AUTHOR! AUTHOR! - AN EVENING WITH SHOLOM ALEICHEM Returns to Santa Monica Playhouse Tonight

In celebration of the production's 40th anniversary, and to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Sholom Aleichem's yahrzeit (annual anniversary of his death), the award-winning Rudie-DeCarlo-Weisman "AUTHOR! AUTHOR! - an evening with SHOLOM ALEICHEM," the longest running Jewish musical in L.A. theatre history (4½ years in its initial run), returns to Santa Monica Playhouse for a limited run tonight, May 7, through May 29, 2016.

A brilliant team of artists and over 100 rave reviews equals an unrivaled musical comedy classic offering a magical, musical melee at once glorious and gentle, bold and bittersweet, mirthful and romantic, inviting audiences of all ages to celebrate the humor and pathos of Sholom Aleichem's world and offering a "sparkling introduction to a new generation of theater enthusiasts to the patina-covered world of their brethren on both sides of the ocean, to a world that is no more and will never return." - B'nai B'rith Messenger.

"I thank you for bringing him so beautifully back To Life," applauds Aleichem's second cousin, Lillian Aderman Moller as Chris DeCarlo reprises his award-winning portrayal of the world's most beloved Yiddish author. Joining DeCarlo is original cast member Evelyn Rudie, with Actors' Repertory Theatre (ART) members Mira Baum, Kate Burleigh, Aaron Burns, Rachel Galper, Nima Ghassemian, Adya Mohanty, and Graham Silbert. The production is helmed by long-time ART director Arthur R. Tompkins, with specially designed and authentically detailed costumes by award-winning designer Ashley Hayes and lilting favorite tunes such as "My Ship is Coming In," "Chelm" and "Stepmother," written by the award winning team of Evelyn Rudie and composer Ben Weisman (57 gold albums). Valley Life affirms, "In this encore production, you'll discover, through the whimsical wit of Sholom Aleichem and the skill of Chris DeCarlo, why the play enjoyed such a long run. It's a great evening!"

"AUTHOR! AUTHOR!" - the show that put musicals into the Los Angeles 99-seat theatre arena in the mid 1970s and inspired the Santa Monica Playhouse's nearly 40-year love affair with the works of Sholom Aleichem - is set in the early 1900s, as Sholom Aleichem, the most beloved of all Eastern European humorists, the man affectionately referred to as "The Yiddish Mark Twain," arrives in New York to have his plays produced on the U.S. Stage. It seamlessly weaves the story of Sholom Aleichem's American experience with his own tales of the human condition, tales whose characters and situations are recognizable to everyone in a manner of storytelling so timeless and universal that it has transcended more than100 years of social and cultural change. Iconic Los Angeles theatre reviewer Polly Warfield called "AUTHOR! AUTHOR! an unmitigated delight. It is joyous entertainment...It warms the audience and sends them out feeling better than when they went in."

All generations of theatre-goers will be delighted by "AUTHOR! AUTHOR!" - playing Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sunday matinees at 3:30pm, May 7 through 28, 2016. Tickets are $29.00 with discounts available for students, seniors, members of the military, groups of 8 or more and youngsters under 12. Seating is limited and reservations are required.

For tickets and information, call the Santa Monica Playhouse Box Office at (310) 394-9779 ext. 1 or buy online at SantaMonicaPlayhouse.com. Casting Call sums it up: "Perfect intimate theatre! See it!"

Santa Monica Playhouse 1211 4th Street (between Wilshire and Arizona) in the heart of downtown Santa Monica. Convenient parking directly across the street in city lot #1. By public transportation: take the Santa Monica Blue Bus or the LA Metro Rapid #720 and exit at 4th and Wilshire.

Santa Monica Playhouse is supported in part by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and by the City of Santa Monica and the Santa Monica Arts Commission.

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