Center Theatre Group News & Blogs

"Disgraced" Rehearsals Have Begun

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 25 May 2016 23:41:00 -0700

REHEARSALS HAVE BEGUN FOR AYAD AKHTAR’S PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING PLAY “DISGRACED” AT CTG/MARK TAPER FORUM JUNE 8 THROUGH JULY 17, 2016

Rehearsals have begun for Ayad Akhtar’s 2013 Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Disgraced,” which begins previews June 8, opens June 19 and continues through July 17, 2016, at the Mark Taper Forum.

Directed by Kimberly Senior, the cast features, in alphabetical order, J Anthony Crane, Behzad Dabu, Hari Dhillon, Karen Pittman and Emily Swallow.

In a riveting, contemporary exploration of identity and religion, “Disgraced” follows a married couple living in Upper East Side Manhattan. Amir is a corporate lawyer and Emily an artist, and though Amir was raised Muslim, he has left that faith behind. The couple hosts a small dinner party and soon, before anyone can stop it, polite protocol is abandoned and the talk turns to religion, politics and sex.

Scenic design is by John Lee Beatty, costume design by Jennifer von Mayrhauser, lighting design by Christine A. Binder and sound design by Jill BC Du Boff. Casting is by Meg Fister and the production stage manager is David S. Franklin.

Charles Isherwood of The New York Times called “Disgraced” a “terrific, turbulent drama” and David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter called it “smart, spiky entertainment.” “Nothing is sacred,” said Linda Winer of Newsday, “the Quran, the Old Testament, terrorism, art history, cultural tourism, ancient prejudices and blazing ambivalence – as Akhtar rubs unexpected raw spots with enormous intelligence and humor.”

Ayad Akhtar was born in New York City and raised in Milwaukee. His play “Disgraced” premiered at the American Theater Company in January 2012 and was staged at LCT3/Lincoln Center in New York in October 2012. “Disgraced” then premiered in London at the Bush Theatre in 2013, and made its Broadway debut in 2014. Akhtar’s play “The Invisible Hand” was nominated for the ATCA/Steinberg Award, and won Best New Work 2013 from the St. Louis Theater Circle. As a screenwriter, he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay for "The War Within." He is the author of "American Dervish," published in 25 languages worldwide and a 2012 Best Book of the Year at Kirkus Reviews, Toronto’s Globe and Mail, Shelf Awareness and O Magazine.

Kimberly Senior has worked closely with Akhtar since the inception of “Disgraced” and has directed productions of the play on Broadway and at Lincoln Center Theatre, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre and Goodman Theatre. Other credits in her prolific career include Akhtar’s “The Who & The What” (La Jolla Playhouse), “Rapture, Blister, Burn” (Goodman Theatre), “Marjorie Prime” (Writers Theatre) and “The North Plan” (Steppenwolf). Senior is the founder of Collaboraction, a Resident Director at Writers Theatre and an Associate Artist at TimeLine Theatre Company. In 2012, she was named Best Director in Chicago by Chicago Magazine.

Tickets for “Disgraced” are available by calling (213) 628-2772 or online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org. Tickets range from $25 - $85 (ticket prices are subject to change). The Mark Taper Forum is located at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A. 90012.

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May 25, 2016

'Disgraced' Press Kit

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 25 May 2016 23:13:00 -0700

'The Mystery of Love & Sex' Press Kit

Center Theatre Group — Thu, 12 May 2016 00:28:00 -0700

'Endgame' Press Kit

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 11 May 2016 20:16:00 -0700

'Grey Gardens' Press Kit

Center Theatre Group — Thu, 05 May 2016 06:07:00 -0700

Local Student Takes Second in 2016 August Wilson Monologue Competition

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 04 May 2016 00:06:00 -0700

LOCAL STUDENT TAKES HOME SECOND PLACE IN NATIONAL FINALS FOR THE 2016 AUGUST WILSON MONOLOGUE COMPETITION

Center Theatre Group’s Regional Finalist Damaris Vizvett Shines in the August Wilson Monologue Competition on Broadway in NYC

Local high school student and CTG regional finalist Damaris Vizvett took second place in the national finals for the August Wilson Monologue Competition (AWMC) on Monday, May 2, 2016, at the August Wilson Theatre on Broadway. Representing San Bernardino, Vizvett performed a monologue from Wilson’s “Seven Guitars,” which earned her a $1,000 college scholarship and a $750 cash prize.

Vizvett was one of three students to place in the Los Angeles regional finals hosted at CTG/Mark Taper Forum on February 29. She took home first place and was awarded an all-expenses-paid trip to New York for the AWMC national finals along with second place finalist Samuel Christian. Aryana Williams placed third in the Los Angeles competition.

The AWMC national finals featured 18 high school students from Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Dallas and Greensboro, North Carolina. Each student performed a monologue from playwright August Wilson’s 10-play Century Cycle, an epic dramatization of the African-American experience in the 20th century, in front of a panel of celebrity judges. The competition presented prizes to the top three performing students in the form of college scholarships and monetary awards.

CTG hosted the Los Angeles component of competition for the fifth year in a row, which started with a preliminary round featuring more than 150 students from Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura Counties. From this group, 12 students were chosen to participate in the regional finals held at the Mark Taper Forum in February. The top two performers were then selected to take part in the national finals in New York, and received master classes from CTG’s teaching artists in preparation.

Regional funding for the August Wilson Monologue Competition is provided by the CTG Affiliates and the Wells Fargo Foundation. The AWMC also receives generous support from the William Randolph Hearst Education Endowment.

The August Wilson Monologue Competition is a national program presented by Kenny Leon's True Colors Theatre Company and Jujamcyn Theaters and is hosted in nine cities nationwide, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Dallas and Greensboro, North Carolina. Each city runs its program differently, but the goal is the same: to introduce high school students to August Wilson’s works and to help them find their own voices.

The inspiration for the AWMC was sparked in 2007 in Atlanta by Wilson’s long-time collaborators Kenny Leon and Todd Kreidler of True Colors Theatre Company. Modeled after Pittsburgh Public Theater’s annual Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest, the AWMC utilizes performance tools and text analysis to help students explore the interior lives of August Wilson’s characters and study the social, economic and historical realities they inhabit.

CTG honors its long-standing relationship with August Wilson through its participation in the national monologue competition as well as through its continued production of Wilson’s work. CTG has presented eight of Wilson’s plays, including two world premiere productions. In August 2016, Wilson’s “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” will be presented at the Mark Taper Forum.

More information on CTG’s August Wilson Monologue Competition can be found at www.centertheatregroup.org/AugustWilson.

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May 4, 2016