IF ALL THE SKY WERE PAPER to Open Next Month at Porticos Art Space

Arroyo Repertory Theatre will present If All the Sky Were Paper, a play written by Andrew Carroll and directed by Jude Lucas, at Porticos Art Space (2033 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91104), June 21- July 7, 2024. The production is produced by Nico Garcia-Corona, in special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc.

Admission is $35. Students, seniors, and veterans $25.

Bestselling author Andrew Carroll embarked on a literary journey in search of wartime correspondences after discovering a profoundly moving letter written by a distant cousin detailing service as a pilot in the Second World War. The echo of this letter led Carrol on a path of discovery trailing not just all fifty states, but over thirty countries and two active warzones where he cataloged testimonies of troops, medics, nurses, chaplains, family members on the homefront, and civilians caught in the crossfire of combat. These voices wove together into a tapestry of the human experience he aptly describes as "the World's Greatest Undiscovered Literature." His humanistic odyssey of our experiences in war are now presented on the stage and work to capture those facets of human emotion too often lost in the wake of tragedy and strife. Previously performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Andrew Carroll's newly revised and expanded version of If All the Sky Were Paper is a play that is both pertinent and timeless.

About the playwright:

Andrew Carroll is an award-winning and New York Times bestselling author (LETTERS OF A NATION, WAR LETTERS, and BEHIND THE LINES), playwright (IF ALL THE SKY WERE PAPER, LINES OF FIRE, and LETTER PERFECT), historian, and public speaker. Working with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), Andrew edited, on a pro bono basis, the anthology: OPERATION HOMECOMING: IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN, AND THE HOME FRONT, IN THE WORDS OF U.S. TROOPS AND THEIR FAMILIES. The anthology inspired the Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning documentary, also called OPERATION HOMECOMING. Andrew is the founding director of the Center for American War Letters at Chapman University, and he has traveled to all 50 U.S. states and more than 40 nations, including Iraq, Afghanistan (twice), and Ukraine, to seek out the greatest war letters ever written. IF ALL THE SKY WERE PAPER was inspired by both his travels and the correspondences he found. The play has been performed throughout the country, as well as in major venues like the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. A magna cum laude graduate of Columbia University, Andrew has been given the "Chairman's Medal," the highest award given by the chairman of the NEA.

About the director:

Jude Lucas holds a BA in Theatre and an MA in Theatre with an emphasis in Directing- as well as a Masters in Teaching and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from USC. She is a veteran director/production designer of over 100 musicals and stage plays. She is Spanish fluent and has written, developed, and directed AIDS educational material in a bilingual teatro format funded by the Center for Disease Control and United Way. She has worked for the Los Angeles County Department of Recreation in the development of the County Arts Performance Project. CAPP brought art and performances of varied disciplines to underserved areas of Los Angeles County. Her work with the Arroyo Theatre and the Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department resulted in the development of a youth art park, La Tierra de la Culebra, the implementation of youth and gang intervention utilizing theatre as a means of conflict resolution and the Re-Wing the City of Angels Arts Festival, an answer to the riots in Los Angeles. She has developed and managed theatre companies and facilities as well as developed programs for arts and media. Ms. Lucas is the Artistic Director of the Valley Repertory Company/ Arroyo Repertory Theatre and was the Director for Visual and Performing Arts at La Salle High School where she developed the 4 year arts curriculum in theatre, film, visual art, dance and music.

The cast of If All the Sky Were Paper includes Oraldo Austin, Lily Baer, Katsy Chappell, Brian Lai, Darwin Luján, Lori McKenna, Elijah Reyes, Doug Rynerson, Clayton Searcy, Kat Ventress, Mark Youngs.

Assistant director: Luke Bolle.. Lighting : Cici Mao. Sound: Brandon John. Costumes: Larry Watts. Tech: Vincent Vazira.

This project is funded in part by a generous grant from Pasadena Community Foundation.

If All the Sky Were Paper celebrates service, sacrifice, honor, courage, and human resilience in the ultimate tests of conflict.

Dates

Opens Friday, June 21 at 7:30 p.m.

Thursday at 7:30 p.m. on June 27.

Fridays at 7:30 p.m. on June 21, 28 and July 5.

Saturdays at 3:00 p.m. on June 29 and July 6.

Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. on June 22, 29 and July 6.

Sundays at 3:00 p.m. on June 23, 30 and July 7.

To post a comment, you must register and login.