Gerald McCullouch Stars In DADDY At Hudson Mainstage

When "golden boy" Colin falls for a man half his age, the result is a climactic confrontation with best friend Stew that will forever change their lives. Gerald McCullouch (CSI, OUT magazine's "Out 100") and Dan Via reprise the roles they created when Rick Sparks directs the West Coast premiere of Via's Off-Broadway hit play, DADDY. Also in the cast is Ian Verdun. The six-week run takes place January 8 through February 13 at the Hudson Mainstage in Hollywood, with three low-priced previews on January 5, 6 and 7.

Colin (McCullouch) and Stew (Via), couldn't be more different on the surface - but they share an intellectual vitality and a love of sports that cements their long-time friendship. Enter Tee (Verdun), an enigmatic young man whose attraction to Colin forces the two friends to examine their relationship and their life choices more closely. DADDY offers a provocative, humorous, and unsettling look at love, loyalty, and the consequences of our actions in a culture without marriage equality.

"DADDY is an urban Greek tragicomedy," comments director Sparks. "It offers a potent exploration into the meaning of family that's especially relevant at this time in our history. What influence do the dynamics of the families we grow up in have on our life choices?"

"I love that it's a laugh-out-loud funny story that also has a very dark quality," asserts McCullouch. "The story has a driving sexuality and also an odd edginess that makes its relevance to the ongoing struggle over marriage equality uniquely disarming. It also illuminates that weird journey of navigating a male gay friendship that I've never seen portrayed before. And it packs such an emotional punch at the end that it breaks my heart."

When DADDY premiered in New York last February, Show Business Weekly wrote, "Daddy's plot is compelling, but it's the quiet moments of character observation that really lift it to must-see status. There isn't a false note in the central relationship between Colin and Stew, two people whose relationship has all the intimacy of a marriage but little of the baggage...Via has written a play that maps the human heart... McCullouch is a revelation!" BroadwayWorld called it "a sensitive and hilarious play about adult gay men.. [Via's] characters live and breathe as real people, rather than the tired stereotypes so often seen in today's plays with homosexual themes... Gerald McCullouch is incredibly moving and hilarious... he's heartbreakingly believable and nuanced."

Gerald McCullouch has portrayed firearms technician Bobby Dawson on CSI for 10 seasons, and was a recurring guest host of FYE! on E! TV. He stars in the current hit gay film Bear City, and was recently honored by OUT Magazine as "one of the 100 most compelling people of 2010." Recent New York. theater credits include the world premiere run of DADDY; the remount of Stephen Belber's McReele; and the Lucille Lortel Theater Award-winner 3 Graces' world premiere A Good Farmer. Gerald played Jesus in the European tour of Jesus Christ Superstar and is an award-winning filmmaker whose film The Moment After received screenings and acclaim worldwide. He has worked with notable actors from Jeff Goldblum to Robert Redford, from Natalie Portman to Heather Locklear, from Liev Schreiber to William Shatner and many others in TV/film, Off Broadway, LA and regional Theater Productions. He once appeared in two different billboards simultaneously in Times Square and on Sunset Blvd.

Dan Via appeared as the über-Boss in the hit Adding Machine: A Musical at the Studio Theatre in Washington, DC. New York credits include It's Our Town, Too (Vital Theatre), Season's Greetings (Hudson River Rep), Oh! Virgil (Judson Arts) and Archipelago (Intentional Theatre Group). A former DC resident, he has performed with many of that city's leading theaters, including Studio (highlight: the title role in Jerry Springer: The Opera), The Shakespeare Theatre, Theater J, Rep Stage, and Source Theatre. He was also member of the critically beloved "upstart" Catalyst Theater Company. On camera, Dan has made multiple appearances as Denny the bartender on One Life to Live, and is a regular on the buzz-magnet web series Anyone But Me, now in its second season. DADDY marks his debut as a playwright.

Ian Verdun has appeared on the New York stage in Houses On The Moon, The Hard Lull (Discovery Hill Productions), Storm and Stress (Center Stage), and New York's ABC Diversity Showcase. His film credits include Vivos (Columbian Film Festival Official Selection), Bananas, and Horizons. Ian is a graduate of the California Institute of the Arts and the British American Drama Academy.

Rick Sparks recently co-adapted and helmed (in association with CBS) I Love Lucy Live On Stage for Las Vegas. Other directing credits include Divorce! The Musical; the critically acclaimed L.A. premiere of Psycho Beach Party by Charles Busch; his own multiple award-winning adaptation and staging of They Shoot Horses, Don't They?; a rock 'n roll adaptation of A Clockwork Orange (his second LA Drama Critic's Circle win for Direction); Down South, which moved to New York after a long L.A. run; The Nothing Boys (produced by TV's 'Entourage' producer Rob Weiss); Laguna Playhouse's West Coast premiere of Don't Talk to the Actors; The Colony Theater's critically acclaimed production of Clutter; and John Patrick Shanley's West Coast premiere of Where's My Money?. He last collaborated with DADDY producer Racquel Lehrman on That Perfect Moment at Noho Arts Center.

Set Design for DADDY is by Adam Flemming; Costume Design is by Sharell Martin; Lighting Design is by François-Pierre Couture; Sound Design is by Joseph "Sloe" Slawinski; Production Stage Manager is Angelica Estevez; and the producer is Racquel Lehrman/Theatre Planners.

Performances of DADDY take place Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 7 pm, January 8 through February 13. There are three preview performances on Wednesday, January 5; Thursday, January 6 and Friday, January 7 at 8 pm. Tickets to all performances are $30 except previews which are $15. The Hudson Mainstage is located at 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. in Hollywood, CA 90038. For reservations and information, call 323-960-7738 or go to www.plays411.com/daddy.

 

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