Othello to Play the Powerhouse Theatre, 3/24-4/16

Having just received a special citation from the LA Weekly for their original War Cycle trilogy, the Los Angeles Theatre Ensemble returns to the classics with William Shakespeare's Othello. It opens at The Powerhouse Theatre March 24th at 8PM and runs thru April 16th.

A black man's popularity gives rise to a new leader, though some still belive him to be a Muslim, an outsider, the ‘other'.

Othello the Moor, dark, mysterious and dangerous, returns victorious from battle against the Ottoman Empire, earning him a grudging respect and acceptance into Venetian society. There, he wins the love of fair Desdemona. With her by his side, there seems to be no battle or prejudice he cannot conquer. On the island of Cyprus, however, with the Ottoman enemy far away, Othello struggles to adjust to life on the homefront as a husband and a leader. Increasingly unsure of himself, he begins to fall prey to gossip, deceit and jealousy. Envious of his commander's success, a soldier named Iago seeds Othello's insecurities weaving an intricate web of deceptions, turning purity to adultery, honor to disgrace and wedding beds to funeral pyres.

In Shakespeare's romantic horror story, director Phillip Kelly, proves that the greatest evil is not the 'Other' but The Shadows lurking within our own hearts.

"Othello is one of Shakepeare's only depictions of a disintegrating marriage," says director Phillip Kelly. "Sensual and carnal, each character is stripped down to their core, revealing the best and worst of humanity. There is no magic, there are no gimmicks or deus ex machinas. The story is driven by the internal fears of the characters. A romantic horror story." Kelly highlights the intimacy and rawness of those emotions as the landscape around them shifts, creating an unbalanced world for these characters who become trapped by their worst fears.

Phillip Kelly started acting at the age of 12 and graduated with a film and screenwriting degree. He co-founded Theatre Unleashed, a 50 member nonprofit theatre company in North Hollywood, where from 2007 to 2010 he acted as Artistic Director, producer, director, writer, actor and creator for 18 shows a year including: '4.48 Psychosis' and "The Tempest", founded a sketch group 'Die Gruppe' and 'Galleries' which was a diverse collection of performance art shows. Recently, as co-founder of Merry War Theatre Group, he co-directed a well received production of 'Romeo and Juliet' and is currently revving up his sketch group to help raise funds for other productions during the year.

The Los Angeles Theatre Ensemble is dedicated to staging theater works of high artistic integrity while endeavoring to remain broadly accessible and genuinely entertaining. The ensemble holds fast in its commitment to strike a balance between providing a venue for emerging artists and veteran artists; between the works of new playwrights, and revisiting timely and important classics.

The Powerhouse Theatre is housed, appropriately enough, in the Powerhouse, a historical building
originally erected in 1910 for the Southern California Edison Electrical Plant for the city of Santa Monica. Committed to nurturing innovative new work, the Powerhouse has introduced Los Angeles audiences to critically-acclaimed world premieres such as the multiple award-winning The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World; the scathingly funny The Family Room by Aron Coleite; Golden Prospects: A Los Angeles Melodrama by Colin Campbell; and A Series of Comedic Lectures with John Lehr.

Tom Burmester, founder and Producing Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Theatre Ensemble and
Managing Artistic Director of the Powerhouse Theatre, has produced over 20 productions for the stage including Wounded and Survived by Tom Burmester, Kindred by Daniel Keleher, I Gelosi and The Heretic Mysteries by David Bridel, Monkey Madness by Daisuke Tsuji, Quixotic by Kit Steinkellner and The Water Engine by David Mamet. Tom earned his MFA in Directing from the University of California, Los Angeles, and moonlights as the Performance Manger of the Kirk Douglas Theatre.

Tickets start at just $7. See www.latensemble.com for details.

The Powerhouse Theatre is located at 3116 2nd Street in south Santa Monica, just off Main Street
between Rose and Marine. Guests in wheelchairs should call in advance to make arrangements. For information, the public should visit www.latensemble.com.