TENNESSEE & ANNA Set to Open 4/9 at Odyssey Theatre

Phoenix Rising Productions has announced the West Coast premiere of Tennessee & Anna, a play by Franco D'Alessandro, directed by Anthony Caldarella. A guest production at the Odyssey Theatre in West Los Angeles featuring multi-award-winners Morlan Higgins and Karen Kondazian, Tennessee & Anna begins previews on April 5, and opening is set for Saturday, April 9 at 8pm. Performances will continue through May 29.

Tennessee & Anna chronicles the 25-year friendship between Tennessee Williams and the great Academy Award-winning Italian actress Anna Magnani. Set in Rome during the La Dolce Vita era, it is a memory play told through the eyes of Tennessee. The play is an examination of friendship and art which deals with their mutual passion for theatre, film and for love itself. The two explore truths about the nature of inspiration, collaboration, and the need for artistic expression, all the while battling their demons, both real and imagined. Tennessee & Anna open their hearts to each other with honesty and frustration, as they search to express the often conflicting need to love and the struggle to accept love.

Morlan Higgins (Tennessee Williams) most recently appeared in the U.S. premiere of Athol Fugard's Train Driver at the Fountain Theatre. In the past 18 months, he was also seen in Forgiveness at the Black Dahlia Theatre and in King Lear with the Antaeus Company. Other work at the Fountain includes After the Fall, Victory, The Boys in the Band, Borderlines, Shining City, and the world premiere of Fugard's Exits and Entrances. Karen Kondazian's career has included starring opposite Ed Harris, Richard Chamberlain, Stacy Keach, and Ray Stricklyn in various productions through the years. She won a LADCC Award for Best Actress in a production of The Rose Tattoo, and her work as both actor and producer so impressed the playwright that they became friends. Williams gave Kondazian carte blanche to produce any of his work in his lifetime. Other productions in which Kondazian delivered memorable and award-winning performances include Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Orpheus Descending, Night of the Iguana, Freedomland, The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore and Master Class. Director Anthony Caldarella is a writer/producer/director whose feature film credits include My Brother Jack, What's Up, Scarlet?, and Mafioso. Stage directing includes productions of A View From the Bridge, Detective Story, A Taste of Honey, The Price, the West Coast premiere of The Beauty Queen of Leenane, and The Collection at the Hudson Theatre, which won him the LA Weekly Award for Best Director in 2002.

The set design for Tennessee & Anna is by Tom Buderwitz, lighting design is by Steven Young, costume design is by Swinda Reichelt, sound design is by Cricket Meyers, and video design is by Fritz Davis. The production manager is Roberta Ballarini, and stage manager is Molly McGraw.

Tennessee & Anna will play four lower-priced preview performances Tuesday, April 5 through Friday, April 8 at 8pm, and opening night is set for Saturday, April 9 at 8:00. The regular performance schedule is Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 3pm through May 29. Preview tickets are $10; regular prices, beginning April 9, are $25 on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday, and $30 on Saturday. Tickets may be purchased by visiting www.tennesseeandanna.com or by calling the Odyssey Theatre box office at (310) 477-2055, extension 2.

The Odyssey Theatre is located at 2055 S. Sepulveda Boulevard, in West Los Angeles, 90025.