Cal State LA to Present THE JOHN LION NEW PLAYS FESTIVAL

The Department of Theatre and Dance at Cal State LA will present the 27th annual John Lion New Plays Festival at the university's State Playhouse. This esteemed festival offers a valuable platform for the university's talented students to showcase their original works on stage. Celebrating the creativity and innovation of emerging playwrights, the festival highlights the boundary-pushing voices within the Cal State LA community.

This year's lineup features a diverse array of one-act plays, each showcasing the unique voice and perspective of its respective playwright. This year's festival will present the following works:

• God Given Talent by Cliff Connors (Anthropology B.A., Philosophy minor, Honors College): A satirical story of a straight, white, "self-made" man failing upwards despite his pomposity, incompetence, and laziness thanks to the skillful resourcefulness of his marginalized support team. It's a playful look at how men like him are clueless and often trade on their white privilege.

• Who Dun It? by Laurence Carter (Television, Film, and Media Studies B.A.): A clever, fast-paced comedy with a dash of mystery, Who Dun It? delves into the chaotic world of a group of friends caught in a murder-mystery game that spirals out of control.

• Crumble by Em Perez (MFA in Television, Film, and Theatre-Content Creation): In a raw, emotional piece, Crumble follows Rosie, a recent college graduate, who returns home and is met with her old stuffed animal, Sloth, coming to life. Sloth takes Rosie on a journey of healing through her memories of young love that was lost.

• Not So Silent Auction by Lauren Holiday (MFA in Television, Film, and Theatre-Writing): Love and romance can start in the strangest places when a school auction for a student painting results in two winners rather than one. Where will the octopus painting with the big googly eyes end up? And will Aunt Judy's love of octopi nip true romance in the bud? Not So Silent Auction is an evening of smiles, fun, and a big dive into the deep, blue sea of romance.

The John Lion New Plays Festival is named for the former producing director of the Kennedy Center's American College Theatre Festival in acknowledgment of Lion's achievements in theatre and education. Lion founded the award-winning Magic Theatre in San Francisco, which has helped develop many of America's contemporary playwrights, including Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Sam Shepard. Unfortunately, John Lion passed away in 1999, one day before starting his appointment as the chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance at Cal State LA.

The cast includes: Parise Zeleny, Ben Barrus, Lauren Holiday, Elizabeth Hernandez, Alex Engel, Giselle Diaz, Ann Li, Lyle Rahman, Eugene Negrete, Ryan Dunn, Juliette Del Muro, Gerald Hernandez, Alexis Ramirez, Maddy Wong, Donald Rizzo, Anabella Acosta, Carolina Meza, Tobias Teng, and Teshan Teachey.

Production and design staff include: Roberto Alcaraz (faculty director), Carolyn Dunn (faculty director), Tanya Kane-Parry (faculty director), Stephen Rothman (faculty director), Chris Hansen (guest scenic designer), Jessica Hansen (guest Costume Designer), Dallana Chavez Cruz (student lighting designer), Daniel Cruz (student lighting designer), Luis Cortes (student lighting designer), Karyn Lawrence (faculty lighting designer), Montgomery King (student sound designer), Leah Cobleigh (student stage manager), Ngan Ho-Lemoine (student stage manager), Crystal Nieto (student stage manager), and Mia Zell (student stage manager).

Show dates are Thursday, April 24 - Saturday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, April 27 at 2:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 30 - Saturday, May 3 at 7:30 p.m.