The Actors' Gang, About Productions and The Black Artists Workshop will collaborate to bring five weeks of theatrical excitement to the L.A. community, in this years' LocoMotion Theatre Festival, Oct. 31-Dec. 7.
LocoMotion spans the horizons of the theatre world, bringing together a variety of plays and musicals which explore everything from tabloid sideshow freaks to one man's search for identity as we approach the end of the century.
The schedule for the LocoMotion Festival is as follows:
Cross Genres, Collaboration, and Unexpected Presentations- will be on the opening weekend of the festival, Nov. 1 and 2. A panel discussion about bringing new work to unexpected locations, and cross genre experimental work will be moderated by Theresa Chavez, the Co- Artistic Director of About Productions. The Sacred Naked Nature Girls, an experimental performance collective of four women who use their bodies as the primary source of text, will be presenting a workshop. Also presenting workshops will be: The Actors' Gang, Cornerstone Theatre, and Builders Association. Works-in-progress include: About Productions' Memory Rites and The Actors' Gang's Bat Boy: The Musical.
Bat Boy: The Musical (October 31-December 7) - Opening on Halloween Night is the world premiere of The Actors' Gang horro-comic musical, Bat Boy. Bat Boy, a half-bat/half-boy, was made legendary by the brave journalism of the supermarket tabloid, The Weekly World News. This musical rendition of his story spans his entire life from his discovery in a West Virginia cave to his thirteen state reign of terror to his tragic early demise. The Actors' Gang was founded by Tim Robbins in 1981, and specializes in creating/performing challenging productions.
"We didn't want to do the usual Bat Boy story," says co-writer Brian Flemming. " Our goal with Bat Boy: The Musical is to get inside the little freak's head and present him with compassion, instead of the hysteria that infects most of the news accounts." Vox (November 7-December 7)- presented by About Productions, is an ensemble piece about the life of Joan of Arc. Using multi-media as the means, the classic images of Joan are challenged as Antonin Artaud forces Joan to confront the voices inside her. Founded in 1988, About Productions attempts to combine artistic genres (i.e. dance, film, theatre...) to create a theatre "experience" rather than another "show".
Jungle Bells (Nov. 7-Dec. 7)- presented by The Black Theatre Artists Workshop, is a solo theatrical performance based on one African American's journey back to Africa in search of his present identity. Jungle Bells is written and performed by Shabaka Barry Henley. The Black Theatre Artists Workshop was created in 1988 to produce theatre that reflects the aesthetic vision of America's Black community through provocative and inspiring drama. Members of the Workshop include Danny Glover, Howard Drartch and Ted Lange.
The entire festival will take place at The Actors Gang Theatre at 6201 Santa Monica Blvd in L.A., for reservations for the events call Theatix at (213) 466-1767.
--By Sean McGrath
