EXPECTATIONS HIGH Premieres At Hollywood Fringe

Expectations High is a new play conceived and written by its high school age cast. It receives its world premiere in June as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival.

It started with a group of young teen (and pre-teen) actors who journeyed up to Hollywood from the far reaches of Long Beach and Orange County to support fellow acting students in hard-hitting dramas produced in black box theatre Los Angeles. They were excited and inspired by what they experienced and wanted a chance to do it themselves. Thus - in the spring of 2017, thirteen creative and talented young acting students created their own "Hollywood Fringe Project." The goal was set - the creation of a play from scratch. Conceive it, write it, rehearse it and present it as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival 2018.

The cast first met in a Long Beach-based acting class for professional and professional-level young actors in the Long Beach/Orange County area. Take the Stage Long Beach focuses on stage and screen training. The Working Pro class - where the cast met and where they train together - blends improvisation, scene study, on camera work, monologue performance, and text analysis training. All skills the young cast brought to bear during the 10 months of conceptualizing and devising work that brought forth a final script.

Expectations High is a one-hour play exploring the lives of thirteen teenagers in the hallways of their relatively small high school. Blending the laughter, friendships, cruelty, longings, and - yes - expectations that define our teenage years, it is a theatrical journey through the rumor, humor, drama and trauma that was, is, and (probably) always will be high school and puberty. Both the language and subject matter of the play is mature, focused on this frustrating, exciting, unpredictable, and important time in our lives.

The ensemble cast features Kyra Baklayan, Benen Falkner, Nico Fife, Kaelah Franklin, Dane Jamieson, Damian Santana, Olivia Shatsky, Grace Stedman, Ava Tomassini, Degas Viena, Grace Wilcox, Abby Young, Demi Young. The show is produced and directed by Bethany Price, and was written by the ensemble.

Expectations High performs Saturday, June 9th at 1pm & 4pm, Sunday, June 10th at 4:30pm, Wednesday, June 20th at 7pm and Thursday, June 21st at 7pm at the Other Space in the Actors Company complex of theatres. The Actors Company is located at 916 N. Formosa Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046. Tickets for the performances are $10 and are available at HollywoodFringe.Org. Ample Street Parking.

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