SORDID LIVES Streaming Event To Benefit Richmond Triangle Players May 31

The Del Shores Foundation presents a one-night-only benefit reading of the original SORDID LIVES play by Del Shores for a #SordidLiveStream. The reading will be live streamed on Youtube and Facebook on Sunday, May 31 at 5pm Pacific/8pm Eastern, hosted and produced by Emerson Collins and Del Shores.

The reading will star cast from the original 1996 play, the cult-hit 2000 film, LOGO's 2008 "Sordid Lives: The Series" and the 2017 marriage equality-themed film sequel "A Very Sordid Wedding." The free live stream reading and accompanying auction of Sordid Lives memorabilia is a benefit fundraiser for twenty-three live theatre companies who are associated partners of the Del Shores Foundation and support its mission to find and facilitate the development of new southern queer artistic voices. All of the artists are donating their time and 100% of proceeds will go to the theatre companies. Donations to the benefit can be made at www.delshoresfoundation.org.

SORDID LIVES is a black comedy about white trash as a gay actor struggles to come out to his eccentric, dysfunctional Texas family. When THE FAMILY matriarch trips over the two wooden legs of her lover in a seedy motel room, her funeral brings three generations of THE FAMILY back together in a story about learning to love THE FAMILY you have as they are, not as you wish them to be.

The reading cast of SORDID LIVES will feature (in alphabetical order): NEWELL ALEXANDER ("August: Osage County"), ROSEMARY ALEXANDER ("Sordid Lives"), BONNIE BEDELIA ("Designated Survivor," "Parenthood,"), BEAU BRIDGES ("Homeland," "Messiah"), EMERSON COLLINS ("RENT" on FOX, "The People's Couch"), DALE DICKEY ("Unbelievable", "Claws"), DAVID COWGILL ("Sordid Lives: The Series"), BETH GRANT ("Dollface," "The Mindy Project"), DEBBY HOLIDAY ("Blues For Willadean"), LESLIE JORDAN ("Will & Grace," "The Cool Kids"), CAROLINE RHEA ("Sydney To The Max," "Sabrina, The Teenage Witch"), DEL SHORES ("Six Characters IN SEARCH OF A Play") and ANN WALKER ("Sordid Lives.")

There will also be live stream appearances by other celebrities from the SORDID LIVES franchise including CARSON KRESSLEY ("RuPaul's Drag Race"), GEORGETTE JONES ("Sordid Lives: The Series), ALEC MAPA ("Ugly Betty," "Doom Patrol"), ALEKS PAUNOVIC ("Van Helsing," "War for the Planet of the Apes"), DAVID STEEN ("Django Unchained"), a performance by Tony winner LEVI KREIS ("Million Dollar Quartet") and a special message from OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN.

At twenty-four years old, The SORDID LIVES franchise is one of the longest running LGBTQ franchises, and the cult-classic film celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year. It began as a play in a sixty-four seat theatre named Theatre/Theater in Los Angeles in 1996. The play starred Leslie Jordan, Beth Grant, Rosemary Alexander, Newell Alexander and Ann Walker and ran thirteen sold-out months with thirteen Critic's Choice Awards. The play has been produced by over 300 theatre companies nationwide. In 2000, the film adaption added Bonnie Bedelia, Beau Bridges, Delta Burke and Olivia Newton-John and won many film festival awards with thirteen Audience Awards. The film became a cult-hit as it ran in limited release in theatres for almost three years before selling over 300,000 DVDs. In 2006, the play was revived in Los Angeles before launching a national tour. In 2008, the prequel "Sordid Lives: The Series" welcomed Caroline Rhea and Rue McClanahan and was released on Logo and Syndicated in seventeen countries. In 2017, the marriage-equality themed sequel reunited cast from the film and series in "A Very Sordid Wedding" with a cameo from Whoopi Goldberg and twelve out LGBTQ actors including Emerson Collins, Alec Mapa and Levi Kreis. It opened as number one at the limited release box office before playing more than 60 cities and is now streaming on Hulu and Amazon Prime.

The Del Shores Foundation is a new 501c3 non-profit with a mission to find and facilitate the development of new southern queer artistic voices through bringing together artists and working professionals, amplifying new work and connecting artists to platforms for the creation of the work. The Board of Directors, Executive Director Del Shores and Program Director Emerson Collins decided to halt all fundraising and event planning efforts during the pandemic to support the fundraising efforts of those in need. Foundation events will resume in the future.

For more information, donations and auction items, please visit www.delshoresfoundation.org.

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