.png)
UPDATE 3/12/2020: All remaining performances of The Book of Mormon, Antipodes, and Block Party at the Ahamanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum and the Kirk Douglas Theatre are cancelled due to a directive from the California Department of Public Health and a mandate from the County of Los Angeles to help lessen the spread of the COVID-19/novel coronavirus.
“The need to cancel a production is never easy, as it impacts many people in our community, including our dedicated staff, artists, and craftspeople. However, in these most difficult of times, we must keep our entire community safe, and that will remain the most important factor in how we continue to respond to the current moment.
We will keep you updated as new information becomes available. We are contacting current ticket holders via email, but please contact tickets@ctgla.org if you have any questions.
Your ongoing support of Center Theatre Group is deeply appreciated and absolutely vital as we continue our mission to serve the diverse audiences of Los Angeles by producing and presenting theatre of the highest caliber, by nurturing new artists, by attracting new audiences, and by developing youth outreach and arts education programs.
We look forward to the moment that we can once again raise the curtain at the Ahmanson, Taper, and Douglas and celebrate the power of theatre with you.”
Sincerely,
Michael Ritchie, Artistic Director
Meghan Pressman, Managing Director/CEO
Casting is set for Sacred Fools Theater Company’s production of “The Art Couple,” which will be performed at the Kirk Douglas Theatre as part of Center Theatre Group’s fourth annual Block Party: Celebrating Los Angeles Theatre. Written by Brendan Hunt and directed by Lauren Van Kurin, “The Art Couple” will begin previews March 18, open March 20 and continue through March 29.
The cast includes Bryan Bellomo, Kristyn Evelyn, Clayton Farris, Marie-Françoise Theodore, Madeleine Heil, Brendan Hunt, Joel Scher and Ryan Patrick Welsh. The design team includes scenic design by DeAnne Millais, costume design by Linda Muggeridge, lighting design by Andrew Schmedake, sound design by Ben Rock, projection design by Corwin Evans and Ashley Crow as prop consultant. The production stage manager is Rachel Manheimer.
“The Art Couple” is a dramedy about Neil Simon’s struggle to break a terrible case of writer’s block he is suffering after accepting a huge commission for his completely unwritten third play: “The Odd Couple.” Encouraged by a mysterious busboy with a western twang (who also happens to be an aspiring playwright), Simon decides the play should be more than schtick, it should be about art. When he learns that Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin shared an illfated cohabitation, he endeavors to write about that real-life (but very odd) couple. Neil and the busboy battle for control of the play in parallel scenes and the odd couples begin to resemble something closer to “True West,” building irrevocably to a suitably ridiculous conclusion.
Block Party 2020 will also include IAMA Theatre Company’s production of “Canyon” from April 8 through April 19. These visiting companies will receive the full support of Center Theatre Group and its staff in order to fund, stage and market each production. Center Theatre Group received submissions for Block Party from intimate theatre companies throughout the greater Los Angeles area.
With Block Party, Center Theatre Group will continue to strengthen its relationships within the Los Angeles theatre community by creating additional avenues for the organization to work with local playwrights, actors, directors and designers. Block Party also helps to foster relationships between Center Theatre Group staff and the staff of theatre companies throughout Los Angeles. Block Party receives major support from Aliza Karney Guren and Marc Guren with generous funding also provided by Joni and Miles Benickes, and additional support provided by Kiki Ramos Gindler and David Gindler. Previous Block Party productions have included “For the Love Of (or, the roller derby play)” (Theatre of NOTE), “Rotterdam” (Skylight Theatre Company), “Native Son” (Antaeus Theatre Company), “Bloodletting” (Playwrights’ Arena), “Ameryka” (Critical Mass Performance Group), “Die, Mommie, Die!” (Celebration Theatre), “Failure: A Love Story” (Coeurage Theatre Company), “Citizen: An American Lyric” (The Fountain Theatre) and “Dry Land” (The Echo Theater Company).
Tickets for Block Party are available by calling (213) 628-2772, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org, at the Center Theatre Group Box Office at the Ahmanson Theatre or at the Kirk Douglas Theatre Box Office two hours prior to performance. Tickets for each individual production range from $30 – $75 (ticket prices are subject to change). A Block Party Party Pass is available for $50, which includes a ticket to each production as well as a complimentary cocktail (or non-alcoholic beverage) at each performance. The Party Pass is available by phone or in-person now through March 29. The first Thursday performance of each Block Party production (March 19 for “The Art Couple,” and April 9 for “Canyon”) will be a pay-what-you-want performance. Another way to share these exciting productions and connect with the Los Angeles Theatre community, the paywhat-you-want performances offer patrons the opportunity to decide what their theatre experience was worth before, during or after the performance. Tickets for the pay-what-you-want performances are available in person only at the Center Theatre Group Box Office at the Ahmanson Theatre or at the Kirk Douglas Theatre Box Office. The Kirk Douglas Theatre is located at 9820 Washington Blvd. in Culver City, CA 90232. Free three hour covered parking at City Hall with validation (available in the Kirk Douglas Theatre lobby).
