Circle X Theatre Co. Presents Site Specific World Premiere Play HOLE IN THE SKY

Circle X Theatre Co. presents the world premiere of a site-specific theatrical event, HOLE IN THE SKY, written by Octavio Solis and directed by Kate Jopson (Fefu and Her Friends). Commissioned by Circle X Theatre Co., HOLE IN THE SKY will have a press opening on Friday, August 24 at 8pm and continue through Sunday, September 23 at Courtship Ranch, 11270 Dominica Ave. in Lake View Terrace.

HOLE IN THE SKY is a California story about how we live with fire, water, and family. A young woman returns home to find her family and community in a bitter fight over who owns the local groundwater during a devastating California drought. Caught between loyalty to her family's ranch and fear - of wildfire, of loss of identity and culture, Connor finds her small town trying to figure out how to live with nature when nature doesn't seem to want us there: "We'd get along with the environment a whole lot better if we didn't have to live in it."

This world premiere, site-specific experience by Octavio Solis (Lydia, Se Llama Christina, cultural consultant on "Coco"), was commissioned and is being produced by Circle X Theatre Co. and directed by Kate Jopson. Jopson was recently named Circle X's new Artistic Director and was the creative force behind last year's Fefu and Her Friends by Maria Irene Fornés, performed at Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House.

HOLE IN THE SKY is staged at Courtship Ranch, a working horse ranch located just 20 minutes from Burbank and Glendale in Lake View Terrace, and which the La Tuna fire came within 200 feet of destroying in December of last year.

"We love the experience of coming off the freeway and entering this rural-feeling area, where there are riders on horseback by the road. It feels like you're tapping into Los Angeles' agricultural history," says Jopson. "That was important to us when we were looking for a location for the piece. We feel like this area is almost a hidden part of LA, and we're excited to bring audiences into the world of the play surrounded by such an incredible setting."

The play was developed through a series of interviews conducted in the rural northern California community of Scott Valley, located in Siskiyou County-- Jopson's and Circle X Managing Director Camille Schenkkan's hometown. Karuk and Shasta tribal members, Fish and Wildlife employees, ranchers and environmentalists all told their stories about how water impacts their families and their livelihoods. Solis has woven these interviews into a fictionalized narrative that not only tells a fascinating story of one community, but also resonates with anyone-especially Californians-who have dealt with the tension between people and the environment. HOLE IN THE SKY is the result of acclaimed playwright Octavio Solis developing those interviews into a play about family and community, that is both emotional and timely.

This is Jopson's first show at the creative helm of Circle X Theatre Co., the critically acclaimed new works development company that has been producing theatre in Los Angeles since 1996.

Octavio Solis (Playwright) is a playwright and director living in Oregon. His works Alicia's Miracle, Se Llama Cristina, John Steinbeck's The Pastures of Heaven, Ghosts of the River, Quixote, Lydia, June in a Box, Gibraltar, The Ballad of Pancho and Lucy, The Seven Visions of Encarnación, Dreamlandia, El Otro, Prospect, El Paso Blue, Santos & Santos, La Posada Mágica, Prospect and Man of the Flesh have been mounted across the country at companies such as Center Theatre Group, the Theatre @ Boston Court, California Shakespeare Theatre, the Yale Repertory Theatre, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, INTAR, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, the Dallas Theater Center, the Magic Theatre SF, South Coast Repertory Theatre, the San Diego Repertory Theatre, the Marin Theatre Company, Cornerstone Theatre, Kitchen Dog Theatre in Dallas, Working Classroom, Mixed Blood Theatre Company, Attic Rep, El Teatro Campesino, Teatro Vista, Teatro Dallas, Teatro Visión, Thick Description and Campo Santo at Intersection for the Arts. His collaborative works include Cloudlands, a musical co-written with Adam Gown and Shiner, co-written with Erik Ehn. Solis has received the 2015 Distinguished Achievement Award from the Texas State University Black and Latino Playwrights Conference, the 2014 Pen Center Literary Award for Drama (for Se Llama Cristina), the United States Artists Fellowship for 2012, the 2003 National Latino Playwriting Award, the 2000-2001 National Theatre Artists Residency from TCG and the Pew Charitable Trust, the 1998 TCG/NEA Theatre Artists in Residence Grant, the 1998 McKnight Fellowship grant from the Playwrights Center in Minneapolis, the 1995-97 Playwriting Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Roger L. Stevens award from the Kennedy Center, the 1994 Will Glickman Playwright Award, and the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays production grant. Solis is a Thornton Wilder Fellow for the MacDowell Colony, New Dramatists alum and member of the Dramatists Guild. His anthology, "The River Plays" has been published by NoPassPort Press. He is working on commissions for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Circle X Theatre, Magic Theatre SF and Yale Repertory Theatre.

KATE JOPSON (Director) grew up in Siskiyou County and is the new Artistic Director of Circle X Theatre Co. She specializes in experienced-based productions, staging work on beaches, barns, and basements and most recently at Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House in Los Angeles. In theatres, she uses the unique location or architecture to enhance the production. Directing Credits nclude: Candide (Santa Cruz Shakespeare); Fefu & Her Friends (Circle X Theatre/J.U.S.T Toys Productions, LA); 1984 (Greenway Court Theatre, LA); An Accident (Griot Theatre, LA), Twelfth Night (Coeurage Theatre Co. LA); Second Skin (The West/The Flagship Ensemble); A Willow Grows Aslant (La Jolla Playhouse-Without Walls Fest.); A Midsummer Night's Dream, A Doll House, Casagemas, Elizabeth I, Cry Old Kingdom (UCSD); Jesus, She Said (Marin Fringe Festival: Critic's Choice, Best Director). B.A UC Berkeley; M.F.A in Directing from UC San Diego.

The cast of HOLE IN THE SKY will feature: Lola Kelly, William Salyers, Christine Avila, Cliff Weissman, Nicole Erb, Joseph Valdez, Leon Russom and Michael Martinez.

HOLE IN THE SKY features the following design team: Scenic Design by JR Bruce. Lighting Design by Bo Tindell. Costume Design by Melanie Watnick.

Sound Design by Cricket S. Myers. The Production Stage Manager is Cassandra Scott. Art by Mimi Bailey. Graphic Design by Natalie Khuen.

HOLE IS THE SKY will have a press opening on Friday, August 24 at 8pm and run through Sunday, September 23 at Courtship Ranch, 11270 Dominica Ave, Lake View Terrace, CA 91342

Performances are Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 8pm; with four added performances on Thursday, August 30; Monday, September 10;Monday, September 17 and Thursday, September 20 at 8pm.

Tickets range from $50.00 - $55.00. For tickets, visit online circlextheatre.org.

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