Elliot Shoenman's A HEAP OF LIVIN' Premieres at Odyssey Theatre Tonight

Playwright, and Emmy Award winner, Elliot Shoenman will return to the Odyssey Theatre with his newest play A Heap Of Livin', which includes original music by David Shire (Oscar/Grammy Award, multiple Tony/Emmy noms). Elliot's work, the Ovation Award nominated AfterMath, starring Annie Potts, played to sold-out houses at the Odyssey last season, launched by the Inkwell Theater.

A new comedy-drama which includes original music by Grammy and Academy Award winner, David Shire. The play takes a look at the emotional and financial costs of aging. Eden and Pearl are the middle-aged daughters of legendary folk singer Ramblin' Harry Roe and have split the responsibility of helping him as he's gotten older. As Harry's health declines and he becomes more obstinate, Eden and Pearl's "deal" unravels.

MARK L. TAYLOR (Director) recently directed Return to Morality by Jamie Pachino, at the Production Company and he helmed Rogue Machine's 2012 season opener Where The Great Ones Run (CRITIC'S CHOICE-LA Times) by Mark Roberts. He directed Inkwell Theater's critically acclaimed AfterMath, starring Annie Potts, and the premiere production of Moment in the Sun at the Matrix, both written Elliot Shoenman. Other directing credits include the stage premieres of Ovation nominated Concept of Remainders by Richard Hirsch for the Production Company and Breaking and Entering by Colin Mitchell at Theatre 40, and the staged reading of The Color of Rose by Kathy Bates at the Kirk Douglas. His television directing credits include the movie Den Brother for the Disney Channel and the Lifetime series Any Day Now.

ELLIOT SHOENMAN (Playwright) started his career as a writer on Norman Lear's "Maude," won the Emmy Award for his work as Executive Producer and showrunner on The Cosby Show, and was Executive Producer and showrunner of Home Improvement. He co-authored the play Sunset Park and wrote the plays Moment In The Sun and Old Glories. His critically acclaimed play Aftermath (Ovation Nominated) starred Annie Potts and was directed by Mark L. Taylor. He is author of the book Nobody's Business.

HEAP OF LIVIN' opens tonight, February 8, 2013 8pm. Performances are 8pm Thursdays-Saturdays, and 2pm on Sundays through March 17, 2013. The Odyssey Theatre is located at 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd. in Los Angeles, 90025. Tickets are $25 on Thursdays & Fridays, and $30 on Saturdays & Sundays For reservations, call 310-477-2055 ext 2, or visit www.inkwelltheater.com.

JAYNE BROOK (Eden) was seen at the Geffen Playhouse, opposite Christine Lahti, in the LA premiere of Wendy Wasserstein's Third, in London's Dreams in an Empty City, and in Every Black Day. She was a series regular, for four and a half seasons, on the Emmy and Golden Globe recognized drama Chicago Hope. Selected principal and series regular TV credits include The District, Sirens, Boston Legal, Private Practice, Brothers and Sisters, Sports Night, Everwood, Eli Stone, Grey's Anatomy, and Without a Trace. Film and TV movie credits include Last Dance, Gattaca, Kindergarten Cop, My Mother The Spy, and Trauma.

Didi Conn: (Pearl) starred as Frenchy, the beauty school drop-out in the films Grease, and Grease II. Broadway credits include Lost In Yonkers, Say Goodnight, Gracie!, The Green Bird, and A Christmas Carol. Off-Broadway and regional credits include Love, Loss And What I Wore, The Vagina Monologues, The Lesson, Anything Goes, and the West Coast premiere of Danny And The Deep Blue Sea. A guest actress at Robert Redford's Sundance Institute, she is co-founder of First Stage. Didi played the title role in the Academy Award-winning short film Violet, starred in numerous film and TV projects such as The Magic Show, Frida, Helen At Risk, You Light Up My Life The Practice, and the award winning PBS series Shining Time Station.

Lawrence Pressman (Ramblin' Harry) starred on Broadway in Woody Allen's Play It Again, Sam and in the much-acclaimed production of Man in the Glass Booth directed by Harold Pinter in London, New York, and film. He is a founding member of the Anteaus, Matrix, and Inkwell Theatre companies. Appearances in Los Angeles include CTG's Of Equal Measure, the premiere of The Paris Letter, Wood Demon, Richard III, and A Month in the Country. Other selected stage credits include the award winning Antaeus' production of Chekhov X 4, and Tonight at 8:30, as well as Betrayal and The Birthday Party (Matrix), and Only the Dead Know Burbank (Inkwell). His nominations and awards include Ovation, LADCC, Garland, Maddy, LA Weekly, GLAAD, Dramalogue, and Broadway's Theatre World Award. Mr. Pressman has more than 150 television and film credits.

SALLI SAFFIOTI (Rachel) appeared with Nicole Kidman in the film Rabbit Hole and with Melissa Leo in The Space Between. Guest star credits include roles in the series ER, The Agency, The District, NYPD Blue, Crossing Jordan, and In Justice as well as Tracey Ullman's four-year television series Tracey Takes On. As a voice artist, Salli is currently voicing for the LA Phil, McDonald's, Bevmo, Sprint and numerous video games.

David Shire (Original Music) is an Oscar and Grammy award winner, and multiple Tony and Emmy nominee. Broadway: Baby (Tony nom for Best Score and Musical); Big (Tony nom, Best Score). Off-Broadway: Starting Here, Starting Now (Grammy nom); Closer Than Ever (Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and Score); Take Flight (with collaborators Richard Maltby and John Weidman), produced globally. Feature film scores: Norma Rae (Academy Award), The Conversation, All the President's Men, The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3, Zodiac, Farewell, My Lovely, The Hindenberg, Saturday Night Fever (two Grammy Awards), and others. His television scores have received five Emmy nominations.

DANIEL SHOENMAN (Producer) serves as Co-Artistic Director of The Inkwell Theater, and has launched the Inkwell Playwrights Development LAB. As its Producing Director for 6 years, he produced over a dozen new plays including the critically acclaimed Sunset Park, AfterMath, Moment in the Sun, and Fairy Tale Theatre: 18 & Over at the Matrix Theatre. In New York, Daniel presented the American premiere of Kobo Abe's The Green Stockings and developed original work at The Flea Theater. His most recently authored play, The Ohio 4th, premiered last fall at the Hudson Theatre. Additional Artistic and Production credits include: Mark Taper Forum (New Works Festival) New York International Fringe Festival, the Playboy Jazz Festival, the Wadsworth Theater, The Wooster Group, UCLA live, and Target Margin Theater.

Derrick McDaniel (Lighting Design) won the 2012 LA Weekly Award for lighting The Mercy Seat at [Inside] the Ford. Additional credits include the HBO comedy festival in Aspen for The Godfather Workout, Lady (Ovation Award nom) at The Road Theatre, More Lies About Jerzy at the Hayworth Theatre, On An Average Day (Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award nom) with Versus at the Elephant and The Shelter (Ovation Award nom) at the Odyssey for Circus Theatricals. This is Derrick's third collaboration with the Inkwell.

NOELLE HOFFMAN (Sound Design) works with Diablo Sound, servicing accounts such as Universal Studios and the City of Beverly Hills. Recent installations include Wicked Lit and the Extreme Futurist Festival. Other design credits include What Goes Around, The Rivals, Zen Shorts, and Fairy Tale Theatre 18+.

STEPHANIE KERLEY SCHWARTZ (Set Designer) is a multi-award winning set and costume. At CTG/Mark Taper Forum: Costume Design- Randy Newman's Harps and Angels, The Lieutenant of Inishmore. Resident Designer for Rogue Machine Theatre: Treefall (Scenery; LA Weekly Award, Garland Award) Compleat Female Stage Beauty (Scenery and Costumes; Garland Award, Ovation Nomination), Blackbird (LA Weekly Award) and more. Moving Arts: Song of Extinction (Scenery - LA Weekly Production of the Year). The Matrix Theatre: Scenery; Fairy Tale Theatre 18+ (for Inkwell), Bold Girls, Dealing With Claire, and Honour. Pacific Resident Theatre: Scenery; Rocket to the Moon, Hogan's Goat, Orpheus Descending and Entertaining Mr. Sloan. The Colony Theatre: Scenery - Bea[u]tiful in the Extreme. Other companies include (Costumes and/or Scenery): Los Angeles Theatre Works, Naked Angels, Electric Lodge, The Met, among many others. Film and Television: TNT-Costume Design The Wizard of Oz in Concert at Avery Fisher Hall (with Jewel as Dorothy).

STEPHAN ROWAN (Costumes) has created costumes for Ice Capades and numerous Las Vegas shows including Splash, Siegfried & Roy, Lido, Jubilee, Boy-lesque and An Evening at La Cage. He taught himself, at age 12, how to sew and draft patterns by taking apart old clothes and recreating them with new fabrics, sometimes altering them to make them better. His Halloween costumes were always made by hand and won every contest that he entered.

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