I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4
OUR NEXT SHOW:
Graphic design by our own Ryan Churchill of CHURCHiE Graphic Design ([email protected])
TheSpyAnts began with a small group of passionate actors that met weekly to read plays in February 2000. After meeting for several months we grew tired of just sitting in someone’s living room reading many exciting classical and contemporary plays. As a result, we decided to take the next step and form our own theater company. One of the most challenging steps was to come up with a name. One day we were brainstorming as a group and thought we are all thespians, which playfully lead to thespyants, and finally we all shouted TheSpyAnts!
TheSpyAnts’ first production, called Choices: An Evening of One-Acts, premiered in May 2000. Since then we have gained non-profit status and created a donor database of over 900 people, and have completed productions that have consistently received rave reviews and sold out houses. Among the more noteable of these are David Cerda 's The Birds: A Tail of Ornithic Proportions, a spoof of the Hitchcock classic, which ran in the summer of 2005, and not only attracted favorable attention from the LA Weekly , and LA Splash , but from two of the films original castmemners, Veronica Cartwright , and Tippi Hedren . In fact, Ms. Hedren asked us to remount the show for one night only in May of 2006 to benefit her wildlife preserve, Shambala , and made a cameo appearance in the show, along with Ms. Cartwright. And if that wasn't enough, our own Marina Mouhibian was nominated in 2006 for the 37th NAACP Image Awards for best costumes, the show's director Kelly Ann Ford was nominated for Best Comedy Directing for the 26th Annual LA Weekly Theatre Awards, and the cast received one for Best Comedy Ensemble. Then in the summer of 2006, we began what turned out to be a four month run of our interactive show The Reunion, which we all wrote together, and was co-directed by Danny Parker-Lopes and Darcy Halsey . The show generated a huge buzz , including from KNBC's YourLA. Check it out:
TheSpyAnts have always focused on assisting the Los Angeles community and have established a tradition of donating all profits from designated shows to a selected charity. Past beneficiaries have included the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), the Jeffrey Goodman Special Care Clinic, the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women (LACAAW), The Roar Foundation/The Shambala Preserve, Planned Parenthood and CureSearch, sponsored a family in the Women’s Care Cottage Adopt-a-Family holiday program, volunteered with weSPARK Cancer Support Center, and donated tickets to volunteers of Project Angel Food, AIDS Project Los Angeles and AIDS Ride LA.
TheSpyAnts have made a name for themselves as a fun as well as daring theatre company, so keep your eyes here and at our our website for information on our upcoming shows and events!
The 2008 TheSpyAnts Theatre Company members are:
Ken Arquelio , Eric Bunton , Natalie Compagno , Ryan Churchill , Ryan Dornbusch , Etienne Eckert , Kim Estes , Lori Evans Taylor , Madelyne Fattibene , Addi Gaash , W. Shay Hammond , Linc Hand , Brett Hren , Tammy Kaitz , Florian Klein , Shelby Kyle , Mari Marks , Dawn Merkel , Marina Mouhibian , Jerry Pappas , Danny Parker-Lopes , Hal Perry , Maria Tomas , Stephanie Turner , Scott Krinsky , Breeze Braunschweig , and Lane Maser
