Tom Ormeny Directs World Premiere Comedy SHOWPONY By Judith Leora

The Victory Theatre Center is proud to present the World Premiere of SHOWPONY, a new comedy by Judith Leora and directed by Tom Ormeny.

When the mostly white employees from a large Ad Agency reveal their unconscious racism through slips of the tongue and gender micro-aggressions, the tensions build as aggressions move into overt racism and misogyny. Both African American and white women fight back. Hidden agendas, alliances and liaisons rise to the surface-in both fierce and fiercely funny ways.

"Timely in the present #METOO era, this comedy is indeed fiercely funny," says director Tom Ormeny.

In SHOWPONY, five working women come to some real understanding of their separate cultures through their common womanhood. Sionne Elise, Chelsi Stancil, Lizzy Kimball, Elle Vernee, Krystel Roche, star as these five women, with Marshall McCabe as the lone male in the cast. "As soon as I read this play, I knew the Victory wanted to produce it," says Ormeny. "The wit and ambitions of the women who are trying to break through the glass ceiling and out of the daily prejudices need support. I want audience members to relate to these characters and to start conversations about these issues. We need to be able to talk to each other. We need to be able to laugh."

Performances begin on September 28, 29, and 30 at The Victory Theatre Center in Burbank, where they continue through November 18th. Three low-priced previews take place on September 21, 22 and 23.

Judith Leora (Playwright): Productions: Elijah (Bristol Valley Theatre, 2017), Gideon (Ego Actus/Paradise Theatre, NYC, 2016), The Cookie Fight (Bristol Valley Theatre, 2016), Weird About the Baby/Icon Plays (Ego Actus Productions/NYC). Recent readings: Showpony (LRS, The Blank Theatre; Next Stage Festival, Capital Rep; Lone Star Theatre) The X and the Y (Bristol Valley Theatre Reading Series), The Cookie Fight (Last Frontier Theatre Conference), Heart-Shaped Uterus (MadLab Readings, New York Madness). Robert Askins Playwriting Fellow/Lone Star Theatre; Elijah (Semi-finalist, O'Neill). Webseries #GoingHomeless currently in post-production. Many, many short plays with NY Madness, Sticky, One Minute Play Festival (6x), Pussyfest, brain melt consortium. Judith is a Founding Member and Executive Director of NY Madness, a theatre company in NYC (Kraine Theater), now in its' eighth season.

TOM ORMENY (DIRECTOR) has directed several productions The Victory. His dramaturgy and direction earned the Victory's production of Who's Your Daddy? by Johnny O'Callaghan a critically acclaimed production at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Off-Broadway at the Irish Rep. He earned his DGA card directing for Disney on The New Mickey Mouse Club. He started as a child actor in New York City. Most recently, he appeared at the Victory in the critically acclaimed Resolving Hedda. Tom and Maria Gobetti are the founders and artistic directors of The Victory Theatre Center. Since 1979, Tom has produced, directed and/or acted in over 100 productions at the Victory, the majority of them world premieres. He has taught acting and directed at several colleges. He is the proud recipient of Los Angeles Stage Alliance's Ovation - James A. Doolittle Award for Leadership in Theatre, and the Red Carpet Award from Women in Theatre for excellence as a Producers/Artistic Directors in Theatre. Last year, he and Maria Gobetti received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Stage Raw. He is on the Board of Governors of LASA, and is a devoted acting teacher at the Gobetti-Ormeny Acting Studio.

The creative team for Unemployed Elephants includes set designer Evan Bartoletti, lighting designer Carol Doehring, sound designer David Duarte, costume designer Lauri Fitzsimmons, graphic designer Jennifer Logan and photographer Tim Sullens. The dramaturg is Gail Bryson, the stage manager is Jennifer Brown, and Maria Gobetti, Tom Ormeny, and Katie Witkowski produce for The Victory Theatre Center.
?SHOWPONY opens for press on September 28, 2018 and runs Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 4 p.m. through November 18. Three preview performances take place on: Friday, Sept 21 and Saturday, Sept 22 at 8 p.m. and Sunday Sept 23 at 4 p.m. Tickets range from $24-$34, except previews which are $20. The Victory Theatre Center is located at 3326 W. Victory Blvd in Burbank, CA 91505. For information and to purchase tickets, call 818-841-5421 or go to www.thevictorytheatrecenter.org.

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