LA Writers Center
Mission Statement
The Los Angeles Writers Center is an organization designed to germinate and foster new works by involving not only the playwright, but a team of artists: directors, dramaturges, and actors. The first draft of a play, having emerged on raw and stumbling legs from the womb of the playwright's home computer, often wants more attention and growth before it is ready to race into production.
In classic Catch-22 style, most theatres will only risk hosting a play that is not only ready to be mounted, but one which carries the pedigree of a proven track record. Faced with this wily conundrum, bursting new talent cries out for a sort of incubator for emerging new works; a place where plays can grow and develop into the plays they want to be, without the pressure or expense of production. We believe that the future of American theatre depends upon its ability to grow and stretch; to be itself transformed in the meeting of bold, new voices. Yet producing theatres, faced with the challenges of remaining solvent, must be met halfway. Provided with this safe and nurturing environment in which to read and workshop their work, playwrights are able to hone and sharpen them to a degree that would make them inherently more production-ready, and thus more likely to be produced by theatres of various sizes across the country.
Join Our
Mailing ListThe Syzygy Theatre Group and The Los Angeles Writers Center have joined forces once again to create a new play reading series called New Alignments. Its purpose is to provide playwrights with the opportunity to receive feedback on works-in-progress, to provide the community with an opportunity to participate in and observe the creative process, and to provide actors and directors with an opportunity to hone their craft. All readings will take place at the Sidewalk Studio Theatre in Burbank.
New Alignment
Reading Series Calendar
Presented by The Syzygy Theatre Group and
The LA Writers Center
January 26, 2008
THE GIANT AND THE PIXIE
by Jonathan Josephson; Directed by Martain Bedoian
The Giant and the Pixie is a contemporary fairy tale set simultaneously in a magical realm and a shopping mall. The story centers on Arthur – a contentious Giant who works by day as a janitor – trying to win the heart of Cipriana, a Pixie who also works in the mall. Sebastian – the hotheaded Knight – is not happy with this and wants to get rid of Arthur, but Arthur’s homeless buddy Gregory (the “Troll with a soulâ€) won’t have anything of it. All the while Cipriana’s father, the Magician, watches from a distance with an agenda of his own.NOTE: this reading will be at 3:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
February 16, 2008
BLUE JAY SINGING IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT
by Dale Griffiths Stamos
The story of Jay Jarrell, a once legendary disc jockey from '60s underground radio who finds himself a decade later stuck in the era of less-talk-more-hits radio. Now in his late-40s, he's been relegated to a graveyard shift and to working with a martinet engineer, MAX, who is determined to squeeze him into the mold of the AM DJ, all gloss and no substance. Meanwhile, Jay's much younger songwriter girlfriend, LAURA, whose career he's been nurturing, is wanting to try her own wings and secretly begins to work with a musician, STEVE, on the side. When these two realities converge for Jay, they propel him into a final act that some might call inspiration, others, lunacy, but that is ultimately a proclamation of the self against the odds.NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
March 15, 2008
STRANGE FRUIT ACT III
by Jon Bastian, Directed by Daryl Johnson
We present the third installment of this four act epic story dealing with issues of racism, bigotry, prejudice and hatred in America in the 20th Century and beyond...NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
April 19, 2008
BORDERLINE
by Kelli McNeilNOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
May 17, 2008
LEGACY OF BLOOD
by Neal Alvarez
Unit 751 performed some despicable experiments with human life during World War II. Now an ancestor of one of the men who played a lead role in the experiments must face the ghosts of his past and decide whether or not to forgive his relative for the atrocities that he committed.NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
June 21, 2008
THREE LIONS
by Jon Bastian
In May 1941, Rudolf Hess, Hitler's right hand man, flew solo from Germany to the UK, crash-landing in Scotland. He was captured, and James Bond creator Ian Fleming was put in charge of his interrogation. Fleming contemplated bringing in famed occultist Aleister Crowley to assist, but, officially, he never did. Unofficially, he may have, and "Three Lions" is the story of what could have happened, as three influential men of the 20th Century--and one increasingly liberated woman--come together to figure out secrets, lies and the meaning of life, all before tea time on a pleasant spring day in London.NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
July 19, 2008
TBA
August 16, 2008
COMPANY WOMAN
by Mark Wild
This is a strange and twisted tale about a woman who tortures people for a living and her tortured daughter who ends up switching places with her.NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
September 20, 2008
TBA
October 18, 2008
MASON'S DILEMMA
by William Katt
A new musical about a man who is going through one doozy of a mid-life crisis. While Mason struggles with the hedonistic and artistic parts of himself, the part of him that is a husband and a father fights for its life.NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
November 15, 2008
TARMAC
by Maura Knowels
A new musical about passengers stuck on a tarmac for hours, all of whom need desperately to get where they are going. In the madness, they turn their misery into much needed friendships and some even find love!NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
December 20, 2008
KILLER IN DRAG
by Mark Knowles
A new musical based on Ed Wood's novel about hit man who dresses in drag to do his dirty deeds. During one of his 1940s gigs, he finds love with the local town whore and hopes to settle down with her and start a family.NOTE: this reading will be at 2:00 p.m. at the Grove Theatre Center, 1111-B West Olive Avenue. Click here for a map.
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