Center Theatre Group News & Blogs

Cast Announced for 'Ain't Too Proud' at Ahmanson

Center Theatre Group — Thu, 19 Jul 2018 16:55:00 -0700

COMPLETE CAST ANNOUNCED FOR LOS ANGELES’ PRE-BROADWAY ENGAGEMENT OF

AT CENTER THEATRE GROUP / AHMANSON THEATRE AUGUST 21 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30, 2018

“Not just your imagination: ‘TEMPTATIONS’ MUSICAL ROCKS!” - SF Chronicle

Producers Ira Pittelman and Tom Hulce and Center Theatre Group are pleased to announce casting for the pre-Broadway run of “Ain’t Too Proud—The Life and Times of The Temptations” at the Ahmanson Theatre August 21 through September 30, 2018. The opening is set for August 24.

Leading this production as the Temptations will be Derrick Baskin as Otis Williams, James Harkness as Paul Williams, Jawan M. Jackson as Melvin Franklin, Jeremy Pope as Eddie Kendricks and Ephraim Sykes as David Ruffin. “Ain’t Too Proud” will also feature Esther Antoine, Shawn Bowers, E. Clayton Cornelious, Rodney Earl Jackson Jr., Taylor Symone Jackson, Jahi Kearse, Jarvis B. Manning Jr., Joshua Morgan, Saint Aubyn^, Rashidra Scott, Nasia Thomas, Christian Thompson, Curtis Wiley and Candice Marie Woods.

Before The Temptations became the greatest R&B group of all time (Billboard magazine 2017), they were just five young guys on the streets of Detroit. After getting discovered by Berry Gordy and signed to his brand-new label, Motown Records, it took them 24 tries before they finally had a hit song. The rest is history—how they met, how they rose, the groundbreaking heights they hit, and how personal and political conflicts threatened to tear the group apart as the United States fell into civil unrest. This thrilling story of brotherhood, family, loyalty and betrayal is set to the beat of the group’s treasured hits, including “My Girl,” “Just My Imagination,” “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” and so many more.

With a book by Kennedy Prize-winning playwright Dominique Morisseau and a score made up of The Temptations’ iconic hit songs, “Ain’t Too Proud” recently ended its record-breaking, world premiere run at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, where it became the highest grossing production in that theatre’s nearly 50-year history. Two-time Tony Award winner Des McAnuff directs, with choreography by Olivier Award winner Sergio Trujillo.

The creative team also includes Tony Award nominee Robert Brill (scenic design), Tony Award winner Paul Tazewell (costume design), Tony Award winner Howell Binkley (lighting design), Tony Award winner Steve Canyon Kennedy (sound design), Drama Desk Award winner Peter Nigrini (projection design), Edgar Godineaux (associate choreographer), Charles G. LaPointe (hair and wig design) and Steve Rankin (fight direction). Orchestrations are by Drama Desk Award winner Harold Wheeler with music direction and arrangements by Kenny Seymour.

Bank of America is the season sponsor and Delta Air Lines is the official airline sponsor for Center Theatre Group’s 2018 – 2019 season at the Ahmanson Theatre.

Tickets for “Ain’t Too Proud” are available by calling (213) 972-4400, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org, or by visiting the Center Theatre Group Box Office located at the Ahmanson Theatre. Tickets range from $30 – $145 (ticket prices are subject to change). The Ahmanson Theatre is located at The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, 90012.

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July 19, 2018 ^A previous version listed the cast member name as Calaif St Aubyn. It has since been corrected.

Cast Announced for 'Sweat' at Taper

Center Theatre Group — Thu, 19 Jul 2018 16:55:00 -0700

CAST IS SET FOR CENTER THEATRE GROUP’S PRODUCTION OF PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING “SWEAT” AT THE MARK TAPER FORUM AUGUST 29 THROUGH OCTOBER 7, 2018

Center Theatre Group has announced the cast for “Sweat” by Lynn Nottage. The 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning play will be presented at the Mark Taper Forum August 29 through October 7, 2018. Directed by Lisa Peterson, the opening of “Sweat” is set for September 5.

The cast includes, in alphabetical order, Kevin T. Carroll, Grantham Coleman, Will Hochman, John Earl Jelks, Mary Mara, Peter Mendoza, Michael O’Keefe, Amy Pietz and Portia.

The creative team includes set design by Christopher Barreca, costume design by Emilio Sosa, lighting design by Anne Militello, sound design by Paul James Prendergast and projection design by Yee Eun Nam. The production stage manager is David S. Franklin.

Filled with warm humor and tremendous heart, “Sweat” tells the story of a group of friends who have spent their lives sharing drinks, secrets and laughs while working together on the factory floor. But when layoffs, promotions and picket lines begin to chip away at their trust, the friends find themselves pitted against each other in a heart-wrenching fight to stay afloat.

In his review of the Off-Broadway production for The New York Times, Charles Isherwood called “Sweat,” “Keenly observed and often surprisingly funny,” adding that “Ms. Nottage, a Pulitzer Prize winner for ‘Ruined,’ is writing at the peak of her powers.” Deadline’s Jeremy Girard called the play “ferociously engrossing” stating, “no play in recent memory has shed more light on the crises and tribulations of America’s great retrenched working middle class.”

In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, Nottage’s play “Ruined,” received an Obie, the Lucille Lortel Award, New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award, Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Play. Her other plays include “Intimate Apparel” (New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Play), “Fabulation or, The Re-Education Of Undine” (Obie Award), “Crumbs from the Table of Joy,” “Las Meninas,” “Mud, River, Stone,” “Por’knockers” and “Poof!” Nottage’s numerous awards include the 2007 MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant,” the National Black Theatre Festival’s August Wilson Playwriting Award, the 2004 PEN/Laura Pels Award for Drama and the 2005 Guggenheim Grant for Playwriting, as well as fellowships from the Lucille Lortel Foundation, Manhattan Theatre Club, New Dramatists and New York Foundation for the Arts. She is a member of The Dramatists Guild, an alumna of New Dramatists and a graduate of Brown University and the Yale School of Drama, where she is a visiting lecturer.

Center Theatre Group, one of the nation’s preeminent arts and cultural organizations, is Los Angeles’ leading nonprofit theatre company, which, under Artistic Director Michael Ritchie, programs seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1600 to 2000-seat Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In addition to presenting and producing the broadest range of theatrical entertainment in the country, Center Theatre Group is one of the nation’s leading producers of ambitious new works through commissions and world premiere productions and a leader in interactive community engagement and education programs that reach across generations, demographics and circumstance to serve Los Angeles. Tickets are available online at CenterTheatreGroup.org, by calling Audience Services at (213) 628-2772 or in person at the Center Theatre Group Box Office (at the Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles). Tickets range from $30 – $99 (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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July 26, 2018

Cast Announced for 'Come From Away' at Ahmanson

Center Theatre Group — Thu, 19 Jul 2018 16:55:00 -0700

BROADWAY’S TONY AWARD-WINNING “MUST-SEE MUSICAL” (NPR) “COME FROM AWAY” ANNOUNCES NATIONAL TOURING CAST

NATIONAL TOURING PRODUCTION CAST FEATURES KEVIN CAROLAN, HARTER CLINGMAN, NICK DUCKART, CHAMBLEE FERGUSON, BECKY GULSVIG, JULIE JOHNSON, CHRISTINE TOY JOHNSON, JAMES EARL JONES II, MEGAN MCGINNIS, ANDREW SAMONSKY, DANIELLE K. THOMAS, EMILY WALTON, MARIKA AUBREY, JANE BUNTING, MICHAEL BRIAN DUNN, JULIE GARNYÉ, ADAM HALPIN, AARON MICHAEL RAY

BOOK, MUSIC & LYRICS BY IRENE SANKOFF & DAVID HEIN

DIRECTED BY CHRISTOPHER ASHLEY

MUSICAL STAGING BY KELLY DEVINE

MUSIC SUPERVISION & ARRANGEMENTS BY IAN EISENDRATH

Full casting has been announced for the touring production of the new musical “Come From Away.” “Come From Away” will begin performances at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre in October 2018. The touring production of “Come From Away” will star Kevin Carolan (Disney’s “Newsies”), Harter Clingman (“Peter and The Starcatcher”), Nick Duckart (“In the Heights”), Chamblee Ferguson, Becky Gulsvig (“School of Rock the Musical”), Julie Johnson (“Memphis”), Christine Toy Johnson (“The Music Man”), James Earl Jones II (“The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess”), Megan McGinnis (“Les Misérables”), Andrew Samonsky (“South Pacific”), Danielle K. Thomas (“Avenue Q”), Emily Walton (“August Osage County”), Marika Aubrey, Jane Bunting, Michael Brian Dunn, Julie Garnyé, Adam Halpin and Aaron Michael Ray.

With a book, music and lyrics by Tony and Grammy Award nominees Irene Sankoff & David Hein, “Come From Away” is directed by Tony Award winner Christopher Ashley (“Come From Away”), musical staging by two-time Tony nominee Kelly Devine (“Come From Away,” “Rocky”), with music supervision by Grammy nominee Ian Eisendrath (“Come From Away”), scenic design by Tony Award winner Beowulf Boritt (“Act One”), costume design by Tony Award nominee Toni-Leslie James (Jelly’s Last Jam), lighting design by two-time Tony Award winner Howell Binkley (“Hamilton”), sound design by Tony Award nominee Gareth Owen (“End of the Rainbow”), orchestrations by Tony nominee August Eriksmoen (“Bright Star”), music arrangements by Grammy nominee Ian Eisendrath and casting by Telsey + Company.

“Come From Away” tells the remarkable true story of 7,000 stranded passengers and the small town in Newfoundland that welcomed them. Cultures clashed and nerves ran high, but uneasiness turned into trust, music soared into the night, and gratitude grew into enduring friendships.

On September 11, 2001 the world stopped. On September 12, their stories moved us all.

Following sold-out, record-breaking, critically acclaimed world premiere engagements at La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle Repertory Theatre, “Come From Away” landed on the “Best Theater of 2015” lists in the Los Angeles Times, Seattle Times, San Diego Union Tribune, and Times of San Diego. Charles McNulty of the Los Angeles Times called the show “An affecting, stirring and unpretentious new musical. Christopher Ashley's production lets the simple goodness of ordinary people outshine sensational evil,” and Bob Verini of Variety raved, “Superb! Canadians Irene Sankoff and David Hein have forged a moving, thoroughly entertaining tribute to international amity and the indomitable human spirit.”

“Come From Away” began performances on Broadway on February 18, 2017 and officially opened to critical acclaim on March 12, 2017 at Broadway’s Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (236 West 45th Street), and continues to play to standing-room-only audiences.

The Tony Award-winning musical launched a second company in Canada with a sold out four-week engagement in Winnipeg and is currently playing to standing-room-only audiences in Toronto at the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

The Mark Gordon Company will produce and finance a feature film adaptation of “Come From Away.” Two-time Tony Award nominees, Grammy nominees and Outer Critics Circle Award and Drama Desk Award winners Irene Sankoff and David Hein, who wrote the book, music and lyrics, will adapt the feature screenplay for the project and Tony Award winner Christopher Ashley will direct. MGC’s Mark Gordon will produce.

A “Best Musical” winner all across North America, the smash hit musical has won the Tony Award for “Best Direction of a Musical” (Christopher Ashley), five Outer Critics Circle Awards (NYC) including “Outstanding New Broadway Musical,” three Drama Desk Awards (NYC) including “Outstanding Musical,” four Helen Hayes Awards (D.C.) including “Outstanding Production of a Musical,” four Gypsy Rose Lee Awards (Seattle) including “Excellence in Production of a Musical,” six San Diego Critics Circle Awards including “Outstanding New Musical,” three Toronto Theatre Critics Awards including “Best New Musical,” three Dora Awards (Toronto) including “Outstanding New Musical/Opera” and “Outstanding Production,” and the 2017 Jon Kaplan Audience Choice Award (Toronto).

“Come From Away” is produced by Junkyard Dog Productions (Randy Adams, Marleen and Kenny Alhadeff and Sue Frost), Jerry Frankel, Latitude Link, Smith & Brant Theatricals, Steve & Paula Reynolds, David Mirvish, Michael Rubinoff, Alhadeff Productions, Michael Alden & Nancy Nagel Gibbs, Sam Levy, Rodney Rigby, Spencer Ross, Richard Winkler, Yonge Street Theatricals, Sheridan College, Michael & Ellise Coit, Ronald Frankel, Sheri & Les Biller, Richard Belkin, Gary & Marlene Cohen, Allan Detsky & Rena Mendelson, Lauren Doll, Barbara H. Freitag, Wendy Gillespie, Laura Little Theatricals, Carl & Jennifer Pasbjerg, Radio Mouse Entertainment, The Shubert Organization, Cynthia Stroum, Tulchin Bartner Productions, Gwen Arment/Molly Morris & Terry McNicholas, Maureen & Joel Benoliel/Marjorie & Ron Danz, Pamela Cooper/Corey Brunish, Demos Bizar/Square 1 Theatrics, Joshua Goodman/Lauren Stevens, Just for Laughs Theatricals/Judith Ann Abrams Productions, Bill & Linda Potter/Rosemary & Kenneth Willman, La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle Repertory Theatre.

“Come From Away” was originally co-produced in 2015 by La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle Repertory Theater. “Come From Away” (NAMT Festival 2013) was originally developed at the Canadian Music Theatre Project, Michael Rubinoff Producer, Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario, Canada and was further developed at Goodspeed Musicals’ Festival of New Artists, in East Haddam, CT. The Canada Council for the Arts, The Ontario Arts Council, Steve and Paula Reynolds and The 5th Avenue Theatre, Seattle WA also provided development support.

Tickets for “Come From Away” are available by calling (213) 972-4400, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org, or by visiting the Center Theatre Group Box Office located at the Ahmanson Theatre. Tickets range from $30 – $135 (ticket prices are subject to change). The Ahmanson Theatre is located at The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, 90012.

Please visit: www.ComeFromAway.com

Connect with “Come From Away” Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ComeFromAway/ Twitter: @Wecomefromaway Instagram: @Wecomefromaway

Tour cast headshots available upon request.

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July 31, 2018

Stephen D. Rountree to Retire in March 2019

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 18 Jul 2018 13:43:00 -0700

CENTER THEATRE GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR/CEO STEPHEN D. ROUNTREE TO RETIRE ON MARCH, 31 2019

Stephen D. Rountree, Managing Director/CEO of Center Theatre Group, has announced that he will retire on March 31, 2019.

Rountree joined Center Theatre Group as Managing Director in 2015 after serving as President and CEO of The Music Center from 2002 to 2014. Rountree was also CEO of the Los Angeles Opera from 2008 to 2012, a position he held concurrently with his role at The Music Center.

“For 40 years I have had the great privilege to be in senior executive positions at four of Los Angeles’ leading arts organizations, including Center Theatre Group,” said Rountree. “I will turn 70 next March, and I feel this is the time to step aside and allow myself to spend more time with my wife, children and grandchildren.”

“I want to express the Board of Directors’ gratitude for Steve’s unflagging efforts to steward Center Theatre Group into a 21st-century organization,” said Center Theatre Group Board President Kiki Ramos Gindler. “We’ll be forever indebted to Steve for his work on behalf of our organization, as well as the many insights he has brought to the boardroom since he came to Center Theatre Group in January 2015.”

“I’ve known Steve for more than a decade and have greatly admired working with him directly over the past three years,” said Center Theatre Group Artistic Director Michael Ritchie. “It was clear from the moment Steve moved from The Music Center to Center Theatre Group that he was ready to help steer our organization toward a more robust future, including offering his strategic guidance through our 50th anniversary celebration. He continues to be one of the great leaders in the nonprofit cultural scene, and I’ve been proud to call him a colleague and friend. While I’m sad to see him leave, Steve wanting to spend more time with his family is completely admirable and well deserved. I look forward to working with him in the coming months as we look to find the next visionary business leader to continue elevating Center Theatre Group for years to come.”

Center Theatre Group has engaged the services of Phillips Oppenheim, which specializes in international executive searches for the nonprofit sector, to lead a nationwide search for the next Managing Director/CEO. The executive search firm will work closely with Center Theatre Group’s Board of Directors and Artistic Director to identify the best candidate to lead the organization. Sarah James and Becky Klein of Phillips Oppenheim will manage the search. All inquiries should be directed to Ms. James or Ms. Klein at CTG@phillipsoppenheim.com.

At Center Theatre Group, Rountree supervises all management, financial, marketing, communications, institutional advancement, technology and human resources. Prior to his work at Center Theatre Group, The Music Center and LA Opera, Rountree served the J. Paul Getty Trust for 22 years, starting in 1980 as Deputy Director of the Getty Museum, then Director of the Getty Center Building Program, and in 1998, the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for the Getty Trust. He currently serves as a trustee of Occidental College, The Ahmanson Foundation, Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles and Polytechnic School.

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July 18, 2018

Center Theatre Group Hosts Library Play Reading of "Allos"

Center Theatre Group — Fri, 13 Jul 2018 11:54:00 -0700

CENTER THEATRE GROUP OFFERS FREE LIBRARY PLAY READING OF “ALLOS: THE STORY OF CARLOS BULOSAN” ON JULY 17, 18 AND 19, 2018

Reading Will Feature Reggie Lee, Matt Pascua, Jason Rogel and Ellen D. Williams

Center Theatre Group continues its free play reading series with the reading of “Allos: The Story of Carlos Bulosan” at three public libraries in Boyle Heights. The play reading will take place at Benjamin Franklin Library on July 17, at Malabar Library on July 18 and at Robert Louis Stevenson Library on July 19. All readings will begin at 6 p.m. and will be performed in both English and Tagalog.

Written by Giovanni Ortega and directed by Fran de Leon, “Allos: The Story of Carlos Bulosan” brings to life an important American hero the history books don’t mention. Carlos Bulosan followed his brothers from the Philippines to Seattle—and never returned home. He lived and worked across California, including Los Angeles, becoming the voice of the Filipino immigrant experience as a writer and advocate for migrant workers. “Allos” depicts his struggles and his relationship with his brothers, and pays testament to his courage and spirit in a country that rejected him, but that he came to love and call home—America. The cast includes, in alphabetical order, Reggie Lee, Matt Pascua, Jason Rogel and Ellen D. Williams.

The Benjamin Franklin Library is located at 2200 East 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90033; the Malabar Library is at 2801 Wabash Ave., Los Angeles, 90033; and the Robert Louis Stevenson Library is at 803 Spence St., Los Angeles, 90023.

For reservations to the reading, contact Jesus A. Reyes at jreyes@ctgla.org or call 213-972-8028. More information on Center Theatre Group’s community programs can be found at www.centertheatregroup.org/community.

Center Theatre Group partners with local artists, theatre companies and libraries to present English and Spanish play readings every month. The “Allos: The Story of Carlos Bulosan” reading is presented in partnership with Artists at Play.

The play readings are presented by Center Theatre Group’s Education and Community Partnerships department and are supported in part by funding from the California Arts Council. Through free workshops, events, productions, discussions and other activities that take place at traditional and nontraditional venues,

Center Theatre Group is working to connect with community members and artists throughout L.A. and to facilitate inclusive and thoughtful cultural conversations. Center Theatre Group, one of the nation’s preeminent arts and cultural organizations, is Los Angeles’ leading nonprofit theatre company, which, under Artistic Director Michael Ritchie, programs seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1600 to 2000-seat Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In addition to presenting and producing the broadest range of theatrical entertainment in the country, Center Theatre Group is one of the nation’s leading producers of ambitious new works through commissions and world premiere productions and a leader in interactive community engagement and education programs that reach across generations, demographics and circumstance to serve Los Angeles.

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July 13, 2018