With a growing stack of awards for its acclaimed artistic achievements, needtheater, the four-year-old prize winning company, will double its creative output this year at venues scattered across Los Angeles.
The First Lady
February 17 - March 7
An opera. A World Premiere co-production with UCLA’s Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Music by Ken Wells. Libretto by Ken Wells, Gayle Strauss, Rick Roudebush and Matt Wells.
On the day of his death, President Franklin D. Roosevelt is in Warm Springs with his mistress, Lucy. When Eleanor learns the truth, her grief turns to shock and betrayal. “The First Lady” shows how she achieves personal growth while she—and the rest of the nation, still at war—suffer the loss of the beloved President. At the NPI Auditorium on the UCLA Campus. FREE admission to the public. Six performances: Feb. 19, 21, 26, 27, Mar. 3 at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday matinee on March 7 at 2 p.m. Reservations: (310) 794-3711, or online at www.thefirstladyopera.com
March 2- March 25
“The Event” by John Clancy and “The Interview” by Lawrence Bridges.
Two solo performances. “The Event” is a scripted one-hour performance in which a man narrates his and the audience’s experience of what is happening during the performance asking “What Is Illusion? What Is Real?”
“The Interview” is an unscripted World Premiere experience in which an anonymous interviewer prompts a different actor every performance to answer a series of questions. The actor responds truthfully and spontaneously, revealing story, character, and the common threads that bond us together. Because “The Interviewer” can only be done once by each actor, no two shows will ever be the same. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. “The Event” is at 8 p.m. “The Interview” is at 9:30 p.m. Tickets: “The Event”- $15; “The Interview”_ $10. SPECIAL: both for $20. At Son of Semele Theatre, 3301 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004. Reservations: (323) 472-0200, or online at www.needtheater.org
tempOdyssey
April 23- May 30
West Coast Premiere. Written by Dan Dietz. Directed by Emily Weisberg. Fearful of commitment and running from a traumatic childhood, Genny has carefully constructed a life bereft of human connection. It’s a life defined by her bizarre and frequently terrifying temp work at IthacaTechnoSolutions, where Genny will soon discover that she must question her beliefs and confront her pastr. Part office satire, part coming-of-age story, “tempOdyssey” claws away at the surreal banalities of everyday life to reveal a center both heartbreaking and hilarious. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets: $20. Students, and seniors, $17. At Art/Works Theater, 6569 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood 90038. Reservations; (323) 472-0200, or online at www.needtheater.org
The Web
September 10- October 17
World Premiere. Written by Michael John Garces. While testing out his new web browser, Chris Quinonez stumbles across some strange information—a person who is nearly identical to himself. Twelve hours later, two men take him to a warehouse to “answer a couple of questions”….and that’s just the start of his troubles. “The Web” is a gripping, fast-paced thriller that investigates the nature of identity, freedom and loss. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets: $20. Students and seniors, $17. At Art/Works Theater. Reservations: (323) 472-0200, or go online at www.needtheater.org
Season passes are available for $55 by going online at www.needtheater.org or by mail at needtheater, 6214 Drexel Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90048. Matt Wells - Artistic Director.
Feature image photo from needtheater’s 2009 production of “Scarcity.” Photo credit: Stephanie Yee. Left to right: Wendy Johnson, Randy Irwin, Rebecca Jordan, Steve Walker.
