ELLIOT TRILOGY to Play Concurrently in Los Angeles Theatres

Los Angeles audiences will have the rare opportunity to follow Quiara Alegri?a Hudes' Elliot Trilogy playing concurrently at theatres across the city in early 2018. Center Theatre Group's production of Pulitzer finalist "Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue" (at the Kirk Douglas Theatre January 27 through February 25, 2018) and Pulitzer winner "Water by the Spoonful" (at the Mark Taper Forum January 31 through March 11) will be joined by Latino Theater Company's production of the final installment of the trilogy "The Happiest Song Plays Last" (at the Los Angeles Theatre Center February 17 through March 19). It is the first time all three plays will run at the same time in one city.

"It's really thrilling to get a chance to see the plays produced back to back for the first time in a single city," said Hudes. "You see one play, and you get that beginning, middle, end-you get that story. But you see two, three of the plays, you get that sense of family all of a sudden. You've gone through it over time with this family. So I think the ending of the entire trilogy lands in a deeper way. The laughs get deeper, the pain gets more pronounced. Hopefully the plays are resonating off of each other in ways that will yield rewards."

"This is a special moment for our patrons and for us-and really for anyone in Los Angeles who loves theatre," said Center Theatre Group Artistic Director Michael Ritchie. "We're taking advantage of the breadth and depth of our programming and of the rich theatre ecosystem of our city by joining forces with the Latino Theater Company to tell an epic story from start to finish. These three remarkable plays definitely stand on their own, but the opportunity to see the completed trilogy together and to follow Quiara's characters through their entire arc is truly impactful."

"We're thrilled to offer L.A. audiences the chance to see the final installment of the trilogy, which isn't as well-known as the others," said Latino Theater Company Artistic Director Jose? Luis Valenzuela. "I think it's especially beautiful because of the poetry of the language, and because of the music which brings us closer to who Elliot is."

Quiara Alegri?a Hudes is a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. Her play "Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue" premiered off-off Broadway by Page 73 Productions and was a finalist for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. "Water by the Spoonful" premiered at Hartford Stage Company and won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. "The Happiest Song Plays Last" premiered at The Goodman Theatre in Chicago in 2013. Hudes wrote the book for the Broadway musical "In the Heights," which received the 2008 Tony Award for Best Musical, a Tony nomination for Best Book of a Musical and was a 2009 Pulitzer Prize finalist. Other works include the plays "26 Miles" and "Yemaya's Belly" and the children's musical "Barrio Grrrl!" Hudes grew up in West Philadelphia where she studied music with Don Rappaport, Dolly Kranzapolski and Linda Hudes. She was later mentored by playwright Paula Vogel A. Brown University. Hudes is an alumna of New Dramatists and sits on the board of Philadelphia Young Playwrights, which produced her first play in the tenth grade.

Center Theatre Group, one of the nation's preeminent arts and cultural organizations, is Los Angeles' leading nonprofit theatre company, which, under Artistic Director Michael Ritchie, programs seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1600 to 2000-seat Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In addition to presenting and producing the broadest range of theatrical entertainment in the country, Center Theatre Group is one of the nation's leading producers of ambitious new works through commissions and world premiere productions and a leader in interactive community engagement and education programs that reach across generations, demographics and circumstance to serve Los Angeles.

The Latino Theater Company is dedicated to providing a world-class arts center for those pursuing artistic excellence; a laboratory where both tradition and innovation are honored and honed; and a place where the convergence of people, cultures and ideas contribute to the future. Now entering its 32nd year, the Latino Theater Company has operated The Los Angeles Theatre Center (LATC), a facility of the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and a landmark building in Downtown's Historic Core, since 2006.

Tickets to "Elliot, A Solder's Fugue" and "Water by the Spoonful" are available by calling (213) 628-2772, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org or at the Center Theatre Group Box Office located at the Ahmanson Theatre. The Kirk Douglas Theatre is located at 9820 Washington Blvd. in Culver City, CA 90232. The Mark Taper Forum is located at The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A. 90012.

Tickets to "The Happiest Song Plays Last" are available by calling (866) 811-4111, online at www.thelatc.org or at The LATC box office, located at 514. S Spring Street in Downtown L.A. 90013.

Photo: playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes, credit: Joseph Moran.