Neil LaBute's CALL BACK, Actor Mike Vogel et al. Highlight IAMAFest 2012, Now thru 6/10

IAMA THEATRE COMPANY presents IAMAFest 2012 today, May 18, 2012 - Sunday, June 10, 2012 (Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm; Sundays at 3pm) at The Working Stage Theater.

IAMAFest is an festival of new one-acts and premieres, featuring both known, established talent and new, emerging voices. The five featured pieces in this years festival are CALL BACK by Neil LaBute (World Premiere); DRUNK by Bekah Brunstetter (West Coast Premiere); A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR THE LIVING by Charlotte Miller (World Premiere); THE FOUNDATION by Graham Sibley (World Premiere); and STORYTELLING by Stefanie Black (World Premiere). Stars Mike Vogel (THE HELP, CLOVERFIELD, PAN AM) and Emma Greenwell (SHAMELESS) join an ensemble cast of IAMA Theatre Company members and friends.

ABOUT THE WORKS:

CALL BACK by Neil LaBute; directed by Jacob Chase; featuring Sarah Bassak and Graham Sibley (World Premiere)

DRUNK by Bekah Brunstetter; directed by Devon Gummersall; featuring Ingrid Haas, Laura Holloway, Margaux Susi and Aly Trasher (World Premiere)

A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR THE LIVING by Charlotte Miller, directed by Wes Whitehead; featuring Josh Stamell, Sarah Utterback and Stefanie Black (World Premiere)

THE FOUNDATION by Graham Sibley, directed by Becca Wolff; featuring Michael Popp and Wes Whitehead

STORYTELLING by Stefanie Black, directed by Jamie Wollrab; featuring Emma Greenwell, Mike Vogel, and Melissa Jane Osbourne.

IAMAFest 2012 will take place Friday, May 18, 2012 - Sunday, June 10, 2012 (Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm; Sundays at 3pm). All tickets are $20 and available at: https://iamatheatre.secure.force.com/ticket

This festival will be held at The Working Stage Theater, located at: 1516 North Gardner Street West Hollywood, Calif.

IAMA is an ensemble of theater artists seeking to connect and cultivate a new generation of audiences. By promoting new artists and developing new works that challenge and entertain, we hope to produce vibrant, voyeuristic theater that stimulates honest dialogue and sustains the future value of theater within our diverse Los Angeles community. IAMA was conceived in 2007 by a group of young actors eager to create new theater in Los Angeles. Working with a shared commitment to exploration and development, IAMA seeks to challenge themselves and their audience by producing original works within a collaborative, multi-disciplinary ensemble.

The past five years has seen IAMA grow from a fledgling company to “a new creative force on the local theatre scene (LATimes)”. Fueled by the exciting work of Artist-in-Residence Leslye Headland and her Seven Deadly Plays, IAMA has brought six new, full length works to the stage. Grounded in the struggles of youth, vice, and modern life, Headland’s plays “speak directly to this generation of post-college castoffs (MetromixLA).” As a result of IAMA'scollaboration with Ms. Headland and their support of her work, her play “Bachelorette”, the second of the Seven Deadly Plays, and originally developed, produced and premiered by IAMA in 2008, also enjoyed a sold-out run at Second Stage Theater in New York during the Summer of 2010. Ms. Headland's stage hit has since been produced by Gary Sanchez Productions (Will Ferrell and Adam McKay) as a feature film that premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival starring Kirsten Dunst, Lizzy Caplan, and Isla Fisher.

IAMA’s passion for live performance, commitment to quality, and innovative material has garnered them recognition and rave reviews from StageSceneLA, LA2DAY, MetromixLA, LAWeekly, and The LATimes. Quickly building an enthusiastic and loyal audience, IAMA has carved a niche for themselves in an emerging LA theater community: “In this industry town, where theater is often the byproduct of actors waiting to be plucked for film and TV, IAMA’s devotion to the stage is fully grounded in its counter-intuitiveness (MetromixLA)”. Eager to continue to create new theater in Los Angeles and work with new writers, IAMA also began producing IAMAFEST, an annual festival of new, one-act plays.

IAMA is a young company, but is already an active participant in the both the theater community and the city at large. Committed to sustaining the future value of theater within Los Angeles, IAMA is an active member of The Young Storytellers Foundation, an arts education and early development program that pairs artists from the entertainment industry with at-risk students in targeted public schools. Under the supervision and guidance of their mentors, the students spend weeks developing short scripts that are then performed for the school and their families by professional actors. For the last three years, IAMAmembers have participated in the program as both mentors in the schools, and as actors in the students’ final show, encouraging a new generation of writers to love the performing arts, to develop their creativity and confidence, and to pave the way for many stories to come.

Ambition and determination are the qualities that IAMA Theatre Company was built on, and the hard work is beginning to pay off. Through the support of donors, loyal fans, an elite advisory board, and now the fiscal sponsorship of the Pasadena Arts Council, IAMA is poised for an exciting new season.

The festival is produced by Andrew Carlberg.

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