Celebration Theatre to Stage Los Angeles Premiere of BOOTYCANDY

Celebration Theatre at the Lex presents its first play in its new home, under the artistic direction of Michael Matthews & Michael A. Shepperd, the Los Angeles premiere of the 27th Annual LAMBDA award- winner for Best LGBT Drama of 2014/2015, BOOTYCANDY by Robert O'Hara (Antebellum) and directed by Ovation Award-winner Michael Matthews (The Color Purple, Failure: A Love Story). Comments Celebration Theatre's Executive Director Michael C. Kricfalusi, "All of us at Celebration Theatre are so excited to have found a new home and even more excited to kick off our 33rd season with BOOTYCANDY. It's going to be a great year!" BOOTYCANDYwill begin previews on Friday, October 23 at 8pm; will open on Thursday, October 29 at 8pm and perform through Sunday, December 20 at the Celebration Theatre's new home, the Lex Theatre, 6760 Lexington Ave. in Los Angeles.

Robert O'Hara's semi-biographical subversive comedy tells the story of Sutter, who is on an outrageous odyssey through his childhood home, his church, dive bars, motel rooms, and even nursing homes. O'Hara weaves together scenes, sermons, sketches, and daring meta-theatrics to create a kaleidoscope that interconnects to portray growing up gay and black. Robert O'Hara's uproarious satire crashes headlong into the murky terrain of pain and pleasure and...BOOTYCANDY.

MICHAEL MATTEHWS (Director) Los Angeles: Homefree (World Premiere), Failure; a Love Story (LA Premiere), Sons of the Prophet (LA Premiere), Psyche; a Modern Rock Opera (World Premiere), Rabbit Hole (La Mirada), Funny Girl (3D Theatricals, Ovation Nomination Best Director), Peter Pan; The Boy Who Hated Mothers (LA Weekly Nominations Best Director and Best Production, Play; LA Premiere), Very Still and Hard To See (LA Weekly Nominations Best Director and Best Production, Play; World Premiere), The Color Purple, The Musical (Ovation and LA Weekly Awards Best Director and Best Production, Musical), What's Wrong With Angry?(Ovation Nominations Best Director and Best Production, Play), Take Me Out! (Ovation Nomination Best Director, NAACP Award Best Director) The Women of Brewster Place, the Musical (Ovation Nomination Best Director, NAACP Award Best Director, Ovation Award Best Production, Musical; West Coast Premiere), Stupid Kids (LA Premiere), Beautiful Thing (Ovation Nominations, Best Director and Best Production,Play), The Bacchae (Ovation Nominations, Best Director and Best Production,Play), Broadway: Butley (Assistant Director). Chicago: What's Wrong With Angry? (Jeff Nominations, Best Director and Best Production), In The Blood (Jeff Nominations, Best Director and Best Production), Porcelain (Jeff Nomination, Best Director), The Judas Kiss (Chicago Premiere), Being 11 (World Premiere), and...for colored girls who have considered suicide.... International: The Bacchae (Edinburgh Theatre Festival, 2010).

ROBERT O'HARA (Playwright) received an OBIE Award for his Direction of In The Continuum at Primary Stage/Perry Street Theater. He wrote and directed the World Premiere of Insurrection: Holding History at the New York Shakespeare Festival/Public Theater which received the Oppenheimer Award for Best New American Play and was subsequently published by both TCG and Dramatist Play Service.

As a playwright, Mr. O'Hara has been commissioned by the Public Theatre, LaJolla Playhouse, Alliance Theatre, McCarter Theater, Mark Taper Forum and Woolly Mammoth Theater.

His plays include Antebellum (Woolly Mammoth Theater and Cleveland Public Theatre) and Booty Candy (Wilma Theater). He adapted The Wiz (revival at LaJolla Playhouse directed by Des McAnuff) and has also written screenplays for Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, Jon Avnet, HBO, ABC, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures, New Line/Fine Line Cinema and Artisan Entertainment.

Mr. O'Hara recently directed an all African-American reimagining of The Music Man which was co-produced by Two River Theatre Company and NJ PAC. His other directing credits include Katori Hall's The Mountaintop at the Alley Theatre and Arena Stage and Coleman Domingo's Wild With Happy at the Public Theatre. Mr. O'Hara has also directed at Primary Stages, Yale Rep, Wooly Mammoth, American Conservatory Theater, Magic Theater, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The Culture Project, The Flea, Philadelphia Theater Company and The Goodman Theater. He has been an Artist in Residence at the American Conservatory Theater, New York Shakespeare Festival, and Theater/Emory as well as a Visiting Professor at DePaul University School of the Arts. Mr. O'Hara has been awarded a Rockefeller Fellowship, a TCG Extended Collaboration Grant, NEA/TCG Fellowship, and was a Van Lier Fellow at New Dramatists. He received Mark Taper Forum's first Sherwood Award and the TANNE Award for Exceptional Body of Work.

The Cast of BOOTYCANDY will feature (in alphabetical order): Cooper Daniels, Julanne Hill, Anton Peeples, Michael A. Shepperd and Travina Springer.

BOOTYCANDY has assembled an award-winning design team. Set Design is by Stephen Joshua Thompson. Lighting Design is by Matthew Brian Denman. Sound Design is by Rebecca Kessin. Costume Design is by Allison Dillard. Property Design is by Michael O'Hara. The Stage Manager is Marcedes Clanton. BOOTYCANDY is produced by Rebecca Eisenberg, Gino Marconi, Tracey McAvoy and Mark Giberson.

SCHEDULE AND PRICING

BOOTYCANDY will preview on Friday, October 23 & Saturday, October 24 at 8pm; Sunday, October 25 at 2pm and will open on Thursday, October 29 at 8pm and perform through Sunday, December 20 at the Celebration's new home, the Lex Theatre, 6760 Lexington Ave. in Los Angeles.

Performances are Friday & Saturday evenings at 8pm; Sundays at 2pm.

All tickets are $35.00 (Reserved); $30.00 (General Seating). For tickets, please call (323) 957-1884 or visitwww.celebrationtheatre.com to purchase tickets online or to view a complete schedule or for further details.

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