Ashton’s Audio Interview: The Cast of ‘Found’ at The Los Angeles Theatre Center

IAMA Theatre Company presents the West Coast premiere of Found, a new musical inspired by Davy Rothbart’s popular Found magazine, which features scores of actual discarded notes and letters that have been “found” in the real world by everyday people.*

Enjoy this interview with the cast of “Found at The Los Angeles Theatre Center, playing through Mar 23rd. You can listen to this interview while commuting, while waiting in line at the grocery store or at an audition, backstage and even front of the stage. For tickets and more info Click here.

*taken from the website


Now Registered on the Better Lemons Calendar – January 27 – February 3, 2020


Theatrical, One-Person, Musicals, and Comedy shows, Music, Dance, and Cabaret now registered on the Better Lemons calendar!

For shows with a LemonMeter rating, visit our LemonMeter page.


Sugar Houses

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Looking for Leroy

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Cafe Vida

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The Andrews Brothers

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Taming the Lion

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Birthday Wish

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Uncle Vanya

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Matt & Ben

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The Secret Comedy of Women

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Our Man in Santiago

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Shades of War The play

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Melinda Doolittle – The Great American Soul Book

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The World is My Home: The Life of Paul Robeson

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A Good Day to Fly

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Now Registered on the Better Lemons Calendar – August 19 – 25, 2019

Theatrical shows and Festivals NOW registered on the Better Lemons calendar!
For more shows visit our Calendar. For shows with a LemonMeter rating, visit our LemonMeter page.

Grumpy Old Men The Musical

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Stage Raw + Play La Theatre Festival Weekend

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Puffs

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King Lear

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Fool For Love

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Ask A Black Woman

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The Trouble Is, You Think You Have Time

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Tales From The Powder Room

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Little Women

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Dial M For Murder

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Give Up The Ghost

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Now Registered on the Better Lemons Calendar – February 25 – March 10, 2019

Theatrical shows registered on the Better Lemons calendar!
For more shows visit our Calendar.
For shows with a LemonMeter rating, visit our LemonMeter page.

Trojan Women

“Archway Theatre’s immersive post-modern retelling of the aftermath of the Trojan War. Priam, Hector, and Paris are all dead. Queen Hecuba and the women of Troy are now the spoils of war, and must await their fate at the hands of the conquering Greeks.”

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Cemetery of Tortured Souls

“Zombie Joe’s Underground Theatre Group proudly presents their All-New Horror-Theatre Spectacular haunted by The Golden Age of Hollywood in 1930’s. While the only escape from The Great Depression were the movies, there was no escape for those entrapped by the glitter of Tinseltown: These restless spirits of stars and villains from yesteryear rise from their forgotten graves – to wander their final resting place and re-live their final moments in eternal damnation!”

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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? ”

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CATS!

“The record-breaking musical spectacular by Andrew Lloyd Webber that has captivated audiences in over 30 countries and 15 languages, is now on tour across North America! Audiences and critics alike are rediscovering this beloved musical with breathtaking music, including one of the most treasured songs in musical theater—”Memory”. Winner of 7 Tony Awards® including BEST MUSICAL, CATS tells the story of one magical night when an extraordinary tribe of cats gathers for its annual ball to rejoice and decide which cat will be reborn. The original score by Andrew Lloyd Webber (Phantom, School of Rock, Sunset Boulevard), original scenic and costume design by John Napier (Les Misérables), all-new lighting design by Natasha Katz (Aladdin), all-new sound design by Mick Potter, new choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler (Hamilton) based on the original choreography by Gillian Lynne (Phantom) and direction by Trevor Nunn (Les Misérables) make this production a new CATS for a new generation!…Now and Forever.”

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THE MEATBALL CHRONICLES

“The Meatball Chronicles follows one woman through humorous and sometimes heart wrenching meals that align with stories of her childhood, her relationships with men, and in particular, her complicated relationship to her mother.
Mansini crafts this piece in a way that transcends her own story into universal themes that anyone who has a family can love. As she kneads the dough and thickens the sauce through each Italian recipe, the stories associated with those recipes reveal the complex ways that families cope, laugh, grieve, and show their love through food.”

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The Judas Kiss

“In spring of 1895, Oscar Wilde was larger than life. His masterpiece, The Importance of Being Earnest, was a hit in the West End and he was the toast of London. Yet by summer he was serving two years in prison for gross indecency. Punished for “the love that dare not speak its name,” Wilde remained devoted to his beloved, Lord Alfred “Bosie” Douglas. The Judas Kiss revolves around two pivotal moments in his life: the day when, cajoled by Bosie into an ill-fated trial, he decides to stay in England and face imprisonment, and a night when, after his release two years later, the lover for whom he risked everything betrays him again. David Hare’s masterful play pulses with the ecstasy and anguish of an enamored heart.”

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Native Voices at the Autry Presents Pure Native

“Brewster’s back! Rising from the ashes with a slick plan for a bottled water plant on reservation land. There’s mixed agreement and opposition from family and friends, including an old flame with a grudge—but is he the secret ingredient for success? This play was workshopped as Corn Soup. Native Voices at the Autry is devoted to developing and producing new works for the stage by Native American, Alaska Native, and First Nations playwrights..”

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THE ELEPHANT MAN

“’The Elephant Man’ is based on the life of John Merrick who lived in London during the latter part of the 19th Century. A horribly deformed young man who has been a freak attraction in traveling side shows, John is found abandoned and helpless and is admitted for observation to Whitechapel, a prestigious London hospital. Under the care of the famous young doctor, Fredrick Treves, Merrick is educated and introduced to London society. Through their eyes, he is changed from sensational object of pity, to an urbane and witty favorite of the aristocracy and literati. It his dream that he will become a man like any other…but unbeknownst to him, he exceeds even that.”

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JOAN and WHAT DID THEY SAY – An Evening of One Acts

“An Evening Of One Acts: JOAN and WHAT DID THEY SAY
JOAN is an imaginary tale of Joan Crawford’s journey through the Bardo and her adjustment to the fact that her soul will move onto the unknown. During this dream state Joan reflects on–her life–her career–her enemies–her loves–those that helped create the film legend she became.
WHAT DID THEY SAY explores gender and sexuality in an unconventional family dramedy, taking place in Los Angeles today. As experienced in today’s rough political climate, families don’t always share the same values. Family members can be rough among themselves, and where Julian’s dad is gay, and his older sister Harper identifies as a dyke, his twin sibling Felicia struggles to understand Julian’s gender identity.”

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LA DRAMA CRITICS CIRCLE AWARDS

“The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle (LADCC), which presented its first awards for excellence in Los Angeles, Orange County, and Ventura County a half-century ago, has begun the gala celebration of its 50th anniversary by announcing its nominations for the year 2018 (Dec. 1, 2017 – Nov. 30, 2018).
The LADCC is further thrilled to announce that this historic occasion will take place on Monday, April 8, 2019 at one of the region’s most historic and beautiful theatres, Pasadena Playhouse, at 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena.”

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The Mother of Henry

“In the working class melting pot that was Boyle Heights in the 1960s, five diverse employees in the return department at Sears form a tight bond as they cope with upheaval in their personal lives, their community and the rapidly changing world around them. Connie, a Latinx single working class mother, realizes her agency and discovers her true identity when the anxieties of war, civil unrest and political assassinations plaguing the country tragically affect her own life. Infused with period music and magical realism.”

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The Shape of Things

“Neil LaBute’s 2001 drama “The Shape of Things” is set in a small university town in the American Midwest and centers on the lives of four young students who become emotionally and romantically involved. How far would you go for love? For art? What would you be willing to change? What price might you pay? Such are the painful questions explored in the play. A young student drifts into an ever-changing relationship with an art major while his best friend’s engagement crumbles, unleashing a drama that peels back the skin of two modern-day relationships.”

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The MisMatch Game

“For a record-breaking 15th year, it’s time once again to “get ready to match the stars” with a new edition of Dennis Hensley’s The MisMatch Game. The side-splitting parody of the ‘70s game show has set the rafters ringing with laughter since its debut in 2004. The show the LA Times calls, “witty, ribald … an adventure in surrealist era bending” returns to the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Renberg Theatre for two hilarious shows.”

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Los Angeles Women’s Theatre Festival

“The overall theme of the Festival will be I, Woman and the theme of the Opening Night GALA will be In Tribute To. The Champagne GALA and Awards Ceremony will take place on March 22, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. nd will be directed by Denise Dowse (Imposters) and hosted by Starletta DuPois (The Notebook) and Kym Whitley (Young and Hungry). The event will honor five women of exceptional achievement and contribution to the world of theatre (Eternity Awardee- Jenifer Lewis; Integrity Awardee- Leslie Ishii; Maverick Awardee- Sandra Tsing Loh; Rainbow Awardee- Whitney Weston; and posthumously, Infinity Awardee-Carol Channing. There will be special live performances in addition to the awards presentation.”

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IN RESPONSE: Year of the Woman (Still)

“Past and present issues of women including current the #MeToo movement are explored through a collection of dramatic, humorous and thought-provoking, monologues, poems and dance. All the material is written by women. Sunday performances are followed by an audience talkback.”

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Church Basement Ladies

“Church Basement Ladies, a celebration of the church basement kitchen and the women who work there, features four distinct characters and their relationships as they organize the food and the problems of a rural Minnesota church. From the elderly matriarch of the kitchen to the young bride-to-be learning the proper order of things, the show and music give us a touching, funny look at their lives as we see them handle a record breaking Christmas dinner, the funeral of a dear friend, a Hawaiian Easter Fundraiser, and a steaming hot July wedding. They stave off potential disasters, share and debate recipes, instruct the young, and keep the Pastor on due course while thoroughly enjoying, (and tolerating) each other. Funny and down to earth, you will recognize these ladies as they begin to see the Church year unfold from below the House of God.”

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The Sunshine Experience

“So do a little dance! Make a little love! Get down tonight with The Sunshine Experience – the nation’s premier tribute to KC and the Sunshine Band. “Shake, Shake Shake Your Booty” to their funky tunes and fall in love with KCSB’s triple-platinum sound all over again! ‘Cause “That’s the way–uh huh, uh huh–I like it!” The Sunshine Experience delivers a high-energy, adrenaline-pumping show with spot-on musical arrangements and amazing choreography.”

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A Terrible Show for Terrible People

“A Terrible Show for Terrible People is a raunchy and rambunctious, non-verbal solo clown performance that is both boner- and vomit-inducing. Physical comedian Bonnie He takes the audience through a voyeuristic window into personal tragedy, triumph, and titillation. Mostly titillation. Hehe. TIT-illation. You’re not just watching a Terrible Show – you’re participating in the destruction of common decency.”

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HEISENBERG

“LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE is thrilled to present a co-production with the Rubicon Theatre Company, the critically acclaimed (LA Times Critics’ Choice) production of HEISENBERG, written by Simon Stephens (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) directed by Katherine Farmer (South Pacific, Gulf View Drive) and starring Faline England (Valentine’s Day) & Joe Spano (Hill Street Blues and NCIS). Comments Artistic Director Ann E. Wareham and Executive Director Ellen Richard, “What a special opportunity to co-produce this critically acclaimed production with the Rubicon Theatre Company. Simon Stephens has written a funny, tender and quirky love story that celebrates human relationships in all their complexity. Faline England and Joe Spano are giving masterful performances under the brilliant direction of the gifted Katharine Farmer.”

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The Second Coming of Klaus Kinski

“Fresh off an LA Stage Alliance Ovation nomination for Lead Actor in a Play, WTFN brings back Andrew Perez in the Encore Award-winning THE SECOND COMING OF KLAUS KINSKI!…resurrected for 3 consecutive Friday nights — March 22, 29 & April 5 at the Pico Playhouse…Klaus Kinski is one of the most celebrated and controversial actors in the history of world cinema. The reckless abandon with which he approached both life and art left him tortured, demonized and worshipped. He now resurrects to shake your souls with one last command performance. THE SECOND COMING OF KLAUS KINSKI.”

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Now Registered on the Better Lemons Calendar – February 3 – 10, 2019

Theatrical shows registered on the Better Lemons calendar!
For more shows visit our Calendar.
For shows with a LemonMeter rating, visit our LemonMeter page.

Two Trains Running at Matrix

The team behind last year’s acclaimed Ovation, LADCC, and Stage Raw award-nominated production of August Wilson’s “King Hedley II” returns to the Matrix with another installment of the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright’s “American Century Cycle” the playwright’s decade-by-decade exploration of the black experience in 20th century America. It’s 1969 in Pittsburgh’s Hill District, where the regulars of Memphis Lee’s restaurant struggle to cope with the turbulence of a world that is rapidly changing around them.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: CHILDREN OF THE SUN

Maxim Gorky’s darkly comic play is set in Russia on the eve of the revolution. The country’s new middle class flounders about, philosophizing and flirting, blind to their impending annihilation. Protasov wants only to immerse himself in his experiments and is oblivious to the advances of the half-crazed widow and his best friend’s pursuit of his wife, let alone the cholera epidemic and the starving mob.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: GNIT

Meet Peter Gnit, a recklessly aspiring, self-deluded anti-hero. This twisted adaption of Henrik Ibsen’s Peer Gynt is a rollicking and cautionary tale that challenges what we think we know about this classic character. At this unique moment in U.S. history, the questions and problems raised are alive with relevance.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: SWIMMERS

Coyotes evading police. Billboards predicting the end of the world. It’s been a strange day at the office, and it’s only 9 a.m. Moving floor by floor from the basement to the roof, scenes between employees in a corporate office explore the angst-ridden relationships between those that people often take most advantage of: their coworkers.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA

Young Proteus only has eyes for his hometown sweetheart, Julia. But one look at the beautiful Silvia on a trip to Milan changes everything. Now he’s smitten with his best friend’s lover and his sweetheart has no intention of going away quietly. Events spin out of control as romantic rivals face off in this wild comic tale.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: HOLY GHOSTS

Coleman Shedman arrives at the rural meeting house of a southern Pentecostal sect with a lawyer in tow, seeking to retrieve his runaway wife (and the possessions she has taken with her). But his wife, Nancy, is unwilling to forsake the love and protection of her new “husband,” the Reverend Obediah Buckhorn, and return to the brutal, hard-drinking Coleman. Rich with atmosphere and the feel of Southern rural life, the play blends humor and poignancy as it probes into the circumstances and stories of the various cult members.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: THE BUSYBODY

First performed in 1709, this brilliantly witty and fast-paced comedy follows the characters Miranda and Isabinda as they attempt to arrange marriages to the men they love. Meanwhile, the hapless “busy body” Marplot tries to help his friends, but his valiant efforts only succeed in leading them closer towards disaster.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE

Inspired by the painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” by Georges Seurat, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s stunning musical masterpiece, merges past and present into beautiful, poignant truths about life, love and the creation of art. One of the most acclaimed musicals of our time, this moving study of the enigmatic painter, Georges Seurat, won a Pulitzer Prize and was nominated for an astounding 10 Tony Awards, including best musical.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: ROUGH MAGIC

Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s action-adventure-fantasy conjures a mythical, magical meta-universe in which evil sorcerer Prospero steps out of the pages of Shakespeare’s The Tempest and threatens death and destruction in modern-day Manhattan. To combat this supernatural foe, a quartet of unlikely heroes (including a dramaturg with magical powers) will emerge from the ashes to save the city and its citizens from complete and utter destruction.

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USC School of Dramatic Arts presents: QUEEN MARGARET

Margaret of Anjou becomes the central character of her own story in this edit of William Shakespeare’s first tetralogy of history plays (Henry VI, Parts 1 -3; and Richard III). Intrigue, betrayal, romance and revenge play out as Margaret evolves from daughter to bride to queen to avenging warrior and grieving widow. Our BFA sophomores tell her tale of resilience, resolve and charisma.

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James and the Giant Peach

Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach features a wickedly tuneful score by the Tony & Academy Award-winning team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (Dear Evan Hansen, La La Land, The Greatest Showman)and a curiously quirky book by Timothy Allen McDonald…When James is sent by his conniving aunts to chop down their old fruit tree, he discovers a magic potion that results in a tremendous peach and launches a journey of enormous proportions.

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Ada and the Engine

As the British Industrial Revolution dawns, young Ada Byron Lovelace (daughter of the flamboyant and notorious Lord Byron) sees the boundless creative potential in the “analytic engines” of her friend and soul-mate, Charles Babbage, inventor of the first mechanical computer. Ada envisions a whole new world where art and information converge – a world she might not live to see. A music-laced story of love, friendship, and the edgiest dreams of the future. Jane Austen meets Steve Jobs in this poignant pre-tech romance heralding the computer age.

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Man Of God

A hidden discovery in a hotel bathroom changes the lives of four Korean American Christian girls on a mission trip to Thailand. Samantha is hurt that someone she trusted could betray her. Jen is worried about how this might affect her college applications. Kyung-Hwa thinks everyone should adjust their expectations. Mimi’s out for blood. Amid the neon lights and go-go bars in Bangkok, the girls plot revenge in this funny, feminist thriller.

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Venus in Fur

Thomas Novachek is a playwright/director looking for the perfect actress to play the lead in his adaptation of Leopold Sacher Mashoch’s novella, Venus in Furs. He hasn’t had much luck and is ready to call it a day when a very late arrival bursts into the room in a wave of chaos. This actress appears to be the worst of a bad lot. Despite his protestations, she manages to cajole him into letting her read and from that point on the night veers into titillating and uncharted territory where Thomas’ biases and desires are laid bare. Venus in Fur is about human relationships, gender power dynamics and the matrix of stereotypes and assumptions that root seeming subversions. Its dark comedy and sexually charged scenarios provide fertile soil for exploration of subconscious and culturally mired desires, motivations, and expectations.

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Othello

The Bard’s most intimate of family tragedies about the terrible force of love and the breakdown of a man who has everything—power, position, and passion—only to find his world decimated through intense mind games with his ensign. Prescient in its searing social commentary of prejudice, betrayal, and thwarted ambition, Shakespeare’s thunderous drama examines who we trust and the price we pay for choosing wrong.

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The Twins of GillyGate

We find our twins on the eve of their 18th birthday in the kingdom of GillyGate. One is set to take the throne while the other sits in her tower with only a dragon to keep her company. Unbeknownst to both, a prophecy is about to unfold much to the dismay of their uncle, Lord Grimbert, who will do anything to stop a woman from taking the throne with the help of his trusty talking high horse. A musical tale woven together by a misfit traveling ensemble, this show will take you back to the Ren Faire. Full of bawdy, drunken fun mixed with some good ol’ audience interaction, this show is fun for your whole family!…well maybe not your kids.

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The Chekhov Comedies

See Chekhov as you have never seen him before! Combine 5 short comedies, 25 characters, and 4 female actors, and you get 1 night of hilarity!

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Little Shop of Horror

For the misfits of Skid Row, life is full of broken dreams and dead ends. Seymour Krelborn is a meek and dejected assistant at a floral shop who happens upon a strange plant, which he affectionately names “Audrey II” after his crush at the shop. Little does he know that this strange and unusual plant will develop a soulful R&B voice, a potty mouth, and an unquenchable thirst for human blood. As Audrey II grows bigger and meaner, the carnivorous plant promises limitless fame and fortune to Seymour, as long as he continues providing a fresh supply of blood … Featuring an electrifying early 1960s-style score from Alan Menken and book and lyrics by Howard Ashman.

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Canyon

In a backyard deep within a canyon during Labor Day weekend 2016 — before everything in America changed — we meet a newlywed couple and a Mexican father and son as they all try their best to find a better view. IAMA Theatre Company partners with the Latino Theater Company to present an immersive staging of this driving new play that takes a look at what happens when two families are rocked by an unpredictable accident that changes their lives forever. A look at gender, citizenship, and the costs of trying to live a conventional American life

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Too Much Sun

The West Coast premiere of the acclaimed off-Broadway hit by Nicky Silver (Broadway’s The Lyons). Celebrated actress Audrey Langham reaches her breaking point while rehearsing Medea in Chicago — walking off the stage, out of the production and into her married daughter’s summer house in Cape Cod, where her unexpected and unwelcome arrival sets off a chain of events alternately hilarious and harrowing.

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Phalaris’s Bull: Solving the Riddle of the Great Big World

Harvard-educated molecular biologist, visual artist and provocative visionary philosopher, Steven Friedman has the answers to life’s big questions. Using personal narrative, poetry, art, and science, he delivers a spell-binding performance reflecting his prismatic, transformative and deeply consoling vision of the world. Friedman offers a solution to the worlds pain based not on belief or faith but on logical rigor a philosophy starting from Kierkegaards story of an ancient torture device, Phalariss bull, that turns the terrible sounds of pain into music. To create is to enter Phalariss bull, and our pain becomes beauty.

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Friday Features – Sweet Shows This Coming Week

Better Lemons has lots of registered shows and events and lot of them have Critics and Audience reviews posted. Here you can see their favorites and when you click on a title, you will see all the critics’ and audience reviews and ratings. From there you can choose what your adventures this weekend will be. We wish you a fantastic weekend!

https://www.better-lemons.com/production/show-up-kids-interactive-family-comedy/
https://www.better-lemons.com/production/the-marriage-zone-2/
https://www.better-lemons.com/production/aleichem-sholom-the-wit-and-wisdom-of-sholom-aleichem-2/


Friday Features – Sweet Shows This Coming Week

Better Lemons has lots of registered shows and events and lot of them have Critics and Audience reviews posted. Here you can see their favorites and when you click on a title, you will see all the critics’ and audience reviews and ratings. From there you can choose what your adventures this weekend will be. We wish you a fantastic weekend!

Special

Wink

Gray People (2019 Extension)

Desert Rats

Delusion: The Blue Blade


https://www.better-lemons.com/production/show-up-kids-interactive-family-comedy/

CULTURE CLASH (STILL) IN AMERICA

A Misunderstanding

Sisters Three


Latino Theater Company's 'Desert Rats' Returns to its Western Home

The Latino Theater Company is bringing back the U.S. Premiere of their noir comedy about life and crime in America’s contemporary West to the Los Angeles Theatre Center (L.A.T.C.)

Written by Nate Rufus Edelman, directed by Angie Scott, and starring Derek Chariton, Lila Gavares, and Walt Gray IV, “Desert Rats,” puts two brothers, a trunk, and a hostage in a motel in Barstow into the mix and stirs.

This new American play was picked out of 10 American plays featured in a reading series in London, according to Edelman. The “Ovation Recommended” Desert Rats originally world premiered in London in 2016, as part of a summer festival at Las Americas Above.

“The festival was good, but kind of rapid paced. It didn’t breathe,” said Edelman, who works in development and grant writing at the L.A.T.C. “The production here is now about 20 minutes longer than the London production… I really liked the London production, but I was a lot more involved in this one just because I’m home and was able to be at rehearsals from beginning to end.”

The play addresses issues between the social classes, as well as issues between siblings – a subject matter close to home and in growing up for Edelman.

“There’s a lot of discussions about class through this kind of kidnapping genre narrative – with the ‘kind of’ poor and the wealthy – to bring them together to try to find some empathy between the two, which might have been subconsciously about gentrification in North East L.A. But I think it’s an interesting story to tell in Los Angeles now.”

Edelman, whose brother has yet to see the play, reflected on life before gentrification in the North East L.A. area and on growing up with his twin brother, where he characterizes their relationship as more of a mild inspiration for the brothers’ relationship in the play.

“[My brother and I] spent every day on earth together,” said Edelman. “We shared a room for 16 years, in a small house and we were had a really dysfunctional brother relationship. And he knows how to get on my nerves, and I know how to get on his. That kind of Cain and Abel myth I think, this is my version of it. The kind of squabbling and power games and knowing how to kind of puppeteer a brother to get a reaction… That’s definitely kind of there, the dysfunctional brother relationship. I wouldn’t say [the relationship] is close to us, but it is an exaggeration.”

Edelman, who is also part of a collective with five other playwrights called The Temblors, also teaches playwriting to under-served students in East Los Angeles as a volunteer in a weekly workshop. He grew up in Eagle Rock, went to grad school at NYU for dramatic writing and to Trinity College in Ireland.

After the deaths of friends around him from both accidents and suicides, and struggling in a New York apartment with roommates while going to school, Edelman felt “weirdly selfish” in “pursuing something like writing at a place like NYU.” With the onset of both positive and negative effects of gentrification in North East L.A., returning to Los Angeles for Edelman and his friends after college was a bit of a shock and an influence.

Derek Chariton and Walt Gray IV in the Latino Theatre Company’s “Desert Rats” at the Los Angeles Theatre Center. Photo by Giovanni Solis of bracero.

“I thought about the kind of characters – kind of maybe ne’er do well, working-class types – who don’t see any opportunity or don’t have opportunity in a lot of ways, and divide that with other sides of things like some of my family, and other people I knew,” said Edelman.

“None of my friends live in Eagle Rock anymore. They’ve all been displaced through rent going up,” he continued. “But I feel like a ‘towny’ when I go back in a way that I don’t like. I have weird memories of it. I sometimes feel weirdly afraid, like PTSD, in certain parts of Eagle Rock, Highland Park, Glassell Park, even driving down certain streets, because we avoided them 20 years ago. And now they’re nice. It’s weird.”

According to Edelman, the L.A.T.C. brings over 3,000 students to the program via that RACC in outreach to educational opportunities, which has brought some good feedback.

One student specifically came up to Edelman after a show and said that “Desert Rats” made him want to see another play. And while in the lobby of an unrelated production at ELAC, he overheard, “I saw this show downtown called Desert Rats. It was really good!”

As opposed to some honest feedback one might get from a New Yorker, Edelman said, “You don’t really get that in L.A. It’s such an unusual peek at real honesty.”

Students have been working at the L.A.T.C. in various capacities, such as a Stage Manager, Assistant Director, Costume designer, and production assistants. This has helped create a young network at the theater that has brought younger college age and high school students into shows as well.

Frustrated with the stereotyped life and lifestyle “Hollywood” genre product that has come from some theater, Edelman seeks to bring more realism about Los Angeles life in his works.

“So rarely do we see Los Angeles stories on stage in a way that isn’t stereotyped or about Hollywood. I can’t think of too many plays – Sam Sheppard did a couple – but it’s weirdly been kind of largely ignored, except through the lens of Hollywood, which I think there should be a moratorium.”

With the show’s director, Angie Scott, Edelman said they have been working together since they were undergraduates and studying abroad at different schools in Ireland. Since then, along with producing by the Latino Theatre Company, they’ve brought a more fleshed-out version of “Deserts Rats” to Los Angeles.

“We cast actors who we really know, like, and who happen to be perfect for these roles,” said Edelman. “Everything worked in a way it almost always doesn’t. It was kind of a labor of love for everybody. All the details in performance and design were really kind of lovingly created by people who wanted to do it. I don’t know if I’ll ever get that again. And I’m really glad it’s coming back so I’ll have a little more time with it before it goes away forever.”

Desert Rats” returns to the L.A.T.C. in a limited three-week run, from Saturday, January 5, to Sunday, January 20, 2018. The Los Angeles Theatre Center is located at 514 S Spring St. Los Angeles, 90013, and visit their website for more information on tickets and show times.


Ashton’s Audio Interview: Robert Beltran – Commander Chakotay of Star Trek: Voyager directs "Culture Clash: An American Odyssey" at The Los Angeles Theatre Center

Enjoy this interview about “Culture Clash: An American Odyssey” By Richard Montoya, Ric Salinas and Herbert Siguenza, directed by Robert Beltran (Commander Chakotay in a recurring role on the TV series Star Trek: Voyager) at The Los Angeles Theatre Center, running until Nov 17th. You can listen to this YouTube interview while commuting, while waiting in line at the grocery store or at an audition, backstage and even front of the stage.  For tickets and more info Click here.