I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT Makes LA Premiere at Colony Theatre, Now thru 3/3

The Colony Theatre will present the fifth production of its "Season of Premieres" with the Los Angeles Premiere of I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT, written and directed by Peter Colley. I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT will preview tonight, February 6; Thursday, February 7; and Friday, February 8 at 8:00pm. It will open on Saturday, February 9 at 8:00pm and continue through Sunday, March 3 at The Colony Theatre, 555 North Third Street (at Cypress) adjacent to the Burbank Town Center.

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT is a thriller in the Alfred Hitchcock mode, with nods to GASLIGHT, Agatha Christie, and WAIT UNTIL DARK. Since its premiere in 1979 it has received nearly 1,000 productions worldwide and been translated into a dozen languages, yet, amazingly, has never been produced in Los Angeles. Until now.

Sweet, vulnerable Jan has had a nervous breakdown. To help her recover, her husband Greg rents a remote cabin in the country. Their neighbor is a strange farmer who delights in telling gruesome ghost stories. Then Greg's beautiful, sophisticated sister arrives, and frightening events begin to occur. Is Jan still ill and imagining things? Is Greg trying to help her - or drive her crazy? Is The Farmer an ally or an enemy? And what's really going on with the sister? Mounting suspense and surprising twists turn a familiar country scene into a world of sudden terror.

PETER COLLEY (Playwright/Director) was born in England where his grandfather owned the Pontefract Playhouse, a theatre that had been producing plays since the 1700s. He wrote and directed his first play at the Drama Studio in Sheffield, then became a resident playwright and director at The Grand Theatre, one of Canada's largest regional theatres. His play The Donnellys broke the theatre's box office record, and transferred to The National Arts Centre in the nation's
capital. His next play, The War Show, based on interviews he did with Canadian soldiers from WWII, continues to be performed from coast to coast. He wrote and directed The Vaudevillians for The Gallery Theatre, which was remounted in Toronto where it ran for almost a year. I'll Be Back Before Midnight was commissioned by the Blyth Festival and was named by the Toronto Globe & Mail as the most produced Canadian play ever. Peter's plays have been produced in 29 countries (7 countries during the past year), and have been translated into many languages including French, German, Italian, and Mandarin Chinese. He has had three national tours of Britain, two of his plays have been made into feature films, and he has also written for CBC, Fox, British ITV, and CBS. He was nominated for a 2000 Humanitas Prize for screenwriting, was a winner of a 2008 New American Play Award from Theatre Communications Group (Edgerton Foundation), and was the winner of the 2010 Florida Carbonell Award for Best New Work for his musical Cagney!

KATE MAYER (Laura) was most recently seen in You Can't Take It With You at The Antaeus Company as Alice Sycamore. Other theatre credits include Moliere's The Bungler at A Noise Within and A Stubborn Woman with The Global Theatre Project at LATC. Kate received a BFA in Acting from the School of Dramatic Arts at USC. While there, she was seen in The Crucible (Mary Warren), The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (Cunningham), Barbarians (Nadiezhda), and Mansfield Park (Mary Crawford). She has also studied at The British American Dramatic Academy in Oxford, England. TV/Film credits include Death and Cremation, Armynel and Lost Tapes: Bear Lake Monster

Ron Orbach (George) Colony debut. Broadway: Laughter on the 23rd Floor (later starred in the Chicago Premiere, National Tour, and ACT, Seattle, where he also directed); Amos Hart in Chicago (1st National Tour; Jeff Award / Ovation Nomination,1998); Dance of the Vampires; Never Gonna Dance. Off-Broadway: Harry Chapin: Lies & Legends (Also, Chicago / Equity Card, 1983; and Pasadena Playhouse / 1988 LADCC Award, Best Ensemble); Mrs. Dally Has a Lover (w/ Judith Ivey / Westbeth Theater Center); Hotel Suite (Roundabout); Mark St. Germain's The God Committee (The Lambs). Regional / LA: Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream (2012 Jeff Nomination / Chicago Shakespeare Theater); Harry in The Prisoner Of Second Avenue (w/Jason Alexander / El Portal); Mack Sennett in Limelight (La Jolla Playhouse); Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof (Sacramento Music Circus / Directed by Glenn Casale); Pseudolus/Senex, in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Denver Center; Reprise / Directed by David Lee); The Gershwins' An American in Paris (The Alley); Mr. Foreman / Marlowe in Enter Laughing (Berkshire Theater Festival / Directed by Scott Schwartz); Multiple roles in Turn of the Century (Starring Jeff Daniels / Directed by Tommy Tune); and David O. Selznick in Ron Hutchinson's, Moonlight and Magnolias (Directed by Steven Robman / World Premiere), both at The Goodman. Most Memorable Film Performance: The DMV Tester in Clueless. TV: Numerous guest star roles. Voice Over: Lego; C.I.T.; Toadhog in Jungle Junction (Disney Jr. Channel). Direction: Jim McGrath's The Ellis Jump (Met Theatre/ 1996 Ovation Award); The God Committee (Actor's Co-op); Room Service (Open Fist).

Tyler Pierce (Greg) is making his Colony Theatre debut. He most recently appeared at South Coast Rep's NewSCRipts in Death of the Author. He has appeared in tours of Legends with Joan Collins and Linda Evans, Barriers and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Selected regional theatre credits include of How to Write a New Book for the Bible (South Coast Rep, Berkeley Rep and Seattle Repertory Theatre); Good People (Geffen Playhouse); The Gronholm Method (Falcon Theatre); Death of a Salesman (The Old Globe); A Streetcar Named Desire (Guthrie Theater); The Night Is a Child (world premiere at Milwaukee Repertory Theater and at Pasadena Playhouse); Crime and Punishment (Berkeley Repertory); Dracula, A Christmas Carol (Actors Theatre of Louisville); Macbeth, Pericles, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Lorenzaccio, The Tempest (The Shakespeare Theatre Company); Youth Inc. (McCarter Theatre Center); and Fat Pig, The Internationalist (regional premiere at The Studio Theatre). New York theatre includes work at Theatre at St. Clement's, Circle East, New York Classical Theatre, HERE Arts Center, Atlantic Theater Company, Atlantic Theatre Studio, Theatre for a New Audience, Lark Play Development Center, New Dramatists, and New Georges. He has appeared in the films The Kiss, Best Friends, A Professional, Alchera, Modern Day Arranged Marriage, and The Rub and on television in Kidnapped, The Guiding Light, Third Watch, Runner (pilot), and Asteroid.

Joanna Strapp (Jan) was previously seen at The Colony in Mary's Wedding, in which she understudied and performed the title role. A member of The Antaeus Company, she has performed in their productions of Peace In Our Time (2012 Ovation and LA Weekly awards for Best Production, Intimate Theater), The Seagull, Macbeth, and The Malcontent, as well as
numerous workshops and readings. Other recent theatre credits include The Laguna Playhouse (The Pursuit of Happiness), The Indian Wells Theater (Trying), The Production Company (Mrs. Warren's Profession, How I Learned to Drive, Breaking The Code) The Skylight (Beautified), The Zephyr (Slasher), The Still Speaking Theatre (The Runner Stumbles), The Getty Villa (The Vesuvius Prophecies, and the upcoming Oedipus The Man) as well as work at the Williamstown Theatre Festival and The Edinburgh Fringe Festival. On television, she has appeared in House, The United States of Tara, Medium, and Studio 60 on The Sunset Strip, among others. She is a graduate of the Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama. JoannaStrapp.com

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT has assembled an award-winning design team. The Scenic Design is by Stephen Gifford (LA WEEKLY Award - Lady). The Lighting Design is by Luke Moyer (Ovation Award - Dracula). The Costume Design is by Dianne K. Graebner (Ovation nominations - The Brothers Karamazov & Battle Hymn). The Sound Design is by Drew Dalzell (Ovation Award - Songs for a New World, Ovation nomination - Old Wicked Songs). Props Design and Set Dressing is by Colony Theatre resident designers MacAndMe.

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT will open on Saturday, February 9 at 8:00pm and continue through Sunday, March 3. Performances for I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT are
Thursdays & Fridays at 8:00pm; Saturdays at 3:00pm & 8:00pm; and Sundays at 2:00pm. Ticket prices range from $20.00 - $42.00 (student, senior, and group discounts are available).

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT will preview on Wednesday, February 6; Thursday, February 7; and Friday, February 8 at 8:00pm at The Colony Theatre, 555 North Third Street (at Cypress) adjacent to the Burbank Town Center Mall.

Opening night performance with reception - all tickets $50.00. There are question-and-answer talkbacks after the performances on Friday, February 15 and Thursday, February 28. For tickets, call the Colony Theatre Box Office at 818/558-7000 ext. 15 or online at www.ColonyTheatre.org.

The award-winning Colony Theatre Company was founded in 1975 as a 99-seat Equity-waiver theatre in Silver Lake. Over the years the company was so successful artistically, and built such a large subscriber base, that in 2000 it was able to move into a 270-seat theatre created for it by the

City of Burbank, becoming one of only 5 mid-size professional theatres in the LA area that produce a year-round season of plays and musicals, and that employ actors under contract with Actors' Equity Association. Its current season features two Los Angeles premieres, three West Coast premieres, and a World Premiere musical.

The Colony Theatre is located at 555 North Third Street, at the corner of Cypress, in the heart of the Burbank Media Center.

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