TheaterWorks Closes 39th Season W/ DISTRACTED 4/1-26

TheatreWorks, the nationally-acclaimed theatre of Silicon Valley, closes its 39th season with the regional premiere of DISTRACTED, the off-beat modern comic drama that tells the story of a worn-out mother looking for answers about her son. Does he have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or not? Insightful, poignant and funny, DISTRACTED was hailed as "a passionate emotional journey...with impressive comic swiftness" by the Los Angeles Times. Directed by Armando Molina, DISTRACTED will feature TheatreWorks favorite Rebecca Dines as the mother, and TheatreWorks veterans Suzanne Grodner, Gabriel Hoffman, Tara Blau, Elizabeth Carter, Cassidy Brown, and making their TheatreWorks debut, Robert Yacko and Dena Martinez. DISTRACTED plays April 1 -26, 2009 (press opening: April 4) at TheatreWorks at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts in Mountain View. For tickets ($23-$61) and information, the public may call (650) 903-6000 or visit TheatreWorks.org

In DISTRACTED, acclaimed playwright Lisa Loomer (Living Out, The Waiting Room, and the 1999 film Girl, Interrupted), illustrates the comical and sometimes poignant struggles of a mother trying to get to the bottom of her son's diagnosis. Is his diagnosis correct, or is he simply a product of an overly stimulating environment filled with TV, cell phones, computers and video games?

DISTRACTED premiered in 2007 at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles and starred Rita Wilson and Bronson Pinchot as the well-meaning parents. Its one-month run was lauded as, "... a stinging indictment of our pill-for-every-ill culture," by Huffington Post and received rave reviews from national publications. The play made its New York debut at Roundabout Theatre Company February 25, 2009 starring Cynthia Nixon, where it will continue its run through May 3, 2009.

Rebecca Dines, a TheatreWorks favorite, returns in the lead role of the well-meaning mother. She was recently featured in the company's acclaimed production of Twentieth Century. Dines has appeared in TheatreWorks productions of The Elephant Man, The Sisters Rosensweig, the West Coast premiere of Shakespeare in Hollywood, and Living Out, among others. She has also appeared in productions at Aurora Theatre Company, Marin Theatre Company, Berkeley Repertory Theatre and San Jose Repertory Theatre, as well as various roles in film and television.

Also featured in DISTRACTED is 12 year old Gabriel Hoffman, a young veteran actor who has been seen around the bay in productions at American Musical Theatre San Jose, ACT, and TheatreWorks. Suzanne Grodner, who has been in TheatreWorks productions of Twentieth Century, Emma, Into the Woods, and Shakespeare in Hollywood also joins the cast. Elizabeth Carter of TheatreWorks' productions Nickel and Dimed, The Grapes of Wrath, and You Can't Take It With You is joined by Cassidy Brown, who appeared in TheatreWorks Doubt, a Parable, and Tara Blau, who last appeared at TheatreWorks in You Can't Take It With You. Completing the cast and making their TheatreWorks debuts are Dena Martinez, who has appeared in works at San Jose Repertory and Berkeley Repertory, and Robert Yacko, a veteran actor of Broadway and regional stage, film and television.

Lisa Loomer is a playwright, screenwriter, and actress best known for her play The Waiting Room, in which three women from different time periods meet in a modern doctor's waiting room, each suffering from the effects of their various societies' cosmetic body modification practices. She also co-wrote the screenplay for the film Girl Interrupted. Loomer is an alum of New Dramatists and was a 1985 playwright-in-residence at the Intar Theatre in New York City. Many of her plays deal with the experiences of Latinos and Hispanic-Americans and with various aspects of contemporary family life. DISTRACTED is the third issue-oriented comedy with a central female character from Ms. Loomer. She began with Expecting Isabel (about having a baby), followed with Living Out (about having a caregiver), which TheatreWorks presented in 2004.

DISTRACTED director Armando Molina returns to TheatreWorks where he also helmed Living Out by Lisa Loomer. His recent directing credits include Anna In The Tropics by Nilo Cruz at PCPA Theaterfest in Santa Maria California; Conjunto by Oliver Mayer at Borderlands Theater Company in Tucson Arizona; and The Waiting Room by Lisa Loomer at Company of Angels in Los Angeles. Molina recently received national recognition from the NEA and Theater Communications Group as a recipient of their Career Development Program for Directors. Before leaving to freelance as a director, Molina was a member of the Cornerstone Theater ensemble where he acted and directed. He co-founded Latins Anonymous, the critically acclaimed Latino Comedy Group. Their first play, Latins Anonymous, was held over for six months at the Los Angeles Theater Center.

Following DISTRACTED, TheatreWorks will open the 2009-10 season with a New Works Festival which attracts playwrights and composers from across the nation, developing their latest works. Festival Pass holders will have a host of readings, sing-throughs, workshops, and discussions from which to choose. The vibrant new musical, TINYARD HILL (July 15-August 9, 2009), will be the mainstage presentation. With nearly 10,000 subscribers and over 100,000 patrons per year, TheatreWorks has developed a national reputation for artistic innovation and integrity, often presenting Bay Area theatregoers with their first look at acclaimed musicals, comedies, and dramas, directed by award-winning local and guest directors, and performed by professional actors cast from across the country.

 

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