Tasty Little Rabbit at Moving Arts Theatre

A true story of intrigue and artists, set during the 1936 Fascist Italian investigation of p*rnography charges in Taormina, Sicily. This artistic prosecution uncovers a much darker secret of an 1890s love triangle involving poet Sebastian Melmoth, photographer Wilhelm Von Gloeden and an 18-year-old Sicilian boy. What might be discovered, and sacrificed, to protect secrets of the heart?

“Benito Mussolini used moral cleansing as a means to gain control of the people in Italy. Tasty Little Rabbit focuses on one such persecution of 1890s photographer Baron Wilhelm von Gloeden,” says director George Bamber. “He was the Gilded Age’s ultimate ‘influencer.’ His photographs of the locals on the Sicilian coast made the village of Taormina a required stop on the grand tour, particularly for prominent men attracted to beautiful male youth. What drew me to the play, what made it essential for me to direct, is Tom’s unparalleled ability to make issues of complexity more understandable. We are too easily manipulated by headlines that force us to stand either on the right or the left. Tom’s skill is holding our focus so we can contemplate the complexity of art vs p*rnography, normative vs deviant orientation, sexual agency vs exploitation.”

Tasty Little Rabbit opens at 8pm on Friday, May 2 and runs at 8pm Fridays and Saturdays, 4pm on Sundays through June 6, 2025. Moving Arts is located at 3191 Casitas Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90039. Tickets are $33; Student $20 (Must show student ID at the door).