Open Fist Theater Presents CRIMES OF THE HEART, Opens 11/8

The Open Fist Theatre Company and The Aquila Morong Studio are thrilled to announce their co-production, CRIMES OF THE HEART, written by Beth Henley and directed by John Hindman. CRIMES OF THE HEART will preview on Monday, 11/7/11 at 8pm; and will open on Tuesday, November 8 at 8pm and run Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, December 8, 2011 at the Open Fist Theatre, 6209 Santa Monica Blvd. in Hollywood. THIS PRODUCTION IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW.

CRIMES OF THE HEART At the core of the tragic comedy are the three Magrath sisters, Meg, Babe, and Lenny, who reunite at Old Granddaddy's home in Hazlehurst, Mississippi after Babe shoots her abusive husband. The trio was raised in a dysfunctional family with a penchant for ugly predicaments and each has endured her share of hardship and misery. Past resentments bubble to the surface as they're forced to deal with assorted relatives and past relationships while coping with the latest incident that has disrupted their lives. Each sister is forced to face the consequences of the "crimes of the heart" she has committed.

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM AND CAST

BETH HENLEY (born May 8, 1952, Jackson, Mississippi) is an American dramatist and actress. She received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1981 for her play, Crimes of the Heart (1978).
Her most famous play, Crimes of the Heart, was her first produced professionally. It opened at the Actors Theatre of Louisville and then moved to New York produced by Manhattan Theatre Club. Crimes of the Heart won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, as well as the award for Best American Play of 1981 from the New York Drama Critics' Circle. The play also earned Henley a Tony Award nomination, and her screenplay for the film version of Crimes of the Heart was nominated for an Oscar as Best Adapted Screenplay.
Henley adapted her play, The Miss Firecracker Contest, into a 1989 film starring Holly Hunter entitled Miss Firecracker.
Henley continues to write plays and screenplays from her adopted home in California. She is an alumna of Southern Methodist University. Her latest play, Ridiculous Fraud, was produced at the McCarter Theatre in 2006.
In Spring 2010, her play Family Week will be performed at MCC Theater. The production will feature Rosemarie DeWitt and Kathleen Chalfant. It will be directed by Jonathan Demme.

JOHN HINDMAN (Director) is the writer/director of the 2009 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize Nominee The Answer Man starring Jeff Daniels and Lauren Graham. The film was distributed by Magnolia Pictures. He has written for both studios and independents including Christmas in New York for producer Kevin Messick as well as Familymoon for Walden Media. Earlier in the year he directed an award winning production of David Auburn's Pulitzer Prize and Tony award-winning play Proof at the Open Fist. John currently teaches Master Scene Study with teacher and casting director Deborah Aquila C.S.A. at the Aquila Morong Studio for Actors.

DEBORAH AQUILA (Producer) After graduating from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, and the Stella Adler Conservatory, Deborah Aquila began her casting career in New York with Steven Soderbergh's sex, lies and videotape and Uli Edel's The Last Exit to Brooklyn.

Before moving to Los Angeles to cast Frank Darabont's The Shawshank Redemption, Deborah had completed more than 40 independent films. In 1993, she was named the Senior Vice-President of Features Casting for Paramount Pictures. During her tenure with the studio, Deborah cast such notable films as Primal Fear, Mission Impossible and Kiss the Girls before returning to the independent casting world. On the TV side, she cast Dexter, The Shield and The Chicago Code. Deborah has been recognized 14 times by the Casting Society of America, and won the Artios in 2011 for her work on Robert Schwentke's RED. In 2003, she was recognized by the Hollywood community with the Hollywood Film Festival Career Achievement Award. Deborah continues to cast independent and studio films as well as television, and is thrilled to return to her love of teaching, co-founding the Aquila Morong Studio for Actors where she teaches Script Analysis and Master Scene Study.

DONNA MORONG (Producer) began her career in casting in New York City working on some of the most prestigious, original Broadway productions including Hurly Burly, Biloxi Blues and Brighton Beach Memoirs. She cast for off-Broadway and regional theatre while concurrently running a successful studio for young actors on Theatre Row. Prior to casting, Donna trained with William Esper in the Meisner Technique and taught acting at Rutgers University where she received her Masters degree. After a 15 year career as a top casting executive at the Walt Disney Company film division, and garnering an Artios Award for casting Ben Affleck's Gone Baby Gone for Miramax Donna decided to launch her own casting company where she has been working on independent and studio films in Europe and the U.S. More importantly, she has returned to her first love: teaching, and has co-founded the Aquila Morong Studio for Actors. She is passionate about nurturing actors' talent and uses her years as a casting director, as well as her training, to aid the actor in realizing his/her potential. This year she has begun a pilot program with Matt Marquez and Andy Wagner, serving the L.A. community by providing acting training to high school students in the LAUSD.

CAITLIN RENÉE CAMPBELL (Producer) An Actress / Producer at the Open Fist, cRc's OFTC producing credits include: Blue Night in the Heart of the West, The Summer Shakespeare Festival, World Premiere of Frank Zappa's Joe's Garage (Marketing Producer), Light Up the Sky, Neil LaBute's The New Testament and Helter Skelter, Stage Door; and Sorority Queen in a Mobile Home. As a 1st AD in FILM: Scream at the Sound of the Beep, "gAg;" Kemo Sabe (AFI-DWW Project), Piranhas, CAPTAIN, Fully Loaded, The Last Gamble, Retreat and Teacher of the Year. Independently, she produced Proof, Arthur Miller's After the Fall, and the short film CAPTAIN.

The cast of CRIMES OF THE HEART includes JOHN BOBEK, NADIA BOWERS, BENJAMIN BURDICK, RAE FOSTER, BRETT HOWELL, DEB KNOX, NIKOL MATTALANA and AMY STEWART.

CRIMES OF THE HEART features an award-winning design team. The Scenic Consultant is JAMES SPENCER; The Set design is by ZACHARY B. GUILER; The Lighting Design is by ANDY WEGER; The Sound Design is by PETER CARLSTEDT; The Costume Design is by ANTHONY TRAIN; and The Prop Team is BRUCE DICKINSON & INA RUSSELL.
CRIMES OF THE HEART production team ; CAITLIN RENÉE CAMPBELL, Producer; KEVIN McCORKLE, Technical Supervisor; LIAM CARL DESIGN, Graphic Design; ALYSSA ESCALANTE Stage Manager; TAMARA BECKER, Assistant Stage Manager.
SCHEDULE AND PRICING

CRIMES OF THE HEART will preview on Monday, November 7 at 8pm; and will open on Tuesday, November 8 at 8pm and run through Thursday, December 8 at The NEW Open Fist Theatre, 6209 Santa Monica Blvd. former home of The Actor's Gang in Hollywood.

Performances are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 8pm. Ticket prices are $20; tickets for the opening night gala are $30 Special group rates available for parties of 10 or more. For information, to view complete schedule & purchase tickets, please visit the website for details at www.openfist.org or Aquilamorongstudio.com. 

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