Lloyd Pedersen News

The Group Rep opens its 45th Season with two James McLure one-act comedies, LAUNDRY AND BOURBON and LONE STAR, directed by Barbara Brownell, produced by Lloyd Pedersen. Three young women who are neighbors and friends share drinks and hard truths about life, love, and marriage while doing laundry on a very hot day. In another part of town three men beat-the-heat in the backyard of a bar as the local high school hero, recently returned after a hitch in Vietnam, details his military and amorous exploits. Laughs are shared, souls are bared.

Actress/director Barbara Brownell has numerous credits as an actress. Broadway: Play it Again, Sam and The Ballad of Johnny Pot.  King Lear at the Actor's Studio, NY.  Touring: Oklahoma, On a Clear Day.  Regional: Zing!, Barefoot in the Park, Star Spangled Girl.  L.A.: Happy Birthday Wanda June, Dylan, A Case of Libel, Early Cabaret, Chicago, Dull Pain. She won the 2017 Broadway World award for Best Leading Actress in a play, LA . T.V. shows include Mad Men, Big Love, Night Court (3), Grey's Anatomy, Monk, L.A. Law, Bob Newhart, Mary Tyler Moore, and recurring on Webster and MASH.  Films include Behind the Candelabra, Going Home, Hearts of the West, Someone to Watch Over Me, Ants, Mark of the Witch, and The Master.  In this interview, Brownell discusses acting and directing Laundry and Bourbon and Lone Star at The Group Rep, set to open this Friday January 25.

A CAROL CHRISTMASbook by Doug Havertymusic & lyrics by Bruce Kimmeldirected by Bruce KimmelGroup Rep, NoHothrough December 30 So many versions of A Christmas Carol surface in November and December in local theatres, but most are really not worthy of your attention. This year exceptions are the Geffen's spectacular one-man version ... and... Group Rep is really turning up the heat with an original contemporary musical entitled A Carol Christmas. With a cast of 20 on their wide stage, Group Rep offers its audiences a terrifically enjoyable time this holiday season through December 30.

Broadway had one of its greatest commercial hits and the longest running comedy-thriller with Ira Levin's Deathtrap in 1978, and it was later on film in 1982 with Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve. Like Sleuth  before it, Deathtrap makes a game out of murder with plot twists too numerable to mention, and adds just a small amount of comedy to make it all palatable. It's a play within a play, making it doubly intriguing to watch. Now on stage at Group rep, this new production of the classic is sturdy with fine direction from Jules Aaron and a top notch cast.

The Group Rep presents their second Nine Winning One-Acts event, featuring fresh world premiere plays chosen from more than 150 entries from around the country.

The Group Rep presents Ira Levin's comic thriller Deathtrap directed by Jules Aaron, produced by Larry Eisenberg. One of the great popular successes of Broadway history and Tony nominated for Best Play in 1978, Deathtrap deals with the devious machinations of a writer of thrillers who is prepared to go to any lengths to improve his fortunes. Deathtrap runs April 6 through May 20 at the Lonny Chapman Theatre in North Hollywood.

Another video from the Stages Musical Theatre Festival was just released this week. New Musicals Inc. aired 51 hours of live streamcast footage of musical theatre readings, concerts, creative sessions, as well as interviews with writers and producers, all part of the most recent Stages Musical Theatre Festival. The Festival ran for fifteen years in Chicago before New Musicals Inc. brought it to the West Coast about a decade ago.

It's the most wonderful time of the year, especially for the Group Rep at the Lonny Chapman Theatre, which for 38 years has provided holiday cheer for children-in-need.

A Midsummer Night's Dream is a Shakesperean treasure as it unites reality with fantasy in a dreamlike manner that puts audience in a happy mood, perfect for the holidays at hand. Now onstage at Group rep in NoHo, the play is directed by classically trained actor/director Marc Singer, who creates a gratifying production onstage through December 31. This is an ambitious project for Group rep who normally do their best work with Neil

The Group Rep presents William Shakespeare's beloved popular comedy A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, directed by Marc Singer, produced by Mannette Antill. This romantic fantasy, set in royal court and enchanted forest, weaves together four plots all joined to the upcoming nuptials of the Duke and his Amazon queen. Under the light of the moon, we're privy to the magical adventures of four young Athenian lovers and six amateur actors, all controlled and manipulated by a warring fairy King and Queen. The play runs November 17 through December 31 at the Lonny Chapman Theatre in North Hollywood at the edge of the NoHo Arts District.

The Group Rep presents William Shakespeare's beloved popular comedy A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, directed by Marc Singer, produced by Mannette Antill.

The Group Rep presents William Shakespeare's beloved popular comedy A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, directed by Marc Singer, produced by Mannette Antill.

The Group Rep extends their well-received production of Agatha Christie's New York Critic's Circle Award-winning play, Witness for the Prosecution, directed by Jules Aaron and featuring Guest Artist Salome Jens, a mystery about a man on trial for murder whose enigmatic wife is called as a 'witness for the prosecution' whereupon a series of plot twists, deceptions and lies are dramatically uncovered. Scroll down for a first look at the cast in action!

There's nothing like a good old fashioned mystery to keep you on the edge of your theatre seat, especially one that's written by the grande dame of the genre Agatha Christie. The Mousetrap was one of the longest running plays on the West End for umpteen years. As I sat at Group rep Friday night watching Witness for the Prosecution, which is rarely revived, I really tuned in to the dialogue. It is so well constructed, and the dozen or so characters are deliciously humorous. I am happy to report that the new production at Group rep directed by skilled veteran Jules Aaron and starring guest artist Salome Jens and Larry Eisenberg is akin to a jolly good rollercoaster ride. It's delightfully entertaining and can be seen through March 12.

Musical geniuses of yesteryear like Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart or Bach ... ah, a chosen few who left an unparalleled legacy...but not without bitter resentment and treachery from rivals, some talented, some not... Remember Amadeus by Peter Schaeffer? Salieri stopped at nothing to thwart Mozart's success. Well, now Itamar Moses pits not one, but seven musicians against one another for the coveted position of choirmaster/organist after Johann Kunau dies literally at the organ at Thomaskirche, Leipzig in 1722. There's a flurry of fanciful farce amongst the competitiveness currently onstage in Moses's Bach at Leipzig at Group rep, directed by the brilliant Calvin Remsberg and boasting a devilishly versatile cast, through May 1.

There are undoubtedly other productions worthy of merit in 2015 which I did not cover. This list is based only on what I saw and reviewed. (alphabetical listings; Equity, Equity-waiver & Non-Equity productions are mixed) (artists performing outside LA may be included in performance categories) No set, costume, or technical awards. I leave that to the bigger awards and to the expertise of those who really know those fields inside out.

As a companion piece to Eric Simonson's Lombardi on the main stage, Group rep presents Lee Blessing's The Winning Streak on their second stage. Both plays involve sports: Lombardi, football and The Winning Streak, baseball. For full enjoyment of Lombardi, it helps to be a football fan; for The Winning Streak, you need not care at all about baseball. Whereas Lombardi derives its spark from the spirit of the sport, Streak's comes totally from the human spirit. Blessing's brilliance as a writer is in his ability to show human conflict full-out, and there is no finer example of a dysfunctional father/son relationship than this play.

Playwright LEE BLESSING will be attending The Group Rep's production of his play THE WINNING STREAK, today - August 8th at 2pm,guesting at the talk-back afterwards, at the Lonny Chapman Theatre, 10900Burbank Blvd., in North Hollywood 91601. The play opened last weekend to favorable reviews, runs  through August 30th, Todays at 2:00 PM and Sunday evenings at 7:00 PM.   

Playwright LEE BLESSING will be attending The Group Rep's production of his play THE WINNING STREAK, this Saturday - August 8th at 2pm,guesting at the talk-back afterwards, at the Lonny Chapman Theatre, 10900Burbank Blvd., in North Hollywood 91601. The play opened last weekend to favorable reviews, runs  through August 30th, Saturdays at 2:00 PM and Sunday evenings at 7:00 PM.   

The Group Rep presents Lee Blessing's The Winning Streak, directed by Sherry Netherland, produced by Lloyd Pedersen, a funny and moving two-character bittersweet comedy about the need for family in us all, combines drama and baseball to craft a moving tale of a son's search to meet and understand the father he never knew. The production opens tonight, August 1, and BroadwayWorld has a first look at the stars in action below!