LIFE SUCKS. at The Broadwater Main Stage

From the writer of Stupid F*#cking Bird…
INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY 
Presents The Los Angeles Premiere of 
LIFE SUCKS.
Written by Aaron Posner
Directed by Barry Heins

Limited Engagement Opens Saturday, September 30
at The Broadwater Main Stage in Los Angeles!

"Bitingly funny, unexpectedly touching." – The New York Times

INTERACT THEATRE COMPANY (ITC) invites you to laugh, reflect, and explore the universal quest for a fulfilling existence as it presents the Los Angeles premiere of LIFE SUCKS, written by Aaron Posner (Stupid F*#king Bird) and directed by ITC Artistic Director, Barry Heins. The cast includes John Ross Bowie (“The Big Bang Theory,” “Speechless”), Erin Pineda ("American Princess," "Physical"), Los Angeles theatre icon Anne Gee Byrd, and Broadway stage veteran Steve Vinovich. LIFE SUCKS will begin previews on Friday, September 22; will open on Saturday, September 30 at 8pm and perform through Sunday, October 29 at 3pm at The Broadwater Main Stage, 1076 Lillian Way in Los Angeles.

In LIFE SUCKS a group of old friends, ex-lovers, estranged in-laws, and lifelong enemies gather to grapple with life’s thorniest questions—and each other. What could possibly go wrong? Incurably lustful and lonely, hapless and hopeful, these seven souls collide and stumble their way towards a new understanding that LIFE SUCKS! Or does it? From the mind of Aaron Posner, author of 'Stupid F*cking Bird,' comes this revelatory reworking of Chekhov’s 'Uncle Vanya.' Never has unhappiness been so much fun!

Winner of the 2020 Theatre Alliance Award for Best Play, and praised by audiences 
and critics alike, the Chicago Sun-Times calls LIFE SUCKS, “Altogether wise, profoundly humane, hilarious, quirky, endearing, and in countless clever ways, brilliantly faithful to its source.”                           

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM AND CAST

AARON POSNER (Playwright) is a theatre director, playwright, teacher, former Artistic Director of two major regional theatres, and a tenured Professor in the Department of Performing Arts at American University. He was the founding Artistic Director of Philadelphia’s Arden Theatre Company, and ran Two River Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey. He has directed nearly 200 productions at major regional theaters across the country, including Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, Arena Stage, American Repertory Theatre, American Players Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare, The Folger, Ford’s Theatre, Milwaukee Rep, Round House, Seattle Rep, Signature Theatre, South Coast Rep, Studio Theatre, and many more. As a playwright, his re-imaging of Chekhov’s The Seagull, entitled Stupid F*#king Bird, was one of the ten most produced plays in the country in 2015 and has had more than 250 productions worldwide including productions in Australia, Canada, England, Luxembourg, Romania, Sweden and more. His other widely produced and published plays include JQA, No Sisters, District Merchants, Who Am I This Time? (& Other Conundrums of Love), The Chosen, and My Name Is Asher Lev. He has won 20 regional theatre awards, including Helen Hayes Awards, Barrymore Awards, The Outer Circle Critics Award, and the John Gassner Prize. 

BARRY HEINS (Director/Producer) is the Artistic Director of Interact Theatre Company (ITC). A graduate of The Juilliard School and alumnus of The Acting Company, Heins has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, at leading regional theaters across America, and in film and TV. Los Angeles stage credits include Much Ado About Nothing at the Ford Theater (Drama-Logue Award, Outstanding Performance) and the critically acclaimed ITC productions of Counsellor-At-Law (Ovation Award, Best Ensemble), Other People's Money, and Nice Fish.  He has worked extensively as a voice-over artist, lending his talents to everything from film trailers to political ads, and has been a dialect consultant on Broadway and for PBS. 
Heins has served on the faculties of several professional actor training conservatories, including NYU Tisch School of the Arts/Playwright's Horizons Theater School and SUNY Purchase College.  His producing credits include two series of ITC staged readings for the Los Angeles Public Library's LA Made cultural enrichment program: "The Tony Award® Winners," which was seen worldwide on BroadwayOnDemand.com during the pandemic, and "The Pulitzer Prize Winners: Ten Plays from Ten Decades" (dir: "You Can't Take It With You" and "The Great White Hope"). Heins produced and directed two impactful short films for ITC (Faultless and Just Another Birthday in Bedlam), which garnered international recognition and received multiple honors at prestigious film festivals, including a 2021 Bronze and 2022 Gold TELLY Award. Both films can be viewed on ITC's official YouTube channel, @InteractTheatreCompanyLosAngeles.

The Cast of LIFE SUCKS features (in alphabetical order): John Ross Bowie as “Vanya,” Anne Gee Byrd as “Babs,” Olivia Castanho as “Sonia,” Erin Pineda as “Ella,” Lily Rains as “Pickles,” Marc Valera as “Dr. Aster,” and Steve Vinovich as “The Professor.”

Music for LIFE SUCKS is performed by Dylan Gorenberg and Madison Leinster.

The LIFE SUCKS design team is Evan A. Bartoletti, Scenic Design; Carol Doehring, Lighting Design; Joseph “Sloe” Slawinski, Sound Design; Michael Mullen, Costume Design; Ly Eisenstein, Projection Design, and Eric Babb, Prop Master. The Production Stage Manager is Gina DeLuca.

This production is supported in part by grants from The California Nonprofit Performing Arts Grant Program and by the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, administered through Community Partners, and funded by the LA County Board of Supervisors through the Federal American Rescue Plan Act.

SCHEDULE AND PRICING

LIFE SUCKS will preview on Friday, September 22 at 8pm; Saturday, September 23 at 8pm; Sunday, September 24 at 3pm & Friday, September 29 at 8pm.

LIFE SUCKS will open on 
Saturday, September 30 at 8pm (press opening) and perform through Sunday, October 29 at
3pm at The Broadwater Main Stage, 1076 Lillian Way in Los Angeles.

                                 
Performances are Fridays & Saturdays at 8pm; Sundays at 3pm.  
Tickets available online at: https://our.show/life-sucks  or through Interact Theatre Company's website www.interactla.org, or at the box office.  
Tickets: $28.00 (Previews); $38.00 (General Admission); $32.00 (Student/Senior 60+). 

For more information, photos, press interviews or for press comps, please contact David Elzer/DEMAND PR at 818/508-1754 or at davidelzer@me.com. 

Calendar Listing:

LIFE SUCKS.
Written by Aaron Posner
Directed by Barry Heins
Produced by Barry Heins and Kristen Egermeier

Previews:  Friday, September 22 at 8pm; Saturday, September 23 at 8pm; 
Sunday, September 24 at 3pm & Friday, September 29 at 8pm

Opens: Saturday, September 30 at 8pm (Press Opening) 

Runs: Saturday, September 30 – Sunday, October 29, 2023

Performances are Fridays & Saturdays at 8pm; Sundays at 3pm

The Broadwater Main Stage
1076 Lillian Way, Los Angeles, 90038  

Tickets: $38.00 (General Admission) 
$32.00 (Student/Senior 60+)
$28.00 (Previews)

Tickets available online at:
https://our.show/life-sucks or through Interact Theatre Company's website www.interactla.org, or at the box office