This marks the second year of the Playhouse's initiative. The company will be in residence at La Jolla Playhouse July-September 2009, in the Mandell Weiss Forum Studio.

The program was spearheaded by La Jolla Playhouse artistic director Christopher Ashley. The Resident Theatre Program aims to encourage the artistic development of up-and-coming theatre companies, while advancing and contributing to the San Diego theatre scene as a whole," according to LJP notes. "The program is also designed to address the lack of available, affordable performance spaces by providing a temporary home each year to one of the many local theatre troupes without a permanent venue."

"There is such an abundance of dynamic and diverse theatre companies in San Diego, yet such a dearth of available theatre spaces. We are delighted to be in a position to share our facilities with a local theatre company each year, providing not only the opportunity to use the space at no cost, but to offer crucial production and administrative support as well," Ashley said in a statement. "In just a few years, MOXIE Theatre has become one of the most adventurous and electrifying theatre companies in San Diego, and we couldn't be more excited to present their work on our stages as part of the Resident Theatre Program."

MOXIE Theatre is a professional non-profit theatre founded by the critically-acclaimed group of performers and directors: Jo Anne Glover, Liv Kellgren, Delicia Turner Sonnenberg and Jennifer Eve Thorn. The mission of MOXIE Theatre is "to expand the idea of what is feminine by using the intimate art of theatre to create more honest and diverse female images for our culture."

MOXIE Theatre has garnered numerous local awards since its inception in 2004, including five San Diego Critics Circle "Craig Noel" Awards, among them the Des McAnuff New Visions Award for MOXIE Theatre artistic director Delicia Turner Sonnenberg. "What a thrill to be chosen as this year's resident theatre company at La Jolla Playhouse and to be able to bring our work to a whole new audience," Sonnenberg said in a statement. "That the Playhouse has offered us this temporary home demonstrates their amazing enthusiasm for fostering local talent and developing partnerships in this vibrant theatre community."

The Resident Theatre Program is an annual appointment at La Jolla Playhouse. In addition to the performance space, the Playhouse provides lighting and sound support and is available to provide marketing and development advice. No artistic direction is provided by the Playhouse, nor direct funding for projects.

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The Tony Award-winning not-for-profit La Jolla Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and Mel Ferrer. Playhouse productions have moved to Broadway, including Big River, The Who's Tommy, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, A Walk in the Woods, Dracula, Billy Crystal's 700 Sundays, the Pulitzer Prize-winning I Am My Own Wife, Jersey Boys, The Farnsworth Invention, Cry-Baby and 33 Variations. Located on the UCSD campus, La Jolla Playhouse is made up of three performance spaces: the Mandell Weiss Theatre, the Mandell Weiss Forum Theatre, and the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Center for La Jolla Playhouse, a theatre complex which features the Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre.