Young LA Theatre Artists Produce A PUBLIC READING OF AN UNPRODUCED SCREENPLAY ABOUT THE DEATH OF WALT DISNEY

"You can't just let nature run wild." - Walt Disney. Maybe.

How much can you control your world? Well, you don't have to think about it if you just build your own, right?

Producers Brian Eckert and Sidne Phillips bring this new production of acclaimed playwright Lucas Hnath's play A Public Reading of an Unproduced Screenplay about the Death of Walt Disney to the Zephyr Theatre this month.

Originally premiering Off-Broadway at Soho Rep in New York, this play invites you to take a seat at the table to hear Walt's vision - for his movies, for his city, for his life. For this screenplay he's written! His family will be there and they think he's brilliant. You will be so happy you came to be part of something so real and important. There will be no accidents and no reminders that he's going to die. Ever.

Directed by Eckert, NYU grad and recent LA transplant, the creative team is filled out with diverse young artists from across the country, with production management by Jimmy Mura (he/him) and production design by Joshua Moreno (he/they). Lighting by Matthew Duran (he/him). Cast includes Everleigh Brenner (she/they) as Walt, Sasan Ahmed (he/him) as Roy, Daniel Stonewall (he/him) as Ron, and Maya Valenciano (she/they) as Daughter.

Motivated by his childhood in poverty, Brian creates theatre to understand how the figures and systems we create and put trust in impact us. His work has been shown at the Lee Strasberg Theater and Film Institute in New York, Two River Theater, and on Fast Radio Burst!, an audio play podcast.

"There's nothing like theatre to explore the inner workings of our world," says Phillips. "Whether it's Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, or Walt Disney, it's important that we examine these powerful men whose decisions control our present and future. Are they visionaries, authoritarians, or a dynamic cocktail of the two? Enhanced by employing non-traditional casting in regards to age, race, and gender, we can abandon all pretense of what we believe to be true and dive deep into the questions this play poses."

A Public Reading of an Unproduced Screenplay About the Death of Walt Disney runs January 19-22 at The Zephyr Theatre in Los Angeles. Tickets are available for $24. Follow @disneyplay_la on Instagram for more information.

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