RECENT NEWS

Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas face off
when L.A. Theatre Works tours Norman Corwin's “The Rivalry”

Just in time for the 2012 election campaign, L.A. Theatre Works returns to performing arts centers and theaters across the country with its acclaimed radio-theater production of The Rivalry.

Shannon Cochran directs Robert Parsons and Josh Clark as Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas, heated rivals for the U.S. Senate seat in Illinois. Rebecca Mozo co-stars as Adele, the young wife of Senator Douglas through whose lens we witness the proceedings.

The Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 tackled the day's most passionate issue - slavery. Taken directly from the transcripts, The Rivalry recreates the face off between Abraham Lincoln, rising Illinois legislator and abolitionist candidate of the newly formed Republican party, and Senator Stephen A. Douglas, the Democratic incumbent and champion of states' rights.  The series of seven debates that took place in seven Congressional districts were conducted in a fever of partisanship as the nation listened.  Brass bands played, and the press vilified or glorified the opponents, depending on which side they took.

“What is so heartbreakingly different from today's political scene is how principled they both were, putting the nation before their own hopes,” notes L.A. Theatre Works Producing Artistic Director Susan Loewenberg.

Although Douglas was re-elected Senator from Illinois, the debates brought Lincoln into the national consciousness and helped send him on to the presidency.

The Rivalry opened in Vancouver, Canada in 1958 with Raymond Massey and Martin Gabel, then toured the Eastern U.S. before opening on Broadway on February 12, 1959 (Lincoln's birthday) with Gabel and Richard Boone.  “For substance and originality, it would be difficult to improve on Norman Corwin's ‘The Rivalry,’ “ wrote Brooks Atkinson in his review.  “In every respect, ‘The Rivalry’ is a stirring piece of work.”

For three decades, L.A. Theatre Works has been the leading radio theater company in the United States, committed to using innovative technologies to preserve and promote significant works of dramatic literature and bringing live theater into the homes of millions. The company’s public radio series, featuring stage plays performed by America's top actors augmented by interviews with the artists and others, can be heard in over 100 markets nationwide and can also be streamed on demand at www.latw.org. Over 9,000 libraries carry LATW's plays on audio, and recordings and teaching materials are used by over 2,000 middle and high schools across the country.

About the Artists:

Norman Corwin (Playwright) is one of the greatest living writers in the English language, and has been called America's “poet laureate of radio.”   During the 1930s and 40s, he wrote and produced many of the most powerful and most influential programs ever created for the media.  Corwin's programs range far and wide through the genres of drama and comedy, including love stories, satire, biography, fantasy, mystery, Bible stories, travelogues, history, media analyses and philosophy  Over the years, he has worked in various media, publishing a number of books and writing for the stage, television and film. His books include “Trivializing America,” “Holes In A Stained Glass Window,” his collected correspondence; and many books of his scripts and poetry. His movie script for Lust For Life, a biography of Vincent Van Gogh, won him an Oscar nomination.  His television credits include his 1971 series “Norman Corwin Presents.”  Corwin returned triumphantly to radio in the 1990s with a series of new programs written and directed for NPR.  These new productions are destined as well to be considered audio theater classics, produced in full digital stereo and starring such luminaries as William Shatner, Jack Lemmon, Charles Kuralt, Martin Landau, Hume Cronyn, Charles Durning, Samantha Eggar and many others.

Robert Parsons (Abraham Lincoln) ROBERT PARSONS (Abe Lincoln) was most recently was seen as Prospero in The Tempest at Marin Shakespeare Company. New York: K at HERE.  Regional and International: The Rivalry, (Ford’s Theatre), The Black Rider-directed by Robert Wilson- (Sydney Festival and Ahmanson Theatre), ROCK ’n’ Roll, The Little Foxes, The Black Rider, Buried Child, The Colossus of Rhodes, and Good (A.C.T.), Rock ‘n’ Roll, (Huntington Theatre Company), Misalliance (Alley Theatre), The Heiress (Arizona Theatre Company and Berkeley Repertory Theatre) One Flea Spare (New Repertory Theatre), Cyrano de Bergerac and Two Gentlemen of Verona, (Oregon Shakespeare Festival).  Bay Area: Monkey Room, Tir Na Nog, Pleasure and Pain, The Right Kind of People, The Lonesome West, Ted Kaczynski Killed People w/bombs, Schrödinger’s Girlfriend and The American in Me (Magic Theatre), Keely and Du, I Am My Own Wife (San Jose Stage Co), Pal Joey, Communicating Doors and Visions of Kerouac (Marin Theatre Company), Private Jokes, Public Places (Aurora Theatre) as well as appearances at Word for Word, Shotgun Players, Z Space Studio, SF Playhouse and TheatreWorks. Awards: Dramalogue, Metrowest, Bay Area Critics Circle. Film: Black August and Almost Famous. T V: “Nash Bridges.” Robert is a founding member of Symmetry Theatre Company and holds an MFA from Temple University.

Josh Clark (Stephen Douglas) Broadway: EXECUTION OF JUSTICE, the March Hare in Eva Le Gallienne’s production of ALICE IN WONDERLAND, and THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER. Off Broadway: Three U.S. premieres at the Manhattan Theater Club, including THE REAR COLUMN by Simon Gray. The New York premiere of Mr. Gray’s MOLLY at the Hudson Guild, THE BROWNING VERSION at the Roundabout, THE OLD GLORY at American Place. Regional: iWITNESS at The Mark Taper Forum, where he also stood by for Martin Sheen in THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES. Various plays at the Long Wharf Theater, Williamstown Theater Festival, Seattle Rep, Walnut Street Theater, Cincinnati Playhouse, BILOXI BLUES and OF MICE AND MEN at The Pasadena Playhouse, among others. As a member of The Antaeus Company, he has performed in MOTHER COURAGE; Noel Coward’s series of short plays, TONIGHT AT 8:30; and Lillian Hellman’s THE AUTUMN GARDEN. FILM: The indie film I am I, Faster, Big, Ragtime, Little Nikita, Inherit the Wind, Kent State, George Washington (mini-series).  Recent TV: The pilot film “Hallelujah,” "Desperate Housewives,” “Law and Order: Los Angeles,” “Pretty Little Liars” (recurring role), "Supah Ninjas,” “All My Children” (recurring), “Lincoln Heights,” “Heroes” (recurring), “Dirt,” “Women’s Murder Club,” “Criminal Minds,” “Numb3rs,” “24,” “Sleeper Cell,” “E-Ring. Eight episodes as Lt. Carey in “Star Trek Voyager.” With L.A. Theatre Works, Mr. Clark has recorded THE CHERRY ORCHARD starring Jon Hamm, HAMLET, THE DICKENS PROJECT, END DAYS, and toured nationally with THE WAR OF THE WORLDS and LOST WORLD.

Rebecca Mozo (Adele Douglas) With LATW: A Tale of Charles Dickens, Three Sisters. Regional Theater: South Coast Rep: Doubt, a parable, The Heiress, Emilie, A Wrinkle in Time, In the Next Room or the vibrator play. The Colony Theatre : Trying (Ovation nomination ) Educating Rita. A Noise Within: Ghosts. Antaeus Theater : King Lear, Cousin Bette, Pets Palas, The Dresser, A Month in the Country. Center Theatre Group: Anya in The Cherry Orchard opposite Annette Bening and Alfred Molina. Shakespeare Theatre of NJ: A Midsummer Nights Dream, I Capture the Castle. (Rebecca is the first to play Cassandra in an American production) Film: Zerophilia, Headless Horseman, The Waterhole, Repatriate. TV: “Cold Case,” “Medium,” “Young and the Restless,”  “Pizza Time.”  Proud member of AEA and The Antaeus Company (Los Angeles)

Shannon Cochran (Director) ) has been working with L.A. Theatre Works for over 10 years. Beginning with Pygmalion starring Nicholas Pennell, and most recently appearing as ‘The Narrator’ in the tour of THE GREAT TENNESSEE MONKEY TRIAL, she has been a part of at least a dozen productions for LATW, and rdirected last year's tour of THE REAL DR. STRANGELOVE. She was seen in the Broadway national tour of August: Osage County, for which she received a Helen Hayes nomination. She won an Obie and Theatre World Award for her off-Broadway performance in Bug. She has had a 20 year association with Steppenwolf Theatre, and also has appeared at the Mark Taper Forum, Goodman, Long Wharf, South Coast Repertory, Writers Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse, and many others. She directed Bug for BareBones Theatre in Pittsburgh; Therese Raquin for Greasy Joan & Co. and Private Passage for the Odyssey Theatre, both in Chicago; and has also choreographed several productions, including A Day in Hollywood/ A Night in the Ukraine and THE Mikado for Cincinnati Hot Summer Nights. Her film credits include the just-completed The Perfect Family, with Kathleen Turner, The Ring, Star Trek: Nemesis, and The Babe. She has also had multiple television appearances throughout her career, including “Fringe,” "Off the Map, “ "Law & Order," "The Office,” "Desperate Housewives," “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Star Trek,” “Frasier,” “Seinfeld” and more. She is on the staff at the School at Steppenwolf, both in Chicago and Los Angeles. She has recorded several audiobooks, and recently won a Golden Earbud award for her work on the audiobook, FALLEN.

Susan Loewenberg (Producing Director) is founder and Producing Director of L.A. Theatre Works, a non-profit media arts and theater organization. Ms. Loewenberg has produced award-winning radio dramas, plays and films in Los Angeles, New York and London. Under her supervision, L.A. Theatre Works has amassed the largest library of recorded stage plays in America, garnering numerous awards from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Writers Guild, The American Library Association, Publishers Weekly and others. She is Executive Producer and host of L.A. Theatre Works’ National Radio show; a weekly syndicated program carried on NPR stations and heard throughout the United States and available worldwide via www.latw.org. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, she has served on innumerable boards and panels, including the National Endowment for the Arts, the California Arts Council, and The Fund for Independence in Journalism in Washington, D.C.  From 1996-2002, Ms. Loewenberg served on the Board of Directors for Federal Prison Industries, a presidential appointment. She co-chaired the League of Producers and Theatres of Greater Los Angeles and was a member of the regional panel of the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships.  Ms. Loewenberg is currently a member of the Board of Directors of The Center for Public Integrity.  She is the author of a number of articles that have appeared in American Theatre Magazine, the Los Angeles Times and various professional journals.

 

THE RIVALRY
TOUR DATES 2011-12

October 28, 2011
Forbes Center - James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA

November 1, 2 & 3, 2011
Polk Theater - Tennessee Performing Arts Center
Nashville, TN

November 4, 2011
Palmer Auditorium - Connecticut College
New London, CT

November 6, 2011
Gettysburg Majestic Theater
Gettysburg, PA

November 10, 2011
Temple Performing Arts Center - Temple University
Philadelphia, PA

November 11, 2011
Hylton Performing Arts Center - George Mason University
Manassas, VA

November 13, 2011
American Theatre
Hampton, VA

November 16 & 17, 2011
Diana Wortham Theatre
Asheville, NC

November 18, 2011
VA Memorial Theater
Johnson City, TN

January 27, 2012
Napa Valley Opera House
Napa, CA

January 29, 2012
Kanbar Hall - Jewish Community Center
San Francisco, CA

February 4, 2012
Renaissance Theatre
Mansfield, OH

February 7, 2012
Hall Auditorium - Miami University
Oxford, OH

February 10, 2012
Newlin Hall at Norton Center - Centre College
Danville, KY

February 12, 2012
Zeiterion Theatre
New Bedford, MA

February 16, 2012
Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts
Bloomington, IL

February 17, 18 & 19, 2012
DeBartolo Center - University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN

February 21, 2012
Doudna Fine Arts Center - Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, IL

February 23, 2012
Englert Theatre
Iowa City, IA

February 25 & 27, 2012
Harold D. McAninch Arts Center - College of DuPage
Glen Ellyn, IL

February 28, 2012
DeJong Concert Hall - Brigham Young University
Provo, UT

March 1, 2012
Gates Concert Hall - Newman Center
Denver, CO