Brian Sills Stars in KC Rep's THE SANTALAND DIARIES, Starting Tonight

Kansas City Repertory Theatre continues its 2015-16 season with the return of David Sedaris' THE SANTALAND DIARIES, directed by Kansas City Repertory Theatre Artistic Director Eric Rosen and starring Brian Sills as Crumpet the Elf.

Leave the kids at home for this hilariously irreverent holiday show. It's David Sedaris' side-splitting send-up of Christmas and his brief, misguided career as a Macy's elf. Featuring an uproarious soundtrack of holiday tunes, THE SANTALAND DIARIES skewers everything we love (and secretly loathe) about the holidays. See what it's like for the subversive to work at Santaland, where the only thing more plentiful than good cheer is a good case of the giggles.

THE SANTALAND DIARIES runs tonight, December 3 through 24 at KC Rep's Copaken Stage, at the H&R Block World Headquarters in the Power & Light District in downtown Kansas City, MO. This performance, as a work of satire, contains material that might be objectionable to some audiences. Appropriate for ages 16 and up. Press night is Saturday, December 5 at 8:00 pm.

About the Artists:

Brian Sills is a New York City-based actor, originally from Toronto, Canada. His work at KC Rep includes: three seasons performing THE SANTALAND DIARIES, and the Emcee in Cabaret. New York: The Machine (Park Avenue Armory), Himself And Nora (NYMF). National Tour: The Lion King (original cast). Regional Theatre: Fairfield and Around The World In 80 Days (Cleveland Play House), How Water Behaves (Capital Repertory Theatre), The Heidi Chronicles (Asolo Repertory Theater), Assassins (Milwaukee Repertory), Amadeus (Clarence Brown Theater), My Life Is A Musical (Bay Street Theatre), The Taming of the Shrew, Cymbeline (Joseph Jefferson Award nomination), The Three Musketeers, The Two Noble Kinsmen and How Can You Run With A Shell On Your Back? (Chicago Shakespeare Theater). TV: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix), Mr. Robot (USANetwork) Film: Baby On Board, Nothing Like The Holidays, Rocky Marciano. www.briansills.com AEA Member.

Shanna Jones KC Rep: Sunday in the Park With George, Stillwater, Hair: Retrospection, Santaland Diaries (2013, 2014). New York: Phaedra's Cabaret, Undone, and The Fall. Regional: Les Miserables (Pioneer Theatre Company); Romeo and Juliet (Utah Shakespearean Festival); Saturday's Voyeur (Salt Lake Acting Company). Education: BA, the Actor Training Program at the University of Utah (2008). www.shannajonesmusic.com AEA Member.

Eric Rosen (Director) was the founding Artistic Director of Chicago's About Face Theatre (AFT) from 1995 to 2008, and is a writer, director and producer. Original projects include Venice (KC Rep, Center Theatre Group-LA, Public Theater-NYC, "Best Musical of 2010"-TIME Magazine); Wedding Play (Steppenwolf/AFT, Jefferson nomination); Winesburg, Ohio (Step­penwolf/AFT-Jeff Award, Philadelphia's Arden Theatre Company-Barrymore Award, KC Rep); Clay (AFT, Lookingglass Theatre-Chicago, Center Theatre Group, KC Rep, Lincoln Center/CT3-Drama Desk Nomi­nation, Jeff Award); and Undone, Whitman and Dream Boy (Jeff Award, several productions across the country). In addition to Venice, other KC Rep directing credits include: Clay; Winesburg, Ohio; world premiere of A Christmas Story, The Musical! (a hit musical on Broadway-three Tony nominations, including Best Musical); Cabaret; August: Osage County; The Whipping Man; Pippin; Death of a Salesman; Ro­meo and Juliet; and Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. Additional directing credits include productions at Lincoln Center, Center Theatre Group, Steppenwolf, Goodman, Alliance, Lookingglass, Chicago Shakespeare, Hartford Stage, 5th Avenue, Prince, Cincinnati, Melbourne (Australia) and workshops at Sundance, O'Neill, Playwrights Horizons, and the Public Theater. He has developed and produced over 40 world premieres, including Doug Wright's Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning I am My Own Wife and work by Mary Zimmerman, Frank Galati, Stephen Flaherty, Moisés Kaufman, David Cale and The Civilians, among others. He holds a doctorate in performance studies from Northwestern University, has twice served as an NEA panel­ist, and serves on the Board of Directors of Theatre Communications Group, the national organization of non-profit theatres.

David Sedaris (Author and playwright) made his comic debut recounting his strange-but-true experiences of being a Macy's elf clad in green tights, reading his THE SANTALAND DIARIES on National Public Radio's "Morning Edition". Sedaris' sardonic humor and incisive social critique have since made him one of NPR's most popular and humorous commentators and a best-selling author in the United States and abroad. The great skill with which Sedaris slices through euphemisms and political correctness proves that he is a master of satire. Everywhere he goes David Sedaris delights his audience with his irreverent style and great humor. In addition to his commentaries on NPR, David Sedaris is the author of the best-sellers Barrel Fever and Naked. His collection of Christmas related stories is entitled Holiday on Ice. His book of essays Me Talk Pretty One Day was published in June 2000 and became an immediate best-seller. Sedaris is a regular contributor to "Esquire" magazine and his essays have also appeared in "The New Yorker," "Allure," and "Travel and Leisure." His original radio pieces can often be heard on public radio's "This American Life," distributed nationally by WBEZ in Chicago, as well as BBC radio in London.

The design and production team includes Clint Ramos (Scenic Design), Margaret Spare (Lighting Design), and Craig Campbell (Production Stage Manager).

Performances begin Thurs. Dec. 3 and run through Thursday, Dec. 24 at Copaken Stage. Press night is scheduled for Sat., Dec. 5, 8pm curtain. Appropriate for ages 16+. The Santaland Diaires runs December 3 - 24, 2015 at Copaken Stage, located at 13th and Walnut Streets in Kansas City, MO. Tickets cost $25-$59. For additional ticket and performance information, please call the Box Office at 816-235-2700 or visit www.KCRep.org. For group ticket sales, call 816-235-6122.

Save the date for Friday, May 20, 2016 at the newly renovated Spencer Theatre! Last year's Fearless Fête raised more than $655,000 which helps ensure that KC Rep can continue to create professional productions that garner regional and national acclaim and provide lifelong learning opportunities through our Education and Community Programs which benefit more than 10,000 Kansas City area students each year. For more information, please contact Amanda Middaugh at Middaugham@kcrep.org or 816.235.1489.

Kansas City Repertory Theatre, one of the nation's oldest and most respected regional theaters, is the center of a great theatre town. KC Rep produces theatrical excellence, creating and sharing stories at the center of our nation's creative crossroads. KC Rep's mission is to advance the art form while cultivating passionate audiences, artists, and advocates to invest in our region's creative future. We build community by connecting people through productions and outreach that educate, entertain, challenge and inspire. Lauded by The Wall Street Journal, TIME magazine, Variety and The Toronto Sun, KC Rep produces mainstage plays and special events at Spencer Theatre, where it serves as the professional theatre in residence at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC), and Copaken Stage located in downtown Kansas City. KC Rep employs more than 250 professional artists, technicians and administrators, and serves more than 100,000 patrons and 12,000 school children annually. Kansas City Repertory Theatre is led by Artistic Director Eric Rosen and Executive Director Angela Lee Gieras.

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