Honey Ima Home Hosts NIGHTS OF NOIR: 40s Themed 'Whodunit' At ATTIC 5/22-6/27

EVN Productions and Old Timey Productions, in association with The Attic Theatre and Film Center will present the World Premiere of "NIGHTS OF NOIR!" - "Marked For Love" & "Of Dicks And Dames," an evening of two 40's themed one-act whodunits hosted by Burlesque Goddess, Honey Ima Home. Written and directed by Kasey Wilson, performances will be given on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. from May 22 - June 27, 2009 at The Attic Theatre and Film Center; 5429 W. Washington Boulevard (between Fairfax and Hauser Streets), Los Angeles, CA 90016.

Writer/Director Kasey Wilson (of Canoga Park) describes "NIGHTS OF NOIR!" as a light-hearted romp following a private detective named ‘Bolt' into the mysterious, murky and extremely silly underbelly of the 1940's Los Angeles crime scene. "The evening is the telling of two of the private detective, Bolt's legendary cases: ‘Marked For Love' and its sequel, ‘Of Dicks And Dames.'"

Tickets to this 120-minute evening are $15 for General Admission and $7.50 for Students and Seniors with identification. Performances will be given on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. from May 22 - June 27, 2009. Each week during the run of the production there will be "Surprise Specialty Acts" presented as Entre Acts for theatergoers viewing pleasure, including occasional Burlesque Routines performed by Burlesque Goddess, Honey Ima Home. There is ample Free Parking at the theatre, and refreshments will be sold at all performances. Tickets may be purchased online at www.plays411.com/nightsofnoir, or by calling the Box Office at 323-960-1055. For further information, please visit www.plays411.com/nightsofnoir. Upon entrance to the theatre, tell the Bouncer, "Sal" sent you!

The Cast of "Marked For Love" includes: Scott Gerard (of West Hollywood) as Bolt; Mike Park (of Pasadena) as Hank Sergeant; Elizabeth V. Newman (of Park LaBrea) as Vivian; Rachel Kanouse (of North Hollywood) as Magritte; Megan Evanich (Koreatown) as Dottie; Drew Droege (of Los Feliz) as Thin Guy and John Szura (of Hollywood) as Johnny Mute.

The Cast of "Of Dicks and Dames" includes: Scott Gerard (of West Hollywood) as Bolt; Lauren Leonelli (of North Hollywood) as Missy Monkeysuncle; Mike Park (of Pasadena) at Hank Sergeant; Eric Charles Jorgenson (of Hollywood) as Albee A. Monkeysuncle; Amie Donegan (of Hollywood) as Ima Monkeysuncle; Jan Pessin (of Santa Monica) as Viola Shylock; Megan Evanich (of Koreatown) as Tootie; Drew Droege (of Los Feliz) as Bartholomew Slotz and Elizabeth V. Newman (of Park LaBrea) as Vivian.

Production personnel include: Kasey Wilson, Writer/Director/Costume and Set Designer/Hostess - Burlesque Goddess, Honey Ima Home/Producer Old Timey Productions; Elizabeth V. Newman, Producer, EVN Productions/Choreographer; Alanna DeCarlo (of Los Feliz), Associate Producer; Lauren Lionelli, Associate Producer; Bosco Flanagan (of Pickfair) Lighting Designer; Travis Stanberry (of San Gabriel), Stage Manager; Nicole Randall, Fight Choreographer; Brendan Elms, www.brendanelmsphoto.com, Pre-Production Photographer and Graphic Designer; Ed Krieger, Production Photographer; www.plays411.com/nightsofnoir, Box Office and Steve Moyer Public Relations, Press Representative.

From the Playwright On How She Birthed Her Plays:
Kasey Wilson says, "I blame my father entirely for my first play, ‘Marked For Love.' My father taught high school television production (at my high school...oh the horror!). He insisted that I be well versed in black and white movies. He believed that if I wanted to become an actress that I should study those talented men and women who lit up the silver screen in the 30's and 40's. Like any good teenager I wanted to pooh-pooh this advice, but I couldn't. I watched one film and I was hooked. I loved it, especially Film Noir. I went mad for the stories, costumes, and the style of these times gone by.

"Then in college I took a playwriting course and what fell out of me was an idea about an old timey detective and a missing diamond. Always a big fan of a good pun or double entendre, I sprinkled a bit of this into the dialogue and voila - I had ‘Marked for Love.' The play sat around for awhile, and then about a year and a half ago I dusted it off and entered it into a playwriting festival, The ATTIC Studios and Attic Theatre Ensemble's 17th Annual Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer 2008 One-Act Marathon competition where it won 2nd Prize among Four Finalists, based on 187 One-Act entries.

"My award was determined by the judges Amy Levinson Millan, Literary Manager/Dramaturg at The Geffen Playhouse and Mike Sablone, Literary Associate at Centre Theatre Group. My play also received two Audience Choice Awards, ‘Best Performance by Ensemble' and ‘Best Play,' which were determined by audience members filling out ballots at each performance. ‘Marked For Love' was originally staged by J. Richey Nash during the One-Act Marathon, which ran from July 25 - August 16, 2008 at The ATTIC.

"I was very flattered when ‘Marked For Love' was one of Four Finalist Plays chosen to be performed. The attention my play received inspired me to write another one in a similar vein. Now a year later ‘Marked for Love' is getting its solo time in the sun, along with its sequel ‘Of Dicks and Dames,' in an evening billed as, ‘NIGHTS OF NOIR!' I think of it as if one put ‘The Big Sleep' and ‘Airplane' into a blender and hit frappe, ‘NIGHTS OF NOIR!' is what you might get. My goal as a writer is for The Audience to leave the theatre with a stomachache from laughing so hard. My style comes from my time doing Stand-Up Comedy and The Groundlings....and my love of Steve Martin."

Kasey Wilson (Writer/Director/Costume and Set Designer/Hostess - Burlesque Goddess, Honey Ima Home/Producer, Old Timey Productions) has appeared as an actress in "Sideways: A Musical" (The Ventura Court Theatre); as a Lead in the Cosby Fellows Showcase directed by Debbie Allen for the Writers Guild of America; "Macbeth" in Glasgow/Scotland; "The White Room" (Writer - Edinburgh Fringe Festival); and "The Beginnings End" (Writer - Afterglow Theatre), among others. On television she has had Co-Starring roles on "Night Stalker," "CSI: Miami;" "NYPD Blue" and "Without A Trace," as well as recurring roles on "The Class" and "The Jamie Kennedy Experiment." She has made Guest Star appearances on "The Closer" and "State of Mind." She also appeared as a Series Regular in the pilot, "Todd's Coma." She has appeared in the films "Legend of Ander's Pants," "Pan Pedro," "Extras," "Five Days," "Industry Girl" and "That Time of Month." She holds a B.A. degree in Theatre Arts from UCLA. She has studied scene work with Cameron Thor, Salome Jens, Delia Salvi, Sandra Caruso, Jocelyn Jones and Joe Olivieri. She has studied Comedy with The Sunday Groundlings, National Lampoon, LA Connection, People's Republic of Improv, Loosely Based and Improv Olympic. Her play, "Marked For Love," won 2nd Prize among Four Finalists, based on 187 One-Act entries in The ATTIC Studios and Attic Theatre Ensemble's 17th Annual Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer 2008 One-Act Marathon competition. The play also received two Audience Choice Awards, ‘Best Performance by Ensemble' and ‘Best Play.' "Marked For Love," and its sequel, which is entitled, "Of Dicks And Dames," is now being presented at The Attic Theatre and Film Center in an evening billed as "NIGHTS OF NOIR!" Wilson is a resident of Canoga Park.

Elizabeth V. Newman (Vivian; Producer, EVN Productions/Choreographer) has appeared on stage in New York, Boston, New Haven and Los Angeles in roles such as: Julie ("Miss Julie"); Marlene ("Top Girls") and Lula ("Dutchman"). Most recently she has appeared on stage as ‘Trilby' in the West Coast Premiere of Rinne Groff's "Orange Lemon Egg Canary;" originated the role of ‘Katie/Katherine' in the award-winning play, "Weightless," at The Attic Theatre; and created the role of Vivian in "Marked For Love," presented as part of The ATTIC Studios and Attic Theatre Ensemble's 17th Annual Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer 2008 One-Act Marathon. She holds a B.A. degree in Theatre Studies (Acting) from Yale University and an M.F.A. degree in Film Production from Boston University. As a child and young adult, she trained at the Lee Strasberg Institute and HB Studio in New York. She studied Technique and Choreography at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance for 13 years. Newman is currently studying Acting with Lesly Kahn & Company. Film and Television appearances include: "The Girl in the Park" (David Auburn); "Death in Love" (Boaz Yakin); "The Stepford Wives" (Frank Oz); "The Guys" (Jim Simpson) and "Law and Order: SVU." She has appeared in numerous short and independent films including: "Liz" on Strike Television's hit show "House Poor" with Mindy Kailing and Lester Lewis of ‘The Office," and as "Cassi Vegas" in "The Glitch," which recently premiered in November 2009 at the New York City Horror Festival, and subsequently played at the Festivus Festival in Colorado in January 2009, and at the Athens International Sci-Fi & Fantasy Film Festival in Athens, Greece in March 2009.

Newman's theatrical producing credits include the West Coast Premiere of "Orange Lemon Egg Canary" (The Complex, Los Angeles); the American Premiere of "Clocks and Whistles" (Chashama, New York); Leroi Jones's "Dutchman" (13th Street Reperotry Theater, New York; Boston University) and "Speed The Plow" (Yale University). She has produced 17 short films in New York, London, New Haven and Boston. At Yale, she was the President of University Pictures, The Association of Student Filmmakers (an undergraduate film Production Company at Yale). While in graduate school, she worked at United Artists (Production and Acquisitions) in Los Angeles and with Open City Films ("Coffee and Cigarettes") in New York. She has done freelance development work for Andrew Lauren Productions ("The Squid & The Whale") and Rogue Pictures (a division of Focus Features, which is affiliated with Universal Studios), and served in a variety of production posts on professional sets for film and television ("Law & Order," "Funny Games," "La Leggenda Di Al Jack & John," "The Guys," "The Stepford Wives"). She served a Development Consultant for Belladonna Productions ("Transamerica," "The Guide To Recognizing Your Saints," "Funny Games"). She is on the board of Yale in Hollywood and serves as the key liaison to the Ivy Entertainment Actors Group. Newman is a resident of Park LaBrea.

EVN Productions is a bi-coastal Production Company with the goal of creating thoughtful and innovative projects through championing new voices and emerging talent in film, theatre and new media. EVN Productions produced the critically-acclaimed American Premiere of Samuel Adamson's "Clocks and Whistles," directed by Talya Klein, in New York, and the West Coast Premiere of Rinne Groff's "Orange Lemon Egg Canary," also directed by Talya Klein. Independent film projects have included: "The Yellow Wallpaper," "Seed" and "The Rehearsal." In addition, EVN Productions hosts STAGE ONE, a monthly staged reading workshop series introducing new works from up-and-coming screenwriters and playwrights held at The Complex Theatre in Hollywood. The dual goals of the series are to bring together emerging artists (writers, actors and directors) and to champion great new written works. With "NIGHTS OF NOIR!," EVN Productions is launching "EVN: NOIR" - the division of EVN Productions dedicated to producing film and theatrical projects of ‘mystery and intrigue.' To learn more about EVN Productions, please visit the website, www.evnproductions.com.

Old Timey Productions is dedicated to bringing the past to the present. The company's first production was a putting up a series of radio shows from the 40's. The shows were produced live, including all the sound effects. Shows that have been presented include: "Lights Out," "Father Knows Best," "My Favorite Wife," "Flash Gordon" and "Murder is my Beat."

The Attic Theatre and Film Center is part of The Attic Theatre Conservatory, Inc., a Californian non-profit corporation formed in 1995 to establish an ensemble acting company based on excellence, to help develop new plays and voices for the theatre, and to use live theatre as an educational tool to develop new audiences. The Center was established here in its new location in 2003. The Center serves as the home to all the programs that the Conservatory runs: The Attic Theatre Ensemble, now in its 23rd year of presenting cutting edge, award-winning theatre; The Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer One-Act Marathon, now in its 18th season, a national playwriting contest for new One-Act plays; and Theatre Café/Film Sunday, the company's in-house screening series for short films and ground-breaking documentaries. The Center also serves as host to a range of guest productions, classes and workshops year-round to develop and present those new artistic voices, plays and short films. To learn more about The Attic Theatre and Film Center, please visit the website, www.attictheatre.org.

The Attic Theatre and Film Center; 5429 W. Washington Boulevard (between Fairfax and Hauser Streets), Los Angeles, CA 90016.

Performances will be given on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. from May 22 - June 27, 2009.

Tickets to this 120-minute evening are $15 for General Admission and $7.50 for Students and Seniors with identification. Each week during the run of the production there will be "Surprise Specialty Acts" presented as Entre Acts for theatergoers viewing pleasure, including occasional Burlesque Routines performed by Burlesque Goddess, Honey Ima Home. There is ample Free Parking at the theatre, and refreshments will be sold at all performances. Tickets may be purchased online at www.plays411.com/nightsofnoir, or by calling the Box Office at 323-960-1055. For further information, please visit www.plays411.com/nightsofnoir. Upon entrance to the theatre, tell the Bouncer, "Sal" sent you!

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