Corbin Bleu, Emma Hunton & More to Lead World Premiere of New Play THE DODGERS in Los Angeles

Ashley Kate Adams of AKA Studio Productions and Jim Kierstead will present the World Premiere of a new American play, THE DODGERS, written by Diana Amsterdam and directed by Dave Solomon, BroadwayWorld has learned. THE DODGERS will feature Corbin Bleu ("High School Musical"), Eric Nelsen (2015 Emmy Winner for "The Bay Series"; Broadway: 13), Emma Hunton (Elphaba on North American Wicked Tour), Jared Gertner (The Book Of Mormon - Olivier Nomination), Asher Grodman, and Talisa Friedman. THE DODGERS will begin previews on Thursday, January 21 and will open on Saturday, January 30 at 8pm and run through Sunday, February 28 at the Hudson Mainstage Theatre, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. in Hollywood.

THE DODGERS is a new American play set in 1969 about a tribe of nonconformist friends, who want nothing more than to make music, do drugs and make love. When they suddenly find that they must face a lottery, that will send at least one of them to Vietnam, it propels them to take daring and dangerous steps to dodge the draft.

DAVE SOLOMON (Director) - Broadway (Associate Director): Side Show, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, 9 to 5, Pal Joey, Sunday in the Park with George, The Ritz, Curtains. Other Broadway: Laugh Whore, Assassins. Directing Credits include: You're Gonna Hate This (Joe's Pub, with Lindsay Mendez and Michael Holland), Same Time, Next Year (with John Bolton and Eve Plumb), Jeff Thomson and Jeremy Desmon's Pump Up The Volume the musical, Marrying Meg (NYMF) and a staged reading of Debra Monk's play, Dick and Lola, for the Roundabout Theatre Company; that starred Ms. Monk alongside Andrea Martin and Brian Kerwin.

Writing Credits include: Margaret and Craig (NY Stage and Film, starring Mario Cantone, directed by Sheryl Kaller),The Sexless Years (Ars Nova), Free Donuts (Center Stage).Solomon also wrote and directed the short film, photo op, starring Randy Harrison and Aaron Lazar, that premiered at the Williamsburg Independent Film Festival and will be seen in other festivals throughout 2016. He is currently assisting Bill Condon on the live-action film version ofDisney's Beauty and the Beast and also worked with Condon on the film Mr. Holmes, starring Ian McKellen and Laura Linney. He is a graduate of Vassar College.

DIANA AMSTERDAM (Playwright) Her plays, monologues and scenes are published by Samuel French, Broadway Play Publishing, Playscripts, Smith and Kraus and St. Martins Press and are available through the publishers and on Amazon and New York Public Library. She has received numerous play commissions from the BBC and has optioned screenplays to BBC producer Eoin O'Callaghan and to LA producers Jodie Burke, Dan Lupovitz, and John E. Ferraro; and has worked on projects with Marty Bregman, Wendy Oberman, Jon Finn (at Working Title), Susan Seidelman, Eric Styles and Steve Harris (WTF Productions, Marlon Wayans). Her screenplay "The Other Woman" won first prize in New York Women in Film and Television's 25th Anniversary Screenplay Contest. Amsterdam's plays have been produced in New York, London, Berlin, Montreal, Los Angeles and many American cities and been reviewed by the New York Times and Washington Post among others.

In New York, her plays have been produced and developed at MCC, New York Theater Workshop, The Atlantic, Soho Rep, and Abingdon. Currently, she is writing a new play commission for Mildred's Umbrella Theater Company in Houston, TX. She is a New York State Council on the Arts grant recipient and was selected for HBO's Stage to Screen series. Winner of the BBC American Radio Play Contest and a Montreal Masque Award. She is Director of Writer Programs at Theater Resources Unlimited in New York.

The Cast of THE DODGERS will feature: Corbin Bleu ("High School Musical," "Dancing with the Stars," Broadway: In the Heights), Eric Nelsen (2015 Emmy winner for "The Bay Series"; AJ Chandler on "All My Children" Broadway: 13), Emma Hunton (Elphaba on North American Wicked Tour, Broadway: Spring Awakening), Asher Grodman ("Train" opposite Eli Wallach, "Handsome Harry," "As the World Turns"), Talisa Friedman (Juliet in The Last Goodbye at the Old Globe), and Jared Gertner (The Book Of Mormon - Olivier Nomination, Ordinary Days)). Standing by for THE DODGERS will be Derek Carley (Flashdance tour) and Jenna Carley ("Twenty-Five Five").

THE DODGERS will be produced by Ashley Kate Adams (Broadway: La Cage Aux Folles, "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt") of AKA Studio Productions (Original Series "Rules of Cool" soon to be streaming on Full Screen & "photo op" film) and Jim Kierstead (Two-time Tony Award-winning Producer Kinky Boots & Pippin, Matilda) and has assembled an award-winning design team including: Set Design by Michael Carnahan & Ann Beyersdorfer (Off-Broadway: The Marvelous Wonderettes, The Blood Quilt). Lighting Design by Jen Schriever & Ben Green (Broadway:Eclipsed, Ghetto Klown). Sound Design by Alex Mackyol, Diablo Sound. Costume Design by Ovation Award-winner Ann Closs-Farley (Broadway: The Pee Wee Herman Show). The General Manager is Evan Bernardin. The Casting Director is Daryl Eisenberg (Altar Boyz).