James Lecesne's THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY Travels to Los Angeles Tonight

The critically acclaimed off-Broadway hit THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY, written by and starring James Lecesne, the writer of the Academy Award-winning film Trevor, begins a limited 23 performance engagement at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, tonight, January 13. The show runs through January 31, 2016 (press opening Thursday January 14).

This new play, just awarded the United Solo Special Award and is a New York Times Critic's Pick, is produced by Darren Bagert and Daryl Roth, directed by Tony Speciale, with original music by Tony Award-winning composer Duncan Sheik.

THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY is a guest production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. Tickets priced from $25 are available at absolutebrightnessplay.com or by calling (213) 972-4488.

Veteran New York actor and writer James Lecesne portrays every character in a small Jersey shore town as they unravel the story of Leonard Pelkey, a tenaciously optimistic and flamboyant 14 year-old boy who goes missing. A luminous force of nature whose magic is only truly felt once he disappears, Leonard becomes the unexpected inspiration for a town as they question how they live, who they love and what they leave behind.

James Lecesne wrote the screenplay for the Academy Award winning short film Trevor, which inspired the founding of the organization, The Trevor Project, which provides a 24-hour phone line and other resources for youth (much needed, 1,500 people called in on its first day). Lecesne's novel, Trevor, was just selected as one of Italy's ten must-reads for young adults, in a list that also includes Hans Christian Andersen, Roald Dahl, Nick Hornby and J.K. Rowling.

Lecesne has created several solo shows including Word of Mouth, which was presented by Mike Nichols and Elaine May and directed by Eve Ensler (NY Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award) and the acclaimed One Man Band.

His acting credits include the original production of Cloud 9 (Lucille Lortel), the 30th Anniversary production of The Boys in the Band (Lucille Lortel), I Am My Own Wife (Hartford Stage), Motherhood Out Loud (Primary Stages), and Gore Vidal's The Best Man on Broadway. For television, he adapted Armistead Maupin's "Further Tales of the City" for Showtime (Emmy Award nomination) and was a writer for "Will and Grace." His play The Mother of Invention starred Linda Lavin and premiered at NY Stage and Film.

The play is based on his young adult novel, Absolute Brightness, published by Harper Collins, which received The William Morris Award by the American Librarian Association and was nominated for The Lambda Literary Award.

In New York, following a sold-out run at Dixon Place, THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY began performance on Saturday, July 11, running July 27 to October 18, at the Westside Theatre.

THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY has scenic design by Jo Winiarski, lighting design by Matt Richards, sound design by Christian Frederickson, projection design by Aaron Rhyne, original animation & photography by Matthew Sandager, and costumes by Paul Marlow. It is produced by Darren Bagert, Daryl Roth, Jane Dubin, Curtis Forsythe, Michael Mayer, Diane Procter, Seaview Productions and Minerva Productions/Joshua Goodman.

Biographies:

Darren Bagert (Producer) is a multiple-award-winning producer including the Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics' Circle, Drama League, Obie and Lucille Lortel. His Broadway productions include An American in Paris (Tony Award nominee), Side Show, Of Mice and Men, The Glass Menagerie (Tony Award nominee), Gore Vidal's The Best Man (Tony Award nominations both productions, 2012 & 2000), Company (Tony Award winner), Sweeney Todd (Tony Award nominee), Frozen (Tony Award nominee), Long Day's Journey Into Night (Tony Award winner) and others. His Off-Broadway credits include such long-running award-winning plays as Buyer & Cellar and My Name Is Asher Lev. Darren hopes everyone embraces the Absolute Brightness found in everyone around us. Thank you James Lecesne for your beautiful gift of storytelling-we are all moved because of you.
Daryl Roth (Producer) holds the singular distinction of producing seven Pulitzer Prize-winning plays: Anna in the Tropics; August: Osage County (2008 Tony); Clybourne Park (2012 Tony); How I Learned to Drive; Proof (2001 Tony); Edward Albee's Three Tall Women; and Wit. The proud recipient of eight Tony Awards including Kinky Boots (2013), her over 90 award winning productions include: Absolute Brightness; Buyer & Cellar; Caroline, or Change; Curtains; A Delicate Balance; The Goat or Who is Sylvia (2002 Tony); It Shoulda Been You; Love, Loss, and What I Wore; The Normal Heart (2011 Tony); Sylvia; The Tale of the Allergist's Wife; War Horse (2011 Tony); Wiesenthal; The Year of Magical Thinking; and You Can't Take It With You. www.DarylRothProductions.com.

Tony Speciale (Director) is the founder of Plastic Theatre-conceiving, co-authoring and directing the world premiere of The Secret Court (formerly Unnatural Acts; Drama Desk nominee, GLAAD Media Award nominee). NYC: THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY (The Dixon Place); A Midsummer Night's Dream featuring Bebe Neuwirth, Christina Ricci and Taylor Mac (Classic Stage Company); Handbook for an American Revolutionary (The Gym at Judson); and Remembering Mr. Maugham (Clurman Theatre). Regional: Barry Manilow's Harmony (Allegiance Theatre/Ahmanson Theatre) and Romeo and Juliet (Actors Theatre of Louisville). Tony served four seasons as Associate Artistic Director at Classic Stage Company, studied musical theatre at The Boston Conservatory and holds an M.F.A. in Directing from Columbia University. He is also the proud recipient of a Princess Grace Theatre Honorarium and a Suzi Bass Award. www.tonyspeciale.com

Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy

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