Laurel Ollstein News

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley presents the Northern California Premiere of Laurel Ollstein's They Promised Her the Moon. This riveting play shares the incredible, true story of Jerrie Cobb, a world record-holding female aviator who dreamt of flying among the stars. At the height of the Space Race, Cobb and her female peers in the Mercury 13 program trained to become astronauts, ready to join their male counterparts in space and change history, but they never got the chance.

Last night, supporters of TheatreWorks Silicon Valley gathered to hear the 2019 Regional Theatre Tony Award-winning company and its Board of Trustees announce the launch of its 50th Anniversary Campaign, a $5 million fundraising campaign to ensure the future success of the nationally-acclaimed theatre, including commissions for new plays and musicals. 

Pasadena Playhouse, The State Theater of Californiaoffers a wide variety of educational and community events this winter and spring, beginning with a post- performance talk back with Alfred Molina and the cast of The Father, offering an inside-look at the cast's process preparing for this production.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley presents the Northern California Premiere of Laurel Ollstein's They Promised Her The Moon. This riveting play shares the incredible, true story of Jerrie Cobb, a world record-holding female aviator who dreamt of flying among the stars. At the height of the Space Race, Cobb and her female peers in the Mercury 13 program trained to become astronauts, ready to join their male counterparts in space and change history, but they never got the chance. A favorite from TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2018 New Works Festival, They Promised Her The Moon will be directed by TheatreWorks Artistic Associate and Director of New Works Giovanna Sardelli.

The Old Globe today announced it will present the seventh annual Powers New Voices Festival, a weekend of readings of new American plays by some of the most exciting voices writing for the American theatre today, playing January 10a?'12, 2020. Playwrights include Chad Beckim, Jiréh Breon Holder, Tony Meneses, and Karen Zacarías; directors include Shelley Butler, Edward Torres, and James Vásquez.

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley presents the Northern California Premiere of Laurel Ollstein's They Promised Her The Moon. This riveting play shares the incredible, true story of Jerrie Cobb, a world record-holding female aviator who dreamt of flying among the stars. At the height of the Space Race, Cobb and her female peers in the Mercury 13 program trained to become astronauts, ready to join their male counterparts in space and change history, but they never got the chance. A favorite from TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2018 New Works Festival, They Promised Her the Moon will be directed by TheatreWorks Director of New Works Giovanna Sardelli.

Playwrights Foundation announces the appointment of Jessica Bird Beza as Executive Artistic Director for the 43 year-old San Francisco Bay Area arts organization. She brings a range of executive and artistic experience to the position, including serving in leadership roles with The Old Globe, La Jolla Playhouse and Mo'olelo Performing Arts Company, producing three different new play festivals and directing at San Diego REP, La Jolla Playhouse and Theatreworks Silicon Valley.

Lovers of new theatre will gather this August for an advance look at tomorrow's hits at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2019 New Works Festival at Palo Alto's Lucie Stern Theatre. This unique festival offers audiences an extraordinary opportunity to experience new plays and musicals in their early stages of development, and hear about the creative process in a "Meet the Artists" panel discussion. With multiple performances of each work, playwrights and composers are able to revise and refine their shows during the festival, allowing audiences to view the exciting evolution of brand new pieces of theatre. The popular festival runs August 9 - 18, 2019 at the Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto. Festival passes ($65 general$49 season subscribers) and single event tickets ($20) can be purchased online at theatreworks.org or by calling (650) 463-1960.

As the Globe deepens its commitment to making theatre matter to more people, their work expands in service to the public good. The Globe today announced that its signature arts engagement program, Globe for All, will tour Laurel Ollstein's They Promised Her the Moon to four community venues this spring, following its West Coast premiere at the Globe's Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

The Old Globe today announced that the West Coast premiere of Laurel Ollstein's They Promised Her the Moon has been extended by popular demand and will run through May 12, 2019. The first of two shows in the 2018-2019 Season developed in the Globe's Powers New Voices Festival, it wowed Festival audiences with the story of the powerful forces that kept one woman from reaching orbit. Directed by Giovanna Sardelli (the Globe's The Whipping Man and Somewhere), They Promised Her the Moon runs April 6 - May 12, 2019 in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Preview performances run April 6-10. 

TheatreWorks Silicon Valley presents the Northern California premiere of Archduke. Written by Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph, Archduke explores how one man, one moment, can derail an entire century. Focusing on the cataclysmic 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, three hapless insurgents embark on a darkly comic quest for immortality and purpose, unaware that their actions will launch World War I.

The Old Globe today announced the cast and creative team for the West Coast premiere of Laurel Ollstein's They Promised Her the Moon. The first of two shows in the 2018-2019 Globe Season developed in the Globe's Powers New Voices Festival, it wowed Festival audiences with the story of the powerful forces that kept one woman from reaching orbit. Directed by Giovanna Sardelli, They Promised Her the Moon will run April 6 - May 5, 2019 in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. Preview performances run April 6-10. Opening night is Thursday, April 11 at 8:00 p.m. Single tickets start at $30.00 and are now on sale. Tickets can be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE, or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park. They Promised Her the Moon will also have a short Globe for All Spring tour to several of our Community Partner venues following performances at the Globe, details to be announced shortly.

Theatre enthusiasts packed the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts last night to hear Founding Artistic Director Robert Kelley and Executive Director Phil Santora of TheatreWorks Silicon Valley reveal the lineup for the company's 50th season, which launches this summer. Kelley's 50th and final season as Artistic Director of TheatreWorks Silicon Valley includes triumphant returns of TheatreWorks favorites, bold premieres developed at the company's annual New Works Festival, and celebrated works from the nation's leading playwrights.

The Old Globe today announced it will present the sixth annual Powers New Voices Festival, a weekend of readings of new American plays by some of the most exciting voices writing for the American theatre today, playing January 18-20, 2019.

Lovers of new theatre will gather this August for an advance look at tomorrow's hits at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2018 New Works Festival at Palo Alto's Lucie Stern Theatre. This unique festival offers audiences an extraordinary opportunity to experience new plays and musicals in their early stages of development, and hear about the creative process in a "Meet the Artists" panel discussion. With multiple performances of each work, playwrights and composers are able to rewrite scenes, add or delete songs, revise and refine, allowing audiences to return and watch the exciting evolution of brand new pieces of American theatre.

The Old Globe today announced its 2018-2019 Season, a marvelous array of world, American, and West Coast premieres that features hilarious, heartwarming, and provocative works that span eras and continents, genres and cultures, personal experiences and big national themes…and Shakespeare, of course!

Lovers of new theatre will gather this August for an advance look at tomorrow's hits at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2018 New Works Festival. This unique festival offers audiences an extraordinary opportunity to experience new plays and musicals in their early stages of development, give feedback, and participate in a panel discussion with the artists. Playwrights and composers are able to rewrite entire scenes of their shows between performances, allowing audiences to help shape a brand new piece of theatre.

BEDLAM (Eric Tucker, Artistic Director; Kimberly Pau Boston, Managing Director) returns to the work of George Bernard Shaw with their new production of PYGMALION featuring Rajesh Bose as Mr. Doolittle, Annabel Capper, Nigel Gore, Edmund Lewis, Vaishnavi Sharma as Eliza Doolittle, and Eric Tucker as Professor Henry Higgins.

It's Shameful! A Deadbeat Dad's [True] Story by Murray Meyer premieres in the 12th Annual FRIGID Festival in New York City on Feb 16-28, 2018 at Under St. Mark's.

It's Shameful! A Deadbeat Dad's True Story will debut as part of the 11th Annual FRIGID Festival in New York City. It's Shameful! A Deadbeat Dad's True Story is written and performed by storyteller Murray Meyer who has been a practicing criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles for more than thirty years. Director/playwright Laurel Ollstein, who is married to Meyer, will direct. It's Shameful! A Deadbeat Dad's True Story is sponsored by Bad Boy Bail Bonds of Los Angeles.