NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
UPDATED March 26, 2019
Press contact: Lucy Pollak
[email protected]  (818) 887-1499 (for media only)

 

Open Fist’s annual political pop-up in speakeasy setting:
‘What Matters Now’ gives voice to playwrights across the U.S.

WHAT:
What Matters Now?/! (Another Political Pop-Up of the Theatrical Kind) — Open Fist’s annual “political pop-up” features a rotating roster of short plays by writers from across the country that explore our nation’s current social and political climate and how the past year has affected us. Finding it hard to get off the couch and get to the theater? Open Fist has brought the couches to Atwater Village Theatre, creating a cozy, speakeasy setting where patrons can arrive early or stay late to have a drink and a chat with the cast and fellow audience members.

THE PLAYS
(8-9 plays performed each evening on a rotating basis):

• A Dream of Two Moons by Dorothea Cahan, directed by Laura James — In the near future, a young mom along with her pregnant sister prepare to celebrate the birthday of her five-year-old son… with a tank-shaped birthday cake and a bullet-proof backpack.
• American Hamlet, conceived and directed by Lane Allison — A timely re-imagining of Act 3, Scene 4 of the Bard’s tragedy.
• An Awful Waste of Space by Natalie Zutter, directed by Christopher Cedeño — In the days after Hurricane Maria, a rogue park ranger at SETI’s (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) abandoned Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico makes first contact with aliens.
• But I’m Not Really by Bonnie Ratner, directed by Art Hall — A mature woman struggles to teach her yoga class during a lock down in a Jewish community center.
• Electric Eye by Timothy Mooney; directed by Jan Munroe — A scholar traces the decline of Western Civilization to the application for the patent for the first self-flushing toilet on January 16, 1979.
• Heart Attack Zack, written and directed by Amanda Weier — Liza’s college crush, Zack, is back! Unfortunately so are the allegations against him….
• High School Intifada by Cary Gitter, directed by Christopher Cappiello — A New Jersey teen tweets “Israel is a terrorist force” and is called into the principals office for bullying. (Based on an actual incident.)
• How Are We Doing by Jessica Moss; directed by Michael Steinbach — A group of friends struggle with the question “How are we doing?” in a world where nothing is okay.
• Inheritance by EH Sanders; directed by Rod Menzies — A mature European-American woman wrestles with uncomfortable truths when she discovers that she shares a great-great grandfather with a young African-American man.
• Pandemonium by Bara Swain; directed by Amanda Weier — A young couple expecting their first child find themselves suddenly overwhelmed by the statistics on traffic accidents, the challenges of installing a car seat, and the imperative of finding the right name for their daughter.
• The Protest by James William Evans, directed by Derek Manson — To express their fervent passion for fresh fish, two penguins test the limits of protesting.
• Toppers by Brett Hursey, directed by Christopher Cappiello — A firefighter who carries a baker to safety later returns to challenge him over his refusal to bake her wife a wedding cake.
• Unquiet American Dreams by Jaisey Bates, directed by Laura James — A woman wakes from dreams of crying children in cages.

WHO:
• The Acting Ensemble: Lane Allison, Chloe Berlinger, Bryan Bertone, Phillip William Brock, Brittany Lauren Brown, Becca Cousineau, Stephanie Crothers, Lori Gambero, Caroline Klidonas, Dylan Maddalena, Rod Menzies, Neil Oktay, Katie May Porter, Beth Robbins, Kenia Romero, Steven Royce, Judith Scarpone, David Shofner, Megumi Smisson, Dionna Veremis, Ann Marie Wilding
• Presented by Open Fist Theatre Company, Martha Demson, artistic director

WHEN:
Performances March 15 – April 13
• Fridays at 8 p.m.: March 15, March 22, March 29, April 5, April 12
• Saturdays at 8 p.m.: March 16, March 23, March 30, April 6, April 13
• Sundays at 7 p.m.: March 17, March 24, March 31, April 7
(Doors open one hour prior to show time so you can enjoy our relaxed, speakeasy setting.)

WHERE:
Atwater Village Theatre
3269 Casitas Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90039
(FREE parking in the Atwater Xing lot one block south of the theater)

HOW:
(323) 882-6912 or www.openfist.org

TICKET PRICE:
• Fridays: $20 with advance purchase, $25 at the door
• Saturdays and Sundays: $25 with advance purchase, $30 at the door

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