOTT LUCAS...........................................Head Properties (Ahmanson Theatre) JAMES WRIGHT.......................................... Head Electrician (Ahmanson Theatre) ROBERT SMITH.................................................Head Sound (Ahmanson Theatre) SHANE ANDERSON............................................Head Flyrail (Ahmanson Theatre) MICHAEL GARDNER.......................... Wardrobe Supervisor (Ahmanson Theatre) MARY WARDE......................................................... Hair and Make-up Supervisor .............................................................................................. (Ahmanson Theatre) CHRISTINE L. COX.......................................House Manager (Ahmanson Theatre) EMMET KAISER............................................Head Carpenter (Mark Taper Forum) MARY ROMERO........................................... Head Properties (Mark Taper Forum) AARON STAUBACH......................................Head Electrician (Mark Taper Forum) BONES MALONE................................................ Head Sound (Mark Taper Forum) DENNIS SEETOO.................................. Wardrobe Supervisor (Mark Taper Forum) RICK GEYER.............................. Hair & Make-up Supervisor (Mark Taper Forum) LINDA WALKER ........................................... House Manager (Mark Taper Forum) ADAM PHALEN .............................................. Head Audio (Kirk Douglas Theatre) SEAN MEYER .......................................Head Electrician (Kirk Douglas Theatre) CAMBRIA CHICHI............................Wardrobe Supervisor (Kirk Douglas Theatre) BEN GRAY..............................................Stage Supervisor (Kirk Douglas Theatre) CHAD SMITH............................................................................. Technical Director LEE O’REILLY........................................................... Associate Technical Director SEAN KLOC...................................................................................Shop Supervisor MERRIANNE NEDREBERG................................................................ Prop Director KATE REINLIB..................................................................Associate Prop Manager ERIC BABB............................................................. Assistant Prop Shop Manager ERIN WALLEY.........................................................................Assistant Prop Lead CANDICE CAIN........................................................................... Costume Director BRENT M. BRUIN..............................................................Costume Shop Manager MADDIE KELLER..................................................................... Costume Generalist WHITNEY OPPENHEIMER..........................Resident Assistant Costume Designer KAT PATTERSON......................................Resident Assistant Costume Designer SWANTJE TUOHINO........................................................................................Tailor

OPERATIONS DAWN HOLISKI............................................ Director of Operations and Facilities PETER WYLIE........................................................................ Operations Manager ELIZABETH LEONARD................................................... Senior Facilities Manager MAX OKEN................................................................................ Facilities Manager SONDRA MAYER............................Concessions Manager (Kirk Douglas Theatre) NIKI ARMATO........................................................................... Facilities Assistant JULIO A. CUELLAR................................................................... Facilities Assistant JOE HALLAM..................................................................................................Driver FINANCE, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, AND HUMAN RESOURCES CHERYL SHEPHERD...........................................................Chief Financial Officer SARAH STURDIVANT.................................... Director of Finance and Technology SUZANNE BROWN.................................................................................. Controller DANNY LAMPSON OPSTAD...................................................Accounting Manager NAKISA ASCHTIANI......................................................... Senior Staff Accountant XOCHITL RAMIREZ.................................................. Accounts Payable Supervisor KERRY LARICK.....................................................................Accounting Assistant JESSICA HERNANDEZ................................................................. Payroll Manager JUAN MARTINEZ......................................................................... Payroll Specialist TOM MEGALE................................................... Director of Business Applications JANELLE TORRES...................................... Senior Tessitura & Web Administrator CHIMA OMEAKU......................................................................Help Desk Support JODY HORWITZ........................................................Director of Human Resources PJ. PHILLIPS.................................................Senior Human Resources Generalist MELISSA MCCAFFREY...........................................Human Resources Generalist MOSS ADAMS............................................................................................. Auditor MICHAEL C. DONALDSON, LISA A. CALLIF..................................... Legal Counsel GIBSON, DUNN & CRUTCHER......................................................... Legal Counsel INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT YVONNE CARLSON BELL..........................Director of Institutional Advancement TYLER ENNIS................................ Deputy Director of Institutional Advancement JASON CABRAL....................... Director of Advancement Operations & Analytics LOUIE ANCHONDO............................... Director of Events & Corporate Relations ASHLEY TIERNEY.......................................................Director of the Annual Fund TERRA GOULDEN..........................................................Senior Major Gifts Officer LAURA HITE............................Associate Director of Gift Operations & Reporting NIKKI MICHELA................................... Associate Director of Institutional Grants MANDI OR.....................................................Associate Director of Special Events TRACY REICH............Interim Associate Director of Gift Operations & Reporting RYAN WAGNER...............................................Associate Director of Donor Data & .......................................................................................Communication Strategy VANESSA WHEELER..............................Associate Director of Prospect Research MOLLY COTTEN........................................................................ Major Gifts Officer CHRISTY LAMB..........................................................Corporate Relations Officer SARAH RIDDLE..................................................................Annual Fund Manager ERIN SCHLABACH.......................... Donor Stewardship & Recognition Strategist ELIZABETH DELLORUSSO...................................................... Annual Fund Officer DONALD JOLLY................................... Advancement Communications Specialist EDUARDO MOLLINEDO-PIÑÓN.......................... Advancement Database Analyst MIKE RATTERMAN........................................................ Donor Advisor Supervisor ERIC SEPPALA................................................Executive Assistant to the Director ................................................................................of Institutional Advancement OLIVIA BERUMEN......................................... Advancement Operations Associate SOHINI RISAM............................................ Institutional Advancement Assistant AL BERMAN, VARTAN MERJANIAN, BENJAMIN SCHWARTZ, NICOLE SCIPIONE, PAUL VITAGLIANO...........................................Donor Advisors KARLA GALVEZ, JUSTINE PEREZ................................ Donor Services Associates MURRAY E. HELTZER, EARL KLASKY.............................Development Volunteers

MARKETING DEBORAH WARREN..............................................................Director of Marketing GARRETT COLLINS.................................................... Marketing Strategy Director KYLE HALL...................................................................................Creative Director KIYOMI EMI.........................................Marketing Manager, Promotions & Events EMYLI GUDMUNDSON.........................Marketing Manager, Kirk Douglas Theatre CAROLINE THOMPSON/IMPACT 123............................................ Media Planning DEANNA McCLURE........................................................... Art and Design Director IRENE T. KANESHIRO....................................................... Senior Design Manager SANDI SILBERT............................................................................ Senior Designer TARA NITZ.....................................................................................Senior Designer JAVIER VASQUEZ............................................. Senior Designer-Digital Specialist COMMUNICATIONS JAMES SIMS..............................................................Director of Communications JASON MARTIN........................................................................... Head of Publicity KRISTI AVILA............................................................................................ Publicist KAREN BACELLAR.........................................................................Junior Publicist SARAH ROTHBARD.....................................................Associate Editorial Director TYLER EMERSON............................................................Digital Product Manager MICAELA CUMMINGS........................................................Social Media Specialist REZA VOJDANI ......................................................Communications Coordinator HAL BANFIELD......................................................................Multimedia Producer TICKET SALES AND SERVICES SHAWN ROBERTSON............................................................ Ticket Sales Director SKYPP CABANAS............................................ Senior Manager, Ticket Operations NICOLE MEDINA.....................................................Ticket Operations Coordinator MICHAEL ZOLDESSY............................................Senior Manager, Account Sales SANDY CZUBIAK........................................................... Audience and Subscriber ....................................................................................................Services Director JENNIFER BAKER, CHERYL HAWKER, RICHARD RAGSDALE.......................................... Audience Services Supervisors ALICE CHEN................................................. Audience Services Asst. Supervisor MICHAEL ESPINOZA, GARY HOLLAND....... Audience Services Sales Associates SAM AARON, JESSICA ABROMAVICH, KIMBERLY ARENCIBIA, VICKI BERNDT, DAVID BETANCOURT, ALEJANDRA DE PAZ, KAITLYN GALVEZ, ANASTASHIA GARCIA, ELIANA HERNANDEZ-FAUSTO, CHRISTINE PEDROZA, EILEEN PEREZ, CHRISTIAN UNGER........................................Audience Services Representatives DANUTA SIEMAK................................................ Subscriber Services Supervisor CHRISTINA GUTIERREZ ........................... Subscriber Services Asst. Supervisor IRENE CHUANG, LIGIA PISTE, PETER STALOCH....................Subscriber Services ..........................................................................................Senior Representatives SARAH K. GONTA .................................................................. Box Office Treasurer
 ANGELICA CARBAJAL, MICHAEL VALLE.............................. Assistant Treasurers
 KEANA JACKSON, MICHAEL KEMPISTY, KEVIN LAUVER, CRIS SPACCA..................................................... Box Office Staff KERRY KORF.................................................................. Priority Services Director CANDICE WALTERS................................. Priority Services Senior Sales Manager PAUL CUEN, KRISTEN SCHRASS............................... Priority Services Managers SOFIJA DUTCHER......................................Priority Services Assistant Supervisor ................................................................................................................................ BEALENE AHERN, REBEKAH BOROUGHS, CLAY BUNKER, MAGGIE DODD, NATALIE DRESSEL, MARC “BYRON” DROTMAN, FRANK ENSENBERGER, LOU GEORGE, OSCAR GÓMEZ, BRAD GRIFFITH, JAMES HACKETT-LITTLE, CONSTANCE HARCAR, SHEP KOSTER, THIEN NGUYEN, JULIANNA OJEDA, IAN PRICE, HARIM SANCHEZ, DIANE WARD..Priority Services Representatives ................................................................................................................................

ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT & COMMISSIONS As part of our commitment to supporting a new generation of playwrights, we foster and develop a broad range of theatrical work from artists within the diverse communities of Los Angeles as well as from across the nation and abroad. Artists creating new work commissioned by Center Theatre Group this season:

DAVID ADJMI JON ROBIN BAITZ STEVE CUIFFO LISA D’AMOUR WILL ENO JENNIFER HALEY

ALESHEA HARRIS RAJIV JOSEPH LISA KRON KIMBER LEE YOUNG JEAN LEE MATTHEW LOPEZ

TREY LYFORD RICHARD MONTOYA JANINE NABERS QUI NGUYEN LYNN NOTTAGE MARCO RAMIREZ

SARAH RUHL ROGER GUENVEUR SMITH GEOFF SOBELLE LUIS VALDEZ PAULA VOGEL TRACEY SCOTT WILSON KAREN ZACARÍAS

Since 2005, we have invited local playwrights to spend a year researching and writing a new work with the feedback of their fellow writers and artistic staff as part of our L.A. Writers’ Workshop. Our growing community currently contains 96 playwrights. 2018/19 Season members: LUIS ALFARO AZIZA BARNES DIANA BURBANO NOAH HAIDLE

ADITI BRENNAN KAPIL BRIAN OTAÑO RUBY RAE SPIEGEL

P16  PERFORMANCES  MAGAZINE

CTG_MTF_PROG-0919-PlayPoem.indd 16

8/29/19 12:51 PM


OUR SUPPORTERS

for your generous annual support Acknowledges a loyal supporter who has pledged to sustain their commitment beyond Center Theatre Group’s current season by making a multi-year investment to our annual operating or membership funds. ♦

$1,000,000+ Anonymous

Peter & Iona Tompkins Dana & Matthew Walden ◆

$250,000+ Kirk & Anne Douglas Laura & James Rosenwald & Orinoco Foundation ◆

$100,000+ Anonymous (2) Kiki and David Gindler Patricia Glaser & Sam Mudie Aliza Karney Guren & Marc Guren Ann & Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr In Support of New Theatre Artists Jerry & Terri Kohl The Labowe Family Foundation Deena & Edward Nahmias Rosenthal Family Foundation Sue Tsao The Louis & Harold Price Foundation

$50,000+ Diana Buckhantz & the Vladimir & Araxia Buckhantz Foundation Amy Forbes & Andrew Murr Nancy & Eric Garen Stanley Iezman & Nancy Stark Donna Schweers & Tom Geiser Elliott Sernel J R Stein Family Foundation The Michael Shaw Jacobs Fund Mr. & Mrs. Jack Simon ◆

$25,000+ Anonymous The American Gift Fund Pamela & Dennis Beck Thomas Beers Joni & Miles Benickes Gail Berman & Bill Masters Jana & Trevor Bezdek Joan & Rob Blackman Betsy Borns & Jonathan Shapiro Mara & Joseph Carieri Carsey Family Foundation Marcy Carsey Helen & Morgan Chu Christine Cronin & Mark Hurst Ruth Flinkman-Marandy & Ben Marandy Cindy & Gary Frischling Manuela & James Goren Robert Greenblatt In Memory of Morris A. Hazan Joan Hotchkis Marvin Jubas & Janet Wald Jubas Vicki King The Eugene La Pietra Foundation Jody & David Lippman Renee & Meyer Luskin Doris Luster Lynn & Dreux McNairy Bill Resnick & Michael Stubbs Jane Rissman & Richard Sondheimer Ernesto & Richard Rocco-Davies Joyce & Deane Ross Ben Sherwood & Karen Kehela Ms. Marie H. Song Glenn & Andrea Sonnenberg Eugene & Marilyn Stein Eva & Marc Stern Sandra Stern Stone Family Sunshine Stone Karen & William Timberlake ◆

$15,000+ Anonymous (2) Laura & Harvey Alpert Melissa & Bob Alvarado Judith & Thomas Beckmen Annette Blum Jonna Bollenbacher Lynn Booth & Kent Kresa Linda & Maynard Brittan Traub-Brittan Family Trust Marla Campagna Mara & Joseph Carieri Susan & Stephen Chandler Connie Elliot Rhonda C. Evans Lynda & Al Fadel Judith R. Forman & Richard N. Weiner Rebecca George Jason Grode & Maryl Georgi Annie Gross Walmilly Foundation Mr. & Mrs. James L. Hunter Freya & Mark Ivener Mr. & Mrs. Gerald W. Kehle Kelton Fund/Lenny & David Kelton Harvey & Ellen Knell Foundation Harry & Arlette Lumer Ben Mui & Carrie Hartman Sheila Muller Olivia & Anthony Neece Laura & Selwyn Oskowitz Bruce & Randy Ellen Ross Rosemary Simmons Phyllis J. & Steven F. Spierer The Sugimoto Family Foundation Donna & John Sussman Anne C. Taubman Elinor & Rubin Turner Robin & Gary Ungar Suzanne V. Wilson

Mrs. Gayle Leventhal Edward Lewis Marlene & Sandy Louchheim The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation Janice & Bruce Miller Kari L. Nakama Gail Neiman Chris & Dick Newman/ C & R Newman Family Foundation Christine Marie Ofiesh & Arthur L. Zussman Ms. Linda S. Peterson Gregory Pickert & Beth Price Natalie Roberts & David Roberts z”l Conrad Schlum Charitable Trust Joan & Arnold Seidel Nina & Steven Sheldon Mrs. Dorothy R. Sherwood Mr. & Mrs. Randy Snyder Tracy A. Stone Brad & George Takei Sandra Tufts Peter & Susan Van Haften Seymour Waterman & Family Jerrie D. Whitfield & Richard W. Motika Mary J. Witt Jennifer Crittenden & William Wrubel ◆

$10,000+ Anonymous (2) Dr. Geraldine Alden Betsy & Harold Applebaum James Asperger & Christine Adams G.W. Bailey Howard Banchik The Alice Ghostley Foundation Greg Basser & Kiera O’Neill Shelley & Rick Bayer Yvonne & Derek Bell Hon. Mary Lou Byrne & Gary W. Kearney The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation Elizabeth Dailey Jack E. & Rachel Gindi Fund Roslyn & Abner Goldstine Barbara Gollin The Jim Hicks Family Foundation Marion & Tod Hindin Gail & Stanley Hollander Ellen & Jerry Jacobson Jennifer L. Jackman Gary Kading Debra & Robert Kasirer Joan Kroll & In Memory of Irving Kroll Lawrence P. Frank Foundation Craig Lawson & Terry Peters Michael & Sandy Leahy ◆

$8,000+ Russi Taylor Allwine Dr. O. Allen Alpay Liz & Lou Altman Linda Barnett I. Mark & Marlene Bledstein Ms. Virgina Blywise Paula Brand Robert Brook & Jackie Kosecoff Pamela Herman Broussard & J. Garfield Broussard Rose Marie Browning & Michael Fletcher John Jewett Byers In Memory of John W. Carner Dr. Lawrence & Jane Z. Cohen Diana Rogovin Davidow Nancy & Donald de Brier Anne M. Dougherty & David B. Dobrikin Bob Ducsay Rocky & Deborah Genter Marylyn Ginsburg & Chuck Klaus Lori Glickman Eleanor Gorman Ms. Dana Guerin Dr. Lisa Guerin & Mr. Tim Ryan Steve & Toya Harrison Dr. & Mrs. Randy W. Hawkins Sharon & Joe Hernandez Phil Hettema Marcia S. Jones Dr. & Mrs. Jack Kavanaugh In Memory of Mille Kern Janice A. Kido In Memory of Lynn Kinikin Vicki & Seth Kogan Sheila Krasnoff David & Tam Lachoff Anne & Michael Landsburg Dr. & Mrs. Martin S. Lasky Barbara & Andrew Leigh Janell & Randall Lewis Steven Llanusa & Glenn Miya, M.D. Debra Gastler & Andrew Malloy Emily & Phillips Marshall

$4,000+ Anonymous (5) Gay & Harry Abrams/ Abrams Artists Agency Amy & Bob Abramson Florence C. Agcawili Andrew Aichlmayr Susan Alschuler Robert C. Anderson Suzanne & Bill Attig Cheryl & Elliott Balbert Jill Banks Barad Angela Bardowell Mark & Jody Barnhill Dr. Norma Barretta Lois Barth & Michael Schubach Barbara Bauer & Lawrence Cox Susan Baumgarten Dr. Martine Bauwens Elissa Becker Susan & Adam Berger Elliot, Roberta, Dayna, & Alison Berkowitz Drs. Jack & Barbara Berman Jeffrey & Susan Berman Leah Bishop & Gary Yale Carole Black Tracey Boldemann-Tatkin & Stan Tatkin Karlyn & Chuck Boppell John S. Borsum & Mark Ehrenstein Desobry E. Bowens in Memory of Alice Desobry Bowens* Ms. Susan M. Brewer Janice R. Brittain Diane & Dorothy Brooks Foundation Dr. Leon & Rochelle Brooks Mr. Jay Brooks Neil H. & Karen Hochman Brown Anne Bruner & James Bremner Norman Buckley, In Memory of Davyd Whaley Dr. & Mrs. Ronald Busuttil Kathleen & Milton Campbell Lynne Campbell Carol & Ken Carlson Catherine & Anthony Chanin In Memory of Linda Rivera-Venezia ◆

Janis B. McEldowney Margot & Mitch Milias Ron & Lee Miller Andy & Laura Mintzer Joan I. Moe Mildred M. & Earl Moon Toni Hollander-Morse & Lon Morse Robert & Sally Neely Michael R. Oppenheim Patty & Mike Post Michael Powell & Dr. Sheila Philips Paula F. Reach Kay & Bob Rehme Willard & Sharon Reisz Melissa Louise Rhone William & Sue Roen June Caldwell & Jaye Rogovin Dana Saladen & Linda Walters Honey Sanders Peter & Susan Schwab Carol (Jackie) & Charles H. Schwartz Allen Blue & Kira Snyder Clumeck Stern Schenkelberg & Getzoff Dr. & Mrs. Daniel Wallace Doug & Ellen Weitman Ralph M. & Molly Wolveck

Rita Chenoweth Arthur & Katheryn Chinski The Honorable Judith C. Chirlin Ruth Choi Nicholas Chrisos Bill Cohn & Dan Miller Nadege & Jay Conger Roberta A. Conroy Corinna Cotsen & Lee Rosenbaum Seth Cover & Mycotoo Kevin Crombie Richard Jr. & Darlene Crook Trisha Curry Louise & Jeffrey Davis Cathy DeRoy & Mrs. George DeRoy Dr. Allison Diamant Mike & Jamie DiFiori Julia Donoghue Nick Dudzak Robin C. Dumas Greg H. Dunn Dr. & Mrs. William Duxler Ms. Anita H. Dymant & Mr. Richard Drooyan Richard J. Burdge Jr. & Lee Smalley Edmon The Eli & Edythe L. Broad Foundation Michael A. Enomoto Earl & Karen Enzer David & Joyce Evans Joanna Exacoustos Alan & Barbara Faiola Jim Bright & Lucy Farber Robyn Field The Finston Family In Honor of Our Beloved Fay & Milton Friedman Frances & Terry Flanagan Pat Fleming The Franke Family Trust Joanne Freed & Richard C. Mendelson Carolyn Hope Fried Ellen Fujikawa Howard & Suzanne Furst Jay & Donna Gallagher Dr. & Mrs. Jerry Garrett Mr. & Mrs. Homer Garten Freddi & Marvin Gelfand Catherine Gessner Michael & Karen Gilbert Stephen Glick & Sylvia Turk Mr. & Mrs. Efrain Gonzalez Margaret & David Gordon Edith Gould Donald W. Grant Marsha Grant James D. & Margaret A. Gray Dr. Stuart & Adrienne Green Lenore S. & Bernard A. Greenberg Fund Marcy Gross Claudia & Tom Grzywacz Vera & Paul Guerin Lorrie & Richard Gurewitz Roberta L. Haft Linda & Michael Haines Mr. Jeffrey L. Hall & Mr. Kevin A. Yoder Cynthia & Solomon Hamburg Michael Hanel & Steven Linder Harris Family Foundation Sam Harris Johnny Ruth Harrison, M.D. Mark & Julie Harrison Chet & Sheila Hasday Michael Lurey & Laurie Hasencamp ◆

annual donors CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 33

8/14/19 5:10 PM


$4,000+ continued

4 SHOWS ONLY!

Al & Sandy Haveson Tanna Handley Havlick James & Christi Hays Michelle & Dr. Alan Heilpern Gail & Murray Heltzer Zvia Hempling Dr. Stephen D. Henry & Rudy Oclaray Don Herman Donna L. Herman Karen & Stephen Hillenburg Alicia Hirsch & Jesse Russo Hirshan Family Foundation Karen Hirshan/Hirshan Family Foundation Ofer B. Ho Sam Ho, M.D. Ellen & Tom Hoberman Jim & Gloria Hopper Mr. William H. Hurt Joan R. Isaacs Roslyn & Warren Jacobson Lawrence J. Jaffe, M.D. Judy K. Jeanson Audrey & Edgar Jessup Gordon Johnson & Barbara Schnell Michael Galindo & Mary Quon Jung Judith & Russell Kantor Linda R. Kaplan Michael Keir Dr. Louanne Kennedy Jackie A. Kern Michael & Deborah Klein Genni Klein Karen & Bob Knapp Norman & Leslie Koplof Thea & Neal Koss Joanne C. Kozberg Darell & Elizabeth Krasnoff Sandra Krause & William Fitzgerald Castro Krinel The Kwon Family Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Jack D. Lantz The Lapid Family Charitable Foundation Sharon Lapid Karen & Tim Lavrouhin Ron & Pat Lebel Christine Lee Drs. Anu & Ali Leemann James & Karen Lefever Bob Leibowitz, M.D. Curtis Lelash Constance Leonard Dinny & David Lesser Ronald Levenson & Marcia Gold Levenson Michael Levin & Andy Abowitz Gail J. Levine In Loving Memory of Anna Strahlman Pamela & Mark Litvack Mr. & Mrs. Mark S. Louchheim Sandra & Kenneth Malamed Jeff Mandel Dorian & Paul Markovits M. Michele Martin Mr. Theodore K. Martinez Susan D. Martynec Ms. Jacqueline H. Matlock James A. Zapp & Elizabeth A. McGlynn Gordon & Dale McWilliams Carla Meyer & Charles Arnold Joan & Philip Miller Gretchen & Marshall Milligan Cindy Miscikowski Joanne & Joel Mogy Sue & Monty Mohrman Mary Lou Mooney Toni & Tom Morgan Diane Morton Loula Moschonas & James Edgerton Wendy A. Moss ◆

OCTOBER 4-6 UCLA JAMES BRIDGES THEATER

L.A. THEATRE WORKS PRESENTS

ALLIED HEADQUARTERS. JUNE 1944. A Scottish meteorologist locks horns with his American counterpart as both men try to convince General Dwight D. Eisenhower that they can accurately predict the atmospheric conditions needed to launch the greatest amphibious assault in the history of mankind.

TICKETS AND INFORMATION

LATW.ORG 310.827.0889

UPCOMING SHOWS

THE HARD PROBLEM

NOV 15-17

By Tom Stoppard. An experiment hoping to prove that humans are inherently altruistic yields unanticipated results.

VIETGONE

JAN 24-26

By Qui Nguyen. The hilarious and not-quite-true story of how two Vietnamese refugees found each other and built a family in a new land.

Up Close and Personal L.A. Theatre Works

has entertained the world for over 40 years with our signature radio theatre format.

34 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 34

Ron Myrick Jerri & Dr. Steven Nagelberg Arline M. Nakanishi Isabel Friend Newman Patty & John Nickoll Marc I. Nishino, D.D.S. Cindy & Ken Norian Bob & Renee Nunn Judy Nussenblatt Norman & Margrit Oberstein Valerie Oishi Janie & Allan Orenstein Mary Rose & Edward Ortega Tye Ouzounian & Karyn Wong Jennifer N. Owens-Ornellas & Jay T. Ornellas John Paley Elise & Peter Paterno Helen Pekny Mr. Stephen Pescetti Maggi Phillips & Mario Gerla The Polinger-Cohen Foundation Jack & Jane Pollock Irv & Gina Posalski Shelley Powsner & Stephen Skrovan Mr. & Mrs. Albert Praw Cheryl & Joel Prell Drs. Laurence & Isabell Purdy Gail & Gary Rachelefsky James H. Radin John Rallis & Mary Lynn Bergman-Rallis Lee Ramer Tracy L. Ramont Rollin A. Ransom & Chris Lacroix Michele & Dudley Rauch Michael Reisz & Jeff Rago Dr. Peggy Renner & Dr. Robert Nelson Susan Reutimann Kirk & Cathy Reynolds Irene & Eytan Ribner Dr. Harry E. Rice MD Stuart & Laurie Rice In Loving Memory of Adam Rice Suellen Richmond Mr. & Mrs. Marvin Ring Barbara Roberts Dr. Heather J. Roberts Lois Rosen Ellen & Mike Rosenberg Barbara & Peter Rosenthal Robyn & Steven Ross Leonard J. & JoAnn Roth Salter Family Charitable Foundation Janet Salter in Memory of Maxwell Hillary Salter June Sanders Sattler Beatrice (Tina) Castillo & Gail Sandford Drs. Joan & Harry Saperstein Stephen J. Sass & Dr. Steven Hochstadt Wes Schaefer & Cathy King-Schaefer Marlene & Roger Schaffner Greg Scott John R. Sealy, M.D. Serendipity Productions Christine Shaner Linda M. Sherman Gloria Sherwood Howard & Stephanie Sherwood Ms. Shannon Shih Loretta Hirsh Shine Charlene & Mike Sievers Debra J. Silvera-Sheehan Bruce & Nancy Silverman Bui & Herbert Simon Drs. Debra & Philip Sobol Christine Helppie-Soldate Sue & Steve Soldoff Jacque & Herb Spivak Merrilee B. St. John ◆

Susan R. Stockel Judy Stone Michael Stone Ellen & Steve Sugerman Jeff Sung Mr. & Mrs. Mitchell Sussman I.H. Sutnick Robin & David Swartz Mari & Randall Tamura Terence Tchen & Emily Breckenridge Laney & Thomas Techentin Michelle Tesoro Eileen T’Kaye & David Bischoff Arthur Melville, Ph.D. & Marsha Utain, M.S. Julia Voce Mr. & Mrs. Robert D. Volk Wendie Warwick & Ken Pierce Susan & William Weintraub Jessica M. Weisel Luke & Colleen Welsh Valerie & Nathaniel E. Williams David Williamson Alan Wilson & Ina Coleman Denise J. Winner Edward Wolkowitz Family Jill Wondries Virginia & Greg Young Arnold H. & Tricia L. Zane George Zimmerman & Tatyana Gurvich ◆

$2,400+ Anonymous (14) David Abshier James & Marsha Alexander Ignacio Alfaro Debra & Dave Alpert Mrs. Jacqueline Applebaum Carol L. Archie & Edward L. Keenan Sandra Aronberg, M.D. & Charles Aronberg, M.D. Ramsey Avery & Scott Ault Deborah G. Baine Adrianna & Jay Balaban Corinne Baldassano John Ballinger & Rod Davis Melanie & Gregory Barbee Chris & Rose Bauss Marjorie Beale Beth Bennett & Larry McAdams Charles Berney & Family Mr. & Mrs. John Bettfreund Ms. Rhian Beutler Cheryl Bledin Michael Blend Michele Paley & Len Blonder Mr. Moe Blumin Yvonne Bogdanovich & Family Bill Bohnert Richard & Pat Bongeorno John Bowab Nancy Brandel The Saul Brandman Foundation Sandra & Robert Braun Marti Breier Sandy & Mayer Brenner Stu Brower Dr. Lisa Bukaty & Mr. Raymond M. Bukaty Beth Burnam Linda Stafford Burrows Christine Cahill Kevin Kashima & Kelly Cantley-Kashima Melinda Carmichael Sandra L. Carter Eric Chien Suzanne & John Clark Becky & Mike Clements Mary Coates Jean F. Cohen

2 ◆

T

annual donors 8/14/19 5:10 PM

c


CHICK COREA TRILOGY

AIN GORDON

Thu, Oct 3 | Royce Hall

Fri, Oct 11 & Sat, Oct 12 | Freud Playhouse

With Christian McBride & Brian Blade

217 Boxes of Dr. Henry Anonymous

SANKAI JUKU

Meguri

MAX RICHTER

Sun, Oct 6 | Royce Hall

Sat, Oct 12 | Royce Hall

2 0 19 - 2 0 S E ASO N

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

SAMIN NOSRAT IN CONVERSATION WITH LINDY WEST Sun, Oct 13 | Royce Hall

MAYA BEISER/WENDY WHELAN/ LUCINDA CHILDS/DAVID LANG

RACHEL FULLER’S ANIMAL REQUIEM

Fri, Oct 18 & Sat, Oct 19 | Royce Hall

Sat, Oct 26 | Royce Hall

THE DAY

A Concert to Celebrate and Honor All Animals With special guest Pete Townshend

FIND YOUR FREQUENCY cap.ucla.edu | 310-825-2101

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 35

@cap_ucla | #capucla

8/14/19 5:10 PM


OUR SUPPORTERS $2,400+ continued

Judith G. Kelly Sarah E. Kiefer Jules Kievits & Lorraine Bagdasarian Dr. K. Alex Kim Irene & Marvin H. Kleinberg Gaylen Kobayashi Bill Kobin & Frances Goodman Jale Kutay Lena, Mark, Jodi & Emily Labowe Earle & Sharon Lambert Katherine L’Amour Mr. & Mrs. Herbert A. Lampert Joan & Chris Larkin Julie Lawrence David & Janet Lazier Ned Leiba Marla E. Levine Mae & Hugh Lichtig Lisa Hinchliffe & Dave Link Patty Loch Alan & Helen Gordon Lowy Mary Anne Lucero Loris & Kory Lunsford Marge & Bill MacLaughlin Ginny Mancini Carol & Douglas Mancino Janice E. Mangerino Mrs. Clifford Marshall Mr. & Mrs. Dennis G. Martin Laura & Jim Maslon Amy & Harold Masor Margaret L. Mathews Daniel Mayeda & Susan Rosales Dr. Rosie M. Mayfield Colleen T. McCarthy Theresa L. McConville David & Kathleen McDonald Eric Winston & Jacqueline McIntyre-Winston Neil McLean Kelly Sutherlin McLeod & Steven B. McLeod Family Foundation Timothy & Connie McOsker David & Cara Melnick Robert L. Mendow Lorraine & Craig Meyer Carolyn Miller Carole Miller Lynn & Mani Miller Tina J. Miller Julien Minard Nicole L. Miner & Celia Ruskin Lawrence A. Mirisch Steven Modglin Francoise Schmutz & Antonio Morawski Murrary and Grace Nissman Foundation Mr. Jacques Nack Ngue Rob & Leslie Nagby Richard Newcome Marianne & Michael Newman Kim Nicholas Russell Noel Michelle Nuttall Dale & Ayako Okuno John Olea, M.D. C.R. O’Neill Jose J. Palacios & Amanda Reyes Mr. & Mrs. Mark M. Panatier Cynthia Ann Petty Carol Phillips & Bob Shapiro Barry & Jane McCullough Pauline & Drew Pomerance Barrett Porter Charlie & Kristi Proctor Courtney Rangen James & Melanie Renfroe ◆

Belinda Robins Suzanne & David Robinson Ernesto & Richard Rocco-Davies Craig E. Rogers Murphy & Ed Romano Bingo Roncelli Nathalie & Jim Rosen Rabbi & Mrs. Moshe Rothblum Ron & Sharon Ryan Jay & Linda Sandrich Linda & Clifford Schaffer Darlene Schultz Drs. T.V. Scott & Karen Hill Scott Jean L. Scroggy Scott Shagrin Ruth & Mitchell Shapiro Lynn Sharp James & Alexis Sheehy Susan & Michael Shore Steven E. Shulem Jan & Carl Siechert In Memory of Ruth & Leon Sirkin Scott Sigman Louis & Mary Silver Foundation Karen & Gordon Silverstein Kurt & Keli Skarin Stephen & Judith Slagle David & Irene Smith Leslie Smith Dedicated to Bug Roberta Smith Mason A. Sommers & Rami Aizic James & Diane Staes Carol Stein Sterling & James Sterling Jill Stein David A. Steinberg Tom Stempel Bobbie Stern Lynn Bider & Daniel Stone Dr. Arthur H. Streeter Mr. Stan Sullins Jack & Marlene Susser Dr. Allan & Roslyn Holt Swartz Craig Sweeny Judith N. Taylor Mary & Peter Tennyson Rob & Dinah Titcher Dianne Tomita Elizabeth Topkis Paulette Toumazos & Michael Lorenz Barry Trachtenberg Mr. & Mrs. Robert J. Traver Joyce Huyett Turner & Craig Turner J Usaraga Ms. Andrea Valcourt Valerie Vanaman Carol Vernon & Robert Turbin Claire Vincent Elliott & Felise Wachtel Denise & Peter Walsh Cliff Warner Charles W. Weeks Norman & Barbara Weiler Ms. Lynn E. Weisman Lauri Weiss Kathy Weisshaar Dr. Clyde Wesp Pat West Kim White Peterson Lori Williams & Stephen Schulte Leilani Jones Wilmore Dr. Libby F. Wilson Michele A. Kerr Wolfe George Ziegler Myrna & Stanley Zimmerman Ruth Zommick

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 36

The Affiliates have supported Center Theatre Group since 1971. Through volunteering and fundraising, members introduce young people and their peers to the magic of live theatre. We are forever grateful for their long-term support.

PRESIDENT Carmen Schaye EXECUTIVE BOARD Anne Bruner* Ilene Eisenberg Roberta Haft* Christine Harte Thea F. Koss Diane Lesser Jerri Nagelberg Diane Neubauer*

Kim White Peterson* Sheila Poncher* Sharon Reisz Marsha Tauber Sallai June Sanders Sattler* Joyce Sheingold Maggy Simon Carole Solomon Marilyn Stambler* Janice Brock Wallace* Janice Weiner Rosalind Zane*

MEMBERS Gail Ann Andrews Arthe P. Anthony Sandy Avchen Tere Baker Janet Barnet* Sue Bass Judith Beckmen* Marjorie Bender Marjorie Ann Beradino Lanie Bernhard Deena Blum Lestrita Boardman Audrey L. Bornstein Roanna Araneta Brown Elnora Guerrero Campos Marlene Theresa Charbonnet Barbara Mansfield Cheyne* Jan Cobert Victoria Cushey Mary Levin Cutler Judi Davidson Cariline Davis Dyer Babe Eagle Gloria H. Ellwood* Lynda Wolfson Fadel Stephanie Fisher-White Ruth Flinkman-Marandy Joey Freed Carolyn H. Fried Ava O. Fries* Myra Gabbay Stephanie Germeraad Carole A. Gillie Linda Goldfein Linda Goldman Dina Goldstein Debra C. Gordon Brindell Gottlieb Beth Grant Carol Halperin Stephanie J. Hibler Audrey V. Jessup Tobé Karns Melinda J. Kelly

Diane Kessler* Barbara Krasnoff Beau Lavine Rita Lee Annie Maria Lehrer Marilyn Levin Helen Gordon Lowy Dr. Elizabeth Lu Marianne Mandel Phyllis Massing Ph.D, Leah Mendelsohn Jacqueline Nach Deena Nahmias Olivia Neece Phyllis Parvin Gina Russ Posalski* Courtney Rangen Anne Reismann Irene Ribner Harriett Chatters Rose Lois Rosen Marla Rubin Gaile Gray Ryan Bonnie Sachs Carole Schiffer Kelly Schiffer* Zrelda Sealey Robbie J. Solomon Marilyn Lee Stark Carol Stein Debbie Stein Judy Stone Betsy Straszheim Gloria Stroock-Stern Donna Sussman* Rosalyn Holt Swartz Louise Taper Phyllis Teller Katherine L. Todd* Sue Tsao Roberta Turkat Elinor Turner Carol Le-Veque-Uri Barbara Van Orden Donna Marie Venick* Sue Wittner

Center Theatre Group gratefully appreciates all of our donors who, due to space constraints, could not be listed here. The above list reflects donations made as of June 28, 2019. If your name was misspelled or omitted from this list in error, please contact the Advancement Department at 213.972.7654. Thank you.

annual donors

for being a part of our history

*Past Presidents Executive Board Members at Large ◆

Photo: Hamish McCormick

Lauren Firestone & Chris Cookson Hon. Candace Cooper (Ret) Corbell Family Dr. Frederic H. Corbin, M.D. Ted Cordes Judy Tishkoff & Keith Crasnick Kathyrn Crown Steve & Linda Darling Eunice David Bill & Ellie D’Elia James & Lynne DeWitt Dr. & Mrs. Donald E. Dickerson Dorskind Family Foundation Betty J. Dranow Ms. Laurie Dubchansky Mr. & Mrs. Gene B. Duncan Jack & Cynthia Edelstein Mr. Fred M. Edwards Jr. Jill & Bob Eisfelder Kenneth Erlich & Louise Halevy It’s A Wrap Motion Pictures Joyce A. Esposito Ellen Eubanks Victoria I. Evers Johanna & Gene Felder Edwin & MaryAnn Feo Robert Finkel & Adelle Gross Darcy Fleck Ruth Fleming-Stephens Laura E. Fox, M.D. & John D. Hofbauer, M.D. Sylvia Fredricks Seth Freeman & Julie Waxman Susan R. Friedman Rosalie Friis-Ross Howard J. Fulfrost Dr. Robert Gasway & Kristen Wong Lesley & Dr. Kenneth H. Geiger Kate & Dr. Stephen Geller Jeanne K. Gerson Jeri & Keith Gertzman Laura Gibson Patrick & Frank Gibson-McMinn Howard Gleicher Gary Jackson & Linda Globerman, M.D. Dr. Irene Goldenberg Tanya & David Goodman Dr. Sudha & Dr. Gopal Govindarajan Peggy A. Grant Terry Grossman Abbas & Lynda Hadjian Scott Hall & Rhonda Church Audrey & Paul Hanneman Diane & J.P. Harris Gene Hawkins Phyllis & J. Michael Hennigan Winifred Hervey Dorothy Hoffman Rand Hoffman & Charlotte Robinson Dozar Office Furnishings Dorothy K. Hull Dr. & Mrs. Robert Itami Susan & Larry Ivanjack Irwin & Meredith Jacobson In Memory of Wayne Jervis, Jr. Sean Johnson & Alex Ocampo Starr C. Johnson David & Martha Kadue Janet & Steve Kahane Kathleen Kane Regina & Richard G. Kaplan Sally Karbelnig Elyse & Stanley Katz Cari & Marty Kavinoky Cynthia & Jerry Kay Albert Kelly & Marjorie Stevens Kelly Joel Kelly & Hedda Jayson

ctg affiliates 8/14/19 5:10 PM

TBS192


PR L EM .A. IE RE !

Gravity & Other Myths:

Backbone

OCT 25-26, 2019 Backbone (literally) tosses around the perception of what strength is, in what InDaily calls “...something so intensely beautiful it makes you proud to be human.”

Photo: Hamish McCormick

“the excitement of circus at its best combined with the grace and choreographic line of dance, and the magical undercurrents of good theatre.” — Sydney Morning Herald The Plaza at Santa Monica is proud to sponsor The Broad Stage’s 2019/20 season.

thebroadstage.org 310.434.3200 #thebroadstage

TBS1920_Backbone_ads_Perf_F.indd 1 CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 37

SANTA MONICA COLLEGE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

7/25/19 9:50 AM 8/14/19 5:10 PM


OUR SUPPORTERS

Venerated. Persecuted. Forgotten. Victims of Nazism at FC Bayern Munich

for your 50th anniversary support We would like to take this opportunity to thank the incredibly generous donors who have contributed leadership gifts in support of Center Theatre Group’s 50 Anniversary Campaign. Your loyalty to our theatre and support in honor of our history, paves the way for the next 50 years. th

$5,000,000+ Brindell Roberts Gottlieb Kirk & Anne Douglas Ahmanson Foundation

ON EXHIBIT NOW LOS ANGELES MUSEUM OF THE HOLOCAUST 100 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90036 • 323.651.3704 www.lamoth.org • Admission always free

Providing the nation's most exclusive placements since 1982 Executive & Personal Assistants • Chefs Estate Managers • Nannies • Butlers Housekeepers • Baby Nurses • Elder Care

Los Angeles • New York • San Francisco

310-828-4111 www.thehelpcompany.com

$1,000,000+ Anonymous (2) Edgerton Foundation Kiki & David Gindler Patricia Glaser & Sam Mudie Laura & James Rosenwald & Orinoco Foundation Renee & Meyer Luskin Aliza Karney Guren & Marc Guren Sue Tsao The Annenberg Foundation Ann & Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr. The Louis and Harold Price Foundation Rosenthal Family Foundation $500,000+ Deena & Edward Nahmias Donna Schweers & Tom Geiser Elliott Sernel Amy Forbes & Andrew Murr Jerry & Terri Kohl Louise Moriarty Michael Ritchie & Kate Burton $250,000+ Anonymous Joni & Miles Benickes Diana Buckhantz & the Vladimir and Araxia Buckhantz Foundation

$500,000+ Richard & Norma Camp Susan A. Grode Linda S. Peterson $250,000+ Pamela & Dennis Beck Shirley & Irving Ashkenas Bill Cohn & Dan Miller Maggy Simon I.H. Sutnick

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 38

$100,000+ The Campagna Family Deidra Norman Schumann The Michael Shaw Jacobs Fund Donna & John Sussman Yvonne & Derek Bell Mara & Joseph Carieri Friars Charitable Foundation Manuela & James Goren Bill Resnick & Michael Stubbs Cheryl A. Shepherd $50,000+ Anonymous Anne Bruner & Jim Bremner Patrick Owen & Norman Dixon Carol & Stephen Rountree Sunshine Stone Peter & Iona Tompkins

We would also like to thank the following donors for making commitments to the 50th Anniversary Campaign through legacy gifts to our Endowment. $1,000,000+ Judith & Thomas Beckmen Martin Massman Diane & Leon Morton Peter & Susan Van Haften

38 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

Cindy & Gary Frischling Center Theatre Group Affiliates Nancy & Eric Garen Glenn & Andrea Sonnenberg The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation Jody & David Lippman Thomas Beers Vicki King Thomas Safran Judie Stein & J R Stein Family Foundation Matt & Dana Walden

OTHER LEGACY GIFTS Linda & Maynard Brittan – Traub-Brittan Family Trust Steven Llanusa & Glenn Miya, M.D. Gloria Lothrop Carol & Douglas Mancino Renee & Robert Nunn Nan Rae Randy & Bruce Ross Wes Schaefer & Cathy King-Schaefer Dr. and Mrs. Daniel Wallace Margaret White

S

campaign support List 8/16/19 1:01 PM


rt

SKINTIGHT WRITTEN BY

JOSHUA HARMON

WEST COAST PREMIERE

09.03 – 10.06

DIRECTED BY

DANIEL AUKIN

Tony Award winner Idina Menzel (Rent, Wicked) takes the stage in this neurotic family comedy that asks the age-old questions of how to age gracefully in a world obsessed with youth and where love fits into the picture. T IC K E T S S T A R T A T J U S T $3 0! G E F F E N P L A Y H O U S E.O R G · 310.2 0 8.5 4 5 4

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 39

8/14/19 5:10 PM


nd rs

OUR SUPPORTERS

for investing in our future We are endlessly grateful to recognize those contributors who have provided support that extends well beyond this current season and safeguards the future of Center Theatre Group. Thank you to all of our endowment and Ovation Circle donors for your commitment to sustaining our great work. To invest in our future and make a gift toward our endowment, please call Terra Goulden at 213.972.3189.

ENDOWMENT GIFTS $500,000+

The Ahmanson Foundation Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Renee & Meyer Luskin John S. Surabian, Jr. and in memory of Faith and Sharon Ann Surabian

The only upscale boutique in greater Los Angeles for women size 12 and up. From comfortable to casual or dressy— classic to funky or fun: Abundance has it all!

$250,000+

Patricia Glaser & Sam Mudie The Norman and Sadie Lee Foundation

13606 Ventura Blvd. Sherman Oaks

818.990.6128

$100,000+

AbundancePlusSizes.com

Abundance_0819_outline.indd 2

Bond Furs

6/21/19 1:22 PM

Custom Designed or Ready Made Garments, Alterations, Restyling, Storage, Cleaning & Glazing. 626.471.9912 www.bondfurs.com 114 W. Lime Ave Monrovia, CA 91016

Betsy & Harold Applebaum Judith & Thomas Beckmen The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation Maynard & Linda Brittan— Traub-Brittan Family Trust Center Theatre Group Affiliates Kenneth Corday Regina Fadiman Barbara & Peter Fodor Ava & Charles Fries Brindell & Milton Gottlieb The Hearst Foundation, Inc. Vicki King Gloria Lothrop Richard G. & Virginia L. Martin Louise Taper $50,000+

Ellen & Michael S. Korney Dorothy & Richard Sherwood $25,000+

Abbott Brown Linda Brown Greve Foundation

40 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 40

Dr. Tom Hickey Diane & Leon Morton $10,000+

A and J Davidson Skipper Award Fund Levine Foundation Carolyn & Kit Lokey Betty & Sanford Sigoloff PLANNED GIFTS

Shirley & Irving Ashkenas W. Lee Bailey, M.D. Angela Bardowell Chris & Rose Bauss Pamela & Dennis Beck Judith & Thomas Beckmen The Bennetts Dr. Adrienne Brandriss Allan & Joan Burns The Moira Byrne Foster Foundation Richard & Norma Camp Bill Cohn & Dan Miller Earl & Christina Cory Mary Levin Cutler Charles Dillingham & Susan D. Clines Kirk & Anne Douglas Amy Forbes & Andrew Murr Patricia Glaser & Sam Mudie Mr. & Mrs. Walter E. Grauman Susan Grode Virginia Hayes Mr. Kim L. Hunter Deborah M. Hyde The Doug Jones and John Sanger Theater Ticket Fund Ann & Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr. Richard & Julie Kagan Arlene M. Kageyama-Chikami

Sarah & Andy Kane Dr. & Mrs. Jack Kavanaugh The Paul Kowal Charitable Foundation Darell L. Krasnoff Sandra Krause & William Fitzgerald Joyce & Kent Kresa Steven Llanusa & Glenn Miya, M.D. Carol & Douglas Mancino Martin Massman Betty McMicken in honor of Jeanette Shammas Diane & Leon Morton Merle & Peter Mullin Bob & Renee Nunn Linda S. Peterson Sally & Frank Raab Edward L. Rada Nan Rae Stuart & Laurie Rice in Loving Memory of Adam Rice Bruce & Randy Ellen Ross Wes Schaefer & Cathy KingSchaefer The estate of Frank J. Sherwood Mr. & Mrs. Jack Simon I.H. Sutnick Paulette Toumazos & Michael Lorenz Sue Tsao Carol Vernon & Robert Turbin Peter & Susan Van Haften Magda & Frederick R. Waingrow Dr. & Mrs. Daniel Wallace Susan & William Weintraub Margaret H. White

endowment & plannedList gifts 8/14/19 5:10 PM


GRUMPY OLD MEN THE MUSICAL SEPT 20 – OCT 13, 2019

MATILDA THE MUSICAL OCT 25 – NOV 17, 2019

ARSENIC AND OLD LACE JAN 24 - FEB 16, 2020

TRAVIS TRITT FEB 22, 2020

THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS MAR 21, 2020

THE SOUND OF MUSIC APRIL 17 - MAY 10, 2020

ENGELBERT HUMPERDINCK MAY 15 & 16, 2020

MAMMA MIA! MAY 29 - JUNE 21, 2020

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 41

8/14/19 5:10 PM


OUR SUPPORTERS SUPPORTERS OUR

CORPORATE SUPPORT

for your institutional partnership We are deeply appreciative of the below corporate sponsors and grant-making institutions for supporting our work to improve the impact we have on our Los Angeles community.

$250,000+ The Ahmanson Foundation The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation Laura & James Rosenwald & Orinoco Foundation $100,000+ Diana Buckhantz & Vladimir & Araxia Buckhantz Foundation Bank of America Delta Air Lines Edgerton Foundation The Hearst Foundations Rosenthal Family Foundation The Shubert Foundation, Inc. Wells Fargo $50,000+ Annenberg Foundation Disney Theatrical Group Doris Duke Charitable Trust JP Morgan Chase & Co. Los Angeles County Arts Commission The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust Dwight Stuart Youth Fund $25,000+ Anonymous (1) The Capital Group Companies Charitable Foundation Center Theatre Group Affiliates Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, LLP Learning Tree International Lockton City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs ^

The Norman and Sadie Lee Foundation The Perkins Charitable Foundation The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Theatre Forward US Bank $15,000+ Anonymous California Arts Council The City of Culver City Culver City United School District The DigiTrust Group, LLC The Walt Disney Company The Elisabeth Katte Harris Trust Macy’s Dale S. & Shideh Miller $10,000+ Cartier Walt Disney Live Entertainment Joseph Drown Foundation The Friars Charitable Foundation HBO Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) The Liberty Company Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP Muse Communications The Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation Patina Restaurant Group The Edward A. And Ai O. Shay Family Foundation Synder Family Foundation The Fran and Ray Stark Foundation

$7,500+ American Business Bank Canadian Consulate General The Culver City Education Foundation Malibu Family Wines National Alliance for Musical Theatre Northern Trust Sony Pictures Entertainment Union Bank $5,000+ Sascha Brastoff Foundation The Brookside Fund Chubb Citi Private Bank City National Bank Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation Employees Community Fund of Boeing California GI Energy Jones Day Lear Family Foundation MATT Construction Paramount Pictures Payden & Rygel Perry, Neidorf & Grassl, LLP Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP SoCalGas Sally J. Thomas & James A. Thomas USI Insurance Services $1,000+ The Carol and James Collins Foundation Fineshriber Family Foundation Theatre Communications Group GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

CORPORATE CIRCLE CABINET | Sheri Biller, Founding Chair Jonathan Axel, Chair Anthony Amendola Christopher Bissonnette

Erin Burke Dannielle Campos Ramirez Michael Jung

Jody Kelley JP Ramirez Soma Samanta Brian Zimmer

The Corporate Circle is comprised of companies that support Center Theatre Group’s education and community partnership programs. Members receive VIP concierge service, complimentary and discounted tickets to our shows, business development opportunities, and more. For more information, call Christy Lamb at 213.972.3667.

42 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 42

institutional support 8/14/19 5:10 PM


CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 43

8/14/19 5:10 PM


Meet

The Music Center of the 21st Century

2019/2020 MUSIC CENTER BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS Lisa Specht Board Chair

Robert J. Abernethy Darrell Brown Cindy Miscikowski Vice Chairs

The Music Center is one of the nation’s largest performing arts centers and a cultural anchor in Los Angeles County. Our programming engine, The Music Center Arts (TMC Arts), convenes artists, communities and ideas to deepen the cultural lives of all. With relevant, engaging arts experiences and arts education programs, TMC Arts reflects the diverse voices and interests of the many communities of Los Angeles. The Music Center is both the home and the force behind some of the most creative expression today.

Rachel S. Moore President and Chief Executive Officer

Welcome to The Music Center!

Greg T. Geyer

Follow The Music Center on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @MusicCenterLA

Kiki Ramos Gindler

General Information (213) 972-7211 | musiccenter.org

Stefanie Kane

Support The Music Center (213) 972-3333 | musiccenter.org/support Be a Music Center Docent If you love the arts and enjoy sharing this enthusiasm with the public, we invite you to join the Symphonians. musiccenter.org/symphonians symphonians@musiccenter.org

Diane G. Medina Secretary

Susan M. Wegleitner Treasurer William Taylor Assistant Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer

MEMBERS AT LARGE Charles F. Adams William H. Ahmanson Wallis Annenberg Jill Baldauf Susan Baumgarten Phoebe Beasley Kimaada M. Brown Dannielle Campos Lisa Gilford Maria Rosario Jackson Glenn Kaino Terri Kohl Cary J. Lefton David Lippman Richard Lynn Martinez Bowen “Buzz” H. McCoy Mattie McFadden-Lawson Elizabeth Michelson Darrell D. Miller Shelby Notkin Michael Pagano Cynthia M. Patton Karen Kay Platt Max Ramberg ^ Jay Rasulo

Richard K. Roeder Melissa Ann Romain Maria Salinas Lisa See Matthew Spence Marc I. Stern Philip A. Swan Walter F. Ulloa Timothy S. Wahl Alyce Williamson Jay Wintrob Rollin A. Ransom General Counsel ^

Leave of absence

DIRECTORS EMERITI Peter K. Barker Judith Beckmen Eli Broad Ronald W. Burkle Amb. (ret.) John B. Emerson* Lois Erburu Richard M. Ferry Brindell Gottlieb Bernard A. Greenberg Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr. Amb. (ret.) Glen A. Holden Stuart M. Ketchum Amb. (ret.) Lester B. Korn Kent Kresa Robert F. Maguire, III Ginny Mancini Edward J. McAniff Walter M. Mirisch Fredric Roberts Claire L. Rothman Joni J. Smith Cynthia A. Telles James A. Thomas Andrea L. Van de Kamp* Paul M. Watson Thomas R. Weinberger Rosalind W. Wyman * Chairman Emeritus

Joseph Rice

MCDEV_0919.indd 1

8/7/19 11:20 AM


THE MUSIC CENTER PLAZA IS NOW OPEN!

Featured Events at The Music Center TUE 03 SEP / 11:00 a.m. Grand Park’s Lunch À La Park: Food Trucks @ Grand Park Every Tue/Wed/Thu WED 04 SEP / 12:15 p.m. Grand Park’s Lunch À La Park: Yoga reTreat @ Grand Park Every Wed/Fri THU 05 SEP / 8:00 p.m. Latin History for Morons CENTER THEATRE GROUP @ Ahmanson Theatre Thru 10/20 WED 11 SEP / 8:00 p.m. A Play Is a Poem CENTER THEATRE GROUP @ Mark Taper Forum Thru 10/13 Visit musiccenter.org for additional information on all upcoming events. @musiccenterla

MCDEV_0919.indd 2

SAT 14 SEP / 5:00 p.m. Grand Park + Outfest present Proud Picnic + Movie Night @ Grand Park SAT 14 SEP / 6:00 p.m. La Boheme LA OPERA @ Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Thru 10/6

Illustrations by: Down The Street Designs

Enjoy a warm and inviting public space that welcomes all to engage and connect with each other. Get ready for your new Plaza, Los Angeles!

SUN 22 SEP / 2:00 p.m. Grand Park’s Sunday Sessions featuring Dublab’s 20th Anniversary @ Grand Park SAT 28 SEP / 11:00 a.m. Toyota Symphonies for Youth: Copland’s America LA PHIL @ Walt Disney Concert Hall

SEP 8/7/19 11:20 AM


WITH LIVE MUSIC BY MARIINSKY ORCHESTRA Thursday, October 24, 2019

7:30 p.m.

Friday, October 25, 2019

7:30 p.m.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

2:00 p.m.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

7:30 p.m.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

2:00 p.m.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

JEWELS

Mariinsky Ballet George Balanchine’s Jewels*

The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion musiccenter.org/mariinsky | (213) 972-0711 GROUPS OF 10+: (213) 972-8555 | mcgroupsales@musiccenter.org *© The George Balanchine Trust. Ekaterina Kondaurova in Diamonds by Natasha Razina © State Academic Mariinsky Theatre.

MCDEV_0919.indd 3

8/7/19 11:20 AM


Opening with Chef Shirley Chung Showcasing L.A.’s emerging chefs and diverse food, Abernethy’s takes diners on a culinary adventure.

Explore a distinctive dining experience as we create a new story of L.A., related and plated by the chefs who tell it best.

220 N. Hope Street Los Angeles, CA 90012 (213) 972-8088 AbernethysLA.com @AbernethysLA

MCDEV_0919.indd 4

8/7/19 11:21 AM


BOARD OF SUPERVISORS COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES Support from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors plays an invaluable role in the successful operation of The Music Center.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: MARK RIDLEY-THOMAS, Second District; SHEILA J. KUEHL, Third District; JANICE HAHN, Fourth District, Chair; KATHRYN BARGER, Fifth District; and HILDA L. SOLIS, First District

MCDEV_0919.indd 5

8/7/19 11:21 AM


OPENING NIGHT

ITZHAK PERLMAN ROHAN DE SILVA, PIANO Thu Sep 19 | 7PM

QUINTETO ASTOR PIAZZOLLA REVOLUCIONARIO TOUR Thu Oct 3 | 8PM

Don’t miss this evening of revolutionary tango music!

BETTYE LAVETTE Sun Oct 6 | 7PM LA MARISOUL UN HOMENAJE TO MEXICAN-AMERICAN MUSIC FROM LALA GUERRERO TO TODAY Sat Oct 12 | 8PM

THE VALLEY’S CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

JONATHAN BISS, PIANO BEETHOVEN PIANO SONATAS Tue Oct 15 | 8PM Wed Oct 16 | 8PM CHUCHO VALDÉS JAZZ BATÁ Sat Oct 19 | 8PM MANDY GONZALEZ FROM STEVEN SCHWARTZ TO LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA SPECIAL GUEST JAVIER MUÑOZ BROADWAY HITS FROM WICKED, HAMILTON, AND MORE Sat Oct 26 | 8PM OK GO Sat Nov 2 | 8PM Sun Nov 3 | 3PM

Mandy Gonzalez

Joshua Bell May 8 Chucho Valdes

Jonathan Biss

La Marisoul

Bettye LaVette

TheSorayaStage | TheSoraya.org | (818) 677-3000

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 3

8/14/19 5:19 PM


R E A L E S TAT E W I T H HONESTY AND PA S S I O N

COLDWELL BANKER GLOBAL LUXURY 310.285.7508 HOMES@JADEMILLS.COM JADEMILLS.COM CalRE #00526877 ©2019 Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Owned by a subsidiary of NRT LLC. Coldwell Banker, the Coldwell Banker logo, Coldwell Banker Global Luxury and the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

CTG_WRAP_0919 p33-end.indd 4

8/15/19 4:40 PM


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.