Collaborative Artists Ensemble presents West Coast Premiere of Elena Hartwell's 'A Strange Disappearance of Bees'

Collaborative Artists Ensemble presents the West Coast premiere of play A Strange Disappearance of Bees by Elena Hartwell at the Raven Playhouse at , 5233 Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood October 18 through November 17th, 2013.

Following critically acclaimed productions in Vermont and Detroit, Collaborative Artists Steve Jarrard, is excited to direct this new play. "A Strange Disappearance of Bees" works on so many levels, it is a story about family as well as the ecological crisis of the bees' loss," he says. In the story, five individuals are forever connected as past secrets converge with the present in Elena Hartwell's moving, funny and hopeful story. Robert, a young VietnameseAmerican man, goes in search of the father he never knew. His quest brings him to Cashman's Bakery, and introduces him to its denizens Lissa, a young woman Cashman helped to raise, her boyfriend Callum, and Cashman's longtime lover, Rud, a beekeeper. Each character's search for answers is linked back to Rud and her beekeeping, and to the information she provides regarding colony collapse disorder. At the same time, the population of bees in this small town seems to be dropping.

Playwright Hartwell first learned about Colony Collapse Disorder when her life was fragmenting. Her sudden losses of job, home, confidence, significant other, and beloved canine companion led her to see the parallels between human experiences and the possible causes of CCD. The disappearance of millions of honeybees has been attributed to pesticides, cell phone interference, mites, an HIVlike virus, and the large-and less nutritious-monocrops of big agrobusinesses.

"It struck me that sometimes people disappear too. Cancers from chemicals, isolation through technology, a disconnect from community. Out of those ideas came this play. As my own life got back on track, a new love, four new animals, a new home, a reimagined career, the drafts became more hopeful at the end. This play, to me, is art representing life and life representing art." A Strange Disappearance of Bees boasts a sterling cast for it's 12th production. Led by Royal Shakespeare and BBC alum, Jean Gilpin and Emmy winner Ian Patrick Williams, the production also stars: Christian T. Chan, Brian A. Pollack and Meg Wallace.

A Strange Disappearance of Bees opens on Friday, October 18th at 8pm. The regular performance schedule is Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm through November 17th. Admission is $20, with a discount available for seniors ($15). Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased online at www.plays411.com/bees or via telephone at 3238606569.

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