Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival Announces Hosts

The 29TH Annual Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival (LAWTF) has a roster of distinguished artists who will co-host six evenings of programs virtually. This year's overall theme is Beyond Boundaries.

Thursday, March 24, 2022 at 8:00 p.m.

Theme of the GALA: :BRAVA!

Hosts are Hattie Winston and Ted Lange. Hattie Winston has starred on Broadway (The Tap Dance Kid, The Me Nobody Knows, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Hair, Scapino!, I Love My Wife, Does the Tiger Wear a Necktie?), on television (Becker, The Electric Company, Homefront) and feature films (The Battle of Shaker Heights, Beverly Hills Cop III, and Jackie Brown). Hattie Winston is a founding member of the Negro Ensemble Company, where she performed in Day of Absence, Song of the Lusitanian Bogey, Daddy Goodness, Kongi's Harvest, among others.

Ted Lange is known internationally for his portrayal of Isaac Washington on the long-running TV series The Love Boat. Lange received the Renaissance Man Theatre Award from the NAACP for his stage accomplishments as actor both on Broadway and in Los Angeles, playwright (23 plays), and director. His one-man show in which he portrays Paul Lawrence Dunbar, Behind the Mask, tours worldwide. He will soon appear in the play Willie and Esther with BerNadette Stanis.

Friday, March 25 at 8:00 p.m.

Theme: The Other. Hosts are Kat Kramer and Fay Hauser-Price.

Kat Kramer founded Kat Kramer's Films That Change the World to showcase motion pictures that raise awareness about important social issues. She has performed in two solo shows, The Colors of Myself and Kriss Krossing. Kat's thatre credits also include The Miracle Worker, The Diary Of Anne Frank, Great Expectations, David and Lisa, and The Lark. She also appeared in the independent feature film Turnover. Kat Kramer also serves on the Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival's Advisory Board.

Fay Hauser-Price is a member of the Directors Guild of America. Her directing credits include Where There's Smoke, 5150, Paris in Search of a Dream, Read to M, L.A., The Emerging Artists Showcase, Story of a People, 24/Seven;;A Gift of Son,; and The Other Side of Victory. She is also a producer, writer and actor. She has had a long-running role on The Young & The Restless and appeared in the national tour of the musical Purlie. Other stage work included roles in Twelfth Night, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Yellow Boat and much more.

Saturday, March 26 at 3:00 p.m.

Theme: Around the World and Back.

Hosts are Jessica Lynn Johnson and JC Cadena, Jessica Lynn Johnson is acclaimed both as a solo performer and as a director of solo artists. She is the founder of the company Soaring Solo LLC. Her directing credits include Unemployed Finally, The Mermaid Who Learned How to Fly, 365 Days of Crazy, Triangles Are My Favorite Shape, Bully-mia, Not My Show, Answers Outta The Blue, Dear Yoko, and more. She received an award for Best National Solo Artist and multiple awards from the Hollywood Fringe Festival.

JC Cadena moved to Los Angeles to pursue her directing dreams and instead fell in love with acting. She studied at the American Academy of Dramatic arts. Currently, JC is part of the creative team producing plays with The Robey Theatre Company, founded by Ben Guillory and Danny Glover. JC is also one of LAWTF's most recentt Board members. JC's mission is to give a stage for the BIPOC community while representing a positive role for Latinx women on the screen.

Saturday, March 26 at 8:00 p.m.

Theme: Identity.

Hosts are Margaret Avery and Dawn Didawick. Margaret Avery was the recipient of an Academy Award nomination for The Color Purple, Other prominent movie appearances include Cool Breeze, Which Way Is Up?, Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins, and more. She appeared regularly on the BET TV series Being Mary Jane. She starred in the acclaimed Robey Theatre Company production of The River Niger, and won the L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award for her performance in Does The Tiger Wear a Necktie? Her other stage credits include The Sistuhs and Revolution. Dawn Didawick is a founding member of Antaeus Theatre Company. Her long, varied career has taken her from New York to Europe in the classics and new works. At Antaeus, her credits include: The Man Who Had All the Luck, The Bear,, Autumn Garden, The Seagull, The Crucible, and multiple roles in ClassicsFest including Amanda in The Glass Menagerie and Big Mama in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof {Stage Raw Award). Her many TV and film appearances include Hart of Dixie, Pretty Little Liars, Christmas with the Kranks and Erin Brockovich.

Sunday, March 27 at 3:00 p.m .

Theme: In Relation To.... Hosts are Lynne Conner and Lula Washington. Lynne Conner's stage appearances include Bones of Lesser Men, Chicago Club Rumboogie, The Bow Wow Club, Nostalgia & Dreams, A Sunday Morning Kind of Gal. Her feature film credits include Johnson Family Dinner, Johnson Christmas Dinner, Tale of Two Dragons, Anger Has a Secret, and Penitentiary II. She is the producer of the TV miniseries Momty and is producing the feature film Remy & Chance. Lynne's debut as a film director is Raising Kings. She is an alumna of Inner City Cultural Center. Lynne Conner also serves on LAWTF's Advisory Board. Lula Washington is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the Lula Washington Dance Theatre (LWDT). Lula founded the Company in 1980 with her husband Erwin Washington to provide a creative outlet for minority dance artists in the inner city. Today, Lula and her Company are revered across the United States and around the world. The Lula Washington Dance Theatre has performed in over 150 cities in the United States, as well as abroad in such countries as Germany, Spain, Kosovo, Mexico, Canada, China, and Russia.

Sunday, March 27 at 7:00 p.m.

Theme: Resilience.

Hosts are Jahna Houston and Sky Palkowitz.. Jahna Houston is an actor, producer, and writer. She has appeared on stage in Undertow, I Feel Like Going On, Swing Low Sweet Steamboat, Purlie Victorious, In Da Beginning, No Place to Be Somebody and Guess Who's Coming for Me? She appeared on television in Hollywood Fiction, Get Thee Behind Me and the mini-series Wicked. Jahna Houston's feature film credits include Our Home, Triumphant: She Fights to Win, A Fatal Friend, A Little Problem and Living Jamerican.

Sky Palkowitz is an avant-garde multimedia performance artist, actor, director, producer, musician, educator, speaker, and activist who has been performing, teaching, and touring nationwide for over 30 years. She works professionally in television, film and stage. Sky has toured the country with 7 solo shows and her most recent solo work Calling America, Don't Hang Up, premiered off-Broadway, where she played 50 characters to sold-out, standing ovations. Sky Palkowitz is a dramaturge. She also directs and produces multimedia content. Founded by Executive Producer Adilah Barnes and Miriam Reed, the Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival is an Annual Event unique among Los Angeles cultural institutions, not to be missed.

For more information about Festival programming and tickets, please go to www.lawtf.org or call (818) 760-0408.

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