For Immediate Release
6/23/2013
For interviews and features contact:
Phil Elman, General Manager
518.828.7843
contact@stageworkshudson.org
STAGEWORKS/HUDSON PRESENTS THE REGIONAL PREMIERE OF
LOOPED BY MATTHEW LOMBARDO
STARRING EMMY NOMINATED ACTRESS COLLEEN ZENK
July 10 to 28, 2013
LOOPED
By Matthew Lombardo
Directed by Laura Margolis
Previews: July 10 and 11
Opens: July 12
Closes: July 28
Stageworks/Hudson continues its 2013 season with the regional premiere of the new play, LOOPED by Matthew Lombardo on Friday, July 12, 2013. Preview performances are July 10 and 11. LOOPED runs Wednesdays through Sundays through July 28 at Stageworks’ Max and Lillian Katzman Theater, 41 Cross Street, Hudson, New York.
LOOPED features veteran film, television and stage actors, Colleen Zenk, Michael Rhodes and Steven Austin Young. LOOPED is directed by Laura Margolis, artistic director of Stageworks.
"Inspired by a true story involving the great actress, Tallulah Bankhead, "Looped" is a scathingly funny and delicately touching journey of two lives as they twist and turn to a surprising and unforgettable finish," comments Laura Margolis. "We are honored to be one of the first regional theaters to produce this hilarious and moving new play and delighted to have Emmy nominated actress Colleen Zenk take on the role of Tallulah."
"Looped" finds Tallulah Bankhead, the internationally celebrated actress, being called into a sound studio in 1965 to re-record (or "loop") one line of dialogue for what, in the end, would be her last film – the thriller "Die, Die My Darling." Given her inebriated state and inability to loop the line properly, what ensues is an uproarious showdown between an uptight film editor and the outsized legend.
Stageworks is pleased to welcome Colleen Zenk to its stage in the role of Tallulah Bankhead. Colleen is a veteran theater and film actor who is also known to daytime television fans as fashionista-heroine turned homewrecker-evil mother from hell-diva-cougar "Barbara Ryan" on the iconic daytime drama "As the World Turns," a role she played continuously from 1978 until the show left the airwaves in 2010. Her portrayal earned her three Emmy Award nominations: Outstanding Lead Actress in 2002 and 2011, and Outstanding Supporting Actress in 2001. Colleen's film credits include: "Annie" (dir, John Huston), "Libby," "Woman on the Ledge" and "You'd Better Watch Out." She has appeared on Broadway in BRING BACK BIRDIE (opposite Chita Rivera, Donald O'Connor) and Off Broadway in ODYSSEY-THE EPIC MUSICAL, SUMMER STOCK NYC, MARRYING GEORGE CLOONEY and MAMA & HER BOYS. Her regional theater credits include FOLLIES, HELLO DOLLY!, APPLAUSE, LOVE LETTERS, PORTRAITS, THEY'RE PLAYING OUR SONG, CAN-CAN, WHERE'S CHARLEY?, MY FAIR LADY, MUSIC MAN, BAREFOOT IN THE PARK, and among many others. Colleen has written and developed a new one-woman show "STILL SASSY" which incorporates her lifelong career as an actress and her very public battle as an Oral Cancer survivor. She is the recipient of numerous awards for her activism including the NYU Strusser Humanitarian Award, American Cinema Humanitarian Award and the March of Dimes-Mother of the Year. She is a member of Board of Governors of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
In the role of Danny, the film editor who got roped into looping Tallulah's one line is Michael Rhodes. Michael is the Artistic Director of Tangent Theatre Company in Tivoli, NY, where he most recently directed their Spring production of Donald Margulies' SIGHT UNSEEN. Acting credits with Tangent include the American Premiere of THE GOOD FATHER, THE ZOO STORY, DOUBT: A PARABLE, WAITING FOR GODOT, SUBWAY SERIES and WANDERERS. Other plays: GOOD PEOPLE and CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION with Half Moon Theatre Company, THE DANGERS OF ELECTRIC LIGHTING with Shadowland Theatre, GOD OF CARNAGE with River Valley Rep and Edward Albee's THREE TALL WOMEN (American, Off Broadway premieres).
Steven Austin Young appears as Steve, the sound technician caught between these dueling personalities. Steven is a both an actor and writer. As a young actor, he performed in numerous productions at Ellen Stewart's La MaMa and the WPA Theatre. His early TV credits include manipulating one of the two puppet babies in the original "Free to be You and Me" and in corporate films with the Muppets. His career includes work in corporate theatre where his writing earned him two Telly awards. Locally, he has performed with the Tangent Theatre Company in Tivoli, appeared as the Stage Manager in the Red Hook Performing Arts production of OUR TOWN and recorded radio spots for WKZE.
Playwright Matthew Lombardo made his Broadway debut with LOOPED. The play, which had its world premiere at the Pasadena Playhouse, was subsequently performed at the Cuillo Center for the Arts in West Palm Beach, Arena Stage in Washington DC and a current national tour. He is also the author of TEA AT FIVE, the Katharine Hepburn bio-play which starred actress Kate Mulgrew. That production (which won the IRNE Award for Best Solo Play) had a successful run Off-Broadway at the Promenade Theatre and continues to tour the country. Other New York credits include directing END OF THE WORLD PART by Chuck Ranberg at the 47th Street Theatre; MOTHER AND CHILD at the McGinn/Cazale Theatre; and GUILTY INNOCENCE at the Actors' Playhouse, serving the latter two productions as both playwright and director. Regionally, he has directed the 20th anniversary production of Harvey Fierstein's TORCH SONG TRILOGY at the American Stage Company and the West Coast premiere of MOTHER AND CHILD starring Tony Award-winning actress Ann Wedgeworth at the Coast Playhouse. His work has been performed at regional theaters across the country including Hartford Stage, American Repertory Theatre, Cleveland Play House and Seattle Rep. He has most recently completed a new drama entitled HIGH, starring actress Kathleen Turner. Matthew is the recipient of a Writers Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement.
Talk-backs with the cast, director will occur directly after the performances on July 18 and July 25. For ticket information and purchase, call 518-822-9667, or visit www.stageworkshudson.org.
Stageworks' 2013 season is made possible, in part, with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, the Ernest O'Reaugh Fund and the Shubert Foundation.
FACT SHEET
Cast, Playwright and Director:
COLLEEN ZENK (Tallulah Bankhead) is a veteran theater and film actor who is also known to daytime television fans as fashionista-heroine turned homewrecker-evil mother from hell-diva-cougar "Barbara Ryan" on the iconic daytime drama "As the World Turns," a role she played continuously from 1978 until the show left the airwaves in 2010. Her portrayal earned her three Emmy Award nominations: Outstanding Lead Actress in 2002 and 2011, and Outstanding Supporting Actress in 2001. Colleen's film credits include: "Annie" (dir, John Huston), "Libby," "Woman on the Ledge" and "You'd Better Watch Out." She has appeared on Broadway in BRING BACK BIRDIE (opposite Chita Rivera, Donald O'Connor) and Off Broadway in ODYSSEY-THE EPIC MUSICAL, SUMMER STOCK NYC, MARRYING GEORGE CLOONEY and MAMA & HER BOYS. Her regional theater credits include FOLLIES, HELLO DOLLY!, APPLAUSE, LOVE LETTERS, PORTRAITS, THEY'RE PLAYING OUR SONG, CAN-CAN, WHERE'S CHARLEY?, MY FAIR LADY, MUSIC MAN, BAREFOOT IN THE PARK, and among many others. Colleen has written and developed a new one-woman show "STILL SASSY" which incorporates her lifelong career as an actress and her very public battle as an Oral Cancer survivor. She is the recipient of numerous awards for her activism including the NYU Strusser Humanitarian Award, American Cinema Humanitarian Award and the March of Dimes-Mother of the Year. She is a member of Board of Governors of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
MICHAEL RHODES (Danny) is the Artistic Director of Tangent Theatre Company in Tivoli, NY, where he most recently directed their Spring production of Donald Margulies' SIGHT UNSEEN. Acting credits with Tangent include the American Premiere of THE GOOD FATHER, THE ZOO STORY, DOUBT: A PARABLE, WAITING FOR GODOT, SUBWAY SERIES and WANDERERS. Other plays: GOOD PEOPLE and CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION with Half Moon Theatre Company, THE DANGERS OF ELECTRIC LIGHTING with Shadowland Theatre, GOD OF CARNAGE with River Valley Rep and Edward Albee's THREE TALL WOMEN (American, Off Broadway premieres).
STEVEN AUSTIN YOUNG (Steve) is a both an actor and writer. As a young actor, he performed in numerous productions at Ellen Stewart's La MaMa and the WPA Theatre. His early TV credits include manipulating one of the two puppet babies in the original "Free to be You and Me" and in corporate films with the Muppets. His career includes work in corporate theatre where his writing earned him two Telly awards. Locally, he has performed with the Tangent Theatre Company in Tivoli, appeared as the Stage Manager in the Red Hook Performing Arts production of OUR TOWN and recorded radio spots for WKZE.
MATTHEW LOMBARDO (Playwright) made his Broadway debut with LOOPED. The play, which had its world premiere at the Pasadena Playhouse, was subsequently performed at the Cuillo Center for the Arts in West Palm Beach, Arena Stage in Washington DC and a current national tour. He is also the author of TEA AT FIVE, the Katharine Hepburn bio-play which starred actress Kate Mulgrew. That production (which won the IRNE Award for Best Solo Play) had a successful run Off-Broadway at the Promenade Theatre and continues to tour the country. Other New York credits include directing END OF THE WORLD PART by Chuck Ranberg at the 47th Street Theatre; MOTHER AND CHILD at the McGinn/Cazale Theatre; and GUILTY INNOCENCE at the Actors' Playhouse, serving the latter two productions as both playwright and director. Regionally, he has directed the 20th anniversary production of Harvey Fierstein's TORCH SONG TRILOGY at the American Stage Company and the West Coast premiere of MOTHER AND CHILD starring Tony Award-winning actress Ann Wedgeworth at the Coast Playhouse. His work has been performed at regional theaters across the country including Hartford Stage, American Repertory Theatre, Cleveland Play House and Seattle Rep. He has most recently completed a new drama entitled HIGH, starring actress Kathleen Turner. Matthew is the recipient of a Writers Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement.
LAURA MARGOLIS (Director) is the founder and Artistic Director of Stageworks/Hudson. Her directing credits for Stageworks include: TOMORROW IN THE BATTLE (World Premiere), TENNIS IN NABLUS (East Coast Premiere), IMAGINING MADOFF (Premiere), NOWHERE ON THE BORDER (World Premiere), CAR TALK (World Premiere), FALLING: A WAKE (American premiere), A WEDDING STORY (American premiere), DOG STORIES (World premiere) and many regional premieres such as OMNIUM GATHERUM, LEBENSRAUM, BRUTAL IMAGINATION and WIT. Highlighting her career are the plays she has directed for Stageworks' annual Play by Play Festival of New One-Acts. Regionally, she has directed at Capital Rep, Proctors, SUNY/Albany, among others. Laura has received the Certificate of Recognition from the Columbia County Board of Supervisors for providing original and creative opportunities to the community and the Columbia County Arts Award for Artist "for excellence in developing and fostering the arts in Columbia County." She has served on the NYSCA Theater Panel. Laura attended Brooklyn College's MFA in Arts Administration program and has taught as an adjunct professor of theater at SUNY/Albany.
Design Team:
The design team includes: Randall Parsons (Set Design), Frank DenDanto, (Lighting Design), George Veale VI (Costume Design), Phil Elman (Sound Design/Technical Director), Dan Udell (Video Design). The Stage Manager is Jen Dobies.
About Stageworks/Hudson
Stageworks has established a reputation for its ambitious programming and adventurous productions. The company is especially known for producing the bold, risk-taking work of new dramatic voices. Central to its vision is Futures, an integrative program designed to move Stageworks to the forefront of new play development. Stageworks is both the experiment and the resource to infuse the whole life of the theater with a creative process that produces new ways of expressing, interpreting and sharing the human experience.
Stageworks is a member of Theatre Communications Group, the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and Perform Columbia. It is the recipient of a Proctors Regional Arts Award inaugurated by Proctors Theatre in 2008 to honor the outstanding work of performing arts organizations. For four consecutive years, Stageworks was distinguished in Metroland Magazine as "Best Theater Company." Stageworks is recipient of the Crystal Apple Award from the Chamber of Commerce for providing a positive effect both culturally and economically on the quality of life in our community.
Plays are for everyone, whether written by students, established authors or emerging dramatists. Theater illuminates, expresses and interprets the human experience and profoundly serves as a global stage for social exchange and enrichment. Stageworks complements its main season with a series of programs to encourage and engage young people, traditional theatergoers and new audiences. Stageworks continues to actively take a leadership role in establishing the Hudson Valley as a cultural destination by exploring and expanding its reputation for developing new theatrical works, forms and programs.
Calendar of Events
Previews: July 10 and 11
Opening: Friday, July 12
Closing: Sunday, July 28
Performance Calendar
LOOPED at Stageworks/Hudson
Wednesday at 7:30 pm: July 10, July 17, July 24.
Thursday at 7:30 pm: July 11, July 18, July 25.
Friday at 8:00 pm: July 12, July 19, July 26.
Saturday at 8:00 pm: July 13, July 20, July 27.
Saturday Matinee at 2:00 pm: July 27.
Sunday Matinee at 2:00 pm: July 14, July 21, July 28.
Talk Back with the cast and directors post-performance: July 18 & July 25.
Cast:
Colleen Zenk, Michael Rhodes and Steven Austin Young.
Playwright:
Matthew Lombardo
Production Team
Laura Margolis, Director
The design team includes: Randall Parsons (Set Design), Frank DenDanto, (Lighting Design), George Veale VI (Costume Design), Phil Elman (Sound Design/Technical Director), Dan Udell (Video Design). The Stage Manager is Jen Dobies, Assistant Stage Managers are Greg Cross and Matt Michael.
Tickets
For tickets or information, contact Stageworks by mail at 41-A Cross Street, Hudson, NY 12534 or call the box office at (518) 822-9667. For further information, visit the website at www.stageworkshudson.org.
Single ticket prices are:
$18 for preview performances
$24 for Weekdays, Matinees and Sundays
$29 for Friday and Saturday evening performances.
Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more and there are special rates for students and seniors.
Visit Stageworks' home page for more details at www.stageworkshudson.org.
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